WEBVTT - #325 Packers Unscripted: Moving forward 0:00:00.840 --> 0:00:21.480 Hi, everybody. Welcome to Packers Unscripted from Packers dot Com. 0:00:21.480 --> 0:00:24.959 I am Mike Spofford. He is Wes Hogkowitz. We're coming 0:00:24.960 --> 0:00:28.320 to you here from our studios at lambeau Field and West. 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:32.280 It is Tuesday. The Packers Vikings game is in the 0:00:32.320 --> 0:00:35.640 rear view mirror, but it hasn't quite disappeared yet. Because 0:00:36.520 --> 0:00:40.160 for anybody who thought that the NFL might come out 0:00:40.280 --> 0:00:44.160 and say, well, you know that play by Clay Matthews, 0:00:44.320 --> 0:00:47.760 that wasn't exactly what we had in mind in terms 0:00:47.800 --> 0:00:51.520 of roughing the passer, well it turns out it's exactly 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:54.200 what the NFL had in mind for roughing the pastor 0:00:54.320 --> 0:00:57.440 because that play as well as the one by Eric 0:00:57.640 --> 0:01:00.200 they hit by Eric kendricks On Aaron Rodgers is at 0:01:00.200 --> 0:01:02.720 the end of the first half, which was just as questionable, 0:01:03.440 --> 0:01:06.720 are both being used now by the NFL is examples 0:01:06.720 --> 0:01:09.360 on tape that they are distributing to teams around the 0:01:09.440 --> 0:01:13.040 league to say this is what you are not supposed 0:01:13.040 --> 0:01:16.160 to do when you hit the quarterback. I don't know 0:01:16.200 --> 0:01:20.360 about you, but I was floored when I saw that. Yeah, um, 0:01:20.400 --> 0:01:22.399 this reminds me of the old line my dad used 0:01:22.440 --> 0:01:24.039 to tell me when I was a kid, which was 0:01:24.200 --> 0:01:29.480 don't confuse the confused. It was really funny. Mike, you 0:01:29.560 --> 0:01:32.200 and I both obviously do the inbox. I I referenced 0:01:32.200 --> 0:01:35.000 it frequently. I don't know what it was like for 0:01:35.160 --> 0:01:39.360 vic in two thousand and twelve after the fail Mary, 0:01:39.400 --> 0:01:42.880 but I mean the amount of comments, in questions and 0:01:42.880 --> 0:01:45.839 and toat takes that people have been submitting, it's blown 0:01:45.840 --> 0:01:49.320 me away. I guess that I probably got through maybe 0:01:49.320 --> 0:01:51.960 a quarter of the total submissions for the for the 0:01:52.080 --> 0:01:55.600 addition that we did on Tuesday morning. Yeah, the inboxes overflowing, 0:01:56.120 --> 0:01:58.760 and the only understandably so. Yeah. The only thing that 0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:02.040 I keep coming back to is, uh, how the NFL 0:02:02.600 --> 0:02:06.080 has such a stringent view of this Al River n 0:02:06.720 --> 0:02:10.120 the league office, what they believe is roughing the passer. 0:02:10.680 --> 0:02:13.400 But then you have Dean Blandino, who I think you 0:02:13.400 --> 0:02:15.480 would admit was probably the first of the I don't 0:02:15.480 --> 0:02:17.960 want to call him celebrity officials, but I mean he 0:02:18.080 --> 0:02:20.160 was the focal point of this thing for a while 0:02:20.240 --> 0:02:22.720 when he was the head of officiating. He has an 0:02:22.840 --> 0:02:26.920 entirely different opinion of and Mike Pereira as well, who 0:02:27.000 --> 0:02:30.280 was who was the Dean Blandino before Blandino took over. 0:02:30.440 --> 0:02:33.480 So my issue here isn't even with the call anymore. 0:02:33.560 --> 0:02:35.360 It's with the fact that you have all these guys 0:02:35.360 --> 0:02:39.600 who have held the office of the head of officiating 0:02:40.240 --> 0:02:43.920 and there isn't a consensus, and that concerns me. Yeah, 0:02:43.520 --> 0:02:47.600 it is, And I don't know west to me what 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:50.080 I have a problem with. I think in trying to 0:02:50.120 --> 0:02:54.080 break this down into the into the simplest terms, what 0:02:54.200 --> 0:02:59.200 I have a problem with is the way anybody who 0:02:59.360 --> 0:03:03.400 is teaching junior high football and kids are putting on 0:03:03.480 --> 0:03:06.640 pads for the same time. If you are coaching how 0:03:06.720 --> 0:03:11.840 to tackle a ball carrier, you wrap up, you have 0:03:11.960 --> 0:03:14.519 to get their legs off the ground to make sure 0:03:14.600 --> 0:03:18.680 you get them on the ground. Now, obviously there are 0:03:18.720 --> 0:03:21.400 things that you can do within that that would be 0:03:21.400 --> 0:03:24.520 considered unnecessary roughness. There are ways in which you can 0:03:24.600 --> 0:03:29.040 rough up a player that is not necessary. But what 0:03:29.240 --> 0:03:33.160 Eric Kendricks and Clay Matthews did, if it's not against 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:37.040 the quarterback, it is a form tackle that is exactly 0:03:37.080 --> 0:03:40.200 how you're supposed to teach and coach the game. So 0:03:40.440 --> 0:03:44.040 and I understand quarterbacks need to be treated differently for 0:03:44.360 --> 0:03:48.080 the sake of the league and the television ratings and 0:03:48.120 --> 0:03:51.640 the competitiveness and everything else about that. But this is 0:03:51.640 --> 0:03:55.200 going a little bit too far because because what those 0:03:55.200 --> 0:03:59.560 guys did in that Packers Vikings game, if they do that, 0:04:00.120 --> 0:04:03.280 if they do that against any other player carrying the football, 0:04:03.760 --> 0:04:07.040 that is a four star a plus tackle, because that 0:04:07.160 --> 0:04:09.480 is exactly how you're supposed to do it. Yeah. Absolutely, 0:04:09.440 --> 0:04:12.400 And I was really pleased that Mike McCarthy had mentioned 0:04:12.640 --> 0:04:16.920 Eric Kendricks too and his I guess unnecessary roughnest penalty 0:04:16.960 --> 0:04:19.280 on Aaron Rodgers because you and I have been saying 0:04:19.279 --> 0:04:21.760 this since game day. It wasn't just the Matthews play, 0:04:21.760 --> 0:04:24.720 it was the Kendricks one as well. That was pretty questionable. Uh. 0:04:24.760 --> 0:04:26.919 And and I think it creates, you know, sort of 0:04:26.920 --> 0:04:31.120 this confusion. This Uh, it's just an air of uncertainty 0:04:31.120 --> 0:04:32.520 that you do not want to have when you're trying 0:04:32.560 --> 0:04:34.960 to play as fast as possible, as clean as possible, 0:04:35.200 --> 0:04:39.360 but trying to play the game fast. The part I'm 0:04:39.360 --> 0:04:41.479 struggling with the most right now as we get into 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:44.000 now week three and we move forward, is that. And 0:04:44.040 --> 0:04:45.839 I still at this point in time, have not seen 0:04:45.880 --> 0:04:48.800 the officiating video I'm very interested the league sends it out, 0:04:48.839 --> 0:04:50.880 it's available to the media, I'm really interested to watch 0:04:50.960 --> 0:04:53.640 it because this is how this isn't a precedent for 0:04:53.680 --> 0:04:55.359 Week two. This is the precedent for the rest of 0:04:55.360 --> 0:04:57.760 the season and how this thing is going to be called. 0:04:57.800 --> 0:05:00.720 And uh for a for a pass rusher to be 0:05:00.760 --> 0:05:02.200 in a spot right now that they have so many 0:05:02.200 --> 0:05:04.400 different thoughts going through their head when traditionally it was 0:05:04.440 --> 0:05:07.840 just getting the quarterback. Mike McCarthy put it as well 0:05:07.839 --> 0:05:09.719 as I think you can put it. You want to 0:05:09.720 --> 0:05:12.600 protect the quarterback. Everybody's on board with protecting the quarterback. 0:05:12.640 --> 0:05:16.120 That's a necessity for the league, but you also don't 0:05:16.120 --> 0:05:20.400 want to create a comparative competitive disadvantage for the defense. 0:05:20.440 --> 0:05:23.160 And I don't know, Mike, but that kind of what 0:05:23.240 --> 0:05:25.880 this smells like right now. Yeah, And as McCarthy suggested, 0:05:25.960 --> 0:05:29.160 not all the variables are being taken into account here, 0:05:29.240 --> 0:05:32.480 because you know, he even said, when when a quarterback 0:05:32.680 --> 0:05:35.479 is throwing a ball, especially throwing a deep ball as 0:05:35.480 --> 0:05:38.240 in the case with with Cousins on the past that 0:05:38.360 --> 0:05:41.760 Jayer Alexander intercepted, you know, there's a lot of force, 0:05:41.800 --> 0:05:44.240 there's a lot of momentum of the quarterback's body. Well, 0:05:45.080 --> 0:05:46.919 you know he's gonna be a little lighter on his 0:05:46.960 --> 0:05:50.000 feet at that point, and then if contact happens, yeah, 0:05:50.040 --> 0:05:51.800 his feet are going to be off the ground. But 0:05:51.920 --> 0:05:54.839 that doesn't mean that the guy who's hitting him is 0:05:54.880 --> 0:05:57.240 trying to lift and drive him into the ground. That's 0:05:57.279 --> 0:06:00.200 just that's sort of what naturally happens in the low 0:06:00.240 --> 0:06:02.599 of these athletes doing what they do and trying to 0:06:02.640 --> 0:06:05.640 do their jobs. So, as McCarthy said, and I agree 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:08.240 with you, I thought he put it very succinctly and 0:06:08.360 --> 0:06:12.479 very clearly. There there are some variables that aren't being 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:15.600 considered here in the application of this, and the league 0:06:15.640 --> 0:06:17.480 needs to get to the bottom of it and needs 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:20.480 to provide some kind of clarity because otherwise, and I 0:06:20.520 --> 0:06:24.159 don't mean to take this to the absurd extreme, but otherwise, 0:06:24.240 --> 0:06:26.839 I don't know what you tell a defensive player to 0:06:26.920 --> 0:06:30.200 do when he gets to the quarterback, aside then from 0:06:30.560 --> 0:06:33.240 wrap your arms around him in a bear hug, hold 0:06:33.320 --> 0:06:36.039 him up and wait for the official to blow the whistle, 0:06:36.120 --> 0:06:38.839 because that is the only way you can guarantee yourself 0:06:39.080 --> 0:06:41.440 that you're not going to be called for roughing or 0:06:41.480 --> 0:06:43.880 get a penalty or get a fine or whatever else 0:06:43.920 --> 0:06:47.159 goes along with it. Um and and hey, these these 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:49.520 players hate it when those flags come out. They hate 0:06:49.520 --> 0:06:52.360 it when their pocketbooks get hit for this kind of stuff. 0:06:52.480 --> 0:06:55.240 And uh, I'm not sure what they're going to do 0:06:55.360 --> 0:06:58.040 and how they go forward from here. It's very interesting 0:06:58.160 --> 0:07:00.360 because as I went back and watched the game, there 0:07:00.360 --> 0:07:03.000 basically is one technique right now that appears to be 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:05.560 fully legal, no question about it, when it comes to 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:07.120 sack in the quarterback. And we saw it on both 0:07:07.120 --> 0:07:09.120 sides of the ball in that game, which is kind 0:07:09.120 --> 0:07:12.600 of just bulldozing over the quarterback in the quarterback basically 0:07:12.600 --> 0:07:15.160 turtling up. That's kind of what happened on the Kenny 0:07:15.160 --> 0:07:16.720 Clark one, and it's what happened on a couple of 0:07:16.760 --> 0:07:18.640 the Aaron Rodgers ones when he wasn't able to escape 0:07:18.640 --> 0:07:22.920 the pocket. The sack, you know, the defender basically goes 0:07:22.960 --> 0:07:25.840 over the top of the quarterback, the quarterback turtles up 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:28.600 and and that's a sack. If if it's not that, 0:07:29.480 --> 0:07:31.480 I mean, there's so you can't hit him in the head, 0:07:31.480 --> 0:07:34.040 you can't hit him too low in the legs. And 0:07:34.080 --> 0:07:36.239 now we're talking about the core of the body where 0:07:36.640 --> 0:07:40.360 if you're putting your head down to attack the quarterback 0:07:40.480 --> 0:07:42.600 in a clean fashion, moving your head to the side, 0:07:43.080 --> 0:07:45.960 you don't know what he's doing with that football. I 0:07:45.960 --> 0:07:48.720 don't know. Yeah. Well, and and that's what Mike Daniels 0:07:48.800 --> 0:07:51.200 ran into because he gets right in there. He's still 0:07:51.200 --> 0:07:53.640 got a blocker working on him, but he he gets 0:07:53.720 --> 0:07:56.280 enough of an escape to possibly get to Cousins. But 0:07:56.320 --> 0:07:59.520 then Cousins pump fakes with the ball and Daniels thinks 0:07:59.560 --> 0:08:01.760 the ball is gone. I can't take this guy and 0:08:01.800 --> 0:08:04.160 throw him on the ground because I'm going to get 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:06.280 a penalty and a fine and everything else. Well, then 0:08:06.360 --> 0:08:09.280 Cousin still has the ball, avoids a ten yard loss 0:08:09.320 --> 0:08:11.400 and gets back to the line of scrimmage. That's not 0:08:11.480 --> 0:08:14.040 football either, That's that's not how this is supposed to go. 0:08:14.160 --> 0:08:16.440 So I know we're gonna be talking about this, I think, 0:08:16.480 --> 0:08:19.120 for for a long time, all season long, because they're 0:08:19.160 --> 0:08:21.720 going to continue to be plays that come up. And 0:08:21.920 --> 0:08:24.280 the more of these plays occur in the fourth quarter 0:08:24.440 --> 0:08:26.520 of close games, and we all know how many close 0:08:26.560 --> 0:08:28.920 games there are in this league, it's going to continue 0:08:28.960 --> 0:08:31.000 to be a discussion. Well, and here's The other factor 0:08:31.080 --> 0:08:33.079 this to the NFL is making an example of claim 0:08:33.080 --> 0:08:36.480 Matthews this week on Friday, the NFL will announce or 0:08:36.760 --> 0:08:40.280 reporters will start announcing fines. If Clay Matthews gets fine, 0:08:40.320 --> 0:08:42.240 and if they're making it a point in emphasis, you 0:08:42.240 --> 0:08:44.520 can kind of, you know, connect the dots. He has 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:47.320 the opportunity to appeal that fine. This thing's gonna keep 0:08:47.360 --> 0:08:49.720 having a domino effect going forward. So I mean, it's 0:08:50.160 --> 0:08:52.679 it's not just this game. It's gonna be week to week. Now. 0:08:52.720 --> 0:08:54.920 I saw the other there was another game across the 0:08:55.000 --> 0:08:56.920 league that there was a player I don't know who 0:08:56.920 --> 0:08:59.400 it is, excuse me, but a guy got too rough 0:08:59.480 --> 0:09:01.960 in the pastor yes, it was a player for New 0:09:02.080 --> 0:09:04.079 Orleans and I can't think of his name at the moment, 0:09:04.120 --> 0:09:07.520 but yeah, too roughing the passer penalty. So they basically 0:09:07.559 --> 0:09:10.400 doubled his fine. And because he's essentially like a league 0:09:10.400 --> 0:09:15.080 minimum salary guy, his two fines are larger than his 0:09:15.200 --> 0:09:18.800 game check. He basically paid the NFL to play a game. 0:09:20.400 --> 0:09:25.720 Something's not right about that. Yeah, it's nice deduction, I suppose. 0:09:25.840 --> 0:09:29.640 But anyway, well, uh, some quick little sponsor business here West. 0:09:29.679 --> 0:09:32.480 It is time to enter the Cousin Subs Best Seats 0:09:32.480 --> 0:09:34.319 in the House promotion, You and a guest could win 0:09:34.320 --> 0:09:36.760 a chance to kick back on the fifty yard line 0:09:36.760 --> 0:09:38.880 in style. Two pairs of lucky Packers fans will be 0:09:38.960 --> 0:09:41.440 chosen prior to each home game for this v I 0:09:41.480 --> 0:09:45.320 P experience. Enter daily now through December sixteen by completing 0:09:45.320 --> 0:09:48.520 the entry form and submitting. For complete rules and eligibility, 0:09:48.640 --> 0:09:51.840 go to Packers dot com slash Best Seats cousin Subs 0:09:52.360 --> 0:09:54.679 We Believe in Better. Okay, Staying on the topic of 0:09:54.760 --> 0:09:57.679 quarterbacks for a moment, a little bit of discussion on 0:09:57.720 --> 0:10:00.480 Monday in the aftermath of the Packers VI Kings game 0:10:00.520 --> 0:10:06.040 on just how mobile Aaron Rodgers was in this game, 0:10:06.120 --> 0:10:08.520 certainly more mobile than I thought he would be taking 0:10:08.559 --> 0:10:10.840 off on the third and seven in the first quarter 0:10:11.000 --> 0:10:13.920 up the middle, scrambling for the first down. You know, 0:10:13.960 --> 0:10:16.800 the whole crowd in Lambeau Field kind of collectively holding 0:10:16.800 --> 0:10:20.360 its breath. But as the game went on, he got 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:22.959 more and more mobile. And in fact, when you look 0:10:23.040 --> 0:10:25.640 at say that that pass in the fourth quarter in 0:10:25.640 --> 0:10:27.920 the end zone to Davante Adams, the one that Eric 0:10:28.000 --> 0:10:30.240 Kendricks kind of ripped away and there was that collision 0:10:30.240 --> 0:10:32.920 in the end zone that might have sealed the game 0:10:32.960 --> 0:10:36.880 for the Packers. Aaron Rodgers was you know, looked pretty 0:10:36.880 --> 0:10:39.760 close to the old Aaron Rodgers slipping out, escaping the 0:10:39.760 --> 0:10:42.480 pocket and throwing the ball on the run. That's hopefully 0:10:42.520 --> 0:10:44.800 a good sign here for the Packers going forward, because 0:10:44.840 --> 0:10:46.960 he looked like a different quarterback than in the second 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:49.640 half against Chicago. And Mike McCarthy mentioned too, even seeing 0:10:49.720 --> 0:10:51.800 him after taking a majority of the reps on Saturday, 0:10:51.840 --> 0:10:54.760 he looked a lot more mobile. He said. He still 0:10:54.760 --> 0:10:56.480 didn't have anything dialed up for him. There were no 0:10:56.520 --> 0:10:59.240 designed quarterback runs at all, but he did look a 0:10:59.280 --> 0:11:01.440 lot better than he did in the second half against Chicago. 0:11:01.840 --> 0:11:04.000 I thought, Lane Taylor I wrote about this for the 0:11:04.040 --> 0:11:06.320 website on Monday night, and we wrote about it on 0:11:06.360 --> 0:11:09.160 Inbox on Tuesday morning. Tailor at such a great point 0:11:09.400 --> 0:11:11.000 when he was talking to the media on Monday and 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:13.360 saying there was a lot of there was a big 0:11:13.360 --> 0:11:16.800 benefit to him, you know, squirming out and getting that 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:19.080 seven yard pick up for the first down on third down, 0:11:19.440 --> 0:11:22.880 because that showed the vikings early on that you at 0:11:22.920 --> 0:11:24.920 least had to account for him. Yeah, maybe he won't 0:11:24.920 --> 0:11:27.679 be extending plays like he usually does. But you also 0:11:27.720 --> 0:11:29.720 can't just think, Okay, well, we don't need a spy 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:32.160 on him. You started to see the spy steak back 0:11:32.240 --> 0:11:34.520 up there again. It kept them a little bit more honest, 0:11:34.559 --> 0:11:36.120 and that opened things up a little bit more for 0:11:36.240 --> 0:11:39.600 Rogers in the passing game. His number one weapon, Mike 0:11:39.720 --> 0:11:41.320 is the fact that you don't know what he's gonna 0:11:41.360 --> 0:11:42.720 do on a give him play. He can make an 0:11:42.720 --> 0:11:45.600 adjustment at the line of scrimmage once the play develops. 0:11:45.640 --> 0:11:47.560 If things break down, he can make plays on the 0:11:47.600 --> 0:11:51.880 scrambled trill. So having his full arsenal at least being 0:11:51.920 --> 0:11:54.400 able to showcase some of it. I think that was 0:11:54.400 --> 0:11:56.640 big for this Vikings game. And barring any setbacks with 0:11:56.720 --> 0:11:59.559 Washington Buffalo, every team that comes up on the schedule 0:11:59.800 --> 0:12:01.960 there gonna see that tape and they're gonna have to 0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:04.839 understand that. Okay, you know, Aaron Rodgers, while he maybe 0:12:04.880 --> 0:12:08.560 not is, he's still Aaron Rodgers. Yeah, He's not a 0:12:08.640 --> 0:12:11.600 statue back there in the pocket. And I agree with you. 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:14.280 I agree with Lane Taylor that that was a factor 0:12:14.320 --> 0:12:16.520 in the game. There's no there's no question about it. 0:12:16.880 --> 0:12:19.600 And we'll see Aaron Rodgers. He normally talks to the 0:12:19.640 --> 0:12:22.760 media on Wednesdays during the week, so tomorrow when we 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:24.920 hear from him, we will see because I think the 0:12:24.960 --> 0:12:27.720 first question, or unless people are going to ask about 0:12:27.760 --> 0:12:29.800 the roughing, the path and stuff, but one of the 0:12:29.840 --> 0:12:33.480 first questions he will get, I think is, Okay, it's Wednesday. 0:12:33.520 --> 0:12:36.200 How do you feel this Wednesday compared to last Wednesday 0:12:36.240 --> 0:12:38.840 when you're three days removed from the game. Because if 0:12:38.920 --> 0:12:41.960 he's feeling, if he's feeling better week to week, as 0:12:42.080 --> 0:12:44.040 as he goes through this, we know that will be 0:12:44.080 --> 0:12:46.719 a positive sign for him to to get through this 0:12:46.840 --> 0:12:49.839 and and you know, maybe whatever after getting the week 0:12:49.920 --> 0:12:52.320 off at the bye in the middle of October, you know, 0:12:52.360 --> 0:12:55.480 then maybe the real old Aaron Rodgers will be will 0:12:55.520 --> 0:12:57.480 be back to full strength after that. We'll see. Yeah, 0:12:57.520 --> 0:12:59.440 we have to see. And obviously things can change week 0:12:59.440 --> 0:13:01.839 to week. Certainly the Packers are hoping that he can 0:13:01.880 --> 0:13:05.679 continue to make progress throughout this whole process and not 0:13:05.760 --> 0:13:08.760 have any setbacks. But as Lane Taylor also mentioned, you know, 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:10.679 he's the kind of guy that he's he doesn't throw 0:13:10.720 --> 0:13:12.760 caution to the wind. I mean, he knows how to 0:13:12.800 --> 0:13:14.800 play football, and he knows how to play it one way, 0:13:14.800 --> 0:13:16.480 and that's to win and put everything he has on 0:13:16.520 --> 0:13:19.720 the field. It was a commendable performance. I know, Geronimo Allison, 0:13:19.760 --> 0:13:22.319 a number of guys really, you know, praised him for 0:13:22.320 --> 0:13:25.280 for what he put out on the field. Both Taylor 0:13:25.320 --> 0:13:28.880 and McCarthy called him a warrior in separate separate interviews. 0:13:28.880 --> 0:13:32.000 So it is amazing, I think when you look at 0:13:32.040 --> 0:13:34.880 what he put himself through in sixteen, in fourteen with 0:13:34.960 --> 0:13:37.640 the lower body injuries, the soft tissue injuries last year, 0:13:37.679 --> 0:13:39.600 coming back on the early side of that timeline with 0:13:39.640 --> 0:13:42.079 the shoulder, Rogers wants to do what he has to 0:13:42.120 --> 0:13:45.520 do to win, and this is another example of it. Yeah. Well, 0:13:45.520 --> 0:13:48.439 we promised on yesterday's show because we did not really 0:13:48.480 --> 0:13:51.360 get to our glance around the league with everything that 0:13:51.440 --> 0:13:55.000 had happened in that nine tie against the Vikings. But 0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:58.240 we did touch on the fact that only two teams 0:13:58.240 --> 0:14:00.760 in the NFC right now at two and no after 0:14:01.000 --> 0:14:03.800 two games, the Los Angeles Rams, a playoff team from 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:07.720 a year ago defending division champions in the NFC West, 0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:11.360 and then the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the Harvard grad 0:14:11.480 --> 0:14:16.240 Ryan Fitzpatrick lighting things up. I think right now, based statistically, 0:14:16.360 --> 0:14:18.160 if you were to say, okay, who is the m 0:14:18.240 --> 0:14:20.200 v P of the NFL through the first two weeks 0:14:20.240 --> 0:14:23.240 would be a toss up between Patrick Mahomes from Kansas 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:26.520 City and Ryan Fitzpatrick, the quarterback from the Buccaneers. And 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:29.920 I don't know if before the regular season started, if 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:32.040 anybody thought those two would be in the m v 0:14:32.120 --> 0:14:34.880 P conversation here in the middle of September, you don't know. 0:14:34.960 --> 0:14:37.600 I mean, no, nobody thought that. I got a kick 0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:39.120 out of one thing I saw on social media. They 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:41.200 did a Venn diagram of who's going to be the 0:14:41.280 --> 0:14:44.040 m v P, and it was Ryan fits and then Patrick, 0:14:44.160 --> 0:14:46.320 and then they had the two circles going over each 0:14:46.360 --> 0:14:50.360 other and then it merging into Patrick Mahomes. It is amazing. 0:14:50.400 --> 0:14:53.160 It's it's amazing what Mahomes has done, how efficient he's been. 0:14:53.200 --> 0:14:54.840 I think he has what a one forty three passer 0:14:54.960 --> 0:14:58.920 rating right now. It's something for Kansas City and in Fitzpatrick. 0:14:59.560 --> 0:15:01.920 Here's the thing about Fitzpatrick. This isn't a shocker because 0:15:01.920 --> 0:15:05.400 he's had big games that Buffalo Bills with Chan Gailey 0:15:05.440 --> 0:15:09.160 there the late two thousands, early two thousand tens. They 0:15:09.160 --> 0:15:12.160 had some potent offenses, but turnovers were an issue. I 0:15:12.160 --> 0:15:14.360 think that's gonna be the big thing for Fitzpatrick is 0:15:14.640 --> 0:15:16.840 being able to limit those because everybody knows he can 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:18.600 throw the football. He has a heck of an arm. 0:15:18.600 --> 0:15:20.800 He's as smart as they come at the position. So 0:15:20.880 --> 0:15:22.880 to have them be able to have this success and 0:15:22.920 --> 0:15:26.280 beat the defending Super Bowl champions, obviously, it puts them 0:15:26.280 --> 0:15:28.040 in the driver's seat right now. And what has always 0:15:28.080 --> 0:15:31.400 been a very competitive NFC South, Yeah, well, nobody in 0:15:31.400 --> 0:15:34.080 the NFC North is two and oh Packers and Vikings 0:15:34.120 --> 0:15:37.320 at one oh and one. We see the Chicago Bears 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:39.640 move up to one and one with their Monday night 0:15:39.720 --> 0:15:43.200 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle takes another one on 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:46.640 the chin, they fall to oh and two, and um 0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:49.520 kind of West's the same old story we've been talking 0:15:49.520 --> 0:15:51.800 about with Seattle for the last few years now, and 0:15:51.840 --> 0:15:53.800 that is they have not been able to fix that 0:15:53.880 --> 0:15:57.280 offensive line and uh, and it's a it's a grab 0:15:57.280 --> 0:15:59.600 bag back there with Russell Wilson as to whether he 0:15:59.680 --> 0:16:01.920 has will have any time to throw, whether he can 0:16:01.920 --> 0:16:04.720 get away and make plays on the run and all that. 0:16:04.760 --> 0:16:07.680 The Bears defense, you know, kind of swallowed him up 0:16:07.720 --> 0:16:11.480 and wasn't until the fourth quarter. You know, Wilson got 0:16:11.520 --> 0:16:14.040 some things going and and then in the in the 0:16:14.080 --> 0:16:16.520 desperation to come back, he throws a pick six that 0:16:16.520 --> 0:16:18.960 that seals the game for Chicago's defense. Yeah, you can 0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:23.880 just see Russell Wilson is the NFL quarterback has to 0:16:23.920 --> 0:16:27.200 lift his team. It comes with the job description. But 0:16:27.280 --> 0:16:29.520 it just seems like every year we're seeing Wilson have 0:16:29.560 --> 0:16:32.320 to shoulder a little bit more. Uh. And and you've 0:16:32.320 --> 0:16:34.840 seen a little bit of an erosion of the defense. Uh. 0:16:34.880 --> 0:16:37.720 They're running game in the post Marshawn Lynch era has 0:16:37.760 --> 0:16:41.400 not really been overly effective. Uh And certainly trying to, 0:16:41.560 --> 0:16:43.520 you know, get their weapons figured out there. They put 0:16:43.520 --> 0:16:47.920 a big investment into Lockett Tyler Lockett this offseason, trying 0:16:47.920 --> 0:16:50.000 to find ways to integrate him into the offense. But 0:16:50.600 --> 0:16:53.000 ultimately it is about the protection and it is about 0:16:53.040 --> 0:16:55.160 giving Russell Wilson the time he needs a throw. Because 0:16:55.160 --> 0:16:58.200 he is a very unique quarterback. It makes a unique 0:16:58.240 --> 0:17:01.080 requirement of that offensive front. They've not been able to 0:17:01.080 --> 0:17:04.840 do it. Credit to the Chicago Bears, though. Six sacks 0:17:04.840 --> 0:17:07.880 for Vic Fangio's defense a lot of pressure on Wilson. 0:17:07.920 --> 0:17:10.480 We both know how difficult he is the sack getting 0:17:10.480 --> 0:17:13.720 six sacks against him, that's not an easy accomplishment. And 0:17:13.800 --> 0:17:16.520 the number one thought I that went through my head 0:17:16.520 --> 0:17:18.240 as I saw some of the clips of this game 0:17:18.320 --> 0:17:20.199 was that I still, at the end of the day, 0:17:20.240 --> 0:17:22.239 think the Packers did the right thing for themselves as 0:17:22.240 --> 0:17:24.800 an organization. I think the Bears and Ryan Pace did 0:17:24.880 --> 0:17:28.640 the best made the best decision possible for their team. 0:17:28.680 --> 0:17:31.000 I think the outlier right now is the Raiders and 0:17:31.119 --> 0:17:33.720 seeing you know, when you have a talent that that's 0:17:33.800 --> 0:17:38.240 that unique, that good, that's it's tough to give those 0:17:38.320 --> 0:17:40.080 up in the prime of their career. They did that, 0:17:40.320 --> 0:17:42.000 and now they're going to have to deal with the 0:17:42.040 --> 0:17:43.720 after effects of it. They're all in two now going 0:17:43.760 --> 0:17:45.600 into week three. Yeah, and the rest of the rest 0:17:45.640 --> 0:17:47.440 of the NFC North is going to have to deal 0:17:47.520 --> 0:17:50.240 with Khalil Mack twice a year now. The Packers. I 0:17:50.480 --> 0:17:52.800 have one of those two out of the way. But 0:17:53.000 --> 0:17:55.560 I'll say this about the Bears, what what I'm curious 0:17:55.600 --> 0:17:59.280 to see because they're obviously feeling their way with Matt 0:17:59.359 --> 0:18:02.840 Naggie's off fense, a lot of the misdirection at sometimes 0:18:02.840 --> 0:18:04.719 it looks like a college offense. And I don't mean 0:18:04.760 --> 0:18:08.040 that as an insult. I'm saying it looks like just 0:18:08.040 --> 0:18:11.600 just all the all the trickery in some ways, with 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:14.280 the motion and the misdirection and the read options stuff 0:18:14.600 --> 0:18:16.879 and all that it it looks like a college offense 0:18:16.920 --> 0:18:19.720 out there. What I'm wondering is at what point are 0:18:19.720 --> 0:18:22.920 they gonna cut mits Rubisky loose and let him attack 0:18:23.320 --> 0:18:26.520 down the field. Because what I've seen from the Bears offense, 0:18:26.560 --> 0:18:28.640 and I realized it's only two games and they're making 0:18:28.680 --> 0:18:30.560 their way here with the new coaching staff in the 0:18:30.600 --> 0:18:33.399 new offense, but you can't play offense like that for 0:18:33.480 --> 0:18:36.560 sixteen games in the NFL and expect to succeed because 0:18:36.800 --> 0:18:39.520 you have to make plays down the field. Trabinsky hasn't 0:18:39.560 --> 0:18:42.400 done it yet, and I'm not saying he can't um 0:18:42.480 --> 0:18:44.920 but whether or not he does, I think is what's 0:18:44.920 --> 0:18:48.720 going to define Chicago's offense as this season goes along. Yeah, 0:18:48.720 --> 0:18:50.719 I thought last year they were pretty conservative with him. 0:18:50.760 --> 0:18:54.040 He had six point six yards per completion. This year 0:18:54.040 --> 0:18:56.399 it's five point four, So it's actually gone down in 0:18:56.440 --> 0:18:59.400 the first two weeks of this season. I think there's 0:18:59.400 --> 0:19:01.960 a delicate Allan's there, especially when you play a quarterback. 0:19:01.960 --> 0:19:04.560 Early you heard Patrick Mahomes talk about what he felt 0:19:04.600 --> 0:19:07.200 the benefit was. I know John Dorsey was very stringent 0:19:07.200 --> 0:19:10.600 proponent of it, letting a young quarterback sit uh and 0:19:10.640 --> 0:19:12.199 I don't think there's a right or wrong way. But 0:19:12.280 --> 0:19:14.359 Mahomes said, I mean how much he learned from watching 0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:17.160 Alex Smith on the top level quarterback in this league 0:19:17.160 --> 0:19:19.320 that's done it for a long time, and now jumping 0:19:19.320 --> 0:19:22.159 into the driver's seat as opposed to Trubisky where you 0:19:22.240 --> 0:19:24.320 do have the training wheels off at first, but the 0:19:24.440 --> 0:19:27.199 question becomes, well when do you take them off? Because 0:19:27.440 --> 0:19:30.280 they wanted they wanted to sit Trubisky, but Mike Glennon 0:19:30.640 --> 0:19:33.160