Among the many tentacles of the 49ers discussed:

• Jimmy Garoppolo’s ability to overcome mistakes

• A tale of two halves for Kyle Shanahan

• Why the Rams didn’t trust Matt Stafford to throw on 3rd and 5 to seal a win

• The importance of Niners Nation turning SoFi Stadium into a “home” game

• An early look at how the 49ers and Cowboys match up

The post TFG Pod: 49ers’ Golden Playoff Ticket appeared first on The Football Girl.

(4:10): Lindsay talks about the scene as the Raiders took the field for the first time post-Jon Gruden. While their inspired play was a feel-good story, the Raiders and the league shouldn’t get to just move on from a story with so many unanswered questions including the depths of harassment inside the Washington Football Team, she says.

Lindsay’s viewpoints have been corroborated by many including both the former WFT cheerleaders and employees who want to see the results of the NFL’s investigation which resulted in a $10 million fine for Dan Snyder but no information on their findings. Congress added to the pile this week. The House’s Committee on Oversight and Reform is demanding the league turn over documents related to the investigation by November 4th.

“The NFL has one of the most prominent platforms in America, and its decisions can have national implications,” the committee chairs Carolyn Maroney (D-N.Y.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) wrote. “The NFL’s lack of transparency about the problems it recently uncovered raise questions about the seriousness with which it has addressed bigotry, racism, sexism, and homophobia — setting troubling precedent for other workplaces. The Committee is seeking to fully understand this workplace conduct and the league’s response, which will help inform legislative efforts to address toxic work environments and workplace investigation processes; strengthen protections for women in the workplace; and address the use of non-disclosure agreements to prevent the disclosure of unlawful employment practices, including sexual harassment. We hope and trust that the NFL shares the Committee’s goal of protecting American workers from harassment and discrimination.”

(31:06): Lindsay tries to make sense an AFC that doesn’t boast an obvious front runner. She also examines how long the Arizona Cardinals can stay undefeated. Plus, a trade deadline preview and an apology to her 5-year old daughter, Lena, for dissuading her from picking the Titans over the Bills.

Please support The Football Girl Podcast by leaving us a great rating and review!

The post TFG Podcast: WFT Investigation Rages On appeared first on The Football Girl.

In the latest episode of The Football Girl Podcast, Zaler takes the listeners through her journey from soccer to the epiphany that she wanted to make player performance a career. She also details her day-to-day role with the Broncos and her unintended role as a role model for the next (and current) generation of girls aspiring to work in football.

Also in the episode, Melissa opens by doting on the undefeated Arizona Cardinals and explains why this year will be different than 2020. She also has many thoughts on Urban Meyer’s night out in Ohio and the disastrous situation in Jacksonville.

Please leave The Football Girl Podcast a great rating and review on Apple Podcasts. And keep the conversation going by reaching out to host Melissa Jacobs on Twitter.

(Lead photo courtesy of the Denver Broncos)

The post TFG Podcast: Denver Broncos Player Performance Coach Emily Zaler appeared first on The Football Girl.

On a special Black History Month episode of The Football Girl Podcast, Melissa is joined by Dr. Louis Moore, a sports and race history professor at Grand Valley State University for a powerful lesson on the NFL’s history of integration, segregation, and reintegration.

Dr. Moore explains how the NFL we see today was built on Black activism from players and journalists, how Black athletes were horribly impacted by Jim Crow after they integrated in 1946, and how rising salaries and endorsements deals played a role in the lack of player activism from the 1970’s to the 2000’s.

Plus a look at what, if anything, can be done to remedy today’s lack of diversity in the NFL’s head coaching ranks.

Apple | Spotify | TuneIn

Rundown

5:33: Dr. Moore Joins

6:47: The protests that sparked the NFL’s ‘Jackie Robinson moment’

11:36: How black players were treated in the newly reintegrated NFL 

16:33: How the civil rights movement of the 60’s sparked player protest

22:22: Why Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling was the ultimate protest

27:53: Modern activism and how athletes like Drew Brees are getting an education on America’s segregated history

38:41: Will the NFL overcome its lack of diversity in the head coaching ranks? 

Follow Dr. Moore on Twitter. 
Follow Melissa Jacobs on Twitter.

The post TFG Pod: Inside the NFL’s History of Racism and Protest appeared first on The Football Girl.

On this week’s TFG Podcast, Melissa Jacobs welcomes in The Ringer’s Claire McNear, author of the new book with bittersweet timing, Answers In The Form of Questions: A Definitive History and Insider’s Guide to Jeopardy!.

(Also listen at Spotify | Apple | Stitcher)

McNear, who spent time with Trebek, explains how the man on screen is the same off it. She also describes why Jeopardy is a sport, who might replace Trebek, her own impromptu Jeopardy! tryout, and that infamous Talkin’ Football category from 2018.

Episode Rundown

6:24: Claire McNear joins

9:42: How Jeopardy! after Trebek was the origin of the book before Trebek’s diagnosis

12:12: Spending time with Trebek, what he’s really like

18:49: Ken Jennings and the impact of ditching the five-day maximum champion rule

22:16: Buzzer training, advanced questions analytics and other forms of hardcore Jeopardy! training

26:25: Melissa reminisces about the time that TheFootballGirl.com was a Jeopardy! answer!

29:02: That infamous Talkin’ Football category

31:07: What it was like for McNear to be strongarmed into an impromptu Jeopardy! audition at Trivia Nationals

33:29: What’s next for Jeopardy?

Please help The Football Girl Podcast continue to grow by leaving a great rating and review on iTunes. Thank you! 

The post The Football Girl Podcast: Inside Jeopardy! appeared first on The Football Girl.

Election Day is less than five weeks ago and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is extraordinarily busy. Benson, whose state went to Donald Trump by less than 10,000 votes in 2016, is working tirelessly to ensure the citizens of Michigan know their ballots will be received and counted accurately. She’s doing so while deflecting falsehoods from the President. 

As a young girl who loved baseball, Benson wanted to be an umpire when she grew up. While she gave up on that dream long ago, she finds the irony in her current role as “an umpire of democracy.” Benson joined The Football Girl Podcast talk about her inspiring career which has always weaved in a heavy dose of sports and advocacy. Benson talks everything from her task force that is providing opportunities for women and girls in sports to her recent initiatives with the Detroit Lions (and other Michigan sports teams) to get out the vote and use Ford Field as an Election Day depository.

Episode Rundown

4:45: Melissa dotes on Russell Wilson and shares her thoughts on the NFL’s first COVID outbreak

12:05: SECRETARY BENSON JOINS

12:55: Benson on running the Boston Marathon at EIGHT months pregnant!

20:47: Benson on becoming the CEO of RISE (Ross Institute for Sports Equality)

22:30: Benson on Michigan’s task force for women and girls and sports and how it might improve on Title IX

30:15: Benson on marching with the Lions coaching staff in the wake of George Floyd’s murder

32:58: Benson on the Lions’ voter education efforts and the powerful story of DE Trey Flowers

35:22: Benson on ignoring disparaging tweets about her from the President.

38:13: Benson on why Michigan may not know its Election Day results until Friday

Follow Secretary Benson on Twitter
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The post TFG Pod: In Conversation with Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson appeared first on The Football Girl.

This week Melissa opens the show with the five NFL storylines she finds most intriguing headed into the 2020 season. Her storylines only illustrate these strange times.

Then Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic joins (12:33) to break down the Los Angeles Rams’ chances in a stacked division and also details what it’s like covering an NFL team during Covid-19.

Jourdan explains:

The post TFG Podcast: Rammin’ Into the Season appeared first on The Football Girl.

A joint broadcast. Top draft prospects manning their own cameras without a large gathering of family and friends. It will also be a bizarre evening for agents used to be nestled to their clients on draft day. 

Nicole Lynn of Young Money, who represents Jalen Hurts and Jedrick Wills among other clients, joined the TFG Pod this week to detail these strange times for her and her clients.

Included in this conversation:

• How COVID-19 has dampened marketing opportunities for draftees
• Expectations for those invited to the “virtual draft” including Wills and Hurts
• How the lightening speed process of signing undrafted free agents could be impacted by this new landscape
• Whether the NFL should have postponed the draft
• The possibility of NFL games with no fans

To learn more about Nicole Lynn, please listen to her debut on the TFG Podcast in April 2019 in which details her inspirational rise from poverty to succeeding in one of the mot male-dominated industries in existence.

We need your support! Please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts.

The post TFG Pod: Inside COVID-19’s Dramatic Impact on the NFL Draft appeared first on The Football Girl.

The Rundown

9:11: Is Patrick Mahomes officially the new face of the NFL?

14:05: Lindsay on the difficultly of building a dynasty in the NFL

17:46: The stigma in San Francisco

21:47: Tom Brady watch heats up

24:50: How the free agent QB dominoes may fall (Rivers, Newton, Tannehill, etc)

32:02: What the Jags back-to-back London games means for possible franchise move

36:01: A rant on officiating

41:49: How Katie Sowers’ story may do wonders for normalizing football

Please leave a good rating and review for The Football Girl Podcast on Apple Podcasts.

The post TFG Podcast: Hottest Offseason Storylines to Watch appeared first on The Football Girl.

This week in Miami, McGlinchey beamed when asked about Staley.  “I could talk about Joe Staley all day. Joe’s grown into my best friend.” This strong of a kinship between two football players a decade apart in age may not be commonplace, but little about Staley’s career is typical.

Staley is about to complete his 13^th season, all with the same franchise, a feat few players have every emulated. The six-time Pro Bowler has survived every type of NFL season from Super Bowl berths to the being the NFL’s laughingstock. Through it all he’s been a masterclass in professionalism. As the only member of the 49ers who played in the 2013 Super Bowl in New Orleans, or even at Candlestick Park for that matter, finally hoisting Lombardi would culminate a fascinating, layered career. The idea of Staley finally winning a ring is not lost on his teammates.

“It does make it more special, “ said McGlinchey this week from the 49ers’ media availability.” This guy has gone through so much in this organization from the early parts of his career when they were really bad, the Harbaugh years when they got good, then they crashed and burned. Even in the past four seasons, the team didn’t win more than six games in any season. That can be really hard for players to be motivated but Joe modeled the importance of a consistent and strong work ethic in the good and the bad.”

We caught up with Staley to discuss his leadership, his future and deflecting those pesky “friends” seeking Super Bowl tickets. 

Melissa Jacobs: A couple of years ago you told me you were on the brink of retirement before Kyle Shanahan was hired. How close were you?

Joe Staley: I think I was tossing the idea around in my mind and actually starting to think about it. It wasn’t a situation where if Kyle doesn’t tell me what I want to hear in this meeting, I’m going to tell him I’m done. It wasn’t like that. But I was thinking about as I was getting older in age and the game of football becomes harder on your body as you age. I was feeling that and the strain of it taking away time with my kids and my family. And weighing those options and what do I want to do after football and what does my life look like if I continue to play until I’m 40 years old. 

But once I met with Kyle, I got really excited about what he’s about and the opportunity to play for him was something exciting for me and I wanted to be a part of it.

MJ: Since you were quasi-thinking about retirement, what do you want to do post-NFL?

JS: I would love to coach, but NFL level coaching, I think it would be really fun. Then again, it’s the time commitment again. I’m sitting here talking about being away from my family as a player and being an NFL coach is a little bit more than that. I don’t really know, I haven’t put a whole lot of thought into it.

What I do know when I’m done with football I’m going to enjoy a good year of doing nothing and being with my family and losing weight and taking the stress of football off my body. 

MJ: Are you aspiring to be the next Joe Thomas and lose like 100 pounds?

JS: I hope to be. He’s a great inspiration for offensive lineman. Nothing but positive for guys who are 300 pounds for the last 16 years.

MJ: Is it hard to keep weight on?

JS: For me, a little bit. I was naturally skinny and had to gain weight to play offensive line in college, I have to eat a lot. I actually went one year, it was actually my third year and I was like 325 pounds and I told myself, ‘If I’m going to be this big, I’m not going to play very long in the NFL.’ I could barely move, I felt awful, but my coach at the time kept telling me I needed to gain weight and keep getting bigger. Then one year I was determined to lose weight and all I did was eat right. I ate healthy and clean for an entire offseason and I lost 30 pounds. I came back at 295-pounds and realized I could play in the NFL. I felt good, I could move. 

MJ: Well, 13 years in the NFL and you’ve really grown into a mentor role. How much pride do you take in helping young guys like Mike McGlinchey?

JS: I think it comes naturally. It’s not really a forced thing, like this is my role or that guys have to listen to me. I’ve always had pride in what I do in terms of preparation and work ethic throughout my career and the way I go about my business and I think that just naturally has guys watching what you do, especially when you play in the league for so long. Guys want to see what it takes to last in the league for 13 years. So yeah, I take a lot of pride in what I do.

MJ: What’s your makeup of people here this week? Who’s coming to the game?

JS: Immediate family only, actually. I kind of closed the doors. I said we would do my mom, my dad, my sisters, my sister’s husband, my wife, my two kids, my wife’s mom and dad and my wife’s sister. 

MJ: Did you get a lot of random people you haven’t spoken to since high school asking you for tickets?

JS: Oh yeah, but everybody does. I just didn’t want to deal with saying yes to one friend and no to another. Picking favorites. I’m saying no to everybody so don’t be offended. I do say they’re free to come down but I won’t have tickets to the game. Once they hear that, it’s like, ‘oh, I’ll just watch it on tv.’

MJ: This week, there’s been a bit of a mantra around the 49ers after trying to win the Super Bowl as a team. Win it for Joe. How does that make you feel?

JS: I think just being around here and spending my time with one franchise and being here 13 years, I think guys wanted to see guys rewarded who have been with one franchise. 

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