{"id":5792,"date":"2025-11-07T20:18:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T20:18:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/369-joy-taylor-things-are-fking-hard-right-now-sports-politics-collide-again-mental-health-suicide-sadness-how-trump-uses-sports-culture-football-friday-is-anyone-in-the-nfl-grea\/"},"modified":"2025-11-07T20:18:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T20:18:00","slug":"369-joy-taylor-things-are-fking-hard-right-now-sports-politics-collide-again-mental-health-suicide-sadness-how-trump-uses-sports-culture-football-friday-is-anyone-in-the-nfl-grea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/369-joy-taylor-things-are-fking-hard-right-now-sports-politics-collide-again-mental-health-suicide-sadness-how-trump-uses-sports-culture-football-friday-is-anyone-in-the-nfl-grea\/","title":{"rendered":"369. Joy Taylor. Things are F**king Hard Right Now. Sports &amp; Politics Collide Again. Mental Health, Suicide &amp; Sadness. How Trump Uses Sports Culture. Football Friday: Is Anyone in the NFL Great? Shutdown Cancels NFL Veterans Day. Football Saved My Life."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm\/?e=ANA8991031607\" width=\"100%\" height=\"210\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Independent Americans host Paul Rieckhoff (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/PaulRieckhoff\"><u>@PaulRieckhoff<\/u><\/a>)\u00a0 welcomes back the dynamic, outspoken sports and culture powerhouse Joy Taylor (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/joytaylortalks\/\"><u>@joytaylortalks<\/u><\/a>) for a raw, timely, and uplifting Football Friday. In an America buffeted by division, a government shutdown, and mounting mental health struggles, Joy and Paul unpack the meaning behind vulnerability, authenticity, sports as society\u2019s mirror, and the persistent magic of hope. With candid reflections on personal mental health journeys, the identity crisis gripping American culture, and why moments of community\u2014like football\u2014matter more than ever, Joy shares her most real perspectives yet. She\u2019s spent her life in and around sports\u2013with her brother, Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, and now her nephew, Jet\u2019s rookie Tight End, Mason Taylor. She\u2019s been there, lived it and seen it all. And she is not holding back. From toxic masculinity and the sports-political divide, to the intersection of activism and art, this episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking light amidst the chaos. And looking to better understand the deep and daily connection and collision points between our politics and our beloved sports.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>They dig into top sports, politics and culture intersection headlines including Cowboys Defensive End Marshawn Kneeland\u2019s tragic apparent suicide this week at age 24 that has rocked the NFL, the NBA gambling scandal, Mamdani\u2019s popularity with young people, Trump\u2019s manipulation of the sports manosphere, and which athletes are speaking out and might even run for political office. And like on every Football Friday, Paul and Joy are making college and NFL picks! And, they break down the Biggest Little Game in America: Amherst vs Williams\u2013and why it\u2019s about much more than sports.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>End an exhausting week of politics and start your weekend off right. This is a touchdown of content for your fall Friday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Because every episode of Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff breaks down the most important news stories&#8211;and offers light to contrast the heat of other politics and news shows. Its independent content for independent Americans. In these trying times especially, Independent Americans is your trusted place for independent news, politics, inspiration and hope. The podcast that helps you stay ahead of the curve&#8211;and stay vigilant.<\/p>\n<p>-Watch Joy\u2019s previous appearance: <a href=\"https:\/\/independentamericans.us\/67-joy-taylor-sports-politics-collide-in-a-pandemic-trump-lied-vets-died-tucker-carlson-vs-tammy-duckworth-vindmans-out-of-the-army-covid19-cocktail-tests-on-dying-vets-baseball-b\/\"><u>Episode 67 from July 8, 2020. <\/u><\/a>\u00a0And follow Joy on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/joytaylortalks\/\"><u>social media<\/u><\/a> and support her work at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.joytaylormedia.com\/\"><u>Joy Taylor Media<\/u><\/a> including the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/twopersonalshow\/\"><u>Two Personal podcast<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/XYW39PPSd44\"><u>WATCH video of this episode on YouTube now.<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<p>-Learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/independentveteransofamerica.org\/\"><u>Independent Veterans of America<\/u><\/a> and all of <a href=\"https:\/\/independentveteransofamerica.org\/candidates\/\"><u>the IVA candidates<\/u><\/a>\u2013including two that won last night.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/independentamericans\/posts\"><u>Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community<\/u><\/a> of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>-Check the hashtag <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/search?q=%23LookForTheHelpers&amp;src=typed_query\"><u>#LookForTheHelpers<\/u><\/a>. And share yours.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>-Find us on social media or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.independentamericans.us\"><u><a href=\"http:\/\/www.IndependentAmericans.us\" rel=\"nofollow\">http:\/\/www.IndependentAmericans.us<\/a><\/u><\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/independentamericans.us\/merch\/\"><u>And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch<\/u><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>-Check out other Righteous podcasts like <a href=\"https:\/\/thefirefighters.us\/\"><u>The Firefighters Podcast with Rob Serra<\/u><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/unclemontel.us\/\"><u>Uncle Montel &#8211; The OG of Weed<\/u><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/bdorm.us\/\"><u>B Dorm<\/u><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led <a href=\"https:\/\/righteous.us\/\"><u>Righteous Media<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Spotify: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0F1lzdRbTB0XYen8kyEqXe\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0F1lzdRbTB0XYen8kyEqXe<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Apple Podcasts: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\/id1457899667\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\/id1457899667<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Amazon Podcasts: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/49a684c3-68e1-4a85-8d93-d95027a8ec64\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\"><u><a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/49a684c3-68e1-4a85-8d93-d95027a8ec64\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/49a684c3-68e1-4a85-8d93-d95027a8ec64\/independent-americans-with-paul-rieckhoff<\/a><\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ways to watch:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>YouTube: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@independentamericans\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@independentamericans<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Instagram: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>X\/Twitter:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/indy_americans\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/x.com\/indy_americans<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>BlueSky:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/indyamericans.bsky.social\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/indyamericans.bsky.social<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Facebook:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/\"><u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/\" rel=\"nofollow\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/IndependentAmericansUS\/<\/a><\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ways to listen:Social channels:<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href=\"https:\/\/megaphone.fm\/adchoices\">megaphone.fm\/adchoices<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Independent Americans host Paul Rieckhoff (@PaulRieckhoff)\u00a0 welcomes back the dynamic, outspoken sports and culture powerhouse Joy Taylor (@joytaylortalks) for a raw, timely, and uplifting Football Friday. In an America buffeted by division, a government shutdown, and mounting mental health struggles, Joy and Paul unpack the meaning behind vulnerability, authenticity, sports as society\u2019s mirror, and the&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/369-joy-taylor-things-are-fking-hard-right-now-sports-politics-collide-again-mental-health-suicide-sadness-how-trump-uses-sports-culture-football-friday-is-anyone-in-the-nfl-grea\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">369. Joy Taylor. Things are F**king Hard Right Now. Sports &amp; Politics Collide Again. Mental Health, Suicide &amp; Sadness. How Trump Uses Sports Culture. Football Friday: Is Anyone in the NFL Great? Shutdown Cancels NFL Veterans Day. Football Saved My Life.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5793,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-episodes","entry"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2-300x300.jpg",300,300,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",750,750,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/d754ac8c2bf63bd2e4c9f2f729b67bd2.jpg",800,800,false]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/author\/admin\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/category\/episodes\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Episodes<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Independent Americans host Paul Rieckhoff (@PaulRieckhoff)\u00a0 welcomes back the dynamic, outspoken sports and culture powerhouse Joy Taylor (@joytaylortalks) for a raw, timely, and uplifting Football Friday. In an America buffeted by division, a government shutdown, and mounting mental health struggles, Joy and Paul unpack the meaning behind vulnerability, authenticity, sports as society\u2019s mirror, and the&hellip;&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5792"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5792\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.righteous-media.com\/IndependentAmericans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}