The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL

If you looked at Week 4 before the season, you likely would've assumed that Ravens-Chiefs would be the Game of the Week, with Eagles-Buccaneeers at the top of the undercard. Instead, Eagles-Bucs has jumped up to top billing, the Colts and Rams find themselves in the Game of the Week, and the Ravens and Chiefs are both starting down 1-3 records. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman dive into...

The Texans are 32nd in offensive success rate. The Broncos are 31st. The Raiders are 30th. The Falcons are 20th, but they just got shut out by the Panthers, fired their WRs coach, and moved their OC down to the field from the booth. Why can't these four offenses, all of which have good-to-great personnel on paper, get anything going? Robert Mays and Ted Nguyen dive deep on this episode of The Athl...

This is the sort of week that makes college football fanatics and NFL Draft nuts the Predator meme. Saturday is absolutely loaded with games that are monumental on the college football landscape filled with players who will be playing on Sundays next year. From Oregon at Penn State and Alabama at Georgia, to LSU at Mississippi and Notre Dame at Arkansas, to Ohio State at Washington and USC at Illi...

The Chiefs are on the board, while the Vikings and Commanders both got easy wins with their backup quarterbacks at the helm. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen recap Chiefs-Giants, Bengals-Vikings and Raiders-Commanders on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also consider what Nick Bosa's season-ending ACL injury means for the 49ers and take sad voicemails from you, our dear listeners...

The Bills, Eagles and Buccaneers are among the 3-0 teams in the NFL. No real surprises there, right? Well, so are the Chargers. So are the Colts! Oh, and the 49ers, too. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman kick off the Week 3 recap episode of The Athletic Football Show by talking about four of the teams that improved to 3-0 on Sunday. They also try to answer how Packers lost to the Browns,...

Any time the calendar says "September," it's still early in the NFL season. But as we get ready for Week 3, we're starting to know a thing or two about most teams across the league. One thing we would've known at any point, though? Rams-Eagles and Lions-Ravens is must-see TV. That's where Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman start the Week 3 preview episode of The Athletic Football Show. Th...

Through two weeks of the 2024 season, the Saints looked like a breakout offense while the Broncos ranked in the top five in defensive success rate. One of those held steady through the entire season. The other...did not. This year, we have some of those same types of early season surprises, including the Colts offense, the Falcons pass rush, and some real Chiefs panic. What of these are real and w...

We're coming off a loaded weekend in the college football world, and the fallout from those games registered in NFL Draft circles. In the latest edition of Building the Beast, Dane Brugler and Dave Helman hand out some game balls, spotlight some big games from under-the-radar players, check in on the 2025 NFL rookie class, and look ahead to what's on the radar this weekend, highlighted by Illinois...

Hey, the Bengals finally didn't dig a massive hole in September. Things are going great, right? Right?!? Dave Helman and Derrik Klassen kick off the Week 2 Hangover by discussing Joe Burrow's toe injury and the Bengals ability to stay afloat with Jake Browning starting for potentially the next three months. After that, the guys dig into Vikings-Falcons and Rams-Titans, and then listen to a couple...

The Super Bowl LIX rematch was always going to be at the center of Week 2, and this one ended with the same winner as that one back in February did. The Eagles 20-17 win over the Chiefs is where Dave Helman and Derrik Klassen kick off the Week 2 recap episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also discuss the craziness of Giants-Cowboys, the hot start for the Colts offense, Joe Burrow's toe...

Week 2 marks our first real preview episode of the season, and what a helluva week it is. For starters, we've got a Super Bowl LIX rematch between the Eagles and Chiefs. We also get a number of teams or units that surprised us in Week 1—the Jaguars defense and Colts offense to name two—getting much different tests in Week 2. And hey, the internet's favorite quarterbacks, Justin Herbert and Geno Sm...

One of the best parts of Week 1 is that we finally get to see a bunch of new stuff in action. Like the Geno Smith/Chip Kelly offense in Las Vegas. Or Nick Caley running Houston's offense. Or Cam Ward playing in the NFL and Robert Saleh back with the 49ers. What are our first impressions of all these new things? Robert Mays and Dan Pizzuta of Snaps and Stats dig in on this episode of The Athletic F...

Week 2 of the college football season may not have had the marquee matchups that Week 1 did, but it still gave Dave Helman and Dane Brugler more than enough to talk about from an NFL Draft perspective. The guys dig into John Mateer's big day against Michigan, Sawyer Robertson's second straight strong showing against a power four team, Jordyn Tyson's hot start to the season, and a whole lot more on...

Our return to five episodes per week means that the Weekly Hangover is back! Because look, Sundays are busy. We can't possibly talk about every game in the way that we'd like to on our Sunday night recaps. But we do still want to talk about every game. That's what the Hangover is for. In the Week 1 Hangover, Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen get to two games we didn't discuss on Sunday night—the Comm...

Same Sunday night recap you know and love, brand spankin' new look. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman celebrate the return of the NFL with the Week 1 recap episode of The Athletic Football Show, the first from our new studio in Chicago. The guys discuss the Bills' dramatic win over the Ravens, the Packers' dominant victory against the Lions, the Jets and Steelers—really!—giving us the mo...

And with that, the 2025 NFL season is officially underway. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman recap the Eagles' 24-20 season-opening win over the Cowboys on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/sPp5md3B Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show ⁠Apple⁠ ⁠Spotify⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠ Host: Robert Mays Co-Hosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman Executive Produce...

Football friends, we have made it back to the start of another NFL season. We hope you enjoy the crazy six-month ride with us. To kick off the season, Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman highlight what they're excited to watch in Week 1 on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/npVXkk3c Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show ⁠Apple⁠ ⁠Spotify⁠ ⁠You...

We've previewed every division. We've pondered every lingering question. We've analyzed every roster from top to bottom and back to the top, again. There's only one thing left to do. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman offer up their awards, playoffs and Super Bowl predictions on this final preseason episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown (timestamps are approximate) 4:35 Defensive...

We saw Arch Manning, Garrett Nussmeier and LaNorris Sellers all play in Week 1, to varying results. What are our first 2025 impressions of all of those quarterbacks? And who else should NFL Draft heads already be taking notice of this season? Dave Helman and Dane Brugler recap Week 1 of the CFB season on this episode of Building the Beast. Hosts: Dave Helman and Dane Brugler Executive Producer: Mi...

The annual Wins Pool Draft is here. Three drafters, seven teams apiece, glory and ignominy at stake. What more could you ask for? In both of the last two seasons, Robert Mays has had to pay off an embarrassing bet on Radio Row. Will he make it three years in a row, or will Derrik Klassen or Dave Helman save him and fall into the TAFS Wins Pool basement? Listen along as they guys select seven teams...

We've done it. We've reached the end of the line. Our eighth and final division preview features what has long been one of the most competitive divisions in the league, the AFC North. The Ravens are back as one of the inner-circle Super Bowl favorites, while the Bengals are back as one of the very best offenses in the league. The Steelers, meanwhile, underwent a facelift this offseason that includ...

Every team in the NFC West has a win total over/under of 8.5 or better. The Rams are the favorite, but their quarterback has been hurt all summer. The 49ers have institutional power, but they went 6-11 last year and have undergone serious change. There's justifiable optimism for the Seahawks and Cardinals, with easy-to-see downsides, as well. In short, if there's one division that could finish in...

The AFC West has long been the domain of Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and the Chiefs, winners of nine straight division titles. The Chargers and Broncos both made the playoffs last year, and the Raiders had an exciting offseason, but there's no question who reigns supreme over this division. Can the Chiefs make it a full decade of division championships? Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman d...

The NFC North put three teams in the playoffs last year, including the top seed in the conference and two teams with 14 wins. There's a chance the division is even better from top to bottom this year, even if it doesn't win quite as many games. Robert Mays, Dave Helman and Derrik Klassen dive deep into all four teams in the NFC North on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown (timestam...

The AFC South is something of a punchline in the NFL, with its division champion seemingly locked into that Saturday afternoon Wild Card round game timeslot. You're there for a reason, you know? But is this the year the AFC South gets the last laugh? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dive deep into all four teams on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown (timestamps are approximate) 4:00...