The Chris Rawle Show
578 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 79 ratingsA thoughtful exploration of the world through the prism of sports.
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Episodes
Rookie QBs Are Struggling & Matt Stafford Is The MVP: Situation Is Everything
September 29, 2021 15:50 - 33 minutes - 15.2 MBYou are what your surroundings say you are. The NFL season is only 3 weeks old and hot takes are flying. This rookie quarterback class is garbage! Sam Darnold and Teddy Bridgewater are great! Matt Stafford is the MVP of football! While individual talent obviously plays a role, the ultimate ceiling of each of these players will be defined by their situation.
Moments Of Truth For Arkansas, Georgia, Ole Miss, Alabama, Cincinnati & ND
September 28, 2021 15:42 - 31 minutes - 14.3 MBEvery college football season is comprised of moments of truth, games that give us a window into who you are as a football team. This weekend features plenty of matchups for contending teams: Arkansas-Georgia, Mississippi-Alabama, Cincinnati-Notre Dame. What is the truth for each of them?
How Can You Not Be Romantic About Football?
September 27, 2021 16:07 - 42 minutes - 19.7 MBWelcome to Monday On The Margins, a weekly examination of the miniscule differences between wins and losses (like in Nebraska-Michigan State or Clemson-NC State), good bets and bad bets (hello, Akron-Ohio State and Notre Dame-Wisconsin), and public opinion surrounding clutch play (HELLO, Lamar Jackson-Justin Tucker and Aaron Rodgers-Mason Crosby).
Lamar Jackson, Baker Mayfield & The Fairness Of QB Criticism
September 23, 2021 16:42 - 32 minutes - 14.8 MBQB is the number one position in sports that is evaluated improperly. Criticism abounds for quarterbacks who play in a non-traditional manner, or haven’t won a Super Bowl, or both. Two quarterbacks in particular (Lamar Jackson and Baker Mayfield) carry this criticism despite otherworldly college careers and so far, successful NFL careers.
What Would Bill Belichick Do?
September 22, 2021 15:43 - 27 minutes - 12.4 MBHerm Edwards said it best: “You play to win the game!” A startling amount of teams and coaches don’t abide by this rule to the fullest extent. The very best coaches, from John Harbaugh to Bill Belichick, create weekly gameplans based upon what gives their team the best chance to win. In a sport where the margins between winning and losing are so small, every possible edge matters.
Cincinnati, BYU, Coastal Carolina: Climbing Rungs In The CFB Playoff Race
September 21, 2021 16:14 - 34 minutes - 15.8 MBWho merits inclusion in a four-team college football playoff? Through the early weeks of the season, Clemson and Ohio State have fallen while a slew of other teams (Penn State, Oregon, Iowa, Mississippi, Arkansas) have impressed. Three squads in particular (Cincinnati, BYU, and Coastal Carolina) present a good litmus test for the college football playoff selection committee: how serious will non-Power 5 programs be treated in the national title race?
Alabama’s Mortality, Third Down Punting & Lamar Bests Mahomes
September 20, 2021 16:15 - 44 minutes - 20.2 MBWelcome to Monday On The Margins, an examination of the tiniest, strangest things that decide the outcome of a football game: players, coaches, refs, weather, and simple twists of fate. This weekend featured a wide variety of games that boiled down to one play or one decision, including NYG-WFT, Florida-Alabama, Auburn-Penn State, Chargers-Cowboys, Vikings-Cardinals, and Chiefs-Ravens.
Can You Change Who You Are?
September 16, 2021 17:08 - 36 minutes - 16.9 MBThere is a simple question threaded through life, and sports: can you morph into something different, or will you always revert back to your base form? Nebraska heads into Saturday’s game against Oklahoma as fans wonder if the Cornhuskers possess the capacity to change their mistake-filled ways. Vic Fangio and the Denver Broncos head into a game against the Jaguars with Fangio seeking to expand his Week 1 coaching metamorphosis from conservative to aggressive. Is game-manger Jameis Winston h...
What Is The Ceiling Of Patrick Mahomes?
September 15, 2021 15:26 - 31 minutes - 14.6 MBIt is rare to watch a player and feel like their ceiling is unlimited. Patrick Mahomes, entering his fourth season as starting quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs and unquestionably the best player in football, seems destined to be an all-time great. What is his ceiling?
Week 1 Losses For The Packers, Bills & Browns: When Is The Correct Time To Panic?
September 14, 2021 15:59 - 35 minutes - 16.4 MBFootball is great because the season is short. Every game seems (and to a certain extent, is) meaningful. With so few games compared to other sports, there is always a sense of urgency amplified by every loss. Week 1 of the NFL season is in the books and half the league (including the Packers, Bills, Browns, Jets, Jaguars, and Giants) is 0-1. When is the correct time to panic?
Establishing An Identity & The In-Game Coaching Decisions Of Mike McCarthy
September 13, 2021 16:07 - 41 minutes - 18.9 MBThe largest part of a football coach’s responsibility is establishing the identity of a team. When it comes to a coach’s impact on wins and losses, this weekend featured a bevy of examples both good (Andy Reid, Kevin Stefanski, Mario Christobal) and bad (Mike McCarthy, Clay Helton, Mike Norvell).
The Role Of Injury Luck In The NFL
September 10, 2021 16:10 - 27 minutes - 37.7 MBOne of the biggest questions of every NFL season is who can stay healthy. Last year’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad is a testament to the impact of good health, riding a talented roster and fortunate injury luck to a Super Bowl win. What role does injury luck play in shaping every NFL season? And what are expectations for star players (like Odell Beckham, Dak Prescott, Saquon Barkley, Nick Bosa, and David Bakhtiari) as they return from injury?
How Valuable Is Continuity? Ask The Tampa Bay Buccaneers
September 08, 2021 16:10 - 32 minutes - 15 MBThe Tampa Bay Buccaneers return all 22 starters from last year’s Super Bowl championship squad, an unprecedented blend of talent and continuity. On the opposite end of the spectrum are teams like the New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars, seeking to establish that continuity and cohesion with new coaching staffs and quarterbacks. In a sport that relies on 11-man units working in concert with one another, what is the value of continuity?
The Return Of Defense & The Inevitability Of Nick Saban And Alabama Football
September 07, 2021 15:52 - 25 minutes - 11.7 MBIn present day, football is all about offense. Over the opening weekend of college football, however, multiple defenses (Penn State, Iowa, Georgia) seized the day. Is it possible for the sport to return to a balance of explosive offenses and ferocious defenses, with either capable of winning a national championship? Or is the transitioning of Alabama from defensive juggernaut to offensive powerhouse showing us that in college football, offense is king until Nick Saban says otherwise?
College Football Week 1: Chaos Is Preferable To Calm
September 02, 2021 16:45 - 29 minutes - 13.4 MBCollege football is anarchy presented as stable fact, a sport that emphasizes chaos over calm. Week one begins in earnest this weekend. What matchups seize the day? Ohio State-Minnesota or Boise-UCF? Penn State-Wisconsin or Indiana-Iowa? ULL-Texas or Alabama-Miami? How much chaos awaits in Georgia-Clemson? College football is back and it’s time to celebrate the most beautiful, imperfect sport in the world.
A Game Of Inches: How An Index Card Can Decide A Football Game
September 01, 2021 15:57 - 24 minutes - 11 MBNearly everything in life has a healthy dose of luck involved. Sports are no different, with one of the oldest cliches (“a game of inches”) continually ringing true. Football games can be decided by a fourth down mark (like 2016 Michigan-Ohio State) or even more absurdly, referee Gene Steratore measuring margins with an index card (like 2017 Cowboys-Raiders). When it comes to putting percentages on the PGA Tour, the difference 12 inches can make is vast. Many times it all boils down to luck.
Bryson Dechambeau vs Patrick Cantlay: What Constitutes Choking?
August 31, 2021 16:04 - 34 minutes - 15.7 MBChoking is one of the most common terms in the sports lexicon and for many, synonymous with losing. Bryson Dechambeau and Patrick Cantlay engaged in a scintillating duel at the BMW Championship with Cantlay emerging victorious after six playoff holes. This battle — one that featured emotional swings and incredible shot making in equal quantities — is the perfect place to ask and examine one simple question: what constitutes choking?
Love The Challenge Of The Day, Whatever That May Be
August 30, 2021 16:30 - 22 minutes - 10.1 MBHow do you find meaning in anything you do? There is no overarching answer to this question and motivation must be found on an individual level. Golf psychologist Bob Rotella once proclaimed you must “love the challenge of the day, whatever that may be,” words that contain revelatory truth for the Nebraska football program after a stunning season opening loss to Illinois. How does Nebraska embrace the challenge of rebuilding a once-proud program that makes the same mistakes, over and over, r...
Nobody Cares About Your Story Unless You Win: Examining Tom Brady & Chris Paul
August 26, 2021 16:02 - 24 minutes - 11.1 MBWarped narrative has gained popularity as hot take culture has consumed the world of sports. If people see something talked about enough, many times it becomes reality. In this vein, Tom Brady is acknowledged as the ultimate winner while Chris Paul has been stamped as a perennial loser. As narrative continues to battle reality, are the words of Paul — “nobody cares about your story unless you win” — true?
Will Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, & Clemson Rule College Football Forever?
August 25, 2021 15:24 - 24 minutes - 11.4 MBFour teams (Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, & Clemson) have a stranglehold on their conferences like never before. College football has always existed under the umbrella of two truths: there will always be a ruling class, but who those teams are is cyclical. Since the playoff was instituted in 2014 that has not been the case. Is the cyclical nature of things being replaced by the status quo?
Finding Patience In A World Defined By Urgency
August 24, 2021 15:55 - 37 minutes - 17 MBIn a world defined by urgency, patience can exist as both blessing and curse. Part of the championship puzzle for many teams (like the Phoenix Suns, Utah Jazz, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, and Arizona Cardinals) is trying to find a harmonious balance between patience and urgency. This extends to individual athletes like Josh Allen, Ryan Tannehill, and especially Tony Finau, whose recent victory at The Northern Trust represents the perfect case of patience rewarded.
There Is No Such Thing As Standing Still
August 23, 2021 15:41 - 30 minutes - 13.8 MBThe process of improvement in the game of golf mimics the team-building process in the world of professional sports. Both revolve around three foundational principles (constant self-assessment, identification of truth, and belief) and how they work in unison dictates the terms of improvement.
The NFL & The Speed At Which Things Move
August 19, 2021 15:42 - 30 minutes - 13.9 MBSpeed is an essential component of the NFL, both on and off the field. Players running at warp speed comprise a sport where teams can jump from first to last (or vice versa) in the blink of an eye. As philosophies continue to move quickly, what is the most straightforward path to contention in 2021?
Losing Is Not Always Failure: Is It Possible For The Best Player Ever To Not Win A Championship?
August 18, 2021 15:29 - 27 minutes - 12.5 MBFor the most part, fans and media alike subscribe to a certain mindset within the world of sports: winners win, losers lose. This raises a lot of questions about the impact one individual can have on winning a championship. Should losing always be considered failure? And is it possible for the best player ever to go championship-less?
Expectations vs Reality
August 17, 2021 15:23 - 28 minutes - 13.3 MBThe NBA regular season is about your strengths and the playoffs about your weaknesses. The Utah Jazz and Rudy Gobert are in the offseason, trying to bridge the gap between their league-best regular season and 6-game playoff flameout against the Clippers. What are realistic expectations for this particular Jazz roster and Gobert as one of their foundational pieces?
The Captivity Of Past Success
August 16, 2021 16:00 - 32 minutes - 14.8 MBFrom 1969-2001, Nebraska had one of the most successful runs in the history of college football. Since then, not so much. How does the program balance expectations against reality, while not falling victim to past success?
The Most Valuable Commodity In The NFL
August 12, 2021 15:29 - 27 minutes - 12.5 MBNothing is more valuable in the NFL than a quality starting QB on a rookie contract. Many NFL teams (like the Bengals, Chargers, Jaguars, and Jets) are seeking to find a balance between patience and urgency in order to maximize the financial flexibility of having a rookie under center.
The Separation Between Blue Blood & Upstart In College Football
August 11, 2021 15:29 - 25 minutes - 11.7 MBThere has never been a more relevant time to reflect on the past, present, and future of college football than now. As struggling blue bloods (like Tennessee, Michigan, Nebraska, Miami) try to find their way back to relevancy, successful upstart programs (like Kansas State, Virginia Tech, Boise State) try to understand their place within the sport. At its best, college football has always been a game of thrones scenario: a blend of blue bloods fighting for power versus up-and-comers eager to...
Nathan MacKinnon & Establishing A Winning Culture
August 10, 2021 15:31 - 30 minutes - 14.1 MBHow do you establish a culture that is conducive to winning? Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche are in the process of establishing themselves as a Stanley Cup contender. As the best player on the team, MacKinnon is both a tone setter and responsible for demanding the best from himself and his teammates. What is the most effective way of maximizing the abilities of the team?
The Times They Are A-Changin'
August 09, 2021 15:59 - 27 minutes - 12.5 MBOver the last decade, college football has undergone a philosophical shift: passing wins championships. Nobody represents this transition more than Alabama, who has won 6 national championships since 2009 playing two drastically different styles of offense. Two other sports, golf and basketball, are also grappling with recent changes and whether or not those changes are positive. In the words of Bob Dylan, “The times they are a-changing.”
The Evolution Of The QB
August 06, 2021 16:15 - 25 minutes - 34.9 MBThe future of the QB position in the NFL has never been brighter. It’s the biggest draw to the best sport in the world. It’s brightness is tied to its evolution and an increased understanding of the words of Peyton Manning: “There's a place for everybody and there are different ways to play the position.”
The Process Of Improvement
August 05, 2021 16:05 - 27 minutes - 38.3 MBIn football, the process of individual and organizational improvement are attached at the hip. Nowhere is this more true than at quarterback, a position dependent upon blockers, pass catchers, runners, and play calling. Over the course of 3 years, Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills have worked in unison to maximize the improvement of each party. Situation is everything.
Nobody Knows Anything
August 04, 2021 16:24 - 31 minutes - 43.2 MBA simple and enlightening fact of life: nobody knows anything. Franchises will make both terrible and awesome picks within the same draft, and terrible and awesome signings within the same free agency period. The smartest organizations agree that roster building becomes a numbers game: asset accumulation is the best pathway to success, because all organizations will (sooner rather than later) whiff on picks, signings, and evaluations.
The Unintended Consequences Of Conference Realignment
August 03, 2021 15:51 - 30 minutes - 41.5 MBIn the past, upsets have been the beating heart and soul of college football. With the shift towards a 4-team playoff and now conference realignment, iconic upsets (like 2007 Boise-OU or 2007 Appalachian State-Michigan) are slowly being weaned out of the sport. What are the unintended consequences of Oklahoma and Texas moving to the SEC? In the words of Nick Saban, “No one can honestly tell you what is going to happen.”
A Question Of Fit: Westbrook To The Lakers
August 02, 2021 17:38 - 29 minutes - 41.2 MBRussell Westbrook is going to the Los Angeles Lakers in the biggest move of the NBA offseason so far. Will the acquisition of Westbrook’s talent overcome the questionable fit?
Sand Through The Hourglass
July 30, 2021 16:22 - 28 minutes - 38.5 MBAaron Rodgers held a press conference Wednesday afternoon that laid bare his grievances with Green Bay Packers management, saying, “I’m always going to be optimistic on change being possible.” Rodgers also traced the arc of his career, fully aware that time is running out.
The Most Systemic Game There Is
July 29, 2021 16:37 - 42 minutes - 98 MBRings culture would have you believe championships are the ultimate reflection of an individual’s performance. How long will people continue believing that a debate about individual quarterbacks in football, the most systemic sport in existence, can be solved simply by who wins or loses?
The Last Dance Packers & The Return Of Aaron Rodgers
July 28, 2021 15:50 - 32 minutes - 14.8 MBAfter a long, strange offseason, Aaron Rodgers has returned to the Green Bay Packers. It seems likely this is the final ride, a Super Bowl or bust season before Rodgers and Green Bay part ways. How do you find balance between joy and the pursuit of winning when the stakes are this high?
Texas & OU To The SEC: The Butterfly Effect Of Conference Realignment
July 27, 2021 15:38 - 33 minutes - 15.2 MBIn conference realignment, there are far more losers than winners. Texas and Oklahoma have both announced they are leaving the Big 12 for the SEC, sending shock waves through the college football universe. Every realignment shift mirrors the butterfly effect: small change eventually begets enormous change. What is college football moving forward?
The Capacity To Change
July 26, 2021 15:35 - 28 minutes - 12.9 MBTo what extent is change possible? Can you become somebody else entirely, or will you always revert back to whatever you are at your core? Golf is a game that demands constant change in order to achieve success and nobody has embodied this more over the past 5 years than Bryson DeChambeau. While he has shown a willingness to change physically, there are many questions that exist about his emotional and mental approaches to the game. Is change possible?
The Chaotic Side Of Trying To Win A Championship
July 22, 2021 16:04 - 32 minutes - 14.9 MBYou can build the perfect team and still not win a championship. Unpredictable events shape every championship team (like the 2021 Milwaukee Bucks) and every team who falters (like the 2002 Sacramento Kings or the 2013 Auburn football team). It's the chaos theory of team building: control everything you can control on your side, then hope like hell the breaks of the game go your way.
All Is Forgiven When You Win
July 21, 2021 16:05 - 27 minutes - 12.7 MBThe Milwaukee Bucks are the 2021 NBA champions after another otherworldly performance from Giannis Antetokounmpo. In a battle of small market teams, the Bucks won their first championship in 50 years as the Suns watched the opportunity for their first in franchise history slip away.
The Many Roads To Victory
July 20, 2021 15:48 - 29 minutes - 13.5 MBThere are many roads to victory in professional sports. The NFL features recent examples like the KC Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while the NBA Finals has two teams who are embracing past strategies like interior domination and scoring in the midrange. The smartest teams and most talented players are able to blend past, present, and future into a championship combination.
A Change In Legacy
July 19, 2021 15:57 - 31 minutes - 14.3 MBTwo incredible sporting events dominated the weekend, Game 5 of the NBA Finals and The British Open. Both featured star performances that fuel one of the more complicated yet enjoyable aspects of sports: the always changing legacies of players and teams.
The Elemental Side Of Golf
July 16, 2021 15:44 - 26 minutes - 12.3 MBGolf in its purest form is a physical, emotional, and mental test. The British Open, currently taking place at Royal St. George's in England, presents an immense challenge via the elemental side of golf. It is the most compelling viewing product in professional golf, one that allows a diverse range of skillsets and ages to contend, and a celebration of the ever-changing familiarity within the game.
The Best Adjustment: Play Better
July 15, 2021 16:17 - 27 minutes - 12.4 MBX-and-O adjustments are fine and good, but many times the best adjustment in a playoff series is simply playing better. The Bucks defeated the Suns in Game 4 of the NBA Finals to tie the series at 2-2 and both sides were boosted by players (Devin Booker, Khris Middleton) delivering their best performances of the series. Who needs to play better in Game 5?
Donovan Mitchell & Hope
July 14, 2021 16:53 - 28 minutes - 13.1 MBIn the NBA, there is nothing more valuable than a proven playoff scorer. Donovan Mitchell is four years into his career and has already shown a tantalizing ability to score against multiple playoff defenses and individual defenders. It's the single biggest reason for hope within the Jazz franchise and part of the beautiful, optimistic amnesia that fills an offseason.
What Could've Been
July 13, 2021 16:03 - 32 minutes - 15.1 MBIn a way that is hard to process, sports can be completely random. Unknowability in turn leads to wistfulness, a common feeling amongst fans that watch their team lose. It's one of the most powerful emotional threads that binds fans across a variety of sports: the feeling of what could have been.
An Accumulation Of Edges
July 12, 2021 16:24 - 28 minutes - 13.1 MBFor the second straight game, Giannis Antetokounmpo played a sublime individual game of basketball in the NBA Finals. In Game 2, the Suns won by 10. Last night in Game 3, the Bucks won by 20. What changed around Giannis's performances that resulted in such a drastic swing? An accumulation of small edges.
Giannis, In A Losing Effort
July 09, 2021 15:47 - 26 minutes - 11.9 MBGiannis Antetokounmpo played an outstanding game of basketball in Game 2 of the NBA Finals and his team lost. The Phoenix Suns relied on team-wide contributions to trump a brilliant individual performance from Giannis, another lost performance of the playoffs and sobering reminder that situation is nearly everything.