WEBVTT - #633 Packers Unscripted: Back from the bye 0:00:00.440 --> 0:00:10.879 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:10.920 --> 0:00:14.880 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford. He is Wes Hodkowitz. 0:00:14.920 --> 0:00:17.040 We're coming to you here from our studios at lambeau 0:00:17.079 --> 0:00:20.280 Field and we are back from the bye week West. 0:00:20.360 --> 0:00:23.520 Not that we ever totally get to check out, because 0:00:23.560 --> 0:00:27.080 there's always some work to be done, but we got 0:00:27.120 --> 0:00:29.880 to spend a few days away from the office. I 0:00:29.920 --> 0:00:32.360 hope you enjoyed yours. Yeah, it was funny. I was 0:00:32.360 --> 0:00:35.680 talking about Ryan Hartwig are magnificent manager of social media, 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:37.400 and I said to him, actually, Ryan was the one 0:00:37.400 --> 0:00:38.720 that brought this up. I hope he doesn't mind me 0:00:38.760 --> 0:00:42.000 saying it on Sunday. It's like, you know, we still 0:00:42.000 --> 0:00:43.519 had to work last week. I was still in the 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:46.440 office four out of the five days. But it is 0:00:46.520 --> 0:00:49.680 interesting when you get through Sunday night, you're like, oh, oh, 0:00:49.720 --> 0:00:51.599 so this is how the other half lives. Like they 0:00:51.640 --> 0:00:54.240 just they worked five days and then they're off Saturday Sunday. 0:00:54.240 --> 0:00:55.920 Not everybody, I know, there's a lot of people that 0:00:56.000 --> 0:00:58.200 work on the weekends, but it was it was really 0:00:58.240 --> 0:01:00.840 refreshing to be able to do that. Honestly, it was 0:01:00.840 --> 0:01:02.480 just kind of important, just to catch up on life 0:01:02.520 --> 0:01:05.759 a little bit, get some Christmas presents bought and purchased, 0:01:05.800 --> 0:01:08.360 and projects taken care of. So it was fun. Yeah, 0:01:08.400 --> 0:01:11.560 I kind of enjoyed that those opportunities to sit out 0:01:11.600 --> 0:01:14.319 on Sunday and watch an NFL game and then when 0:01:14.360 --> 0:01:16.120 it's over, just turn the TV off and go do 0:01:16.200 --> 0:01:18.039 something else we're supposed to, like, oh, now I have 0:01:18.160 --> 0:01:20.160 like six hours worth of work to do because the 0:01:20.200 --> 0:01:23.800 game is over, right, So that's not that that was 0:01:23.840 --> 0:01:26.160 not just for the record on Sunday. We did the 0:01:26.160 --> 0:01:27.920 show five and a half years. That's the first time 0:01:27.920 --> 0:01:31.120 I think I've ever sneed. I think it is if 0:01:31.120 --> 0:01:34.280 we're not stopping, we're not and we're not going to reshoot. 0:01:34.280 --> 0:01:36.280 We're not going to reshoot either. That's that has to 0:01:36.319 --> 0:01:39.560 get in. Matt Vin do some He's busy enough, but 0:01:39.600 --> 0:01:42.840 do some research. I don't ever remember sneezing factors on scripted, 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:45.000 and I realized, I'm like, I can't contain this. This 0:01:45.080 --> 0:01:47.800 is going to happen, So I apologize. We're off to 0:01:47.840 --> 0:01:51.200 a rip roar and starting here, well where I did 0:01:51.240 --> 0:01:54.480 want to start this show actually, with regard to watching 0:01:54.480 --> 0:01:59.080 football on Sunday, is to talk about two streaks that 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:04.400 came to an end, one being the Detroit Lions winless streak. 0:02:04.440 --> 0:02:06.280 They had not won a game. I believe it was 0:02:06.320 --> 0:02:10.160 for three d and sixty four days dating back to 0:02:12.919 --> 0:02:15.960 and Uh. The Lions get a last second victory over 0:02:16.000 --> 0:02:18.960 the Minnesota Vikings, which has some implications for the Packers 0:02:18.960 --> 0:02:20.520 that I'll get to in a minute. But the other 0:02:20.639 --> 0:02:25.639 streak that ended west Jamal Williams actually fumbled a football. 0:02:26.720 --> 0:02:30.840 I believe it's seven seven touches in the regular season 0:02:30.880 --> 0:02:34.320 and then you add some more in the postseason on 0:02:34.440 --> 0:02:38.400 top of that. Still doesn't have a lost recovered. The 0:02:38.480 --> 0:02:42.239 Lions recovered. But Jamal Williams, the former Packers running back 0:02:42.280 --> 0:02:45.480 now Lions running back, actually fumbled a football for the 0:02:45.520 --> 0:02:48.120 first time in his career. Well, and it was funny 0:02:48.160 --> 0:02:51.240 because I think I realized this maybe midway through his 0:02:51.320 --> 0:02:53.400 third season in Green Bay, that he'd been on the streak. 0:02:53.440 --> 0:02:55.680 I think he'd reached like five touches. I remember the 0:02:55.680 --> 0:02:58.480 first time you brought it up on this show actually 0:02:58.880 --> 0:03:01.240 at one point and I wasn't aware of it. Yeah, 0:03:01.280 --> 0:03:03.760 and you you made me aware of it. So I've 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:06.520 always paid attention since then. And there was no benefit 0:03:06.720 --> 0:03:09.520 whatsoever to me writing anything about it or talking about it, 0:03:09.520 --> 0:03:11.239 because then you just get the people tweeting at you. 0:03:11.400 --> 0:03:15.800 We're to mess up the streak. So I never talked 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.360 about it. But it was a remarkable four years streak 0:03:18.440 --> 0:03:19.920 for him in Green Bay and the fact that he 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:22.280 had as many touches as he did in Detroit. The 0:03:22.360 --> 0:03:25.280 guy I said this number one thing about Jamal Williams, 0:03:25.320 --> 0:03:27.440 the biggest compliment I can ever pay him. He is 0:03:27.480 --> 0:03:30.680 such a good fundamental football player and a good fundamental 0:03:30.760 --> 0:03:33.839 running back. So uh, fortunately for them, they didn't lose 0:03:33.880 --> 0:03:36.120 the ball, and unfortunately for the Detroit Lions they didn't 0:03:36.120 --> 0:03:38.880 lose that game. They found a way to win a 0:03:38.960 --> 0:03:40.839 game that you could tell meant a lot to Dan 0:03:40.880 --> 0:03:43.880 Campbell and that football team. Yeah. Absolutely, a crazy sequence 0:03:43.880 --> 0:03:45.480 of events there at the end of the game with 0:03:45.640 --> 0:03:48.440 the fourth down decision and then the Vikings decided to 0:03:48.480 --> 0:03:50.640 get a touchdown instead of work the clock, and it 0:03:50.720 --> 0:03:53.480 leaves Jared Goff a whole bunch of time, all of 0:03:53.520 --> 0:03:56.560 that stuff. A last second, last play of the game, 0:03:56.640 --> 0:04:01.440 touchdown pass two. Equinimius st. Brown's brother Aman Raw, I'm 0:04:01.480 --> 0:04:04.760 saying that correctly I'm on ra st Brown. The Lions 0:04:04.800 --> 0:04:07.160 get a win, and the big implications for the Packers 0:04:07.200 --> 0:04:13.160 there with the Vikings losing, the Packers now potentially could 0:04:13.200 --> 0:04:16.240 clinch the NFC North this week. And the way that 0:04:16.240 --> 0:04:19.560 that could happen is the Vikings playing now on a 0:04:19.560 --> 0:04:22.200 short week. They've got a Thursday night game against Pittsburgh, 0:04:22.240 --> 0:04:27.320 a suddenly rejuvenated Pittsburgh team after their last second victory 0:04:27.400 --> 0:04:30.520 over the Baltimore Ravens in a big division rivalry. The 0:04:30.640 --> 0:04:35.080 Vikings play Pittsburgh on Thursday. If the Vikings lose that game, west, 0:04:35.160 --> 0:04:38.839 the Packers will take the field Sunday night at lambeau 0:04:38.839 --> 0:04:42.040 Field against the Chicago Bears with a chance to clinch 0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:46.760 a third straight NFC North title. So I will fully 0:04:46.800 --> 0:04:49.200 you know, we have to we have to call a 0:04:49.240 --> 0:04:50.680 spade a spade here because if you and I are 0:04:50.680 --> 0:04:52.400 going to talk about injuries on the Packers side, we 0:04:52.440 --> 0:04:54.200 have to talk about the fact that Daniel Hunter has 0:04:54.200 --> 0:04:56.320 gone down. They didn't have Delvin Cook in this game. 0:04:56.800 --> 0:05:00.120 Eric Kendricks was out that game as well. From any so, 0:05:00.200 --> 0:05:04.640 Minnesota's banged up, but unfortunately for them, in different from 0:05:04.680 --> 0:05:07.760 just the pieces the puzzle has been very much the same. 0:05:07.839 --> 0:05:10.360 This year. They had a huge win of of much 0:05:10.680 --> 0:05:14.000 a well deserved victory in the last moments against the Packers, 0:05:14.040 --> 0:05:16.920 but back to back letdowns. And I said this earlier 0:05:16.920 --> 0:05:19.240 this season, Mike, they really feel like a team to 0:05:19.279 --> 0:05:21.679 me that's just kind of steamrolling towards another five hundred 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:23.919 type season. And when you fall to a team like 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:26.159 Detroit that's had to work through its own issues, that 0:05:26.200 --> 0:05:28.400 probably is not the most talented team in the National 0:05:28.400 --> 0:05:31.159 Football League, in the bottom third in that regard in 0:05:31.240 --> 0:05:34.160 terms of what Dan Campbell has to work with. This 0:05:34.200 --> 0:05:36.680 is the ups and downs you go through. Uh. The 0:05:36.760 --> 0:05:38.880 question was asked an inside of inbox, and I still 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:42.160 I hope you know, Rick Spielman, such a level headed guy, 0:05:42.320 --> 0:05:46.640 you know everybody in that organization. I hope the Vikings 0:05:46.640 --> 0:05:48.680 do realize that this is going to be a disappointing 0:05:48.760 --> 0:05:51.960 year potentially for them. Again, I still don't feel even 0:05:51.960 --> 0:05:53.800 though the defense isn't great, I still don't feel like 0:05:53.839 --> 0:05:57.279 Mike Zimmer's the problem there. He's the best head coach 0:05:57.360 --> 0:06:00.120 that's come through this division that hasn't been collect thing 0:06:00.120 --> 0:06:02.320 a paycheck from the Packers in my estimation, in twenty 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:06.560 years Yeah so, they probably probably since Lovey Smith was 0:06:06.600 --> 0:06:10.520 in Chicago. Yeah so, and just just seeing how this 0:06:10.560 --> 0:06:12.240 all goes. But man, I'm telling you, if this thing 0:06:12.240 --> 0:06:14.000 doesn't go well for them on Thursday, it's gonna get 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:17.280 ugly quick. Yeah. I mean the when I look at 0:06:17.320 --> 0:06:19.800 the Viking season, and we had talked earlier, you know, 0:06:19.920 --> 0:06:23.480 in getting ready for the Packers Vikings matchup, which ended 0:06:23.560 --> 0:06:25.400 up being a down to the wire last play thing. 0:06:25.440 --> 0:06:27.680 We talked about how the Vikings have been in all 0:06:27.720 --> 0:06:31.120 of these last second games. And yes, you're gonna win some, 0:06:31.200 --> 0:06:33.320 you're gonna lose something. That's the way this league goes. 0:06:33.839 --> 0:06:37.800 But for me, from the Vikings perspective, they've lost two 0:06:37.839 --> 0:06:41.159 games this season that you absolutely cannot lose. You can't 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:44.400 lose a primetime game at home against the Dallas Cowboys 0:06:44.400 --> 0:06:47.080 team that is starting a quarterback for the first time 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:50.200 in his life in the NFL. You cannot lose that 0:06:50.240 --> 0:06:53.960 football game at home at night. And you can't go 0:06:54.040 --> 0:06:56.520 to Detroit and play a division rival that is O 0:06:56.720 --> 0:06:59.280 ten and one when you have so much to play 0:06:59.320 --> 0:07:02.839 for and let that game get away in the final seconds. 0:07:02.880 --> 0:07:05.520 To me, I mean, yes, the as I said, the 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:08.040 Vikings have had all of these last second losses, wins, 0:07:08.080 --> 0:07:11.320 back and forth, whatever, But those two games that you 0:07:11.400 --> 0:07:14.960 really cannot lose. That's the difference between the Vikings being 0:07:15.000 --> 0:07:16.920 seven and five and five and seven right now are 0:07:16.960 --> 0:07:19.360 those two results. And there's been a lot of pooh, 0:07:19.440 --> 0:07:22.440 you know, swung at, slung at Jared Goff this year, 0:07:22.480 --> 0:07:24.440 But you gotta give golf credit. That looked like a 0:07:24.480 --> 0:07:26.440 guy that had been there and he'd seen a lot. 0:07:26.640 --> 0:07:28.720 He played in the Super Bowl and the winning time 0:07:28.760 --> 0:07:31.600 he came through for his football team. Uh, you know, 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:33.600 to be able to pull that out, and you know, 0:07:33.600 --> 0:07:35.520 as aman Ross and Brown being the one to catch 0:07:35.560 --> 0:07:37.480 that pass in the end zone, all the chips are down. 0:07:37.480 --> 0:07:39.920 You gotta get it. You talk about the games that 0:07:39.960 --> 0:07:42.400 the Vikings have lost close, Detroit's had a lot of 0:07:42.400 --> 0:07:44.040 those two and they finally gone a way to get 0:07:44.080 --> 0:07:46.000 that win. But if you would have told me that 0:07:46.080 --> 0:07:48.120 Kirk Cousins would have thrown for three and forty yards 0:07:48.160 --> 0:07:51.040 and a hundred seventeen passer rating justin Jefferson goes off 0:07:51.040 --> 0:07:53.560 for another hundred eighty yards and they still lose that 0:07:53.640 --> 0:07:55.960 game to Detroit, I think I would have probably thought 0:07:55.960 --> 0:07:58.880 that you're full of it. Yeah, well, the Vikings, because 0:07:58.880 --> 0:08:01.120 the Vikings are five and seven. That is a big 0:08:01.160 --> 0:08:03.480 reason now that the Packers are on the verge of 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:07.680 potentially clinching that NFC North title. Turning our attentions a 0:08:07.720 --> 0:08:11.280 little more directly to the Packers what we're waiting to 0:08:11.360 --> 0:08:15.040 see this week West Because I've used the word potentially 0:08:15.080 --> 0:08:17.400 on this show already, and Matt Lafleur used the word 0:08:17.440 --> 0:08:23.000 potentially in his meeting with the media on Monday. Maybe, 0:08:23.040 --> 0:08:27.200 just maybe David Baktiari and or j you'r Alexander and 0:08:27.400 --> 0:08:29.760 or za Darius Smith could be back on the practice 0:08:29.800 --> 0:08:33.600 field for the Packers very soon. Now, again, we don't know, 0:08:33.760 --> 0:08:36.240 and Matt Lafleur, as he has said all season long, 0:08:36.360 --> 0:08:40.360 was making no guarantees, no promises whatsoever. But signs are 0:08:40.400 --> 0:08:44.320 pointing to whether it's this week, next week, maybe heading 0:08:44.320 --> 0:08:47.040 into Christmas, whatever the case might be, that these three 0:08:47.840 --> 0:08:50.440 All Pro players, a five time All Pro left tackle 0:08:50.559 --> 0:08:54.920 to second team All Pro defensive stars could be coming 0:08:54.920 --> 0:08:57.320 back for Green Bay here at some point during the 0:08:57.320 --> 0:09:00.000 stretch run. It's at least good to hear the way 0:09:00.080 --> 0:09:03.120 in the inflection and Lafleur's voice when talking about those 0:09:03.160 --> 0:09:05.040 three guys, because to make note of that, when he 0:09:05.080 --> 0:09:07.040 was asked about Josh Myers, he was quick to say, 0:09:07.040 --> 0:09:09.320 now he's not going to practice yet. He's not that close. 0:09:09.840 --> 0:09:11.800 He could have easily just written off any of those 0:09:11.800 --> 0:09:15.360 other three. He didn't do that. Now again, there's a 0:09:15.400 --> 0:09:17.320 lot of excitement in the inbox, there's a lot of 0:09:17.320 --> 0:09:21.720 excitement on Twitter. Calm down just a little bit, you know, Jr. 0:09:21.720 --> 0:09:25.040 Alexander hasn't practiced yet. SA Darius Smith hasn't practiced yet. 0:09:25.120 --> 0:09:28.040 David Bactier practice a little bit, didn't practice for the 0:09:28.040 --> 0:09:30.920 past few weeks, could potentially be back this week. It's 0:09:30.920 --> 0:09:33.719 still a process. But the Packers to be sitting at 0:09:33.800 --> 0:09:35.720 nine and three, one game out from the top of 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:37.319 the division, as you said, how close they are to 0:09:37.360 --> 0:09:42.319 clinching a division title. To have those guys potentially available 0:09:42.360 --> 0:09:44.880 on the horizon for them here, be it on Christmas, 0:09:45.160 --> 0:09:46.840 be it, you know, against the Vikings, be it in 0:09:46.840 --> 0:09:50.000 the finale, be it in the playoffs. That is going 0:09:50.080 --> 0:09:54.040 to be such a galvanizing moment for an offense that 0:09:54.120 --> 0:09:56.160 has had to whether not having box tr at the 0:09:56.200 --> 0:10:00.000 most important position on the offensive line for twelve games 0:09:59.800 --> 0:10:02.640 is season for an outside linebacker group that has just 0:10:02.720 --> 0:10:05.080 had to make it work. They've had to ask more 0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:08.880 from Shawn Gary in a quarterback contingent that has just 0:10:08.960 --> 0:10:12.800 been a bevy of different guys contributing in different you know, 0:10:12.920 --> 0:10:15.720 utilization of person on a week to week basis. Any 0:10:15.720 --> 0:10:18.280 of those three guys come back, great, two of them 0:10:18.320 --> 0:10:20.720 come back fantastic. You get three of them back and 0:10:20.760 --> 0:10:22.560 you add them to the recipe that the Packers have 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:26.120 already been building. That's that that's what can get you 0:10:26.160 --> 0:10:27.840 over the hump here in terms of being able to 0:10:27.880 --> 0:10:30.640 really start thinking we are not just the team wanting 0:10:30.640 --> 0:10:34.040 to compete for Super Bowl, we expect to be there. Yeah. Absolutely, 0:10:34.240 --> 0:10:36.959 that's uh. That's that's the biggest wait and see thing 0:10:37.040 --> 0:10:40.720 here with with the Packers with regard to personnel down 0:10:40.720 --> 0:10:43.920 the stretch. Five games to go in the regular season. 0:10:44.440 --> 0:10:46.800 As you mentioned, the Packers right in the thick of 0:10:46.920 --> 0:10:50.640 things as far as the top playoff spot, that number 0:10:50.640 --> 0:10:52.719 one spot in the NFC will be the only one 0:10:52.800 --> 0:10:56.600 with the buy which the Packers got last year. You 0:10:56.640 --> 0:10:59.880 have Arizona at ten and two. The Cardinals knocked off 0:10:59.880 --> 0:11:02.680 the Bears this past weekend. To maintain that one game 0:11:02.800 --> 0:11:06.600 lead Packers and the Buccaneers at nine and three, the 0:11:06.720 --> 0:11:10.240 Cowboys and the Rams both eight and four. So you're 0:11:10.240 --> 0:11:14.840 looking at five teams within all within two games of 0:11:14.840 --> 0:11:18.080 one another, with five games to play, with all of 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:21.360 this potential jockeying for position and everything going on, It's 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:23.839 gonna be really interesting to see how to see how 0:11:23.880 --> 0:11:27.560 this shakes out. It's gonna be incredible theater down the stretch. 0:11:27.600 --> 0:11:29.520 And I know Matt Lafloor, and you asked him the 0:11:29.600 --> 0:11:31.960 question about that. He mentioned, it's like this every year. 0:11:32.040 --> 0:11:35.200 But to have, you know, one team that is in 0:11:35.280 --> 0:11:38.120 first place with two losses, but to have this many 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:41.440 teams in the three and four loss range and really 0:11:41.480 --> 0:11:43.880 all on a given day looking like the best team 0:11:43.880 --> 0:11:47.080 in the NFC in the NFC um it adds a 0:11:47.080 --> 0:11:49.200 lot of you know, elements to this. And then when 0:11:49.240 --> 0:11:51.840 you look at the way that these seasons end for 0:11:51.920 --> 0:11:54.440 some of these teams, like Washington for example, it's someone 0:11:54.480 --> 0:11:57.240 pointed out insider inbox. I never even realized it until then. 0:11:57.559 --> 0:12:01.320 Washington finishes the year with five straight division games. Yeah, 0:12:01.360 --> 0:12:05.160 you have these different mix and matches of of these 0:12:05.200 --> 0:12:08.160 schedules and seeing who prevails out of it, and if 0:12:08.200 --> 0:12:10.400 you're Green Bay, all you can do is focus on yourself. 0:12:10.440 --> 0:12:11.960 And for them, they're coming out of a week third 0:12:11.960 --> 0:12:14.479 team by it was challenging to get to that checkpoint, 0:12:14.760 --> 0:12:17.560 but they reached it and now you're you're trying to 0:12:17.559 --> 0:12:19.559 build on that during this final stretch of the year, 0:12:19.600 --> 0:12:21.680 and in you know, three of the five at home, 0:12:21.720 --> 0:12:24.240 and certainly some win will matchups against the North. Well. 0:12:24.240 --> 0:12:26.280 It's really interesting too. I know we don't talk much 0:12:26.320 --> 0:12:30.320 about the a f C on this show, but right now, 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:33.360 the when you look at those playoff picture graphics, the 0:12:33.440 --> 0:12:36.160 seven teams in the a f C that are in 0:12:36.200 --> 0:12:39.200 those seven playoff spots, all of them have either four 0:12:39.320 --> 0:12:42.760 or five losses. All seven of those teams are within 0:12:42.880 --> 0:12:45.839 one game of the lost column, you know, uh, within 0:12:45.920 --> 0:12:48.280 each other. So there's gonna be a lot to get 0:12:48.320 --> 0:12:50.360 to get sorted out in the other conference. Can ask 0:12:50.360 --> 0:12:52.880 you an impossible question, Are the Patriots the best team 0:12:52.880 --> 0:12:59.360 in the FC? I'm going to say no, It's fine, Yeah, 0:12:59.360 --> 0:13:01.560 I'm just here. I think I think right now they 0:13:01.640 --> 0:13:05.160 might be. I'm just not convinced that in January they 0:13:05.240 --> 0:13:07.520 will be. The PA the wins are strong enough, maybe 0:13:07.520 --> 0:13:10.800 they will be the the Patriots are. The Patriots are 0:13:10.800 --> 0:13:13.080 playing some really really good football right now. And I 0:13:13.120 --> 0:13:17.640 think we've seen the Chiefs, the Bills, the Bengals, the Chargers, 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:19.400 We've seen all these teams in the a f C 0:13:19.559 --> 0:13:21.560 go through these ups and downs. The Patriots are the 0:13:21.559 --> 0:13:25.199 team that that that is on the steadiest course right now. 0:13:25.760 --> 0:13:28.199 But again, it's still there are five games left and 0:13:28.240 --> 0:13:30.480 then you have the postseason with only one team getting 0:13:30.480 --> 0:13:33.640 good bye at everybody except that one seed would have 0:13:33.679 --> 0:13:36.559 to win three playoff games to get to the Super Bowl. 0:13:36.760 --> 0:13:39.679 To me, there's still so much football left that I 0:13:39.720 --> 0:13:41.760 just don't know even though the Patriots are the best 0:13:41.800 --> 0:13:43.800 playing the best right now, that they'll be playing the 0:13:43.840 --> 0:13:48.319 best in January. What a brilliant game plan though, carries 0:13:48.480 --> 0:13:51.959 three passes and honestly putting your young quarterback in a 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:54.559 position to win. Somebody asked that inbox to well, what 0:13:54.800 --> 0:13:56.319 is Mac Jones done to be the rook of the year. 0:13:56.520 --> 0:13:59.839 He's done every single thing that Bill Belichick has asked 0:13:59.880 --> 0:14:01.760 him to do, just like he did every single thing 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:04.160 that Nick Saban asked him to do. And this guy 0:14:04.280 --> 0:14:06.640 is making this thing work. And honestly, Mike, if you 0:14:06.679 --> 0:14:09.680 ever needed to understand how valuable coaching is at this 0:14:09.760 --> 0:14:11.480 level and to have good coaches if you don't just 0:14:11.520 --> 0:14:13.600 believe it. Looking at lambou Field and what Matt Laflour 0:14:13.640 --> 0:14:16.240 and his staff have done, what Bill Belichick has done, 0:14:16.720 --> 0:14:18.720 and that staff have done this year, Steve Belichick, all 0:14:18.760 --> 0:14:21.800 of them, that was. That was. I enjoyed watching that 0:14:21.840 --> 0:14:24.240 football game on Monday night. That was enjoyable to watch 0:14:24.280 --> 0:14:26.480 for as bizarre as it was, Yeah, it was. It 0:14:26.520 --> 0:14:30.440 was a reminder that it's uh, it's fun to watch 0:14:30.480 --> 0:14:33.000 football games this timing year that are not played indoors 0:14:33.040 --> 0:14:37.960 and when field position matters. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Some shoutouts 0:14:38.000 --> 0:14:41.240 to our sponsors West Serious x M. NFL Radio delivers 0:14:41.280 --> 0:14:44.120 hard hitting analysis and up to the minute NFL news 0:14:44.160 --> 0:14:47.560 that true football fanatics need seven three sixty five. And 0:14:47.560 --> 0:14:50.360 at Cousin Subs, we have something for everyone like our 0:14:50.400 --> 0:14:53.680 Wisconsin cheese curds, mac and cheese, golden fries, and creamy shakes, 0:14:53.720 --> 0:14:56.480 all paired with your favorite sub or sub in a bowl. 0:14:56.600 --> 0:15:00.640 Cousin Subs we believe in better. All right, the opponent 0:15:00.720 --> 0:15:05.840 coming in to lambeau Field Sunday night football in primetime, 0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:09.760 it will be the Chicago Bears. The biggest question that 0:15:10.120 --> 0:15:13.080 you know the Packers are going to again wait and 0:15:13.120 --> 0:15:16.480 see as far as the opponent goes, is will Justin 0:15:16.560 --> 0:15:20.040 Fields be back from the rib injury that has cost 0:15:20.120 --> 0:15:23.800 him a few games now or will Andy Dalton be 0:15:24.040 --> 0:15:28.840 still under center for Chicago. I guess in my mind, 0:15:28.920 --> 0:15:31.920 I say, I don't know if it's necessarily something. The 0:15:31.960 --> 0:15:36.440 Packers are overly concerned about which quarterback the Bears play, 0:15:36.480 --> 0:15:40.560 but you sort of have to have a proper plan 0:15:40.920 --> 0:15:43.880 for each one, don't you, because because these two quarterbacks 0:15:43.880 --> 0:15:47.320 are very different players. I don't want to say I 0:15:47.360 --> 0:15:50.440 was disappointed to Andy Dalton, but man, if you would 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:53.720 have taken away the uniform number, um, the shock of 0:15:53.760 --> 0:15:56.680 red hair, um, all of that, I wouldn't believe that 0:15:56.680 --> 0:15:59.920 that was an Andy Dalton quarterback in the Chicago Bears 0:16:00.000 --> 0:16:03.080 on Sunday watch most that didn't look good. It didn't 0:16:03.080 --> 0:16:07.520 look good and he made mistakes that again, I get it. 0:16:07.520 --> 0:16:10.400 It's the NFL. It's a highly competitive league, and it 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:13.440 was crappy conditions. Cardinals had to deal with it too, 0:16:13.480 --> 0:16:16.640 But it was it was. It was. It was rainy 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:19.040 and not ideal in Chicago, and it was a difference 0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:21.320 between a team turning the ball over in a team 0:16:21.360 --> 0:16:25.040 generating turnovers. That was the difference in the game. And 0:16:25.240 --> 0:16:27.320 if Andy Dalton's a quarterback, if I look at that film, 0:16:27.320 --> 0:16:29.160 I'm like, we gotta find ways to put pressure on them. 0:16:29.160 --> 0:16:31.280 We gotta find ways to get the ball back. And 0:16:31.680 --> 0:16:34.560 but if I'm Mett Maggie this week, as I've said 0:16:34.600 --> 0:16:37.680 probably for the last three years, when David Montgomery is 0:16:37.800 --> 0:16:39.760 right and they get the ball in his hands, that 0:16:39.840 --> 0:16:42.160 offense is different. It doesn't matter who the quarterback is. 0:16:42.200 --> 0:16:43.800 It doesn't matter what the offensive line looks like, it 0:16:43.840 --> 0:16:47.440 doesn't matter if Allen Robinson is playing. David Montgomery is 0:16:47.480 --> 0:16:50.400 the catalyst to all this. And I thought Montgomery played 0:16:50.440 --> 0:16:53.360 exceptionally well in that matchup with the opportunities that he 0:16:53.400 --> 0:16:57.240 was given. But they made way too many mistakes. To me, 0:16:57.960 --> 0:17:01.000 I don't think the Chicago Bears are a bad football team, 0:17:01.040 --> 0:17:03.080 but they made some pretty bad mistakes to be able 0:17:03.080 --> 0:17:05.160 to put themselves in a position to win that game 0:17:05.200 --> 0:17:07.800 against the top team of the NFC. Right now, yeah, absolutely, 0:17:07.840 --> 0:17:10.360 they simply they simply turn the ball over too much, 0:17:10.400 --> 0:17:12.359 and you can't do that. I agree with you whole 0:17:12.359 --> 0:17:16.879 hardly on Montgomery that the Bears. The Bears offense looks 0:17:18.560 --> 0:17:23.600 efficient when the offense runs through David Montgomery. Now that 0:17:23.680 --> 0:17:26.800 being said, I also think from a passing perspective, they've 0:17:26.840 --> 0:17:31.600 missed Alan Robinson totally sorely. Um when with with and 0:17:31.640 --> 0:17:34.480 I'm not sure how many games exactly he's missed now, 0:17:34.520 --> 0:17:37.440 but um, but he's a big time target and no 0:17:37.480 --> 0:17:39.480 matter who the quarterback has been for the Bears, and 0:17:39.760 --> 0:17:44.520 I think offensively they've missed him. And on the defensive side, 0:17:44.680 --> 0:17:47.479 it's it's not the same without Khalil matt coming off 0:17:47.520 --> 0:17:50.840 one of those edges. This this Chicago Bears, you know, 0:17:50.960 --> 0:17:53.840 to say they've lost their edge, I mean, yeah, pun 0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:56.480 intended and on all that, but without Khalil Mack that 0:17:56.640 --> 0:17:59.680 this group just isn't the same. They had one team 0:17:59.760 --> 0:18:02.679 set back and no quarterback hits of Kyler Murray in 0:18:02.720 --> 0:18:07.080 that game. Um, it's just the pressure just wasn't It 0:18:07.160 --> 0:18:09.320 wasn't the same. Now now, certainly you know Hicks has 0:18:09.359 --> 0:18:12.800 gone through his stuff this year. Um, you know, I 0:18:12.800 --> 0:18:15.360 still think Roquan Smith, I still think incredibly highly of him. 0:18:15.359 --> 0:18:16.919 I still feel like they have pieces. I feel like 0:18:16.920 --> 0:18:18.679 this is going to be a more competitive game than 0:18:18.680 --> 0:18:20.840 I think Packer fans are really thinking it's going to be. 0:18:20.880 --> 0:18:23.240 It's Sunday Night football, It's Packers Bears. They're gonna bring it. 0:18:23.880 --> 0:18:28.080 But the attrition that has sort of taken its pound 0:18:28.119 --> 0:18:30.520 of flesh here of the Bears, I think you're starting 0:18:30.520 --> 0:18:33.040 to feel it a little bit more because I think 0:18:33.040 --> 0:18:35.480 in some ways now they weren't putting great positions to 0:18:35.480 --> 0:18:38.959 begin with, defensively with some of those turnovers, but they're 0:18:38.960 --> 0:18:41.040 they're just there. Just wasn't a sense of urgency. I 0:18:41.040 --> 0:18:43.040 didn't feel that game. I just didn't feel like the 0:18:43.080 --> 0:18:45.480 Bears thought they could win it, outside of maybe when 0:18:45.520 --> 0:18:49.399 when Montgomery got that rushing touchdown, Arizona comes right back 0:18:49.440 --> 0:18:51.760 and gets down the field quickly, James Conner gets that pass, 0:18:51.840 --> 0:18:54.400 and it kind of felt like that was all she wrote. 0:18:54.600 --> 0:18:56.560 It's gonna be interesting to watch. It's it's a fascinating 0:18:56.640 --> 0:18:58.359 to follow how these things go. Because he had all 0:18:58.359 --> 0:19:01.320 this this outside hubbub about you know, Matt Nage and 0:19:01.359 --> 0:19:03.439 his future. There's been a lot of distractions for the Bears, 0:19:03.440 --> 0:19:06.240 and the injuries haven't really helped matters. Yeah, they certainly 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:10.399 haven't um quickly here West before we go. Um, a 0:19:10.440 --> 0:19:12.639 little bit of a plug Packers fans. If you're looking 0:19:12.680 --> 0:19:16.679 for holiday gift ideas, Team historian Cliff Crystals book The 0:19:16.800 --> 0:19:20.120 Greatest Story in Sports is now available at the Packers 0:19:20.160 --> 0:19:23.679 Pro Shop. The four volume hardcover books set tells the 0:19:23.680 --> 0:19:26.760 true complete story of the Packers first century, from humble 0:19:26.800 --> 0:19:30.320 beginnings to heartbreaks and triumphs. Buy your copy online or 0:19:30.359 --> 0:19:33.639 in store today. A tremendous holiday gift idea. And to 0:19:33.640 --> 0:19:35.960 tell you what kind of a man Cliff Crystal is. 0:19:36.000 --> 0:19:37.560 I put this on my Instagram, but I only have 0:19:37.600 --> 0:19:39.240 like eight hundred followers on there. This is a little 0:19:39.240 --> 0:19:42.960 bit bigger platform, so I'll use this. Cliff worked on 0:19:43.000 --> 0:19:45.240 this book well, if you count his entire life that 0:19:45.280 --> 0:19:47.159 has basically been dedicated to Packers. I was going to 0:19:47.200 --> 0:19:51.240 say his his career starting in the in the mid 0:19:51.240 --> 0:19:54.480