A decade ago, we met in the lobby of a Canton, Ohio hotel ahead of the Pro Football Hall of Fame inductions. I’ll never forget Joe DeLamielleure — NFL great — offering this total stranger a seat. Before we knew it, an hour passed by.

That’s “Joe D.”

He’s 74 years old now, which is easily 90+ in Football Years for a man who absorbed endless head slaps as an NFL lineman in the lawless 1970s. Yet, you’d never tell. His mind is extremely sharp… and there’s good reason for that. DeLamielleure’s day-to-day life supplies real hope to all former players worried about their concussions leading to dark days.

Loved catching up again with the man who made six Pro Bowls through a 13-year career with the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns.

Audio of our chat is above, and available on Apple, Spotify, everywhere you pod.

Here’s the written transcript:

Topics discussed…

* Joe DeLamielleure and Joe Ferguson were the first two players to ever walk into Rich Stadium. This 2025 season will mark the Bills’ final season in this bowl.

* What kind of teammate was O.J. Simpson?

* Remarkably, O.J. wasn’t Joe D’s only friend who killed somebody.

* How his “Electric Company” offensive line followed Vince Lombardi’s Packers blueprint with the help of Jim Ringo.

* A pair of Tom Dempsey stories — DeLamielleure’s comedic timing was spot on.

* In 2013, a doctor told him he’s living with CTE. Unlike fellow NFL lineman Mike Webster — whose life took a very haunting turn due to head trauma — DeLamielleure feels strong as ever in 2025. Both mentally and physically. How is this possible?

* Why Joe D believes current Bills quarterback Josh Allen is “one in a million.”

* Don’t forget about those Browns days. DeLamielleure helped me out with the Ozzie Newsome chapter in “Blood and Guts” and again looks back to his crushing Red Right 88 playoff loss against the Oakland Raiders. (Damn those scuba gloves!)

* A story about his father you will not want to miss.

Thank you for listening, subscribing and sharing Go Long with a friend.

ICYMI…

I'm in on Brandon Beane's defensive swing

Julian Hill will save lives, Part I: Underworld

Julian Hill will save lives, Part II: Rescued

Julian Hill will save lives, Part III: Destiny

You nailed it.

You found a star at the most important position in sports: Quarterback.

Now, what?

That’s the question Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane has been wrestling with since correcting choosing Josh Allen over Josh Rosen. This spring, he pumped a slew of defensive resources into the roster. As we write this week, the plan can work. There’s logic to follow. Not only can we look back at the Philadelphia Eagles’ boa-constriction of a Super Bowl win in February — the playoff runs of Hall of Fame Super Bowl champs past supply plenty of clues.

Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers all needed a boost.

We discuss on this week’s Substack Live video.

To join future shows, download the app here.

Also: Go Long subscribers can access our aforementioned 1 on 1 with Beane here.

He wasn’t tall. He wasn’t big. There wasn’t anything imposing about this athlete physically.

Joe Theismann was doubted through high school, college, right into his CFL and NFL days.

But the man never lacked bravado. This quarterback was fueled by true belief.

Here on the Go Long Pod, I chatted with the Washington Redskins great at length about his truly unique rise from South River, N.J. to Heisman Trophy runner-up, College Football Hall of Famer, 1982 Super Bowl Champion and 1983 NFL MVP. Theismann was as tough as nails, too, in starting 163 straight games — quite a feat considering his prison-rules era of football.

Topics discussed include…

* One brutal, tough-love lesson from his father.

* How he won the job at Notre Dame. Upon arrival in South Bend, Theismann was one of 13 quarterbacks.

* The day he pissed off Don Shula.

* Power of “mental toughness.” Call it spite or pride — Theismann says he was obsessed with proving people wrong.

* How he started 163 straight games. Theismann recalls the time Ted Hendrickson dropped him on his head.

* What made his 1983 Redskins historic to this day.

* Why he believes in Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Video and audio is available above.

You can also catch this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and everywhere you pod.

Thank you for fueling everything here at Go Long.

Miss our three-part series on the harrowing journey of Dolphins tight end Julian Hill? All links are here:

* Part I: Underworld

* Part II: Rescued

* Part III: Destiny

What a bizarre week in Cincinnati. Trey Hendrickson is not happy with his superiors, and he let everyone know.

We discuss on this week’s Substack Live.

Yes, the Bengals might’ve missed a golden opportunity to trade their star defensive end in March. But at this point? They can prove its a new day by paying the man and gunning for a Super Bowl title. There really isn’t an amicable middle ground.

Want to join future recordings? Download the app and flip notifications on here:

Also:

Our three-part series — “Julian Hill will save lives” — is now available in full. Here are the links. Thank you for reading.

* Part I: Underworld

* Part II: Rescued

* Part III: Destiny

Greetings! We’ve got another Substack Live for you here at Go Long.

I was joined by Matt Lombardo of “Between the Hashmarks.” Be sure to check out his site. Matt’s always talking to coaches and execs around the NFL.

Through this 40-minute chat, we hit on the George Pickens trade (what it means for both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys), why Howie Roseman is a step ahead of everyone else and Brandon Beane’s big move on defense. The Buffalo Bills GM has a plan, and he’s sticking to it. (Our Q&A for Go Long subscribers, icymi.)

Want to join future Substack Live videos? Download the app right here and flip notifications on:

Go Long is powered completely by you. We’ve got a quite a profile for you next week to share.

Thank you for growing our community.

Good afternoon! As always, thank you to everyone for hanging out on Substack Live.

Want to join a future chat? Download the app and flip notifications on.

The 2025 NFL Draft is behind us, so let’s discuss. We touch on a handful of topics here, including the New York Giants’ pursuit of ass-kickers, the New Orleans Saints finally wising up, the Arizona Cardinals’ sneaky-good draft and why those New England Patriots are trending up.

Miss our Q&A with Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane? It’s available here.

Go Long is hitting the road this week for more longform. Our journalism is only possible because of you.

Appreciate all who’ve joined our community of readers from around the world.

Roles have reversed. After a generation of the New England Patriots (and Tom Brady) tormenting the Buffalo Bills, the AFC East has been running through Western New York five straight years.

Not even those Jim Kelly-, Thurman Thomas-, Bruce Smith-, Andre Reed-powered Super Bowl teams earned five straight division crowns.

Yet, there’s renewed hope in Foxborough. Mike Vrabel knows exactly what he wants on this roster and has rapidly, dramatically created a new identity. Games against his Patriots promise to be rock fights.

With free agency and the draft complete, it’s a perfect time for a joint podcast with our good friend, the excellent Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston and The Next Pats Podcast.

We talk Bills… and my 1 on 1 with GM Brandon Beane that’ll be available to subscribers very soon. (We got into everything.)

We talk Patriots… will Drake Maye follow the Josh Allen trajectory?

I really enjoyed this conversation, right on through our psychological breakdown of Bill Belichick.

You can access video and audio of this episode of the Go Long Podcast above, as well as everywhere you pod, including Apple, Spotify and YouTube.

On one hand, the Buffalo Bills’ defense has been a mess at the worst possible moments.

On the other, Super Bowl teams tell us repeatedly that it pays to load up on weaponry.

I wrote about the Bills’ defense-heavy draft here, icymi.

Now, let’s bring on old friend Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News.

Today’s episode of the Go Long Pod is available here — video and audio above — as well as Apple, Spotify, everywhere you pod.

Thank you for listening and sharing.

(Good news: The same day we recorded this, a few of those potholes were filled on Boston State Road.)

ICYMI:

* 'He wants to be the greatest of all time:' One bold trade, Travis Hunter and why the Jacksonville Jaguars nailed this

* NFC North Rounds 4-7 Analysis: Lions, Vikings, Packers, Bears all draft with their Franchise QBs top of mind

* NFC North Rounds 2-3 Analysis: Which surprising pick will pay off?

* NFC North Round 1 Analysis: The Green Bay Packers (finally) draft a WR early

* A defining draft for the New York Giants