As we grapple with the heartbreaking loss of Vontae Davis, we reflect on not just his legacy but also the unforeseen choices some athletes make, like Rasheed Rice's recent street racing debacle. Our latest episode promises to explore the complexities of life both on and off the field, calling out for a blend of celebration and wisdom from our professional sports heroes. We extend our heartfelt thoughts to Davis's loved ones, and while discussing the perplexing decisions of certain NFL stars, we also emphasize the urgent need for clarity and responsibility.
The NFL's off-season is a chessboard where the shrewd and calculated maneuvers of GMs like Howie Roseman set up for the impending season, and we're here to break down these game-changing moves. Listen in as we analyze the Eagles' strategic contract decisions, delve into the buzz around Tyler Boyd's free agency, and consider the enigmatic financial dynamics shaping his journey. We'll also dissect the latest trade plays that are shaping the teams we love, scrutinizing the thought process behind each move and considering the impacts they'll have on the upcoming season.
Stepping into the electrifying world of WrestleMania 40, our anticipation reaches new heights as we share our predictions and dissect the storylines that will have fans on the edge of their seats. Special guest Thomas Brown Jr. joins us to discuss the high-octane drama and potential upsets, from Sammy Zayn's championship dreams to the Roman Reigns saga. We examine the possible aftereffects of the big event and the storylines leading up to it, praising Triple H for his narrative craftsmanship. Together, we amp up the excitement for what's to come, reminding fans to stay tuned for the latest updates and breaking news.
As we grapple with the heartbreaking loss of Vontae Davis, we reflect on not just his legacy but also the unforeseen choices some athletes make, like Rasheed Rice's recent street racing debacle. Our latest episode promises to explore the complexities of life both on and off the field, calling out for a blend of celebration and wisdom from our professional sports heroes. We extend our heartfelt thoughts to Davis's loved ones, and while discussing the perplexing decisions of certain NFL stars, we also emphasize the urgent need for clarity and responsibility.
The NFL's off-season is a chessboard where the shrewd and calculated maneuvers of GMs like Howie Roseman set up for the impending season, and we're here to break down these game-changing moves. Listen in as we analyze the Eagles' strategic contract decisions, delve into the buzz around Tyler Boyd's free agency, and consider the enigmatic financial dynamics shaping his journey. We'll also dissect the latest trade plays that are shaping the teams we love, scrutinizing the thought process behind each move and considering the impacts they'll have on the upcoming season.
Stepping into the electrifying world of WrestleMania 40, our anticipation reaches new heights as we share our predictions and dissect the storylines that will have fans on the edge of their seats. Special guest Thomas Brown Jr. joins us to discuss the high-octane drama and potential upsets, from Sammy Zayn's championship dreams to the Roman Reigns saga. We examine the possible aftereffects of the big event and the storylines leading up to it, praising Triple H for his narrative craftsmanship. Together, we amp up the excitement for what's to come, reminding fans to stay tuned for the latest updates and breaking news.
Here we are, yeah, playing a lot of tricks today, playing a lot of tricks today. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, this is the DK and Tree podcast, with your host of your evening, thomas Brown Jr. Let's get this thing started, baby. How's everybody doing tonight? We got a lot of things on tap today. We got a lot of things that we're going to cover, we're going to talk about and we're going to get right to it, man. So first we're going to start on a somber note.
TJ :As many of you have found out yesterday yesterday that Vontae Davis, former NFL cornerback, passed away at the age of 35. And it was out of nowhere. It was out of nowhere, you know. It was one of those things that kind of threw me in for a loop when I saw the notification in my phone yesterday. The Davis family, vernon and the entire Davis family just sending our prayers and condolences over to them as they're going through such a challenging time.
TJ :This was a guy that was pretty serviceable man 22 interceptions in his career, 98 passes defended, 396 total tackles. Usually corners don't really tackle, so the fact that you see a number that high tells you the kind of player he was. He was pretty good, so it's gut-wrenching when you come across stuff like this, because you just it just doesn't make sense. You know, like we're still trying to figure out what, what was the cause of death, and we try to ask so many different questions because we just it just never makes sense. But it's just one of those things, man, man, where I tell people all the time you never know when your last moment will be. So continue to do your best to do right by one another, be kind to one another and just continue to be there for one another. You just never know, because even something like, even something like this, there ain't no one that thought that that he would, he would be gone this soon. Thirty five, thirty five. So that that's a that's gut wrenching man. So the NFL community, the NFL family, we're definitely mourning his loss and you know the Davis family as a whole is going to be going through some troubling waters for the foreseeable future. So continue to send prayers and condolences their way.
TJ :We're going to go from that to now. We're going to talk about something that just I still don't understand. What's going on? Rasheed Rice for those of you who have been living under a rock for the last 24 to 48 hours or so. Apparently, rasheed Rice did something that he had no business doing, which was street racing, and it led to an accident. And everything else after that is like I don't know, I don't know if it's true or not, I don't know what's what, I don't know what's what.
TJ :It's very interchangeable depending on who you, who you listen to, what information you're getting it from. Things of that nature. Here's my thing, man Um. Things of that nature. Here's my thing, man, um.
TJ :First of all, in a, in a silly way, man, patrick mahomes can't catch a break, dog, he cannot, he cannot catch a break to save his life. It just seems like every single year, every time my homes, you know, finally gets that, that that guy at y receiver, whether it was tyreek hill or you know, think you know the hype that was around cadarious tony when he got picked up, and, and you know, mccall hardman, and the list goes on and on Like he's always wanted to have that guy, that guy similar to what he had with Tyreek Hill. And it seems like ever since Tyreek Hill has left, the wide receiver core has not been the same. It just it just hasn't, and, and it is, it drives. It drives me nuts, and I can only imagine how much it drives Mahomes nuts behind the scenes as much as he likes to be calm, cool and collected. But that's just on the side, right? So, rasheed Rice, right, honestly, what are we doing? What are we doing, man? Like I don't, I can't really think of it any other way. Like, what are we honestly doing During this offseason? I mean doing street racing. And then what makes matters worse is you have what's going on JB, what's going on being crazy in offseason. Yeah, it's just unbelievable how, like, people just can't just relax. It is appalling to me how a team or, in this case, a player, can't even celebrate in victory properly without something bad happening. My goodness, you have Rasheed Rice who, by the way, you have Rasheed Rice who, by the way, towards the end of last year, was really becoming Patrick Mahomes' favorite guy, outside of Travis Kelsey, obviously and he was showing up, especially when it came to playoff time 100-plus yards receiving against the Dolphins in the playoff game and one of, if not the coolest game in NFL history. Rasheed Rice was a huge factor in that game. He was a huge factor throughout this entire season. A rookie on top of that man, what are we doing. He was a huge factor throughout this entire season. A rookie on top of that man.
TJ :What are we doing? I don't think there's any other sentence I could use to describe it. What are we doing, seriously, out of all the things you could be doing to celebrate being a champion having a Super Bowl ring, a champion Having a Super Bowl ring, and we're doing this foolishness? I don't get it. I don't get it. I don't get it. It drives me insane. It really does. So let's hope that A this whole Chase thing could just end, please, because this is getting ridiculous.
TJ :I know the Chiefs put out a statement on the matter that I got a chance to read a little bit about, but it's kind of embarrassing no, not kind of, it is, it is and the fact that we're still doing this thing it's insane. Did we not forget? Thank you, like we're just, we're just gonna keep doing this dumb stuff over and over and over again. I don't understand. I really don't. And it just puts into perspective of how, like how this, just we just got to do better. Man, my God, as a rookie who won in his first year, like that's like one of the best feelings in the world and on top of that, you played a part in that. You made that happen To now fast forward to a couple months later, and now we don't know how to act all together. And now no one can find you. And apparently he wasn't alone in this endeavor.
TJ :And this is where we get into the conversation of. You are the company that you keep. Well, when you get into certain levels in life, some things do gotta change, some people have to change, and if some people are offended or affected by that, then so be it. But for where you are going to be at this stage of your career, you need to make those changes. And you need to make those changes and you need to let some stuff go, because if you don't, they're going to cost you money. If you don't, it's going to cost you your career. And that's practically what's going on in both instances with Rasheed Rice, and it sucks. Can't even get out of the rookie contract without doing anything stupid. It's insane, it's insane. So hopefully they get all that sorted out, because at this point, every time I hear about it, it's just driving me completely crazy to even think about um. So that that just needs to. That just needs to be sorted out, man. That just needs to be sorted out. Um, so that's what she writes.
TJ :Uh, we also had a trade going on from the city of brotherly love from a few days ago where we, the Philadelphia Eagles, decided to trade Hassan Redick to the New York football Jets J-E-T-S Jets, jets Jets for a 2026 third rounder. And you know what? I get it, I get it. I get it. Hassan Redick was on the last year of his deal in Philly, was on the last year of his deal in Philly and there was some murmurs going on towards the end of the season about him potentially getting moved. Then it was turned down. How are we going to keep us on All this other stuff? Then the noise started picking back up again once free agency started and it was like, well, nothing's been said, so we're probably going to keep Hassan, whatever.
TJ :I don't think, as an Eagles fan, I don't think it was going to bother anybody if he had stayed. This is a guy who, although the stats did not show it this past season because, if we're being honest, the defense as a whole was just god-awful, of course, so no one was going to be super productive on that defense. I wouldn't expect that from Hassan Reddick either. He finished the year with six and a half sacks, got quite a few hurries this year, but other than that it was more so of just trying to get through the season. It just seemed like towards the end for the defense and just for the team as a whole, right. So you have him, who was on the final year of his deal.
TJ :I'm pretty sure for those of you that don't know, high Roseman, the GM of the Philadelphia Eagles, we don't like putting a whole lot of money into places that we're not going to have an ROI on. By the way, roi stands for return on investment, not really our thing, you know we're. We're a front office that we may like you, but don't expect for us to love you. Um, now, there may. There are obviously exceptions to the rule, especially those two who just recently retired this in this offseason, talking about about Jason Kelsey and Fletcher Cox. Those guys are eagles for lifers, but if you're not fitting in that mold, then don't expect to get a huge payday out of us for a long-term deal.
TJ :It's just not really Philly's thing and how he saw that this was what was going. Those type of conversations were going to come up, if not during the season then, easily, once the season was over, and he just said you know what we're going to beat it to the punch, we're going to take care of was over, and he just said you know what we're going to beat it to the punch, we're going to take care of this now and we're going to eliminate the noise before the season even starts. I think it's a smart move and, by the way, to get a third rounder back is actually better than I thought, better than I anticipated, because the third rounder and I looked into this today actually could turn into a second rounder if certain implications are met, which I think is pretty, pretty cool for Philly, a team that is a relatively young roster but could always use some more picks. And, if recent history hasn't shown you, we have a tendency of getting the right guys in a row. So I think that was great. I think that was great for both parties actually, because, ironically, we signed Bryce Huff from the Jets for three years and I believe it was $51 million Just for us to trade Hasan Reddick to the same Jets, to get draft capital in return, which is I ain't gonna lie, that is the most interesting backhanded trade I have ever seen, if I've ever seen one. So I've said it before and I've said it again man, howie Roseman, keep doing your thing, man, you are doing your thing, man.
TJ :In other news, tyler Boyd is visiting some teams today, one of them being the Kansas City Chiefs. How ironic is that? Given what I just spoke about earlier, I think the timing of hearing that news today was very interesting. Kansas City and San Francisco so the two championship teams are going after the slot receiver teams are going after the slot receiver. Tyler Boyd finished the year off last year with close to 700 yards receiving.
TJ :He played every single game and he was just always the odd man out in the lion's share of T Higgins, jamar Chase and even, to a lesser degree, joe Mixon in that offense. So Tyler Boyd was always the odd man out every time and it just hasn't failed him yet since they drafted Jamar Chase a couple years ago. It hasn't failed him yet since they drafted Jamar Chase a couple years ago. And so when you have that, it kind of you know, one of those things where it's like, well, what do you want Tyler Boyd to do? You know, like he became a free agent. It wasn't even like Cincinnati was remotely trying to you know, see if they could bring him back. They were just like hey, we got Higgins, we got Jamar, we don't really need you, buddy, which I just find that very, very interesting, given that you know, tyler Boyd has been consistently durable and has found a Higgins being part of the Cincinnati Bengals offense.
TJ :So now the question is what happens if, say, a Kansas City Chiefs team does pick him up? Do they still use him in a slot as a slot receiver, which is his specialty? Do they? Do they put them outside? Did we just like? Like, I'm not going to lie. Kansas city is is one of the few teams in the NFL where it's not really going to matter where they place him, because they have the offensive play calling and the quarterback to pull it off, regardless of who's on that field. Now, do they prefer to have the best of the best out there? Absolutely, but if you're just competent enough to play your position, that's all they need, and Tyler Boyd is definitely more than competent, for sure, and he's definitely.
TJ :I'm surprised there's not more teams that's coming after him. I thought the Eagles were going to be one of those teams. I thought the Eagles were going to be one of those teams. I thought that there was going to be a Baltimore Ravens sighting Mr Davy Jones Locker. Mr Davis, sir, I thought I was going to see a Ravens in there. I know it's a divisional guy. You've seen him twice a year for the past couple years. I get all of that. But I thought there would be a lot more teams that would be interested in wanting to pick him up. And the fact that we've gone through majority of the free agency period and this is one of the first times that we've ever heard a Tyler Boyd visiting teams anything is quite plausible to me. I ain't gonna lie, it just is, it just is. So it'll be interesting to see who ends up grabbing him. Who ends up grabbing him, who ends up picking him up. Hopefully Tyler Boyd is not asking for a whole lot. I know the balance when it comes to player money and the team that he wants to be on becomes a little bit of a travesty these days. But hopefully it's enough where Boyd can eat and the team he goes to is able to use him to the maximum degree. So hopefully that gets squared away with Tyler Boyd.
TJ :Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy. All right, hello, hello, hello, handsome. I haven't heard that word in like three years. So thank you, that really means a lot. Three years, so thank you, that really means a lot. Anyways, so this happened right after the show ended last week, and I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm got a. I'm kind of, I'm kind of bothered that it happened right Once we went off the air on last week's pod, but Tredavious White got picked up by the Rams this past week, and you know what, for a one-year deal, this ain't bad man, this ain't bad, and this is a Rams defense that is going to sorely, sorely miss Aaron Donald and his production and the attention that he brings sorely is going to miss him.
TJ :And sure, tredavious White is not Aaron Donald, but that's not what they're asking him to be. The concern is, though, is that what they're asking him to be is what Buffalo has been trying to ask him to be for the last three to five years, and it just hasn't happened due to injury after injury, after injury after injury, tredavious White is coming off of another year of a blown ACL slash Achilles injury. This is yet another offseason full of rehab for him to come back, and unless the Rams shock me, shock all of us and get someone to draft that corner to where he's not taking so much of the load. Tredavious White is going to be in a position where he might have to do what Jalen Ramsey did when he was in LA, and I am not sure if Tredavious White can do that. I don't think his body can do that. Tredavis White can do that. I don't think his body can do that.
TJ :But I like the move that the Rams are saying look, we understand that we have a need. Obviously, we don't know how we're going to handle the need, but we do need to shore some things up. We're going to take a one-year flyer on a guy who usually has a tendency to not stay healthy. So it's not like we're going to be losing out on a whole lot of money if something were to, you know, happen to him again, unfortunately. We're good, but we are going to take a flyer because, at the end of the day, whenever, whenever Tredavious White does get on the field, he does produce, he does produce, he does shut off one side of the field. He is able to pick the football off if he has to. He's able to even garner so much attention that someone else picks the ball off. That's just what Trey White does. So continue to have a speedy recovery.
TJ :Tredavious. We're hoping for the best man, because you're getting towards the twilight of your career and it would suck to kind of see it go out with a bunch of injury-riddled seasons. So hopefully he's able to come back, he's able to play, he's able to play well and to help a Rams defense who, by the way, towards the end of last year, granted, you could point that towards the fact that they had Aaron Donald leading the way, that's totally fine, but it was a defense that towards the fact that they had Aaron Donald leading the way, that's totally fine, but it was a defense that, towards a lot of part of the season, was getting very, very stingy against a lot of offenses, byron Young coming off the edge Just the amount of young defenders that they have and how pivotal they were to them getting to the playoffs last season was impactful. So, hey, it wouldn't even shock me if they're able to pull something like that off again. It wouldn't, it wouldn't. In other news, I would be remissed and y'all gonna have to forgive me, because this is where I guess you could say the quote unquote nerd side of me is coming out.
TJ :Ladies and gentlemen, it is WrestleMania week. Oh yeah, oh yeah, baby. For those of you that don't know well, I guess you'll know now I'm a huge WWE fan. My older brother got me into it, so I blame him, but ever since I started watching it and playing the video games, I've been a fan ever since, and Wrestlemania 40 is going to be one hell of a card and I love it. I love it, I love it, and so I'm going to go through.
TJ :I'm going to go through some of the premier matches and I'm going to share with you what my predictions are and my thoughts on it. So first I'll start off with the Usos Jimmy and Jay. One-on-one this has been a long time coming. One-on-one this has been a long time coming. Obviously, I don't think it gets much better than this, this bloodline storyline. For it to be, as, for it to not only be good, but it to be good for so long, is impeccable, impeccable there's no other way to say it. Any long is impeccable, impeccable there's no other way to say it, any other way to phrase it. It is literally one of the best pieces of work that WWE has ever done in terms of a storyline perspective, and they get to put that on the spotlight with this match. Now, I've actually gone back and forth. I've actually gone back and forth with this one.
TJ :Um, I think it's only fitting that, when it's all said and done, that jay gets the job done and beats the crap out of jimmy. Please, please, I beg of you. Um, jay jay jay is is jay's character right now is at a place of straight up. You know, the fans like him, but we still need something to kind of sink our teeth into, like we need some statement wins for us to sink our teeth into, and it hasn't happened yet. It hasn't really happened yet, and the reason why it hasn't happened yet is because Jimmy and Solo Sakoa keep interfering in this man's matches, Whether it's tag team titles on the line, intercontinental titles on the line, you name it. If Jey Uso was going after that title, he was getting screwed every single time and it was terrible, terrible. So I'm glad that they're able to have this one-on-one match. I think Jey finds a way to get it done and I think when that happens, it will set the stage on what should be an all-timer of a WrestleMania.
TJ :The next match we'll discuss is the Sami Zayn versus Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship. Boy, oh boy, gunther's the Intercontinental Championship. Boy, oh boy, gunther's great man, gunther's great, shout out to him, man. This man has been Intercontinental Champion for almost 700 days. And oh, by the way, yes, he's a bad guy, and usually when you're a champion and you're the bad guy, usually if you're especially in his case you have a faction. The faction is when you're in a group with two or three or more people outside of yourself. Usually you have that said faction to interfere in your matches to make sure that you retain the title. One of the great things about Gunther's title reign is that he's going up against every single challenger that he has faced and has beaten them by himself. No interference, no shenanigans, nothing. He shows up by himself and he wins by himself, and that is it, and that is all, and that's all that Gunther does. That's all Gunther has, has continued to do. Then you have sammy zane.
TJ :Now, for those of you that don't know, wrestlemania 40 will be in the city of brotherly love, it will be in phil, and one of the things that we pride ourselves on is what's going on, dante? What's going on buddy? What's going on? Hey, steelers country, let's ride. I had to, I had to, I had to. Sorry, you had to forgive me, but this this is is, this is.
TJ :This is quite good right, because philly prides itself on being a, a blue collar, scrappy town um, you know, scratches and claws for every little thing that they have. And what better character, what better superstar didn't to show that than sammy zane, a guy who who hasn't had that big moment yet until as recent as last year's wrestlemania where he, he and Kevin Owens as we'll get to a little bit later is here we go. Oh boy, oh boy. I hope you have. I hope you have that Justin Fields and Russell Wilson thing figured out, because if you don't I've said it on countless episodes of this show, y'all don't, it's gonna. I know it's gonna drive you nuts as a Steelers fan, I've said it on countless episodes of this show If y'all don't, I know it's going to drive you nuts. As a Steelers fan, I just know it is. So I'm letting everybody know now. So it ain't a surprise.
TJ :But Sammy Zane has had moments. But he hasn't had the moment until last year and ever since last year where he won those tag titles with Kevin Owens, and since they split them in the draft, that happened towards the beginning of the year. Things haven't really been the same for Sammy. Of course he's had some fuse with a Shinsuke and you know some matches here and there, but you know he's competed for the world heavyweight championship against Seth Rollins, who will also get to later Like he's. He's gone against them but he hasn't. He's gone against them but he hasn't really bought it. He hasn't really done well for himself since having that huge moment at WrestleMania last year. Well, here he comes scratching and clawing yet again, because his goal is to have to walk out of WrestleMania 40 with championship gold on his waist and he's going to have to scratch and claw against one of the toughest and the greatest Intercontinental Champions champion in Gunther, and I'll be totally honest with you, it's very 50 50 in my personal opinion. Give, give me mind to give me mind to give me gunther man. I think he retains, I think he retains. It's gonna be a great match, though. These are two great workers, by the way. Hopefully they get enough time to do all that they need to do, but I think Gunther retains the title here.
TJ :And to close out night one of WrestleMania 40, we have to talk about the tag team match, the main event of night, one being Cody Rhodes and Seth freaking Rollins against Roman Reigns. And for all of you, attitude era lovebirds out there, the Rock will also be. Attitude era Lovebirds out there, the Rock will also be in that main event. And I ain't going to lie man, it don't get much better than this. It don't get much better than this. Now, me personally and I know I'm not the only one much better than this. It don't get much better than this. Now, me personally, and I know I'm not the only one that speaks for this. I think, if I think, I would view this tag team match a little bit differently if Cody wasn't getting beat up so much over the past couple weeks.
TJ :For those of you who don't watch Monday night raw, as recent as yes, yesterday's show in the week prior Cody Rhodes, he may have had his moments where he has talked a big game, but when it is come time to come face to face with the rock in particular, he's been getting packed up and sent to the gulags every single time, and it has been bad so bad that last week's beatdown continued after the show went off the air, which is something that WWE doesn't typically do. So you have that to happen. Then you have last night's show where Cody you know he's teeing off on Rock and Roman gets in the way of everything and just spears the crap out of him, sends him packing and then all you saw for the remainder of this show was the Rock and Roman Reigns. Take their weight belt, take Cody Rhodes' weight belt and just starts whooping Seth and Cody throughout the entire remaining time of the show, just brutally whooping them like government mules. It was insanely bad and it makes me believe that maybe Rock and Roman should win this one, maybe the Rock and Roman should win this match.
TJ :And I say that because if they're able to just simply say, hey, look, man, it doesn't get much better than us. There's nothing that you can do, there's nothing you can say about it. Cody, if you really think that you're going to win this title, you have to go through any and every one to do so, the same way that you've scratched and clawed over the last three, the last three to the last two years. But for the latter part of the last three, oh yeah, you're going to earn it I. But for the latter part of the last three, oh yeah, you're going to earn it. I'm here from 40,000. Oh my God, be careful, buddy. I never thought that you would be a guy afraid of heights. Thanks for joining us from that high up in the air. But yeah, if Cody's going to get it done, he doesn't have to go through all of us. He has to go through the entire bloodline. And I love it. I love it, make it happen. Make it happen Because the only reason why I say that is as much as I would like to see, uh, cody, cody and Seth win this match. It will be interesting to see what happens when the match is over Because you got to remember, seth has a match of his own against Drew McIntyre on the following night as well, for his title and say they lose this match. This is going to sound crazy to say I hope it doesn't happen, but there could be a possibility that Seth ends up beating up on Cody too, saying look, man, I'm thinking, I'm thinking I'm going to bat for you and doing all this other stuff, just for us to sit up there and lose. Man, nah, I'm done with this. And starts beating Cody up and sends him packing and that closes up night one. Cody, to get it done. I hope so, man. I hope so we're going to get into that. So I have Roman and the Rock winning the tag match. Have Roman and the Rock winning the tag match to make the main event of night two that much more special. So that is going to be that.
TJ :Then we start off. Sunday's matches with AJ Styles versus LA Night yeah, matches with AJ Styles versus L a night yeah, Um, uh, drew is going to win and priest is going to catch him. Ooh, would I be a fan of that. That. You know what? Okay, I'm going to have to give that some more thought. I'm going to have to give that some more thought.
TJ :Aj Styles versus LA Knight. It is very simple they don't like each other. Aj has been a thorn in LA Knight's side for the latter part of two to three months now, ever since AJ came back from being sent to the gulags by the Bloodline and Sola Sacoa in particular, and AJ Styles feels like LA Knight has took his shine, took his spot of going after Roman in the title, and it has not been the same since. So much so that Elliot Knight went over to AJ Styles' house and beat him into shreds that the police had to hook him up and send him packing. But of course this is wrestling, so of course this is wrestling, so of course he was able to come back the following SmackDown and cause a whole ruckus with AJ that way still, because that makes sense. But anyways, this is going to be a great match. Also, I'm very excited to see how they book this one, because I think you just have to have LA Knight win, please. I don't think LA Knight's shine is going to be the same if he loses. He loses to AJ Styles Boy. I think there's going to be a certain amount of fans that's just not going to view him the same, and if that's the case, then there is no title, there is no reign that could justify that. It just won't. So hopefully Ellie Knight pulls it out and gets the job done in that match. Reminds me of the old days. Love it. Absolutely, absolutely, exactly how it's supposed to be, exactly how it's supposed to be.
TJ :Now we have the triple threat between Kevin Owens, logan Paul and Randy Orton. Now this triple threat match is for the United States Championship and these are three guys that, quite honestly, are going to tear the house down. It wouldn't even shock me if this match ends up being match of the night. It wouldn't. It wouldn't shock me at all, um, the way that they have managed to, to go with this storyline of kale.
TJ :Uh, kevin Owens and Randy Orton, not necessarily, you know, making it a triple threat match. I mean, granted, they want, they want to have the United States championship, but uh and Randy Orton, not necessarily making it a triple threat match. I mean, granted, they want to have the United States championship, but they just both can't stand Logan Paul, that much more, that much more. And so when you have that, it's one of those things where you're kind of like, huh, so this is basically going to be a two on one handicap match. What does it sound like to me? I mean, okay, cool, um, but that's obviously not what it's going to be.
TJ :I think it's going to be, uh, there's going to be a moment in a match where, where it might, it might just be Orton and Kevin Owens in the ring, it's just them two, and they just box it out, turn it into a prize fight, as Kevin Owens used to say, or would love to carry that moniker, and I think it would be great. I think it would be great. I think it would be great. These guys as a whole have not only created a match that people care about, but people are going to enjoy, because every single one of these guys, their skill sets, complement each other. They complement each other, and I love when there is a match that has different styles, but it's still able to produce greatness in the ring, and that's exactly what these three guys are primed to do. No pun intended, of course, but who do I have winning this match though? Of course, but who do I have winning this match though? Sigh sigh, sigh sigh. I wouldn't be mad if any one of these guys were able to come out the match as the winner. Um, but if I had to choose, if I had to choose, give me Kevin Owens. Man, kevin Owens, it's time for him to get some gold back on his waist. It's time for him to really get a lot out of being US champion. He was US champion back in 2016, I believe it was, and when he had that title, that was great times as well. So I think him being able to have the US championship this time around would be that much sweeter. But that's just me. That's just me.
TJ :Then you have EO Sky going up against Bayley for the women's title, and I like this storyline, man, I like what they're doing. This is basically Bayley against Damage Control, a group that Bayley built, a group that Bayley led, and this is the same group that turned on Bailey Um, like Lily, not too long after she won the Royal rumble which, by the way, she went from first to last um, which is very insane. I actually think she holds a record for the longest time that she'd been in the Royal rumble Pretty impeccable, if you ask me. But Bayley pulled it off and I think it just. It only seems fitting that Bayley comes out on top in this match.
TJ :I don't think that you have all these segments where Bayley is having to constantly go through the amount of trust issues who's really who's going to be by my side, who's not? I still have the whole damage control group that I have to go up against that to deal with. They're constantly nagging at me, they're constantly being a thorn in my side, like what? What are we going to do on my side? Like what? What are we going to do? The guy, the, the, the ladies that that the group used to beat up, you know, had no, you know they have no problem helping bailey, but they're having trust issues themselves because they're like, I look, man, like you, you took me out of action for some time. You know, you had me on the show for some time, like what you want me to do and and I just, I just love that so much. I think Bailey gets the job done, uh, with that Um, and I think, I think that's gonna, I think that's gonna make up for a great match itself.
TJ :Um, then we have Seth freaking Rollins taking on Drew McIntyre, and I want to go back to this last point here about Drew McIntyre winning and Damian Priest cashing in. Now, I wouldn't mind that. I wouldn't mind that. I wouldn't mind that. The only question I would ask is is that, with you making that decision, what do we do when a CM Punk comes back and he's fully healthy? Because what was going to come to mind to me was, regardless of who in the hell won the match, the number one contender when he was 100 will be cm punk. It should be cm punk and it should not be anyone else but cm punk, and I still stand by that to this day. There is too much bad blood between the three of them Seth, cm Punk and Drew McIntyre for that not to happen.
TJ :Shoot, if you can just give me a triple threat match at the SummerSlam, if you want, go for it, that's totally fine with me, but there has to be some match that involves CM Punk some way somehow in contention for that championship. And personally, I think, because Seth doing so much and I think with Seth getting beaten so badly in this tag match the night before, man, when he shows up to that match against Drew McIntyre, he's going to show up to that arena and he's going to be bandaged up. His ribs are going to be bandaged up. His ribs are going to be bandaged up. He's going to have the bad back because remember, that was the storyline that he had at the beginning of the year about him having the bad back and the issues that he's had over the years the bad back's going to show and it's just going to be moment after moment where it's just like man, you know what, maybe Seth shouldn't have been involved in that tag match all together. Yada, yada, yada. Then seth gets some life. He starts having his whole comeback scene where it feels like he's john cena 2.0. And then, next thing, you one, two, three, drew wins the title and Drew finally has his moment at WrestleMania in front of a live audience and I think that'll be great. I think that'll be great for Drew, I think, seth, I think Seth's reign has been good. It could be better, but all things considered, he's done a fantastic job holding the belt and I think this is time to just give it up At this point.
TJ :If you're Seth Rollins, what do you need the title for? You've done all you possibly could with it. You really have. You have. You have tried, you know, making it into the title when roman's not there. You tried making it the premier workhorse title, but of course you got hurt. So then you had that stretch where everybody's like, well, you're claiming that you're this, but yet you're hurt. What's going on? How is this supposed to really take you seriously? Then you just had Roman. That just straight up buried you on the microphone week in and week out about how much of a secondary title that you possess. Yes, I'm sorry, buddy, your time is over.
TJ :Wrestlemania 40. And that's just what it's going to be. That's why I said cash in, hmm, cash in on Drew. So are we turning so? Now, that would raise an eyebrow, because I would ask, are we supposed to automatically assume that Damian Priest, the guy that we've been hating on for the last few months or so does a heroic deed by becoming world heavyweight champion by cashing in, pulling a Seth Rollins. Hey, actually, that is actually now. I'm interested now If Damian Priest could pull off what Seth Rollins did.
TJ :Rollins did WrestleMania 31, I believe, where he cashed in during the match and he won it that way. Oh, I would sign up for that. Sign me up for that, because I could not wait for the following Monday Night Raw, because I would need to be a part of that experience for sure. So if that's the kind of cashing that we're talking about, okay, book me, book me on that one. But if it's something that's going to happen after the match is concluded, I personally just don't know about it. But hey, maybe there's a way around it. Obviously, drew McIntyre and Damian Priest do not like each other, and that's been going on for months. So maybe you can have a situation where you can have that storyline coming to play. But you know, hey, that's just my take on it, but Drew had. Let me tell you something right now Drew, better win this match. That is what I will say. Drew McIntyre better win this match.
TJ :If he does not, your whole momentum will dwindle by a lot, because that would mean that you have lost to Seth Rollins four times in a row, that y'all face one another and in all separate cases, Seth realistically was not 100% realistically was not 100% Back knee. What happened? Oh, the whole bloodline issue started arising back at Crown Jewel and he was still having issues with the back. If you find a way to lose to a guy that just had to go through a tag team match, a brutal tag team match because I think it is going to be brutal, I think it is going to be ugly and I think it's going to be ugly real fast. By the way, if you lose to that guy, I'm telling you something right now the fans are not going to view you the same and I don't blame them. I don't blame them and I'm one of them. You lose to that guy that's been battered and bruised and, you know, bloodied, I'm pretty sure, because there has to be blood involved in that match.
TJ :I hope it's involved in the Seth and Drew match too, but that's neither here nor there. I think anytime you can have color with a certain match or a certain feud, it deserves it, and that's one of those matches. So that's you cannot afford to lose this match, drew. You cannot afford to lose this match. You cannot, you cannot. So I predict that Drew gets it done and Drew finds a way to finally have that WrestleMania moment, and then the night two main event concludes with Roman Reigns versus Cody Rhodes.
TJ :Now, as I predicted in the tag match, this is a bloodline rules match, which means anything goes, which means I think everybody in that ground is going to get involved. I think every Samoan that you can think of is going to get involved in this match. They just are. They're just going to get involved. They're going to get involved in this match. They just are. They're just going to get involved. They're going to get scrappy, they're going to get nasty and it's going to be crazy, and I think it would be perfect. I think it would be perfect for Cody to get it done, and I'm going to just keep it as simple as this. I know, as a fan, I did not invest two long years two long years of you returning to WWE, having the classic feud that you had with Seth to win the World Rumble last year, to get screwed out of the main event of WrestleMania 39 last year, to win the World Rumble again this year, just for you to lose again. Because I'll tell you right now Cody Rhodes lose this match. Cody Rhodes lose this match Again against the same guy Again.
TJ :At this point it's not going to matter how it's done, because it's already anything goes, anything is allowed. Cody has to get the job done here and cody would need to channel into some inner stone cold. Steve Austin, like I mean, if you got to go super Cena on it, you're more than welcome to do so. But Cody needs to literally be a guy where we're like, oh okay, he's not playing around, he's beating him up. He's like, look man, he's not playing around, he's beating them up. He's like, look man, y'all done, bloodied me up. Y'all done, sent me packing. Y'all done, sent me to the gulags all this time. Y'all done had all this to say about my parents, all this to say about my family. Oh, it's go time.
TJ :Like I need to see the most serious, passionate Cody Rhodes I've ever seen in terms of a match standpoint. I need it to show. I need it to show and obviously I think it's going to be overbooked to oblivion. But if I'm being totally honest, I'm a person that doesn't really care for that. Just make the right booking decision, and that is for Cody to win this match.
TJ :Roman, I'm telling you right now right, because there is two sides to every coin. Let's say Cody Reigns, let's say Roman Reigns does win this match. Who else is going to contend for that title until Rock does in next year's WrestleMania? Who, and you think Roman's going to be around as many times for for said matches? No, he's not. He's already having a. He's already having a part-time schedule as it is. I don't think that's changing at all. It's just not.
TJ :And Roman has had the historic reign. He's had the championship. He's been the guy since 2020. He's carried this title for four straight years. Let it go. Let it go. We get it.
TJ :You are the tribal chief. You are, you are the uh, you are the man of the hour. You preside at the island of relevancy. I get all that, all of it. You are the champion, someone to put you in a conversation of being the GOAT. You are this generation's GOAT. I'll tell you that much. But nevertheless, that is who Roman Reigns is. I get that.
TJ :You can afford to finally let it go, because if you don't, no one's going to care about Cody, no one's really even going to care about Roman anymore. And WWE, for maybe until SummerSlam, which is their next big pay-per-view after WrestleMania, if I'm not mistaken will be very, very bleak because there is no top guy to chase Roman. There's not going to be a whole lot of fans that's going to be behind Roman being the champion, the journey that he's had being the champion, the fatigue will set in. The fatigue will set in and when it does, we're going to be looking at some sad state of affairs going on WWE. So let's just not have any of that happen.
TJ :Let's have a great match because, by the way, I don't know why everybody keeps forgetting that last year's main event of night two of Wrestlemania wasn't a great match. It was. If you didn't go watch it, it's on YouTube, wwe posted it. Go check it. It's on YouTube, wwe posted it. Go check it out. It was awesome. Have a great match, like you did last year. Overbook it to the ump degree. Bring John Cena if you have to. Bring Stokehold Steve Austin if you have to. Bring Jey Uso if you have to. If you have to do a whole Avengers scene to do so, do it.
TJ :But when I have the conclusion of that match, it needs to be Cody Rhodes, standing tall as the champ. It just gotta be. It just gotta be. It can't be any other way. It can't be. We've invested too much time. We've seen so much story being built into this match, into this superstar and Cody Rhodes to be the next generation's John Cena, if you will, of being the top guy, the baby face, the good guy. If you will, cody loses this match, you can forget about all that, all of it, all of it, all of it. Now, hey, if you want to be nasty with it and have Cody win, but then Damian Priest cashes in on Cody, okay, that will be insane, that will be insane. I actually would be interested to see how Twitter blows up if that ends up being the case, more than anything else, because I think if that cash-in happens now we're talking because now Damien Priest gets some steam again, but if not, that Cody needs to get it done.
TJ :No ifs, ands or buts about it, but either way, this is going to be a great WrestleMania card. If you are not, if you are not or haven't been able to take a look at any one of these matches segments on YouTube, please check it out, man. I'm trying to tell you you will not be disappointed. I'm trying to tell you WrestleMania, both Saturday and Sunday nights, will be great affairs matches everywhere, great matches everywhere, great superstars everywhere. The greatest storyline in wrestling history will be on display yet again this year, and I hope for my sake, for your sake, for everybody that will be watching, that the right people win, because if these names that I listed as potential winners for their respective matches, if that happens, this will probably go down as the greatest WrestleMania of all time, and to say that I have been able to watch that during my lifetime is enough for me. So, yeah, man, I'm very excited. I cannot wait.
TJ :Um, smackdown, friday night. Smackdown will be on on friday. So, uh, it's gonna be live on fox, so it's gonna be interesting to see what they do there. Um, uh, in regards to the storylines that they have in place with them Shoot, we might mess around, even having another Cody Seth Roman rock segment, and if that's the case, sign me up immediately. But I love it, I love it, I love it. Yeah, tree, I'm excited too, man, it's, I wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't have it any other way. This is wrestling in WWE in particular, is at one of its greatest peaks. It really is.
TJ :Um, there's so many guys to root for Triple H. You know what? Shout out to Triple H, man. Shout out to Triple H for being the guy to produce some of the best storylines anyone's ever seen. Team Yeet, yeet, yeah, hit it, jay. All right, all right, I know you had to get that one out there Totally fine, but Triple H has done such a tremendous job, man. Has he gotten it right all the time? Absolutely not, but that's okay. That's okay. I don't think you're expecting for everybody to get it 1,000% correct every single time. Not really how it works, but the main stuff from guys getting pushed, from guys getting their getting pushed, from guys getting their opportunity, from women getting their marquee matches, for people getting their moments. Triple H has done his job and I I am so glad that we are in a time timeline where Triple H is at the helm and he is in control of WWE creative and the storytelling that they're doing week in and week out.
TJ :I love it, love it so much, so much, so very excited for WrestleMania 40. Please check it out. It's only going to be available on Peacock, so so if you're not subscribed, go ahead and give us subscribe, man. I mean, uh, you know, yeah, go ahead, subscribe to them. You know what I mean. Anyways, uh, but, but, uh, this concludes the show. Y'all, this is it. This is it Now. Thank y'all so much for watching for as long as y'all have and hearing my voice for as long as y'all have been able to.
TJ :Breaking news we're going to be doing a special edition of the DK and Tree podcast this Friday afternoon, covering nothing but Wrestlemania weekend. I am so excited, me and the man of the hour. But WrestleMania weekend, I am so excited, me and the man of the hour, my main man. 20 grand, 80 grand, 100 grand, mr Davis himself, we're going to be on and popping with this thing, man. So I'm very excited. So, keep your eyes, keep your screens on the lookout for Friday afternoon, and I cannot wait for the weekend and the rest of the week. That's upon us.
TJ :This has been Thomas Brown Jr. Oh, are we doing it for real? Are we doing it for real? I didn't know, I didn't know. Tree, let's go, let's go, I'll do it, man, let's go, man, okay, great, well, it's going to be all three of us. Yay, oh man, oh man. Breaking news on the spot. I love it. So yeah, so be on the lookout for that man. Oh man, breaking news on the spot. I love it. So yeah, so be on the lookout for that man. It's going to be a lot of fun. Continue to follow us on Twitch, youtube, twitter, facebook. Pretty sure I'm missing out on another platform. Oh, I think I got them all. Anyways, again, thank y'all so much for tuning in. I'm your guy, tj Thomas Brown Jr, signing off and getting ready for Wrestlemania 40. And get ready for WrestleMania 40.