Speaker 1: Hi, everybody, Welcome to another edition of Packers unscripted from
Speaker 1: Packers dot Com. I am like Spofford, joined as always
Speaker 1: by my partner and Crime West Hodcoits were coming to
Speaker 1: you here from socially distant locations at lambeau Field West.
Speaker 1: Week seventeen. It is here, Packers Bears, Soldier Field three
Speaker 1: Central time kickoff, and we all know what's at stake.
Speaker 1: The Packers going for the number one seed. The Bears
Speaker 1: are trying to get into the playoffs as a wild card.
Speaker 1: And you take a look at this Bears season five
Speaker 1: and one, a six game losing streak, now a three
Speaker 1: game winning streak, trying to make it four to slip
Speaker 1: into the postseason. It's been a hard team to figure out,
Speaker 1: but it is a team that is playing really well
Speaker 1: right now. It's a team we've learned a lot about
Speaker 1: two I think, and the course of the season has
Speaker 1: worn on the Chicago Bears have gotten back to what
Speaker 1: they do well. For a long time, Mike, it seemed
Speaker 1: like they were trying to become something that they weren't,
Speaker 1: and I think that kind of factored into the decision
Speaker 1: and moved to Nick Foles and go away from Mitchell Troubinsky,
Speaker 1: but they also went away from the run game at
Speaker 1: that time. They also weren't getting the tight ends as
Speaker 1: involved as they have in the past. And when Troubinsky
Speaker 1: came back and in his big comeback game was against
Speaker 1: Green Bay, it didn't go completely how he wanted it to,
Speaker 1: but that was a building block, and I think one
Speaker 1: thing that they found out in that matchup was the
Speaker 1: fact that all Right, David Montgomery was a guy that
Speaker 1: we invested into a number of years ago. They had
Speaker 1: to maneuver without him mid season. Then they were trying
Speaker 1: to use Cordell Patterson in that running back role. Since
Speaker 1: Montgomery has returned, he's averaging twenty almost twenty four touches
Speaker 1: per game. Now they've established the running game again, they're
Speaker 1: putting up points. And I know a lot of Packer
Speaker 1: fans are quick to point out the competition that they've
Speaker 1: done that against is not elite in terms of the
Speaker 1: NFL rankings, but it's production nonetheless, And for the Chicago Bears,
Speaker 1: they're feeling much better about themselves going into this matchup
Speaker 1: today then I think they did a month ago into
Speaker 1: lambeau Field. Yeah, it's interesting heading into this one. I
Speaker 1: mentioned this when I did our weekly Three Things video
Speaker 1: with UH with Larry McCarn yesterday, that you look at
Speaker 1: that first Bears Packers matchup and the Bears first handoff
Speaker 1: in that game was to David Montgomery and he busted
Speaker 1: a fifty seven yard run. And it's that sort of
Speaker 1: became a turning point in a lot of ways for
Speaker 1: both of these teams. Because for the Bears it reminded them, hey,
Speaker 1: David Montgomery needs to be a big part of this
Speaker 1: offense moving forward. And yes, they did not beat the
Speaker 1: Packers that night. They ended up blowing a late lead
Speaker 1: the following week against the Detroit Lions, but they figured
Speaker 1: out that David Montgomery the role that he needs to
Speaker 1: have in order to be successful. That fifty seven yard
Speaker 1: run I think was a big part of that. On
Speaker 1: the Packers side of things, the Packers run defense has
Speaker 1: been quite good since that fifty seven yard run. It
Speaker 1: was sort of like that was the final kick in
Speaker 1: the teeth or whatever you want to call it for
Speaker 1: the run defense to get things turned around. And the
Speaker 1: turnaround came to fruition UH in some respects with the
Speaker 1: performance against Derrick Henry last week. So as you head
Speaker 1: into this week seventeen matchup and Soldier Field, the Bears
Speaker 1: run game and the Packers run defense is going to
Speaker 1: be front and center here. Yeah, And as much as
Speaker 1: we'll talk about the Bears and where they went and offensively,
Speaker 1: the fact that they're in a better rhythm now than
Speaker 1: they were a month ago, the Packers defense is in
Speaker 1: a much different position today than it was back in November,
Speaker 1: and a big reason for that is how well they've
Speaker 1: defended against the run. To some extent in his scheme,
Speaker 1: it is being able to just fit your gaps and
Speaker 1: and be in the right position at the right time.
Speaker 1: But Mike, I've really been blown away, especially these last
Speaker 1: three weeks, the number of players, individuals who have stepped
Speaker 1: up their games here in these this final stretch of
Speaker 1: the season. Chris Barnes moving in as the mic linebacker,
Speaker 1: the every down guy, that's been the right adjustment for
Speaker 1: this defense. I think you're getting more and you're the
Speaker 1: first one to point this out. I think you're getting
Speaker 1: more out of Christian Kirksey, and that will roll playing
Speaker 1: more on nickel situations and then also being able to
Speaker 1: incorporate Kamal Martin that rotations actually I think worked out
Speaker 1: pretty well for them. But Dean Lowery, Kenny Clark, both
Speaker 1: of those guys have been playing at an elite level.
Speaker 1: The outside linebackers have been very gap sound understanding their assignments,
Speaker 1: where Shawn Garry has been a big part of that
Speaker 1: as well, and certainly the safety stepping up and making
Speaker 1: plays when they have to. All of those things bode
Speaker 1: well for Green Bay and a lot of lessons were
Speaker 1: learned when they ruptured for that fifty seven yard carry
Speaker 1: against Montgomery. And the green Bay has they've seen Montgomery,
Speaker 1: they know what this guy can do. And if you
Speaker 1: go back and listen to all the unscripteds we've been
Speaker 1: doing for the past three years now, I've continued to
Speaker 1: toot the horn for him that this guy's a guy
Speaker 1: that must be respected. Now he's over a thousand yards
Speaker 1: on the season. I think there's only what five running
Speaker 1: backs that have already achieve eve that Mike he is
Speaker 1: a top of the line running back who must be respected.
Speaker 1: But the Packers defense, because of how they've rebounded the
Speaker 1: second half of the season, has worked its way into
Speaker 1: the top yard in total defense is in the top seven. Now.
Speaker 1: I believe in passing defense in their run defense has
Speaker 1: vastly improved, but that's only as good as your last performance.
Speaker 1: And Greenway needs to get one more marker here to
Speaker 1: show that this is a different unit. They can play
Speaker 1: gaps sound, they can play fundamental before they move into
Speaker 1: that postseason. Yeah. Absolutely, and you have to believe with
Speaker 1: what we've seen of the Bears offense as as has
Speaker 1: been mentioned, it wasn't exactly against a murderers row of
Speaker 1: defensive opponents over the last few weeks. But as you said,
Speaker 1: production is production, and the Bears have figured out what
Speaker 1: it takes to be successful. So I you know, even
Speaker 1: if the Packers run defense starts the game the way
Speaker 1: they did against Derrick Henry, I think we're going to
Speaker 1: see the Bears stay committed to that run with David Montgomery,
Speaker 1: you know, unless this becomes you know, a twenty point,
Speaker 1: you know, three score deficit or something like that. I
Speaker 1: think the Bears are going to stay committed to the
Speaker 1: run for as long as they can in order to
Speaker 1: try to pull this one out. And Mike, everybody knows
Speaker 1: that's head home right now. They understand that you are
Speaker 1: an exceptional racquetball player, one of the best in green Bay,
Speaker 1: maybe the four counties surrounding Brow County as well, if
Speaker 1: we want to push it out there. You and I
Speaker 1: both know if you would go down to the y
Speaker 1: m c A and you play five straight games and
Speaker 1: maybe you play some West hot quits is maybe you
Speaker 1: play some enhancement talent guys that you can beat up on.
Speaker 1: Mike Spofford is gonna walk out that day feeling pretty
Speaker 1: darn good about himself. Now, if you go in there
Speaker 1: and maybe you play some of the top guys in
Speaker 1: the country at racketball, you don't do so hot, You're
Speaker 1: not gonna feel that good about yourself. It doesn't matter
Speaker 1: the fact that the Bears maybe haven't beaten the top
Speaker 1: of the line defenses here with their offensive scheming, their
Speaker 1: thirty plus points per game since Lazar took back over
Speaker 1: the play since has has taken over the play calling
Speaker 1: from Mattnegie. The fact of the matter is they feel
Speaker 1: confident now. There is some momentum again, and this is
Speaker 1: a momentum driven sport. Jimmy Graham, as well as much
Speaker 1: maligned as I know he is sometimes at the Packers
Speaker 1: fan base two touchdowns last week, I mean they are
Speaker 1: being able to find ways to win on offense, and
Speaker 1: you and I all week long, like we've discussed this,
Speaker 1: you cannot look past the Chicago Bears. I understand that
Speaker 1: was a big win for Green Bay. It was the
Speaker 1: most complete performance of the season. But if you don't
Speaker 1: respect the threat that the Bears present, you're gonna be
Speaker 1: walking out of Soldier Field disappointed on Sunday night. Yeah. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: I mean I think it's it's the reality checks somewhat.
Speaker 1: And as as I say all the time, as we
Speaker 1: say all the time, it's a it's a week to
Speaker 1: week league, right, And if it were as easy as
Speaker 1: playing as well as the Packers played last Sunday night
Speaker 1: against Tennessee, of course they would play like that all
Speaker 1: the time. But it doesn't just because they did it
Speaker 1: against Tennessee against a very good team, you know, under
Speaker 1: the lights, the prime time, all of that, it doesn't
Speaker 1: mean you're just going to show up and play like
Speaker 1: that again. By the same token, the Packers performance back
Speaker 1: in Week five or six, whatever it was against Tampa
Speaker 1: Bay not a good performance for Green Bay, but they
Speaker 1: didn't go out and play like that every week either.
Speaker 1: That's just that's just not how it works. So you
Speaker 1: can't assume things. You can't take things for granted. And
Speaker 1: you said it was momentum. Momentum in this league is real.
Speaker 1: And the Bears were headed the wrong way with six
Speaker 1: consecutive losses. Everyone was talking about are they gonna blow
Speaker 1: the whole thing up and start over? Suddenly they win
Speaker 1: three straight. They're still in the playoff hunt, looking to
Speaker 1: get back to the postseason after winning the NFC North
Speaker 1: two years ago. And uh, and you just can't. You
Speaker 1: just can't count them out. I do want to get
Speaker 1: to our sponsor business here though, before I forget so serious.
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Speaker 1: Packers Go. And you understood where I was going at
Speaker 1: with that racquetball analogy, right, because because I wasn't just
Speaker 1: putting you over as a superb racketball player. It also,
Speaker 1: I mean, this is week seventeen, man, it doesn't matter
Speaker 1: who the Bears beat. It doesn't matter if they pass
Speaker 1: your eye tests as a fan or they don't. They
Speaker 1: beat those teams, they succeeded, they won offensively in those matchups,
Speaker 1: and they're ready for this test that Green Bay presents.
Speaker 1: They're going to be. It's a lot different ballgame winning,
Speaker 1: succeeding putting points on the board than being shut down
Speaker 1: in the way you're gonna look at that thing mentally.
Speaker 1: So that's why I just I've said all along this week,
Speaker 1: I just feel like Green Bay and they have. I mean,
Speaker 1: Matt laflour is saying all the right things, but you
Speaker 1: just gotta respect that because I think in some areas
Speaker 1: of the fan base, the way I've seen on Twitter
Speaker 1: and on iron Boxing, you know, submissions, I'm glad the
Speaker 1: fans aren't playing this game. I'm it's positive that it's
Speaker 1: the that locker room. Yeah, I agree. I just I
Speaker 1: get the sense that there are a lot of assumptions
Speaker 1: out there, not from within this building, but outside this building.
Speaker 1: There are a lot of assumptions that the Packers are
Speaker 1: just going to show up and play exactly like they
Speaker 1: played against Tennessee in Chicago. Doesn't have a chance, You
Speaker 1: can't you can't assume that the Packers could do that.
Speaker 1: They certainly could, and that's what they wanted. That's what
Speaker 1: they wanted, and we'll talk about that next Monday if
Speaker 1: that's the case. But but you can't you can't assume
Speaker 1: that that is going to happen. To recap the scenarios here, obviously,
Speaker 1: if the Packers win this game, they get the number
Speaker 1: one seed and the only first round by in the
Speaker 1: NFC playoffs. The Packers can also get the number one
Speaker 1: seed if the Seattle Seahawks lose to the San Francisco
Speaker 1: forty Niners. The Bears are in a similar situation in
Speaker 1: terms of, you know that one other game that could
Speaker 1: impact them if the Bears win. If the Bears beat
Speaker 1: the Packers, they are in the playoffs as a wild card.
Speaker 1: The Bears can also get a wild card if the
Speaker 1: Los Angeles Rams can beat the Arizona Cardinals. But the
Speaker 1: Rams are without their starting quarterback and without one of
Speaker 1: their top receivers in Cooper Cup, so that's going to
Speaker 1: be a tough one for the Rams. I think the
Speaker 1: Bears are. The Bears are certainly looking at this as
Speaker 1: they've got to win this to get in and hey,
Speaker 1: if you're the Packers, here's the thing. If you don't
Speaker 1: win this game and you don't get the number one seed,
Speaker 1: you will be either two or the three seed. If
Speaker 1: the Bears are in the playoffs, they will be either
Speaker 1: the six or the seven, which would create a possibility
Speaker 1: of having to play the Bears right away again next
Speaker 1: week in the wild card round. It could happen. So
Speaker 1: from green based perspective, it's like, well, you can either
Speaker 1: knock the Bears out now or you might have to
Speaker 1: knock him out again next week. So sort of like
Speaker 1: why wait around, right? And I think that's sort of
Speaker 1: what Matt Lafleur has been getting at this week when
Speaker 1: he's been saying this is a playoff mentality game for
Speaker 1: the Packers, not just because the number one seed is
Speaker 1: at stake, but if you don't take care of the Bears,
Speaker 1: you might have to try to beat them again in
Speaker 1: six or seven days. Yeah. And the big reason that
Speaker 1: you end up pushing that message home, guys, is you've
Speaker 1: earned this opportunity. Mike. It's week seventeen. The Packers reported
Speaker 1: for camp on July. It's currently as we're taping this
Speaker 1: New Year's Eve. Everything you've invested in the last five
Speaker 1: months has been to be in a position to have
Speaker 1: the number one seed, to get the buy heading into
Speaker 1: the playoffs. And it's right there for you, man, thirty
Speaker 1: one minute flight down, thirty one minute flight back. If
Speaker 1: you take care of business in between. You have a
Speaker 1: direct path from green Bay, Wisconsin to Tampa Bay, Florida.
Speaker 1: Tampa Florida. Sorry, a direct as the crow flies path
Speaker 1: to the super Bowl that runs through this stadium. You
Speaker 1: don't want to waste that opportunity. Yeah, absolutely, Well. We
Speaker 1: talked obviously a lot about the running game for the Bears,
Speaker 1: the run defense for the Packers. What are some other
Speaker 1: keys to victory here for Green Bay that jump out
Speaker 1: at us as far as what the Packers have to
Speaker 1: do on either side of the ball in order to
Speaker 1: emerge victorious and lockdown that number one seed. The Keen
Speaker 1: Hicks factor. I mean, last time that the Packers played them,
Speaker 1: there was that question all week long if Hicks was
Speaker 1: going to be ready. The Bears ended up designed to
Speaker 1: sit him out, and I thought that had a direct correlation,
Speaker 1: not necessarily on the outcome of the game, but definitely
Speaker 1: the way that Green Bay was able to assert themselves
Speaker 1: and scoring forty one points against the defense. I still
Speaker 1: think I has a lot of playmakers. There's been some
Speaker 1: question about Eddie Jackson this year. I saw and in
Speaker 1: his level of play. I haven't followed the Bears enough
Speaker 1: to be able to comment on that, but when you
Speaker 1: look at that front and Kyle Fuller is one of
Speaker 1: the top cornerbacks in this league, I really respect what
Speaker 1: he brings to the table. And and obviously there you know,
Speaker 1: we everyone knows the story there with Green Bay and
Speaker 1: whatnot with him. So I just feel like the Hicks
Speaker 1: factor is going to give them a boost in this one,
Speaker 1: in addition to the fact that he's one of the
Speaker 1: most disruptive, if not underrated, defensive lineman in the National
Speaker 1: Football League. Yeah. Absolutely. I mean I said it back
Speaker 1: in week twelve when it happened, and I've been saying
Speaker 1: it this week as well, that you could see the
Speaker 1: Bear the Packers completely exploited the absence of a Chem
Speaker 1: Hicks right from the get go in that first matchup
Speaker 1: with the Bears. I believe it was within Aaron Jones
Speaker 1: first four carries of that game, he had runs of fourteen,
Speaker 1: nine and eight yards that were between the tackles. The
Speaker 1: Packers took advantage of the fact that Hicks wasn't in there.
Speaker 1: It's not going to be as easy this time. And
Speaker 1: I think in that respect that speaks to the commitment
Speaker 1: the Packers are going to need to have to the
Speaker 1: run game in this game in order to stay balanced,
Speaker 1: in order in order to keep this offense operating at
Speaker 1: that at that balanced deficient level, because Hicks is gonna
Speaker 1: make it harder to get six and seven yard carries
Speaker 1: between the tackles. But you can't just give up on
Speaker 1: the run and and and completely turned to the past
Speaker 1: because we've seen we've seen good defenses, you know, give
Speaker 1: the Packers trouble when when they get away from the
Speaker 1: running game. So I think offensively, staying balance is going
Speaker 1: to be is going to be big in this game,
Speaker 1: and it's when we've seen the Packers offense at his best.
Speaker 1: On the other side, defensively, I'll throw out there too.
Speaker 1: I say this every time the Packers go up against
Speaker 1: Mitch tru Whisky, and you can't let this guy run
Speaker 1: around and make plays with his legs because you know,
Speaker 1: is he the most prolific efficient passer in the league. No,
Speaker 1: he's he's not even close to that, frankly, but he
Speaker 1: is a guy who will scramble to the chains and
Speaker 1: get first downs. He will get out of the pocket
Speaker 1: and make plays on the run. You have to keep
Speaker 1: Mr True Whisky in the pocket and make him beat
Speaker 1: you from there. Don't make him beat you where he's better,
Speaker 1: which is when he's on the move. In my opinion, Yeah,
Speaker 1: and he's a momentum quarterback. He's almost a definition of it.
Speaker 1: When things are going right, and he can be really
Speaker 1: difficult to stop. And when things are going wrong, well
Speaker 1: we've seen that over the last three years. What what
Speaker 1: the you know after effect of that is. But things
Speaker 1: are going right for him right now, Mike, as I
Speaker 1: wrote an Insider inbox on Thursday, you look back to
Speaker 1: that game against Green Bay, he's right there as far
Speaker 1: as pass or passing completion percentage. I mean, he's he's
Speaker 1: been efficient and absence of a really terrible pass in Jacksonville,
Speaker 1: everyone talks about how he's throw into quadruple coverage and
Speaker 1: this was how could you have done that? They're playing
Speaker 1: the Jacksonville Jaguars. What people don't really talk about is
Speaker 1: the fact that the Bears basically dominated the rest of
Speaker 1: the football game, and really that was the one bad moment.
Speaker 1: But that's the thing that ended up on social media,
Speaker 1: that's what ended up on ESPN. They don't really look
Speaker 1: at the fact that if not for that, uh, Trabinsky
Speaker 1: would have had a freaking forty passer rating or whatever
Speaker 1: it would have been. I mean, that was the one
Speaker 1: mistake that he made. It just happened that all the
Speaker 1: eyeballs were on it. But that's the key to victory
Speaker 1: in this game too. He's gonna probably give the defensive
Speaker 1: secondary two or three chances at balls in this game.
Speaker 1: That's just the way he plays the position, especially if
Speaker 1: you can stop David Montgomery on early downs, like Green
Speaker 1: Bay was able to control the line of scrimmage against
Speaker 1: the Titans. If you're able to do that, that's where
Speaker 1: you want to get your bisky. You want to put
Speaker 1: this game in his hands. You want to make him uncomfortable,
Speaker 1: you want to get after him. He was. He was
Speaker 1: hit six times in that game. Zadarius Smith has had
Speaker 1: a man ignitt for the backfield when he's back there
Speaker 1: during his you know, almost two full seasons in Green Bay.
Speaker 1: Now there is a path here. I keep I'm propping
Speaker 1: up the Bears. I'm not trying to present them as
Speaker 1: the Kansas City Chiefs right now, but there is a
Speaker 1: path for green Bay and I think that this is
Speaker 1: a game that they're obviously favored in and for good reason.
Speaker 1: Packers have a good history at Soldier Field during Aaron
Speaker 1: Rodgers tenure. Is is the starting quarterback and Trabisky is
Speaker 1: only one one of his six games against green Bay.
Speaker 1: But that being said, you just need to find a
Speaker 1: way to pre able to pressure him and get a
Speaker 1: couple of takeaways. That's been the difference Mike. As much
Speaker 1: as green Bay has controlled and has avoided the explosive
Speaker 1: plays in recent weeks, the takeaways have been the biggest difference.
Speaker 1: And when you have an offense that doesn't give it
Speaker 1: away like Aaron Rodgers and Matt with floor don't, good
Speaker 1: things are gonna happen. Yeah. And the one other aspect
Speaker 1: to this game all throw in there too is obviously
Speaker 1: special teams. We've seen the Packers have had. The Packers
Speaker 1: have had their hiccups on special teams over the last
Speaker 1: couple of months. There's no doubt about it. One of
Speaker 1: the best special teams performances the Packers had in this
Speaker 1: time was against the Bears. In that first meeting, Cordorrell
Speaker 1: Patterson didn't get really anything going on kickoff returns. Bears
Speaker 1: didn't get much going on on punt return But traditionally
Speaker 1: the Bears have been the better special teams unit compared
Speaker 1: to Green Bay. That's a phase that not saying the
Speaker 1: Packers have to have to win the phase, but you
Speaker 1: can't let the Bears dominate that phase, which then would
Speaker 1: lead to dominating field position. Can't let that happen on stuffing.
Speaker 1: The bizarre thing is, and this goes before Sean Menning
Speaker 1: goes here, and honestly probably goes before run Zoock to
Speaker 1: Green Bay always seems to do okay against Patterson, Like
Speaker 1: we'll spend the whole week talking about how dangerous he
Speaker 1: is and how much of a problem he causes teams
Speaker 1: in Green Bay I think absent and maybe one kickoff
Speaker 1: return during his time in Minnesota, I can't really remember.
Speaker 1: There was a hundred plus yard kickoff return at the
Speaker 1: at the Metro Dome and that was early was that
Speaker 1: his rookie year? It was early in his career. I
Speaker 1: don't remember exactly which year, but yeah, other the other
Speaker 1: than that one. Yeah, the Packers knock on wood you know,
Speaker 1: have have done pretty well against it. So the point being,
Speaker 1: I mean, he's still a pro bowler. He still can
Speaker 1: you know, hurt you in a lot of ways. But
Speaker 1: you just you have to be on your your your
Speaker 1: p's and ques here, just like last week the defense
Speaker 1: was against Derrick Henry because he could still have yards
Speaker 1: and still look really good statistically, but you just can't
Speaker 1: let him take over a game. It's just that that
Speaker 1: is the key against Patterson, and especially the way that
Speaker 1: the Bears use him now is sort of a backfield
Speaker 1: you know, time Montgomery, you know, get him in space,
Speaker 1: kind of offensive target. Yeah, well, quickly before we go,
Speaker 1: just to get your thoughts a little bit on the
Speaker 1: playoff picture. We know in the NFC, as we've already
Speaker 1: talked about, the Packers are playing for the one seed.
Speaker 1: The Bears are fighting with the Cardinals and the Rams
Speaker 1: for two uh two potential wild card spots amongst those
Speaker 1: three teams. I'd like your thoughts on what's going on
Speaker 1: in the a f C because there's a whole bunch
Speaker 1: of ten and five teams somebody is going to have
Speaker 1: is going to finish the season with ten wins and
Speaker 1: maybe eleven. If all of these ten win teams get
Speaker 1: victories and one of those either ten or eleven win
Speaker 1: teams is not going to make the postseason, how do
Speaker 1: you think this is going to shake out in the
Speaker 1: a f C on something? I mean, talk about high
Speaker 1: stakes too, right, Mike. I mean, Tennessee is trying to
Speaker 1: get its first division title in twelve years. Cleveland, who
Speaker 1: was left out as a ten win team what was
Speaker 1: it thirteen years ago? Uh, they're trying to find a
Speaker 1: way to get in. And then you got the Indianapolis Colts,
Speaker 1: who just have to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars to get
Speaker 1: to eleven wins, but even if they do that, they're
Speaker 1: not necessarily guaranteed a playoff spot and hence becoming the
Speaker 1: biggest Mason Rudolph fans. Uh this side of whatever the
Speaker 1: famous river is in Pittsburgh. That's escaping my name right now. Alleghany,
Speaker 1: thanks Mike, look at you. Of course one of us
Speaker 1: did well in geography, one of us didn't. Uh No,
Speaker 1: But that that's the interesting thing of how this season
Speaker 1: has worked out, especially from the Colts perspective, Mike. I
Speaker 1: mean that the fact that you know, you've beaten the
Speaker 1: Green Bay Packers and some of these teams, and yet
Speaker 1: even a win over the Jaguars doesn't necessarily necessarily necessarily
Speaker 1: get you that playoff spot you're coveting. Uh And in
Speaker 1: the year in which we added the seventh spot for
Speaker 1: some teams, that might not even be enough. So yeah,
Speaker 1: a lot of drama, a lot of drama that is
Speaker 1: attached to other things, as we talked about earlier this week.
Speaker 1: So seeing how that a f C schedule, you know,
Speaker 1: kind of finishes out, and who's going to be able
Speaker 1: the ones that to punch their ticket into January, this
Speaker 1: is going to be a really interesting week week of football. Yeah. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: And I'll just say this, I know the Colts are
Speaker 1: the team in the a f C that needs to
Speaker 1: win and get a little bit of help in order
Speaker 1: to get in. I'd like to see him get in.
Speaker 1: Just in case this is Philip rivers last season, I'd
Speaker 1: like to see him get one more shot in the playoffs.
Speaker 1: Just just my own personal preference. I mean, the guy
Speaker 1: doesn't really get enough respect for the way he was
Speaker 1: able to dominate games throughout the course of his career.
Speaker 1: Now he's having to do it a little differently with
Speaker 1: the Colts now at thirty nine years old, uh than
Speaker 1: he did during his prime with the Chargers. But he's smart,
Speaker 1: he's efficient, and he he is the ultimate game. Right.
Speaker 1: So many people want to throw comparisons to Farv. I
Speaker 1: saw even like people saying, like Josh Allen he could
Speaker 1: be like you know, far I think Rivers had the
Speaker 1: mentality that Farve had. He's going to find a way.
Speaker 1: He's gonna make mistakes, he's not gonna apologize for it,
Speaker 1: but he's gonna keep things exciting. And if you give
Speaker 1: him a defense. I mean that's probably the biggest thing
Speaker 1: in his career is when he had a defense, he
Speaker 1: won football games. And you know, we'll we'll see how
Speaker 1: all this shuffles out. I gotta mention too before we
Speaker 1: get out, looking at the NFC race to to one
Speaker 1: last thing on the Bears. Yeah, if I'm Matt Niggie,
Speaker 1: I'm telling my guys this week, you are better than
Speaker 1: the Los Angeles Rams. You're better than them. They're they're
Speaker 1: just sputtering into the station right now. You're on the incline.
Speaker 1: So seeing how that that aspect of this works out
Speaker 1: as well, is gonna be something really interesting to follow
Speaker 1: because the Rams are hurting unit now, but they have
Speaker 1: the advantage going into weeks seventeen. Yeah. Absolutely, well, it
Speaker 1: should be a great weekend of regular season finale football
Speaker 1: in the NFL. With that, we will call it a
Speaker 1: rap on this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to
Speaker 1: follow all of our coverage of the team and of
Speaker 1: Sunday afternoons Big Game from Chicago. Will have it all
Speaker 1: for you on Packers dot com for West I Am Mike.
Speaker 1: Thank you for tuning in, everybody, and we won't just
Speaker 1: see you next time. We'll see you next year. Happy
Speaker 1: New Year, everybody. Take care,