The Drive

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil are joined by James Merilatt to react to Mike Klis' time on the show. Could the Broncos be without Jonothan Cooper for a portion of next season? James shares his thoughts on the Avalanche and their decision to bring back Jared Bednar for next season. We play our weekly trivia match against the morning show. Will we be able to beat their 4-0 performance from earlier today? We react to Davis Webb explaining how Jaylen Waddle coming to Denver reminds him of when the Bills traded for Stephon Diggs in Josh Allen's third season in the NFL. Will Bo Nix take a massive leap in production like Allen did with the arrival of an elite number one receiver? How much of Bo Nix will we see at Broncos practices next week? What were Phil's biggest takeaways from Broncos practice yesterday? 

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil continue their heated debate on whether to consider this a "good year" for the Avalanche. We pivot to the Broncos as Sean Payton and the Broncos agreed to a contract extension that will keep him in Denver until 2030. Why did they decide to give Payton an extension now, with two years left on his original deal? We hear from Payton on the length of the contract and his excitement for football, even at his age. Today's "Three Count" features Evan Engram continuing to have a good few weeks at Broncos OTAs, debating if Nathan MacKinnon was disrespected by coming in 3rd for the Hart Trophy, and the US kicking off their World Cup campaign tonight in Los Angeles. Our 9News Broncos insider, Mike Klis, joins the show to discuss the latest update on Jonothan Cooper's legal trouble, if this situation could lead to the Broncos parting ways with Cooper, and how the new Broncos ownership will handle this situation. 

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil live from the Glenn Bar and Grill. The guys recap Zach's time on the golf course yesterday, playing 100 holes for charity, and all the massive news in Denver sports yesterday that he missed. Zach and Phil react to the latest in the Jonothan Cooper story with the law and his domestic violence allegations. Could Cooper get released from the Broncos with the poor decisions he's made in the last week? We react to Davis Webb explaining how Jaylen Waddle coming to Denver reminds him of when the Bills traded for Stephon Diggs in Josh Allen's third season in the NFL. Will Bo Nix take a massive leap in production like Allen did with the arrival of an elite number one receiver? We hear from Joe Sakic and his comments from the Avalanche's end-of-the-season press conference. Is the Avs organization not upset enough about the way they were defeated in the playoffs? 

In hour 4 of The Drive, Phil and Will take a deep dive into the Broncos as they continue to work out at OTAs. We hear from Sean Payton about how his contract extension gives the players in the locker room consistency. What did Phil notice out at practice today? What did the guys make of Jahdae Barron not participating in team drills? Is Barron in line to take over as a starter in the secondary, or will it be another year of him being a depth piece? How much has Bo Nix been involved during practice? What did Sean Payton have to say about the Jonothan Cooper situation, and are we expecting the NFL to get involved? We react to the breaking news of the results of the Hart Trophy. Why did our guy, Nathan MacKinnon, finish in third behind Kucherov and McDavid? We wrap up the show with Zach Bye joining the show after completing his 100 holes today. 

In hour 3 of The Drive, Phil and Will react to Josh Kroenke explaining why the Avalanche and Nuggets are not in the same situation and why he is not treating their offseasons the same. Why is Josh much more involved with the Nuggets and not as much with the Avs? Could the Avalanche make a splashy trade this offseason that shakes up the core of the team? Would the Avs be able to recoup any assets in return for Val Nichuskin or Ross Colton? We react to the news of the day in Sean Payton and the Broncos agreeing to a new 5-year contract extension. We hear from Sean on how great ownership has been here in Denver, and wanting to coach until he stops being excited about football.  We pivot to the Avalanche as Joe Sakic spoke today at the team's end-of-the-season press conference. We hear Sakic's thoughts on Cale Makar's looming extension and the injuries the team suffered in the playoffs. 

In hour 2 of The Drive, Phil and Will take a deep dive into the Broncos as they continue to work out at OTAs. We hear from Sean Payton about how his contract extension gives the players in the locker room consistency. What did Phil notice at practice today? Why were JK Dobbins and Jonah Coleaman absent from practice today? Will we continue to see an uptick in production from Evan Engram in the offense this season after a slow start to his time in Denver? How much has Bo Nix been involved during practice? Today's "Three Count" includes our reaction to one of the greatest NBA Finals games in history in which the Knicks came back from down 29 to win on a miraculous OG Anunoby tip-in, the Rockies going for a sweep today after beating the Cubs in two straight games, and previewing the World Cup that started today. We hear from Sean Payton about how bringing in Jaylen Waddle lifts the entire receiving room. Who will step up and be the number three receiver behind Waddle and Sutton? 

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Phil and Will live from Todd Creek Golf Course. The guys react to the breaking news of the day in Sean Payton and the Broncos agreeing to a new 5-year contract extension. Will Payton get a pay raise in his new contract after all the success he's had in Denver the past few seasons? Does this rule out a future in which Davis Webb will be the head coach of the Broncos? Phil and Will continue to discuss Sean Payton's contract extension, and we hear from Sean on how great ownership has been here in Denver, and still being excited about football. We pivot to the Avalanche as Joe Sakic spoke today at the team's end-of-the-season press conference. We hear Sakic's thoughts on Jared Bednar returning for next season, even in the final year of his contract. Will Bednar get an extension before the next season starts? Will the Avs and Cale Makar agree on a contract extension this offseason? 

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil react to the massive number of viewers Game 3 had in the NBA Finals and Zach points out how great of a place the NBA is in now with all the young talent in the league. Will we ever call Nikola Jokic the best player in the NBA again? Does Victor Wembanyama currently hold the title as best in the league at the age of only 22? How much of Jokic's lack of defense impact his ability to be the best player in the world? We react to the conflicting reports of Jaquan McMillian and the Broncos working towards a contract extension. Will McMillian get a fair shot at being the nickel corner again this season or will Jahdae Barron take over the position in his second season after being a first-round pick? We wrap up the show with DenverSports.com's Will Petersen joining the show to discuss if Mason Rudolph would be a better backup quarterback in Denver than Jarrett Stidham. 

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil debate how much the latest snag with Denver water will impact the Broncos' chances of moving to Burnham Yard for the next site for their stadium. How confident are the guys in the organization's preferred site still being the most viable option? Will this set back the Broncos' timeline of wanting to open a new stadium in 2031? Will the Broncos be able to extend their lease at Empower Field if they aren't ready to move by 2031? Did Broncos ownership always know that building in the city of Denver would be too difficult? Who would be to blame if the Broncos aren't able to cross the finish line and build their stadium in Denver? We react to Bleacher Report's rankings of the top wide receiver rooms in the NFL. Where did the Broncos land on the list, and did they get "done dirty" with a low ranking? Who do the guys believe will be the Broncos' number three wide receiver? 

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil continue their conversation on the NBA Finals and the surge in attention and viewership. Zach points out how great of a place the NBA is in now, even with legends like LeBron James and Steph Curry on the final years of their careers. Will we ever call Nikola Jokic the best player in the NBA again? Is Victor Wembanyama currently the best player in the world, and how would a championship impact that title? Will Jokic regain his three-point shot next season, after struggling in the playoffs? Today's "Three Count" features Warren Schaffer's comments on opposing teams taking over Coors Field, Altitude television changing their crew to call Nuggets games, and the guys making their picks for Game 4 in the NBA Finals tonight. Could Jarrett Stidham be a cut candidate this season? We debate if Mason Rudolph could be a better fit to back up Bo Nix with a crowded quarterback room in Pittsburgh?