# Mike Florio on Terrion, Commissioner’s List, Romo, Donald, Porter

An episode of [Softy & Dick Interviews](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1245866571), 2 Sep 2026, 15 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/98a2599f-cd9b-4f2a-9be4-b22c00e585f2/907d6469-cef5-4bda-9f13-b2f100f49399/bca0ea0a-670c-4580-80e7-b4b8018013f3/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=26b16ce4-8fab-44ea-88d4-b2f100f493bc

Mike Florio of PFT and NBC joins Dave Softy Mahler and Dick Fain to talk about Terrion Arnold’s availability for the Seahawks since the signing, if other players could be put on the Commissioner’s List, if Tony Romo will rejoin CBS after his OWI arrest, the impact of Aaron Donald returning to the Rams, Joey Porter Jr’s holdout with Pittsburgh, and more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: It's time for our weekly conversation with Pro Football Talk's
[0:03] Speaker 1: Mike Florio, brought to you by Simply Seattle. Tired of
[0:07] Speaker 1: buying and repping the same old Seattle sports gear everyone
[0:10] Speaker 1: else has? For the best Storms, Seahawks, Mariners, Kraken, Rainiers, Sounders,
[0:15] Speaker 1: and not to mention the largest Sonics collection in the world,
[0:17] Speaker 1: check out simplyseattle.com. Now with Mike Florio, here's Softie and Dick.
[0:23] Speaker 2: All right, here we go.
[0:24] Speaker 3: On a busy Tuesday, normally a Wednesday, but we got
[0:27] Speaker 3: weird schedules this week and next week, so we are
[0:30] Speaker 3: trying to be accommodating to Mike Florio's busy, busy work
[0:33] Speaker 3: week the next couple of weeks, and here he is,
[0:35] Speaker 3: courtesy of our friends at SimplySeattle.com, whatever you got your
[0:38] Speaker 3: eyes on on the website, KJR15, for 15% off anything
[0:42] Speaker 3: at SimplySeattle.com. Mike Florio, ProFootballTalk.com, the NFL and NBC.
[0:48] Speaker 2: How are you, pal? I'm doing great. Thank you for
[0:50] Speaker 2: accommodating me in our normal spot.
[0:52] Speaker 4: I will be somewhere between Pittsburgh and LaGuardia Airport for
[0:57] Speaker 4: rehearsals at NBC on Thursday.
[0:59] Speaker 2: And then next Wednesday, you know where I'll be.
[1:01] Speaker 4: I'll be at Lumen Field watching them install grass for
[1:04] Speaker 4: week one.
[1:05] Speaker 3: Why don't you come by Jimmy's right outside Lumen and
[1:09] Speaker 3: jump on the air with us live next Wednesday before
[1:12] Speaker 3: the game?
[1:12] Speaker 2: Because I'll be working. All right. We have to get ready.
[1:17] Speaker 4: We don't just show up and start talking, although it
[1:21] Speaker 4: definitely seems that way.
[1:22] Speaker 2: We actually have a plan. At least I do. I
[1:26] Speaker 2: try to. I got you. Just blurt out. Whatever comes
[1:29] Speaker 2: into my head like I do on the spot.
[1:31] Speaker 3: I mean, it usually works for us. So we like that.
[1:34] Speaker 3: But hey, let's let's first of all talk about the
[1:36] Speaker 3: moves the Hawks have made. Terry on Arnold is officially in.
[1:39] Speaker 3: He's now on the exempt list. Can you explain to
[1:42] Speaker 3: people kind of what that means and when you think
[1:45] Speaker 3: we might possibly see Terry on actually play for the Seahawks?
[1:50] Speaker 4: Well, he will be paid. He can't practice or play.
[1:53] Speaker 4: He can be in the building.
[1:54] Speaker 2: He can work out. He can go to meetings. They
[1:57] Speaker 2: can get better acquainted with him.
[1:58] Speaker 4: They've basically secured dibs on him in the event that
[2:02] Speaker 4: he is able to return at some point this season.
[2:06] Speaker 2: And here's where the paid leave comes.
[2:08] Speaker 4: Slash commissioner exempt list gets a little bit confusing when
[2:12] Speaker 4: they devise this thing. And as it's written in the
[2:15] Speaker 4: personal conduct policy, once a player who is facing criminal
[2:18] Speaker 4: charges is placed on paid leave, he stays there until
[2:22] Speaker 4: the case is resolved. And then after that, until the NFL.
[2:26] Speaker 4: decides what, if any, punishment he will receive. And all
[2:29] Speaker 4: appeals are exhausted. So in theory, he's not coming back
[2:34] Speaker 4: until this case is over. There's no trial date. There's
[2:36] Speaker 4: a court date early October. It's probably not going to
[2:39] Speaker 4: be a trial during the season. However, in at least
[2:44] Speaker 4: one Case, two years ago, Patriots safety Jabril Peppers.
[2:48] Speaker 2: He was placed on paid leave. Seven games later, they
[2:52] Speaker 2: allowed him.
[2:52] Speaker 4: To come back, even though his case had not yet
[2:55] Speaker 4: been resolved.
[2:56] Speaker 2: He had a trial in January of 2025.
[2:58] Speaker 4: He was acquitted, but he missed those seven games. And
[3:02] Speaker 4: it's possible, and there's a thought, that maybe what the
[3:04] Speaker 4: NFL is doing now is pre-suspending the player. How much
[3:10] Speaker 4: do we think he's going to ultimately miss if he
[3:13] Speaker 4: is suspended? held to have violated the personal conduct policy,
[3:17] Speaker 4: will put him on paid leave for that duration. And
[3:21] Speaker 4: then if and when this thing ends and he gets
[3:24] Speaker 4: a punishment, he gets credit for the games he missed.
[3:26] Speaker 4: He forfeits the salary he made during those games. That's
[3:29] Speaker 4: one potential way to deal with this. So there's a
[3:32] Speaker 4: window possibly for the NFL to allow him to come
[3:36] Speaker 4: back this season unless they are determined in his case.
[3:39] Speaker 2: And in his case, it's serious.
[3:40] Speaker 4: It's eight felony charges, kidnapping, armed robbery, life in prison,
[3:44] Speaker 4: potential sentence if he's convicted. They may not let him
[3:47] Speaker 4: come back until the case is resolved. I think the Seahawks,
[3:51] Speaker 4: just like they were initially betting on the possibility he'd
[3:53] Speaker 4: be available for the preseason, he wasn't. They're betting on
[3:56] Speaker 4: the possibility he may be available for the stretch run,
[3:58] Speaker 4: and he could be.
[4:00] Speaker 5: There's been speculation that the commissioner's exempt list could hit
[4:03] Speaker 5: the Rams as well. What's the chances that Puka and
[4:06] Speaker 5: or Alaric Jackson end up there?
[4:09] Speaker 4: Well, their cases are premature for a couple of reasons.
[4:12] Speaker 4: And the main one is there aren't charges. They could
[4:16] Speaker 4: end up with misdemeanor charges. They could end up entering
[4:19] Speaker 4: a diversion program. And a diversion program is one way
[4:22] Speaker 4: of resolving a criminal case that triggers discipline under the
[4:26] Speaker 4: personal conduct policy.
[4:27] Speaker 2: It could happen. It hasn't happened.
[4:29] Speaker 4: And because they're not facing charges and the NFL didn't
[4:32] Speaker 4: otherwise check the boxes to justify paid leave, they weren't
[4:35] Speaker 4: placed on paid leave when Josh Jacobs, Jonathan Cooper and
[4:38] Speaker 4: and Terry Arnold were placed on paid leave on Sunday.
[4:41] Speaker 2: It could happen at some point, or it may.
[4:42] Speaker 4: Just be nothing happens until they enter a diversion program.
[4:47] Speaker 4: And at that point, the NFL promptly deals with.
[4:50] Speaker 2: A potential suspension.
[4:51] Speaker 4: And what also happens in a lot of these cases
[4:53] Speaker 4: is They negotiate a punishment and it's just done. We
[4:57] Speaker 4: don't have a drawn out process. There aren't many times
[5:00] Speaker 4: where we've got the hearing like the one that happened
[5:03] Speaker 4: in the Deshaun Watson case four years ago, where it
[5:06] Speaker 4: went through a full blown process.
[5:08] Speaker 2: It went through a full blown hearing. There was.
[5:11] Speaker 4: A finding, there was an appeal, and there was finally
[5:14] Speaker 4: a suspension. They could enter the diversion program. It could
[5:18] Speaker 4: be all worked out. They're going to miss a couple
[5:19] Speaker 4: of games, whatever the case may be. That could happen
[5:21] Speaker 4: at any time, depending upon how these cases move forward
[5:24] Speaker 4: during the season.
[5:25] Speaker 3: Mike Florio with us on the air. You mentioned Mike
[5:28] Speaker 3: Tarion may be playing this year. Are we going to
[5:30] Speaker 3: see Tony Romo on CBS this year?
[5:34] Speaker 4: Well, I was disappointed last week when There was a
[5:39] Speaker 4: statement issued by an unnamed spokesperson.
[5:42] Speaker 2: And I got the statement.
[5:43] Speaker 4: I got the email from a PR firm. And I
[5:47] Speaker 4: didn't ask for it. They just sent it out. And
[5:49] Speaker 4: they said, please attribute this to an unnamed spokesperson. And
[5:53] Speaker 4: part of the statement was Tony Romo takes full responsibility. Well,
[5:56] Speaker 4: it just seems odd to me that you would take
[5:57] Speaker 4: full responsibility by hiding behind a spokesperson whose name isn't
[6:01] Speaker 4: even mentioned. It just felt kind of clunky. And I
[6:03] Speaker 4: eventually made the point. It's not going to really count
[6:06] Speaker 4: until he does.
[6:07] Speaker 2: It in his own name and in his own voice.
[6:10] Speaker 2: He did it today.
[6:11] Speaker 4: Accepted full responsibility, pleaded no contest to the operating while
[6:14] Speaker 4: intoxicated charge in Wisconsin, expressed an intent to return to CBS.
[6:19] Speaker 2: But I haven't seen anything yet. And maybe I've missed it.
[6:23] Speaker 2: I've been on my exercise bike for the last hour.
[6:25] Speaker 4: I haven't seen anything yet to show that CBS has
[6:28] Speaker 4: reciprocated and said we welcome Tony Romo back when he's
[6:33] Speaker 4: able to return.
[6:34] Speaker 2: I think... CBS is looking for a way out of
[6:37] Speaker 2: this deal.
[6:38] Speaker 4: $ 18 million a year, four years left, $ 72 million. They
[6:42] Speaker 4: could negotiate an outcome where they pay him half, 60%, whatever,
[6:46] Speaker 4: and he moves on.
[6:47] Speaker 2: They've announced J.J. Watt as the replacement. They're getting ready
[6:50] Speaker 2: to go.
[6:50] Speaker 4: I think it would be awkward for CBS at this
[6:52] Speaker 4: point to pull the plug on Watt during the season
[6:54] Speaker 4: and put Romo back in the booth. I think this
[6:56] Speaker 4: goes all year, and then what happens next year remains
[6:59] Speaker 4: to be seen.
[7:00] Speaker 2: So it's good that he's accepted responsibility.
[7:03] Speaker 4: He's acknowledged that he has developed an issue over reliance,
[7:08] Speaker 4: I think was the term he used on alcohol, as
[7:11] Speaker 4: an aftermath of having issues with pain medication, following back surgeries.
[7:16] Speaker 4: And look, it's good that he's addressing an issue.
[7:20] Speaker 2: And he's got an open container while he's driving around Milwaukee.
[7:23] Speaker 2: Of course, he's got an issue.
[7:25] Speaker 4: And he's addressing it. And that's good for him. But
[7:28] Speaker 4: CBS may have already decided they want to move on.
[7:30] Speaker 4: And if they do, then that's that.
[7:33] Speaker 5: Mike, how much does the Aaron Donald return move your
[7:36] Speaker 5: needle on the Rams' chances to dethrone the Hawks? And
[7:39] Speaker 5: are we going to see him in Australia?
[7:43] Speaker 4: I don't know how much it actually changes because I'm
[7:46] Speaker 4: not ready to declare, and I'm not saying he won't be,
[7:49] Speaker 4: I'm not ready to declare that the Aaron Donald of
[7:52] Speaker 4: old is going to be back.
[7:54] Speaker 2: And just because he.
[7:55] Speaker 4: Feels like he's the old Aaron Donald, you don't know
[7:59] Speaker 4: for sure.
[7:59] Speaker 2: Until you're out there in 11-on-11 full contact competition. There's
[8:02] Speaker 2: no way to train to simulate that. You can't even
[8:06] Speaker 2: practice to that level.
[8:08] Speaker 4: You don't know what it feels like in a game
[8:10] Speaker 4: until you get in a game, and he won't know
[8:11] Speaker 4: until he gets out there with guys who are younger,
[8:15] Speaker 4: who may be faster, and he's two years older, and
[8:18] Speaker 4: who knows if he can get back to what he.
[8:19] Speaker 2: Was two years ago. I don't know. So.
[8:22] Speaker 4: We won't know how much of a difference it makes,
[8:23] Speaker 4: but there's a chance that even if he's a little diminished,
[8:26] Speaker 4: he'll seem better than he was because he's not going
[8:29] Speaker 4: to be constantly harassed with two or three blockers on
[8:31] Speaker 4: every play because they have to account for Miles Garrett. Now,
[8:33] Speaker 4: as it relates to week one, I went back and
[8:36] Speaker 4: looked at the last year he held out.
[8:39] Speaker 2: Through training camp in the preseason.
[8:40] Speaker 4: He ultimately showed up, signed a contract, joined the team
[8:43] Speaker 4: on August 31. That year they played on September 10,
[8:46] Speaker 4: Monday night, against the Raiders in Oakland.
[8:48] Speaker 2: That's how long ago it was. He played 62 out
[8:51] Speaker 2: of 70 snaps.
[8:52] Speaker 4: I was told, and I said this on our Hall
[8:54] Speaker 4: of Fame pregame show a few weeks back, that if
[8:57] Speaker 4: he's able to get ramped up the way that they
[8:59] Speaker 4: did in 2018 and the year before that, 2017, when
[9:02] Speaker 4: he also held out but didn't get a new contract,
[9:04] Speaker 4: the goal would be 30 to 40 snaps.
[9:06] Speaker 2: So I don't think that's out of the question because.
[9:09] Speaker 4: September 10, same day. And he actually showed up a
[9:12] Speaker 4: day earlier than he had the last time around.
[9:14] Speaker 2: So I think it's feasible. I know they want to
[9:16] Speaker 2: get him back on the field ASAP.
[9:19] Speaker 4: I thought at first when he came back on cut
[9:21] Speaker 4: down day, they might possibly tuck him on to the
[9:24] Speaker 4: physically unable to perform list for a few weeks to
[9:27] Speaker 4: let him get acclimated behind the scenes.
[9:28] Speaker 2: But they didn't. They want him to play. They want
[9:30] Speaker 2: him out there.
[9:31] Speaker 4: And he's back with the mindset that he's going to
[9:33] Speaker 4: go out there and play. Right now, I guess he's
[9:35] Speaker 4: going to play. week one but we'll see what happens.
[9:38] Speaker 3: What's going on with joey porter speaking of pittsburgh is
[9:41] Speaker 3: he is he playing week one i guess he's threatening
[9:43] Speaker 3: that he may not play without a new deal well.
[9:47] Speaker 4: He was on the pup list all the training camp
[9:49] Speaker 4: all the pre-season he didn't have an injury it was
[9:51] Speaker 4: a hold-in the problem with the hold-in is if you
[9:54] Speaker 4: don't do a contract at some point the player has
[9:57] Speaker 4: to go practice and play that's where the whole thing's
[10:00] Speaker 4: circuits and if the team wants to play hardball they
[10:03] Speaker 4: can fine they can suspend a player for conduct detrimental
[10:06] Speaker 4: to the team they can withhold his paycheck if you're
[10:07] Speaker 4: not going to work if you're refusing to work we're
[10:10] Speaker 4: not going to pay you if they want to take
[10:12] Speaker 4: it that route And if Porter doesn't play, it puts
[10:15] Speaker 4: everyone in a box.
[10:15] Speaker 2: And I wrote about this today. We talked about it
[10:17] Speaker 2: on PFT Live.
[10:18] Speaker 4: The Steelers have this outdated policy that they won't do
[10:21] Speaker 4: contracts after week one. So it puts extra pressure on
[10:25] Speaker 4: both sides to get it done, because if they don't,
[10:29] Speaker 4: then what? What if he says, OK, I'll play? And
[10:32] Speaker 4: what if he is all pro level and the Steelers decide,
[10:36] Speaker 4: you know what, we're going to go out and give
[10:37] Speaker 4: him what he wants? Oh, wait, we've handcuffed ourselves with
[10:40] Speaker 4: this stupid rule. that we won't do contracts after week one.
[10:44] Speaker 2: I mean, that may have worked in the 70s or
[10:46] Speaker 2: the 80s. In the salary cap era, I think it's dumb.
[10:49] Speaker 2: I think it's dumb.
[10:50] Speaker 4: I think Vinod Khosla needs to call up his favorite
[10:52] Speaker 4: team and say, hey, you guys need to do business
[10:54] Speaker 4: the way I'm going to do business in Seattle.
[10:56] Speaker 2: Little shot there, huh? You know, I'm kidding. We haven't
[10:59] Speaker 2: talked about that. I mean... Look, I understand. We'll spot
[11:04] Speaker 2: the Vikings. They're lifelong Giants fans.
[11:06] Speaker 4: You don't get to buy your favorite team. It's an
[11:09] Speaker 4: asset that rarely becomes available. I understand that. But, man,
[11:14] Speaker 4: there are unforced errors, and there are unforced errors. And
[11:17] Speaker 4: poor Neil Koestler's face.
[11:20] Speaker 2: He tried. He tried to hold it firm. And that smile,
[11:24] Speaker 2: he's like, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad.
[11:27] Speaker 3: Does your son ever look at you like that and go, Dad,
[11:30] Speaker 3: come on, what are you doing?
[11:32] Speaker 2: All the time. That's how I know the look. All
[11:34] Speaker 2: the time.
[11:37] Speaker 5: Hey, Mike, you mentioned Contract Soft. You mentioned with Joey Porter.
[11:40] Speaker 5: Is C.J. Stroud going to get a deal before week one,
[11:42] Speaker 5: or is this going to really be a prove-it year?
[11:44] Speaker 5: I know they picked up the fifth-year option, but usually
[11:46] Speaker 5: your stars after three years, you give them that long-term deal,
[11:49] Speaker 5: and they haven't yet.
[11:51] Speaker 4: And they've done it with multiple key players in Houston.
[11:55] Speaker 4: They don't try to kick the can through the fourth year.
[11:58] Speaker 4: You know, there's a real benefit to the team if
[12:00] Speaker 4: you can get that fourth year on a first-round contract
[12:03] Speaker 4: because it is low-paid, low-cap number.
[12:06] Speaker 2: And that money is never going to be spent.
[12:09] Speaker 4: You get that guy for $ 4, $ 5, $ 6 million, and
[12:13] Speaker 4: then you can pay him later.
[12:14] Speaker 2: So we've seen teams try to do that and get
[12:16] Speaker 2: away with it.
[12:17] Speaker 4: The Seahawks haven't done it with their two first rounders
[12:20] Speaker 4: from that same year.
[12:21] Speaker 2: But with Stroud, look, here's the reality.
[12:23] Speaker 4: There was a time, and the quarterback market has kind
[12:26] Speaker 4: of gone this way lately. There was a time in
[12:28] Speaker 4: the quarterback market, and this goes back eight years as well,
[12:31] Speaker 4: where the next guy up became the highest paid player
[12:33] Speaker 4: at the position.
[12:34] Speaker 2: And it didn't matter how much better he was or wasn't.
[12:36] Speaker 2: That was just the way it was. Went in wrong.
[12:38] Speaker 2: Next guy up, moves the bar a little higher. Next
[12:40] Speaker 2: guy up, moves the bar a little higher. That's changed
[12:42] Speaker 2: in the NFL.
[12:43] Speaker 4: Now we've got a $ 45 million spread for veteran quarterback contracts.
[12:47] Speaker 2: So where does C.J. Stroud land?
[12:49] Speaker 6: And I think the Texans... would gladly sign him now
[12:54] Speaker 6: if he would accept something that meshes with how they
[12:58] Speaker 6: view him based on his first three seasons. From Stroud's perspective,
[13:02] Speaker 6: why do I want to do that deal when if
[13:04] Speaker 6: I can go out and have a big year, I
[13:06] Speaker 6: can push that bar higher? Because whatever they view him
[13:09] Speaker 6: at now, chances are if he has the year like
[13:11] Speaker 6: he had last year, they'll view him at that same
[13:13] Speaker 6: level next year, and they can.
[13:14] Speaker 2: Do that deal next year.
[13:15] Speaker 4: So It's in his interest to go out and play
[13:18] Speaker 4: well this year and move that needle higher. And it's,
[13:20] Speaker 4: you know, quote unquote, good problem to have for the
[13:23] Speaker 4: Texans if he goes out and has that big year
[13:26] Speaker 4: and they have evidence to pay him more.
[13:29] Speaker 2: But, you know, we've seen multiple examples now.
[13:31] Speaker 4: The Broncos with Russell Wilson, the Dolphins with Tua Tonga-Vailoa,
[13:35] Speaker 4: the Texans.
[13:36] Speaker 2: Cardinals with Tyler Murray. You do these deals and it's
[13:40] Speaker 2: this big.
[13:41] Speaker 4: Number and you get to a point where you're so
[13:44] Speaker 4: desperate to move on from the player, you're willing to
[13:47] Speaker 4: pay him millions to go play for someone else.
[13:50] Speaker 2: For the minimum.
[13:51] Speaker 3: Hey, Mike, this is really great that we were able
[13:53] Speaker 3: to work this out and get you on the air
[13:55] Speaker 3: this week. I know things are busy, and we sure
[13:57] Speaker 3: appreciate you taking time for us up here in Seattle.
[14:00] Speaker 2: Question. Question. Will you just play this again tomorrow at
[14:04] Speaker 2: 310 Pacific? Is that what you do?
[14:06] Speaker 3: Yeah, but we have to edit out this part. We
[14:08] Speaker 3: have to edit out the part of you saying we're
[14:10] Speaker 3: replaying it.
[14:11] Speaker 2: I expect double pay then.
[14:13] Speaker 3: Okay, that's fine.
[14:14] Speaker 2: I expect an extra one below.
[14:16] Speaker 3: Like royalties. He wants royalties. Jackson, you're fired again. So
[14:19] Speaker 3: we can pay Mike again. And then next week, we'll
[14:23] Speaker 3: figure it out. All right, we'll figure it out next week.
[14:25] Speaker 2: All right, see you. All right, see you, man.
[14:27] Speaker 3: Mike Florio with us.
[14:28] Speaker 2: Lots to talk about.
[14:29] Speaker 5: What percent do we pay him if we have to
[14:30] Speaker 5: play it again, if we choose to play it again?
[14:32] Speaker 3: I mean, do you get paid extra when they replay
[14:34] Speaker 3: your stuff here on the radio station? Is that what happens?
[14:38] Speaker 3: I mean, is he on a per-episode basis? Is that
[14:40] Speaker 3: what's going on? That every time somebody downloads a podcast,
[14:45] Speaker 3: we've got to give the guy a quarter?
[14:46] Speaker 2: It's like Jerry Seinfeld.
[14:47] Speaker 5: He gets like $ 1, 000 every time TBS picks up a
[14:50] Speaker 5: Seinfeld episode from 30 years ago.
[14:52] Speaker 3: Well, let's come back and talk more about that Terry
[14:54] Speaker 3: on Arnold thing, because I don't think people even really understand.
[14:57] Speaker 3: The whole thing is kind of just taking care of itself,
[14:59] Speaker 3: by the way. And we don't even know it right
[15:00] Speaker 3: in front of our very eyes.
[15:01] Speaker 2: Next.

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