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Speaker 1: Your tunes about Drive on your twenty four to seven

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Speaker 1: home of the Black and Goal Steelers Nation Radio.

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Speaker 2: Good afternoon, Steelers Nation. It's the Drive on the Steelers

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Speaker 2: Audio Network. Rush Ruler and Matt Williamson with you here

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Speaker 2: for the next two hours on this Tuesday. Matthew nasty

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Speaker 2: out there today, man, what's going on? Just like wet

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Speaker 2: It's like spitting cold rain. That's the worst weather. Wind

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Speaker 2: and cold rain is my least.

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Speaker 3: Little above freezing and just gross all.

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Speaker 2: The way down on the list. But we are inside indoors,

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Speaker 2: We've got Nathan and TV with us, and we're ready

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Speaker 2: to to chop it up here for a few hours.

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Speaker 2: And Matt as will continue to do every Tuesday to

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Speaker 2: start the show as long as the Steelers are still

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Speaker 2: in season, which they are obviously with a playoff game

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Speaker 2: on the horizon. Recap Mike Tomlin's weekly Tuesday press conference,

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Speaker 2: and as we always do, I like to start with

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Speaker 2: the injury news because again, I just think that's the

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Speaker 2: most pertinent from these press conferences, and I come with

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Speaker 2: tidings of good news and great joy. All right, According

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Speaker 2: to Mike Tomlins, some bumps and bruises from the game

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Speaker 2: could have some associated with play, could cause some guys

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Speaker 2: to be limited early in the week, but no one

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Speaker 2: is expected to miss the wild card game.

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Speaker 4: Now, Darnel Washington, we know.

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Speaker 2: Darnell Washington, Broderick Jones, Miles kill a Brew, these guys

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Speaker 2: the things that have been ruled out. But of the

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Speaker 2: fifty three on the roster right now, uh, some bumps

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Speaker 2: and bruises, but no one is expected to miss the

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Speaker 2: wild Card game. All players that return to action last

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Speaker 2: week did so without additional or reaggravation of their injuries.

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Speaker 2: So the Pierres and the Echos and the Saamalus wit what. Yeah,

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Speaker 2: absolutely a healthy fifty three entering the postseason. It doesn't

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Speaker 2: get much better than that.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 3: And so remember, folks, I mean, for the focus of

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Speaker 3: our show, we're gonna give be here five days a week.

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Speaker 3: But the Steelers start a day later than everything. Yeah,

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Speaker 3: So Thursday's Friday for Wednesdays Thursday, et cetera, et cetera.

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Speaker 3: They will there won't be a practice report Wednesday like usual,

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Speaker 3: you know, so day behind. Yes, all the bumps and

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Speaker 3: bruises associated with play and Watts lung and all those

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Speaker 3: things get an extra day anyway, Yes, Yeah, before they

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Speaker 3: start to even have to list them.

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Speaker 2: Yes, push everything back a day with the Steelers being

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Speaker 2: on Monday Night football, I'm glad you you mentioned that, YoY. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: Which so by the time, you know, we get to Friday,

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Speaker 2: we won't have as much injury clarity as we typically do.

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Speaker 2: But at the same time, it seems.

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Speaker 4: Like there's much to worry about either.

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Speaker 2: Hopefully not much to worry about in that regard, right,

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Speaker 2: Mike tom pointed.

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Speaker 4: Out, that's all you can ask for. That's going into

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Speaker 4: the playoffs.

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Speaker 2: That's it, you know again, other than the guys that

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Speaker 2: have have you know, been been put on injured reserve,

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Speaker 2: I think you are in as baut of a good

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Speaker 2: of a place as you could hope to be. Mike

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Speaker 2: Tomman was also pretty quick to point out that he

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Speaker 2: thought the Steelers wore Baltimore down in all three phases

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Speaker 2: of the game, that he liked their physicality on offense, defense,

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Speaker 2: and special teams, and thought that other than some big

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Speaker 2: runs early, that really helped them minimize the impact of

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Speaker 2: Derrick Henry.

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Speaker 3: I had a thousand percent agree on offense and defense,

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Speaker 3: and I really thought and we kind of nailed it.

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Speaker 3: You know, the Steelers had a advantage on both lines,

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Speaker 3: you know, offense and defensive line.

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Speaker 4: And I think that.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely bore out. I don't know, special team is a

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Speaker 3: hard thing to say you won the physicality battle or

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Speaker 3: wore them down.

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Speaker 4: Or in the kicking game.

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Speaker 3: And it's not like you go play after playoff for play.

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Speaker 3: But I thought, you know, both teams missed a big kick.

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Speaker 3: I thought Baltimore was the better special teams team.

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Speaker 2: They had better returns and field position out of special

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Speaker 2: their punters a killer, their punters maybe they in the league.

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Speaker 2: And their kick I mean, they had a massive kick

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Speaker 2: return at the end. They put them in position to

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Speaker 2: have a chance to kick that field goal to win it.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 3: Side note, and I will talk about this so much

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Speaker 3: in the offseason, but it's a small thing that just

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Speaker 3: don't want to be to overlap it or you forget

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Speaker 3: about it. I'm fine with Gamewell and Warner or and

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Speaker 3: Warren as your kickoff returners. But the Steelers were like

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Speaker 3: in Dvoa, they were seventeenth this year in special teams.

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Speaker 3: Lately they've been really high.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, in the past, they've probably you mean lately in

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Speaker 2: terms of this season the last couple of years.

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Speaker 3: Yes, I mean they're always near the top. It's the

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Speaker 3: most unpredictable of the three phases, of course, and Boz

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Speaker 3: didn't have this ridiculous season like he has in.

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Speaker 4: A couple of years.

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Speaker 3: But one thing that they've been at the bottom of

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Speaker 3: the league in is kickoff returns, And in today's NFL,

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Speaker 3: I think that's unacceptable, you know, Like, I think Danny's

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Speaker 3: an awesome coordinator and they'll be fine, don't get me wrong,

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Speaker 3: but they might need to add a returner or something

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Speaker 3: because with the new kick pickoff rule, it matters now, yeah,

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Speaker 3: I mean way more than it did yeah before. I mean,

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Speaker 3: with the the new new kickoff rule, it really matters

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Speaker 3: with the When they signed Quarteral Patterson for the old

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Speaker 3: kickoff rule change, didn't make his big impact as people think.

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Speaker 3: But now starting field position is way better than anybody

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Speaker 3: that it used to be. Absolutely, you gotta be good there, yeah,

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Speaker 3: you there's some phases you can ignore, but not kickoff

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Speaker 3: return anymore.

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Speaker 2: You should be starting almost every drive at at least

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Speaker 2: your own thirty thirty five yard line. Yeah, And and

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Speaker 2: it's huge.

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Speaker 3: I mean, it's one less first down you have to

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Speaker 3: get r and as great as kickers are. Now you're

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Speaker 3: so close to the field goal range, you start to

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Speaker 3: drive at the thirty five and two first downs, you're

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Speaker 3: getting three points.

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Speaker 2: That's Jacksonville just did that the other uh the other

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Speaker 2: game I was watching. They got the ball, I think

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Speaker 2: it ball was kicked out of bounds. They either got

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Speaker 2: it the thirty five or the forty, and they pick

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Speaker 2: up one first down and kick.

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Speaker 3: A field goal because there are guys a killer knocked.

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Speaker 2: Down from sixty five, you know, no, no problem. We

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Speaker 2: saw that in the preseason game actually against Jacksonville. So yeah,

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Speaker 2: you're you're, you're right, special team changes, you know, right, totally.

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Speaker 3: Uh.

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Speaker 2: He also Mike Toman highlighted some big plays against the secondary,

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Speaker 2: you know, those Tuesday Flowers ones in particular, and said

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Speaker 2: he thought part of that, a large part of that

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Speaker 2: was because the Steelers were taking their schematic risks to

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Speaker 2: try and minimize the run game of Baltimore and that

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Speaker 2: that was kind of the hill they chose to die on.

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Speaker 3: True, I was gonna kind of save those two plays for.

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Speaker 2: We can do that for Tuesday Rewine.

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Speaker 4: Yeh, let's talk about I'll talk about now, who cares

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Speaker 4: one of them?

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Speaker 3: I give the Ravens a ton of credit for for

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Speaker 3: scheming it up really really well in that That was

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Speaker 3: the first one I think where they they even took

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Speaker 3: Stanley the left tackle and unbalanced the line, put him

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Speaker 3: on the right side.

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Speaker 4: They put like as many big.

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Speaker 3: Bodies on the right side of their line as you're

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Speaker 3: legally allowed. Yeah, I mean it was just like load them,

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Speaker 3: upload them, upload them, upload them up. Fake the Henry.

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Speaker 3: I mean, there's no excuses for blowing coverages or letting

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Speaker 3: guys behind you. But you can understand, especially when you

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Speaker 3: watch the end zone view Henry behind this the biggest

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Speaker 3: wall of humanity to the right you possibly can. The

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Speaker 3: whole defense was like, and they were keying on Henry.

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Speaker 3: To Tomlin's point, absolutely that and he's one hundred percent

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Speaker 3: right on that particular play. Call was, man, we are

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Speaker 3: coming downhill at that right side offensive right side action

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Speaker 3: that we got and they bit too much, don't get

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Speaker 3: me wrong. And Flowers sneaks behind him and he's a

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Speaker 3: handful to begin with. But I kind of chalk that

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Speaker 3: one up to really good scheme. The second one is

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Speaker 3: Lamar being ridiculous to some degree too, But a lot

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Speaker 3: of people, I'm sure you've got this on Twitter or

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Speaker 3: you know, fans are so outraged. How's Queen on Flowers?

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Speaker 3: That can ever happen? And I originally thought it was

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Speaker 3: I'm still not one hundred percent sure, but it got

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Speaker 3: to the point late in the down where I'm just

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Speaker 3: the closest guy to Flowers.

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Speaker 4: I'm gonna follow him.

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Speaker 3: You know, you know what I mean, Like he got

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Speaker 3: passed off in zone from this guy to this guy

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Speaker 3: and I'm the one closest. I'm not just gonna let

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Speaker 3: him run three. Sure, I'm gonna do my best, but

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Speaker 3: I'm overmatched. I mean, Queen's not gonna run with Flowers.

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Speaker 3: And he frankly didn't get burned that bad. No, I

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Speaker 3: mean that was a ridiculous throw, yes, And I mean

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Speaker 3: so I'm not excusing them, but they weren't flat out

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Speaker 3: just like coverage bus or you know of court fire.

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Speaker 3: Everybody to used to fence. Some staff doesn't know anything.

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Speaker 3: How can they let that happen? The offense gets paid too,

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Speaker 3: you know, And Lamar was ridiculous and the scheme is

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Speaker 3: really good on one of them.

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Speaker 2: And then finally Mike Tomlin credited the trio of Aaron

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Speaker 2: Rodgers Jalen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell for what they were

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Speaker 2: able to do for the Steelers offense, planned out that

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Speaker 2: he thought a big part of being able to engineer

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Speaker 2: victory was the Steelers converting third downs at a fifty

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Speaker 2: six percent rate.

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Speaker 3: The great I mean, and they were dated a lot

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Speaker 3: of their downs because they ran a lot of plays.

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Speaker 3: Sometimes it's like, man, they're a third down too much.

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Speaker 3: And one thing I took note of too, is I

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Speaker 3: go back and look at success rates and epas and

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Speaker 3: all those things too. Steelers early down success rate and

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Speaker 3: EPA were okay, not great, but their late down stuff

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Speaker 3: was really good, even though they didn't convert the one fourth,

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Speaker 3: you know, so they they did their job, you know

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Speaker 3: as the later in the series, later in.

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Speaker 2: The downs, you know, yes, yes, I think that's important,

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Speaker 2: very important. And I think a lot of those third downs,

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Speaker 2: and there were, hey, there were some that were longer conversions,

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Speaker 2: but I think a lot of them they did a

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Speaker 2: good job making them manageable. It wasn't you know, it

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Speaker 2: wasn't third and nine as much as it was starting three.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, and it was holding penalty on second down all

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Speaker 3: exactly kind of change or you know, a lot of

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Speaker 3: negative runs or anything like that, let alone sacks or

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Speaker 3: you know, negative plays. So they did do a good,

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Speaker 3: really good job of that. I'm not sure we give

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Speaker 3: Rogers enough credit for that too. I mean, he's one

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Speaker 3: of the best all time and still is in avoiding

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Speaker 3: negative for an offense, whether it's checking to a run

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Speaker 3: or getting in the right play and.

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Speaker 2: Making sure you're lined up right. Yeah, get a formation penalty, that.

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Speaker 3: Kind of stuff. That's a great call. And I know

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Speaker 3: it gets annoying sometimes some of the vertical and behind

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Speaker 3: the line of scrimmage passing, but that keeps you ahead

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Speaker 3: of the chain. I mean, rarely are those negative plays.

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Speaker 3: Dump one out the metcalf and or you dump one

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Speaker 3: out the game well and make a corner, tackle those

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Speaker 3: guys or whatever. You're usually gonna get three or four

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Speaker 3: and stay ahead of the chains. Like you can tell,

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Speaker 3: that's a priority of the offense.

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Speaker 2: Yes, absolutely, and it paid off.

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Speaker 5: Yeah.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 2: Sunday night against Baltimore. Let's take a break here. We're

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Speaker 2: gonna jump into the Tuesday rewind and talk some more

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Speaker 2: about some of this stuff when we returned on the

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Speaker 2: other side, and we will catch up with Chris Adamski

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Speaker 2: here in the first hour too, So plenty to get

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Speaker 2: too as we roll along, just getting started. Wash you alert,

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Speaker 2: Matt Williamson. It is the Drive on Steelers Nation Radio

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Speaker 2: on the Steelers Audio.

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Speaker 1: Network, your tums about Drive on your twenty four to

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Speaker 1: seven home of the Black and Goal, Steelers Nation.

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Speaker 2: Radio, rolling along here on this Tuesday as we continue

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Speaker 2: to parse through, dissect, react, download everything that happened and

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Speaker 2: the Steelers crazy twenty six to twenty four win on

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Speaker 2: Sunday night against the Baltimore Ravens that made them champions

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Speaker 2: of the AFC North and the four seed in the

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Speaker 2: playoffs and in line to host the Houston Texans of

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Speaker 2: course eight o'clock on Monday night. Matt, I'm excited for

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Speaker 2: this Tuesday, Rewind. I think I think I've got more

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Speaker 2: on this. Bring plenty of good some concerning here too.

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Speaker 4: Oh yeah. As it was not a perfect game, you

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Speaker 4: know what never is.

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Speaker 2: Mike Tomlin actually said that today. He said that he

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Speaker 2: still felt, despite the win and a lot of things

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Speaker 2: going right, that they were jv in certain aspects of

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Speaker 2: that game. So let's get into the good. Let's get

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Speaker 2: into the bad. I want to start with something that's

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Speaker 2: very specific. One single play, okay, and that was the TJ.

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Speaker 2: Watt interception. Yeah, and just how wild that was, so

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Speaker 2: like like you can watch that play twenty times and

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Speaker 2: check air pick up something new every time. So Lamar

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Speaker 2: Lamar kind of moves in the pocket to the left,

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Speaker 2: tries to throw that pass and it gets deflected by

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Speaker 2: Alex high Smith.

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Speaker 4: Yea, it was not Cam.

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Speaker 2: But what's crazy is high Smith is behind Cam. Cam

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Speaker 2: has the two paws up and the ball goes between

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Speaker 2: his arms and high Smith is like in the Queen

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Speaker 2: to bat it down.

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Speaker 4: So it's it's like all.

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Speaker 2: Almost like in volleyball where they feige that like this

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Speaker 2: guy's coming up and the other person comes in and

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Speaker 2: hits it.

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Speaker 4: At Difought was originally.

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Speaker 2: Assume it's him, So at the game I wrote in

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Speaker 2: my notes like another Cam Heyward deflection, and then our

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Speaker 2: statistic statistician for the game, Mark Auxen writer yea, was

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Speaker 2: actually like, hey guys, they're crediting that to Cam, like

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Speaker 2: the official scorers crediting that to or to high Smith.

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Speaker 2: Party Yeah, and then we all went back and looked

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Speaker 2: and you were like, oh yeah, like it actually goes

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Speaker 2: through hands and high Smith is like the volleyball player

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Speaker 2: or maybe like the power forward who comes out of

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Speaker 2: nowhere to block a shot that you don't see coming

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Speaker 2: from the side type thing, and then Ronnie Stanley has

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Speaker 2: to deflect it once again for it to get to

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Speaker 2: a yeah, that's the best and the whole kind of

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Speaker 2: crazy commotion of it. If Ronnie Stanley just lets that

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Speaker 2: thing fall, doesn't try and catch it, it falls to

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Speaker 2: the ground.

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Speaker 3: Incomplete, which probably should have done which he.

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Speaker 2: I mean hindsight's twenty twenty easily. But if he just

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Speaker 2: smacks that thing down or just doesn't try and catch it,

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Speaker 2: it falls incomplete and coquences and we don't have those consequences.

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Speaker 2: And then finally, I mean, TJ bobbled that thing two

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Speaker 2: or three times before he brought it in because it

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Speaker 2: was like, well, it was the proverbial hot potato. And

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Speaker 2: what's funny is the Steelers, actually, I might we might

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Speaker 2: have to ask TV who was who was the one

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Speaker 2: who put it together? He might know, But the Steelers

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Speaker 2: put together a little clip on their social media of

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Speaker 2: that today with like a really up close kind of

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Speaker 2: sideline angle and just the expression on TJ's face as

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Speaker 2: he's like Okay, it was just that was one of

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Speaker 2: those plays where you needed about five or six things

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Speaker 2: to happen exactly perfectly to come up with that interception,

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Speaker 2: and they all fell into play.

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Speaker 4: That's hilarious.

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Speaker 3: I like the way he laid it out, because you

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Speaker 3: could really picture it's better that way, Like you forget

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Speaker 3: Stanley touched it, or it went through Cam's hands, or.

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Speaker 4: How hard to play it is.

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Speaker 3: For what and you know what I thought of originally

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Speaker 3: and it still holds true, is Wat's short area ball skills,

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Speaker 3: you know, like me throwing the ball to you at

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Speaker 3: a million miles an hour. Like he's made a lot

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Speaker 3: of those picks in his career. I mean, it's pretty crazy,

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Speaker 3: Like I forget what the number is, but him and

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Speaker 3: Julius Peppers are the only two that have one hundred

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Speaker 3: sacks and nine nine and I bet four or five

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Speaker 3: of them are like at the line of scrimmage, yes,

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Speaker 3: you know, yes he's dropped, but I mean a lot

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Speaker 3: of them are real close.

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Speaker 2: Col One in Dublin was earlier this earlier this season,

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Speaker 2: and yeah, there's there's something to be said for those

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Speaker 2: ball hockey capabilities. That's a unique skill set and one

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Speaker 2: that he certainly has in those in those tight quarters,

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Speaker 2: you know. But I just there's so much going on

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Speaker 2: in that play that I like had a posit and

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Speaker 2: rewind I did the like the point twenty five playback

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Speaker 2: speed so I could watch it like frame by frame.

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Speaker 2: It really does go off high Smith and oh and

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Speaker 2: then Stanley like say, it was just.

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Speaker 4: Like the magic bullet. It was a magic bullet.

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Speaker 2: There was a lot going on there, a lot going

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Speaker 2: on there.

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Speaker 4: That's good.

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Speaker 1: Uh.

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Speaker 3: One other thing I thought, just we're talking about batted

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Speaker 3: passes and things like that. I just saw today this

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Speaker 3: morning that Boswell's miss got officially changed to.

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Speaker 4: Look like it had to and which makes me feel better.

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Speaker 2: Looked so drastic. Yeah, yeah, it makes me feel better too.

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Speaker 3: Like I'm like, boy, I hope he's not, like because

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Speaker 3: that's because any time he misses, it's like red alert,

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Speaker 3: red alert.

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Speaker 2: That that would have been a bad miss.

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Speaker 3: Yeah right, Like that's not him because I mean that,

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Speaker 3: and he also missed one a field goal recently, so

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Speaker 3: it's like, oh no, it's something wrong with Boz.

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Speaker 2: You know that thing look like Captain hook.

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Speaker 3: I was like happy to see that news today that

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Speaker 3: they ruled that as a deflection.

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Speaker 2: Yes, I am absolutely one hundred percent with you. The

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Speaker 2: other thing, a couple more things here for you, Matt.

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Speaker 2: One is just I put in my notes here, man,

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Speaker 2: was Aaron Rodgers really good in the fourth quarter? And

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Speaker 2: that's why you.

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Speaker 4: Did a podcast today.

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Speaker 3: I said, both quarterbacks are even better than I thought

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Speaker 3: in the fourth quarter. That's one of my bullet points.

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Speaker 2: That's why you brought that guy. Yeah, I mean he

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Speaker 2: was just. He was quick, he was decisive. Everything was positive,

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Speaker 2: no negative, didn't put the ball in harm's.

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Speaker 4: Way, totally had them figured it out, total.

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Speaker 2: Total from the neck up, was in total command.

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Speaker 3: They had shot every bullet and he knew every blitz

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Speaker 3: and every adjustment. And Hamilton not being out there for help. Still,

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Speaker 3: you know that you gotta deal with the cards. You're

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Speaker 3: doubt And I think he was great. I think you

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Speaker 3: and I said this a couple of weeks ago, but

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Speaker 3: you didn't bring Aaron Rodgers here to be the quarterback

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Speaker 3: that in September or October when the weather's nice, is

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Speaker 3: gonna throw for four hundred yards and four touchdowns and

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Speaker 3: light it up and be a fantasy football star. And

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Speaker 3: that's not what you brought him here for. He's not

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Speaker 3: doing that anymore.

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Speaker 2: At his age.

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Speaker 4: No, that's not in his wheelhouse now.

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Speaker 2: But when the weather's cold and the road's narrow, and

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Speaker 2: those margins and that minutia matters more than any point

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Speaker 2: in the season, and.

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Speaker 4: You're playing better teams, and you're playing.

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Speaker 2: Better teams with more and more on film and less

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Speaker 2: and less secrets and disguises and things that you can do.

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Speaker 2: That is the type of game he brought Aaron Rodgers

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Speaker 2: to town for, and he delivered in the second half,

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Speaker 2: especially in the fourth quarter.

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Speaker 3: And at that point, like every team you're short two

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Speaker 3: or three dudes, you know, you know you're not when

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Speaker 3: you when you signed him, You're like, you're not gonna

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Speaker 3: be perfectly healthy at the end of the season. Metcalfs,

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Speaker 3: you know, suspend it or whatever. But you know, times

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Speaker 3: have change. It's just a little cleaner, nicer, better environment

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Speaker 3: early in the year than it is late the year. Yes,

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Speaker 3: I mean clearly, no doubt, no doubt.

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Speaker 2: And I found it funny, Like I put under my

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Speaker 2: little Rogers notes here, I put best game as a

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Speaker 2: Steeler question mark. But haven't we said that like three

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Speaker 2: times in the last time. Yeah, I feel like that's

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Speaker 2: a good thing.

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Speaker 4: We've had a lot of mondays.

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Speaker 2: We we said that after the Dolphins game, we said

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Speaker 2: that after the Lions game, we said that after the

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Speaker 2: first Ravens game. So this is maybe like the fourth

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Speaker 2: time in the last six or seven games that we've said, oh,

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Speaker 2: that was Aaron Rodgers' best performance as a Steeler.

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Speaker 4: That's good, that's real good, and it seems like ancient history.

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Speaker 3: But I will say there was that stretch the Chargers

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Speaker 3: games want to shoot out the most where I.

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Speaker 2: Was like, is he going the opposite or because of

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Speaker 2: his age? Yeah, yeah, I mean like Russell Wilson all

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Speaker 2: over again.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, Like, boy, the Riggers of the season might be

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Speaker 3: getting to him. He's not moving as efficiently or as

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Speaker 3: smart in the pocket, missing more throws, doesn't look like

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Speaker 3: he's having quite as much fun, you know, getting hit

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Speaker 3: a little bit more than you'd like. You know, like

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Speaker 3: I'm like, oh, this could go sour quick, And he

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Speaker 3: totally turned the thing around.

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Speaker 2: Yes he did.

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Speaker 4: Yes, he did, quick blip and I love.

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Speaker 3: That he said during the week, you know, he said, well,

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Speaker 3: I haven't had two bad games, and rod very often

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Speaker 3: those lines.

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Speaker 2: I guess you're right, you don't have his career resume

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Speaker 2: his CV without uh, without or with having a lot

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Speaker 2: of back to back poor performances, and yeah, that was

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Speaker 2: he was outstanding in the second half. Maybe uh, maybe

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Speaker 2: his best performance since he left the Green Bay Packers

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Speaker 2: if you consider the magnitude of the circumstances, I would I.

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Speaker 3: Mean, probably his top three games here or the best

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Speaker 3: since he's left the Packers. Yes, they definitely are, if

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Speaker 3: not five or.

427
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Speaker 2: Six, But you know, more encouraging here, Matt. This is

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Speaker 2: just an overall kind of blanket thing. Again. But the

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Speaker 2: last thing that I wrote in my notes, I have

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Speaker 2: another one or two that I want to run past you.

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Speaker 2: But this kind of transitions well from Rogers playing so

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Speaker 2: well I wrote down here. Last thing I wrote down

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Speaker 2: was Keanu Benton. Wow, maybe his best game in his

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Speaker 2: entire Steelers career. I thought, Keanu Bett a ton of

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Speaker 2: credit to Cam deservedly, so he was the best player

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Speaker 2: on the field. I thought to you, But myg if

437
00:20:02,760 --> 00:20:05,280
Speaker 2: you show the people who've if the people who vote

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Speaker 2: on all pros, if you just showed them the tape

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00:20:09,640 --> 00:20:13,000
Speaker 2: of Linderbaum and Zach Fraser from Sunday Night, it would

440
00:20:13,040 --> 00:20:16,480
Speaker 2: be Zach Fraser dominating Ravens, and it would be Linderbaum

441
00:20:16,560 --> 00:20:18,879
Speaker 2: getting his lunch money taken by Keanu Betton.

442
00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:21,520
Speaker 3: I couldn't have said that better. Yeah, again, one of

443
00:20:21,520 --> 00:20:22,960
Speaker 3: them went to Pro Bowl, the other one didn't. At

444
00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:26,399
Speaker 3: center and I'm sure you're loving this, and every Stealer

445
00:20:26,480 --> 00:20:30,040
Speaker 3: fan should, but if you look at Fraser's four or

446
00:20:30,200 --> 00:20:34,680
Speaker 3: five highlight blocks, they're like webby dirt like things you

447
00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:38,840
Speaker 3: don't see from centers, you know, like dismantling dudes, you know,

448
00:20:39,720 --> 00:20:42,359
Speaker 3: just really owning them. You don't see pancakes in the

449
00:20:42,440 --> 00:20:43,280
Speaker 3: league very often.

450
00:20:43,359 --> 00:20:44,639
Speaker 4: You don't entrey popular belief.

451
00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:47,520
Speaker 3: I mean, you win, but you don't see dominating your

452
00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:50,359
Speaker 3: opponent and just throwing them around. Zach was doing that

453
00:20:50,600 --> 00:20:53,479
Speaker 3: and Venton did a little bit of it due to Linderbaumb. Yes, frankly,

454
00:20:53,560 --> 00:20:55,600
Speaker 3: I like Linderbaum a lot, but he's a little under

455
00:20:55,800 --> 00:20:58,119
Speaker 3: a little overrated because he's he's little.

456
00:20:58,560 --> 00:21:01,119
Speaker 2: I you know, I loved him coming out of college.

457
00:21:01,320 --> 00:21:04,000
Speaker 2: I wanted the Steelers to draft him instead of Kenny Pickett.

458
00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:06,639
Speaker 2: And that's on, you know, on record, in my that

459
00:21:06,840 --> 00:21:09,200
Speaker 2: whole draft year, I was talking about Lenderbaum and him

460
00:21:09,200 --> 00:21:12,399
Speaker 2: coming out of Iowa. But he has not become the

461
00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:16,359
Speaker 2: player that he's good. He's not become the you know,

462
00:21:16,600 --> 00:21:17,520
Speaker 2: like people look at.

463
00:21:17,520 --> 00:21:18,280
Speaker 4: Him to one.

464
00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:23,640
Speaker 2: Of the dude in Miami.

465
00:21:25,400 --> 00:21:27,480
Speaker 3: And Frasier I would take over Linderbaum for sure.

466
00:21:27,640 --> 00:21:32,920
Speaker 2: Yes, yes, I was laughd he made me like fake there.

467
00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:35,080
Speaker 2: I I still remember back. Maybe it's because we were

468
00:21:35,080 --> 00:21:36,560
Speaker 2: talking about before we went on air today. We were

469
00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:40,280
Speaker 2: talking about the combine with with TV. I still remember

470
00:21:40,359 --> 00:21:43,960
Speaker 2: would have been two combines ago when Zach's the Zach

471
00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:47,600
Speaker 2: Frasier Jackson Powers Johnson Graham Barton class and the Steelers

472
00:21:47,600 --> 00:21:51,120
Speaker 2: really need really good center draft Steelers really need one.

473
00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:53,840
Speaker 2: I remember telling you and Dale and I think Motes.

474
00:21:54,000 --> 00:21:56,200
Speaker 2: I don't remember exactly which ones of us were on air,

475
00:21:56,280 --> 00:21:58,119
Speaker 2: and we're just hanging out at our at our radio

476
00:21:58,280 --> 00:22:01,160
Speaker 2: row booth, but I was like, I know, Zach Fraser

477
00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:03,880
Speaker 2: is gonna be good. My only, my only, my only,

478
00:22:03,960 --> 00:22:05,560
Speaker 2: and like I've never said this about it. I know

479
00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:07,600
Speaker 2: I'm a w V honk and a WV homer, but

480
00:22:07,640 --> 00:22:09,880
Speaker 2: I've never said this about a WVU player coming out

481
00:22:09,920 --> 00:22:12,639
Speaker 2: of college before. This guy is going to be a

482
00:22:12,720 --> 00:22:14,640
Speaker 2: B or a B plus he's not gonna be a bust.

483
00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:16,960
Speaker 2: My like at worst, he's gonna play ten years in

484
00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:18,639
Speaker 2: the league and be a B level player.

485
00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:20,240
Speaker 4: He'll be good, a quality starter.

486
00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:22,119
Speaker 2: But I was like, my only question is is can

487
00:22:22,160 --> 00:22:22,359
Speaker 2: he be?

488
00:22:22,720 --> 00:22:22,840
Speaker 5: Is he?

489
00:22:23,119 --> 00:22:24,560
Speaker 2: Is he a B or A B plus? Or is

490
00:22:24,600 --> 00:22:26,600
Speaker 2: he an A or an A plus? Yeah, and I'm

491
00:22:26,640 --> 00:22:28,760
Speaker 2: starting to lean more towards the A or the A plus,

492
00:22:28,800 --> 00:22:30,399
Speaker 2: Although to be fair, I think we've been doing that

493
00:22:30,480 --> 00:22:32,879
Speaker 2: since a few games into his his rookie year last year. Ye,

494
00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:35,880
Speaker 2: I want to talk to you about safeties on both

495
00:22:35,960 --> 00:22:38,280
Speaker 2: sides of the ball here, Matt. As we as we

496
00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:41,160
Speaker 2: wrap up this this rewind exercise.

497
00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:43,280
Speaker 4: There was an area of weakness for the Steelers.

498
00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:46,119
Speaker 2: I thought, that's okay, so that's the one negative in

499
00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:48,200
Speaker 2: the rewind that I had here. So let's let's do that.

500
00:22:49,200 --> 00:22:52,159
Speaker 2: I'm a I'm a little k on the I've busted

501
00:22:52,200 --> 00:22:56,800
Speaker 2: this out for you before the calm, concerned, worried, panicked meter. Yeah, yeah,

502
00:22:57,320 --> 00:23:01,640
Speaker 2: I'm concerned about about the Steelers safety play. I think

503
00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:05,399
Speaker 2: Dugger has, after a really impressive, really fast start, has

504
00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:07,920
Speaker 2: not looked his best the last couple of weeks. Agreed,

505
00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:10,800
Speaker 2: And Jalen Ramsey is a tough EVL because I know

506
00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:13,040
Speaker 2: he's doing this on the fly, like he moved to

507
00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:15,359
Speaker 2: safety in the middle of the season. I give him a.

508
00:23:15,359 --> 00:23:17,320
Speaker 4: Green saw it. I'm like, this is a new position

509
00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:17,720
Speaker 4: for him.

510
00:23:17,880 --> 00:23:20,000
Speaker 2: I give him a grain of salt in that regard.

511
00:23:20,119 --> 00:23:22,800
Speaker 2: I do, But he also he came out of the

512
00:23:23,119 --> 00:23:27,160
Speaker 2: shoot flying at safety and really stabilized there and look comfortable,

513
00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:31,920
Speaker 2: whereas now he's looked a little uncomfortable the last couple

514
00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:32,240
Speaker 2: of weeks.

515
00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:35,119
Speaker 4: Yeah, and a couple notes.

516
00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:39,640
Speaker 3: I mean their defensive backfield, to me, is not particularly

517
00:23:39,760 --> 00:23:44,560
Speaker 3: fast or athletic by NFL standards. I mean, like Pierre Samuel,

518
00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:46,760
Speaker 3: I mean, they don't have burners. There's not four to

519
00:23:46,800 --> 00:23:50,400
Speaker 3: three guys. And you would think Ramsey's a super duper

520
00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:52,800
Speaker 3: plus athlete because he goes from corner to safety.

521
00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:54,399
Speaker 4: I'm not sure he is.

522
00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:57,680
Speaker 3: I think he's an okay free safety athlete in this world,

523
00:23:57,760 --> 00:24:00,919
Speaker 3: but doesn't have extreme range. And like you said, though,

524
00:24:01,040 --> 00:24:03,000
Speaker 3: some of it's probably because he doesn't see it as

525
00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:05,360
Speaker 3: well as others have done their whole life every day

526
00:24:05,400 --> 00:24:07,880
Speaker 3: in the NFL. Sure, you know, like if if next

527
00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:11,480
Speaker 3: year he may take slightly better angles, you know, like

528
00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:13,440
Speaker 3: you don't even have to be super fast to be

529
00:24:13,480 --> 00:24:14,159
Speaker 3: a great safety.

530
00:24:14,280 --> 00:24:15,520
Speaker 4: I mean, no, don't take.

531
00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:18,800
Speaker 3: Full So many of those guys, you know, quarterbacks go.

532
00:24:18,840 --> 00:24:22,200
Speaker 2: To transition to it. Yeah, the Woodsons in the year right.

533
00:24:22,200 --> 00:24:25,159
Speaker 3: Right right, you know, And so he is a tough evow.

534
00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:28,200
Speaker 3: But unfortunately, and this isn't the time for the conversation.

535
00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:33,760
Speaker 3: He's a massive cap hit and certainly the Ravens version,

536
00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:37,400
Speaker 3: Ravens game version, you can't give him twenty twenty five

537
00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:39,520
Speaker 3: million a year. Like everyone the world's like, oh, you're

538
00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:42,200
Speaker 3: set there. He's awesome. Yeah, but he's expensive. You know,

539
00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:45,040
Speaker 3: you would gain a lot by moving on from him too,

540
00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:48,560
Speaker 3: Like that's gonna be a tough conversation. But he also

541
00:24:48,640 --> 00:24:50,680
Speaker 3: can play slot and he brings more to the table

542
00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:53,720
Speaker 3: that too, And I love his competitiveness and the trickle

543
00:24:53,800 --> 00:24:55,560
Speaker 3: down effect he has with the rest of the teams.

544
00:24:55,680 --> 00:24:57,560
Speaker 3: But you also have Elliott coming back next year too,

545
00:24:57,840 --> 00:24:59,960
Speaker 3: and that's that's an off season converse.

546
00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:02,159
Speaker 4: But he didn't have a good game, no, you know,

547
00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:02,680
Speaker 4: I mean.

548
00:25:02,680 --> 00:25:05,520
Speaker 2: And that likely play, I'm not sure what he was

549
00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:07,800
Speaker 2: trying to do there on that big fourth down conversion.

550
00:25:07,840 --> 00:25:09,399
Speaker 2: It was like he was going up trying to intercept it.

551
00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:10,920
Speaker 2: But all he's got to do is is bat the

552
00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,800
Speaker 2: ball down or just you know, make likely make a

553
00:25:14,920 --> 00:25:17,240
Speaker 2: combat catch instead of trying to go up and play

554
00:25:17,280 --> 00:25:20,879
Speaker 2: the ball, kind of playing the player. But yeah, I'm

555
00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:22,960
Speaker 2: not panicked or anything like, I'm not sitting here mashing

556
00:25:23,040 --> 00:25:25,600
Speaker 2: the panic button. No, no, but they just after those

557
00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:28,440
Speaker 2: two really looking the part. For a long stretch the

558
00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:30,880
Speaker 2: last couple of games. There's been some concern there. There's

559
00:25:30,880 --> 00:25:32,520
Speaker 2: been some leaks, there's been some holes in the boat.

560
00:25:32,640 --> 00:25:34,560
Speaker 3: There, there's some holes in the boat. And we knew

561
00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:36,320
Speaker 3: this about Dougar, but showed up more and more too

562
00:25:36,480 --> 00:25:38,840
Speaker 3: that the further from the line scrimmage is the worst.

563
00:25:38,920 --> 00:25:40,840
Speaker 3: I mean, they don't want to live in single high

564
00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:42,440
Speaker 3: like the mink of days. And if he's gonna be

565
00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:44,440
Speaker 3: a two high safety, he's not as comfortable.

566
00:25:44,520 --> 00:25:47,560
Speaker 2: And you know, and then finally, speaking of safeties, and

567
00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:50,480
Speaker 2: maybe this relates to the really good second half that

568
00:25:50,560 --> 00:25:53,640
Speaker 2: Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers offense had. It obviously does,

569
00:25:54,359 --> 00:25:56,680
Speaker 2: but man, you watch that Ravens defense first half verse

570
00:25:56,720 --> 00:25:58,920
Speaker 2: second half because Kyle Hamilton went out early in the

571
00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:01,960
Speaker 2: third quarter. Yeah, Steelers first drive of the third quarter.

572
00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:04,919
Speaker 4: Like thirteen minutes left in the third quarter, So basically.

573
00:26:04,680 --> 00:26:06,960
Speaker 2: Right, off a few plays into the third to that that,

574
00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:10,040
Speaker 2: you know, ensuing Steelers second half drive.

575
00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:12,520
Speaker 4: But to be fair, I thought the Steelers offense was

576
00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:13,920
Speaker 4: heating up late in the first time.

577
00:26:13,920 --> 00:26:15,960
Speaker 2: I agree with that. I agree with that, but I

578
00:26:16,080 --> 00:26:20,639
Speaker 2: also there was a noticeable difference in defense. Yeah do

579
00:26:20,680 --> 00:26:21,960
Speaker 2: you have do you have any of them or know

580
00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:24,840
Speaker 2: any of them? Or but I'm sure they were because.

581
00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:25,520
Speaker 4: Give me two minutes.

582
00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:29,760
Speaker 3: But I just retweeted them there from NFL next Gen stats.

583
00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:30,919
Speaker 3: They're there, night and day.

584
00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:33,480
Speaker 2: There, and it felt like, I'm sure the numbers back

585
00:26:33,520 --> 00:26:36,639
Speaker 2: that up because the eyeball test felt felt like that

586
00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:40,240
Speaker 2: where that was. It was a noticeably different Ravens defense

587
00:26:40,320 --> 00:26:41,359
Speaker 2: without their best player.

588
00:26:41,480 --> 00:26:44,120
Speaker 3: Understand of course, I mean, let's like splits with Watt

589
00:26:44,200 --> 00:26:44,840
Speaker 3: being in and out.

590
00:26:44,960 --> 00:26:46,680
Speaker 2: Yeah, and you would have taken Cam Hayward out of

591
00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:48,320
Speaker 2: that game in the second half on Sunday.

592
00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:51,760
Speaker 3: And I even put it in Matt's stats before this game.

593
00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:56,760
Speaker 3: Their numbers with them without Hamilton are much different anyway.

594
00:26:57,160 --> 00:27:01,119
Speaker 2: Alone the J Watt over the last because years, I

595
00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:04,640
Speaker 2: think Steelers are like three and eleven without TJ. Watt

596
00:27:04,720 --> 00:27:06,400
Speaker 2: or whatever it is over the last handful of years.

597
00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:07,359
Speaker 4: So in this game.

598
00:27:08,359 --> 00:27:12,320
Speaker 3: The difference was three point nine yards per play, Verse

599
00:27:12,359 --> 00:27:16,760
Speaker 3: six point nine yards per play. Holy Cow thirty seven

600
00:27:16,880 --> 00:27:21,080
Speaker 3: second thirty seven percent success rate, Verse sixty percent success rate.

601
00:27:21,280 --> 00:27:23,080
Speaker 2: Night and day difference massive.

602
00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:25,600
Speaker 3: And they were pretty much equal. Thirty eight plays, Verse

603
00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:29,359
Speaker 3: thirty five plays. I mean, it's hard to ignore it's huge,

604
00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:31,240
Speaker 3: but and I think there was more to it, because

605
00:27:31,240 --> 00:27:32,960
Speaker 3: I do think Rogers will agree with you.

606
00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:36,360
Speaker 2: I'm not saying it's just oh well, Hamilton went out

607
00:27:36,359 --> 00:27:38,080
Speaker 2: and then all of a sudden Aaron Rodgers started to

608
00:27:38,119 --> 00:27:38,720
Speaker 2: figure it out.

609
00:27:38,840 --> 00:27:40,160
Speaker 4: No, he was sure helped though.

610
00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:40,680
Speaker 2: That helped.

611
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:42,200
Speaker 4: Yeah. Sure.

612
00:27:42,400 --> 00:27:44,920
Speaker 2: It's like if you're playing the racing video game and

613
00:27:45,000 --> 00:27:46,639
Speaker 2: you're starting to take the lead and you get like

614
00:27:46,720 --> 00:27:50,120
Speaker 2: the little boost, like egg the Mario Kart that gives

615
00:27:50,160 --> 00:27:51,960
Speaker 2: you a little speed boost. That was the speed boost.

616
00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:56,520
Speaker 2: That was the magic mushroom that Aaron Rodgers dated. Hold on,

617
00:27:56,600 --> 00:27:59,440
Speaker 2: there's a joke in there. Really to really to really

618
00:27:59,480 --> 00:28:01,160
Speaker 2: get that thing going in the second half. But yeah,

619
00:28:01,359 --> 00:28:04,679
Speaker 2: were those were some of the the Tuesday rewind observations

620
00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:06,000
Speaker 2: that I had from last night. Like I said, most

621
00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:09,680
Speaker 2: of them, most of them good. That TJ play was crazy,

622
00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:13,359
Speaker 2: I thought Aaron Rodgers and Keanu Benton were outstanding. Yeah,

623
00:28:13,960 --> 00:28:16,679
Speaker 2: and then just some safety observations from both sides.

624
00:28:17,160 --> 00:28:18,920
Speaker 3: You touched on a lot of things I was thinking about.

625
00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:21,720
Speaker 3: But there's one Mo throw in there and it's not great,

626
00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:24,000
Speaker 3: but it is kind of great. I mean, like, I

627
00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:26,520
Speaker 3: had a real problem and I and I understand that

628
00:28:26,640 --> 00:28:29,560
Speaker 3: this is Champagne problems, you know what I mean. Like

629
00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:32,359
Speaker 3: her Big only played twelve snaps. It was here twelve

630
00:28:32,440 --> 00:28:36,639
Speaker 3: or thirteen, and he's awesome, you know, Like, and I

631
00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:40,200
Speaker 3: understand that high Smith's been playing at ridiculously high level.

632
00:28:40,520 --> 00:28:43,480
Speaker 3: Watt was back and did well and made big plays

633
00:28:44,560 --> 00:28:46,040
Speaker 3: most of the time. You have to get one of

634
00:28:46,080 --> 00:28:49,840
Speaker 3: those guys off the field obviously for her Big to

635
00:28:49,880 --> 00:28:51,840
Speaker 3: get on. And I understand that's a wonder if that's

636
00:28:51,880 --> 00:28:54,520
Speaker 3: the champagn problem. That's too many good problems. Yeah, too

637
00:28:54,560 --> 00:28:59,040
Speaker 3: many good Yeah, everyone would kill for that. But I

638
00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:02,360
Speaker 3: saw this today that he played twelve snaps of twelve

639
00:29:02,400 --> 00:29:05,480
Speaker 3: or thirteen. I know he rushed the pass or five times,

640
00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:08,200
Speaker 3: you know, and the snaps he was out there, there

641
00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:12,200
Speaker 3: was five called passes. He had three pressures on five snaps, jeez,

642
00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:14,960
Speaker 3: and a lot of them were like up the middle

643
00:29:15,240 --> 00:29:17,160
Speaker 3: he was used him as an off the ball guy.

644
00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:19,880
Speaker 3: They had some of that three outside linebacker stuff going.

645
00:29:20,560 --> 00:29:22,880
Speaker 3: But here's where I have a problem, though, is the

646
00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:25,640
Speaker 3: likely play that was what? Fourth and forever?

647
00:29:25,800 --> 00:29:27,280
Speaker 2: Fourth and thirteen?

648
00:29:27,920 --> 00:29:28,640
Speaker 4: He wasn't on that?

649
00:29:30,680 --> 00:29:32,160
Speaker 5: That like to me.

650
00:29:33,800 --> 00:29:35,840
Speaker 3: If if and I know, this isn't how the world works,

651
00:29:35,880 --> 00:29:40,120
Speaker 3: and sometimes things happened fast on the sidelines, obviously, but

652
00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:40,720
Speaker 3: if it's.

653
00:29:40,680 --> 00:29:43,000
Speaker 4: Like, okay, who's the first guy that has.

654
00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:44,760
Speaker 2: To be on the field fourth and seven at the

655
00:29:44,760 --> 00:29:46,920
Speaker 2: fifty yards okay, twenty six yard game.

656
00:29:47,080 --> 00:29:49,040
Speaker 4: He might be my first choice of who has to

657
00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:51,080
Speaker 4: be on the field, period, And.

658
00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:53,960
Speaker 2: It's a fourth and seven obvious passing situation.

659
00:29:54,080 --> 00:29:56,160
Speaker 4: Right, I mean, he might be a best pass rusher guys.

660
00:29:56,360 --> 00:29:59,120
Speaker 2: I mean, Hi Smith has been playing at an insane

661
00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:02,400
Speaker 2: level the last few week. Benefit of the doubt, TJ

662
00:30:02,600 --> 00:30:04,840
Speaker 2: gets it. But if you were to say the first

663
00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:07,120
Speaker 2: guy I'm throwing out on the field is her big,

664
00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:11,760
Speaker 2: you can make a good faith argument that in good

665
00:30:11,760 --> 00:30:12,960
Speaker 2: faith you're not just saying that.

666
00:30:13,200 --> 00:30:15,600
Speaker 3: But he wasn't out there. Yeah, but he wasn't out

667
00:30:15,600 --> 00:30:17,520
Speaker 3: there a lot, you know. But again, these are nice

668
00:30:17,560 --> 00:30:18,000
Speaker 3: problems to.

669
00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:23,040
Speaker 2: Have, Champagne problems, But hopefully, hopefully we'll find a way

670
00:30:23,080 --> 00:30:25,240
Speaker 2: to get him a little more uptick against the Houston

671
00:30:25,280 --> 00:30:27,800
Speaker 2: Texans team and one that we know the defenses are

672
00:30:27,800 --> 00:30:29,479
Speaker 2: going to have a big say and we'll we'll talk

673
00:30:29,760 --> 00:30:33,239
Speaker 2: really good. He's very good. Yeah, And this is an

674
00:30:33,240 --> 00:30:36,520
Speaker 2: off season conversation of you've already got the highest paid

675
00:30:36,560 --> 00:30:38,480
Speaker 2: defense in the NFL. As everybody likes to tell us

676
00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:42,040
Speaker 2: all the time anytime they play poorly, what are you

677
00:30:42,040 --> 00:30:43,280
Speaker 2: gonna do with herbig? What are you gonna do with

678
00:30:43,360 --> 00:30:44,160
Speaker 2: Joey Porter Jr.

679
00:30:44,360 --> 00:30:45,720
Speaker 4: But I can't let them go.

680
00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:47,600
Speaker 2: I can't let them go. I can't let them go either.

681
00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:49,760
Speaker 2: But those are also two more significant investments on a

682
00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:52,640
Speaker 2: defense that already has a lot of significant investments. How

683
00:30:52,640 --> 00:30:55,160
Speaker 2: does Ramsey play into that equation? And all these.

684
00:30:57,200 --> 00:30:58,640
Speaker 4: Worked again off season problems?

685
00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:01,840
Speaker 2: You know has A has another year. Well, he's in

686
00:31:01,920 --> 00:31:03,720
Speaker 2: his third year too, Keanu Betton, isn't he.

687
00:31:03,760 --> 00:31:04,600
Speaker 4: You could he the same?

688
00:31:05,600 --> 00:31:09,760
Speaker 2: So he you can read him. We'll talk about in

689
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:12,280
Speaker 2: the in the in the off season. We got plenty

690
00:31:12,400 --> 00:31:15,120
Speaker 2: of time to get to that. But there's our Tuesday rewind.

691
00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:17,280
Speaker 2: When we return on the other side, we will run

692
00:31:17,360 --> 00:31:20,120
Speaker 2: it back. We'll rewind it with Chris Adamski, get all

693
00:31:20,160 --> 00:31:23,760
Speaker 2: his thoughts from that crazy game Sunday night that we're

694
00:31:23,760 --> 00:31:26,960
Speaker 2: all still processing, and we'll do a little looking ahead

695
00:31:27,000 --> 00:31:29,160
Speaker 2: to his thoughts on the Houston Texans rolling into town

696
00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:32,800
Speaker 2: for a Monday night wild Card showdown as well. Buzz

697
00:31:32,920 --> 00:31:36,400
Speaker 2: when we return on the other side, Well, Sholer, Matt Williamson.

698
00:31:36,400 --> 00:31:39,160
Speaker 2: It's the Drive on Steelers Nation Radio on the Steelers Audio.

699
00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:42,560
Speaker 1: Network, your tunes about Drive on your twenty four to

700
00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:45,800
Speaker 1: seven home of the black and Goal, Steelers Nation Radio.

701
00:31:56,320 --> 00:31:58,720
Speaker 6: Rolling along here on the Drive, closing down the first

702
00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:01,760
Speaker 6: hour on this Tuesday, and we are pleased to be

703
00:32:01,840 --> 00:32:04,800
Speaker 6: joined by our friend Chris Adamski, of course, co host

704
00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:07,120
Speaker 6: of the Steelers Blitz every day at noon right here

705
00:32:07,160 --> 00:32:10,000
Speaker 6: on the Steelers Audio Network and covers the Steelers for

706
00:32:10,360 --> 00:32:14,880
Speaker 6: the trib Chris, thank you for taking the time as always, partner.

707
00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:17,240
Speaker 6: I you know, I think I asked you a similar

708
00:32:17,320 --> 00:32:20,720
Speaker 6: question to this after that crazy Steelers win a few

709
00:32:20,760 --> 00:32:21,800
Speaker 6: weeks ago in Detroit.

710
00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:24,880
Speaker 2: But let's run it back one more time. You've been

711
00:32:24,920 --> 00:32:26,960
Speaker 2: on the Steelers beat for a little over a decade.

712
00:32:28,120 --> 00:32:30,680
Speaker 2: How does that atmosphere, how does that ending, how does

713
00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:34,600
Speaker 2: that just insane time capsule, instant classic that we witnessed

714
00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:38,320
Speaker 2: on Sunday night, kind of ranking the pantheon of all

715
00:32:38,360 --> 00:32:39,680
Speaker 2: the games you've covered in your career.

716
00:32:41,680 --> 00:32:44,600
Speaker 5: Well, i'll start with you said the atmosphere, and I

717
00:32:44,920 --> 00:32:49,280
Speaker 5: was impressed, and I guess heartened, and today's like, I

718
00:32:49,320 --> 00:32:51,880
Speaker 5: don't know, bitter world overall. Like I was like, oh boy,

719
00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:53,640
Speaker 5: this like I think I even said something if they

720
00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:57,160
Speaker 5: fell behind ten nothing, this crowd might turn, you know,

721
00:32:57,320 --> 00:32:59,360
Speaker 5: probably last week, and they did. They fell beyond ten

722
00:32:59,440 --> 00:33:01,920
Speaker 5: nothing stride the first play, and I'm like, oh, this

723
00:33:02,080 --> 00:33:05,120
Speaker 5: could this could be combustible. But I was impressed with

724
00:33:05,320 --> 00:33:10,680
Speaker 5: the fans were supportive and loud throughout, even through obviously

725
00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:13,280
Speaker 5: that roller coaster fourth quarter where twice it looks like

726
00:33:13,320 --> 00:33:15,080
Speaker 5: they're gonna lose the game or you know, they're down

727
00:33:15,480 --> 00:33:18,280
Speaker 5: in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. So I

728
00:33:18,640 --> 00:33:20,520
Speaker 5: the atmosphere I was impressed with, and it seemed like

729
00:33:20,560 --> 00:33:24,160
Speaker 5: everybody stayed. The stands were was full towards the end

730
00:33:24,200 --> 00:33:25,800
Speaker 5: of the game, which is what you expect to hope

731
00:33:25,840 --> 00:33:28,640
Speaker 5: for in a playoff game. But they definitely so I'll

732
00:33:28,680 --> 00:33:31,160
Speaker 5: give some kudos to the to the Stealer Nation for

733
00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:35,200
Speaker 5: that part of it. Yeah, the game, it can't compare

734
00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:37,480
Speaker 5: to that, and that was a that's a literal player.

735
00:33:37,560 --> 00:33:39,000
Speaker 5: This is a literal playoff game. In the reference to

736
00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:43,680
Speaker 5: the Bengals game in twenty sixteen, Uh, that was just

737
00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:45,600
Speaker 5: or at fifteen, I get them see whatever. You know

738
00:33:45,640 --> 00:33:48,240
Speaker 5: what I'm saying. It was about a decade ago where

739
00:33:48,560 --> 00:33:50,640
Speaker 5: was Joey Porter runs on the field and you know

740
00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:53,360
Speaker 5: you have a franchise icons assistant coach getting involved and

741
00:33:53,440 --> 00:33:56,080
Speaker 5: essentially drawing a flag that puts them into field goal

742
00:33:56,200 --> 00:33:58,680
Speaker 5: rangey the whole aspect that these are the Bengals who

743
00:33:59,360 --> 00:34:01,880
Speaker 5: you know couldn't go over the hump because of it's

744
00:34:01,920 --> 00:34:04,640
Speaker 5: real talented roster, but they it's just hilarious that they

745
00:34:04,680 --> 00:34:06,760
Speaker 5: gave up thirty yards and penalties to put the other team,

746
00:34:06,840 --> 00:34:08,600
Speaker 5: their biggest rival when the field goal range in a

747
00:34:08,640 --> 00:34:11,239
Speaker 5: playoff game. And the way that fourth quarter went was

748
00:34:11,920 --> 00:34:14,680
Speaker 5: was just even wilder than the one we saw on

749
00:34:14,920 --> 00:34:17,279
Speaker 5: Sunday night. But yeah, other than that, if you talk

750
00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:19,960
Speaker 5: about especially the way guys, I mean that first half

751
00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:24,439
Speaker 5: wasn't exactly let's face it, that wasn't aesthetically pleasing to watch, right, Yeah,

752
00:34:24,560 --> 00:34:27,759
Speaker 5: those from the Steelers aspect and offensively and everything. I

753
00:34:27,880 --> 00:34:29,759
Speaker 5: certainly didn't have it at that point. You asked me

754
00:34:29,800 --> 00:34:31,839
Speaker 5: at halftime that we ended up with a twenty six

755
00:34:31,840 --> 00:34:35,440
Speaker 5: to twenty four game that involved four lead changes, all

756
00:34:35,560 --> 00:34:37,920
Speaker 5: via to what touchdown right in the fourth quarter, back

757
00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:40,000
Speaker 5: and forth, everybody kind of moving the ball. It will

758
00:34:40,040 --> 00:34:41,400
Speaker 5: and I mean the Ravens was face it. If the

759
00:34:41,880 --> 00:34:43,680
Speaker 5: time would have stew it, and if they needed to score,

760
00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:45,239
Speaker 5: they have scored there too. It would have been the

761
00:34:45,360 --> 00:34:48,239
Speaker 5: five possessions in a row. So it was just kind

762
00:34:48,280 --> 00:34:50,880
Speaker 5: of that aspect of it and having everything on the

763
00:34:50,960 --> 00:34:54,680
Speaker 5: line and being essentially a playoff game, and again being

764
00:34:54,760 --> 00:34:57,560
Speaker 5: of arrival at division arrival, a big arrival Leaven the Bengals.

765
00:34:57,600 --> 00:34:59,960
Speaker 5: You put it all together. It was miskicks, I mean,

766
00:35:00,239 --> 00:35:02,480
Speaker 5: and today's day and age, how good the kickers are. Yeah,

767
00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:05,120
Speaker 5: to have two kicks in a row get missed like

768
00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:08,040
Speaker 5: it's almost like assume every's going to make every kick anymore, right,

769
00:35:08,120 --> 00:35:10,040
Speaker 5: It's so you didn't even think about it, like he

770
00:35:10,160 --> 00:35:12,640
Speaker 5: missed it, like you know in both cases, I didn't

771
00:35:12,640 --> 00:35:14,560
Speaker 5: even you know, I'm assuming he's gonna make it both

772
00:35:14,600 --> 00:35:15,960
Speaker 5: times in his last two kicks there.

773
00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:19,960
Speaker 3: So we were talking Buzz a little bit about was

774
00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:24,560
Speaker 3: that Rogers' best game as a Steeler, and boy, we

775
00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:27,839
Speaker 3: were praising both quarterbacks, but especially Rogers for their fourth

776
00:35:27,960 --> 00:35:30,600
Speaker 3: quarter play in that game. And I think that's hard

777
00:35:30,640 --> 00:35:33,040
Speaker 3: to argue with. But I'm starting to get the feeling

778
00:35:33,160 --> 00:35:37,160
Speaker 3: more and more that this relationship between the team and

779
00:35:37,320 --> 00:35:42,360
Speaker 3: the quarterback is the organization, not just like his receivers

780
00:35:42,960 --> 00:35:46,359
Speaker 3: are starting to catch up with Rogers, not the new

781
00:35:46,440 --> 00:35:48,719
Speaker 3: guy starting to catch up with the organization. You know

782
00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:49,279
Speaker 3: what I'm saying.

783
00:35:51,200 --> 00:35:53,520
Speaker 5: Yeah, I do see what you're saying with that, So

784
00:35:53,920 --> 00:35:55,440
Speaker 5: I go, I get where you're going with that. I

785
00:35:55,719 --> 00:36:01,000
Speaker 5: think that you know, he's he's such a I mean,

786
00:36:01,080 --> 00:36:02,279
Speaker 5: I don't know. I just so happened to see a

787
00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:04,439
Speaker 5: clip of not when he was alone in the fact,

788
00:36:04,480 --> 00:36:06,680
Speaker 5: he hosted Jeopardy for a while. I'll home circle this

789
00:36:06,760 --> 00:36:08,320
Speaker 5: around the relevant in a second here, But he was

790
00:36:08,360 --> 00:36:18,759
Speaker 5: a convenment, was running through categories before that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,

791
00:36:18,920 --> 00:36:20,759
Speaker 5: which is I guess how he eventually, you know, got

792
00:36:20,800 --> 00:36:24,279
Speaker 5: the part time hosting gig too. So it but now

793
00:36:24,360 --> 00:36:25,920
Speaker 5: that he's getting to kind of know him and see

794
00:36:26,000 --> 00:36:28,279
Speaker 5: him on a regular basis or just you know, just

795
00:36:28,320 --> 00:36:31,000
Speaker 5: seeing him interact with his teammates and watching him more

796
00:36:31,040 --> 00:36:33,839
Speaker 5: on the field, I guess, And in terms of I mean,

797
00:36:33,880 --> 00:36:37,160
Speaker 5: he has his and I could see in some ways

798
00:36:37,239 --> 00:36:41,240
Speaker 5: how if things aren't going well or whatever, it's it's rigid,

799
00:36:41,280 --> 00:36:42,880
Speaker 5: and you see how angry he gets the times and

800
00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:44,520
Speaker 5: then frustrated he gets on the field and the way

801
00:36:44,560 --> 00:36:48,279
Speaker 5: he gets out. So but at the same time, I

802
00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:51,680
Speaker 5: also I think everybody I'm sure, I mean, if I'm

803
00:36:51,680 --> 00:36:53,080
Speaker 5: picking up on it from kind of you know, the

804
00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:56,200
Speaker 5: outside perspective, and you're in there and you know, figured

805
00:36:56,200 --> 00:36:59,000
Speaker 5: out FOXO with him, and he's that prepared and that

806
00:36:59,320 --> 00:37:04,279
Speaker 5: cerebral and that you know, ready for anything and ready

807
00:37:04,280 --> 00:37:07,439
Speaker 5: to do it, And so that probably is a sort

808
00:37:07,480 --> 00:37:10,520
Speaker 5: of in his personality. Just I mean, well, first of all,

809
00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:12,520
Speaker 5: they've been through how many quarterbacks now the past four

810
00:37:12,600 --> 00:37:15,279
Speaker 5: or five years. To adjust the quarterback over and over

811
00:37:15,360 --> 00:37:18,160
Speaker 5: again as many times as they have is one thing.

812
00:37:18,239 --> 00:37:20,080
Speaker 5: But then just comparing them to the roster he had

813
00:37:20,160 --> 00:37:23,080
Speaker 5: late last season, it's totally different in terms of that

814
00:37:23,280 --> 00:37:25,840
Speaker 5: and in terms of strength and this in terms of

815
00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:27,719
Speaker 5: what he does and at the line of scrivage. And

816
00:37:27,760 --> 00:37:31,200
Speaker 5: that's probably although I say that and you know, people

817
00:37:31,239 --> 00:37:34,040
Speaker 5: have said, and even at age forty two, you see it.

818
00:37:34,160 --> 00:37:36,000
Speaker 5: I mean, there was some of those throws, but the

819
00:37:36,040 --> 00:37:38,000
Speaker 5: way the ball comes out of his arm even now

820
00:37:38,120 --> 00:37:41,160
Speaker 5: and late in the season in age forty two. So

821
00:37:41,200 --> 00:37:44,279
Speaker 5: I don't want to diminish that his arm is the

822
00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:46,840
Speaker 5: best part of what's made him a fourth time MVP.

823
00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:50,960
Speaker 5: But I also think his brain and what he's doing

824
00:37:51,200 --> 00:37:52,360
Speaker 5: and what he wants to do at the line of

825
00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:55,160
Speaker 5: scrivage and the way he wants to do things. Yeah,

826
00:37:55,160 --> 00:37:58,000
Speaker 5: I could see that that would take some adjusting to

827
00:37:58,840 --> 00:38:01,880
Speaker 5: both from a coach staff level and teammate level and

828
00:38:02,040 --> 00:38:04,920
Speaker 5: just the weekly process of installing a game plan. I'm

829
00:38:04,920 --> 00:38:07,719
Speaker 5: sure there was something to that, and maybe right now

830
00:38:07,800 --> 00:38:09,920
Speaker 5: that you're you're eighteen games in here doing that, and

831
00:38:10,040 --> 00:38:11,480
Speaker 5: I think everybody is better off for it.

832
00:38:11,920 --> 00:38:14,160
Speaker 3: And just like Jeopardy, it just seems like he's always right.

833
00:38:15,880 --> 00:38:17,000
Speaker 4: You know what is?

834
00:38:18,000 --> 00:38:18,360
Speaker 1: What is?

835
00:38:18,560 --> 00:38:19,319
Speaker 2: He's always right?

836
00:38:19,480 --> 00:38:19,680
Speaker 4: Yeah.

837
00:38:20,480 --> 00:38:23,480
Speaker 2: Twenty fifteen Aaron, Oh, sorry, buzz go ahead.

838
00:38:24,719 --> 00:38:26,520
Speaker 5: I'm not going going that's a good oh good way.

839
00:38:26,640 --> 00:38:29,520
Speaker 2: I was just gonna say twenty fifteen, he won Celebrity Jeopardy,

840
00:38:29,840 --> 00:38:35,040
Speaker 2: defeating Kevin O'Leary of Shark Tank fame and Senator Mark Kelly.

841
00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:38,120
Speaker 2: I'm not familiar with his game as much to win

842
00:38:38,280 --> 00:38:41,160
Speaker 2: Celebrity Jeopardy in twenty fifteen, donated his winnings to the

843
00:38:41,280 --> 00:38:45,120
Speaker 2: Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer Fund COOL, and then was

844
00:38:45,160 --> 00:38:47,200
Speaker 2: invited back to guest host for two weeks in twenty

845
00:38:47,280 --> 00:38:50,720
Speaker 2: twenty one, calling it a dream job and a major

846
00:38:50,800 --> 00:38:54,759
Speaker 2: honor to be part of Alex Trebek's legacy. He said

847
00:38:54,800 --> 00:38:59,600
Speaker 2: to prep he meticulously studied old Jeopardy episodes, taking notes

848
00:38:59,640 --> 00:39:05,320
Speaker 2: on Catgory's introductions and Trebec's style of interviews. No, no

849
00:39:05,480 --> 00:39:08,080
Speaker 2: stone left unturned and yeah.

850
00:39:07,920 --> 00:39:10,800
Speaker 5: And again watching him now and the way he prepares

851
00:39:10,840 --> 00:39:12,680
Speaker 5: and the way he interacts with his teammates and the

852
00:39:12,719 --> 00:39:16,480
Speaker 5: way he is so I don't even know what. In

853
00:39:16,600 --> 00:39:18,200
Speaker 5: some way, it's almost even a I don't want to

854
00:39:18,200 --> 00:39:19,959
Speaker 5: say it's a detriment, but it can't like like throwing

855
00:39:19,960 --> 00:39:22,640
Speaker 5: the MVS pre straight times then the Cleveland game, because

856
00:39:22,680 --> 00:39:26,360
Speaker 5: his mind is so computer like that he's like, Okay,

857
00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:28,719
Speaker 5: I have single covers there. That's where I'm supposed to go.

858
00:39:28,880 --> 00:39:31,080
Speaker 5: That's what I'm supposed to do. That that's the smart play.

859
00:39:31,400 --> 00:39:33,440
Speaker 5: And I don't know necessarily in the end. I mean

860
00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:35,960
Speaker 5: it didn't work out, so he's a criticized But anyway,

861
00:39:36,040 --> 00:39:38,319
Speaker 5: just knowing that that all, but you just said there

862
00:39:38,440 --> 00:39:40,840
Speaker 5: makes perfect that like it just yes, of course he

863
00:39:40,840 --> 00:39:44,719
Speaker 5: would study Alex Trebek's mannerisms and that job. You know

864
00:39:44,760 --> 00:39:45,080
Speaker 5: what I mean.

865
00:39:45,320 --> 00:39:47,680
Speaker 3: He wasn't just like reading Encyclopedia's I know they don't

866
00:39:47,680 --> 00:39:50,960
Speaker 3: exist anymore, but yeah, he took a different approach to preparing.

867
00:39:51,040 --> 00:39:55,160
Speaker 2: Yeah, well, from from one veteran on the Steelers offense

868
00:39:55,280 --> 00:39:57,279
Speaker 2: to the other side of the ball, the veteran on

869
00:39:57,400 --> 00:40:03,400
Speaker 2: the Steelers defense. Buzz, there's boxed wine, there's fine wine,

870
00:40:04,040 --> 00:40:06,680
Speaker 2: and then there's Cam Hayward. I mean, what this guy

871
00:40:06,880 --> 00:40:10,080
Speaker 2: is doing at his age is just incredible. And Matt

872
00:40:10,200 --> 00:40:12,400
Speaker 2: and I both thought he was the best player on

873
00:40:12,440 --> 00:40:14,560
Speaker 2: the field Sunday night. Would you agree?

874
00:40:16,800 --> 00:40:19,080
Speaker 5: Yeah, man, And he's already played offense too, right, that's

875
00:40:19,120 --> 00:40:21,719
Speaker 5: exactly right. Yeah, yeah, that and you know, I mean

876
00:40:22,000 --> 00:40:26,840
Speaker 5: everything about that. I think you saw outward displays of

877
00:40:26,880 --> 00:40:29,799
Speaker 5: the emotion from him in terms of leadership and how

878
00:40:29,880 --> 00:40:32,359
Speaker 5: much the you know, at this stage with whose career

879
00:40:32,520 --> 00:40:34,520
Speaker 5: these games mean to him. He's playoff games or virtual

880
00:40:34,560 --> 00:40:37,320
Speaker 5: playoff games. I thought it was very fitting that on

881
00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:39,960
Speaker 5: the very first play of the game, he's thirty yards

882
00:40:40,000 --> 00:40:43,680
Speaker 5: downfield's making a play and then he gets hurt on it,

883
00:40:44,200 --> 00:40:45,920
Speaker 5: and then he comes back two plays later. You know,

884
00:40:46,040 --> 00:40:49,120
Speaker 5: it's just so many little things like that, just very

885
00:40:49,239 --> 00:40:51,520
Speaker 5: we're very fitting for for Cam Hayward, I think. And

886
00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:53,480
Speaker 5: then he gets his brother and you know he's ends

887
00:40:53,520 --> 00:40:56,600
Speaker 5: up pushing his brother into the end zone. You're his fingerprints.

888
00:40:56,800 --> 00:40:58,600
Speaker 5: And I just mentioned all I talked there for whatever

889
00:40:58,680 --> 00:41:01,279
Speaker 5: forty seconds, didn't talk about his day job or is

890
00:41:01,320 --> 00:41:04,239
Speaker 5: important job what he does, And we did so well

891
00:41:05,160 --> 00:41:07,520
Speaker 5: in terms of you know what, I think you are

892
00:41:07,640 --> 00:41:10,360
Speaker 5: right about that. But on that game he was the

893
00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:13,239
Speaker 5: best player on the field, and you know we got

894
00:41:13,400 --> 00:41:15,439
Speaker 5: I still don't know what hands it hit both hands

895
00:41:15,440 --> 00:41:18,279
Speaker 5: on the interception, What was that him or.

896
00:41:19,760 --> 00:41:20,040
Speaker 4: Through that?

897
00:41:20,280 --> 00:41:22,120
Speaker 2: Like the first segment we went, we we kind of

898
00:41:22,160 --> 00:41:24,120
Speaker 2: broke this down. It was almost kind of similar to

899
00:41:24,160 --> 00:41:26,480
Speaker 2: like a volleyball play at the net or something like that,

900
00:41:26,600 --> 00:41:30,080
Speaker 2: but it actually went between Cam Hayward's hands, but high

901
00:41:30,080 --> 00:41:32,719
Speaker 2: Smith swatted it out from between his hands. If you

902
00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:35,240
Speaker 2: go back and watch frame by frame, it's actually crazy.

903
00:41:35,320 --> 00:41:36,480
Speaker 4: Yeah, Cam did end up touching it.

904
00:41:37,800 --> 00:41:39,960
Speaker 5: It's Wow, that there's two, because then did you guys

905
00:41:40,000 --> 00:41:41,880
Speaker 5: get a frame by frame to see was the Boswell

906
00:41:41,920 --> 00:41:43,879
Speaker 5: extra point blocked at all? Because that's it. There's there's

907
00:41:43,880 --> 00:41:45,160
Speaker 5: a point of contentionent with that, dude.

908
00:41:45,960 --> 00:41:48,319
Speaker 2: I saw somebody posted on Twitter earlier today.

909
00:41:48,400 --> 00:41:51,280
Speaker 3: Yeah, I know the official statistician changed it this morning

910
00:41:51,600 --> 00:41:54,040
Speaker 3: to a block maybe, which made me feel better.

911
00:41:54,200 --> 00:41:57,200
Speaker 5: Yes, yes, okay, that's right, because I suck. You go

912
00:41:57,320 --> 00:41:59,520
Speaker 5: with the official record right right there? Is that is blard?

913
00:41:59,560 --> 00:42:01,399
Speaker 5: I don't know. Yeah, I could do the Naked Eye

914
00:42:01,440 --> 00:42:03,320
Speaker 5: that night, certainly, and then you watch it again and

915
00:42:03,400 --> 00:42:07,040
Speaker 5: again and it certainly didn't start slicing until you would

916
00:42:07,040 --> 00:42:08,719
Speaker 5: think after it would have been touched if it was

917
00:42:08,840 --> 00:42:10,719
Speaker 5: touched though, But all right, so there you got two

918
00:42:10,760 --> 00:42:12,239
Speaker 5: plays that we had to get to the bottom of.

919
00:42:12,560 --> 00:42:14,839
Speaker 5: Pretty importan stuff during playoff week here, right heck?

920
00:42:14,920 --> 00:42:18,160
Speaker 3: Yeah, So this is gonna be a much different test

921
00:42:18,320 --> 00:42:21,680
Speaker 3: for the Steelers offensive line, particularly in protection. Those edge

922
00:42:21,719 --> 00:42:25,400
Speaker 3: rushers are nasty and I'm actually excited to start talking

923
00:42:25,520 --> 00:42:28,160
Speaker 3: Texans here tomorrow next day because they're a fun team,

924
00:42:28,239 --> 00:42:30,719
Speaker 3: especially on defense, and have a real stiff challenge. But

925
00:42:31,440 --> 00:42:34,040
Speaker 3: do you agree that the offensive line for the Steelers

926
00:42:34,440 --> 00:42:37,680
Speaker 3: is in the best place it's been all year and

927
00:42:37,880 --> 00:42:40,680
Speaker 3: maybe since the Pouncy to Castro days.

928
00:42:40,760 --> 00:42:44,200
Speaker 5: You know, yeah, I'm really glad you said that, Matt,

929
00:42:44,280 --> 00:42:47,080
Speaker 5: especially because just a good validated by you, because you're

930
00:42:47,160 --> 00:42:49,600
Speaker 5: much better at watching, you know, line plan than I

931
00:42:49,640 --> 00:42:52,680
Speaker 5: would be. I feel like I'm almost oh taking crazy bills.

932
00:42:52,680 --> 00:42:54,319
Speaker 5: But I'm like, man, like, we don't talk enough about

933
00:42:54,320 --> 00:42:56,600
Speaker 5: how good this offensive line has been here recently and

934
00:42:58,520 --> 00:43:00,440
Speaker 5: and you know, a PF have to take it for

935
00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:02,520
Speaker 5: what it's worth. Whatever, But he but Dylan Cook was

936
00:43:02,600 --> 00:43:05,200
Speaker 5: rated as the second best left tackle in Week eighteen

937
00:43:05,280 --> 00:43:08,880
Speaker 5: that played right graded wise but most left tackles, and

938
00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:11,480
Speaker 5: you know whatever, I mean the fact that he's been

939
00:43:12,120 --> 00:43:14,360
Speaker 5: a revelation to be the fourth tackle you use a

940
00:43:14,400 --> 00:43:17,080
Speaker 5: practice squad guy, And I don't I think I could.

941
00:43:17,200 --> 00:43:19,279
Speaker 5: That hasn't been talked about enough amongst everything going on,

942
00:43:19,440 --> 00:43:22,000
Speaker 5: and I and I think that the three second year

943
00:43:22,080 --> 00:43:25,880
Speaker 5: guys that that really you feel really good about right

944
00:43:25,960 --> 00:43:27,840
Speaker 5: now that this is what they plan and this is

945
00:43:27,880 --> 00:43:30,840
Speaker 5: what you hope for, of course, but you know, obviously

946
00:43:30,920 --> 00:43:32,480
Speaker 5: sometimes it don't work out. Like you don't know that

947
00:43:32,600 --> 00:43:34,879
Speaker 5: you took a high draft pick at the left tackle

948
00:43:34,920 --> 00:43:37,359
Speaker 5: that you don't know what's gonna happen with going forward maybe,

949
00:43:37,400 --> 00:43:39,560
Speaker 5: but I think you you feel really good about thinking

950
00:43:39,640 --> 00:43:43,640
Speaker 5: Frasier McCormick and Tad too can play together for for

951
00:43:43,680 --> 00:43:45,640
Speaker 5: a decade, right, and they can become that you know,

952
00:43:45,760 --> 00:43:48,680
Speaker 5: Pouncy de Castro, you know, Marcus Gilbert, howeverever you want to,

953
00:43:49,040 --> 00:43:51,480
Speaker 5: uh say it, to play together for so long and

954
00:43:51,719 --> 00:43:53,880
Speaker 5: just be an anchor. And yeah, I think. And a

955
00:43:53,920 --> 00:43:57,400
Speaker 5: lot of it, of course, is that in terms of

956
00:43:57,440 --> 00:43:59,840
Speaker 5: the sack did numbers, let's say, and even some of

957
00:43:59,880 --> 00:44:01,560
Speaker 5: the raiding and stuff, because they're getting rid of the

958
00:44:01,560 --> 00:44:04,719
Speaker 5: ball so quick. So I get it in terms of that,

959
00:44:04,880 --> 00:44:06,759
Speaker 5: you can't just look at things like that. But I

960
00:44:06,920 --> 00:44:09,760
Speaker 5: do think in both the run blocking and past blocking

961
00:44:10,880 --> 00:44:13,359
Speaker 5: with with this way in terms of what can go forward,

962
00:44:13,360 --> 00:44:15,560
Speaker 5: I mean because Rogers obviously, I mean maybe next year,

963
00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:18,400
Speaker 5: I guess, but certainly not long term. Obviously, you wouldn't

964
00:44:18,400 --> 00:44:21,160
Speaker 5: think in terms of what you take forward from this

965
00:44:21,320 --> 00:44:22,960
Speaker 5: year and this season is over yet. But if you're

966
00:44:23,080 --> 00:44:25,000
Speaker 5: to say, hey, right now, what's been one of the

967
00:44:25,040 --> 00:44:27,160
Speaker 5: best stories of this year, the best things about this

968
00:44:27,800 --> 00:44:30,800
Speaker 5: team going forward? You can carry I think that fixing

969
00:44:30,880 --> 00:44:32,840
Speaker 5: the offensive line are a big part of it, certainly

970
00:44:32,880 --> 00:44:34,480
Speaker 5: sixty percent of it or three fists of.

971
00:44:34,480 --> 00:44:34,680
Speaker 1: It, and.

972
00:44:36,160 --> 00:44:38,040
Speaker 5: Having that you really feel good going forward. I think

973
00:44:38,080 --> 00:44:40,239
Speaker 5: the twenty twenty five Steelers that's one of the sort

974
00:44:40,280 --> 00:44:42,799
Speaker 5: of young players that have played well that you can

975
00:44:43,320 --> 00:44:45,640
Speaker 5: apply that going forward. That that's one of the one

976
00:44:45,680 --> 00:44:48,000
Speaker 5: of the better stories I think for the Steelers right now.

977
00:44:48,160 --> 00:44:51,960
Speaker 3: It might be their best player asset in the whole

978
00:44:52,040 --> 00:44:53,080
Speaker 3: organization right now.

979
00:44:53,280 --> 00:44:54,360
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean o lines.

980
00:44:54,440 --> 00:44:56,080
Speaker 3: There's a shortage in the league, Like, hey, the edge

981
00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:59,160
Speaker 3: rushers are great, but I'm talking like big picture building

982
00:44:59,280 --> 00:45:02,759
Speaker 3: blocks for the team for the next five to ten years,

983
00:45:02,800 --> 00:45:03,000
Speaker 3: you know.

984
00:45:04,440 --> 00:45:06,600
Speaker 5: Yeah, And I get I'm getting way ahead of myself

985
00:45:06,680 --> 00:45:09,200
Speaker 5: here this is what you're even talking about. But I mean,

986
00:45:11,000 --> 00:45:12,520
Speaker 5: I mean, I gues said, I don't cook at this

987
00:45:12,560 --> 00:45:14,879
Speaker 5: point certainly as the conversation is this your left tack

988
00:45:14,960 --> 00:45:16,560
Speaker 5: with the future? Right, I don't know for sure if

989
00:45:16,600 --> 00:45:18,800
Speaker 5: you I mean, what, we've got a four game sample size,

990
00:45:18,840 --> 00:45:20,759
Speaker 5: we'll see maybe there'll be five or six geit, you know.

991
00:45:21,000 --> 00:45:22,680
Speaker 3: I mean, did a minimum he's got to be in

992
00:45:22,760 --> 00:45:24,839
Speaker 3: a competition for this top job next year.

993
00:45:24,960 --> 00:45:25,160
Speaker 2: Yeah?

994
00:45:25,320 --> 00:45:27,800
Speaker 4: It camp and a minute, Yeah, I would.

995
00:45:27,560 --> 00:45:31,239
Speaker 5: Say so if you're talking about asset management there again,

996
00:45:31,360 --> 00:45:33,080
Speaker 5: this is just totally spec or whatever. But you know,

997
00:45:33,160 --> 00:45:35,480
Speaker 5: maybe your brother Jones still as a talented guy, that

998
00:45:35,560 --> 00:45:39,280
Speaker 5: would have some value, right, I mean, you know, especially

999
00:45:40,160 --> 00:45:42,759
Speaker 5: he's entering an option year and you know, I don't

1000
00:45:42,760 --> 00:45:46,720
Speaker 5: know if you want to do that to him necessarily,

1001
00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:48,040
Speaker 5: but having a compet you know what I'm saying, Like,

1002
00:45:48,360 --> 00:45:50,720
Speaker 5: maybe it's better for all parties involved if you decide

1003
00:45:50,760 --> 00:45:53,279
Speaker 5: that Cook is a piece he's going forward, that you

1004
00:45:53,360 --> 00:45:55,160
Speaker 5: do move on from him, and you know, you can

1005
00:45:55,200 --> 00:45:57,320
Speaker 5: get yourself from draft car. But I don't know. But

1006
00:45:57,520 --> 00:45:59,800
Speaker 5: but I mean, because I don't think Droones was terrible

1007
00:45:59,800 --> 00:46:02,440
Speaker 5: by he means, I don't. I think Jones is certainly

1008
00:46:02,480 --> 00:46:05,000
Speaker 5: amongst amongst the top thirty two left tackles in the world.

1009
00:46:05,040 --> 00:46:06,279
Speaker 5: You know what I'm saying, He's a starter by that

1010
00:46:06,360 --> 00:46:07,239
Speaker 5: definition for sure.

1011
00:46:07,680 --> 00:46:09,959
Speaker 4: So there's a lot of teams playing with a lot worse.

1012
00:46:11,080 --> 00:46:11,800
Speaker 5: Yeah, exactly.

1013
00:46:11,880 --> 00:46:12,080
Speaker 2: Yeah.

1014
00:46:12,080 --> 00:46:14,160
Speaker 5: And then and then you look at I mean, Sayamala

1015
00:46:14,200 --> 00:46:17,200
Speaker 5: has been I think he was really good Sunday night

1016
00:46:17,400 --> 00:46:20,040
Speaker 5: and be and it looks like a starter, you know,

1017
00:46:20,440 --> 00:46:22,400
Speaker 5: at it can be a starter caliber player too. So

1018
00:46:22,520 --> 00:46:24,120
Speaker 5: the way he you know, just see seeing him in

1019
00:46:24,160 --> 00:46:26,400
Speaker 5: the role he's in now, you really can kind of

1020
00:46:26,440 --> 00:46:28,200
Speaker 5: intrigue like, wow, he could be like a real you

1021
00:46:28,239 --> 00:46:30,200
Speaker 5: could really use him out in space, use him, you know,

1022
00:46:30,400 --> 00:46:32,839
Speaker 5: a pulling guard. You can really the way he moves

1023
00:46:32,960 --> 00:46:35,520
Speaker 5: is so it's highlight of course in this role. But

1024
00:46:35,719 --> 00:46:37,359
Speaker 5: you know, you think he could be a starter too,

1025
00:46:37,480 --> 00:46:39,880
Speaker 5: So there's some depth there. And another thing, I know,

1026
00:46:40,120 --> 00:46:42,120
Speaker 5: say I'm always a free agent is not the same situation.

1027
00:46:42,320 --> 00:46:45,680
Speaker 5: But yeah, you're right in terms of youth, and hey,

1028
00:46:45,719 --> 00:46:48,640
Speaker 5: it's right it should. I mean, they spent four top

1029
00:46:48,719 --> 00:46:52,280
Speaker 5: of the draft picks within two years there between Broderick

1030
00:46:52,320 --> 00:46:55,360
Speaker 5: and the three guys that're they're starting there, soa and

1031
00:46:55,560 --> 00:46:58,920
Speaker 5: using yeah, so idea is. So that's that's definitely good

1032
00:46:58,960 --> 00:46:59,200
Speaker 5: to see.

1033
00:46:59,200 --> 00:47:02,319
Speaker 2: You're right, certainly is and I think it's really paid

1034
00:47:02,360 --> 00:47:05,320
Speaker 2: off having Kris Adamski as our Tuesday guest throughout this

1035
00:47:05,680 --> 00:47:09,280
Speaker 2: regular season, and we will continue that next Tuesday, hopefully

1036
00:47:09,440 --> 00:47:12,000
Speaker 2: celebrating a divisional or a wildcard round part of me

1037
00:47:12,120 --> 00:47:14,520
Speaker 2: victory and looking ahead to the divisional round. But Chris,

1038
00:47:14,600 --> 00:47:16,960
Speaker 2: thank you for the time today, partner, Great stuff as always,

1039
00:47:17,000 --> 00:47:17,759
Speaker 2: and we'll talk to you soon.

1040
00:47:19,280 --> 00:47:20,759
Speaker 5: Always a pleasure voice, talk to you about it.

1041
00:47:21,239 --> 00:47:23,120
Speaker 2: There he goes Chris A. Damski. Make sure you're checking

1042
00:47:23,160 --> 00:47:24,680
Speaker 2: out his work in the trib and listening to him

1043
00:47:24,680 --> 00:47:26,840
Speaker 2: and our buddy Tom at noon every day on the

1044
00:47:26,880 --> 00:47:29,680
Speaker 2: Steelers Audio Network. One hour in the Books, another hour

1045
00:47:29,719 --> 00:47:35,040
Speaker 2: to Goo Power Rankings, Coaching Carousel. Okay, and Matt one

1046
00:47:35,080 --> 00:47:37,440
Speaker 2: of the big names that we've discussed a bunch throughout

1047
00:47:37,480 --> 00:47:40,879
Speaker 2: the around Campus Quarterback segment we've done throughout the fall,

1048
00:47:41,280 --> 00:47:45,879
Speaker 2: has just declared his intentions, oh for what he's going

1049
00:47:45,960 --> 00:47:47,640
Speaker 2: to do next year. We'll get to all that an

1050
00:47:47,680 --> 00:47:50,520
Speaker 2: hour number two as we roll along. It is the

1051
00:47:50,600 --> 00:47:53,280
Speaker 2: Drive on Steelers Nation Radio on the Steelers Audio Network