Talking Buffalo

On this episode of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran interviews Locked on Bills podcaster and The Draft Network writer Joe Marino on several Buffalo Bills, NFL free agency and draft related topics.

The two run through every player the Bills have acquired since free agency started earlier this week and Marino offers analysis on each, his opinion on their contracts and where they should fit in.  He has particularly strong takes when it comes to the additions of running back Frank Gore and kick returner Andre Roberts.

With free agency well underway and team needs a little more apparent after the big wave of signings, they discuss the NFL draft and Marino points out a handful of players he sees the Bills targeting with the ninth overall pick, including a pair of prospects that may surprise you.

They also discuss the Antonio Brown trade that nearly was and Marino reveals what NFL team has disappointed him the most since free agency started.

Before football talk they spend time discussing about Joe’s professionally produced Locked on Bills podcast, and Moran asks Joe the process he uses to put out three to four episodes every week.

You can follow Joe on Twitter at @TheJoeMarino.  Be sure to check out his work at The Draft Network as well as his Locked on Bills podcast.

After Joe’s interview, Moran plays a full non-spoiler movie review of the megahit “Captain Marvel”, reviewed by Sean Chandler.  Sean’s a talented and hugely popular YouTube content creator who was recently a guest on the Moran-Alytics Podcast, where he discussed the path that saw him go from part time hobbyist to a full-time profession of producing movie and television related content on YouTube nearly daily.

Be sure to go to Sean’s YouTube page, “Sean Chandler Talks About” and join the more than 90,000 subscribers. Also hit the bell next to it so you can get notified whenever Sean posts new content.

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On this episode of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran interviews WIVB-TV sports director Josh Reed on a variety of topics.

The two discuss Reed growing up in a small town in Ohio a Browns and Indians fan, playing football in high school and winning a state championship. Reed went to Kent State for college and tells a revealing story of once being an unmotivated student who temporarily dropped out of school before his father convinced him the hard way that doing well in college would be in his best interest.

Reed worked in Hagerstown, Maryland after school before spending a decade working in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania as a sports anchor and reporter. His run there ended in August of 2015 when he was offered the sports director job at WIVB-TV Buffalo.  Reed offers his take on several sports media topics as well as advice for aspiring sports journalists before wrapping up with the Mini-Lightning Round, where we learn a handful of Reed’s favorites, leading to a fascinating Whitey Ford story.

Follow Josh Reed on Twitter at @4JoshReed and make sure to check out his work at WIVB-TV.

Immediately after Moran is joined by Aaron Quinn (@AaronQuinn716) of Cover 1 for their recurring segment.  Today the guys are all about talking football on the heels of NFL free agency beginning.  Quinn offers insightful breakdowns of all four Buffalo Bills early verbal agreements: Kevin Johnson, Frank Gore, Tyler Croft and Mitch Morse.

They also discuss some of the big moves going on around the league, including examining if Jacksonville overpaid for Nick Foles before ending the segment with a take on the A-Rod/J-Lo engagement.

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On this milestone Episode No. 100 of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran has an interview with Tim Graham of The Athletic on a variety of topics.

Graham first did the podcast all the way back on the second episode and there’s been much change in his life over the past year. At the time Graham was still at The Buffalo News but a few months after the podcast aired, he moved on to The Athletic as part of an exodus of Buffalo News sports writers who left for a variety of reasons.

Graham tells Moran in detail how his decision to leave went down.

They also spend time discussing the impact The Athletic has made on the sports content consuming community, how reuniting with an old boss helped make the transition smoother, his thoughts on the rise of Athletic teammate Matthew Fairburn, the process of his radio show and defending of colleague Mike Rodak from idiot Twitter troll attacks.

Graham then does the traditional interview-ending “Mini Lightning Round” and we learn among other things what line of work he thought about getting into, the athlete he wish he could’ve covered more than any other, what his favorite Twitter handle is and what three famous dinner guests he’d most like to entertain.

You can follow Tim on Twitter at @ByTimGraham and subscribe to The Athletic, where you get supreme local and national sports coverage for one low monthly price.

Immediately following the Graham interview Moran’s joined by Joe (@BuffaloWins) for another installment of “The Run In With Joe.”  Today the guys are dissecting several published reports linking the Buffalo Bills to two premium free agent offensive linemen.  They also debate what method the Bills may use to add talent at wide receiver and tight end, discuss cornerback Kevin Johnson visiting the Bills this week and have thoughts on the re-signing of Jordan Phillips.

Joe also does the Moran-Alytics Podcast Interest Meter, where he scores and offers takes on topics including Josh Rosen, Lebron James, RKelly and Ronda Rousey.

The segment ends with Joe blasting Moran over his previously tweeted Rocky movie power rankings.

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On this episode of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran interviews Buffalo Bills long snapper Reid Ferguson, who recently signed a three-year extension to this past January to remain with the team.

The two discuss Ferguson growing up in Georgia and he talks about his father first convincing him to give long snapping a shot as a means to get on the field more. It certainly worked as by the time Ferguson was finishing high school he was the No. 2 long snapping prospect in the entire country. He reveals why he chose LSU over Tennessee and San Diego State –a decision he says he wouldn’t hesitate to do again.

Ferguson also describes how a potential conflict of interest with his agent led him to deciding to sign with the Bills instead of the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2016.  He also reflects on the magical feeling that came with being part of the team that ended a 17-year playoff drought in 2017 while not spending time dwelling on a disappointing team campaign last season.

They wrap up discussing one of, if not their favorite TV of all time “The Office” where Reid reveals his favorite three episodes before finishing with the traditional Mini-Lightning Round, where we learn a handful of fun facts about him –including his favorite sports movie, Twitter follow and three celebrities he’d love to have over for dinner.

You can follow Reid Ferguson on Twitter @SnapFlow69.

Immediately after, Moran is joined by a returning Tone Pucks for their first “Pat with Pucks” segment in a month.  Pucks describes what it is about Buffalo Sabres head coach Phil Housley that’s always made him a skeptic while also placing plenty of blame for Buffalo’s huge collapse on the players as well.  They also talk Bills, including Pucks discussing two positions he thinks the team will sink its biggest resources into while Moran remains convinced running back Lesean McCoy may still end up a former Bill before the 2019 season begins.

Puck finishes with a prediction that the soon returning Game of Thrones will be the most epic final season in TV history.

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On this episode of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran is joined by #BillsMafia pioneer and founder of 26 Shirts, Del Reid for an interview taped at a diner in Sarasota, Florida.

Reid was in Moran’s neck of the woods for a company event and the two got together to meet in person for the first time, even though Reid originally appeared on a past episode last May via telephone.

The two sat down outside on a patio over coffee (plus chicken and waffles for Del) and talked about a handful of topics, including some of the great adventures and people Reid’s been able to work with since 26 Shirts launched and has continued to grow. In particular Del recounts stories on former Buffalo Bills greats Thurman Thomas and Darryl Talley and also discusses what it feels like to be a bit of a local celebrity himself these days.

You can follow Del on Twitter at @DelReid, check out the BillsMafia official website and be sure to visit 26 Shirts, where you can order a variety of shirts with a percentage of every purchase going to a worthy charitable cause.

Immediately after that Moran checks in with his buddy Joe (@BuffaloWins) for another edition of “The Run-In With Joe.”  Today the guys are locked on the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, or at least Moran is.  They attempt to read between the lines following the media gathering with Bills head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane, including a strong feeling the Bills will sink considerable resources into the tight end position, not so much at cornerback and feel pretty confident that Spencer Long’s role on the offensive line truly still is to be determined.

They also discuss the absolute implosion of the Buffalo Sabres that saw them go from having an 83% chance of making the playoffs at the end of November to all-but-mathematically eliminated by this first day of March.

They wrap with a little wrestling talk in light of WWE having their best week of television program in a long time, and Joe hits his finisher to highlight a disdain he has for award shows.

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On this episode of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran interviews YouTube content creator Sean Chandler of the “Sean Chandler Talks About” channel on a variety of topics.

Chandler talks about how a love for discussing movies and television shows first motivated him to start making videos on YouTube. The channel came from humble beginnings but over time has grown to an impressive 87,000 subscribers.   Chandler shares tips for aspiring content creators on methods that helped him expand his brand to the point he recently quit his “daytime” job to focus on full-time YouTube creating.

Chandler also gives a review of “Fighting with My Family,” the new movie based on the life of WWE star Paige.  Moran then transitions to Chandler’s series of videos dedicated to The Office, including his ranking of the 10 Best Episodes Of The Office Ever. They run down his list and Chandler explains why each ranked episode.

You can follow Sean Chandler on Twitter at @KirkNeverDied and check out his YouTube Channel for daily videos.

Before that Moran is joined by recurring segment guest Aaron Quinn of Cover 1 to discuss this week’s NFL Combine.  They run down a list of intriguing prospects Buffalo Bills fans should be paying close attention to at the combine, focusing on some of the draft’s top offensive prizes. They also go through some of the top free agents soon to be available and each pick a guy from the list they’d like to see Buffalo sign the most.

They also turn on the Moran-Alytics Podcast Interest meter, where Quinn registers his level of interest and adds takes on the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, Antonio Brown, Manny Machado, the Buffalo Sabres and more.

Moran also has an honest take on Bradley Cooper.

You can follow Aaron Quinn on Twitter @AaronQuinn716 and be sure to check out Cover 1 for all your Bills draft and free agency needs.

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Follow Patrick Moran on Twitter @patmorantweets and “like” the Moran-Alytics Facebook page.

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On this episode of the future award winning Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran interviews longtime NFL Insider Adam Caplan on a variety of football and Buffalo Bills topics.

This is Caplan’s second appearance on the podcast, first appearing on Episode No. 21 last May.

Caplan offers his thoughts on Joe Flacco being traded to Denver, reveals the team Nick Foles is likely heading to per his sources, who the frontrunners for free agent running back Le’Veon Bell appear to be, potential trade fits for wide receiver Antonio Brown and talks about a handful of veteran quarterbacks that could be with new teams in 2019.

The attention then turns to the Bills and Caplan is tasked with giving fans a big reason to be optimistic going into free agency and the draft. He discusses if Lesean McCoy was actually close to being deal to Philadelphia near the trade deadline last year, has insight on what new signee Spencer Long’s role with the team is expected to be and shares what he hears around the league when it comes to Josh Allen.

You can follow Adam Caplan on Twitter @Caplannfl.

After that Moran is joined by his buddy Joe (@BuffaloWins) for another installment of “The Run-In With Joe.”  Both guys are absolutely heated at the Buffalo Sabres after watching a promising season that not long ago saw them atop the NHL standings go completely down the drain.  They discuss if Phil Housley deserves to be fired and more importantly how much blame Jason Botterill deserves for the implosion.  Moran suggests more blame should be assigned to the players, going as far to say the locker room may have its share of coach killers while Joe attributes their demise to a lack of talent.

They also spend a little time talking WWE and Joe explains why he thinks Vince McMahon called up a bunch of NXT stars during the road to Wrestlemania instead of immediately after it.

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On this special, one-year anniversary edition of the Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran welcomes the same guest he had for the very first episode of the podcast. Buffalo Bills beat reporter and radio on-air personality Sal Capaccio of WGR550 joins Moran to celebrate and talk sports, and props to Sal for batting through an illness to do the interview.

When Ssal was on the podcast exactly one year ago today, the two spent a full hour discussing Sal’s life and career, dating back to his childhood.  It was a fun conversation that covered dozens of topics yet  had very little Buffalo Bills talk.  It’s the polar opposite this time around.

Patrick takes listeners to a tour around the Buffalo Bills roster and at each positional stop Capaccio, who is the Bills sideline reporter offers insight on where the team stands and what moves may be coming during the offseason.  In particular Sal has interesting takes on Spencer Long, Lesean McCoy and Levi Wallace as well as a discussion about what wide receivers and tight ends would make for great fits.

Before the interview concludes Sal has thoughts on the New York Yankees winter and the gradual crumbling of the Buffalo Sabres, including examining if head coach Phil Housley could be in trouble if the season doesn’t turn around soon.

You can follow Sal on Twitter at @SalSports and of course be sure to check out all his written work as well as live and archived audio at WGR550.com.

Before this anniversary pod wraps, Moran hands out his semi-recurring Moran-Alytics Podcast MVP award to a newfound love for coffee and LVP to the imploding Sabres.

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On this episode of the future award winning Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran is joined for a second time by John Vogl, Buffalo Sabres writer for The Athletic.

When John was first on the podcast back in early July of last year, he had literally just started at The Athletic after leaving The Buffalo News following 16 years on their staff.  Vogl reviews how the transition has been over the past nine months and highlights differences he’s found in his work flow as a result of the change.

From there they dive into the Sabres and John’s pleased at how much more fun it’s been to cover the team this year with them in a thick of a playoff race through the middle of February, a far cry from most seasons over the past decade where it’s deadline trade sellers and draft lottery positioning dominating Buffalo headlines.   Vogl also feels the Sabres 10-game winning streak early in the season was in some ways a curse because of the lofty expectations it created and also provides insight into two prospects the Sabres could potentially move before the NHL trade daedline while being candid about Phil Housley’s future with the team if they falter down the stretch.

Both being wrestling marks, Moran and Vogl wrap up with a little WWE talk, hitting on Charlotte Flair being brought into the main event at Wrestlemania, Dean Ambrose’s imminent departure from WWE potentially being a work, and a possible Mania’ opponent for Daniel Bryan.

You can follow John Vogl on Twitter at @BuffaloVogl and be sure to get an online subscription to The Athletic, where Buffalo fans not only get tons of Bills and Sabres coverage but also access to all acclaimed national writers on The Athletic staff.

Following that, Joe’s (@BuffaloWins) back for another installment of “The Run-In With Joe” and it’s a lively one. They begin by highlighting this as the perfect time to begin your Game of Thrones viewing binge with the final season now just 58 days away. That seems to be the extent of things they agree on, because they spend the next several minutes bantering and arguing about how the Buffalo Bills should approach the offseason in regards to how they should spend their money and resources. Moran thinks Buffalo should invest very heavily on the offensive line via free agency and the draft while Joe prefers more skill position players and predicts the Bills will invests heavily on defense. Joe is also married to the ideal that the Bills are being modeled after Carolina but Moran’s not ready to agree.

They also go through the Moran-Alytics Podcast Interest Meter, where Moran runs off several sports and pop culture topics while Joe scores his interest level on a scale of 1-10 and has a take for each. Among the topics covered are Joe Flacco, James Harden, The Los Angeles Lakers, pitchers and catchers, Frozen 2 (yes!) and Journey.

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Follow Patrick Moran on Twitter @patmorantweets and “like” the Moran-Alytics Facebook page.

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On this episode of the future award-winning Moran-Alytics Podcast, Patrick Moran scores an interview with one of the most versatile and talented members of the national sports media.  Sports Illustrated senior writer, podcast co-host and star of The Wilder Project Charlotte Wilder joins for a wide-ranging interview.

The two talk about Wilder growing up near Boston the daughter of an accomplished writer, setting a desire early in Charlotte’s life to follow in her mother’s career path.  She explains (rather humorously) why she ended up at Colby College and how the experiences of writing for several publications helped prepare her for the opportunity that would come at Sports Illustrated.

While the interview is generally lighthearted Moran asks Wilder about an enlightening post she penned for Boston.com in 2015, where she revealed she’d been dealing with anxiety since sixth grade.  Wilder provides outstanding perspective on mental health.

Charlotte also discusses her Most Valuable Podcast she co-hosts with Jessica Smetana and The Wilder Project for SI TV.  She reveals that a new season is coming soon while discussing past guests, including PFT and Big Cat from Pardon My Take.

They finish with the traditional Moran-Alytics Podcast “Mini Lightning Round” and Charlotte reveals among several things her favorite city to visit, athlete to cover, Twitter follow and three guests she’d most enjoy having for dinner.

You can follow Charlotte Wilder on Twitter at @TheWilderThings and check out all her work at SI.com.

After the interview Moran has takes on Sunday night’s Grammy’s show, including Alicia Keys as host, Cardi B. winning Best Rap Album and being blown away by a Brandi Carlile breakthrough performance.

Recurring guest Aaron Quinn (@AaronQuinn716) of Cover 1 then joins for another segment, where the two talk about Kareem Hunt signing with the Browns as well as a tweet from Benjamin Allbright that suggested the Bills had interest in the troubled running back and what it may mean for Lesean McCoy’s future. They also discuss some mock drafts out there that have Buffalo tacking an offensive tackle in the Top 10 plus the Moran-Alytics Interest Meter, where Quinn scores and offers a tak a bunch of topics, including Phil Mickelson, Anthony Davis and AEW.

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Follow Patrick Moran on Twitter @patmorantweets and “like” the Moran-Alytics Facebook page.

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