Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show
Mike Florio talks NFL headlines & we hear from Ben Johnson (Hour 2)
14 Jan 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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Ladies and gentlemen, joining us now is a man who's got a massive brain. Mike Florio. He used to be a lawyer, then he decided to take his talents to the internet.
NBC Sports. I'm sorry I'm late, I was talking to Robert Kraft.
Chapter 2: What are the latest NFL headlines discussed by Mike Florio?
That isn't the time for an airing of grievances. Pro Football Talk. I got a lot of problems with you people.
No, you're going to hear about it.
On Chicago Sports Radio, 670 The Score.
I think somebody's got to take a victory lap when it comes to storytelling and reporting today. He's the creator and editor-in-chief of Pro Football Talk. He is at Pro Football Talk on X. And he is joining us via the Circa Sports Illinois hotline. Download the Circa Sports app today. Mike Florio, how are you?
I'm doing great. I'm doing great. Tell me more. What have I done now that turned out to be not complete and total bunk?
Well, first of all, Mike joins us on Twitch, twitch.tv slash Chicago670, the score if you want to see him. And secondly, the overwhelming confidence that people had about the fact that Matt LaFleur should be absolutely A-OK, 100% fine. Well, it's starting to percolate in Green Bay. Latest report from Adam Schefter saying that he and Ed Policy are still apart on a negotiation.
And this has been ongoing for months. And the confidence that a lot of people had in his job security, I don't think is nearly as much this week as it was this time last week.
This all goes back to what Ed Policy said in June. Two things. Number one, there wouldn't be an extension for Matt LaFleur before the end of the 2025 season. Number two, Ed Policy isn't a fan of lame duck arrangements where a coach is in the last year of his deal, which is what Matt LaFleur would be for 2026. So once they leaked that
they will discuss an extension with Matt LaFleur on the heels of the debacle on Saturday night, of which you all are well familiar, that doesn't mean they're going to get a deal done. The Packers may have seen this as an opportunity to lowball Matt LaFleur.
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Chapter 3: What is the status of Matt LaFleur's contract negotiations with the Packers?
Only 23 NFL teams currently have head coaches. That's how crazy it is this time around.
It absolutely is, and we were talking in our meeting, Mike, about the comments that Steve Bishotti made and how self-aware and normal-sounding they were when it came to not only his ownership of the Ravens and how he sees that playing out ultimately as he gets older, but the news about Mike Tomlin being available, that broke while he was speaking. Did you catch wind of any of that?
Oh, absolutely. He drops the S-bomb. We actually played the clip on our show today without the word being deleted, which was very refreshing to me because every once in a while Sims and I will let one fly live. So why not let it fly when it's in something that someone said? It was a great reaction.
And hey, there would surely be some Ravens fans that would love to see Mike Tomlin get to Baltimore. But remember this, the Steelers have rights to Mike Tomlin. Anyone that would want to hire him has to deal with the Steelers. And to the extent that teams are contacting Tomlin, they're technically tampering. They need to have permission from the Steelers first.
The Dolphins found that out the hard way four years ago when they got whacked for tampering with Tom Brady and Sean Payton. They had a plan where Brady was going to go work for the Dolphins in the front office. They were going to hire Sean Payton. Sean Payton was on board with it. Brady was going to decide during the offseason program he wants to keep playing.
He would have played for the Dolphins. That all got blown up, and the Dolphins lost a first-round pick. There was a million-and-a-half-dollar fine. Stephen Ross was suspended. So be careful. If you're a team looking for a coach and you're contacting Mike Tomlin, you could find yourself on the wrong side of a tampering charge.
Mike Florio joins us as he does each and every week here on Rahimi Harrison-Grody, the editor-in-chief and creator of Pro Football Talk. All right, so I'm trying to wrap my head around all these things going. Meanwhile, there is still football being played, and we started this by talking about Matt LaFleur.
How much have you been following this ever-growing beef between Matt LaFleur and Ben Johnson, and do you think it has real legs as far as other people being involved trying to have Matt LaFleur's back?
I remember when things like this would happen 20 years ago, some of the old school football people would express dismay. What has our game become? It's like pro wrestling. Well, guess what? That's the reason pro wrestling's successful. You have drama. And in pro wrestling, it's scripted. In the NFL, it just kind of happens. So I love it when
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Chapter 4: How does Mike Florio analyze the coaching carousel this season?
I think given, though, that Ryan Poles helped Matt Ryan in this process... I don't necessarily know that the talking would be an issue. I think it's more about just the, yeah, I guess officially, you know, that would be said. But another question I have regarding this is, then who would they get?
You know, you've talked a lot about candidates for GM positions that you think may deserve a second chance. They don't get them. You know, is there somebody on your mind who you think might be a better fit with that team now?
Well, look, Matt Ryan is going to be the guy who calls the shots here, and he has no experience running a football team. And we need to be fair. I've criticized others in the past. It worked out for John Elway in Denver.
Chapter 5: What insights does Mike Florio provide on John Harbaugh's coaching situation?
He had no experience as an NFL executive or scout or anything. He was a player, a great player for a long time. He had confidence in his ability to scout because he learned it from his father. It worked out in large part because he won the Peyton Manning sweepstakes 14 years ago. But That's the real question. What is Matt Ryan looking for?
And if he hears no, no, no from the teams that have current executives that can be blocked, he's going to have to find somebody, whether it is one of the GMs out there that that. for whatever reason, and coaches get recycled, GMs generally do not. Some do, some do, but usually you get one shot as a GM. So that's going to be the challenge.
And there's plenty of people in broadcasting who aspire to be general managers. We hear about that all the time. Louis Riddick has been trying to angle for a GM job forever. He'd be a guy who would obviously be in line for an interview because no one could say no to the Falcons making him the GM, even if he wouldn't truly be the GM of the Falcons.
OK, news out of Philadelphia, not surprising. Kevin Petullo out as offensive coordinator after they fail to get back to the Super Bowl. I'm so curious as to your thoughts about how we're doing this from a building a team with a head coach who's not an offensive minded head coach, more of a CEO type like what you might see in college. And knowing that if your guy's good, he's going to leave.
And that's resulted in Jalen Hurts having a different play caller for as long as I can remember each and every season. What do you think about the next guy that they hire for that job and whether or not head coaches should be the offensive mind because of the way the league is going?
It's an amazing rollercoaster that the Eagles have been on. Shane Steichen, after the 2022 season, Eagles go to the Super Bowl. He gets the head coaching job in Indianapolis. 23, Brian Johnson, the guy that took his place, that season was a disaster. He gets fired and Nick Sirianni had to have a good plan for 24 or he would have been in trouble.
enter kellen moore great job win a super bowl kellen moore is the head coach of the saints now one year with kevin petula it's a disaster and sirianni has been able somehow because he was an offensive coordinator he's somehow been able to avoid blame for the performance of the offense even though offense is his side of the ball i think this next hire for him is critical and the problem is if he does it
Right, if he hits a home run, he's going to be right back in this spot next year because that guy's going to be a head coach in the 2027 cycle. It's just a weird spot that the Eagles are in. And the deeper problem there, they need to find a way to get more out of Jalen Hurts. The reports have...
begun to become more prevalent it started with Derek Gunn who's been covering the Eagles forever it happened during the season the idea that Jalen Hurts is frustrating coaches and players because he does his own thing when it's time to go run the plays that are called and he's got a lot of power over the team because of his contract structure they are stuck with him the cap hit would be astronomical if they would trade him or they wouldn't release him but if they would release him
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Chapter 6: What are the challenges faced by the Bears' coaching staff?
And for a lot of them, that was a first.
Yeah, well, I think they've handled it really well. And I think we're going to do a good job here shifting the focus. starting our work week just like we've been doing each and every week. And that's really what it comes down to is you can't let a win or a loss linger for too long. And that's our job as coaches to make sure we have the right mindset going into the week.
And I keep saying it every week, it feels like, but our veteran leadership, I mean, they're phenomenal. I don't know if I've been around it quite at this level before, just week in and week out, you know that they have a good pulse. for the locker room and their message is going to be really what our team needs to hear.
The topic of veteran leadership, how have you felt Grady this year and even recently in that?
Yeah. Well, I think he's, he is wired the way we want our entire team wired. I felt that from his first press conference here all the way up until now. And, We hit that little hiatus, if you will, early in the season where he's working through his injury. And so his impact probably isn't quite as pronounced as it was in the offseason or where it is now. I feel it.
These young players are coming along. They're developing. And I think his playoff experience and really these big games that he's been a part of throughout his career, I do think that that translates and really hits home with a lot of our guys.
And what's it like coaching Caleb in big moments? And what have you learned about his poise?
Yeah, there's not a whole lot you need to say to him on the sideline. We just make sure we're on the same page in terms of what the situation is and what we need to accomplish and how quickly we need to accomplish it. But beyond that, it's not like he needs a pep talk or a rah-rah or anything like that. He's ready to go. I've been saying it all along. He rises to the occasion time and time again.
It's really impressive to see a young player like this be so clutch.
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