How Joel Klatt, Robert Griffin III, Brady Quinn Offered a Masterclass in Analysis Missing From Television
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In football, sometimes you get lucky. The same can be said for surfing, or in this case, channel surfing. This past Monday, I caught The Joel Klatt Show: Big Noon Conversations – RG III & Brady Quinn on FS1. The discussion centered on the many aspects and variables of the quarterback position.
In short, it was one of the best football shows I have seen in quite a while. While different in format, the program reminded me of the old Jon Gruden’s Quarterback Camp on ESPN. It was in-depth, all-encompassing and quite entertaining.
Klatt continues to prove that he is in the upper echelon of college football broadcasters. I put him right up there with Rece Davis, Chris Fowler, Todd Blackledge, Noah Eagle and Brad Nessler. To take it even further, I think you can compare him favorably at this point in his career to legends like Verne Lundquist and Keith Jackson.
And that’s no smoke.
A Stacked Resume
I always like seeing TV personalities in different roles. Klatt, a former outstanding quarterback at the University of Colorado, is terrific in the FOX broadcast booth as a top-flight analyst. However, this was a different setup for him. The Joel Klatt Show podcast offers a subdued, deep and enlightening version of Klatt’s talent.
Certainly, he was helped by having two top-notch college quarterbacks along for the ride. Robert Griffin III and Brady Quinn have developed into terrific TV personalities as well. Many observers have been critical of ESPN for the recent layoffs of some popular personalities. The 2024 layoff of Griffin III was an equally ill-advised move.
Griffin was a true quarterbacking phenom at Baylor University and in the NFL until injuries slowed his pro career. Moreover, he is an honest, thoughtful and original talent. Griffin has seen the ups and downs of football, and that experience gives him a well-rounded perspective.
The same you can say for Quinn. A quarterbacking icon at Notre Dame and a first-round pick of the Cleveland Browns in 2007. He never panned out in the NFL. But his pro experience and starry stint in South Bend have given him a true gift for assessing and evaluating players and games.
Early in the show, Klatt made a key point about the evolution of the quarterback position. He noted that in the past, almost every quarterback in college played the game essentially in the same manner. Now, starting quarterbacks come in different sizes with different skill sets. All of which can be equally effective.
Griffin III had a solid spiel about the accountability and pressure inherent in the quarterback position. He used the phrase, “no pressure, no diamonds.”
Griffin III stated, “You’re having to make decisions. You’re having to operate and perform at the highest level in the biggest moments.”
He went on to say that getting 11 guys to all be on the same page was one of the greatest joys of his life. Even admitted that he misses it.
Klatt returned to the theme of today’s quarterbacks. He said that when speaking to many young QBs, he feels like he’s talking to a tennis player, someone who is in an individual sport. He added that the personal training modern quarterbacks receive has hindered the team concept.
Quinn retorted that all of the personal coaching has made today’s quarterbacks the most prepared in the history of the game. Armed with creativity and the ability to throw the ball at various arm angles. What I liked about this exchange is that Klatt, Quinn and Griffin III compared quarterback eras without sounding like bitter, crotchety old men.
It was a pretty darn profound debate. The kind that you do not get on a highlight show, preview broadcast or game telecast because the action is so fast-paced on all of those productions.
Comfort In Conversation
On this special edition of The Joel Klatt Show podcast, Klatt, Griffin III and Quinn were dressed casually and sitting on modest chairs. There was a circular coffee table in front of them with two books and three cups on it. Between them was a white football helmet and a football sitting on top of another book, with a gold curtain behind them.
This is minimalist TV in its highest form. Not relying on flashy graphics or rapid video. Just on three college football savants who have lived what they are talking about.
A lot of the chit-chat on the show was quite technical and even ethereal. Klatt did a good job of bringing it down to earth and explaining it to the uninitiated viewer. Griffin said that to run today’s complex offenses well, you have to be in a system for at least two years. This flies in the face of the current state of college football. Where it seems quarterbacks are jumping from school to school every offseason via the transfer portal.
As the show moved on, it became less about Klatt directing questions toward Griffin or Quinn. It was more about a conversation. Even when one participant was making a point, there was ample room for interjection and even argument from the other two. One of the hardest things to do in sports broadcasting is create a basic interview/discussion program that holds the interest of the fan.
Klatt and company did just that.
I also learned something from the show. While talking about his own college recruiting process, Griffin revealed that several large schools, including the University of Texas, recruited him not as a quarterback but as a safety. Quinn immediately jumped in and asked Griffin if he played safety in high school. Griffin replied no, leaving Klatt absolutely stunned.
The story got even better when Griffin recalled a hard-fought loss by Baylor to Texas. He said that after the game, then-Longhorns head coach Mack Brown ran over to Griffin III and told him that if he wanted to transfer right then, he would take him. Moreover, Brown admitted that he had made a big mistake recruiting Griffin III to play safety.
Keeping It Candid
While much of the show was quite pleasant in tone, Klatt did not hold back on delicate topics. He questioned Quinn about his brief and somewhat disappointing NFL career. Quinn’s response was candid. He said that one of the biggest mistakes he made was trying to impress everybody and prove his naysayers wrong. He also implied that the Browns’ offensive system really was not built around his strengths as a quarterback.
The Joel Klatt Show: Big Noon Conversations – RG III & Brady Quinn was speckled with video cutaways of the three former quarterbacks in action as players. This brought some visual garnish to the proceedings without overshadowing the main course of the conversation.
The triumvirate also mentioned some of the best offensive and defensive minds in today’s college game. Griffin III said that Ryan Day has done a great job with the offense at Ohio State. Even despite having several different offensive coordinators during his tenure as head coach. They all agreed that USC head coach Lincoln Riley continues to be one of the best quarterback developers in the country. On the defensive side, Griffin III cited Deion Sanders as a coach for whom players love to play.
As the show neared its close, Quinn brought the discussion back to young quarterback expectations, saying, “Everyone who’s got a quarterback in elementary school or junior high, they think their kid’s going to be the next Tom Brady. It doesn’t work out that way.” In a funny moment, Klatt looked right into the camera and sarcastically told viewers, “You don’t have Tom Brady in your household.”
Beginning this weekend, major college teams will vie for the golden prize that is the College Football National Championship Trophy. I will settle for catching The Joel Klatt Show, a gold nugget of a broadcast, quite lustrous in its commentary and conversation.
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John Molori is a weekly columnist for Barrett Sports Media. He has previously contributed to ESPNW, Patriots Football Weekly, Golf Content Network, Methuen Life Magazine, and wrote a syndicated Media Blitz column in the New England region, which was published by numerous outlets including The Boston Metro, Providence Journal, Lowell Sun, and the Eagle-Tribune. His career also includes fourteen years in television as a News and Sports Reporter, Host, Producer working for Continental Cablevision, MediaOne, and AT&T. He can be reached on Twitter @MoloriMedia.
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