WEBVTT - #344 Packers Unscripted: Back from the bye 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:21.520 Hi everyone, Welcome back to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. 0:00:21.560 --> 0:00:25.560 I am Mike Spofford sitting alongside my trusted colleague West Hodkowitz. 0:00:25.560 --> 0:00:27.840 Were coming to you here from our studios at lambeau 0:00:27.920 --> 0:00:31.880 Field after roughly a week off, West and the Packers 0:00:31.920 --> 0:00:34.600 coming off of their bye week. Now in this setting, 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:37.239 we haven't had a chance to review that Monday night 0:00:37.240 --> 0:00:41.520 football victory for Green Bay over San Francisco, and boy 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:43.720 it was an important one because it got the Packers 0:00:43.720 --> 0:00:45.600 to three two and one at the bye week. We 0:00:45.640 --> 0:00:49.120 all know this tough road schedule the Packers have coming up, 0:00:49.159 --> 0:00:51.920 and I tell you what, thinking back to that Monday 0:00:52.000 --> 0:00:54.800 night football game when the Packers went forward on fourth 0:00:54.880 --> 0:00:57.360 and goal midway through the fourth quarter and didn't get it, 0:00:57.920 --> 0:01:00.319 it wasn't looking too good. No, it wasn't. I mean, 0:01:00.320 --> 0:01:03.360 the one thing we've always learned, when Aaron Rodgers is 0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:06.120 your quarterback and you make a couple of stops on defense, 0:01:06.840 --> 0:01:09.399 comebacks can always happen. And they've have been once again 0:01:09.400 --> 0:01:11.640 in this game. What what stands out to me the 0:01:11.680 --> 0:01:14.479 most about it going into the bye week and now 0:01:14.520 --> 0:01:17.720 into this matchup with the Rams, was the Packers and 0:01:17.840 --> 0:01:20.160 I think Davanta Adams talked about it afterwards. When they 0:01:20.200 --> 0:01:22.760 need points, when they need yards, they can get them. 0:01:23.440 --> 0:01:25.800 That's really been the biggest thing. They have had their 0:01:25.840 --> 0:01:28.640 times where it's been you know, tough going, but for 0:01:28.680 --> 0:01:31.440 the most part, they've been able to get production when 0:01:31.480 --> 0:01:33.120 they need it most. And I think the fact that 0:01:33.160 --> 0:01:35.200 I believe now their fourth in total offense in the 0:01:35.280 --> 0:01:38.880 league right now kind of signifies that certainly want to 0:01:38.920 --> 0:01:40.400 be able to finish off some of those drives a 0:01:40.440 --> 0:01:43.160 little bit more not you know, play a little bit cleaner, 0:01:43.240 --> 0:01:46.400 mistake free football, cut down on the penalties, but to 0:01:46.520 --> 0:01:48.400 be three two and one too, whether some of the 0:01:48.480 --> 0:01:50.560 storms that they did to get to this point, I 0:01:50.600 --> 0:01:53.280 think it's really important. And in my biggest takeaway honestly 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:55.800 from that game was the fact that they got Jimmy 0:01:55.840 --> 0:01:57.480 Graham going. You saw what he could do in the 0:01:57.520 --> 0:02:00.440 open field. They had three guys i'll go over receiving 0:02:00.520 --> 0:02:02.760 yards in that contest, and at the end of the day, 0:02:02.760 --> 0:02:06.040 Aaron Rodgers just made some magical things happen once again, Yeah, 0:02:06.080 --> 0:02:09.560 some statistical things in case anybody missed it. In the aftermath, 0:02:09.600 --> 0:02:12.560 Aaron Rodgers throws for four twenty five yards. He actually 0:02:12.600 --> 0:02:16.359 becomes the first Packers quarterback in team history to throw 0:02:16.400 --> 0:02:19.240 for more than four hundred yards and back to back games. 0:02:19.480 --> 0:02:22.160 And you mentioned the three receivers going over a hundred yards. 0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:26.360 Davante Adams, Jimmy Graham and Marquez Valdez Scantling all go 0:02:26.440 --> 0:02:28.440 over a hundred. That was the first time the Packers 0:02:28.440 --> 0:02:31.919 had done that. I believe it was against the Yeah, 0:02:31.919 --> 0:02:35.240 against the against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So um, some 0:02:35.320 --> 0:02:38.800 neat statistical things there, but also West, I tell you 0:02:38.840 --> 0:02:41.919 what if anybody in the NFL has ever gone from 0:02:42.000 --> 0:02:45.560 the outhouse to the penthouse in eight days. Boy, what 0:02:45.639 --> 0:02:48.400 a night for Mason Crosby. Coming off the worst game 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:50.760 of his career, as we had talked about in Detroit, 0:02:51.240 --> 0:02:54.080 he comes back and makes all seven of his kicks 0:02:54.080 --> 0:02:57.600 against San Francisco, including a fifty plus yard field goal, 0:02:58.000 --> 0:03:01.560 including the game winner as a walkoff kick to get 0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:05.000 the Packers this thirty three to thirty victory after a 0:03:05.080 --> 0:03:07.959 tremendous two minute drive put together by Aaron Rodgers in 0:03:08.000 --> 0:03:10.480 the receiving corps. Just a great way for this one 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:13.680 to end and for every anybody wondering how's Mason Crosby 0:03:13.720 --> 0:03:16.680 going to handle things. He showed exactly how he handles it. Yeah, 0:03:16.720 --> 0:03:19.160 he handles it like a pro. He handles it like 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:21.480 a guy who's been doing this for over a decade. 0:03:21.639 --> 0:03:23.359 And I think if you talk to anybody in that 0:03:23.400 --> 0:03:24.639 locker room might not at least know all the guys 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:27.000 that I did. Afterwards, I asked Tremont Williams about it, 0:03:27.360 --> 0:03:29.839 and he said, if you've been around Mason Crosby long enough, 0:03:29.880 --> 0:03:31.840 you know the way he's built and what he's been 0:03:31.880 --> 0:03:34.560 through in this league. He wasn't gonna let a performance 0:03:34.600 --> 0:03:38.080 like Detroit get him off of his path. He was 0:03:38.120 --> 0:03:40.240 going to reset, he was going to correct what he 0:03:40.280 --> 0:03:41.640 needed to do, and he was going to go out 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:43.839 there and hit the football. Now. The one thing that 0:03:44.040 --> 0:03:46.160 you can't mistake, though, was the fact that Mason Crosby 0:03:46.200 --> 0:03:48.080 said it was probably one of the longest weeks of 0:03:48.160 --> 0:03:51.080 his career as a kickers A lot to think about 0:03:51.760 --> 0:03:53.720 you and I saw it before the game. He was 0:03:53.760 --> 0:03:55.960 the first guy from the packer's sideline that was down 0:03:55.960 --> 0:03:58.720 on the field just walking around, wasn't even doing any 0:03:58.720 --> 0:04:02.839 warm upsolutely, just walking going through his process. If there's 0:04:02.840 --> 0:04:05.080 a week he probably wanted a Thursday night game. It 0:04:05.080 --> 0:04:06.920 would have been this one after what happened on that 0:04:06.960 --> 0:04:09.000 Sunday in Detroit. I'm sure he just wanted to get 0:04:09.040 --> 0:04:11.120 out and get into another game because he knew that 0:04:11.160 --> 0:04:12.520 was the best way to put it behind. And he 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:14.760 made some big kicks, man, I mean he had the 0:04:14.800 --> 0:04:17.280 fifty one yard or certainly they got into a really 0:04:17.279 --> 0:04:20.640 good situation with the back shoulder pass to Equinimia st 0:04:20.680 --> 0:04:23.960 Brown on the sideline. Davante Adams gets another catch, makes 0:04:24.000 --> 0:04:26.080 it a chip shot field goal for him, But still 0:04:26.400 --> 0:04:28.560 he needed to make that kick even before that, Mike, 0:04:28.760 --> 0:04:31.640 how important was that extra point? When the Packers finally 0:04:31.720 --> 0:04:34.560 come back, they have an opportunity to tie it. That's 0:04:34.560 --> 0:04:36.640 a really important kick. I just thought from a field 0:04:36.640 --> 0:04:40.440 goal operations standpoint, Mason Crosby and being able to put 0:04:40.440 --> 0:04:42.640 Detroit in the rear view mirror and becoming the NFC 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:45.520 Special Teams Player of a Week the following week, it's 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:47.640 just a credit to his mental toughness, is an ability 0:04:47.640 --> 0:04:50.320 to bounce back. Yeah, you mentioned the extra point that 0:04:50.480 --> 0:04:53.040 ties up the game, and we've seen since the NFL 0:04:53.120 --> 0:04:55.880 moved this extra point back to thirty three yards these 0:04:55.920 --> 0:04:58.200 are not the gimmes they were at twenty yards, And 0:04:58.240 --> 0:05:01.719 in fact, Baltimore's Justin Tucker misses the first extra point 0:05:01.760 --> 0:05:05.440 of his career two hundred and twenty two combined twenty 0:05:05.520 --> 0:05:09.159 yards thirty three yarders but two hundred two extra points 0:05:09.160 --> 0:05:11.160 in a row in his career, and he misses one, 0:05:11.240 --> 0:05:13.760 and Baltimore loses to the Saints twenty four to twenty 0:05:13.800 --> 0:05:16.640 three on what should have been for them, what they 0:05:16.640 --> 0:05:18.839 were thinking was a tying touchdown in the last minute 0:05:18.839 --> 0:05:22.000 of the game. Packers were in that same situation. Mason 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:24.960 Crosby makes the kick, you know, after having obviously hit 0:05:24.960 --> 0:05:27.599 the upright on an extra point the previous week in Detroit. 0:05:27.760 --> 0:05:31.680 So all these moments, the pressure is there, and uh, 0:05:31.800 --> 0:05:34.359 obviously sometimes you come through, sometimes you don't. But what 0:05:34.440 --> 0:05:37.960 Crosby went through to then go from that performance in 0:05:38.000 --> 0:05:40.400 Detroit to the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:44.279 that's that's gonna be a memorable moment in in in 0:05:44.480 --> 0:05:47.280 his career, in a very decorated career. And the thing 0:05:47.279 --> 0:05:48.880 you got to remember, too, is just how much he 0:05:48.920 --> 0:05:51.279 means to this team, how much he means to Mike McCarthy. 0:05:51.320 --> 0:05:54.160 You've heard Aaron Rodgers talk about him. He saw the 0:05:54.480 --> 0:05:56.560 clip of him at the Detroit game, just coming and 0:05:56.640 --> 0:05:58.640 kind of, you know, mussing up his hair a little 0:05:58.680 --> 0:06:00.840 bit and just trying to, you know, tell him, you 0:06:00.880 --> 0:06:03.320 know what we got you. It's okay. Things like this happened. 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:05.839 It's a tough game. The thing I go back to, though, 0:06:05.880 --> 0:06:08.760 Mike is stability. A kicker, to me is still one 0:06:08.800 --> 0:06:12.000 of the most important things in the NFL today, and 0:06:12.240 --> 0:06:13.720 it has to be a good kicker. I'm not saying 0:06:13.760 --> 0:06:15.840 just stand by a guy who's making six out of 0:06:15.920 --> 0:06:19.280 every tent. But you see these teams where I think 0:06:19.320 --> 0:06:21.440 the best example this isn't to throw the Bears under 0:06:21.480 --> 0:06:23.040 the bus, but the best example is what happened with 0:06:23.120 --> 0:06:25.760 Robbie Gold. They made a decision that it was time 0:06:25.800 --> 0:06:28.120 to move on from him. Gold ends up going to 0:06:28.160 --> 0:06:30.960 San Francisco and has this resurgence in his career because 0:06:31.240 --> 0:06:33.280 the reality is, it's not easy to kick in the 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:36.240 NFC North. It's not easy to take a kicker that's 0:06:36.240 --> 0:06:37.920 never been in those elements and just throw them out 0:06:37.920 --> 0:06:40.839 there and expect the best. It's a tough, tough climate 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:43.239 to be a participant in. If you're kicking the ball, 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:46.640 and Aaron Rodgers discussed how gold In Mason Crosby are 0:06:46.640 --> 0:06:48.679 two of the best to ever do it. The Packers 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:50.799 have been through a lot of wars with Mason Crosby 0:06:50.839 --> 0:06:53.160 and staying with him through all that ultimately has helped 0:06:53.200 --> 0:06:55.119 them win a lot of those games. Yeah. Well again, 0:06:55.160 --> 0:06:58.159 looking back at the San Francisco game on the defensive 0:06:58.160 --> 0:06:59.960 side of the ball for the Packers, once again, at 0:07:00.120 --> 0:07:02.960 was kind of a good news bad news situation in 0:07:03.000 --> 0:07:07.160 that the bad news is they we're up and down. 0:07:07.360 --> 0:07:10.120 The first half was not the type of defense the 0:07:10.120 --> 0:07:13.600 Packers want to play. The second half was, but this 0:07:13.760 --> 0:07:16.760 defense has not been able to iron out those inconsistencies 0:07:16.840 --> 0:07:19.680 just yet. You hope, Okay, the bye week, some guys 0:07:19.720 --> 0:07:22.840 maybe get healthier. You're gonna be facing you know, obviously 0:07:22.880 --> 0:07:26.040 the Rams and the Patriots too high powered offenses these 0:07:26.080 --> 0:07:28.120 first two weeks coming out of the by But this 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:31.200 Packers defense needs to needs to find some sort of 0:07:31.280 --> 0:07:34.360 reliable level of play that the coaching staff and the 0:07:34.400 --> 0:07:36.960 rest of the team can rely upon because this, uh, 0:07:37.000 --> 0:07:39.320 this roller coaster thing, quite frankly west has been going 0:07:39.320 --> 0:07:41.120 on too long. Yeah it has, and I mean it's 0:07:41.120 --> 0:07:43.640 just the way that the game has structured. Obviously, it's 0:07:43.640 --> 0:07:46.400 a very offensive football game now, so trying to figure 0:07:46.440 --> 0:07:48.520 out how you're going to be able to attack those 0:07:48.520 --> 0:07:51.400 schemes is going to be important. I thought in the end, 0:07:51.440 --> 0:07:55.040 the Packers did what they needed to do in that contest. Defensively, 0:07:55.600 --> 0:07:57.240 What did we say the whole week, You have to 0:07:57.240 --> 0:07:59.320 win the turnover margin, You have to win that battle. 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:01.400 It took the ball way three times. Yeah they did. 0:08:01.600 --> 0:08:04.360 They did finally flip that script in terms of getting 0:08:04.400 --> 0:08:06.520 on the plus side and turnovers. If you're gonna give 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:08.640 up yards, if you if there's gonna be situations like that, 0:08:08.680 --> 0:08:10.440 you have to find ways to take away the football. 0:08:10.880 --> 0:08:13.440 And you know how Clinton Dicks did that with the 0:08:13.440 --> 0:08:16.000 force fumble. I mean, you look at Raven Green and 0:08:16.120 --> 0:08:18.400 you know James Crawford getting together for one on a 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:21.880 special team's place, stealing in early possession. Packers turned both 0:08:21.920 --> 0:08:25.440 of those into uh six points. And Kevin king Man, 0:08:25.640 --> 0:08:27.600 I mean, he made the biggest play of his career 0:08:27.640 --> 0:08:29.720 at a time in which the Packers desperately needed it. 0:08:30.240 --> 0:08:32.600 You and I had some mixed thoughts on be third 0:08:32.640 --> 0:08:35.200 in the decision of Kyle Shanahan to throw their believe 0:08:35.240 --> 0:08:36.960 it was a third and three situation or third and 0:08:36.960 --> 0:08:40.440 five situations. It was third and three, I believe. Afterwards, 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:42.920 will Clay Matthews said that actually probably was the right 0:08:42.920 --> 0:08:45.880 call there because the Packers were kind of moving guys up. 0:08:45.920 --> 0:08:47.440 They were going to try to, you know, push the 0:08:47.480 --> 0:08:50.439 box a little bit, and they got single high cover 0:08:50.559 --> 0:08:53.400 and not even single high zero. It was one on one. 0:08:54.840 --> 0:08:57.080 Just has to make that play or it could be 0:08:57.120 --> 0:08:59.319 a potential big play. King makes it, they get to 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:01.600 take away and they're able to go and finish off 0:09:01.600 --> 0:09:04.959 that contest. That's what you need. But yes, ultimately it's 0:09:04.960 --> 0:09:07.960 still about stitching together those four quarters of complete football. 0:09:08.240 --> 0:09:10.480 The defense is still looking to do that. We'll see 0:09:10.520 --> 0:09:13.120 what this week holds for them. As of Tuesday, they 0:09:13.120 --> 0:09:15.720 will practice, but they're actually not going to be forced 0:09:15.720 --> 0:09:18.360 to submit an injury report. So it's gonna probably have 0:09:18.400 --> 0:09:20.520 to wait and see how close a guy like jyr 0:09:20.559 --> 0:09:22.400 Alexander is going to be the potential to being back 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:24.720 in the cards. But if they could get all four 0:09:24.760 --> 0:09:27.400 of those corners together, Tremon Williams and the three young guys, 0:09:27.440 --> 0:09:29.960 I'll go a long way and bland in that conversation 0:09:30.000 --> 0:09:32.400 as well. Yeah, just to backtrack for a second, I 0:09:32.440 --> 0:09:34.800 think I think what surprised me about the forty Niners 0:09:34.840 --> 0:09:37.640 clock management there on that final drive is just we've 0:09:37.640 --> 0:09:40.520 seen so many times in that situation a tie game, 0:09:40.559 --> 0:09:43.120 Aaron Rodgers is moving the team down the field, and 0:09:43.440 --> 0:09:46.280 it's not just about getting in position to get the points. 0:09:46.320 --> 0:09:49.800 It's about draining the clock and not giving the other team, 0:09:49.800 --> 0:09:52.360 not giving the other quarterback any opportunity to come back 0:09:52.440 --> 0:09:54.440 the other way. And it just seemed like they had 0:09:54.520 --> 0:09:58.360 I believe it was second and three even before the interception, 0:09:58.679 --> 0:10:00.680 and they were throwing the football. The Packers had no 0:10:00.760 --> 0:10:03.600 time outs, forts had all of theirs. They were in 0:10:03.640 --> 0:10:06.080 complete control of the clock and everything they wanted to do, 0:10:06.120 --> 0:10:08.360 and it just seemed like they were in this big hurry. 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:10.920 They had a very reliable kicker and Robbie Gold like 0:10:10.960 --> 0:10:13.280 you talked about. I was just surprised that they were 0:10:13.320 --> 0:10:16.719 that aggressive. But that's Kyle Shanahan, that's that that's who 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:19.559 he is. He's always going to to play that way. 0:10:19.720 --> 0:10:21.680 And they did get the coverage they wanted. They got 0:10:21.679 --> 0:10:23.920 the Packers in a blitz. There was no safety help. 0:10:24.240 --> 0:10:27.439 Kevin King was one on one and and for my money, 0:10:27.640 --> 0:10:29.800 that was one heck of a play because he's got 0:10:29.800 --> 0:10:31.920 to stay with this guy, he's got to turn his 0:10:31.960 --> 0:10:34.920 head at the right time, find the football, and then 0:10:34.960 --> 0:10:37.480 he ends up hanging onto it as as the two 0:10:37.480 --> 0:10:40.080 players are crashing to the ground, and he gives Aaron 0:10:40.160 --> 0:10:42.640 Rodgers that chance to win in regulation as opposed to 0:10:42.679 --> 0:10:44.960 possibly having a good overtime. I've said it time and 0:10:45.000 --> 0:10:47.320 time again, and certainly we're gonna have to you have 0:10:47.360 --> 0:10:49.960 to wait five ten years to to look back on drafts. 0:10:49.960 --> 0:10:53.560 But if Kevin King stays healthy, what the dimension he 0:10:53.679 --> 0:10:56.199 brings this defense? And honestly, Mike, it's one they haven't 0:10:56.240 --> 0:10:58.440 had because when you go back and look at their 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:01.400 top flight corners in the past, it's guys like Sam Shields. 0:11:01.520 --> 0:11:04.440 It's guys like Tremont Williams, Guys that were undrafted free 0:11:04.440 --> 0:11:07.280 agents that sort of caught people by surprise, had had 0:11:07.320 --> 0:11:11.520 some intangibles, but ultimately just made their style work to 0:11:11.559 --> 0:11:14.000 what the packers needed. And you look at a guy like, 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:16.000 you know, obviously Charles Woodson came in with a different 0:11:16.000 --> 0:11:18.960 pedigree when they signed him. Sure, but Kevin King, I 0:11:19.000 --> 0:11:22.840 think has a really great makeup for the position to 0:11:23.080 --> 0:11:25.440 be not only have all those when you look at 0:11:25.480 --> 0:11:27.880 the speed and the height and everything, but working with 0:11:27.960 --> 0:11:30.880 Joe Wood Jr. Being able to hone those skills. Now 0:11:31.559 --> 0:11:34.680 his ceiling, man, it's it's sky high. And now you 0:11:34.720 --> 0:11:37.760 get guys like Jr. Alexander involved in Josh Jackson, another 0:11:37.840 --> 0:11:40.480 draft pick. The Packers invested in those corners, and there's 0:11:40.480 --> 0:11:43.000 still things they need to do better defensively, but the 0:11:43.000 --> 0:11:46.200 future of that position is really bright for reasons like King. Yeah, 0:11:46.240 --> 0:11:48.680 and I want to see, as you mentioned before, how 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:51.200 this week goes in practice with regards to the health 0:11:51.240 --> 0:11:54.240 of Jiar Alexander. He's been out now with a groin injury, 0:11:54.320 --> 0:11:57.240 but if he comes back and as you said, Packers 0:11:57.240 --> 0:11:59.439 went into the season within whatever or do you want 0:11:59.440 --> 0:12:02.280 to put him in King, Williams, Jackson, and Alexander as 0:12:02.320 --> 0:12:05.480 the top four cornerbacks and Mike Petton likes to play 0:12:05.520 --> 0:12:08.840 with four cornerbacks on the field, certainly on third downs, 0:12:09.120 --> 0:12:11.520 but we just haven't had gotten to see that combination 0:12:11.559 --> 0:12:14.479 a whole lot because of the injuries to King and Alexander. 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:16.640 So that could be a big thing for this defense 0:12:16.679 --> 0:12:18.680 moving forward. And you tip your caps. You know, guys 0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:20.280 like Germaine white Head have been able to sort of 0:12:20.320 --> 0:12:22.199 stem the tide for them there, and they've had a 0:12:22.240 --> 0:12:24.120 lot of guys step up in that regard and play 0:12:24.200 --> 0:12:27.320 different spots. But I think everybody saw what Alexander can 0:12:27.360 --> 0:12:29.920 do as a nickel slock cornerback and the versatility that 0:12:30.000 --> 0:12:32.560 Josh Jackson has shown being inside or outside and having 0:12:32.559 --> 0:12:35.520 that flexibility. It's a really good potential for the Packers. 0:12:35.520 --> 0:12:36.760 And as you've seen with a lot of these young 0:12:36.800 --> 0:12:38.800 corners who can get better throughout the course of the season, 0:12:38.920 --> 0:12:40.959 the more work that they get. It's gonna be really 0:12:41.000 --> 0:12:42.520 exciting to see if you can get all four of 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:44.680 them out there. You know what that group can do. Yeah, 0:12:44.720 --> 0:12:47.120 no doubt about it. Um. Well, quickly, let's here some 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:49.920 sponsor business at home or here in the stands. We 0:12:49.960 --> 0:12:51.800 all know that Green Bay fans give it their all 0:12:51.840 --> 0:12:54.200 and that takes a lot of energy. So grab a 0:12:54.200 --> 0:12:57.079 warm bowl of Campbell's Chunky soup. It's meaty goodness fuels 0:12:57.120 --> 0:12:59.920 the greatness of Packers fans everywhere. Try the delicious classes 0:13:00.080 --> 0:13:03.400 chicken noodle soup. Just visit your local supermarket and ask 0:13:03.440 --> 0:13:06.600 for Campbell's Chunky Soup, the official sup partner of the 0:13:06.600 --> 0:13:09.280 Green Bay Packers. Okay, the Los Angeles Rams are on 0:13:09.320 --> 0:13:11.440 the docket this week. They are seven and o West, 0:13:11.559 --> 0:13:15.720 undefeated and really announcing themselves as the team to beat 0:13:15.720 --> 0:13:18.320 in the NFC, I think, along with the New Orleans Saints. 0:13:18.640 --> 0:13:20.920 I want to get into some more detail with regards 0:13:20.960 --> 0:13:24.120 to the Rams in tomorrow's show, but it's worth looking 0:13:24.200 --> 0:13:26.680 at right now since the Packers were off. What happened 0:13:26.720 --> 0:13:30.040 over the bye week in the NFL I mentioned the Rams. 0:13:30.440 --> 0:13:32.640 They took care of business against the forty nine. They 0:13:32.640 --> 0:13:34.839 are seven and oh. We mentioned the Saints winning by 0:13:34.880 --> 0:13:39.120 one point against Baltimore with Justin Tucker's missed extra point, 0:13:39.440 --> 0:13:42.120 So the Rams, I'm sorry. The Saints have just one 0:13:42.200 --> 0:13:45.880 loss and uh. And then in the NFC North, the 0:13:45.880 --> 0:13:49.080 Minnesota Vikings moved back into first place with a road 0:13:49.160 --> 0:13:53.719 victory over the Jets. The Chicago Bears lose on a 0:13:53.760 --> 0:13:56.480 hail Mary that comes up one yard short against the 0:13:56.520 --> 0:13:59.160 New England Patriots. The Bears lose by seven to fall 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:01.880 to three and three. The Lions win and they get 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:04.800 to three and three. So right now in the NFC North, 0:14:05.440 --> 0:14:08.079 all four teams nobody in the NFC North is below 0:14:08.120 --> 0:14:11.560 five hundred with either six or seven games on the docket. 0:14:11.559 --> 0:14:13.800 It's it's really interesting how this is taking shape. We 0:14:13.840 --> 0:14:16.040 said the division was going to be good, Michael, We 0:14:16.160 --> 0:14:18.480 really did. And you know, and I also was mentioning too. 0:14:18.520 --> 0:14:20.600 I at no point did I think that the Vikings 0:14:20.600 --> 0:14:23.080 weren't real. I mean that that that is a real 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:27.360 competitive football team, a team that has Super Bowl aspirations, 0:14:27.400 --> 0:14:31.000 that wants to finally bring a Lombardi Trophy to Minneapolis 0:14:31.000 --> 0:14:33.800 in the Twin Cities. And it was a good performance 0:14:33.840 --> 0:14:35.640 for them to be able to go and beat a 0:14:35.720 --> 0:14:37.440 Jets team that I think felt like they were getting 0:14:37.440 --> 0:14:39.320 a little bit of momentum worked in their favor. They 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:42.520 turned things around. The Patriots have done exactly what I 0:14:42.520 --> 0:14:44.640 think we expected them to do to they bounce back 0:14:44.640 --> 0:14:46.680 from some losses early in the season. Now they're at 0:14:46.720 --> 0:14:50.040 five and two. The Bears, I'm sure there's no moral victories, 0:14:50.040 --> 0:14:52.160 but I'm sure Matt Nagy's telling those guys that that's 0:14:52.600 --> 0:14:54.720 the crema, the cream of the crop right now in 0:14:54.760 --> 0:14:57.080 the NFL. And you've played them, you know, right to 0:14:57.120 --> 0:14:59.640 the final whistle. So well, I think if you're the Bears. 0:14:59.680 --> 0:15:02.120 The thing that you're lamenting is not even so much 0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:04.760 the Hail Mary that comes up one yard short, but 0:15:04.800 --> 0:15:07.320 the fact that you lose to the Patriots by seven, 0:15:07.800 --> 0:15:10.400 and you gave up fourteen points on special teams, a 0:15:10.480 --> 0:15:13.560 kickoff return for a touchdown, a block punt for a touchdown. 0:15:14.040 --> 0:15:17.000 From the offense defense side of things, the Bears won 0:15:17.040 --> 0:15:19.480 the football game. They really were the better team in 0:15:19.520 --> 0:15:21.960 a lot of ways. The Patriots were kind of sloppy 0:15:22.000 --> 0:15:24.840 with the football with some turnovers early that gave the 0:15:24.840 --> 0:15:29.080 Bears the lead, but two special teams touchdowns. That's awfully 0:15:29.120 --> 0:15:32.160 hard to overcome, and Mr Bisky did everything he could 0:15:32.160 --> 0:15:34.440 to try to overcome it, but but it just wasn't 0:15:34.440 --> 0:15:37.000 to be. No, And the thing I think actually surprised 0:15:37.000 --> 0:15:39.120 me the most about the Bears earlier this season is 0:15:39.120 --> 0:15:41.280 their running game really hasn't driven them as much as 0:15:41.280 --> 0:15:43.280 I thought they were going to the last couple of weeks, 0:15:43.280 --> 0:15:45.680 they've actually put in Robinsky's hands a lot. Yeah, they're 0:15:45.840 --> 0:15:48.080 they're trying to find that running game because they definitely 0:15:48.120 --> 0:15:51.320 want that to be to be a really strong complimentary 0:15:51.440 --> 0:15:54.200 piece to their to their young up and coming quarterback. 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.120 But that that running game just hasn't found the footing, 0:15:57.640 --> 0:16:00.160 so to speak, that everybody expected it to have him 0:16:00.160 --> 0:16:02.120 the get go. Yeah, and Cohen has been a difference 0:16:02.120 --> 0:16:04.400 maker as a pass catcher. But you know, I think 0:16:04.440 --> 0:16:06.920 Jordan Howard, at least me, maybe I wasn't paying close 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:08.720 enough attention to the Bears, but I was just anticipating 0:16:08.720 --> 0:16:10.120 that he's gonna be a guy that you just jotted 0:16:10.120 --> 0:16:12.360 down for a thousand yards each season. Yeah, because he's 0:16:12.360 --> 0:16:15.280 gonna get a hundred, you know, two twenty five touches 0:16:15.280 --> 0:16:17.160 and he's gonna make the most out of him. They've 0:16:17.160 --> 0:16:19.520 been off to a slow start right now, so there 0:16:19.560 --> 0:16:21.160 are three and three. It was a tough loss. They 0:16:21.160 --> 0:16:23.960 did go up some team some points on special teams. 0:16:24.000 --> 0:16:26.440 But it's gonna be interesting to see how they bounced 0:16:26.440 --> 0:16:28.480 back from that because they played him tough. But when 0:16:28.480 --> 0:16:30.240 you look at a statuet on him, it just wasn't 0:16:30.280 --> 0:16:31.920 didn't appear to be as close as what you know, 0:16:32.000 --> 0:16:34.800 kind of looked. Yeah, and another big game coming up. Obviously, 0:16:34.880 --> 0:16:36.920 the Packers have a big one against the Rams, but 0:16:37.480 --> 0:16:40.800 the rematch of the miracle in Minneapolis will take place 0:16:40.840 --> 0:16:43.760 on Sunday. I guess that'll be when we're flying back 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:45.720 from l A. Because I believe it's Sunday night. I 0:16:45.760 --> 0:16:48.760 believe it's Sunday night football is the What I'm talking about, 0:16:48.760 --> 0:16:52.320 of course, is the Saints at US Bank Stadium in Minnesota, 0:16:52.840 --> 0:16:56.960 UM to UH two contenders, rematch of last year's playoff game. 0:16:57.200 --> 0:17:00.400 That should be a pretty interesting one because the Vikings 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:03.280 now they're you know, they're trying to get the momentum 0:17:03.320 --> 0:17:05.520 going on their side. They put up thirty seven points 0:17:05.560 --> 0:17:09.320 against the Jets. The Saints are as are as hot 0:17:09.359 --> 0:17:12.000 as any team except the undefeated Rams. The Saints having 0:17:12.040 --> 0:17:14.399 lost in Week one to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but 0:17:14.440 --> 0:17:17.720 they've won every game since then, including you know, some 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:20.080 really tough road victories, and this will be another tough 0:17:20.160 --> 0:17:22.719 road test for New Orleans. Yes, the thing I love 0:17:22.760 --> 0:17:25.000 about so the Rams are just running through everybody right 0:17:25.040 --> 0:17:28.440 like they're the Their offense is so complete. They obviously 0:17:28.440 --> 0:17:31.639 do a lot of things well defensively. The Saints to 0:17:31.640 --> 0:17:34.280 me are almost like kind of they are winning games obviously, 0:17:34.280 --> 0:17:36.240 but they're just sort of having to like scratching cloth 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:39.080 through this entire schedule so far. They did it again 0:17:39.280 --> 0:17:41.560 in this game against the Ravens, and you know, it 0:17:41.600 --> 0:17:44.760 was an impressive performance. Obviously, Elvin Kamara is what he 0:17:44.880 --> 0:17:47.920 is and downten going into the fourth quarter. If I'm 0:17:47.960 --> 0:17:49.959 not mistaken, on the road, they come back and win 0:17:50.000 --> 0:17:52.840 the ballgame. They find ways to to get it done. So, yeah, 0:17:53.040 --> 0:17:55.560 it's just New Orleans one of those teams that just 0:17:55.640 --> 0:17:57.560 it feels like, you know, any given week they can 0:17:57.600 --> 0:18:00.000 beat anybody, and potentially any given week they could lose anybody. 0:18:00.080 --> 0:18:02.640 But they have done things well. They've done some good 0:18:02.640 --> 0:18:05.320 things defensively. I think they right now are tops in 0:18:05.320 --> 0:18:08.800 the league and run defense. So seeing how the Vikings 0:18:08.840 --> 0:18:10.320 match up with that, it's it is gonna be a 0:18:10.320 --> 0:18:12.159 really good game. And the fact of the matter is 0:18:12.200 --> 0:18:14.879 too Mike kirk Cousins is the quarterback now and the 0:18:15.000 --> 0:18:17.160 Vikings signed him because they're trying to get over that hump. 0:18:17.480 --> 0:18:19.560