Bart Scott and Willie Colon were rivals during their playing careers, but they’re now close friends and podcast partners.
The two former NFL veterans played for rival teams in the AFC North, with Scott spending the prime of his career with the Baltimore Ravens (2002-2008) as an All-Pro selection and Pro Bowler and Colon spending his prime with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2006-2012), winning a Super Bowl with them during the 2008 season.
The two have deep backgrounds in sports media, with Scott notably working for CBS and ESPN in his post-playing career and Colon working for Barstool Sports and First Things First: OT on Fox Sports FS1.
The pair did play together for the New York Jets during their careers, at slightly different times. Scott was a member of the Jets from 2009 until 2012 and Colon was with New York from 2013 until 2015.
The duo now have a podcast together through Playmaker which is well-known for their podcast shows. Over the years, they’ve had Shaquille O’Neal and Jalen Brunson/Josh Hart host their podcasts through the channel and they now have Richie Incognito, Jameis Winston and Scott/Colon for their football demographic for the fall.
What makes the pair stand out from all of the other former athlete podcasts out there is one key word — authenticity. The duo has great chemistry with Scott and Colon showing off their quick wit and blunt humor. The two also have no problem making fun of themselves and each other while talking about everything from football, to everyday life and X-rated humor.
“He’s self-deprecating, I’m self-deprecating, he doesn’t take himself too seriously,” said Scott in a one-on-one interview with Heavy sports. “We both look like intimidating people, but we’re really softies. Let’s push inside of our arena. It was just natural, right? Even before we were approached by Playmaker, we were trying to do something together on our own, and we were talking about it. We were meeting with producers and trying to put something because we understood the evolution of this space, right? The only job security you truly have is really when you secure something and own it yourself.”
Bart Scott on Why He Prefers Podcasting Over Traditional Media
Scott worked for one of the biggest NFL talk shows out there in “The NFL Today.” He was replaced by Nate Burleson after three seasons. The former star linebacker said the advantages of having a podcast is you have the freedom to be yourself without worrying about appeasing sponsors.
“Being in the business 13 years and watching this business evolve, and also understanding and enjoying the freedom of what a podcast gives you outside of the traditional structure of you know the A-block, the B-block, and this is the time we’re going to have – got to cut to commercial,” said Scott. “Can’t be too controversial. We got to understand that Republicans buy gym shoes too, we got sponsors, right? We have sponsors and can’t alienate people. Can’t speak your mind.
“What I really appreciate about this platform is people are able to see the true me and in all its facets,” Scott continued. “The serious person, the foolish person, the unreasonable person, the crazy person, all in one. And then every once in a while, something intelligent to come out of my mouth. Here we are, and trying to build this platform and Playmaker, and the Bart-Willie show, and trying to grow this platform and grow our space and find our people.”
Willie Colon on Why His Podcast With Bart Scott Works: ‘Authenticity’
Colon echoes Scott’s “authenticity” and “freedom” comments and said the podcasting space is a great way for athletes to have an unfiltered take and be themselves.
“I think what people are more accustomed to seeing more than ever, they’re accustomed to seeing iconic names coming out of lockers telling their story instead of journalists telling their story, and I think that’s what Bart tried to allude to,” said Colon. “You get to see all of us in various ways. Sometimes we’re at the mercy of a beat writer, we’re at the mercy of a PR person. We’re at the mercy of not challenging a brand or threatening a brand because we represent a specific team or organization. Now you get to see us and all of us.
“We’re our own identity and entity, and I feel that’s important right now more than ever because in the space of social media, where you can AI somebody’s voice, you can AI somebody’s image, you can AI damn near anything,” Colon continued. “You don’t know what’s real or not, but this is what a podcast space allows you to have. You tell your truth, your story, and be you in whatever variation, but you also gotta own up to it, right? Me and Bart go back and forth with that. But I think we’re at our best when we’re authentically us.”
Colon once again hammers home the authenticity aspect of the duo’s chemistry, something that is immediately noticeable upon speaking to them and listening to the podcast. The two were former rivals who hated each other during their playing careers due to the Steelers-Ravens rivalry, but grew to become friends in their post-playing career.
“Bart went on to the Jets, when he left the Jets, I was just arriving to the Jets in 2013,” said Colon. “We still weren’t fooling with each other, but I always admired his work and who he was from afar. He always showed a proud respect to me anytime I saw him, and then naturally the brotherhood started to immerse because of what we did on SNY, where we covered the Jets regionally. And then through that we came closer and closer.
“He’s a family man, I’m a family man,” Colon continued. “Two black men trying to make it in this media space, trying to be loud, authentic, but also true to ourselves. And he does a hell of a job, a brilliant mind. Sometimes you get to see it. Sometimes you don’t because of the chaos that comes out of his mouth. But he’s an enigma and a special person.”
Ex-Jets Bart Scott and Willie Colon on Their Podcast, What Makes it Stand Out: ‘Authenticity’