Speaker 1: Walk up to NFL Daily presented by Draft Kings Sportsbook,
Speaker 1: where it's feeling like week eighteen and Week sixteen. I'm
Speaker 1: Greg Rosenthal here in the Chris Westling podcast studio with
Speaker 1: my friends Patrick, Claybond, and Steve Weiss.
Speaker 2: Back from the road. Get to have you back, buddy,
Speaker 2: Good to be back, man.
Speaker 3: You know we got we had some interesting games.
Speaker 4: You're looking at so many spreads like huh wait what Yeah?
Speaker 1: When I say that, it just it's got a December
Speaker 1: vibe this slate. It's a lot of one good team
Speaker 1: playing one bad team, and the one bad team just
Speaker 1: made a quarterback change that just makes it feel like
Speaker 1: where they're just kind of running out the string a
Speaker 1: little bit.
Speaker 2: But we have three weeks left. We don't have one
Speaker 2: week left.
Speaker 4: It's the back end preseason right now. Okay, we got
Speaker 4: some guys coming back. Glad to have Steve back, because
Speaker 4: without you we suffered. How oh no, our survivor has
Speaker 4: knowed you guys. Would you guys take.
Speaker 2: But put them use gun?
Speaker 1: Yeah, we we got a little over our skis.
Speaker 2: We got a little confident over convident.
Speaker 1: We took a team that not only have we not
Speaker 1: taken in survivor all year that Patrick and I actually
Speaker 1: haven't picked to win a single game all year, thinking
Speaker 1: we were just hot for reason the Carolina Panthers, and
Speaker 1: they did.
Speaker 3: Whoa of Chris.
Speaker 1: I apologize to Patrick, who wanted to go Falcons, and
Speaker 1: I said, I am not taking this Kirk Cousins team
Speaker 1: right now.
Speaker 3: Now.
Speaker 1: Kirk did not look great, but that would have kept
Speaker 1: us going. So I apologize.
Speaker 4: All right, we lost. We lost as a team, and
Speaker 4: we didn't have exactly. Dan Campbell says, you know that
Speaker 4: he's not buying the whole injury thing.
Speaker 3: I believe it.
Speaker 4: When you don't have one of your pieces and you.
Speaker 2: Only have three of them, we needed you, Steve.
Speaker 4: That's all right, you know we made it. We made
Speaker 4: it this far without mushrooms growing underneath the pile.
Speaker 2: You know what. And I shouldn't. I should have said,
Speaker 2: like it's all one bad team, one good team.
Speaker 1: Because the early part of the slate, the Saturday like
Speaker 1: teams that are playing on Christmas, but now they're just
Speaker 1: playing on Saturday before Christmas like, those are pretty spicy.
Speaker 3: Real spy.
Speaker 5: We're doing the games chronologically this week, so we will
Speaker 5: be starting with the Saturday game that a lot of
Speaker 5: eyeballs are on the Houston Texans at the Kansas City Chiefs,
Speaker 5: who are favored by three. We've seen their quarterback hop
Speaker 5: up and down and win Super Bowls, hop off the
Speaker 5: field on one leg, backup, quarterbacks get fourth downs that
Speaker 5: can they keep it going over under forty one and
Speaker 5: a half. It's no Eagle the baby Bird. Todd Blackliche
Speaker 5: and Catherine Tappan on the call, Greg where we've seen
Speaker 5: this Texans defense be great. Can the Texans offense do
Speaker 5: enough to knock off the Chiefs?
Speaker 2: Okay?
Speaker 1: So that's an NBC production on a Saturday afternoon that
Speaker 1: is interesting to me. This is all new territory for
Speaker 1: us here, and it could be new territory for the
Speaker 1: Chiefs winning a game they need to win with Carson
Speaker 1: Wentz potentially at quarterback. When we came into the week,
Speaker 1: I was assuming it was Carson Wentz. As we get
Speaker 1: closer to Saturday and they're listing Patrick Mahomes full on
Speaker 1: the injury report and he's moving around back there, talking
Speaker 1: a pretty confident game. It's feeling more Steve like we
Speaker 1: will get Mahomes on Saturday.
Speaker 2: We don't need to just guess the whole time. But
Speaker 2: what do you think?
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean my feeling is this.
Speaker 4: First off, if you watch the Quarterback series on Netflix,
Speaker 4: you know he does a lot of his training outside
Speaker 4: of the Chiefs facility, and he's got a mister Miyagi
Speaker 4: who is taking care of his ankles, and where Patrick
Speaker 4: Mahomes sprains his ankles like every other week, and this
Speaker 4: is a high ankle for this time of year. This
Speaker 4: is his non injured ankle. By the way, this is clever.
Speaker 4: He hurt his right ankle, but the camera showed them
Speaker 4: taping up the left ankle. So this is clever deception
Speaker 4: by Patrick right here. But I do think he plays.
Speaker 4: But my thing is whether he's healthy or not. I
Speaker 4: still like Houston this game.
Speaker 3: Wow.
Speaker 4: I was at the Chiefs Browns game last week and
Speaker 4: their offense, Chiefs offense that can't protect. They had to
Speaker 4: move left guard Joe Tuney out to left tackle. That
Speaker 4: could change this week if DJ Humphreys comes back. But
Speaker 4: just the fact that his overall protection, Patrick is not
Speaker 4: trusting what's going on in front of him. You're in
Speaker 4: the Cleveland Browns defensive front is really good, right, So
Speaker 4: they were getting pressure on him. He was stepping up.
Speaker 4: The Browns wild let him step up, and we know
Speaker 4: the Tech has got guys who can do that. Patrick,
Speaker 4: when he had receivers opened deep downfield was overshooting him.
Speaker 4: Something just did not look right. And this is why
Speaker 4: I like Houston in this game. I think they feel
Speaker 4: good about getting back in the win column last week
Speaker 4: and playing a pretty good overall ball game. I think
Speaker 4: this is a chance for Houston to kind of get
Speaker 4: his legs under it and get us kind of excited
Speaker 4: again about them going into the playoffs.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's gonna be a defense that bothers people. And
Speaker 5: Jawan Taylor has been over there the whole time. They've
Speaker 5: made the changes over on the other side. But now
Speaker 5: it's Daniel Hunter who's going to be matched up against
Speaker 5: the Jawan Taylor for the majority of this game. And
Speaker 5: whether with Mahomes and the ankle, whether it's like Mike
Speaker 5: mancias Lebron's trainer or the guy that was settled to
Speaker 5: Tom Brady for such a long time. Oh yeah, the
Speaker 5: secret to longevity isn't the trainers. It's Patrick Mahomes, it's
Speaker 5: Tom Brady, it's Lebron.
Speaker 1: J What about that dude that once spoke to us
Speaker 1: at the Town on Summit that he was Michael Jordan's
Speaker 1: Kobe's guy.
Speaker 3: Both of them. Yeah, I know, Tim.
Speaker 4: Turns out the real key to those scenarios were Kobe,
Speaker 4: Bean Bryant, Michael Jeffrey Jordan.
Speaker 2: Okay, the trainer.
Speaker 5: Stuff draws me nuts because we have Patrick doing all
Speaker 5: these workouts and it's like, oh, he's on a bullsup ball. Now,
Speaker 5: if you go out there, your ankle will be pliable
Speaker 5: like his. No, that's him.
Speaker 2: Okay, I don't know, man, some of that stuff's a
Speaker 2: little different.
Speaker 1: See, if he was a believer, Patrick's a skeptic yells.
Speaker 5: Everybody would just be hopping off the field one play
Speaker 5: and then coming back and winning Super Bowls.
Speaker 3: Dude is different.
Speaker 1: He is different, but he's looking as mortal as I've
Speaker 1: ever seen him consistently as a pro. I didn't get
Speaker 1: to watch that game until this morning, so it's really
Speaker 1: fresh in my mind. That's on the short list of
Speaker 1: the worst Patrick Mahomes games of all time. I play, well,
Speaker 1: that's on the short list of just the worst Chiefs
Speaker 1: offensive perform is because I'm obviously not putting at all
Speaker 1: on Patrick Mahomes, but they had four point two yards
Speaker 1: for play. They had fifteen drives in that game, which
Speaker 1: is a crazy amount of drives.
Speaker 3: That's six takeaways.
Speaker 1: You know how many drives included more than two first
Speaker 1: downs one fifth and that was the game. To me,
Speaker 1: that was the most concerning of all the ones that
Speaker 1: we've seen. Not that they can't have better weeks and
Speaker 1: bad weeks, but for them to sink that low, the
Speaker 1: alarm bell should be off. And now you're going to
Speaker 1: put against the defense as you mentioned with the great
Speaker 1: edge rushers, but is really sound on the back end
Speaker 1: too and.
Speaker 3: The second level.
Speaker 1: And I know, yeah they probably they're not going to
Speaker 1: have outside year back, but Kristin Harris is out there.
Speaker 2: In total, they had a good game last week.
Speaker 3: Defensive players no one talks about.
Speaker 1: They are now actually up to number one on the
Speaker 1: season in defensive efficiency.
Speaker 2: That's according to Dvowa.
Speaker 1: So I was thinking while watching the Chiefs Browns this morning, Man,
Speaker 1: now you put the Texans in this mix in out
Speaker 1: of the Browns who've given up a lot of big plays,
Speaker 1: maybe that's why they were big play hunting like Mahomes
Speaker 1: went three for thirteen and plus ten throws zero for
Speaker 1: six deep and I thought oh you're gonna now you
Speaker 1: got to go against the Texans. I don't think the
Speaker 1: Texans are going to be able to score either. It's
Speaker 1: crazy that we got Texans Chiefs on NBC and these
Speaker 1: two great quarterbacks potentially, and I'm I'm taking the under
Speaker 1: whatever that is. This thing is gonna be thirteen to nine.
Speaker 1: Neither of these teams are gonna score. I have no
Speaker 1: faith in the Texans offense either. So I definitely think
Speaker 1: that the Chiefs can win this game and probably will
Speaker 1: be picking them to win this game if Mahomes starts,
Speaker 1: because I just I'm not gonna They're just gonna win
Speaker 1: another freaking out gooly gamesh. Excuse me, excuse me.
Speaker 5: I mean, cumulatively, they do have a better offense than
Speaker 5: the Texans, but it's by one tenth of a point.
Speaker 5: They scored twenty three point five points a game. The
Speaker 5: Texans scored twenty three point four YEP points per game.
Speaker 5: And it's just in the way that the Texans have
Speaker 5: done it, especially late this season, like in that win
Speaker 5: against the Miami Dolphins. Like these grind out drives were
Speaker 5: third and sometimes fourth down CJ. Stroud competing passes where
Speaker 5: the Chiefs have had to grind things out too, but
Speaker 5: it feels more reliable, Like they scored that twenty first
Speaker 5: point on that worthy run and there's plenty of time
Speaker 5: to go in the third quarter.
Speaker 3: Right, they don't sniff the end zone or close goal again.
Speaker 5: And so I just I take the Texans in this game,
Speaker 5: not just because of the avalanche of everything and Patrick's ankle.
Speaker 5: It's just one team I believe can consistently execute something
Speaker 5: on offense.
Speaker 3: I don't, and the other deep I don't.
Speaker 1: I actually think the Texans are in a worse situation offensively,
Speaker 1: even than the Chiefs. They came out for the first
Speaker 1: drive last week against Miami, they started doing some of
Speaker 1: their old concepts like last year. It was less shotguns
Speaker 1: and play action CJ's getting rid of the ball on time.
Speaker 1: Then they got stuffed on like a or they threw
Speaker 1: a shot deep on third and one. They decided to
Speaker 1: kick a field goal there. I was like, Okay, Texans offense,
Speaker 1: maybe they're back. Rest of the game, they stunk. They
Speaker 1: were worse than the Chiefs offense last week. They had
Speaker 1: one hundred and eighty yards. Like people weren't watching that
Speaker 1: game as much, but they look lost. CS strout Is
Speaker 1: is under fire and not.
Speaker 3: Looking comfortable anything under pressure.
Speaker 1: She made a couple really nice second reaction plays to
Speaker 1: score touchdowns, and they took advantage of the red zone trips,
Speaker 1: and he had a couple of magical plays underheat. But
Speaker 1: they've been bad all season too on offense. So that's
Speaker 1: why I'm saying forty one is way too high, way
Speaker 1: too high.
Speaker 2: I don't know who's going to.
Speaker 1: Win this game, but I feel amazing that it's going
Speaker 1: under forty one.
Speaker 4: I like Houston, and part of it is also, you know,
Speaker 4: watching the Chiefs, they look due, they like they look
Speaker 4: due for what happened to the Lions last week.
Speaker 1: Okay, so that's true. That is true. They feel very ready.
Speaker 1: You get picked off. And the argument for them would
Speaker 1: be the Texans defense is the best unit in this
Speaker 1: entire game.
Speaker 2: So you have you have two struggles.
Speaker 3: That I'm saying a lot. Yeah, Kanses defense is legit.
Speaker 2: Stingley was just crazy last week.
Speaker 4: That Texans defense going on the road.
Speaker 5: Also a good defense on the road on Saturday as well,
Speaker 5: the Pittsburgh Steelers at the Baltimore Ravens, who were favored
Speaker 5: by six with the over under forty five. It is
Speaker 5: Fox A one, Kevin Burkhart, Tom Brady Aeron and Tom
Speaker 5: Ronaldi on the call, Steve to See Lamar and Derrick
Speaker 5: Henry trying to get revenge against the Steelers team that
Speaker 5: gave them that loss back in week eleven.
Speaker 4: Yeah, a two point loss, which is how these games go.
Speaker 4: That's why obviously this number like this is crazy. Seven
Speaker 4: of the last eight games, neither team has scored more
Speaker 4: than twenty points, which when I look at the over underline, yeah, right,
Speaker 4: and then we know Pittsburgh's won eight to the last nine.
Speaker 4: But it's funny, man that that Eagles game we're talking about,
Speaker 4: the Eagles put it on the Steelers, and everyone now
Speaker 4: is like.
Speaker 3: Are the Steelers fraudulent? Man?
Speaker 4: That narrative is freaking blasting over the speakers, right, And
Speaker 4: I think they're a good team. I like Baltimore in this,
Speaker 4: not by six. I do not like the over under.
Speaker 4: But here's why this is gonna sound absolutely crazy coming
Speaker 4: from me. The fact that Justin Tucker is five to
Speaker 4: five on the pat. I think he might get his
Speaker 4: mojo back. WHOA, he's at home, might get his mojo back.
Speaker 4: I think that's going to be important for Baltimore.
Speaker 2: I need more than just extra points.
Speaker 4: But that's that's what I'm saying. Yeah, those extra points
Speaker 4: are for field goal rangers, so that that's what I'm saying.
Speaker 4: Those Pat kicks, now he might he might have got
Speaker 4: his win back. It's gonna be another closer.
Speaker 1: Okay, that that would make me feel better. I want
Speaker 1: to see them just be more discipline about preventing the
Speaker 1: deep ball, and if George Pickens is not playing, that
Speaker 1: really helps their case.
Speaker 4: I mean even better though, with Hamilton playing that deep,
Speaker 4: that deep third safety, He's They've been better.
Speaker 2: Man, they have.
Speaker 1: They made a lot of changes coming out of the bye.
Speaker 1: So that game against the Giants, everyone will just say, Okay,
Speaker 1: it was against the Giants, but they did do a
Speaker 1: number of things that I think are interesting to watch
Speaker 1: moving forward. Number one on my list, I made a
Speaker 1: list of what changed Roquan Smith. I think the extra
Speaker 1: week of rest that he had in the bye really
Speaker 1: helped him. He looked like the old Roquon like he
Speaker 1: was flying around and he left that game against the
Speaker 1: Steelers the first time and that was when the Steelers
Speaker 1: scored some points, was when broke one love. They benched
Speaker 1: Trent Simpson. That was interesting. That was he's gone. It's
Speaker 1: Chris Board Now they're playing some more safeties. Marcus Williams.
Speaker 1: They came out of the by with him as a
Speaker 1: healthy scratch and and so that's they've kind of made
Speaker 1: what their decisions on who's going to be playing in
Speaker 1: their back end. At at cornerback, it's the young kid Wiggins,
Speaker 1: Brandon Stevens.
Speaker 2: Back out there. I trust them. They made it.
Speaker 1: They made a change at punt returner to Desmond King.
Speaker 1: They've had some troubles with the punt returns. He had
Speaker 1: a couple of nice plays, these little things that gives
Speaker 1: me hope as a as a guy who wants to
Speaker 1: see the Ravens close strong like you Patrick that maybe
Speaker 1: this is the old Ravens magic.
Speaker 2: Because I got to.
Speaker 1: Check the numbers on this, but I swear they're the
Speaker 1: best team at improving in December, like in the entire NFL,
Speaker 1: now that the old like Brady Patriots are gone.
Speaker 2: The ramps are.
Speaker 1: There too, but they always just do these little moves
Speaker 1: and maybe these are the moves that that get it done.
Speaker 2: I think the defense was improving even before the Bible Well.
Speaker 5: And that's the thing right with the franchises in the
Speaker 5: historic like historically looking back, it's front offices and coaching
Speaker 5: staffs that have been together for a long time. They
Speaker 5: know how to go through this personnel process and they're
Speaker 5: on the same page with it. And we had Zach
Speaker 5: Orr coming in as the new defensive coordinator and things
Speaker 5: took time right to work out how they go about
Speaker 5: defending these teams, and ultimately without George Pickens, it's a
Speaker 5: fundamentally different Steelers offense, not just against balls right, really
Speaker 5: against anybody, because you're asking now Mike Williams and Calvin
Speaker 5: Austin to do George Pickens things that really right. He's
Speaker 5: unique in more ways than one George Pickens.
Speaker 4: I think in the AFC North Hard Knocks, you know,
Speaker 4: you get a different look at all the many ways
Speaker 4: that George Pickens is different. But it's it comes down
Speaker 4: to how healthy is TJ Watt after leaving this game,
Speaker 4: because Lamar's consistent struggles against this team.
Speaker 3: Are directly related to number ninety. When things get.
Speaker 5: Dicey and Lamar is out on the edge, others so
Speaker 5: many players that he can make myths make look like fools.
Speaker 3: TJ's not one of them.
Speaker 1: No, No, they do a great job kind of elimitting
Speaker 1: him going outside.
Speaker 3: It's a great strategy, you know. TJ. Watt looked. Let's
Speaker 3: not forget they got Preston Smith there. They made a
Speaker 3: great trade.
Speaker 4: This is there's some subtle trades and things like this
Speaker 4: that we aren't really recognizing as much. Preston Smith has
Speaker 4: helped out Nick herbig go on either side. Alex high
Speaker 4: Smith is back. Now you're never gonna replace t J.
Speaker 3: Watt.
Speaker 4: But strategically what they've done, it has worked. And so
Speaker 4: but to get back to your changes about Baltimore, Greg,
Speaker 4: you know what they did.
Speaker 3: They got faster on defense.
Speaker 4: Even though Trenton Simpson could run, he was confused some
Speaker 4: of the calls I think with Roquand they were asking
Speaker 4: him to do too much man, some of the coverage
Speaker 4: stuff they were asking to do. And was like, come on, man,
Speaker 4: that's tough for anybody, Brian or Lacker type of thing
Speaker 4: to do.
Speaker 3: You get faster on the back end.
Speaker 4: Something's been going off Marcus Williams all year because he's
Speaker 4: been in and out of the lineup.
Speaker 3: But they're faster.
Speaker 4: They needed to improve that speed because teams were taking
Speaker 4: advantage of it early on.
Speaker 1: That's a great point. And on offense did their number
Speaker 1: one concern is their offensive line still. I actually believe
Speaker 1: their guards in pass pro against the best teams are
Speaker 1: gotta be a problem.
Speaker 2: They actually struggled.
Speaker 1: I thought against the Giants, you wouldn't have known it,
Speaker 1: but those big guys like they're not good pass protectors.
Speaker 1: But what they did was they got a little heavier.
Speaker 1: They went really heavy on the two tight ends. Not
Speaker 1: that they don't do that normally, but they cranked it
Speaker 1: up to about their their highest that they've done it
Speaker 1: all year last week. And I think that's having their
Speaker 1: best players on the field, likely and Andrews at the
Speaker 1: same time. So we'll see if they stay as heavy
Speaker 1: and our friend hide them behind the glass supporting us
Speaker 1: as our teammates. Gives me the stat that Lamar Jackson
Speaker 1: is undefeated as a starter after week fifteen in his
Speaker 1: career twelve and zero.
Speaker 2: So they really do.
Speaker 3: That's strong.
Speaker 1: They really do improve late in the season, and I
Speaker 1: think they keep it going.
Speaker 2: I think they cover the six too. Wow, let's go.
Speaker 3: I'll take that.
Speaker 2: I don't we're not allowed to do.
Speaker 4: You just said the guards aren't play well. Cam Heyward's
Speaker 4: playing better than any d tackle.
Speaker 1: I just believe if there's one team that has by
Speaker 1: far the highest explosive play rate in the NFL, it's
Speaker 1: not even close.
Speaker 2: Like the Ravens are. They're just explosive explosives.
Speaker 1: And another team that if they don't have pickens, they
Speaker 1: don't actually run the ball well.
Speaker 2: People just say that for some reason, don't that they don't.
Speaker 1: They don't, so you're gonna have to move the ball
Speaker 1: down the field slow. I just I don't see it.
Speaker 1: I think it's like a ten point game. It's nothing
Speaker 1: crazy with it.
Speaker 4: If the Ravens win, though, I mean, that shakes up
Speaker 4: the AFC nicely. That puts in a striking range, you
Speaker 4: get that division.
Speaker 5: We want to talk about those AFC contenders that are
Speaker 5: playing on Saturday. They're all four of them, the Steelers,
Speaker 5: the Ravens, the Chiefs, and Texans will be back because
Speaker 5: they're flip flopping. The one team to play the other
Speaker 5: team on Saturday is playing the different team. It's like
Speaker 5: a little nd season tournament. Shout out to the Cup
Speaker 5: champions Chiefs, Steelers and Ravens Texans Christmas Day on Netflix.
Speaker 3: Let's go to our next game.
Speaker 1: Actually, if you're watching on YouTube here, Patrick, I just
Speaker 1: wanted to point out the promotion out there for Netflix.
Speaker 1: It's got all the biggest names in the industry. I
Speaker 1: An Eagle, Greg Olsen, JJ Watt, you know, Stacey Dale's
Speaker 1: is in the mix. And then who who is on
Speaker 1: that that big promotion NFL Daily z own Steve Weish.
Speaker 1: Now he might not, you know, list himself that way,
Speaker 1: but that's how I list him. NFL Daily zwe Steve
Speaker 1: Weish is on that promo with all the big hitters
Speaker 1: like gene Sterritors on that.
Speaker 3: Is that a connect for promo? It could be. It
Speaker 3: really does look like it, doesn't it.
Speaker 2: Drew Brees is on there.
Speaker 1: I think he's doing the international broadcast with Hanson on Netflix.
Speaker 1: So I very cool that you're going to be on.
Speaker 1: Fortunate the Netflix coverage on Christmas? How does the How
Speaker 1: does the wife feel about that?
Speaker 2: The family? Is she going down there? You gotta celebrate?
Speaker 3: My wife will not be going down there.
Speaker 4: All of our kids will be home, so sorry, there'll
Speaker 4: be some face times.
Speaker 3: It's all good. You know.
Speaker 4: I've covered the NBA. I've had to work Christmas days
Speaker 4: for years. My kids are grown, so it's more important for.
Speaker 1: So you're not gonna do like a fake Christmas like
Speaker 1: I do every year before my family leaves me.
Speaker 3: That's what we do.
Speaker 4: Nothing take fake. There's nothing fake about this, dude, Greg,
Speaker 4: I'm all one hundred. If you're doing it, it's not fake.
Speaker 4: It's legitimate.
Speaker 5: Who the day doesn't have to be the day people
Speaker 5: celebrate on, not their birthdays all the time. It was
Speaker 5: not Kirk Cousins birthday at all, Nora. Was it the
Speaker 5: birthday of any Giants quarterback at all in twenty twenty four.
Speaker 5: So we're gonna get Drew Locke against Michael PENNOCKX junior
Speaker 5: in Atlanta.
Speaker 3: Greg the over under forty two.
Speaker 4: It's the Falcons with their quarterback making us first step
Speaker 4: for start as an eight and a half point favorite.
Speaker 4: Kevin Kougler, Moose Johnston and Laura Oakman on the call,
Speaker 4: we had said it was going to be the last
Speaker 4: game for several weeks.
Speaker 5: You called it after the last game for Kirk Cousins.
Speaker 5: Now it's the rookie with a chance to get some
Speaker 5: experience against the Giants.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the bar is so low, and I don't think
Speaker 1: we need to talk about this game too much. Although no,
Speaker 1: with your lock, I give the Giants a better chance
Speaker 1: to be competitive than they would have been with Tommy DeVito.
Speaker 2: And eight and a half is crazy.
Speaker 3: I mean it went down. It went down after the
Speaker 3: quarterback change. It was ten.
Speaker 1: I know, I know, Yeah, why Pennox. I don't know
Speaker 1: X improves him. So let's just talk Penex this whole time,
Speaker 1: because it's a fascinating that they did make the decision.
Speaker 1: I thought the way Cousins played kind of left them
Speaker 1: almost no choice. They owed it to the rest of
Speaker 1: the team. They still have an uphill battle to make
Speaker 1: the playoffs. But you can do two things here. You
Speaker 1: can get a little peak at Penix and help his development,
Speaker 1: and I think he gives you a better chance to
Speaker 1: win games because Cousins was playing that poorly. Yeah, what
Speaker 1: do you what do you think it means for Cousins' future?
Speaker 1: Let's just start there. It's hard to imagine him playing
Speaker 1: for the Falcons ever again, unless Penix gets hurt in
Speaker 1: the next three weeks.
Speaker 4: Well, I mean he's got no trade clause, right, So
Speaker 4: we're looking at the Russell Wilson situation all over again.
Speaker 4: Will they move him and pay pay pay for his
Speaker 4: salary for someone else that could have but remember they
Speaker 4: ate what was the number for Matt Ryan. Remember they
Speaker 4: ate that type of cap space to move Matt Ryan.
Speaker 4: So the Falcus front office is not afraid to make
Speaker 4: a move.
Speaker 2: Like this man. But they just did that.
Speaker 3: They just did it.
Speaker 4: But they they've signed their younger players to long term deals.
Speaker 4: I mean, they're they're pretty well situated cap wise, and
Speaker 4: that number is going to be there anyway. And they've
Speaker 4: got his backup on a rookie deal. But I think
Speaker 4: for Cousins, they'll probably be some teams. I think he'll
Speaker 4: waive it. What's interesting to note about the scenario he
Speaker 4: could have done this with Minnesota. They're going to draft
Speaker 4: a quarterback. He wasn't really happy about that thing. Well,
Speaker 4: he wasn't really happy about this, So I think you
Speaker 4: realized that Kirk might not be too cool being a
Speaker 4: backup to Michael Pennick. So I think he will be
Speaker 4: somewhere next year. It'll be interesting to see if he's
Speaker 4: a starter. I think he could be kind of pick
Speaker 4: up guy after all the other pieces you have been drafted.
Speaker 1: Why, I mean, I guess I'm going to convince yourself
Speaker 1: that maybe he'd be healthier a year, you know, more
Speaker 1: removed easily surgery, but he's also older and thirty seven.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's almost like, would you take him over Daniel Jones?
Speaker 4: I mean that that's kind of where, right, I mean,
Speaker 4: that's kind of where I think some of that conversation
Speaker 4: could go. I mean a lot of people would. A
Speaker 4: lot of people wouldn't. You're sitting next to one. I
Speaker 4: would gladly take Kirk.
Speaker 5: The people are doing the comparison right because Aaron is
Speaker 5: forty one, correct, and Kirk Cousins is thirty six, And
Speaker 5: it feels like simple math. Aaron Rodgers' Achilles injury happened
Speaker 5: three months before Kirk Cousins did. Right, Kirk Cousins, it's
Speaker 5: very difficult, Like we could talk like the state of health.
Speaker 5: It's very difficult to become healthier playing in the National
Speaker 5: Football League. Sure, And so I really think with more
Speaker 5: time removed, Kirk Cousins like long term viability. I mean,
Speaker 5: in the next three or four years, I think at
Speaker 5: a certain point he will get closer to being the
Speaker 5: Kirk Cousins that we know.
Speaker 4: This version is still clearly dealing with something. What's interesting.
Speaker 4: Patrick moved what's interesting though, when people say that is
Speaker 4: six weeks ago we were talking about that Kirk.
Speaker 2: He was Kirk co Chains. We were a little bit
Speaker 2: on this show.
Speaker 1: We were saying where we're so impressed that he was
Speaker 1: doing it despite the limitation.
Speaker 4: I remember, nothing got worse, And I think Patrick brought
Speaker 4: up a stat like he was only move head the
Speaker 4: least amount of movement like one and a half yards
Speaker 4: in the pocket. So that part was there, But you
Speaker 4: saw there was some stuff. He was stepping into his throws.
Speaker 4: I don't know if there was a lack of confidence,
Speaker 4: but he's stilling wiffle balls out there. I mean those
Speaker 4: balls pop out of his hand and they die after
Speaker 4: five yards. They were having to throw the ball between
Speaker 4: the numbers because he couldn't get it outside. Teams knew
Speaker 4: that that was leading to all the interceptions. That's why
Speaker 4: they had to make a move. But you know, I
Speaker 4: think I think Patrick, you know, it's an interesting point
Speaker 4: because I do think he will get healthier.
Speaker 3: Does he want to? I mean, does he want to?
Speaker 3: Does he want to?
Speaker 4: I bet he will so well, the money's gonna be there,
Speaker 4: I mean, he's got a significant paycheck coming.
Speaker 1: I think he will too, so Michael Silver, our old coworker,
Speaker 1: I saw him talking about that all all his old coaches,
Speaker 1: they are fascinated by him still and that there will
Speaker 1: be a market for him.
Speaker 2: And I had my doubts, but not now.
Speaker 1: You're you're making the case Patrick that there's a there's
Speaker 1: always a market for a quarterback. But I sent a
Speaker 1: couple of texts yesterday about this when it happened, and
Speaker 1: I thought, oh, maybe Kirk actually, like, would Kirk ever
Speaker 1: actually be okay being the backup to Pennix? It's not
Speaker 1: that crazy, like if you've already got him under contract,
Speaker 1: you have a good number two.
Speaker 2: And they were like, are you high.
Speaker 1: They're like, they thought, there's no way he is not
Speaker 1: gonna be happy. He is, you know, they were surmising,
Speaker 1: but they just did not think he would be okay
Speaker 1: with that scenario.
Speaker 2: And that is essentially what you're saying too.
Speaker 5: We're on the verge of watching Sam Darnold and Baker
Speaker 5: Mayfield after playing on that woeful Carolina Panthers team start
Speaker 5: playoff games, yeah, in which they are teams of fan
Speaker 5: bases believe that they give them the best chance to win.
Speaker 5: We saw Peyton Manning come back from that neck injury
Speaker 5: where there's like zu Bruder film of him throwing and training,
Speaker 5: and all of a sudden, the whole league's like, all right,
Speaker 5: we're back in, We're back in. I just don't think
Speaker 5: I don't think it's that difficult to believe either Kirk
Speaker 5: Cousins can be significantly better in the one.
Speaker 1: I'm glad you're presenting that side of the argument, even
Speaker 1: though I am just even though I don't see it.
Speaker 1: I think it's just closer to Matt Ryan in Indianapolis
Speaker 1: that when you see something like that, and it was
Speaker 1: why we felt confident, why I felt confident on the show,
Speaker 1: like they are going to bench him.
Speaker 2: I don't care about the money, like when.
Speaker 1: You see that they're not coming back from that, they're
Speaker 1: just I think it was more of a like whatever
Speaker 1: he needed because he was always a confident player, He'll
Speaker 1: always be willing to rip the ball.
Speaker 2: He had totally lost it this year.
Speaker 1: Maybe maybe you get that confidence back, but that was
Speaker 1: as important to me as as what he lost in
Speaker 1: terms of his movement. Let's give it a little up
Speaker 1: to Pennix, though, what do we think, what do we
Speaker 1: think he's going to look like the next couple of weeks.
Speaker 1: He's a fascinating prospect. And uh, I'm really glad they
Speaker 1: drafted him.
Speaker 3: For Faculo smart for drafting.
Speaker 1: I think they were smart at the time because you
Speaker 1: always got to keep I think, invest as much as
Speaker 1: you possibly can in quarterback until you're sure you got one.
Speaker 2: And they couldn't have been sure they got one with
Speaker 2: Kirk Cousins.
Speaker 4: Well, they paid Kirk Cousin one hundred and hundred million dollars.
Speaker 4: Now that was the issue. It's not this, it's not
Speaker 4: them drafting Pendix. It was signed drafting him after signing.
Speaker 2: Kirk, I get it, which was bad process.
Speaker 1: I have heard speculation, I'm wondering what you think, Steve
Speaker 1: is an insider, that there's a chance, once the Falcons
Speaker 1: got Kirk in the building that they were a little
Speaker 1: more skeptical of where he was at physically, and that
Speaker 1: impacted that.
Speaker 2: You really couldn't have had as much.
Speaker 1: Knowledge of where he was at physically before the trade.
Speaker 4: And I mean that might be to mean, I think
Speaker 4: that might be hindsight, because remember when they did this,
Speaker 4: Kirk's our guy.
Speaker 3: Kirk's our guy.
Speaker 4: They draft Penis, he's our guy. Yeah, So if they
Speaker 4: had any questions about it. Physically, they sure weren't tipping
Speaker 4: their hand. Plus, Michael Penix has not begetting first team reps. True,
Speaker 4: he has not been getting first team reps. When you
Speaker 4: watch an NFL practice, your starter gets ninety eight percent
Speaker 4: of the reps. So they're going to have to un afford. Like,
Speaker 4: I think he's going to know the playbook. It's just
Speaker 4: the operation of things. And this is where a guy's
Speaker 4: playing five years in college is going to help him.
Speaker 4: He's going to understand cover. She's gonna understand how the
Speaker 4: game flow is supposed to go. So I think that's
Speaker 4: gonna help. And they're gonna be able to throw the
Speaker 4: ball outside of the numbers. He can rip it. You
Speaker 4: talk to people down there, they're like, we didn't show him.
Speaker 4: Remember he only played one preseason game. We didn't show
Speaker 4: him in pre season because that arm is a beautiful
Speaker 4: thing to say, and we didn't want one. He you know,
Speaker 4: I spoke to her he about this. We didn't want
Speaker 4: the other team other show other teams at arm. But
Speaker 4: I don't think we wanted to show their fans that
Speaker 4: arm because they wouldn't been calling for this change a
Speaker 4: lot earlier.
Speaker 3: That happened, that would be that would be even worse.
Speaker 2: Process.
Speaker 4: We are talking about the one winged bird. There aren't
Speaker 4: two wings on that falcon on the helmet pass they
Speaker 4: are for a long time.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's that is amazing.
Speaker 1: We we suddenly have one of the most interesting parts
Speaker 1: of the last three weeks. Though, is Michael Pennock started
Speaker 1: this game. So just as an an unbiased observer like
Speaker 1: I'm kind of happy to have this. We needed some
Speaker 1: injection of interesting storylines into the.
Speaker 2: End and that Division two and this is a very
Speaker 2: winnable game.
Speaker 1: And then next week they have a game against another contender.
Speaker 1: I'm forgetting who it is now at the top of
Speaker 1: my head, I'll check.
Speaker 2: But they're in the mix.
Speaker 5: Yeah, they just need some help from the Dallas Cowboys
Speaker 5: and they're right back in it with an opportunity. And yeah,
Speaker 5: watching the Giants, my favorite player ever was playing the
Speaker 5: Giants at five touchdowns last week.
Speaker 3: I could barely stand to watch it film.
Speaker 1: By the way, They're on Sunday Night football next week.
Speaker 1: That was what I was thinking against the Commanders. Yes,
Speaker 1: and they actually could even in a scenario where they
Speaker 1: if they can win this week, they could actually get
Speaker 1: into the wild card race. Even if the Bucks keep
Speaker 1: winning to win the NFC South. If the Commanders lose
Speaker 1: this week to the Eagles, yep, and then they can
Speaker 1: beat them heads up next week, then it just makes
Speaker 1: for an interesting stretch run. And frankly, he's my type
Speaker 1: of quarterback that I've been wrong about and right about before.
Speaker 1: Hefended no like big arm, anticipation, throws from the pocket
Speaker 1: like to me, he's like he's like Herbert on the
Speaker 1: high end. Jamis maybe in the mid in the middle,
Speaker 1: lower end, like uh, Mike Glennon in the middle. Cutler
Speaker 1: would be a better example, Cuddy Cutter. Cutler, let's get
Speaker 1: let's give him, give me Cutler.
Speaker 2: But he cares. That would be a great player.
Speaker 3: And it's no longer Jay Cutler real quick.
Speaker 4: And this is and this is from the patch of Claiban,
Speaker 4: Whole of Destiny, right, I tweeted it yesterday Michael Penniski
Speaker 4: is named starter. And what else happened on that day?
Speaker 4: Michael Vick gets named the head coach at Norfolk State.
Speaker 4: So two left handed Falcons quarterbacks leading their programs in
Speaker 4: new directions.
Speaker 3: You like that?
Speaker 2: I love it?
Speaker 3: Predestined.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's symmetry, and we interrupt our Atlanta Falcons podcast
Speaker 5: and take it to the Arizona Cardinals four and a
Speaker 5: half point favorites on the road against the team that
Speaker 5: sunk our Survivor picks last week, the Carolina Panthers, the
Speaker 5: over under forty seven. Chris Meyers, Mark slaff and Jen
Speaker 5: Hale on the call. All the pozzy Steve from the
Speaker 5: previous you know, vibe boosting but still losses went out
Speaker 5: the window. Or Carolina, how do they perform against the
Speaker 5: Cardinals team that still has a little bit of hope
Speaker 5: as well.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think, you know, with Arizona and back in
Speaker 4: the win column against you know, bad Patriots team last week,
Speaker 4: this is gonna be a competitive game that six and
Speaker 4: a half hour. I'm sorry that Ford was it four
Speaker 4: to four and a half number? I like it for Arizona.
Speaker 4: I think this is one where James Connor, he goes
Speaker 4: over a thousand for the season. They pound the ball,
Speaker 4: They kind of get back to where they were a
Speaker 4: little bit and not relying so much on Kyler and
Speaker 4: I think Carolina with that, I mean they did more
Speaker 4: than stub their toe last week. I think that just
Speaker 4: kind of they plateaued, and you know, if Arizona gets
Speaker 4: up on him quickly.
Speaker 2: Maybe they'll respond.
Speaker 1: I think it's a good I think it's an important
Speaker 1: month for Bryce to continue his progress in the program,
Speaker 1: to continue it. They were do I guess to have
Speaker 1: a bad week, and they certainly had one.
Speaker 3: I went bad week.
Speaker 1: Well, I just mean they've been competitive in all these games.
Speaker 1: I think looked like a NFL team, and then last
Speaker 1: week they went back to their worst habits. I went
Speaker 1: through a lot of the playoff scenarios, okay, to make
Speaker 1: the case for these teams that feel like they're a
Speaker 1: little on the outside looking in. Arizona wins a three
Speaker 1: way tie in the NFC West if they all go
Speaker 1: ten and seven. Now, they got to win out to
Speaker 1: do that, but they but they have two division games,
Speaker 1: the Rams and the forty nine ers that will help them.
Speaker 2: So they would.
Speaker 1: If it's Seahawks, Cardinals and Rams at ten and seven,
Speaker 1: Cardinals win the division, they also win the two way
Speaker 1: if it's a two way tie with the Rams, assuming
Speaker 1: that they beat the Rams on Saturday Night on NFL
Speaker 1: Network next week, which is that's their do or die game.
Speaker 1: Every game is basically a do or die game, But
Speaker 1: it's not that crazy of a route. They basically win
Speaker 1: these next two games in Carolina and against the Rams,
Speaker 1: and they might be in the driver's seat two weeks
Speaker 1: from now. So even though they I don't I was
Speaker 1: not convinced by them last week. They didn't make me
Speaker 1: feel any better or worse about them the way they
Speaker 1: played against the Patriots. And Kyle had an okay game,
Speaker 1: nothing great, But they have an opportunity here.
Speaker 2: It's still all right in front of him. By the way, Buddha.
Speaker 1: Baker, how about that got a nice little contract extension,
Speaker 1: third contract, third contract.
Speaker 2: That is tough to do.
Speaker 4: David Mullagata represents him. Man, David David gets all these
Speaker 4: guys taken care of.
Speaker 1: And the search Bar it's gotten some reinforcements. We got
Speaker 1: Baron Browning. I mean, that's a guy people actually do know.
Speaker 1: And then their first round pick, Darius Robinson played a
Speaker 1: lot last week. So and they just gave a guy
Speaker 1: a big contract. Buddha Baker. The search bar might they
Speaker 1: might graduate from the search Bar at some point.
Speaker 4: The links are gonna be purple because everybody's gonna have seen.
Speaker 1: All right, we are just getting going here on NFL Daily.
Speaker 1: We got we got a lot of games to get to.
Speaker 1: We're gonna hit some fun ones after the break and
Speaker 1: including the Lions.
Speaker 2: See if they can bounce back this week. Back on
Speaker 2: NFL Daily, Patrick.
Speaker 1: Before you set up this next game, Okay, can you
Speaker 1: just remind me what the quote you read to me
Speaker 1: from Kirk Cousins during the break was.
Speaker 2: Because it was it was beautiful.
Speaker 4: So he did call Michael Pennock Jr. They asked him
Speaker 4: at his availability why he called him, and he said, quote,
Speaker 4: I like to shoot elephants in the room, so I
Speaker 4: just wanted to shoot one.
Speaker 5: And they said he couldn't execute the big game. But
Speaker 5: there he is, well done.
Speaker 1: Oh wait, good job, nicely shoot the elephant in the room.
Speaker 3: My god.
Speaker 2: And then he circled back to it. I like to
Speaker 2: shoot elephants sweat.
Speaker 3: Hey, man, that's poaching. You can't do it too much.
Speaker 5: Kirk oh Cousins, Oh, Kirk, how we love the Yes,
Speaker 5: that's a look back, but let's look forward to the
Speaker 5: Detroit Lions. The very very injured Detroit Lions, but still
Speaker 5: very very good six and a half point favorites in
Speaker 5: Chicago against the Bears with the over under forty eight,
Speaker 5: Kenny Albert, Jonathan Ville make Aan Olivy on the call,
Speaker 5: Coach Campbell said, Greg, he's not buying the injury stuff.
Speaker 5: It's gonna be tough no more. David Montgomery for the
Speaker 5: rest of the season. Ilan McNeil hoping to get good
Speaker 5: news on Carlton Davis. It's not gonna matter against the Bears,
Speaker 5: but what can they show you that they can get
Speaker 5: it done without.
Speaker 2: Those guys defensively?
Speaker 1: I just think they want to stabilize and have a
Speaker 1: positive performance. As banged up as they are, and losing
Speaker 1: McNeil is huge for that defensive line.
Speaker 3: Huge.
Speaker 1: They still do have Zadaria Smith and they got it
Speaker 1: for everyone, you know, talking about the injuries last week,
Speaker 1: they did get Owen Wuzuriki and DJ Reader back on
Speaker 1: the field. So that's three starters there on your defensive line.
Speaker 1: Jack Campbell and that linebacker group behind him. That's really
Speaker 1: where opposing teams are gonna make them pay. I don't
Speaker 1: know if the Bears are the team to do that,
Speaker 1: but just to play Devil's advocate a little bit, you
Speaker 1: still have a creditable defensive line and some really good
Speaker 1: players in the secondary, like I don't think hope is lost.
Speaker 1: And oh, by the way, maybe the number one offense
Speaker 1: in the league, which they'll be okay without Montgomery, like
Speaker 1: he's a big loss, but they'll be okay, they'll be great.
Speaker 3: I'm with you.
Speaker 4: I still think I think Detroit overcomes it at least
Speaker 4: to win the NFC North. I think they're gonna go
Speaker 4: ahead and win the division just because they can score,
Speaker 4: which is why I think that over underline is what
Speaker 4: it is at forty eight, because I don't think the
Speaker 4: Bears are hanging twenty five on them. But you know,
Speaker 4: at some point, playing the type of football they like
Speaker 4: to play where they've got it, where they can go
Speaker 4: down and grind out ten and twelve play drives, when
Speaker 4: teams start doing that to them because of some of
Speaker 4: the injuries that they have and the lack of depth
Speaker 4: they have, that's where it's gonna catch up to them.
Speaker 4: But in the short term, I think they're still too
Speaker 4: explosive and just too creative offensively to really fall off
Speaker 4: right now.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's gonna be more volume for Jamier Gibbs. Obviously.
Speaker 5: I guess Craig Reynolds slides and he has the most
Speaker 5: non Jared Goff actually has the third most carries on
Speaker 5: the team, But then you go down to Craig Reynolds
Speaker 5: as far as at the running back position, so he
Speaker 5: comes in he fills nicely the role that I think
Speaker 5: it hurts the offense. But over on the defensive side
Speaker 5: of the ball, even when they did have everybody, it's
Speaker 5: not like the Lions were shutting people down on defense
Speaker 5: that I back to the shootout against Gino, one of
Speaker 5: many shootouts against Gino that the Lions have had in
Speaker 5: the past few years where they've had to score in
Speaker 5: the past, and they can still do that. It's not
Speaker 5: a problem against Chicago. But I think we're going to
Speaker 5: learn a little bit about this team in this game
Speaker 5: in terms of how they approach a game against the
Speaker 5: team that they're significantly better than the loss against Buffalo.
Speaker 5: Buffalo is still a very good team with the generational quarterback.
Speaker 5: Right there's a lot of defenses problems.
Speaker 2: Might just be the Super Bowl favorites on a neutral
Speaker 2: field Bills.
Speaker 3: It's not.
Speaker 5: I feel like there's this tendency because we want so
Speaker 5: much from the Lions and there it's been such a
Speaker 5: great story to feel like this is it, this is
Speaker 5: over this is still one of the best.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that their fans haven't been in this position, and
Speaker 1: I saw some of the reaction online to their great
Speaker 1: beat writer, Colton Pouncy, and he's answering questions from the
Speaker 1: fans and they're like, well, what even hope do we
Speaker 1: have left?
Speaker 2: Is it over now?
Speaker 1: And it's like, no, you guys lost the game and
Speaker 1: you've had an incredible amount of injuries that is going
Speaker 1: to make this path tougher. But let's not get it twisted.
Speaker 1: You're still one of the favorites. You're still one of
Speaker 1: the five teams five or six that if you're hosting,
Speaker 1: you're winning the Lombardi in a couple months. Then I
Speaker 1: won't be surprised because Jared Goff has never played better.
Speaker 1: I am convinced he is absolutely peaking. So your quarterback
Speaker 1: is peaking. You have playmakers on defense, but you have
Speaker 1: even more of them on offense, and every the continuity,
Speaker 1: everything is there for them. This is one of my
Speaker 1: favorite picks of the week is them minus six and
Speaker 1: a half. I will be putting it out there with
Speaker 1: Cynthia on our man versus Machine picks because I think
Speaker 1: great teams respond. I think Caleb Williams is a little
Speaker 1: lost at see right now. And even though the Bears
Speaker 1: defense competed really well, it's a division game, this game
Speaker 1: was on Thanksgiving. In the end, I just think great
Speaker 1: teams respawn and they'll respond in this game.
Speaker 3: I agree.
Speaker 4: I can't wait that Week eighteen game to them in
Speaker 4: the vikings. I mean that could be for the division,
Speaker 4: could be for top seed. So I mean they're gonna
Speaker 4: have to play all the way through. They've got to
Speaker 4: stay healthy all the way through.
Speaker 3: Here go to.
Speaker 5: Our next home team, a seven and a half point
Speaker 5: favorite at home, the Cincinnati Bengals taking on the Cleveland Browns.
Speaker 5: Greg mentioned Steve the very reasonable path for a team
Speaker 5: like the Arizona Cardinals. The Bengals need an incalculable amount
Speaker 5: of help. It's absolutely in saying we saw Joe Burrow's
Speaker 5: frustrations even in the win against the Tennessee Titans. The
Speaker 5: Browns are going to be starting DTR Spirodidas, Adam Archoletta,
Speaker 5: and A D. D. Kikawalla on the CALLI over under
Speaker 5: is forty seven?
Speaker 2: Is it that crazy a path? Though? Okay, let's put
Speaker 2: it out there. Let's put it out there.
Speaker 1: Patrick, you win this game against the Browns, now the
Speaker 1: Thursday night game, which some of you maybe even watch
Speaker 1: by the time you listen to this, it's so important
Speaker 1: for Cincinnati. The Broncos Chargers game. You could look at
Speaker 1: it two different ways. You could want the Chargers to
Speaker 1: lose because they'll be easier to catch, but they lose
Speaker 1: the head to head against the Chargers, so you actually
Speaker 1: would need the Chargers to lose another game after that
Speaker 1: and win out, and the Chargers have two quite winnable
Speaker 1: road games. You could look at it the other way
Speaker 1: and look at where the Broncos are at right now.
Speaker 1: They would have the head to head over the Broncos.
Speaker 1: If the Bengals could win out the Broncos lose on
Speaker 1: Thursday Night, then next week they play against the Broncos.
Speaker 1: The Bengals play the Broncos in Week seventeen. That's a
Speaker 1: really big game and you could take out the team
Speaker 1: that's right in front of you, and the Broncos finished
Speaker 1: with the Chiefs. We don't know if the Chiefs are
Speaker 1: going to be playing for the one seed or not,
Speaker 1: but there are a couple pass that aren't that crazy
Speaker 1: to me. That's not crazy to see whether the Broncos
Speaker 1: lose out or the Chargers lose a couple games here,
Speaker 1: it's not over.
Speaker 4: It's not over, no, I mean the only challenge is
Speaker 4: Cincinnati winning out.
Speaker 1: Yes, I mean they've they're slopping as hell. Good point,
Speaker 1: thank you, that's an issue. I've been making that point
Speaker 1: all year, thank you.
Speaker 2: Good fight.
Speaker 4: Sorry penalties, negative plays, Yes, you're right. I mean look
Speaker 4: this week. First off, I don't like that number. What
Speaker 4: is the number?
Speaker 2: I don't like playing DTR.
Speaker 3: They're playing DTR. But Cleveland's defense is good man.
Speaker 4: I mean you talked about how they hell can't see
Speaker 4: the twenty one points with six takeaways. That defense. Guys
Speaker 4: in the secondary are playing well, they're competing. I mean,
Speaker 4: they've got some pros on that side of the ball.
Speaker 3: They should beat DTR. But who knows. If he pulls it.
Speaker 4: Down and starts running on him, doesn't give it away,
Speaker 4: I don't. I mean, Cleveland, they'd have their just speed
Speaker 4: on the offense. Isn't there in the run game. Well,
Speaker 4: Jerome Ford had the big hit last week, but it's
Speaker 4: just with Cincinnati they still I mean it is the
Speaker 4: Burrow and those two stud wide receivers. Everywhere else, he
Speaker 4: just keep making so many mistakes just when you want
Speaker 4: to buy into him, like, gosh, these guys are self destructive.
Speaker 4: I love that scenario you rolled out. I don't see
Speaker 4: the Chargers or the Broncos making the mistakes that the
Speaker 4: Bengals do when it comes to winning ball games and
Speaker 4: not beating well.
Speaker 1: At least win this game, and you give yourself another
Speaker 1: week to go to that Broncos game and yeah, Joe
Speaker 1: Burrow do something that would be awesome, extraordinary, and you're
Speaker 1: right watching them have I think it was like twelve
Speaker 1: penalties and four turnovers against the Titans.
Speaker 2: It's not going to inspire a ton of confidence. That's fair.
Speaker 4: I think the problem with the one Path right, other
Speaker 4: than the most significant issue being the Bengals being the Bengals,
Speaker 4: is you get in a situation where you're relying on
Speaker 4: a Carson Wentz led Chiefs team that's sitting everybody like
Speaker 4: Christian's gonna be playing in that game, No, no, ma homes.
Speaker 2: It probably get Hollywood maybe though, like not.
Speaker 1: If you guys are right and the Chiefs are going
Speaker 1: to lose this week against the Texans, then then they
Speaker 1: will be playing for Week eighteen most likely. So just
Speaker 1: just saying chance one of these is going to hit
Speaker 1: one of these crazy, like one of the teams one
Speaker 1: right now that that is around three teen percent and lower.
Speaker 2: There's about five or six teams between the two covers.
Speaker 1: One of them's at least going to get to Week
Speaker 1: eighteen with a real chance and the Bengals.
Speaker 5: There was a team last week that had a chance
Speaker 5: to be in this discussion but absolutely melted down. It's
Speaker 5: the Indianapolis Colts. They are at home in the Division
Speaker 5: three and a half point favorites against the Tennessee Titans.
Speaker 5: That will start Mason Rudolph, Tom McCarthy, j Freeley, Ross
Speaker 5: Tucker and our dear friend Tiffany Blackman on the call,
Speaker 5: Greg where we've finally seen the results of the season
Speaker 5: long Will Levis experiment and the results are back to
Speaker 5: Mason Rudolph. Meanwhile, the Colts would like to have that
Speaker 5: one back they lost their season.
Speaker 1: They would, but they actually have a higher percentage chance
Speaker 1: of making a playoffs. See, everyone just wants to cross
Speaker 1: these teams out because it just feels like it's better.
Speaker 4: Yeah, but you're you're so analytical, man. Watch just some
Speaker 4: of the dumb stuff some of these teams do where
Speaker 4: you have no faith, and that's where we're coming from.
Speaker 3: Greg.
Speaker 2: I don't think they're good.
Speaker 1: I just think they have the easiest schedule in the
Speaker 1: NFL the last three weeks. If you could construct this
Speaker 1: schedule that did not include the Patriots and maybe the
Speaker 1: Pages wouldn't be in this mix, could you come up
Speaker 1: with an easier three pack of games than home for
Speaker 1: Tennessee at the Giants home for Jacksonville. I actually think
Speaker 1: even if they don't make the playoffs at nine and
Speaker 1: eight and they're in one of the scenarios I laid
Speaker 1: out for Cincinnati, and I was playing with the playoff
Speaker 1: machine last night. Actually they didn't get in because Indianapolis
Speaker 1: gets in at nine and eight over Cincinnati. I'm just
Speaker 1: saying they have a chance even if they don't get in.
Speaker 1: I actually do think nine and eight and Anthony Richardson
Speaker 1: plays competent football the last three weeks against these three
Speaker 1: bad defenses will make the offseason feel different, feel better
Speaker 1: than it does right now. So I do think these
Speaker 1: late season games matter whether whether you make the playoffs
Speaker 1: or now.
Speaker 4: I get that point, but if they lose this game,
Speaker 4: I mean tennise, well, that's the big yeah. I mean
Speaker 4: Tennessee is just such a wildcard. I mean some days
Speaker 4: it can get you inspired. I have no faith in
Speaker 4: them right now. But like the Colts don't win this game,
Speaker 4: it's like you're gonna look back on Jonathan Taylor that
Speaker 4: fumble like wow, that that's what broke our backs, And
Speaker 4: to me, that goes he you maybe aren't mentally tough
Speaker 4: as you need to be. I do like Indianapolis in
Speaker 4: this game. I just I mean, Tennessee's packed the bags.
Speaker 3: We talked about it at the start of the show Man.
Speaker 4: There's some team that's what I mean, final three preseason game.
Speaker 1: Richardson's so hard because that first drive he had last
Speaker 1: week where he had a couple just beautiful throws and
Speaker 1: then they call the Reid option and he he just
Speaker 1: looks like a faster Cam Newton out there and you're thinking,
Speaker 1: and he throws really difficult middle of the field throws.
Speaker 1: He's so hard to take down and but but it's
Speaker 1: just not consistent.
Speaker 3: No, it's not.
Speaker 5: And even even on the drive right where he steps
Speaker 5: through a defender, defender is gator rolling on his ankle
Speaker 5: and like.
Speaker 3: Richardson just pulls away.
Speaker 5: That's just like he's playing with his cousins, like his
Speaker 5: baby cousins are in the backyard trying to It's like, no,
Speaker 5: I will not be sacked. And then a couple players
Speaker 5: later has an inexplicable turnover. You know, it's just it's
Speaker 5: up and down. That's that's the nature of the Colts.
Speaker 5: But perhaps not out of it. As Greg Rosenthal says,
Speaker 5: there's always, gosh always.
Speaker 2: It's a real chance. It's a real chance.
Speaker 4: NFL optimism daily, a chance to see two two really
Speaker 4: good quarterbacks, a couple of the best of their generations.
Speaker 4: Aaron Rodgers and the Jets not favored at home against
Speaker 4: Matthew Stafford and the Rams, who are favored about three
Speaker 4: and a half points. Kevin Harland, Trent Green, Melanie Collins
Speaker 4: on the call the Jets guy win that they desperately
Speaker 4: still came down to the wire.
Speaker 5: Can they be the spoiler against the Rams? Steve Well,
Speaker 5: They absolutely can be the spoiler.
Speaker 4: I mean if they played to some degree like they
Speaker 4: did last week on offense. I mean, DeVante Adams is fantastic,
Speaker 4: better veet Garrett Wilson. Otherwise, the more problems are coming
Speaker 4: because that's very talented. But you know, they they look
Speaker 4: like a legit football team against a football team that
Speaker 4: has also packed their bags and Jackson Bill Chaguars, that's
Speaker 4: two from the NFC South who've already gone fishing. But
Speaker 4: I just think the Rams man the way they're playing,
Speaker 4: the way they're running the ball is physicals are playing
Speaker 4: on the offensive line up front, those young dudes up
Speaker 4: front on the defensive front. You can't stop talking about
Speaker 4: him enough. They have not hit a rookie wall. They
Speaker 4: have built a rookie wall. I love the way they're
Speaker 4: playing some of the stuff for getting out the kicking
Speaker 4: game as well special teams. I just think the Rams
Speaker 4: are playing too well. I mean, the just can go
Speaker 4: out and play a really good game. I think Stafford's
Speaker 4: Rams all three phases, are one of the most dangerous
Speaker 4: teams and if they get in that's the team you
Speaker 4: don't want to face.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, And although the NFC's filled with them, it's a
Speaker 1: really deep, compelling playoff field, where like I wouldn't want
Speaker 1: to play the Packers, No, we wouldn't want to play
Speaker 1: the Bucks like and that these are the teams that
Speaker 1: are a little I wouldn't want to play the Vikings like.
Speaker 1: They're all it's a really it's gonna be a great
Speaker 1: NFC tournament, especially if the Rams are in it. Just
Speaker 1: they haven't played their best for what it's worth on
Speaker 1: these longer road trips. I don't know if this is
Speaker 1: a under just random, but the Saint that Saints game,
Speaker 1: they didn't have any points at halftime. They lost to
Speaker 1: the Bears early. That was way early in the season,
Speaker 1: but they lost to the Bears. The Patriots game came
Speaker 1: right down to the wire. So they haven't done great
Speaker 1: with these longer road trips. Outdoor, you know, outdoors, we'll
Speaker 1: see And Aaron Rodgers is unquestionably playing better, looking better,
Speaker 1: looking healthier than he has all season. He rushed for
Speaker 1: forty five yards led the.
Speaker 2: Team last week.
Speaker 1: So to day they're a little more dangerous I think,
Speaker 1: and even sas Gardner Jeff Ulbrooks said, has played his
Speaker 1: best two games of the season last two weeks. That
Speaker 1: it's like kind of the sauce we knew he's playing
Speaker 1: with better spirit. They're just a little more dangerous I
Speaker 1: think than they were about a month ago, so they
Speaker 1: got to be careful.
Speaker 5: It was Gardener in the game on an inexplicable Max
Speaker 5: Schill's throw last week, which is a big part of
Speaker 5: while the Jets were able to be celebratory and happy
Speaker 5: as we can celebrate the fact that it's time for
Speaker 5: the Game of the Week presented by DraftKings Sportsbook. Yes,
Speaker 5: it's bad in the NFC East of Philadelphia Eagles three
Speaker 5: and a half point favorites on the road against Jaden
Speaker 5: Daniels and the Washington Commanders forty five and a half.
Speaker 5: See over under Joe Davis, g reg and Pam Oliver
Speaker 5: on the call. Greg the Commander's surviving a late push
Speaker 5: by the Rizzy Saints where a two point conversion was
Speaker 5: the difference. They are in the thick of a playoff
Speaker 5: race against the Philadelphia team that dispatched their in state
Speaker 5: rival a week ago.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and dispatched the Commanders, Remember on that Thursday night
Speaker 1: football game that was kind of a two teams heading
Speaker 1: in a little separate directions at that point where Philadelphia
Speaker 1: had one of their wins. And they've had a lot
Speaker 1: like this where it's close for a while, even though
Speaker 1: it doesn't feel close, and then they just they just
Speaker 1: wear you down. And if you think about what's happened
Speaker 1: since Philly's actually had a tougher schedule, and yet they've
Speaker 1: won all their games. I thought when the two teams
Speaker 1: played against each other again like that Washington might still
Speaker 1: be in it. But they really aren't, and quietly they're
Speaker 1: not quite the same team that they were before. Noah
Speaker 1: Brown is out for the season. Austin Ekeler, you really
Speaker 1: feel for him because of that concussion that he suffered,
Speaker 1: might be out for the season. I'm guessing that he is,
Speaker 1: and Zach Ertz is in the concussion protocol this week.
Speaker 1: So they were already a little thin on offense. Their
Speaker 1: center Tyler Biattish was hurt last week as well, heat
Speaker 1: he is supposed to play, yeah, so, and Jonathan Allen,
Speaker 1: their talented defensive lineman, might be back for this game.
Speaker 2: So that's good.
Speaker 1: But I look at one team to me that other
Speaker 1: than Jalen Hurts being up and down, is you know,
Speaker 1: gathering strength almost at every position group the Philadelphia Eagles.
Speaker 1: And another that is not improving necessarily, the Commanders.
Speaker 2: As the season goes on, I think.
Speaker 4: They're gonna give Philadelphia hell of a game here, Okay,
Speaker 4: because you remember you talk about that last game Saquon
Speaker 4: rushed for As a team, they rushed for like two
Speaker 4: hundred and thirty yards.
Speaker 3: Saquan was most that hit some big runs late.
Speaker 4: I think Washington's gonna deny some of those explosive plays
Speaker 4: and that's gonna balance things out of little bit they did.
Speaker 4: They were doing some things to Frankie Louver, a linebacker
Speaker 4: the game. I remember they were putting him out on
Speaker 4: the edge a lot to create some pressure and that
Speaker 4: opened up the middle of the field for Saquon. I
Speaker 4: don't think that's gonna happen again. I just think this
Speaker 4: is gonna be a hell of a game, Phillya.
Speaker 3: Three and a half. Maybe Philly gets to win. Three
Speaker 3: and a half might be much.
Speaker 4: I think Washington and Marshaw Lattimore coming out in his
Speaker 4: debut and shutting things down. I think he's gonna he's
Speaker 4: gonna help the defense. No, I mean, I'm just saying
Speaker 4: I just.
Speaker 1: Think no, no, No, you're right. I'm laughing about that happened
Speaker 1: on this show last week.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm saying schematic he's gonna allow them to do
Speaker 4: some things that are gonna deny some of those run
Speaker 4: yards that Philly got last time.
Speaker 1: I'm glad you brought that up, Steve, because We had
Speaker 1: a we had a mole inside the Saints building last
Speaker 1: week and we actually heard that Mickey Loomis. He said,
Speaker 1: I don't care what you guys do in this game, Rizzy,
Speaker 1: no matter what, you are not throwing it to Marshawn Lattimore.
Speaker 1: We will not be embarrassed. Okay, that was We revealed
Speaker 1: that on the show last week, right right, Okay that
Speaker 1: that no matter what, we're not letting mar Latimer have
Speaker 1: a highlight. He did not have a target, not one
Speaker 1: single target. So our moles, they knew what they were
Speaker 1: talking about.
Speaker 5: Yeah, the right way to play a game probably best
Speaker 5: to not have JK and or target anybody. It's Spencer Radler,
Speaker 5: come fit point and salvage is the game. It makes
Speaker 5: it somewhat watchable. Where I'm just was I was skeptical
Speaker 5: about late season, Cliff, very very skeptical.
Speaker 3: We've seen more Terry from the right.
Speaker 4: He scored another touchdown from the right side of the
Speaker 4: field last week. Where just being able to utilize one
Speaker 4: of the best players in the game that we've had
Speaker 4: for a long time that it hasn't seen this level
Speaker 4: of play from the quarterback position. And we say it,
Speaker 4: but it's still worth celebrating that Terry gets this opportunity
Speaker 4: to play with Jayden and they need him. They need
Speaker 4: him now.
Speaker 5: The run game you mentioned, Eckler Brian Robinson Junior left
Speaker 5: the game against the Saints, and so it's all five
Speaker 5: and seventeen and those two can do it. But to
Speaker 5: do it against Philly at this point, the way that
Speaker 5: Quinn is playing, Cooper Degen coming on that the time,
Speaker 5: the season that Bond has had as well, it's.
Speaker 1: Just Nolan Smith is getting better every week, becoming a
Speaker 1: difference maker for this team. I looked at the numbers
Speaker 1: since Week seven, when when there was a little bit
Speaker 1: of a downturn for Washington in terms of explosive play rate,
Speaker 1: Eagles third in the league. They've cranked it up more
Speaker 1: big plays. A lot of those are runs to a
Speaker 1: Saquon Washington twenty fifth. So Philly is gonna make you
Speaker 1: work down the field. That's gonna be a really big
Speaker 1: test for Jayden Daniels. Can he be patient and avoid mistakes?
Speaker 1: He looked god last week Jade datis yeah.
Speaker 4: And they've got the speed to track him down when
Speaker 4: he tries to break the pocket. I mean, that's one
Speaker 4: thing he's got to be cognizant.
Speaker 3: Of all right.
Speaker 2: That was our game of the week.
Speaker 1: Download the DraftKings Sportsbook app now use the code daily.
Speaker 1: New customers can bet just five bucks. You get two
Speaker 1: hundred dollars in bonus bets only at DraftKings Sportsbook with
Speaker 1: Code Daily. The crown is yours. That's that's our headliner.
Speaker 1: By the way of the early games, I like that
Speaker 1: that we have one big one early Philly in Washington
Speaker 1: with g Reg on the call. We are going to
Speaker 1: be back and we're gonna start talking some late games.
Speaker 1: My god, Gino needs a bounce back. It's one of
Speaker 1: the bigger four oh five games of the year. Seattle
Speaker 1: always in big four oh five games, no respect. Oh yeah,
Speaker 1: you big Christmas music guy.
Speaker 4: Hold, it depends on on the day. I don't like
Speaker 4: to be saturated with it. But nothing like some good
Speaker 4: Donny Hathaway, you know, every now and then.
Speaker 5: It's anything that's not that Waitresses Christmas rapping song and
Speaker 5: Paul McCartney's Wonderful Christmas.
Speaker 3: That's that doesn't that doesn't get to that.
Speaker 5: Not just bad Christmas all. In my opinion, a person
Speaker 5: who knows nothing about music. Two of the worst songs.
Speaker 2: I've wow, I'll take but not really wrong.
Speaker 3: What about you, Greg? I do.
Speaker 2: As I've gotten older, I've gotten more in the holiday spirit.
Speaker 1: I grew up not really celebrating Christmas exactly like we
Speaker 1: would give gifts on the twenty fifth. But my parents
Speaker 1: are Jewish and they didn't really want to get behind that.
Speaker 2: But now I think.
Speaker 1: I'm I'm trying to live out the childhood I didn't have,
Speaker 1: but my family is not that into it. They almost
Speaker 1: make fun of me of being like the guy who's
Speaker 1: trying to get into it. Come on, I mean they
Speaker 1: like getting present.
Speaker 3: Just roasted them, like you're all about consumerism.
Speaker 1: Do not about that, but like going out to the
Speaker 1: holiday lights and doing all that sort of stuff. Like
Speaker 1: the kids, they've changed. They begged off the holiday lights
Speaker 1: this year.
Speaker 3: Just watch Netflix game on Go. It'll be cool.
Speaker 2: Walker will be watching from Japan. You can. You can
Speaker 2: watch it all over the world.
Speaker 1: Look when I mentioned no respect for the Seahawks at
Speaker 1: four oh five, just in case, like there's sometimes some
Speaker 1: new fans to the mix, Like four oh five means
Speaker 1: you're not in the four to twenty five window, which
Speaker 1: is where they show most of the country stands four
Speaker 1: or five. They're just kind of trying to bury it
Speaker 1: in your local markets and have it end, and they're
Speaker 1: not giving it full respect. So that's why I say
Speaker 1: Viking Seahawks, and I think it's just bad luck that
Speaker 1: that's a Fox game that should be the game of
Speaker 1: the afternoon and yet it's buried there.
Speaker 5: Yeah, a team that's contending for not just the best
Speaker 5: record in the NFC, I mean at this point they
Speaker 5: could be finished with the best record in the entire NFL.
Speaker 5: The Minnesota Vikings three and a half point favorites on
Speaker 5: the road Steve against the Seattle team that saw Sam Howell,
Speaker 5: and they needed Gino Smith back in that game against
Speaker 5: the Packers. On Sunday Night Football, Adam Me and Mark
Speaker 5: Sanchez Christina Pink on the call over under forty two
Speaker 5: and a half, where you start to wonder where can
Speaker 5: the Vikings stutter late in the season. Well, here's an
Speaker 5: opportunity on the road with Gino feeling better than we thought.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's real tough to play the practice sports team.
Speaker 4: Good on Gino, And I'm just gonna go off a
Speaker 4: little bit now on Gino. But you know last year
Speaker 4: when a backup quarterback. I had to come in for
Speaker 4: like a half and play and he was terrible. And
Speaker 4: after the game I spoke to a high ranking execution
Speaker 4: I never want to see that player in our uniform again.
Speaker 4: I don't think this Seahawks ever want to see Sam
Speaker 4: Howell oh snap again. That dude was taking twenty yards,
Speaker 4: you know, a runway to get it and he was
Speaker 4: popping it out five yards with problems.
Speaker 3: They didn't want to ever see him take another snap.
Speaker 1: I want to know who the other quarterback was last year.
Speaker 3: I can't see it right now. Can't do that.
Speaker 1: That would be you're you're right though confidence I follow
Speaker 1: I follow a lot of Seahawks fans on social media,
Speaker 1: and there was a lot of curse words being sent
Speaker 1: towards John Schneider for making the trade to acquire Sam
Speaker 1: Howell and and kind of sell him as an intriguing prospect.
Speaker 2: They missed Drew Locke luckily. Gina Smith gotta be back.
Speaker 4: This is This is gonna be a good game. And
Speaker 4: and you know, Minnesota's a three and a half point favorite.
Speaker 3: I like it.
Speaker 4: Seattle's gonna play tough this game. This is this is
Speaker 4: kind of a good matchup. We know that McDonald was
Speaker 4: brought in to be kind of the McVeigh stopera. We know,
Speaker 4: you know, Kevin O'Connell runs at McVeigh offense. Sam donald
Speaker 4: was not great Monday night. He was good, It was
Speaker 4: good enough, but Aaron Jones showed out. You know, the
Speaker 4: superstars showed out. And I think that's where you know,
Speaker 4: the Vikings have the matchup. Their skilled players and their
Speaker 4: superstar players are legit. The guys on the back end
Speaker 4: are legit. They take the ball away. Seattle's got to
Speaker 4: be very careful and if they don't, Seattle is not
Speaker 4: able to get the run game going. And it is
Speaker 4: look Gino, as much as I kind of mock up
Speaker 4: to you on quarterback, he's a hell of a player.
Speaker 3: Like if they've got a rate, you know, lean on Gino.
Speaker 3: He can win ball games.
Speaker 4: But against this defense and the different looks they give
Speaker 4: you many Brian Flores, the second half of games is
Speaker 4: insane with the looks he gives you.
Speaker 3: It is going to be tough.
Speaker 4: So I like Minnesota in this game, but I think
Speaker 4: this is going to be the late game of.
Speaker 1: The day really important for both teams. Minnesota to keep
Speaker 1: that pole position to win the NFC North. If they
Speaker 1: win out, they will win the DIVS Vision Seattle to
Speaker 1: try to stay right there in the NFC West, or
Speaker 1: suddenly they have a skid and Seahawks fans probably feel like, man,
Speaker 1: we finally felt like we had something and then the
Speaker 1: floor just falls out last week. And I felt that
Speaker 1: way too, But it's like, yeah, that's what ten and
Speaker 1: even seven seasons look like. You're not gonna win every game.
Speaker 1: This is the first year under this program. They have
Speaker 1: been streaky, a little up and down. But I don't
Speaker 1: think just because they looked awful last week against a
Speaker 1: team that is more talented than that, they're at least
Speaker 1: just better than them. I don't think that means they're
Speaker 1: done their defensive improvement up front. They got it settled
Speaker 1: down in the second half of that game. I think
Speaker 1: they can give Minnesota real problems because I think Minnesota's
Speaker 1: offensive line is a little overrated. O'Neill hasn't really been
Speaker 1: playing well. They're not great on the interior, and so
Speaker 1: I know Donold's been great under pressure all year. As
Speaker 1: you mentioned, he wasn't on Monday night, and you would
Speaker 1: love to just keep pressuring him.
Speaker 2: Stop the run.
Speaker 1: See if this is an ugly weather type of game,
Speaker 1: you get ken Walker back, you get Olawa Teamy back,
Speaker 1: who I wouldn't have thought was such an important player
Speaker 1: for the Seahawks, but he's their center and he got
Speaker 1: hurt right away in that that's destabilizing for that to happen,
Speaker 1: and he's supposed to return for this game, so I
Speaker 1: think they will respond. I like them as an underdog,
Speaker 1: at least to cover. I'm not sure if I'll pick
Speaker 1: them to win, but it wouldn't It wouldn't surprise me
Speaker 1: the won this game.
Speaker 3: No, not at all.
Speaker 5: And I think as the as as Mike mac being
Speaker 5: the tree Stopper and the Shanahan Tree, I feel like
Speaker 5: there's there's so many times where I've I don't know
Speaker 5: if I want to count Matt Lafleur as.
Speaker 2: Part of it.
Speaker 5: I know, I know he's in the tree, but it's
Speaker 5: just so different, right, it feels like a departure. Kevin
Speaker 5: O'Connell feels more in line with the with the original tree,
Speaker 5: and maybe maybe we I mean, what is it.
Speaker 1: That he really does that's like the magic sprinkling of
Speaker 1: this tree? I don't know, do you think there is
Speaker 1: something to it?
Speaker 3: Yeah. I mean, look, it does come to ex's and o's.
Speaker 2: I mean even though they were is there anything specific?
Speaker 3: There is a communication factor.
Speaker 4: You talk to people about sean Emvay and why he's
Speaker 4: so good, especially later of the seasons. One they developed
Speaker 4: guys and just think about all the coaches they've lost
Speaker 4: and they still develop young players.
Speaker 3: We talked about that, but its communication.
Speaker 4: They're like, Sewan doesn't just sit in the quarterbacks room
Speaker 4: or he goes in here and he makes every player
Speaker 4: at every position to understand why they're doing individually, what
Speaker 4: they're doing is okay, what they're doing on that side
Speaker 4: of the ball, what the team is trying to accomplish.
Speaker 4: So everybody is invested and you and Kevin O'Connell does
Speaker 4: that as well as anybody.
Speaker 3: Man.
Speaker 4: They they've got a great staff in Minnesota. Kevin O'Connell
Speaker 4: could do it. Matt Lafleur is the same.
Speaker 2: What does Mike McDonald do.
Speaker 4: Well, he's he's the stopper, He's he does the stuff
Speaker 4: kind of like what Fangio did, what Belichick did? You know,
Speaker 4: he kind of understands, let's five man and six man
Speaker 4: defense in front of them, and let's just beat the
Speaker 4: hell out of their offensive lineman. Let's let our linebackers
Speaker 4: run free and make plays.
Speaker 3: So they they got.
Speaker 5: Some, they got some small Okay, I've I've officially confirmed
Speaker 5: my priors on this correct. So the Rams line up
Speaker 5: under center of forty four percent of the time, Yeah,
Speaker 5: the Vikings of the time. The Green Bay Packers line
Speaker 5: up under center twenty three percent.
Speaker 2: They they have been, they have been different, and.
Speaker 3: It's not in the tree anymore.
Speaker 1: I love that the Vikings essentially start their playoffs now.
Speaker 1: They they do not play any bad teams the rest
Speaker 1: of the way like they have Seahawks, Packers, Lions and
Speaker 1: then playoffs and so it's on and we're gonna learn
Speaker 1: about them, and we're gonna learn about this Seattle team.
Speaker 1: Like there is a tendency I think after a game
Speaker 1: that poor on Sunday Night football, and it was poor,
Speaker 1: I mean they got it handed to them by the Packers,
Speaker 1: that just like, Okay, I guess they're a pretender. It's like, no,
Speaker 1: that's what I in six teams look like the Rams
Speaker 1: have had those games too, they just haven't had them
Speaker 1: in the last handful of weeks, and so they just
Speaker 1: they just need to respond let's go real quick.
Speaker 4: She lude to Patrick Clayo offer calling Mike MacDonald the
Speaker 4: mcface STOPPERA So he's the Ruben Patterson.
Speaker 3: Yeah, he's yeah, the Kobe, the Ruby.
Speaker 5: If you want to go, I guess to Michael Petrice, right,
Speaker 5: like any number of stoppers who Michael pet stopping, well,
Speaker 5: Michael Petrice was allegedly stopping Lebron. Okay at a certain
Speaker 5: point that that that never came to be. Much like
Speaker 5: Andrea Goodalla, who had Lebron have the one of the
Speaker 5: greatest seasons ever, series ever and somehow got an MVP.
Speaker 1: About how about Celtics. Tony Allen was kind of an
Speaker 1: early Lebron staff.
Speaker 4: Tony Allen Man, Yeah, Tonya Allen was a hell with
Speaker 4: defensive player.
Speaker 5: I could talk association with you guys all the time.
Speaker 5: But let's get to the one the only thing that matters.
Speaker 5: As Greg Rosenthal has called him several times. The season
Speaker 5: Drake May and the New England Patriots on the road
Speaker 5: where the Bills are fourteen point favorite vibes immaculate. Josh
Speaker 5: Allen got engaged to Hailey Steinfeld. It says that everything's
Speaker 5: been coming up Buffalo for forty six is the over
Speaker 5: under Iron Eagle Charles Davis and Evan Washburn on the call.
Speaker 5: But fourteen points in the division, I know you're skeptical, Greg,
Speaker 5: of your New England Patriots. That feels like a lot
Speaker 5: of points.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think they could. I think they could cover that.
Speaker 1: I think there could be a little bit of a
Speaker 1: letdown factor. It's a weird stretch. Now the Bills after
Speaker 1: getting through these big games, have the Patriots a couple
Speaker 1: of times, and the Jets teams that they're they're certainly
Speaker 1: better than and offensively they're going to put up thirty plus.
Speaker 2: Yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1: But the reason why fourteen is a lot is that
Speaker 1: you could see Drake May exposing some of the weaknesses
Speaker 1: that we've seen out of Buffalo if he can just
Speaker 1: get a little bit of time.
Speaker 2: And yes, he is the one thing that matters in
Speaker 2: New England.
Speaker 3: He is the one thing that matters.
Speaker 2: But actually there's two him and Christian Gonzales. Okay, yeah, it.
Speaker 1: Is kind of in you know, they do have maybe
Speaker 1: the best young cornerback and the best young quarterback in
Speaker 1: the league.
Speaker 3: There we go.
Speaker 4: That's something that build off, that's something and those are
Speaker 4: two key positions where at some point you're gonna have
Speaker 4: to pay him well, as Jered Mayo could come under
Speaker 4: some smoke this week.
Speaker 3: My god, he's getting cooked up in that market.
Speaker 4: By the way, fourteen not enough, I think even if
Speaker 4: Buffalo is just because on both sides of the ball, man,
Speaker 4: both sides of the ball, Buffalo is they're too talented,
Speaker 4: they're playing too well right now. You know, Sean mcdermot's
Speaker 4: you know, he's not mentioned enough in the Coach of
Speaker 4: the Year conversation.
Speaker 3: He needs to start, we know, you start dialing that
Speaker 3: temperature up a little bit.
Speaker 4: Josh Allen whatever, James Cook is the guy who's been
Speaker 4: impressing me in their offense. I mean, it seems like
Speaker 4: he's hitting two or three explosive plays off tackle like
Speaker 4: this every game.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and the Pagriots cannot defend the run, which is
Speaker 1: no one of the many ways that you can tell
Speaker 1: they're you know, not as well coached as they were
Speaker 1: a year ago when they were still a good defense.
Speaker 3: On defense.
Speaker 4: There's a chance though, for Drake to air it out here.
Speaker 4: Because of all the success the Bills have had, they
Speaker 4: still given up eighty four points in the last two weeks. Yeah,
Speaker 4: and you know Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff very very good.
Speaker 3: Quarterbacks that were traded for each other.
Speaker 5: It's still this is this is a chance for Newland
Speaker 5: to work on this passive games showcase how gifted their
Speaker 5: quarterback is. Who gets some comps to the guy on
Speaker 5: the other side, and I think that those those comps
Speaker 5: aren't silly or legit.
Speaker 3: I like those cops.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's not quite there physically. I mean, who is
Speaker 1: other than Cam Newton, maybe Richardson. I just mean he's
Speaker 1: just not as big as as as Josh Allen is,
Speaker 1: and I don't think he's as risk taking. That's been
Speaker 1: the thing that that has been surprised. I actually thought
Speaker 1: he was based on his tape at unc AND early
Speaker 1: this season.
Speaker 2: But go go.
Speaker 1: Back in the tape, find me the negative plays Drake
Speaker 1: May has made. The last couple of weeks. There have
Speaker 1: not been many bad decisions, bad plays, and I have
Speaker 1: some numbers.
Speaker 2: That it's going to back back.
Speaker 3: Okay.
Speaker 1: I did some next Greg stats research this morning, did
Speaker 1: my own little.
Speaker 2: Stuff since uh week ten.
Speaker 1: It's pretty long sample size five games, fourth in the
Speaker 1: NFL and completion percentage quarterbacks seventh in completion percentage over expected.
Speaker 1: And then here's the one that really gets me. Going
Speaker 1: fourth in success rate in the entire NFL despite what's
Speaker 1: around him, that's a minor miracle. The only guys in
Speaker 1: front of him are Goff, I would and Jared Allen
Speaker 1: and Josh Allen and Tua actually was in front of him.
Speaker 4: I would never have guessed that, even if a lot
Speaker 4: of those come in garbage time, he's still throwing the
Speaker 4: majority of the game.
Speaker 2: He's not taking negative plays.
Speaker 1: PFF has some fourteenth that feels more appropriate too. Overall,
Speaker 1: but that's ahead of guys like Baker and Purdy and
Speaker 1: Mahomes and just on their individual Gradinges says, he's just
Speaker 1: not making many mistakes, and he's making a lot of
Speaker 1: really heady plays.
Speaker 3: Under a lot of pressure. Too.
Speaker 4: Good for him. He's real, Patrick, He's real. It's fun.
Speaker 4: It's fun to see.
Speaker 5: Speaking of fun, the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road against
Speaker 5: the Las Vegas Raiders, who were favored by one over
Speaker 5: under his sixteen points just getting thirty nine and a
Speaker 5: half points. Andrew catial on, t Kee Barber, Jason mccordy,
Speaker 5: and aj Ross on the call. It is McCorkle, Jones
Speaker 5: going up against Desmond Ritter. We think, Steve, Yeah, your
Speaker 5: thoughts on this football game?
Speaker 4: Yeah, I don't know how the Raiders are favored, but.
Speaker 1: Gosh, man, big game for the picks. Here's a dirty secret.
Speaker 1: I actually wish there was a couple games like this
Speaker 1: every week. This is the only one because I want
Speaker 1: to save time on my tape watching and I do
Speaker 1: not want to watch this tape. No, I feel comfortable
Speaker 1: about it. Sorry, Brian Thomas Jr. I love you.
Speaker 3: I like the Jags on this.
Speaker 4: You know, everything with the Raiders is not great, even
Speaker 4: getting kicks, block punts, block things like that.
Speaker 1: I think the Jackson It's only it's actually the only
Speaker 1: game like this this week between two teams that are
Speaker 1: totally out of it, which you wouldn't expect because there's
Speaker 1: a lot of teams that are out of it, but
Speaker 1: each one is playing like this is the only dead game.
Speaker 4: Emphasize the totally out of it part. They've not just
Speaker 4: gone fishing and they are on the boat in their gear.
Speaker 1: It's and yet, if the Raiders win this game and
Speaker 1: their favorite swim, Yeah, if their favorites and they win
Speaker 1: this game, they could hurt their draft pick. Giants are
Speaker 1: watching this game and they're saying, let's go Jags, I mean,
Speaker 1: let's go Raiders.
Speaker 2: Jags lose it for us.
Speaker 5: Not all quit, not only quitting the Raiders team. We'll
Speaker 5: see how things go. Uh there, We'll move on in
Speaker 5: that game, which is a joy to the game that
Speaker 5: at the start of the season had so much promise,
Speaker 5: so much in fact, that it's jim Nance, Tony Romo,
Speaker 5: and Tracy Wolfson who on the call to see the
Speaker 5: San Francisco forty nine Ers go into Miami against the Dolphins,
Speaker 5: who are a one point home favorite greg the over
Speaker 5: under forty four.
Speaker 3: And a half.
Speaker 5: They got stung by Derek Stingley's interceptions last week.
Speaker 3: They remained in that game.
Speaker 5: They've had some heartbreakers, They've been trying to get back
Speaker 5: in the picture.
Speaker 1: How do you view we couldn't get a better game
Speaker 1: for CBS in the afternoon window.
Speaker 2: That's wild.
Speaker 1: I think people would rather see Josh Allen and Drake
Speaker 1: may just because Josh Allen is the story in the
Speaker 1: in the league right now. So I think they I
Speaker 1: think they made against Rogers that that's true. That's early though,
Speaker 1: like they would I would give Josh Allen that spot
Speaker 1: but you know when they make these decisions a couple
Speaker 1: of weeks ago, I guess they were hoping for some
Speaker 1: more wins out of these two teams, the forty nine
Speaker 1: ers actually, of all the teams that are left them,
Speaker 1: and the Saints have the lowest chance to make the playoffs,
Speaker 1: they're they're right there at one percent, so they they
Speaker 1: have a very good chance to get eliminated this week.
Speaker 1: I am curious to see how Tua in this offense
Speaker 1: bounces back because last week's performance was so bad and
Speaker 1: so out of nowhere. After they were what I called
Speaker 1: on this offense the most I mean on this show,
Speaker 1: the most consistent unit in the league.
Speaker 2: They were.
Speaker 1: They were the exact same every week you watch the Dolphins,
Speaker 1: you knew what you were going to get, and it
Speaker 1: was extremely efficient. That's why Tua was up there ahead
Speaker 1: Drake Man's success, right, and yet last week they got
Speaker 1: it put to them. That was a defensive master class
Speaker 1: there by Damico Ryans and kind of humbled this Dolphins team.
Speaker 4: Well, and he humbled the coach who used to coach
Speaker 4: with up in San Francisco. So maybe there were some
Speaker 4: things going on right there. Miami's booncing back this week.
Speaker 4: I think, I mean, look, San Francisco's proud, They're gonna
Speaker 4: go out there. It's gonna be a good game, but
Speaker 4: just too many injuries in the run game. Talking about
Speaker 4: Trent Williams is probably done for the season at left
Speaker 4: tackle for the forty nine ers. I think Miami's offense
Speaker 4: gets going, its defense, we'll do some things against the
Speaker 4: forty nine ers. I like Miami plus the one point
Speaker 4: that they're getting, it's gonna be tough. The passing game
Speaker 4: has to be short.
Speaker 5: They they don't seem to be able to protect Tua
Speaker 5: long enough to have the deep passing game. And if
Speaker 5: you want to rush yards over expected step, the Dolphins
Speaker 5: have negative two hundred and fifty seven rush yards over
Speaker 5: expected on designed run this season.
Speaker 3: No explosives.
Speaker 5: It's they cannot run the ball, even though Raheem Moster
Speaker 5: back in these past couple of weeks, and they haven't
Speaker 5: been able to do anything on the ground. And it's
Speaker 5: just all has to be to operating quick passes right
Speaker 5: around the line of scrimmage.
Speaker 3: It's just tough.
Speaker 1: These teams are kind of mirror images of each other.
Speaker 1: When you think about the high expectations on offense, the
Speaker 1: offensive coaches and Kyle Shanahan at least still has that
Speaker 1: running game. The Dolphins not having a running game is
Speaker 1: one of the more surprising elements of the year. And
Speaker 1: I think Tua deserves some blame for last week too.
Speaker 1: I think people want to put it on just the
Speaker 1: offensive line and everything, but Trent Green in that game,
Speaker 1: he never criticizes anything, and he was pointing out some
Speaker 1: passes that he thought Tua was passing up not going
Speaker 1: down the field. And I've seen some other analysts kind
Speaker 1: of look at the tape a little bit, and even
Speaker 1: on some plays that he was protected, he wasn't pulling
Speaker 1: the trigger. And whether it's a coaching point or who
Speaker 1: knows why, but that is just totally gone from their offense,
Speaker 1: and so that gives them a small margin for error.
Speaker 4: Two my early season MVP can I'm just joking. I'm
Speaker 4: not going to talk with Baker in Baker anymore.
Speaker 3: Greg. It's Sunday Night football.
Speaker 5: It's Tampa Bay Buccaneers four point favorites against the scrappy
Speaker 5: late season push by the Dallas Cowboys. Forty eight and
Speaker 5: a half is the over under. It's Sunday Night. So
Speaker 5: Mike to Rico, Chris Collinsworth, Melissa Stark on the call.
Speaker 5: The Cowboys broke our survivor hearts last week. Could they
Speaker 5: break the hearts of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are
Speaker 5: playing really good football right now, especially across the street
Speaker 5: last week at so Far Stadium.
Speaker 4: Tampa's playing well. I like him in this game, Dallas.
Speaker 4: I mean, they compete. I mean, ever since Michael Parsons
Speaker 4: come back, their defenses has been good. It sucks about
Speaker 4: overshowing getting that injury, and I think you know, Trey
Speaker 4: Diggs is out, so I think Baker could have another game.
Speaker 4: Mike Evans is doing it the run game, getting both
Speaker 4: those guys going.
Speaker 3: I like Tampa Bay. I like the points.
Speaker 4: I don't know if Dallas is going to put up
Speaker 4: a ton of points given to Cooper Rush has showing
Speaker 4: why they're playing him over three Lance. I like the
Speaker 4: Buccaneers in this game. Go ahead and take another step
Speaker 4: to win that NFC Shu.
Speaker 1: It's funny watching that Cowboys game last week. I started thinking, like,
Speaker 1: man if Dak was on this team. Yeah, it's funny
Speaker 1: how that works. You lose a franchise quarterback and you
Speaker 1: don't have as much hope, but they've actually won a
Speaker 1: bunch of games now since he's got hurt. Because I
Speaker 1: went back and I looked, I was like, what games
Speaker 1: would they have won with him?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 1: They lost, They got waxed by the Eagles, they got
Speaker 1: waxed by the Texans. Maybe they would have been more
Speaker 1: competitive there, Maybe they would have beat the Bengals. That
Speaker 1: would have been the difference, because yeah, Micah Parsons makes
Speaker 1: this pass rush alone, one of the best pass russes.
Speaker 2: In the league. That is how amazing a player he is.
Speaker 3: He was.
Speaker 1: He has been my pick in back to back seasons
Speaker 1: before the seasons to be Defensive Player of the Year.
Speaker 1: It hasn't happened yet, and yet I feel like he
Speaker 1: is the best defensive player in the league. Like he's
Speaker 1: my if I could pick one, I still think he
Speaker 1: Like he's playing better right now. If I could take
Speaker 1: someone for this week and for the last month than
Speaker 1: anyone in the league, it is Micah Parsons. Now, he
Speaker 1: wasn't healthy enough that he's going to get considered for
Speaker 1: that award, but that's how good he is, So who knows,
Speaker 1: Maybe he could scare up the Bucks.
Speaker 2: I kind of doubt it.
Speaker 4: Well, the issue for Dallas, and I think the one
Speaker 4: big Dack on and off thing. I don't think the
Speaker 4: run game ever gets to where it is right now
Speaker 4: with Rico Dawdell. If Dak's playing, because they wouldn't rely
Speaker 4: on it. That's a great point.
Speaker 5: Week thirteen, one hundred and twenty two yards, a week fourteen,
Speaker 5: one hundred and thirty one yards.
Speaker 3: And then against Carolina.
Speaker 5: Again it's Carolina, it's a historically bad run defense, but
Speaker 5: one hundred and forty nine yards from a Cowboys offense
Speaker 5: that didn't seem to be remotely interested in being able
Speaker 5: to run the ball at the start of the year.
Speaker 5: Right now that it's something that they can do, and
Speaker 5: what a time for it against the Bucks team where
Speaker 5: it's not a give up play anymore, like they're actually
Speaker 5: having success running the football.
Speaker 1: Yeah, they've been impressive, really, how that line has come
Speaker 1: together running the ball now, Zach Martin now too, that'll
Speaker 1: be hard this week because the Bucks have played better
Speaker 1: run defense over the last five or six weeks, and
Speaker 1: then their blitz rate has gone from like normal Bulls level,
Speaker 1: which is right at the top league, to just insane.
Speaker 1: They blitzed Justin Herbert sixty two percent of the time
Speaker 1: last week.
Speaker 2: That's just crazy, man, and it's it's working.
Speaker 1: I don't know, like they they've gotten it going a
Speaker 1: little bit defensively where they were a below average defense
Speaker 1: and now they've gotten to average or better. And it's
Speaker 1: a lot of it. As Levante David actually that they
Speaker 1: just blitz him like crazy, and then they are the
Speaker 1: explosive play Maschin on offense. They are the NFC's Ravens,
Speaker 1: which is crazy because Baker's their quarterback. But in terms
Speaker 1: of just like hitting forty to fifty thirty yard plays.
Speaker 5: Sorry, no, they gave They gave Todd Bowles a giggle
Speaker 5: fit this week because they they asked about Baker and
Speaker 5: his rushing and compared him to Josh Allen and Lamar
Speaker 5: and Jay Daniels and coach Bowls.
Speaker 3: Is like, well maybe not maybe not those three. And
Speaker 3: then he went into a chuckle fit.
Speaker 5: He had a good time with that, and then they
Speaker 5: asked Baker about it, and you know, he just grab
Speaker 5: himself with a scrappy runner.
Speaker 1: You know what, though he's he's hit enough big running
Speaker 1: plays at really important moments last week that that big
Speaker 1: run that he had against the Chargers was an important
Speaker 1: run in that game. And he's making full field reads.
Speaker 1: I give him a lot of credit where he'll start
Speaker 1: in the left. So that's coaching and that's maturation from
Speaker 1: from Baker. He really is a great quarterback, except like
Speaker 1: he'll make a handful of decision that you're like, why
Speaker 1: did he do that?
Speaker 2: But other than that, like he's been awesome.
Speaker 4: And here's how great he's really going to show himself
Speaker 4: because he's gonna have another offensive coordinator next year to
Speaker 4: because Liam Cohen's probably gonna be on the short list
Speaker 4: of a lot of teams to get hired as a
Speaker 4: head coach next year as well.
Speaker 5: I really just want that quote graphic made. He really
Speaker 5: is a great quarterback.
Speaker 3: He really is.
Speaker 4: Greg Wilsenthal on Baker Mayfield. We've got there, We got there,
Speaker 4: and we've got to our final game of the season.
Speaker 5: It is Spencer Rattler and the New Orleans Saints on
Speaker 5: the road against the Buzzsaw that is these late season
Speaker 5: Toyota than edition Green Bay Packers, who are favored by
Speaker 5: fourteen and a half points forty two is over under
Speaker 5: Joe Troy and Lisa on the call. As it is
Speaker 5: Monday Night Football, No. Doubleheader and probably Steve no shot
Speaker 5: for the Saints.
Speaker 3: They're right now.
Speaker 4: They are filming so many Christmas packages to run by
Speaker 4: the time they get to the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3: Monday Night football.
Speaker 4: Look the Packers you mentioned earlier, Greg, They're a team
Speaker 4: you don't want to mess with. Defensively, they look, I
Speaker 4: mean they are so physical upfront the team, what Rashaan
Speaker 4: Gary linebackers are doing. And then offensively, Jordan Love, I mean,
Speaker 4: just everything to go.
Speaker 3: I mean the run game.
Speaker 4: This is going to be so tough for New Orleans.
Speaker 4: A Dome team going up here. Spencer Rattler faced some
Speaker 4: of the looks. But you know, let's talk a little
Speaker 4: bit about Josh Jacobs, I mean, in what he's been
Speaker 4: able to do leading all of these veteran running backs
Speaker 4: who change teams, who are eating I'm happy for a
Speaker 4: guy like lot like Josh Jacobs because he's finally getting
Speaker 4: to taste some type of success. I mean, he was
Speaker 4: like non diasin wah with the Raiders, like never playing
Speaker 4: on a team with a winning record.
Speaker 3: And now he's like, oh, this is what this feels like.
Speaker 1: And they and they, I think have recognized that he
Speaker 1: needs to be the foundation of their offense, Like they
Speaker 1: came into that game last week and they realized the
Speaker 1: week before that he wasn't central enough to their opening script,
Speaker 1: and they.
Speaker 2: Made sure it's all about Jacobs.
Speaker 1: And it's really interesting to see Lafleur and Jordan Love
Speaker 1: become what I would call a run first offense that
Speaker 1: Malik Willis stretch. I don't know if they would have
Speaker 1: really good point been't like that otherwise, but I think
Speaker 1: they are a run based offense in part because of
Speaker 1: that Malik Willis stretch.
Speaker 5: It kind of allowed him to get into groove as
Speaker 5: a play caller with this line, which has been together
Speaker 5: all season.
Speaker 3: They haven't had a lot of pieces to.
Speaker 5: Move around, and Josh Jacobs being a part of that
Speaker 5: as well central to the game during that stretch. And
Speaker 5: then Love comes back and I don't think he was
Speaker 5: one hundred percent as he slowly got worked in and
Speaker 5: so they had to lean on it a little bit more.
Speaker 5: And it's gotten to the point where, not in the
Speaker 5: same way as the Dallas Cowboys, but they realize that
Speaker 5: this is this is where they can be successful and
Speaker 5: running the ball, and they don't they do it in
Speaker 5: the shotgun. They'll bring Jacob's in a round in motion
Speaker 5: and have him stop. They do the same thing with
Speaker 5: love and pistol in so many different ways, which is
Speaker 5: why he's not in the Shanahan Tree.
Speaker 3: Matt Lafleur is his own.
Speaker 4: So Glad Patrick is talking about this, but two percent
Speaker 4: is all they get to understand.
Speaker 3: So you're doing pistol, you're doing shotgun.
Speaker 4: You do some offset stuff that is not easy to
Speaker 4: do to coordinate that, but to an offensive line, quarterback
Speaker 4: and run back because you tip a lot more of
Speaker 4: your plays when you're in shotgun.
Speaker 3: Right, That's what teams will tell you. Okay, we know
Speaker 3: in this situation is they like to do.
Speaker 4: To be able to run out of shotgun is really
Speaker 4: going to open some things up for what Laflora can
Speaker 4: do when this offense can do. So, I mean, that's
Speaker 4: such a great point when you said that twenty two percent,
Speaker 4: I thought they were under center a lot more.
Speaker 3: Having that watch every moment of every game.
Speaker 2: And love his numbers.
Speaker 1: He's only throwing the ball twenty five times a week,
Speaker 1: but he's over nine adjusted yards per attempt over the
Speaker 1: last month, which is sky high, which is higher than
Speaker 1: lamar Is, who's leading the league in it for the season,
Speaker 1: so when he throws it, it's become efficient. And one
Speaker 1: thing I thought watching that last game is it took
Speaker 1: a minute, but I think they've sort of figured out
Speaker 1: everyone's roles at receiver, Like Dobbs does what Dobbs does,
Speaker 1: and he's really good at it. And Christian Watson is
Speaker 1: adding a lot of value and making big plays, and
Speaker 1: he'll have one head scratching play a week for you,
Speaker 1: but otherwise he's really playing well. And then Jaden Reid
Speaker 1: is in the backfield with Jacobs. At least lately, they're
Speaker 1: playing two backs back there and it's Emmanuel Wilson and
Speaker 1: Jacob's or it's reading Jacobs and Reid is is doing
Speaker 1: all sorts of crazy stuff. He's not usually carrying the ball,
Speaker 1: but they'll let him carry the ball a handful of
Speaker 1: times too. And so you're right, they just they throw
Speaker 1: so many things at you, and it's kind of like
Speaker 1: these young players they are growing up. They just happen
Speaker 1: to be in the best division I've ever seen, or
Speaker 1: else we talk about them even more.
Speaker 4: Right, Well, two two backs now he's back in the
Speaker 4: Shanahan Tree Patrick.
Speaker 2: Yeah, right, but.
Speaker 1: It's two backs out a shotgun and one of them
Speaker 1: is a like a one hundred and seventy pound wide receiver.
Speaker 1: It's crazy on the Saints just for a second. Rattler
Speaker 1: And this is only like a local controversy, but there's
Speaker 1: like been conflicting reports. Arian Rapaport says Derek Carr is
Speaker 1: very unlikely to return this season. Right There were like
Speaker 1: a local report from Nick Underhill that said Carr was
Speaker 1: kind of pushing and checking with all these different specialists
Speaker 1: and thinks maybe he could return, And even the coaching
Speaker 1: staff said he could play this week. And I think
Speaker 1: it's unlikely, and maybe the coaching staff is just throwing
Speaker 1: that out there was like why would you go back
Speaker 1: to Derek Carr right now?
Speaker 2: Anyways?
Speaker 1: Like can't don't We want to take a look at
Speaker 1: this kid, Rattler. He did some fun things last week.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean I was talking to some folks past
Speaker 4: week and they're like, Spencer Ratler so talented. He just
Speaker 4: he's got to get his head wrapped around a lot
Speaker 4: of things with talent wise, that's somebody want to get
Speaker 4: reps and see if they can handle it.
Speaker 1: And Rizzi ball Man fun, We've got a five game sample,
Speaker 1: so if you're thinking about that fourteen point line there.
Speaker 1: We got a five point five game sample, and we
Speaker 1: have three wins out of Rizzie Ball, and we have
Speaker 1: two other very competitive games against teams in the NFC
Speaker 1: that are right now in the playoffs, the Rams and
Speaker 1: the Commanders.
Speaker 2: So maybe that's a little high. Maybe Rizzie Ball keeps
Speaker 2: him close.
Speaker 1: We got Cam Jordan out there making a lot of
Speaker 1: plays our our podcast.
Speaker 3: NFL uh Davis looking great.
Speaker 4: Then yeah, let's go with significant injuries right on both sides.
Speaker 2: Right, so they're finding a way. I would stay away
Speaker 2: from that. I wouldn't.
Speaker 1: I wouldn't want to deal with the fortunate stress of
Speaker 1: a December twenty third Spencer Rattler situation. But I just
Speaker 1: stay away, stay away, Just chill with your family alone,
Speaker 1: enjoy it. That's it. That's it for our show today.
Speaker 1: Wish Patrick you've done it again. Steve, no survivor picked though,
Speaker 1: no survivor pick.
Speaker 3: We didn't survive. That's why.
Speaker 1: Look, I don't think. I don't think Steve's with us
Speaker 1: next week. So when no, I'll but watch me on
Speaker 1: Netflix right when it's when it's the last Steve Weisch
Speaker 1: game before Christmas or podcast.
Speaker 2: You know football is back. Yeah, we'll see you next time.
Speaker 2: Enjoy Christmas, Steve,