Speaker 1: The Around the NFL podcast will pick Shuck's game this week.
Speaker 2: From the Chris Westling podcast studio. It's Around the NFL.
Speaker 2: I'm Dan hanss I'm a hero, but I'm not alone.
Speaker 3: Let's start there.
Speaker 2: Greg Rosenthal, Mark Sessler, and Mark we've made it to
Speaker 2: the end of the Yellow Brick Road. It's the Week
Speaker 2: eighteen preview show. After we finished today's show. Because it's
Speaker 2: the last week of the regular season, you can go
Speaker 2: into the Hollywood Hills and just slumber until September.
Speaker 3: Just kidding, we're like halfway through the season. I mean
Speaker 3: a brief stop along the way.
Speaker 4: This does feel I do love the feeling of this
Speaker 4: being the last preview. It will be the last time
Speaker 4: we preview an Eastern Stick Chargers game or some of
Speaker 4: these teams, so it'll be different. It'll be different next week,
Speaker 4: I well, Black Monday, when we do the previews, it'll
Speaker 4: just be on six games. It will be diving in
Speaker 4: a little more, but it won't be as many teams.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: I think it's good to appreciate the Eastern Sticks in
Speaker 2: the world. The last time you'll ever hear Gift Smith's name.
Speaker 2: These are important things because these are people.
Speaker 5: But I would argue that, like I normally want to
Speaker 5: get rid of a lot of these teams, like early November. Right,
Speaker 5: But the NFL finally got what they wanted because as
Speaker 5: of like a week plus ago, all but four teams
Speaker 5: were still essentially alive. I think the nfls fought against
Speaker 5: itself on one level. I was thinking about this, you
Speaker 5: greedily add an.
Speaker 2: Extra week, Right, we'll edit out the greed.
Speaker 5: Well you did, And it's like, had you gone with
Speaker 5: what always worked where it ended last week, you would
Speaker 5: have had all a slobber knocker of a week, credible
Speaker 5: amount of teams, more alive than ever before.
Speaker 4: But this week you've gone into Nay, I would have
Speaker 4: been eliminated. Just a week before it would have been
Speaker 4: the same thing.
Speaker 5: No, they would like still, I know what you're saying.
Speaker 5: More teams were alive, it would have been would have
Speaker 5: been tighter, and they wouldn't.
Speaker 4: It's been alive because the season would have ended, been
Speaker 4: ending early. It changes everything.
Speaker 5: This extra week though, this extra week added a lot
Speaker 5: of garbage, and that's always coming from But like then, then.
Speaker 4: Well then the Bears would have been dead a week before.
Speaker 3: Everyone would have been.
Speaker 5: An extra week just to get to another like lineup
Speaker 5: of guards.
Speaker 4: I don't think you can sell. I don't think you
Speaker 4: can fix.
Speaker 5: And the super Bowl is like it on Valentine's Day,
Speaker 5: final week. It's like I'm saying, it's not overall, Like
Speaker 5: the argument is not now to go out a week
Speaker 5: so for people to.
Speaker 2: Wonder why I started the show with a joke the
Speaker 2: mark that he was going to be able to rest
Speaker 2: in the Hollywood Hills.
Speaker 3: That's what's going on in his head at all times.
Speaker 3: But you know they're adding a week nineteen soon. Sure,
Speaker 3: I do think that they should.
Speaker 2: Actually I think I think seems silly that they're doing
Speaker 2: an extra Homer away game.
Speaker 3: But my attached no, does just be an extra bye week?
Speaker 3: Only twelve quarterbacks have started every game.
Speaker 5: Yeah, so that's the argument against these extra weeks from
Speaker 5: a court. Now, I'd say this year it's been charming.
Speaker 5: It's been charming. The backups have it'll I could tell,
Speaker 5: but the backups lot, a lot of them have been
Speaker 5: good stories.
Speaker 4: But the first five minutes of every show is complaining
Speaker 4: about that we have the job.
Speaker 3: No, no, no, it's I think it's also fair. I'm
Speaker 3: not complaining. Look at the League and.
Speaker 5: Say like, hey, guys, like, let's be careful because if
Speaker 5: you go add six more teams eight more weeks, like
Speaker 5: the NFL changes.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'm with you. I don't think that.
Speaker 4: I think the first thing they'll do is at a week,
Speaker 4: not a game. But that's just me like a bye week.
Speaker 2: Can I say Mark that you were making a lot
Speaker 2: of salient points there. Yeah, but then lost your Paisley
Speaker 2: shirt today, which is great. I like this one big
Speaker 2: Paisley it from I call him Brad Paisley got it
Speaker 2: from the handful of them, so you got the extra
Speaker 2: button down, so I get a little bit of the hair.
Speaker 2: But also I'm getting a little mid riff from the
Speaker 2: bottom from this angle on me. It's almost like you're
Speaker 2: dressed like it's like a Drew Barrymore outfit from the
Speaker 2: Batman Forever premiere.
Speaker 3: I love it.
Speaker 5: I take the lowest button on the shirt and I
Speaker 5: unbutton it because it lays out nicer in the chair.
Speaker 2: But I'm seeing up top and down low you are
Speaker 2: and I'm not complaining, no, and I don't want you
Speaker 2: to be, so I almost move in a little.
Speaker 3: Anyways, Greg, Sorry, I know we need to get to
Speaker 3: uh the snow, we don't. We don't?
Speaker 4: That was I want more of that? Aren't Taco met?
Speaker 4: And I'm lookingwhere else is going on.
Speaker 2: I'm looking at Marks bear Torso and Greg's arguing about
Speaker 2: how perfect the NFL is, and Mark's like going off
Speaker 2: the deep end about how terrible it is, and I'm
Speaker 2: just scaring at Man's skin.
Speaker 3: You know what, you have to self scout.
Speaker 5: You have to be able to critique your own product,
Speaker 5: right or do you just company man everything until the
Speaker 5: end of time?
Speaker 3: Just right?
Speaker 4: You just hang around? I'm that So that was what
Speaker 4: I felt like my role. I was self scouting.
Speaker 3: That matters. So we're just going to start the show
Speaker 3: over in.
Speaker 4: The first five minutes complaining every show is probably not
Speaker 4: what I would want.
Speaker 3: All right, let's know what you want.
Speaker 2: Let's everybody, let's let's brain this in and get to
Speaker 2: what we need to get to because, as we know,
Speaker 2: this late in the season, final week of the regular season,
Speaker 2: there are no buys, a lot of games to talk about,
Speaker 2: and let's start on.
Speaker 3: Saturday, the last Saturday of the regular season.
Speaker 2: Remember there are playoff games played Saturday as well, so
Speaker 2: these this is not the last of Saturday football.
Speaker 3: Let's start though, on Sunday.
Speaker 2: How about that through a little curveball to you, because
Speaker 2: that's the game everyone wants to talk about.
Speaker 3: Recover from that curveball hanging there. I think we'll be
Speaker 3: all right.
Speaker 2: Sunday Night Football. It is the game of the week.
Speaker 2: It is the game to decide the AFC East. It
Speaker 2: is the ten and six Buffalo Bills traveling to Miami
Speaker 2: to face the eleven and five Dolphins.
Speaker 4: And it is the Miami It is the Bills.
Speaker 2: And you know what, it tells you so much about
Speaker 2: this season with the Bills and this general idea of
Speaker 2: what the Bills are capable of, and there's been so
Speaker 2: many ups and downs to this season.
Speaker 3: It's been a topsy turvy year up in Orchard Park.
Speaker 2: They're getting three points in this game, So the at
Speaker 2: least the desert and the public feel like despite all
Speaker 2: the ups and downs, despite the fact of the Bills
Speaker 2: haven't even played well the last couple of weeks, the
Speaker 2: fact that the Dolphins have a track record of bouncing
Speaker 2: back from disappointment, and hell, god knows they were disappointed
Speaker 2: after getting a fifty burger dropped down by the Ravens.
Speaker 2: It is the host Dolphins that are an underdog in
Speaker 2: a game that decides the division. And as you said, Greg,
Speaker 2: for the Bills, it could be as high as the
Speaker 2: two seed and home field for the playoffs, except for,
Speaker 2: of course, if they meet the Ravens or missing the
Speaker 2: playoffs altogether.
Speaker 3: So the stakes are very high.
Speaker 4: I can't think of another game like this that we've
Speaker 4: covered as a podcast with that much variant. It's not
Speaker 4: even they might get the two seed. They will get
Speaker 4: the two seed if they win, and they're likely to
Speaker 4: miss the playoffs if they lose.
Speaker 3: That's wild.
Speaker 4: Yeah, we kept looking at like a ten wins probably
Speaker 4: gets you in the AFC, probably don't need to get
Speaker 4: there in the NFC. Well, it turns out nine wins
Speaker 4: gets you in the NFC. Ten might not be enough
Speaker 4: in the AFC because the Bills are at ten wins
Speaker 4: And if they lose this game and either the Steelers
Speaker 4: or the Jags if they both win, then Bye bye Buffalo,
Speaker 4: which is crazy because it might be the end of
Speaker 4: an era. Like is Stefan Diggs back on this team
Speaker 4: next year? What other kind of changes could possibly happen
Speaker 4: to this team? And I just wonder, like which Josh
Speaker 4: Allen's gonna be It's crazy Josh season.
Speaker 3: It's like gonna be.
Speaker 4: Great or it's gonna be rough, like it kind of
Speaker 4: was last week against New England, Like can Miami forced
Speaker 4: Josh Allen to go into hero ball mode because he
Speaker 4: got a little wild last week against the Patriots and
Speaker 4: almost threw away the potential playoffs right there. And yet
Speaker 4: the way this Dolphins defense has been playing, it's hard
Speaker 4: to figure out because they were great for so long,
Speaker 4: but they're great because of their pass rush, and they
Speaker 4: lose Chubb on top of having already lost Phillips.
Speaker 3: What does Fangio do?
Speaker 4: Can he create pressure County on the guys up front,
Speaker 4: or does he get a little crazy sending pressure at
Speaker 4: Josh Allen which is not really what they've been doing.
Speaker 5: Yeah, when I look at the spread, I think a
Speaker 5: number of things are a play, like a lack of
Speaker 5: confidence in the Dolphins against winning teams, and the last
Speaker 5: two weeks have been a disaster.
Speaker 3: If they beat the Cowboys.
Speaker 4: But yes, last well, last week was just I think
Speaker 4: like the one of the year two weeks ago. It
Speaker 4: was a huge I.
Speaker 5: Mean, last week was a perception altering loss. But I
Speaker 5: think also to be fair. Like you mentioned Bradley Chubb,
Speaker 5: Xavier Howard, Raheem Mostert did not practice yesterday.
Speaker 3: Devon a Chan is banged up.
Speaker 5: You've got a potential issue with Tua who may not
Speaker 5: be one hundred percent. So you don't have this version
Speaker 5: of the Dolphins that have been so good at home.
Speaker 5: They've been seven to one at home. It sounds like
Speaker 5: Jayal and Wattle might come back. But that variance for
Speaker 5: the Bills feels perfect, a perfect way to finalize this
Speaker 5: regular season because they've been that team all year around.
Speaker 5: I just cannot imagine an AFC playoffs. I'm not that
Speaker 5: high on the Bills in terms of being a true
Speaker 5: Super Bowl type of team the way they have been
Speaker 5: in the past. But an AFC playoff picture without Josh
Speaker 5: Allen feels really mixed up to me.
Speaker 4: And they need Waddle, they need Wattle yet.
Speaker 2: And Eric the producer, listen, think whether or not you're
Speaker 2: confident and eighteen. I'm curious if you are. I just
Speaker 2: have this feeling that the Bills. It would be fitting
Speaker 2: if the Bills had one last let down here and
Speaker 2: it would not be an off brand. And I think
Speaker 2: as much as people seem to be confident about Buffalo. Now, Eric,
Speaker 2: I worry about this game because I guess I'm putting
Speaker 2: more into what we've seen in the last two weeks
Speaker 2: than other people are. Some people are looking at oh,
Speaker 2: they haven't lost since their bye week. I look at
Speaker 2: a team that was not sharp in the last two
Speaker 2: weeks with their season on the line, and now you're
Speaker 2: going to Miami.
Speaker 3: Who listen. McDaniel's a very good coach.
Speaker 2: They're coming off a blowout loss, and he's saying, look,
Speaker 2: everyone's picking against us. They still have Tyreek Hill, they
Speaker 2: got two setting yardage records. They have a chance, obviously
Speaker 2: to win this game. And the Bills, I feel like,
Speaker 2: are more vulnerable than people realize. Where do you come
Speaker 2: down as a Bills fan.
Speaker 6: You're kind of groomed to expect the worst, and the
Speaker 6: season itself has it's just been a hard watch. I
Speaker 6: mean last week, Great kind of mentioned like against the Patriots,
Speaker 6: it was there was points of that game, right, well,
Speaker 6: we're going to lose today, and and and they lost
Speaker 6: to the Pats already this year. I mean, their best
Speaker 6: game of the season probably was that early season game
Speaker 6: against the Dolphins. I will give them that, but I
Speaker 6: mean yeah, there's there's too many scars and too many
Speaker 6: kinks in the armor this season. I mean, Tyree Hill
Speaker 6: has lit us up in the past, and albeit it
Speaker 6: was on the Chiefs, but like, you can't be comfortable
Speaker 6: going into this game with a practically a must win game.
Speaker 6: I mean, Josh Allen has said, this is a must
Speaker 6: win game.
Speaker 4: You're not gonna make don't want you know, because Pittsburgh
Speaker 4: will have already played and so will.
Speaker 3: The jack then maybe it won't be a must win game.
Speaker 4: There's a there's an outside chance it won't be, but
Speaker 4: the odds are they'll know when they line up that
Speaker 4: they have to.
Speaker 3: I mean, Josh Allen.
Speaker 6: Hero ball is always fun, but it's like it's it's
Speaker 6: a wild horse. It's a fun ride until you get
Speaker 6: bucked off the back end.
Speaker 3: Here's the thing.
Speaker 4: Though their defense has been fantastic, they're totally different than
Speaker 4: they were back in that Week four game, for good
Speaker 4: and bad. Like they lost Milano and Tredevius White who
Speaker 4: were in that game, and and they have a different coordinator.
Speaker 4: Everything's different. Digs is no longer like part of the offense.
Speaker 4: That's weird and not a great thing.
Speaker 3: I'm sure that will go well. If they lose this game.
Speaker 4: I do wonder if he's on this team next year
Speaker 4: either way. But the defense has adapted. I think Seohn
Speaker 4: mcdermot's had one of his best coaching years. Defensively, they've
Speaker 4: settled down all those posts, those injuries. They were awesome
Speaker 4: last week against the Patriots. They really their defense has
Speaker 4: been awesome. Daiquon Jones is back, Benford's turned into a
Speaker 4: really good starter. Brazil Douglas is like the pickup of
Speaker 4: the year. Bernard and Dotts and their linebackers have settled
Speaker 4: and played well. And if there's no Jalen Waddle in
Speaker 4: this game. It really struck me last week. It's like, man,
Speaker 4: they have a pretty big drop off to the rest
Speaker 4: of their guys. When you need Cedric Wilson and Claypool
Speaker 4: and cray.
Speaker 2: Craft clapol almost like a play and I was like, wait,
Speaker 2: Chase Claypole's on the team.
Speaker 3: It's it's too big of a drop off to keep up.
Speaker 4: I think in a shootout, two is always so good
Speaker 4: in these early portions of the games, and then and
Speaker 4: then it tails off. I think it's gotta be a
Speaker 4: close game. I'm with you that I'm not counting on
Speaker 4: the bills, but I'm picking the bill.
Speaker 5: It also met like what version of jayal and Waddle
Speaker 5: because he's dealing with an ankle. It sounds like he's
Speaker 5: got an ankle play, I mean, but that like as
Speaker 5: a wide receiver version.
Speaker 4: But this does he make it through the game? Does
Speaker 4: Tyreek make it through the game. It's just a weekly
Speaker 4: thing with them in their lineman, like everything with them
Speaker 4: has been really bad luck.
Speaker 2: And here's just the pure stats because we have talked
Speaker 2: about it and they did, because it wouldn't be fair
Speaker 2: to say, look over the Cowboys win, because that was
Speaker 2: a great win where they you know, they hung with
Speaker 2: him and then made the big drive to take the
Speaker 2: game at the end. But Dolphins defense first winning teams
Speaker 2: this season, last in points allowed or thirty first in
Speaker 2: points allowed thirty five opposed in completion percentage seventy three
Speaker 2: point six, passing yards per attempt nine point four. That's
Speaker 2: dead last passing Ted's interception allowed sixteen to one opposing
Speaker 2: passer rating nearly one hundred and forty. So when they
Speaker 2: play big boys, they're defense no shows and the quarterbacks
Speaker 2: light them up.
Speaker 3: Will Josh Allen do it? He obviously has the ability
Speaker 3: to do it.
Speaker 2: Josh Allen is a superstar quarterback, but hot damn was
Speaker 2: he terrible the last time we saw him. So we'll
Speaker 2: see if he's in a slump or if that was
Speaker 2: just an aberration against the Pets. Oh to the Cincinnati Zoo.
Speaker 6: Hey guys, we have a video weighing in on this
Speaker 6: particular matchup, and you know how these videos go.
Speaker 3: Maybe a big week for the Zoo after a tough loss.
Speaker 3: Greg might want to listen to this one closely. Okay,
Speaker 3: hello heroes.
Speaker 7: I want to tell all your listeners out there what
Speaker 7: a coward Greg is. I texted him earlier today and said, Hey,
Speaker 7: I have to pre record these things and I want
Speaker 7: to do a lockout.
Speaker 3: You know what this guy wouldn't do.
Speaker 7: He wouldn't even tell me who he's locking I told
Speaker 7: him he could have whatever favorite he wanted.
Speaker 3: He's like, hey, hey.
Speaker 7: Dolphins without half thirteen, you can have the Bills. You've
Speaker 7: been hyping them up the last eight weeks, how they're
Speaker 7: gonna win the super Bowl or this is crazy. Why
Speaker 7: don't you be a man block off against me? I'm
Speaker 7: taking the Dolphins. I have no idea if you're gonna
Speaker 7: do it or not. You take the bills and.
Speaker 3: We'll see what happens. You can't be that afraid of me.
Speaker 3: With five to play, get out of here, do it? Greg?
Speaker 3: Be a man, all right? So love it?
Speaker 2: Love it.
Speaker 3: Great character work by Nick.
Speaker 4: So it's such nine tense because he's all nice and
Speaker 4: doesn't say any of that stuff in the actual text.
Speaker 3: Well he's a showman. But let me say this, Let
Speaker 3: me say I can take anyone. Let me say this, Nick.
Speaker 2: I know you know Greg well, but Greg, it's built
Speaker 2: into his personality that he will not do what he's told.
Speaker 2: That's like, it's intrinsic to Greg's entire being that that
Speaker 2: he feels like being told what to do is somehow
Speaker 2: backing off from life or a challenge or makes him
Speaker 2: feel small.
Speaker 3: It's the opposite of cowardice.
Speaker 2: He's not so by telling him, he won't do it,
Speaker 2: And I know how annoying that is because it would
Speaker 2: make it a better show. And I hope that this
Speaker 2: is what happens. But I know Greg, and just because
Speaker 2: you told him to, he's not going to. And that's
Speaker 2: just you know, lesson learned.
Speaker 4: I hope, Well, Dan is trying to Jedi mind trick
Speaker 4: me by saying that I won't do it. So now
Speaker 4: he's super seded what Nick's trying to do. I see
Speaker 4: what you're doing there. What the heck, let's go for it.
Speaker 4: Sorry the bills I have.
Speaker 2: Picked him, I'd be nervous about it. On the road
Speaker 2: Island game inconsistent all year. Did put up forty eight
Speaker 2: points on the Dolphs.
Speaker 3: I am.
Speaker 4: I am four up, so I would still have, you know,
Speaker 4: plenty of wiggle room here if I were to lose this.
Speaker 4: But if I were to win it, uh, the lock
Speaker 4: competition would be over before the playoffs, which would be
Speaker 4: as close as I think I'm going to get, uh
Speaker 4: to ending the lock competition, which is what I which
Speaker 4: I've sort.
Speaker 3: Of done a major race for second place. Though there's
Speaker 3: a second blow. You don't care. I mean, it's the
Speaker 3: thing mock cares.
Speaker 5: Maybe next I don't want to be in last, which
Speaker 5: I am.
Speaker 3: Looking at the standings, I'm fifteen and two. Wow. I mean,
Speaker 3: I would say it's been a down season for some
Speaker 3: of us.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and it has been. And Greg stepped in stepped
Speaker 2: in poop this year. He's won fifteen of seventeen. You
Speaker 2: got to respect it. And uh, and good job Greg,
Speaker 2: because you know he did challenge you in this It's
Speaker 2: not the first time I am. Every time though you
Speaker 2: he's challenged you, you've kind of shoot him away. And
Speaker 2: finally we have a lockoff between one and two. I'm excited,
Speaker 2: even more excited to watch the game. Now.
Speaker 3: Let's get to the other.
Speaker 2: Saturday games now, starting with the Pittsburgh Steelers at the
Speaker 2: Baltimore Ravens.
Speaker 3: Here's here's the call in this one.
Speaker 2: Chris Fowler, Lou Riddick, Danny Orlowski, Laura Rutledge on the sidelines.
Speaker 2: This is the Steelers getting three and a half. Steelers
Speaker 2: getting three and off in in Baltimore. How is that possible?
Speaker 2: Here's how it's possible. Lamar Jackson's not playing and John Harbaugh,
Speaker 2: as my mother would say, might be spitting in the
Speaker 2: skoy on this one. Because they're gonna do the same
Speaker 2: thing they did in twenty nineteen when they were the
Speaker 2: top seed. They're gonna rest their guys in the final
Speaker 2: week of the regular season. They're gonna have obviously a
Speaker 2: bye for the first week of the regular season, then
Speaker 2: hope they hit the ground running in the playoffs, and
Speaker 2: obviously for mark for all the earned anxiety based on
Speaker 2: what happened last time they were in this situation and
Speaker 2: they got waxed in the first round of the playoffs.
Speaker 3: It's the right move.
Speaker 5: I absolutely think it is. I don't think you toy
Speaker 5: around with this. I think the concept of like too
Speaker 5: much rest suddenly they get soft and kind of forget
Speaker 5: the goal.
Speaker 3: Like I don't think football team are not.
Speaker 2: Gonna win the sup Bowl anyway. If that was a
Speaker 2: concern about that team, that's right.
Speaker 3: They're not built that way.
Speaker 5: I mean, by the way, this is a special Ravens
Speaker 5: team that is like twenty four to one in the
Speaker 5: preseason over the past however many years, so their preseason team.
Speaker 5: You maybe give the Steelers a fight I don't have.
Speaker 5: But I mean, it's not just Lamar Jackson. It's guys
Speaker 5: like uh ro you don't want to lose, like a
Speaker 5: Roquan Smith or these other lynch pieces lynch pins to
Speaker 5: your team, and I just I think that's the only
Speaker 5: way to do it. You're the number. You've gotten to
Speaker 5: this this far. Don't have anything wacky happen at this point.
Speaker 5: I do think it's an interesting that it's the Steelers, though,
Speaker 5: of all teams, because if you let the Steelers in
Speaker 5: the playoffs, that's not it's not it's like not in
Speaker 5: terms of these two teams, that's not a good storyline.
Speaker 5: And this is a different Steelers team, Like Mason Rudolph,
Speaker 5: We've talked about it before. Over the last couple of weeks,
Speaker 5: this offense is completely a new creation. He has as
Speaker 5: many forty yard completions in these two games as Kenny
Speaker 5: Pickett and Mitch Trubisky had in fourteen games combined. And
Speaker 5: I think he just speaks to the fact that, like
Speaker 5: he is keyed in on George Pickens, and I think
Speaker 5: that's a smart thing to do in general.
Speaker 3: But it's really worked. He's got it. He's brought a.
Speaker 5: Vertical element to the passing game, and Najie Harris and
Speaker 5: Warren have been awesome on the ground too. Like all
Speaker 5: elements of this offense that you were waiting for for
Speaker 5: so long have finally come together at the perfect time,
Speaker 5: and it's like a comple letely different watch.
Speaker 3: They're not going to get to your twelve wins, Mark.
Speaker 2: Well, if they get into the playoffs. I had a
Speaker 2: couple of games like that.
Speaker 4: Why do I feel like they are going to get
Speaker 4: into the that would mean I lose my lock because
Speaker 4: that means the bill is lost. Like, I think this
Speaker 4: is a better lock than the Bill, So I am
Speaker 4: definitely giving up my old my usual like just pick
Speaker 4: the best one because to me, the Steelers are going
Speaker 4: to win this game.
Speaker 3: Yes, that's what you guys say.
Speaker 4: It's like very analytical, Like, to me, the Steelers are
Speaker 4: going to win this game. I'm much more confident than
Speaker 4: Steelers win this game. I'm with Mark. I think they're different.
Speaker 4: You know what stand out to me that first the
Speaker 4: first third down of last week, Mason Rudolph. It's like
Speaker 4: a third and nine and he's looking to the right
Speaker 4: side of the field and he no one's open there,
Speaker 4: and he gets to his third read like so fast,
Speaker 4: and it's Deontay Johnson who's wide open on the total
Speaker 4: other side of the field, and he.
Speaker 3: Got there fast.
Speaker 4: And I'm just thinking, of course, Deanty Johnson's wide open
Speaker 4: because he's Deontay Johnson.
Speaker 3: He's awesome at running routes.
Speaker 4: And Rudolph got to that receiver in a way that
Speaker 4: Picket wouldn't have or Trubisky wouldn't have. He's been a
Speaker 4: different quarterback I know it's only two weeks and so
Speaker 4: it might not continue, and this is a tougher matchup,
Speaker 4: even against backups, but he's been a different quarterback and
Speaker 4: he's letting their best players shine. Pickens is suddenly like
Speaker 4: has eleven hundred yards on the season because the two
Speaker 4: games with Rudolph Johnson Friarmouth they're third. It's only two weeks,
Speaker 4: but they are third in EPA. In those two weeks
Speaker 4: they are the number three offense. I think they roll,
Speaker 4: and I wouldn't be shocked if if TJ. Watt like
Speaker 4: sacks Huntly three times in an Island game here, It's
Speaker 4: like that could get him some DPOI votes. Here he's
Speaker 4: at sixteen and a half sacks, something like, oh, you
Speaker 4: could completely see that, Like if you could see him
Speaker 4: having a crazy big game and getting to twenty sacks
Speaker 4: and then suddenly he wins the award.
Speaker 2: You know, Mark, I thought initially when you mentioned the
Speaker 2: Ravens in their preseason success, I didn't know quite where
Speaker 2: you were going because.
Speaker 3: They had won twenty four in a row and then
Speaker 3: they lost. I don't know what at.
Speaker 2: All, because the preseason famously is utter nonsense.
Speaker 3: Well, their backups are good. I'm just saying they're good, Like,
Speaker 3: can I finish there, guys? Oh, okay, I just say
Speaker 3: I'm getting to my point.
Speaker 2: However, I think there's something to that that the John Harbaugh,
Speaker 2: this team, they always compete and he is a master motivator.
Speaker 2: There's a reason why they had that type of streak
Speaker 2: because it mattered to them to keep that going. I
Speaker 2: think it absolutely matters the idea of the chance to
Speaker 2: knock out the Haten Steelers.
Speaker 3: I think they're the backups.
Speaker 2: It's almost more of a flex and something that they
Speaker 2: would be more proud of than just beating him with
Speaker 2: the regular guys, like, look, we canna beat you at
Speaker 2: the backups and ruin your season and ruin your twenty
Speaker 2: twenty four. So I think he's going to be pushing
Speaker 2: all those buttons, and they are. They're a deep, excellent
Speaker 2: roster playing at home. I'm a very nervous Steelers fan
Speaker 2: because all of a sudden, for all this like Mason
Speaker 2: Rudolph Mania we're having right now, Mason Rudolph on the
Speaker 2: road in early January of the playoffs on the line,
Speaker 2: how confident can you really be?
Speaker 5: I'd also ask, like, because it's only three and a half, right,
Speaker 5: Tyler Huntley has been in a situation in week eighteen
Speaker 5: years in a row like this is like you're not
Speaker 5: throwing someone out there that's like total newbie.
Speaker 4: But how much of the roster do you sit? And
Speaker 4: how long you can't sit that many?
Speaker 3: That's the thing. I mean, you're gonna have. It's like
Speaker 3: you're talking Lamar.
Speaker 5: That makes a huge difference, but in probably some skill
Speaker 5: position guys.
Speaker 4: But it's Lamar, it's Odell who's not practicing. It's Zay Flowers,
Speaker 4: it's Kyle Hamilton, it's Humphrey, it's guys who have injuries.
Speaker 4: Maybe a couple guys like Rocon and Queen. But you
Speaker 4: can't sit that many. Just the numbers don't work. So
Speaker 4: I'm with you. I think it'll be it could be competitive,
Speaker 4: and I give the Ravens a chance, but I think
Speaker 4: this is.
Speaker 3: A different Steelers team.
Speaker 2: December twenty ninth, twenty nineteen, the Steelers lost to the
Speaker 2: Ravens backups in Baltimore. They missed the playoffs. So there's
Speaker 2: history here too, and that was John Arba.
Speaker 4: I remember that Bill's starters once losing to the Steelers' backups.
Speaker 4: I think it was two thousand and four to miss
Speaker 4: the playoffs in week seventeen.
Speaker 3: That was with Drew Bledsoe. And like it happens, it happens.
Speaker 4: There's a reason why it happens more when it's like
Speaker 4: the one seed resting players, which was the case, and
Speaker 4: the Steelers and the Ravens, because well, their team's good,
Speaker 4: like the backups are good, they.
Speaker 2: Can still win. Interesting, that was yet twenty nineteen. So
Speaker 2: the Ravens, Yeah, they were then flat two weeks later
Speaker 2: against the Titans, they kicked the Steelers ass in that spot.
Speaker 2: All right, let's move to the other Saturday a game
Speaker 2: that would be the Houston Texans against the Indianapolis Cults.
Speaker 2: Are right, Greg, I'm gonna need your help with some
Speaker 2: tabulations on this one. There are three teams that are
Speaker 2: nine and seven in the AFC South entering a week eighteen,
Speaker 2: the aforementioned Texans and Colts, yes, the Jacksonville Jaguars. What
Speaker 2: happens when one of these teams wins on Saturday?
Speaker 3: Tell me who wins this division?
Speaker 4: They're in the playoffs, which is exciting, and the.
Speaker 3: Losers done or are they still a lot?
Speaker 4: The loser is not done. They'll have to wait, I believe,
Speaker 4: to find out. But the winner gets to wait till
Speaker 4: Sunday to find out if they win the division. The
Speaker 4: Jaguars are essentially in pole position, and if they win.
Speaker 2: That's what I was looking for. So the Jags destiny
Speaker 2: is in their hands for this division. But the winner
Speaker 2: of this game has obviously they're going to the dance
Speaker 2: and have a chance to get that home game as well.
Speaker 3: Yes, that's a lot. It's a lot at steak here.
Speaker 3: Playoff game. It's a playoff game. I like it. I
Speaker 3: like it.
Speaker 2: Who do we like in the game? Gardner Meanshew and
Speaker 2: the Colts. Do we have by the way, we have Minshew?
Speaker 2: Do we have the Minshe was playing the Raiders last week?
Speaker 2: Nice win. Minshew makes a big throw, touchdown pass. They
Speaker 2: beat the Raiders, keep their hopes alive. And you know,
Speaker 2: Max Crosby, this should not come as a surprise. A
Speaker 2: maniac on the field keeps on calling him what a
Speaker 2: sit down little boy, kept on calling him a little boy,
Speaker 2: I believe. And here's a Minshew on the sideline expressing
Speaker 2: he's almost puzzled and a little bit offended that Max
Speaker 2: Crosby doesn't respect his size.
Speaker 3: Dude, Max Crosby is.
Speaker 2: So damn angry Burke Like.
Speaker 3: The thing is that he's not living that Anthony.
Speaker 8: I know, right, he just calls he keeps calling everybody
Speaker 8: low ass boy, ass boy.
Speaker 3: I'm like, I'm little out here, but not always that
Speaker 3: was inside the NFL.
Speaker 2: By the way, the good he's a hard guy not
Speaker 2: to like, obviously, but he has a chance here in
Speaker 2: a year where he started out as the backup to
Speaker 2: Anthony Richardson who goes down early, and he keeps the
Speaker 2: Cults relevant and now here it is mark your guy
Speaker 2: Minshew with a chance to take the Cults to the playoffs.
Speaker 5: They've been really consistent in terms of points produced. I
Speaker 5: think with Minshew, it's the story week to week has
Speaker 5: been which version you're getting? They're five and oh when
Speaker 5: he doesn't have when he doesn't throw an interception and
Speaker 5: they and they markedly different team when he crumbles, and
Speaker 5: so I think that you're playing a Texans defense that
Speaker 5: is completely different under this coaching staff. I think this
Speaker 5: is a codyoff, like a Coach of the Year off
Speaker 5: between Shane Stike and Ryans.
Speaker 3: I mean, this did have to be in the top.
Speaker 5: Three coach of the year in terms of narrative, I think,
Speaker 5: let's check out the draft King of the year. If
Speaker 5: you're the voter that's that look doesn't say, like, you
Speaker 5: know what, we should just give it to Kyle Shanahan,
Speaker 5: which doesn't happen.
Speaker 4: Your boy's the favorite is a heavy favorite right now.
Speaker 2: And but Ryan's here's And this is why you're not
Speaker 2: off though, Mark, So it's the fans get a heavy favorite.
Speaker 2: But Ryan's and Stikeen are both plus eleven hundred on
Speaker 2: draft kings, so they're very in terms of how the
Speaker 2: odds makers see it. They have done an equally good
Speaker 2: job in terms of the story and what they've done
Speaker 2: with their teams. So maybe, like us with our picks,
Speaker 2: it's for second place.
Speaker 5: It is for second place because I don't think anything
Speaker 5: the Browns, with no starters in their due would affense.
Speaker 4: It's also assuming that the odds makers have this have
Speaker 4: it correct, which I don't think. Think it's that mean
Speaker 4: that's a monster favorite, giving them almost no chance, and
Speaker 4: I don't agree with that. I think if the Texans
Speaker 4: win this game in exciting fashion, Ryan's would have a chance, and.
Speaker 3: I think he should.
Speaker 5: I think he should because it's also his assistance the
Speaker 5: way that CJ. Stroud's developed the worst thing that matter
Speaker 5: either way, both of them, but one of them's on.
Speaker 3: One thing's on my radar.
Speaker 5: And it's a small sample size, but the numbers for
Speaker 5: Stroud post Tank Dell are pretty interesting. Like its yards
Speaker 5: per attempt dropped by like two point five yards almost Yeah,
Speaker 5: his passer rating drop by twelve points. It's not a
Speaker 5: big sample size, but it just reminds you that Tank
Speaker 5: Dell and him worked so well together and they were
Speaker 5: so dynamic. But I still think about, like I talked
Speaker 5: it about this Colts team a bunch, but the team
Speaker 5: that I want to see in the playoffs is the
Speaker 5: Houston Texans. I mean, I feel like they could do
Speaker 5: something kind of freaky and unpredictable, or I think the
Speaker 5: Cults are going to be that glass of vanilla milk
Speaker 5: that we absolutely expect one way or another.
Speaker 2: I think that those numbers post Tank almost got to
Speaker 2: get tossed out because that was he gets hurt and
Speaker 2: then they go to the metal lens and play in
Speaker 2: a reign where they get shut out basically before he
Speaker 2: goes out with an injury, and their stats were terrible there.
Speaker 3: So there's not a big sample size.
Speaker 2: I believe he has the ability to make it work
Speaker 2: without Dell and Nico Collins, right, Like we've talked about
Speaker 2: Collins and what a year he's had, Like, I think
Speaker 2: there is dynamic offense in this team post Dell.
Speaker 3: Maybe we see it here. I agree.
Speaker 4: And I was really curious to see how he looked
Speaker 4: last week after the injury, because I think his season
Speaker 4: peaked in that Bengals game, one of the best games
Speaker 4: of the year. After that, I don't think he played.
Speaker 4: I don't think he's played at like a top five
Speaker 4: QB level the whole season, I think, which is an
Speaker 4: enormously high bar for a rookie. I think he did
Speaker 4: play at that for like a month, and that month
Speaker 4: was November, and and for the five games since, he
Speaker 4: was kind of back to where he was before that,
Speaker 4: which is like ten to twelve very of quarterbacks in
Speaker 4: the NFL, which again is exceptional for a rookie. But
Speaker 4: looking at what he did last week, I thought he
Speaker 4: was very good. His feet looked great, he was extremely accurate. Again,
Speaker 4: he was taking what the different defense was giving him.
Speaker 4: I thought it was a really encouraging game for him
Speaker 4: to come back and makes me feel good about picking
Speaker 4: them this week because I just think they have a
Speaker 4: little more They've shown an ability on defense, and hopefully
Speaker 4: they get Grenard back this week. Will Anderson's also not practicing.
Speaker 4: There's Millie Collins's a little worrisome, but I'm guessing Collins
Speaker 4: and Anderson play. But they found a way to just
Speaker 4: like bring new guys in and make it work. Like
Speaker 4: Derek Barnett is on this team by the way, he
Speaker 4: was on the Eagles halfway through the season, couldn't get
Speaker 4: on the field.
Speaker 3: He's got more pressures over the last.
Speaker 4: Two week by far than anyone on the Eagles, almost
Speaker 4: doubled them. So like they just like put guys into
Speaker 4: this offense and it works, and so I'm just hoping
Speaker 4: it happens because he's a little more dynamic. But I
Speaker 4: do think Minsch's playing his best ball the year right now.
Speaker 4: He only has three PFF games all year over seventy
Speaker 4: it's three of the last games now. He's been a
Speaker 4: little mistake free and just kind of moving the offense.
Speaker 4: And it's funny they run the same offense that I
Speaker 4: would have expected with Richardson.
Speaker 2: It's like all RPOs and they have you're right and
Speaker 2: uh me, And this is a primetime game.
Speaker 3: This is, by the way, c J. Strout's first primetime games.
Speaker 2: A pro me and you probably hasn't played a ton
Speaker 2: I would imagine in his NFL career, And I do
Speaker 2: you know, he's an excitable fellow. Hopefully he doesn't get
Speaker 2: too fired up by the moment.
Speaker 3: Starts trying to play hero ball.
Speaker 2: If he stays within himself, I think the Colts have
Speaker 2: a have a good chance here. But I do love
Speaker 2: Stroud having a chance to do this under the lights
Speaker 2: as well. He seems like the type of guy you
Speaker 2: could blow up with. You know, the game's going to
Speaker 2: do a huge number and everything, and everybody's gonna be
Speaker 2: watching it.
Speaker 3: Troy and Joe. How about that?
Speaker 2: This coming out a true coming out party for Stroud
Speaker 2: in prime time to punch a playoff ticket the I
Speaker 2: like the Texans.
Speaker 4: I need to correct a mistake. I apologize. Okay, this
Speaker 4: is an elimination, big of you. You know what it
Speaker 4: was because I had the tie thing in my head
Speaker 4: that technically they weren't.
Speaker 3: No tabulate baby. But you lose, you go.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you lose, you lose, You're out, you win, You're
Speaker 4: in period.
Speaker 3: It's very simple. And then wait and see if you
Speaker 3: win the division. Yes, you wait and see. If you win,
Speaker 3: you're that that's under the retabulation. You're you're eliminated.
Speaker 2: You know something, when you had the old T eight
Speaker 2: hundred calculator hit that one wrong button, it's a wrap.
Speaker 3: That's what happened. That's true of all calculators. But yeah,
Speaker 3: but that T eight hundred. Yeah, for those who know,
Speaker 3: back to the drawing to your.
Speaker 4: Point on prime time, this is actually the only game
Speaker 4: all year the Texans have played. That's not at ten
Speaker 4: am Pacific eight hundred game might.
Speaker 2: Actually they did not have high hopes for the You
Speaker 2: might predate the T eight hundred mark in your education
Speaker 2: because you're years older. But what what about Western mess?
Speaker 2: Was the T eight hundred huge?
Speaker 4: Yeah, it was like this is the highest of technological advance.
Speaker 3: But is the T eight.
Speaker 2: Hundred arnold from a terminator or was it what was
Speaker 2: the name of that calculator?
Speaker 3: Something like that sounds right to me.
Speaker 2: T I let's see calculator Texas instruments. We need to
Speaker 2: to that instruments ninety eight three games? Uh, oh, there
Speaker 2: it is. Oh, that son of a bitch and it
Speaker 2: would make the Uh, I'm gonna show it to you
Speaker 2: right now.
Speaker 3: It's the T I eighty three. Oh yeah, no I
Speaker 3: had that and uh nothing was annoying. Well your had
Speaker 3: the crank and everything years. No, it did not. Dan,
Speaker 3: I'm like like literally like five years younger than you
Speaker 3: or something.
Speaker 4: You have to like actually weirdly like put diamond you
Speaker 4: have to put coins into it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, work, damn. It still costs two hundred and twenty
Speaker 2: bucks to this day. Why would people want to?
Speaker 3: All right, why anyway I want that thing?
Speaker 4: I don't know if you're if you're maybe it's in relics.
Speaker 3: You need it basically because.
Speaker 2: You would have to type in the theory or whatever
Speaker 2: and then and then you're you want the chart to
Speaker 2: do something that is the correct answer.
Speaker 3: But then it's like you blow it.
Speaker 4: Why they can't they can charge much because you don't
Speaker 4: have any other options, Like they've cornered that market, did it?
Speaker 2: Those bastards at Texas Instruments. All right, I'll see what
Speaker 2: the Texans do. Let's take a break and then we'll
Speaker 2: get to the draft. Welcome back to around the NFL
Speaker 2: the week eighteen.
Speaker 5: By the way, yes, I fixed this button down here
Speaker 5: because like not me off that you're like looking at my.
Speaker 2: Mid Yeah, this is why we were we our roots
Speaker 2: are puritanical and you grew up in England and Connecticut.
Speaker 2: So it's just I think it's telling that you think
Speaker 2: that's fixing the problem, Like I want to see another
Speaker 2: button off.
Speaker 5: Well, no, like that's for another less, that's for another
Speaker 5: time that we're not doing that during the during the show,
Speaker 5: the preview of week eighteen, and it's not for another
Speaker 5: time to be roddy.
Speaker 2: All right, let's get to the draft to Let's start
Speaker 2: with the first overall pick, presented by Draft Kings Mark Sessler.
Speaker 3: You are on the clock two of the games we
Speaker 3: just talked about.
Speaker 5: There's a lot of ways to go here, but I'm
Speaker 5: going to go Jacksonville at Tennessee, which is kind of
Speaker 5: like part B of that Saturday night AFC South matchup.
Speaker 5: The Jacksonville Jaguars have been a real mess. I'm concerned
Speaker 5: about them in this game because you know, you still
Speaker 5: have Trevor Lawrence dealing with multiple injuries, but right now
Speaker 5: it's they're listing it ash shoulder. He's practiced Wednesday on
Speaker 5: a limited basis. I don't know what kind of version
Speaker 5: we're going to get for him. They do have Christian kirkback,
Speaker 5: he might be back. That would be a I think
Speaker 5: his absence has really affected their offense a lot. Flip side, though,
Speaker 5: one of the reasons I want to watch this game
Speaker 5: is that there are a couple teams in the league
Speaker 5: that we know are going to with coaching changes and
Speaker 5: other stuff, vastly look different a week or two from now.
Speaker 5: And I think this is the end of Ryan Tannehill.
Speaker 5: This is the end of Derreck Henry and Tennessee. It's
Speaker 5: very possible that DeAndre Hopkins is a very easy cut
Speaker 5: post June one, he could be gone. And I really
Speaker 5: wonder if there's a chance that Mike Rabel. There's whispers
Speaker 5: that Mike Rabel could do the New England thing. He
Speaker 5: could do a couple of things. It's like Mike Rabel
Speaker 5: in this Tennessee experience, it's like he's been really good.
Speaker 5: But their record in the regular season over the last
Speaker 5: like twenty games has been abysmal. Unless you really believe
Speaker 5: in Will Levis, you don't have a quarterback. Could you
Speaker 5: be maybe could someone dream you into a New England
Speaker 5: Patriots head coaching job. I don't know, but in general,
Speaker 5: the Titans that we have known for four or five
Speaker 5: years are over.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: This was the year where they ceased to be a
Speaker 2: playoff contender, and now they have an aging roster and
Speaker 2: a coach it seems like he's got one foot out
Speaker 2: the door. And it does for the Titans and their
Speaker 2: fans like Grave Digger and everyone else. This was a
Speaker 2: tough year to swallow, but you kind of begin to
Speaker 2: reboot and ernest. Hopefully, if you believe in will Levis,
Speaker 2: you have brighter days ahead. The Jags have no excuse here.
Speaker 2: I mean, with everything I just said, the Titans are
Speaker 2: a team and a down cycle playing out the string
Speaker 2: of a lost season. And I know you're beat up
Speaker 2: at quarterback, but you're a team that had a division
Speaker 2: title last year. You won a huge playoff game with
Speaker 2: an epic comeback, gave the Chiefs a scare the next round.
Speaker 2: You cannot cannot blow this game. It would be a
Speaker 2: massive setback for the organization. And I think Lawrence, even
Speaker 2: though he hasn't been the player I think a lot
Speaker 2: of us thought he would be this year, and he's
Speaker 2: obviously not healthy, I think he finds a way and
Speaker 2: plays a game that gets his team to the next step.
Speaker 4: Yeah, his status is looking up. He was at the
Speaker 4: throwing portion of practice Jersy. So I think the biggest
Speaker 4: question is you, right, Mark, what version do we get?
Speaker 4: Kirk has been aiming, according to Doug Peterson, for this
Speaker 4: state for a while, so I think they're hopeful he
Speaker 4: helps a lot. Josh Allen the Daguars version, he's another
Speaker 4: guy where look if he gets three sacks in this
Speaker 4: game and gets up to twenty, I don't think he's
Speaker 4: a crazy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a player that's like what Lamar did last week,
Speaker 2: like having that last big week and put you over
Speaker 2: the top.
Speaker 4: Yeah, And it's important for them, I think, to get
Speaker 4: into some sort of offensive rhythm, obviously to make the
Speaker 4: playoffs because it would be a catastrophic loss, but also
Speaker 4: because you got the Browns next week if you win
Speaker 4: this game, and you better get ready. I'm with you
Speaker 4: on Vrabel. I'm getting some mid career Sean Payton vibes,
Speaker 4: where like there's a lot of Rabel chatter, and seems
Speaker 4: like that chatter to me is coming from Mike Rabel.
Speaker 4: So that's interesting that maybe he's not. There's been reporting
Speaker 4: that he wasn't happy with the GM ran Carthon that
Speaker 4: they gave him, that that was kind of an arranged marriage,
Speaker 4: and he's a little ANTSI. They've lost a lot of
Speaker 4: close home games. They're usually very competitive. They almost beat
Speaker 4: the Seahawks a couple of weeks ago, they almost beat
Speaker 4: the Colts home. They're just like always lose by three.
Speaker 4: He sounded very edgy this week, asking why it's important
Speaker 4: for him to win this week.
Speaker 2: Because it sucks to lose.
Speaker 3: Need to show you anything, Did you have another.
Speaker 8: Thought or no, I'm just curious.
Speaker 3: Well, he sucks.
Speaker 8: Losing awful. That's why I want to win, because you
Speaker 8: don't sleep. You want to win for the players that
Speaker 8: they bluster tail.
Speaker 3: That's it.
Speaker 2: That is Gentry Estes, who was a calumnist for the Tennessee.
Speaker 2: And it's almost like when your mother would call you
Speaker 2: by your full name when you were in trouble as
Speaker 2: a child. When the reporter is goes one of two ways, right,
Speaker 2: It's either the reporter likes you and is having.
Speaker 3: Some fun and he's like, yeah, Gentry, you know what.
Speaker 2: I'm talking about, or cause it sucks Gentry and it's like, uh, oh, Daniel,
Speaker 2: get over here.
Speaker 3: It's a thing. Then you get the do you have
Speaker 3: anything else to add to that? Like to the reporter,
Speaker 3: it's like, well.
Speaker 5: The laser shooting out of his eyes if there's a
Speaker 5: second part to that whole answer. And the one thing
Speaker 5: I could see going through Mike Rabel's like mine was
Speaker 5: I was a little harsh on this guy, and so
Speaker 5: like he starts to ease up.
Speaker 3: And get a little more.
Speaker 4: Another question was asked and he went back to Gentry.
Speaker 4: But it was a good job by Gentry because he
Speaker 4: picked up on something very able, said how important it
Speaker 4: was to win, and then just quickly asked the fob
Speaker 4: why is it important?
Speaker 2: He knew he was gonna go a have you ever
Speaker 2: met a person name Gentry before?
Speaker 4: No? But if I did, I would games that there
Speaker 4: live in Tennessee. Uh, the Titans are five point underdog.
Speaker 2: Like putting all the Gentries in a box in this game,
Speaker 2: I am it must be it's a Southern name and
Speaker 2: the Jaguars jentra.
Speaker 3: Over under forty. I must say, Gentry pretty low.
Speaker 5: The great question, I think you're onto something with the
Speaker 5: Josh Allen and Greg Pff has ranked the Titans offensive
Speaker 5: line dead last two years in a row. Oh yeah,
Speaker 5: that tells you a lot why that offense is hard
Speaker 5: to watch.
Speaker 3: I like the Jaguars to get it done.
Speaker 2: I do too, But if Lace is more hurt than
Speaker 2: we even know and he doesn't play, all bets are off.
Speaker 1: The Draft Kings sports Book now with code ATN new
Speaker 1: customers can bet five dollars on NFL Action to score
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Speaker 3: The crown is yours, all right, Greg.
Speaker 4: I am so excited to me there was a clear
Speaker 4: number one in this draft.
Speaker 3: I knew you said you wanted it, and I'm happy
Speaker 3: to give it to you.
Speaker 4: That's very nice. Give me a break here, look very nice.
Speaker 4: Give me a break. It's Bears.
Speaker 3: It's Packers, Packers.
Speaker 4: Sessler's forehead favored by three stupid minus one sixty two.
Speaker 4: It's Nance, It's Romo on Bears. Packers got great. I
Speaker 4: think it's because I love watching Jordan Love play right now,
Speaker 4: and I've really enjoyed watching Justin Fields and the growth
Speaker 4: of this Bears team. I believe that this is a
Speaker 4: big Bears win here, not not like they win by
Speaker 4: a lot. But I think they're gonna win this game.
Speaker 4: I I considered locking this up, so I'm actually glad
Speaker 4: Nick's Big Bears win. I just think they'll win if
Speaker 4: they win this game. I think it means a lot
Speaker 4: to them to knock the Packers out of the playoffs,
Speaker 4: to solidify some of what the underlying numbers say right now.
Speaker 4: For instance, waited DVA, they're the number seven team in
Speaker 4: the NFL. Like it, and I kind of see that
Speaker 4: that's a really good defense. And then this could be
Speaker 4: Joe Berry's final you know, eg piece of art here.
Speaker 4: Let Justin Fields, who's throwing the ball as well as
Speaker 4: he ever has, go up and down the field anti
Speaker 4: art in the defense just enough five. I think this
Speaker 4: defense is really playing well and can at least slow
Speaker 4: down the Packers. Although the Packers are getting healthier, all
Speaker 4: their receivers Watson wis read all back at practice, which
Speaker 4: is a big deal for them.
Speaker 3: You're not gonna, We're not We've lost in for the
Speaker 3: just I'll say, you're gone, clear out your desk.
Speaker 5: That matters how healthy they're getting, because I think that
Speaker 5: love is like thrived with a lot of those guys
Speaker 5: in and out of the lineup and and it's he
Speaker 5: right now has thirty four offensive touchdowns, which kind of
Speaker 5: I don't know like that.
Speaker 2: Mark, You know this has been on our joint radar
Speaker 2: for years. Damn, Packers did it again. They got another
Speaker 2: long term starting.
Speaker 3: Only. I mean, you got to credit him. That's few
Speaker 3: other quarterbacks have more offensive touchdowns than him this year.
Speaker 4: Josh Allen, jillenher he has been on balance where they
Speaker 4: got killed for that pick. I always defended it. I
Speaker 4: always said the process isn't crazy. We'll have to see.
Speaker 2: I was going to say, I was going to give
Speaker 2: the credit to Jordan Levin the Packers, but we must
Speaker 2: give it where it truly belongs.
Speaker 3: Greg.
Speaker 4: Well, we argue, what's the point of having all these
Speaker 4: arguments four years ago if we can't remember that?
Speaker 3: No, I mean they they really did.
Speaker 2: They held the fort, They waited out the Rogers melodrama,
Speaker 2: even when Love wasn't lighting it up, when he got
Speaker 2: a chance to play like they never they never moved
Speaker 2: off the plan.
Speaker 3: And hot, Damn, he is a player.
Speaker 2: He's got thirty touchdown passes and thirty four total. As
Speaker 2: you said, Mark, and I just see I see a
Speaker 2: guy that might be scratching the surface here and could
Speaker 2: become a true, true star in the league. But I
Speaker 2: like what you're saying too about the Bears.
Speaker 3: I think that.
Speaker 2: And I saw our buddy Rank, big Bears man, down
Speaker 2: in the dressing room before we came up today.
Speaker 3: So did I. I must have just missed you, Love Love.
Speaker 5: He was actually dressing, and he was getting dressed in
Speaker 5: clothing and like people just go walk in there and
Speaker 5: just walk around. Yeah, like he was actually going through
Speaker 5: the process of like he was in.
Speaker 3: There and just walks around.
Speaker 4: No.
Speaker 5: I mean just like there's a lot of just you know, jabbering,
Speaker 5: but he was like doing that what you would what
Speaker 5: you'd actually.
Speaker 3: Do getting dressed in the dressing room. Good friend.
Speaker 2: And I I reminisced with Rank about I was on
Speaker 2: his Bears podcast in the off season and we're talking
Speaker 2: about all the optimism around that team and and the
Speaker 2: idea of you know, keeping fields and trading the number
Speaker 2: one pick and building around him. And a year later
Speaker 2: we're kind of having the same conversation where there's optimism
Speaker 2: around the Bears and there's this idea to keep fields
Speaker 2: and trade the number one o O picked a build
Speaker 2: more around him. And I've been very loud and boisterous
Speaker 2: on this pod the last few weeks about keeping fields.
Speaker 1: Uh.
Speaker 2: And we talked about it Greg on our last show
Speaker 2: that this game really does matter because I almost feel.
Speaker 3: That I know it would cement it.
Speaker 2: It would cement it if he lights up green Bay here, uh,
Speaker 2: and he can against that Green Bay defense. It's all
Speaker 2: set up for him.
Speaker 5: I feel like we're being a little down on the
Speaker 5: on the Packers just after a year ago.
Speaker 3: I think this matters, like they were embarrassed.
Speaker 5: What was one of the more indelible, indelible images of
Speaker 5: the year last year was when when Aaron Rodgers throws
Speaker 5: that interception the Lions win that Week eighteen game, and
Speaker 5: Aaron Rodgers walking out out of Lambeau with a look
Speaker 5: in his eye where we were sitting together thinking like
Speaker 5: I think he's gone. We didn't know that for sure.
Speaker 5: He walked off the field like arm in arm with
Speaker 5: Randall Cotty. Yeah, and it's like, I just think this
Speaker 5: guy's gone. But now the same record Week eighteen, Jordan
Speaker 5: Love a year later, who's played better than Rogers did
Speaker 5: a year ago, in many ways, has the same chance.
Speaker 5: I don't think this team is just gonna go and
Speaker 5: lay an egg to the Bears in.
Speaker 3: Another NFC NFC North team.
Speaker 4: Like, no, they're not gonna lay down. It's a game.
Speaker 4: I just kind of like, I mean, the Packers are
Speaker 4: favored by three US.
Speaker 3: I just don't know.
Speaker 5: But I will say, like for all the Joe Berry stuff, like,
Speaker 5: and I know that there was you had. It was
Speaker 5: a rookie in there for the Vikings, But that was
Speaker 5: a positive performance for that defense.
Speaker 3: A week could go against the Vikings.
Speaker 4: I'm doing it over the course of the season, and
Speaker 4: I I think it's very tough to run on this
Speaker 4: Bear team. So Aaron Jones has really added a lot
Speaker 4: of juice, and Lafleur has been cooking. He deserves a
Speaker 4: lot of the credit for making this all work. I
Speaker 4: think it's a really positive season for them, even if
Speaker 4: they lose this game. But it would be a bitter
Speaker 4: pill to swallow. You're right, Mark, to have the same
Speaker 4: thing happened.
Speaker 5: I mean, you can't. That's what the Cowboys do in
Speaker 5: the playoffs. You can't do that in Week eighteen if
Speaker 5: you're the Packers.
Speaker 2: All right, So I'm up, I got two picks and uh,
Speaker 2: I gotta go hunt him. For just playoff games the
Speaker 2: matter right, games that have big, big ramifications.
Speaker 3: So let's we're running out of them.
Speaker 2: Yeah, let's start with hmm, let's go to the NFC South,
Speaker 2: not my favorite division in the world, but the Atlanta
Speaker 2: Falcons at the New Orleans Gentry and.
Speaker 5: An actual professional reporter that you're that you've now characterized.
Speaker 2: Saints given three and a half here this is the
Speaker 2: haddle on Barber Ryan booth.
Speaker 3: Three three seems like a lot.
Speaker 2: I think any professional broadcasting outfit you don't need three people.
Speaker 4: Two is fine. I thought you meant the point spread
Speaker 4: was a lot. I see you're seeing.
Speaker 5: They thought maybe Matt Ryan could go play quarterback for
Speaker 5: someone in a year where there's fifty.
Speaker 2: So don't think you need like three or even two
Speaker 2: people to do a show about football.
Speaker 4: I'm gonna I'm gonna make a more than three.
Speaker 3: I'm with you. I'm gonna make an edit. You just
Speaker 3: cross off Tiki Barber better.
Speaker 2: How come you're every time I have any criticism of
Speaker 2: someone in the booth, you're like, oh, that's not right.
Speaker 2: You clutch your pearls. But now Tiki takes an arrow
Speaker 2: between the eyes.
Speaker 4: Like I watched this group a lot, and that's my opinion.
Speaker 2: But god forbid I say something bad about Jonathan Vilma,
Speaker 2: You're like, oh.
Speaker 4: God, no, Jonathan Vilma. It's just a personal reference, all right.
Speaker 4: But I think Matt Ryan's very solid and Tiki's always
Speaker 4: think of shooting from the hip stuff like you did.
Speaker 3: Tiki sounds like a guy that's on w f AN.
Speaker 4: He sounds like a guy who does a New York
Speaker 4: radio show. He's a week and is not totally which
Speaker 4: I'm on the rest of the league.
Speaker 3: I don't.
Speaker 2: I don't mind that as someone that grew up listening
Speaker 2: to that. But what you're saying to sometimes it's like.
Speaker 3: You were pointing to the same person to be taken
Speaker 3: out of the booth too, right now, who you who? Tiki? Yeah? Yeah,
Speaker 3: get Teky out of here, all right?
Speaker 2: But because of what well I'm saying, I don't you know,
Speaker 2: I'll let you know if I don't like somebody in
Speaker 2: the booth for some reason.
Speaker 3: With Greg, it's only Tiki, Oh, a New York Giant six.
Speaker 2: That's he there for those I don't think he was
Speaker 2: for either, actually, right, you know he represented there in
Speaker 2: twenty eleven. That was a midd Bradshaw grudge. So let's
Speaker 2: legacy grudge. All right, let's figure out this game. I
Speaker 2: can't because obviously the Falcons are a team that I
Speaker 2: do not believe in and haven't believed in all year,
Speaker 2: But they just had a chance here to to steal
Speaker 2: a playoff spots the Saints. What do you expect from
Speaker 2: the Saints here now, Derek Carr, I'll say this playing better?
Speaker 3: All really?
Speaker 2: Is the vibes all of a sudden, all the reporting
Speaker 2: around the Saints that's also been on my radar, We're
Speaker 2: starting to see articles pop up about like the Saints
Speaker 2: have stayed together in tough times and their leadership is
Speaker 2: to you know, has really helped keep this team together
Speaker 2: and trying times. Are the Saints going to somehow despite
Speaker 2: all the negativity around them and the struggles they've had,
Speaker 2: steal this division? Well, I think they got the right opponent.
Speaker 2: They're at home against an Atlanta team that I think
Speaker 2: is ready to go home.
Speaker 3: So I do like the Saints a lot in this game.
Speaker 3: Is it enough? Does it get them in the playoffs
Speaker 3: with the win? Greg? No, they need the fabula, baby.
Speaker 4: They need the Bucks to lose to the Panthers to
Speaker 4: win the NFC South and they need to win this game.
Speaker 4: If the Bucks win that game, then they need either
Speaker 4: the Seahawks or Packers to lose and they could slide
Speaker 4: in as a seventh seed and we'd get to NFCA,
Speaker 4: which is fairly outrageous, fairly reasonable, and it means they'll
Speaker 4: still be alive, like going into Sunday Night football. They
Speaker 4: they might be the team that's and that means hoping
Speaker 4: to get in. Would they be playing each other in
Speaker 4: the wildcard round?
Speaker 3: No?
Speaker 2: Right, so that means an NFC South team would could
Speaker 2: be in the second round.
Speaker 3: Okay, never mind, because they.
Speaker 4: Are two teams. We don't need two of these teams. No,
Speaker 4: we certainly do not.
Speaker 2: So maybe the best thing for football fans is the
Speaker 2: Falcons pull off an upset because they they're dead.
Speaker 3: That we're dealing with the Falcons. They're not.
Speaker 4: They're not dead.
Speaker 3: They're not.
Speaker 4: They can win the division at eight and nine, they
Speaker 4: win the three way time this division has broken my brain.
Speaker 5: What you really need is Tampa Bay to be Carolina. Yes,
Speaker 5: that just and that's that's the most likely scenario of
Speaker 5: all these. And then some of this other nonsense is
Speaker 5: I don't like this for the sake. I want to
Speaker 5: see what's gonna happen with Alvin Kamara. Like he left
Speaker 5: that game last week. He's got an ankle injury. Not
Speaker 5: wonderful for them. But Derek Carr, you were right, four
Speaker 5: straight games with multiple touchdown passes that time a career
Speaker 5: mark for himself. I mean, I think he's been healthy.
Speaker 5: Like I mean, the one thing about Derek Carr, like
Speaker 5: him or not, and I'm not a not a Derek
Speaker 5: Carr guy like, but.
Speaker 3: He plays through.
Speaker 5: He's played through a lot of pain in his in
Speaker 5: his career and he's been doing that most of this season.
Speaker 5: And I think that can explain some of the wonkiness
Speaker 5: with his play. But in general, what's happened of late,
Speaker 5: it should be happening right now at the most important
Speaker 5: time of the season. Guys like Juwan Johnson have stepped up.
Speaker 5: I I kind of feel like that matters a lot
Speaker 5: in this rivalry. These teams hate each other to be
Speaker 5: in New Orleans. It's like whether or not you're on
Speaker 5: this Like bus Saints fans, I know it's been a
Speaker 5: rough ride, Like show up to this one and be
Speaker 5: like knock out.
Speaker 4: The it goes they fall down a little early, like
Speaker 4: the negative energy and the booing and all that.
Speaker 5: But that's that's sort of like the booing seems a
Speaker 5: little more isolated to this season.
Speaker 4: That is just not a place where that was happening.
Speaker 4: I just mean there's a lot of pressure. You're right,
Speaker 4: they want the coach. I feel like it's it's everyone
Speaker 4: thinks Dennis Allen's totally safe. I feel like it's a
Speaker 4: it's a blowout, loser, coach goes home. I keep hearing
Speaker 4: Arthur Smith safe. Okay, you get blown out by the
Speaker 4: Bears in the Saints the last two weeks. Really shit,
Speaker 4: you're seven and ten. You're lucky to be there. Dennis
Speaker 4: Allen keep hearing he's safe. Okay, you lose to the Falcons.
Speaker 4: This is a rivalry. I think that means more than
Speaker 4: any other. You get swept by the Falcons, and that's
Speaker 4: how you end your season. I think the optics of
Speaker 4: how this game goes matters. But it seems very sainty
Speaker 4: to me to win this game, to get to nine
Speaker 4: to eight, and to not make the playoffs. It's just
Speaker 4: unsatisfying all around. You keep Tennis Allen and I was
Speaker 4: wrong before. I keep messing this up. The Saints need
Speaker 4: everyone to lose. They need the Seahawks to lose, the Cardinals,
Speaker 4: they need the Packers to lose. They're last in line.
Speaker 4: But if they if the Seahawks lose and the Packers lose,
Speaker 4: so they will find out at least if they get
Speaker 4: the first part of that. In the afternoon, part of
Speaker 4: me wonders, and again we why shoes plugged in told
Speaker 4: us that Smith is safe. There's other reporting out there
Speaker 4: that Arthur Smith is a good chance to return.
Speaker 3: Is there something we don't know about this?
Speaker 2: Is there something did Let's say, I'll just throw out
Speaker 2: a hypothetical, but Arthur Smith did have reservations about Desmond
Speaker 2: Ridder and it was kind of like, we want you
Speaker 2: to give it a try with him, and if it
Speaker 2: doesn't work out, we promise you. Like, is there something
Speaker 2: else to the story that we don't know? Because based
Speaker 2: on just what we know, three seasons of essentially failure
Speaker 2: and no real growth should get a coach gone almost
Speaker 2: one hundred percent of the time.
Speaker 3: Why would he be an outlier?
Speaker 5: The what two things I could point to is I
Speaker 5: think Arthur Blank's pretty patient. And secondly, when we were
Speaker 5: at the Super Bowl, a year ago, Arthur Blank was
Speaker 5: not far from us giving an interview, and what happened
Speaker 5: during some of that interview was he was so strongly
Speaker 5: in support of Desmond Ridder, like like no questions asked,
Speaker 5: Like we believe in this guy so much, and so
Speaker 5: I wonder if some of that is at play. But
Speaker 5: Arthur Smith, it's been a disappointment. Like it hasn't been
Speaker 5: a complete and utter disaster. It hasn't been like a
Speaker 5: like a public embarrassment.
Speaker 4: This season, I agree, but this season's been close to it,
Speaker 4: Like after all that Ridder picking with him. Heineke is
Speaker 4: not healthy this week, He's not practicing really, and yet
Speaker 4: they're like holding out hope. So now it's gone from
Speaker 4: like we're gonna keep playing Ritter to like we hope
Speaker 4: we can get sixty percent Heinike to run back out there.
Speaker 4: And what's been embarrassing I think for Smith is they
Speaker 4: can't run the ball, like not consistently. And this is
Speaker 4: a team the Saints that you can run against. They
Speaker 4: ran for two twenty eight. I remember that game last
Speaker 4: time because they were both coming out of the by
Speaker 4: and I thought it would be very telling who comes
Speaker 4: out of the buy better and the Falcons ran all
Speaker 4: over them, and I thought, ooh, the Falcons are back,
Speaker 4: and that was like the last time they looked like
Speaker 4: that where they they could run the ball so well.
Speaker 4: So to me, they should be able to run in
Speaker 4: this game.
Speaker 3: Maybe it is an upset. We shall see.
Speaker 2: And Alvin kamaras Mark mentioned, he went down with that ankle.
Speaker 2: I don't know how high up on the ankle is
Speaker 2: this spring.
Speaker 3: They don't tell us.
Speaker 2: Not spotted in practice on Wednesday. I just did a
Speaker 2: quick search to see if we have any updates so
Speaker 2: far on Thursday. I don't see anything yet. But he
Speaker 2: has been good for them this year. And Carr I
Speaker 2: think needs a healthy Kamara to keep that offense.
Speaker 4: It's one seventy money line, by the way, here we
Speaker 4: go getting that in there.
Speaker 3: Like it.
Speaker 2: I will go with the Snake pis so another game
Speaker 2: that has playoff ramifications, even if it isn't necessarily competitive.
Speaker 3: Potentially, but you never know.
Speaker 2: With the Dallas Cowboys, Cowboys at Commanders eleven and five,
Speaker 2: Dallas coming off that dramatic, controversial win over the Lions
Speaker 2: twenty to nineteen, all the two point business, but I
Speaker 2: think it did overshadow that. I thought the Cowboys played
Speaker 2: a good game in a big spot against a very
Speaker 2: good Lions team. I don't want to wipe away that effort,
Speaker 2: and I don't want to wipe away that Dak is
Speaker 2: playing his best football in crucible moments down the stretch.
Speaker 2: And the Commanders are a bottom five team in the NFL,
Speaker 2: maybe a bottom three team in the NFL. Right now,
Speaker 2: you could argue they have the worst defense in the NFL,
Speaker 2: the worst pass defense in the NFL. The game is
Speaker 2: in Washington, where the Cowboys anywhere away from Jarrod World.
Speaker 2: They're simply not the same team. They've been a five
Speaker 2: hundred team this season, maybe even sub five hundred actually
Speaker 2: when I look at their eleven or five and undefeated
Speaker 2: at home.
Speaker 3: Right, so here we go. I mean, there are.
Speaker 2: No excuses, Mark, You need, absolutely need to hammer the
Speaker 2: Commanders and win the NFC East.
Speaker 3: Anything less would be a disaster.
Speaker 2: The idea of not winning this game and then going
Speaker 2: to the playoffs and going on the road just would
Speaker 2: be a disgusting idea for the Cowboys and their fans.
Speaker 2: Hammer the Commanders, steal this division from the Eagles, and
Speaker 2: you go into the playoffs hosting a home game and
Speaker 2: feeling like this year is different.
Speaker 5: This was the game a year ago where we were
Speaker 5: introduced to Sam Howell, who will be starting. After some
Speaker 5: back and forth last week with the Jacoby Brissett unable
Speaker 5: to go, Howell came in not too bad out of
Speaker 5: the gate, a disaster down the stretch. He's been sacked
Speaker 5: a league high sixty one times, the most interceptions in
Speaker 5: the league. This dall defense, you can run on them.
Speaker 5: I don't think that's a big factor in this game.
Speaker 5: I think you want to get turnovers. You want to
Speaker 5: kind of have one of these games where you go
Speaker 5: you kind of set the tone for the playoffs, and
Speaker 5: no defense beyond Washington allows more yards per game to
Speaker 5: wide receivers. You can take advantage of that. Ceedee Lamb
Speaker 5: is coming off a monster performance. I'm with you. Keep
Speaker 5: it clean, just just go take care of business. And
Speaker 5: like no Cowboys narratives coming out of this game.
Speaker 3: No, you just got to actay healthy. This is like
Speaker 3: that too.
Speaker 4: Tyler Smith got hurt, which you know. The Pro Bowl
Speaker 4: came out last night and he didn't make it, which
Speaker 4: is a little bit of a surprise for me. He's
Speaker 4: been fantastic. I don't think he's gonna play in this game. Look,
Speaker 4: this is something where they they should be cognizant of.
Speaker 4: Let's get it to Not like they're gonna give a
Speaker 4: pregame step speech talking about it, but it'd be nice
Speaker 4: if they got it to forty to seven and could
Speaker 4: just rest their starters in the fourth quarter and start
Speaker 4: looking ahead. You never know what kind of week you're
Speaker 4: gonna have. You might be playing on that Saturday. It
Speaker 4: might be a short week for you. And although they
Speaker 4: they stick the Cowboys on a Saturday, maybe Saturday night,
Speaker 4: there's no reason to think Saturday night that Washington is
Speaker 4: going to be competitive. It's sad for Jacoby Brissett that
Speaker 4: he got hurt in practice last week because otherwise he
Speaker 4: would be starting this game.
Speaker 2: And this is the end of an era. Ron Rivera
Speaker 2: is definitely going to be out the door. So the
Speaker 2: last game from Ron and maybe the last game as
Speaker 2: a head coach in the NFL period. We talked about
Speaker 2: defensive Player of the Year being wide open. Here Michael
Speaker 2: Parsons another guy. If you have the Lamar game, we'll
Speaker 2: call it the Lamar game. Even though he plays on
Speaker 2: the other side of the ball. He has thirteen sacks
Speaker 2: entering this game. If he goes off for three in
Speaker 2: this game, all of a sudden, his resume looks that
Speaker 2: much better. And I want to correct or wrong, especially
Speaker 2: because in a lot of ways you could look at
Speaker 2: his success this year, going back to this podcast, in
Speaker 2: certain comments made by Zuzzer, Ceedee Lamb was unbelievable in
Speaker 2: that Lions game, completely uncoverable. Every time they needed a
Speaker 2: big play, Cede Lamb made a huge play. And he
Speaker 2: is having quietly a historically great season at the position.
Speaker 2: Have we heard anything about him for Offensive Player of
Speaker 2: the Year. We haven't heard a thing.
Speaker 3: I think Tyreek Hill like kind of took all years.
Speaker 4: It's hard to say that he's been better than Tyreek Hill.
Speaker 4: So he's just getting boxed out here. Here's some just
Speaker 4: data points from our research team.
Speaker 2: He needs one catch in Week eighteen to join the
Speaker 2: top ten of the most receptions in a season in
Speaker 2: NFL history.
Speaker 3: He's got one hundred and twenty two catches.
Speaker 2: He needs seventy two yards, which is going to get
Speaker 2: probably by the end of the first quarter in this game,
Speaker 2: to join the top ten of the most receiving yards
Speaker 2: in a season in NFL history.
Speaker 3: His season average. This year his average and by the.
Speaker 2: Way, I understand, there's an extra week played and you
Speaker 2: factor that in, but this is different. He has averaged
Speaker 2: one hundred and three yards per game this year, and
Speaker 2: if you want to even look closer at the numbers,
Speaker 2: you go from about the mid season point, maybe rund
Speaker 2: week seven, I would say he's probably about one hundred
Speaker 2: and twenty a game, scoring literally literally maybe with the.
Speaker 3: Exception of one week.
Speaker 2: He scores every week and sometimes multiple times a week.
Speaker 2: And I think he's not gonna win Offensive Player of
Speaker 2: the Year, but he certainly deserves to be in the
Speaker 2: conversation because when he came into the league for the Cowboys,
Speaker 2: there was huge expectations and he was immediately very good
Speaker 2: and then he kind of got a little bit better,
Speaker 2: and then he got a little bit but this is
Speaker 2: the year where he fully realized that number eighty eight
Speaker 2: potential and they have a superstar, top three wide receiver
Speaker 2: in the league in my opinion.
Speaker 5: Yeah, like Detroit had no answers for him. Like when
Speaker 5: you watch the Ravens offense, it's like teams don't know
Speaker 5: what they're doing to stop the Ravens. But like Ceedee
Speaker 5: Lamb put that same kind of magic on the Lions
Speaker 5: last week, and I think it helps when you've got
Speaker 5: like Dak Prescott and Lamb connecting the way to do.
Speaker 5: Like the one throw, the ninety plus yard touchdown for
Speaker 5: Ceedee Lamb was one of Dak Prescott's greatest throws of
Speaker 5: all time, one of the more magical quarterback throws you'll
Speaker 5: see an entire season. Maybe the best player of the year,
Speaker 5: but it's like it takes Ceedee Lamb being in the
Speaker 5: right place also making the play as well.
Speaker 3: He's incredible.
Speaker 4: Yeah, people kind of got on the Cowboys because Jefferson's
Speaker 4: in that draft, chases in that draft, and they got
Speaker 4: to their superstar status first. But you're right, sixteen hundred
Speaker 4: and fifty one yards the Cowboys, by the way, thirteen
Speaker 4: point favorites in this game. That doesn't even feel funny.
Speaker 4: Line minus eight hundred, which is like, what are we
Speaker 4: doing here?
Speaker 3: People? Just why bother?
Speaker 2: By the way, just from a historical standpoint, when the
Speaker 2: Cowboys do get to the playoffs, whether it's the division
Speaker 2: champion or as a wild card, and it's probably gonna
Speaker 2: be a division champion, I do get a little remember
Speaker 2: Kurt Warner Larry fitz in eight when they just tore
Speaker 2: through the playoffs. Why didn't you picture Dak and Lamb
Speaker 2: just being nuclear this month?
Speaker 5: Yeah, the good version of the Cowboys like that. Yes,
Speaker 5: I can picture could.
Speaker 3: Win to the games.
Speaker 2: Sure we can talk about the ghosts of the Cowboys,
Speaker 2: but I if we do believe this team's a little
Speaker 2: bit different. Lamb's one of the reasons why they're different
Speaker 2: this year. This guy is outrageous. I mean, I love
Speaker 2: des Bryant too. I mean, he was a great number
Speaker 2: eighty eight, but I think CD is their best receiver
Speaker 2: since Irvin, and it matters to have true Hall of
Speaker 2: Fame level players like that.
Speaker 3: I agree. All right, let's keep moving. It is back
Speaker 3: to you, Greg.
Speaker 4: Okay, I'm gonna take the Buccaneers minus four and a
Speaker 4: half at the Panthers money lines minus two twenty five.
Speaker 3: I mean Buccaneers an win game.
Speaker 4: Get to see a team win a division, a surprising
Speaker 4: team if they can do it, or see everything crumble
Speaker 4: and collapse in a surprising fashion.
Speaker 3: That's Week eighteen to me.
Speaker 4: These are the types of wiki team games you get,
Speaker 4: like the culmination of what they've been building towards. Because
Speaker 4: I don't think they're gonna win a playoff game, although
Speaker 4: the Eagles would be a pretty winnable matchup for them.
Speaker 4: I want to see Baker bounce back, although it's more
Speaker 4: his health. I just am a little worried about he's
Speaker 4: missing practice this week and they're not like totally locking
Speaker 4: in there.
Speaker 3: He's playing.
Speaker 4: But he did speak to the media, which is usually
Speaker 4: a good sign. He had a rib injury, which may
Speaker 4: explain his trumples in that game, but I didn't even
Speaker 4: think he played that bad once I watched it.
Speaker 3: They just they never had the ball.
Speaker 4: Their defense is not good, by the way, Like that's
Speaker 4: one of the problems with Todd Bowles is they have
Speaker 4: all these stars on defense. Defense it's a mediocre defense,
Speaker 4: and they were terrible last week. And I thought Mayfield
Speaker 4: played quite well in the second half. The game was
Speaker 4: kind of over, but he made a lot of really
Speaker 4: good throws, so I don't think the injury affected him.
Speaker 4: I think they will be chastened from that experience. They
Speaker 4: also will know that the Panthers gave them a hard
Speaker 4: time just a few weeks ago in Tampa and did
Speaker 4: not take it too lightly, whereas the Panthers are just
Speaker 4: playing out the string there and coming off one of
Speaker 4: the most depressing games of the entire season getting shut
Speaker 4: out twenty six nothing to.
Speaker 3: The CJ. Beth Jaguars.
Speaker 4: And that's why, for the first time in a while,
Speaker 4: despite having a sterling record, this week, I do forecast
Speaker 4: a little rain here, Oh Carolina. I think the Bucks
Speaker 4: blow this team out. I was gonna lock it up,
Speaker 4: but I'm giving Nick a little late Christmas present by
Speaker 4: going for the Bills. The Buccaneers roll Baker with four touchdowns.
Speaker 3: They cover that four and a half. So brave.
Speaker 4: Well, actually, every single rain Maker would be equally brave
Speaker 4: because it's fifty to fifty according to right.
Speaker 2: But if you were gonna be locking against the Panthers,
Speaker 2: that would have not a great look for a fifteen
Speaker 2: to two.
Speaker 3: Star fair fair.
Speaker 4: That was in my head too, But rain maker wise,
Speaker 4: I started this season by drafting the under on Carolina
Speaker 4: as my number one overall pick in the Winds over underdraft.
Speaker 3: I piled up a bunch.
Speaker 2: Of shots out of your mouth.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I piled up a bunch of wins in the
Speaker 4: Locks going against them early before everyone knew they.
Speaker 3: Were trash bags. Let's wrap it up some rain.
Speaker 5: I I if you put a gun to my head,
Speaker 5: I would not remember what I did in week one
Speaker 5: In terms of my picks to Greg, it's all categorized
Speaker 5: rope to size, like it's all there in the data
Speaker 5: internal database.
Speaker 3: Do you know?
Speaker 2: Did you know that Greg's children squared off against each
Speaker 2: other and that I did hear about championship?
Speaker 3: Yeah, but I believe it was sort of a blowout, right,
Speaker 3: But that's not the point. Yeah.
Speaker 2: The point is that out of like a twelve team league,
Speaker 2: Greg also had his children. It's like it's like when
Speaker 2: you hear about and your children have Japanese heritage, like
Speaker 2: the like how organized everything is and how you kind
Speaker 2: of you look at like the school systems there and
Speaker 2: everything like you have everything completely on lock right now, Greg,
Speaker 2: with your picks and your kids and the football universe,
Speaker 2: you're in complete control of it right now.
Speaker 4: There's a lot of luck involved here. And Walker did
Speaker 4: it all by himself, which I'm very proud.
Speaker 3: And did you make it off?
Speaker 4: He came in second? You told him you loved him
Speaker 4: less though, right, No, I did not. I did not.
Speaker 4: In fact, we knew as a household no one was
Speaker 4: going to mention the finals, say nothing happened because of
Speaker 4: the result. If he had won, there had been a
Speaker 4: lot of condversation. But since he lost, we just have
Speaker 4: to give it a day or two for him to
Speaker 4: emotionally well recover.
Speaker 3: I think this is a great rain maker. I'm feeling good.
Speaker 2: And for those that maybe overspent and Santa was expensive
Speaker 2: this year in households, this might be a nice way.
Speaker 2: But of course we do not say what to do.
Speaker 2: We don't tell her. Yeah, I would never do that.
Speaker 2: This is a quick episode here because we do have
Speaker 2: to keep moving, but we got to have it. It's
Speaker 2: a very special episode of temper Bee talking. It's kind
Speaker 2: of a satellite episode. It's temper Be tossing, and you
Speaker 2: know we we were told to stand down for a
Speaker 2: few days. In the story temper Be Tossing. He in
Speaker 2: the waning moments of that twenty six nothing lost to
Speaker 2: the Jaguars got into it with some fans. It's the
Speaker 2: owner of an NFL team got into it with some
Speaker 2: fans and in a moment of frustration, tossed the remnants
Speaker 2: of a dren with some ice at either offan or
Speaker 2: a group of fans, threw the cup down and walked
Speaker 2: away right with his general manager right next to him.
Speaker 2: This was all caught on video, because everything is caught
Speaker 2: on video. And after a couple of days of radio silence,
Speaker 2: the NFL find Tepper three hundred thousand dollars for what
Speaker 2: the league called his quote unacceptable conduct during the loss.
Speaker 2: And here's a quote from the league. All NFL personnel
Speaker 2: are expected to conduct themselves at all times in ways
Speaker 2: that respect our fans and favorably reflect on their team
Speaker 2: and the NFL. And then Tepper again, after multiple days
Speaker 2: of radio silence.
Speaker 3: Out of Charlotte, this is when he was talking.
Speaker 2: Now, this is an episode of Temper Bee Talking, which
Speaker 2: is not the same as Temper b tossin satellite app. Dean, Please.
Speaker 3: Welcome to anpisode of teen be Talking.
Speaker 2: He says, I should have let NFL stadium security handle
Speaker 2: any issues that arose. I respect the NFL's Code of
Speaker 2: conduct and accept the league's discipline for my behavior. He
Speaker 2: said he is passionate about his team but regrets his behavior,
Speaker 2: but no apology from Temper. This is one of the
Speaker 2: worst years for any team in the history of this podcast,
Speaker 2: and this is kind of a fitting.
Speaker 4: Cheery on top that's well said. Three hundred thousand dollars.
Speaker 4: I mean, it's a lot of money for just throwing
Speaker 4: a drink, and yet it could have been a lot more.
Speaker 4: And I feel like the ultimate punishment is, like, this
Speaker 4: is what he is going to be remembered for for
Speaker 4: a long time, yeah, until proven otherwise, not just the
Speaker 4: Brice Young trade, not just how bad this season has been,
Speaker 4: but like the punishment is like poor Panthers fans are
Speaker 4: the butt of jokes and this this will live on
Speaker 4: past this week, past this year.
Speaker 5: Yeah, like there's it's bad, been bad football. It's been
Speaker 5: bad front office work. It's been bad in terms of
Speaker 5: the stories you're hearing about the actual vibe behind closed doors.
Speaker 5: I member as a kid, I went to a Mets
Speaker 5: game with my friend Matt Lusting, and we'd like, some
Speaker 5: father that worked somewhere else got us these special seats
Speaker 5: and we were right over the left field and Kirk
Speaker 5: Gibson of the Dodgers was playing down there, and we
Speaker 5: spent the entire game just square like shouting at Kirk Gibson,
Speaker 5: f you, Kirk Gibson, fuck you.
Speaker 3: And what happened.
Speaker 5: What happened ultimately was around the seventh or eighth inning, finally,
Speaker 5: because I knew he could hear us, he finally looked
Speaker 5: up and just said you. And it was like, if
Speaker 5: you're a player, I get the boiling over, and if
Speaker 5: you're a coach that happens too, because you're right there.
Speaker 3: But it's like, I'm on owner. You can't like owner
Speaker 3: can't do it. I feel like it's a right of passage.
Speaker 2: I remember in the in the bad old days for
Speaker 2: the Yankees in the early nineties, me and my cousin
Speaker 2: Matt went to an otherwise completely empty upper deck of
Speaker 2: right field in old Yankee Stadium and Mel Hall was
Speaker 2: the right fielder of the Yankees, and for in like
Speaker 2: the seventh inning of a twelve to two game, we
Speaker 2: were just going bell and finally he just looks up
Speaker 2: at us and just like holds his arms.
Speaker 3: Like like what really, I don'llo But Kirk Gibson should
Speaker 3: have done that. You were children, but you shouldn't be yelling.
Speaker 4: I shouldn't be.
Speaker 5: I kind of think, no, there was no there was
Speaker 5: some other parent that was wasn't even our parent, But
Speaker 5: I think he should have done that, and I don't.
Speaker 5: I don't have a problem with a fit with a
Speaker 5: player doing that. In that situation.
Speaker 4: But if your owner, you just can't be well, that's
Speaker 4: way different. I'm saying to drink. Throwing a drink is owner.
Speaker 3: Back like an explodit. That's that's what I mean.
Speaker 4: There's that Jets player who's who I love. It was
Speaker 4: like a new meme of just pointing out all the
Speaker 4: people in the Browns crowd that that he's saying, f
Speaker 4: you too, that's a that's a beautiful.
Speaker 3: Well they're getting wet. That's fun.
Speaker 4: Throwing the drink on the person is he's probably a
Speaker 4: little concerned he might get suit or something. Yeah, that's
Speaker 4: the other thing at risk. And just to put a
Speaker 4: good button on the whole thing.
Speaker 2: As someone who's lived through it, like when you have
Speaker 2: ownership that you don't have faith in, necessarily you realize
Speaker 2: that that is the key to everything. Everything starts at
Speaker 2: the top of organizations, and if it's dysfunctional or or
Speaker 2: there's just not a strong base up top, that can
Speaker 2: lead to a year.
Speaker 3: Or not years, decades of issues.
Speaker 2: So if I'm a Panthers fan, and I don't need
Speaker 2: to tell you Panthers fans, you're very nervous about the
Speaker 2: trajectory right now over the organization.
Speaker 5: We also got to like convince a top level coach
Speaker 5: in theory to come coach this team.
Speaker 3: Good luck with that, Joana Marc. Yeah.
Speaker 2: Yeah, there's a lot going on there. All right, let's
Speaker 2: keep moving. Mark, You're up, am I win Bucks, Just
Speaker 2: win that game?
Speaker 3: All right. I'm gonna go Eagles at Giants.
Speaker 5: There's I'm taking one of these late gams because they've
Speaker 5: spread this this late around in.
Speaker 3: A there's a lot of late games.
Speaker 4: Then well it's kind of kind of half and half
Speaker 4: six early seven late. Yeah, so I'm going Giants or
Speaker 4: Giants hosting the Eagles.
Speaker 5: Let's see here. Uh, let's take a look at the
Speaker 5: spread you handled at Greg Why get involved with this game?
Speaker 3: Here?
Speaker 2: Let me tell one more story about yelling at people. Sure,
Speaker 2: I used to go to a lot of preseason games,
Speaker 2: like my dad at his company. Those tickets would float around. Yeah,
Speaker 2: because of fans have to buy preseason games with their
Speaker 2: season tickets, so there always be Jet preseason games floating around.
Speaker 3: So I would go to these games.
Speaker 2: Went to one of the games with my buddy Bob,
Speaker 2: who I do throwback podcast with, and we were sitting
Speaker 2: the first row right behind the Jets bench. And there
Speaker 2: was a reserve offensive tackle I don't even know if
Speaker 2: he made the team named Jonathan Hagood, and we were
Speaker 2: just screaming in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3: Good, how good is it? Gods?
Speaker 2: And again Jonathan Hagood wherever you are. Good Man looks
Speaker 2: at us and he's like, what is wrong with you?
Speaker 4: Yeah?
Speaker 3: All right? I gave you enough time there, Greg, that
Speaker 3: was a little filibuster. I've found him. I have found it.
Speaker 5: Actually, the Eagles are giving up five points a minus
Speaker 5: two thirty money line in a giant.
Speaker 3: That feels fair to me. That's spread.
Speaker 5: You could have tweeted him today, So that's what's different.
Speaker 5: Back then, it was your only access to him was
Speaker 5: like you have to shout at them.
Speaker 4: It is there at some point when you become an adult,
Speaker 4: you realize, oh, these are other humans. I should probably
Speaker 4: not be doing this unless it's really warranted.
Speaker 3: I think you're aisode.
Speaker 2: It was also before social media and stuffing the idea
Speaker 2: of even connecting with these things and people, and it's
Speaker 2: just a different world now. You're right, Dane, Thank you.
Speaker 2: All right, we're signing off for the day. I can't
Speaker 2: find any record.
Speaker 5: The Giants the only team the Eagles have beaten since November.
Speaker 5: I wow, if you think about it, I mean, and
Speaker 5: you know, we dug into them on our last episode,
Speaker 5: and it's like it does feel like an inflection point,
Speaker 5: like it's not just this game, but it's what happens
Speaker 5: in the playoffs and how it looks. I was thinking
Speaker 5: though later because and not to circle back entirely and
Speaker 5: all that, but the idea that like Sirianni would get
Speaker 5: canned kind of blows my mind because we're talking about
Speaker 5: a coach that's gonna have three straight playoff berths, just
Speaker 5: went to a super Bowl. Things are a little up
Speaker 5: and down, but that feels a little dramatic for how
Speaker 5: the Eagles do business in general. But this Eagles team
Speaker 5: is just not a good team right now. Like their
Speaker 5: defense has been a disaster. They have a minus seven
Speaker 5: turnover differential, which would mark the lowest enfranchise history for
Speaker 5: an Eagles team that also made the playoffs. And it's
Speaker 5: looked like it and some of it obviously has come
Speaker 5: from Jalen Hurts. But Jalen Hurts, like Greg you pointed
Speaker 5: this out, like he's not this guy that you can
Speaker 5: just focus on.
Speaker 3: Is the entire problem.
Speaker 5: I think the giveaways have been an issue, but last
Speaker 5: week he had PFF's second highest score for a quarterback.
Speaker 3: I mean the offense played it. Wow. The offense was
Speaker 3: not a problem last week.
Speaker 5: So it's like, how about just clean it up against
Speaker 5: the Giants and hush some of this nonsense and we'll see.
Speaker 5: But I think there's no doubt that you talk about
Speaker 5: these other teams that have gone through some adversity, if
Speaker 5: the Eagles do wind up winning a couple of playoff games,
Speaker 5: you'd have to look at them and say they went
Speaker 5: through a lot to get to make that happen, right.
Speaker 4: It would show an adverse a response to adversity that
Speaker 4: they just haven't since they lost that first game that
Speaker 4: started this this streak. I guess it was against the
Speaker 4: Cowboys that they they just are soft. They're a soft defense.
Speaker 4: It makes no sense. They tried to load up against
Speaker 4: the run last week against Arizona. They were playing five
Speaker 4: man defensive lines, as Boat kind of pointed out, and
Speaker 4: they got steamrolled. So that's the that's the whole problem.
Speaker 4: It's all the defense. I know her to struggle a
Speaker 4: little late in games. They're not excellent, but we wouldn't
Speaker 4: be having these conversations about them collapsing if the defense
Speaker 4: just wasn't embarrassing, and who knows. Saquon could be his
Speaker 4: last game for the Giants. Sounds like he's cooled off
Speaker 4: the last three weeks, fighting through some injuries after a
Speaker 4: really good season overall. But they could run the ball
Speaker 4: on them. And then it's Jalen hurts versus the win.
Speaker 4: Probably Martindale's last game. He's got to go out with
Speaker 4: a flurry and hurts his numbers that they've been out
Speaker 4: there from next ten stats this week versus the zero
Speaker 4: blitz teams zero blitz him more than any in the league,
Speaker 4: and he hasn't handled it well. And that's what the
Speaker 4: Giants like to do. So if you told me this
Speaker 4: game is up for grabs in the final few minutes,
Speaker 4: it would not.
Speaker 2: Any confidence around the Eagles right now is just kind of,
Speaker 2: you know, hoping for the best rather than watching them
Speaker 2: week to week and knowing this team that's just struggling.
Speaker 2: So the Giants on paper seem like a good, get
Speaker 2: right opponent, but also the Giants at home, you know
Speaker 2: Dable's gonna have them ready to go. They're gonna have
Speaker 2: to earn it. We'll see how it goes. By the way,
Speaker 2: he was Jay Hagood. He turned fifty last August. Happy
Speaker 2: birthday to Jay Hagood, the.
Speaker 5: Same age as as I am. So it's right, So
Speaker 5: that would have been How does that make any sense?
Speaker 2: It was in nineteen ninety must have been like the
Speaker 2: ninety seven or ninety eight preseason because that's when he
Speaker 2: was on the Jets. So you weren't like a young
Speaker 2: child seven Okay, okay, it was yelling how good as
Speaker 2: it gets.
Speaker 3: I mean, just Sully.
Speaker 4: It a thug basically more or less Tyrod.
Speaker 3: By the way, starting this game.
Speaker 4: You did not start that other Eagles Giants game when
Speaker 4: it ended up pretty close.
Speaker 3: He closed that game.
Speaker 4: That's where Devido they are a totally different team with Tyrod.
Speaker 3: They have a legitimate quarterback. All right, Marks neaks to you.
Speaker 5: All right, I'll take the Browns Bengals matchup. You know,
Speaker 5: a week ago it looked like it could have been intriguing.
Speaker 5: It is not going to be intriguing in terms of
Speaker 5: the stakes. The Bengals eliminated.
Speaker 2: All these Sinci games on the schedule a few weeks ago.
Speaker 2: That look hot turning out not to be.
Speaker 5: No, and they look like they could have been a
Speaker 5: fun playoff team and it's that's not the case. Uh,
Speaker 5: Cleveland's sitting Joe Flacco and a flock of others and
Speaker 5: they need it.
Speaker 3: I do want a flocko a flaco.
Speaker 5: I wanted to do a little if we could sure
Speaker 5: if we have the sound and if Greg doesn't mind,
Speaker 5: Greg Go's runs the rest Stop uh program, but I
Speaker 5: have I want a little spin off called the rest
Speaker 5: Stop vending Machine.
Speaker 3: You know, like when you when you go in the
Speaker 3: rest stop.
Speaker 5: If it's if it's not a total like sky it got,
Speaker 5: you can buy something. There's the Browns right now if
Speaker 5: you think about it. Yes, Thursday Night football was their
Speaker 5: last game, so between then and now in Sunday ten days.
Speaker 5: Amari Cooper, who was a little banged up, didn't play
Speaker 5: for another.
Speaker 3: Four days before that.
Speaker 5: So that is extended rest for a Marque Cooper. Everyone
Speaker 5: else is getting rest this week. They don't play for
Speaker 5: another week. That's seventeen days of rest and about twenty
Speaker 5: one days for Amari Cooper.
Speaker 3: That's a nice rest.
Speaker 5: Now, do you trust Cleveland if we're going to be
Speaker 5: all up into arms about the Ravens showing up flat
Speaker 5: after like a two week rest like good team that
Speaker 5: has maybe the coach of the year, But how does
Speaker 5: the coach of the year handle a twenty one?
Speaker 2: Yeah that's true. Where's the veting machine coming into this?
Speaker 2: I just I gave it a different name so I
Speaker 2: wouldn't he's got Oh no, that's just an episode of
Speaker 2: rest Stop. You got to integrate the vending machine in
Speaker 2: some way. Are they now got eating stale twinkies?
Speaker 5: You just stole the ip then, like we I try
Speaker 5: not to stamp on the same name. If he didn't enjoy.
Speaker 2: It, you just would, I asked, would have been totally cool,
Speaker 2: a lot of rest but then to give it a
Speaker 2: little bit of a different name.
Speaker 5: But then do the segment that feels this is the
Speaker 5: first thing I thought of, like a restop was like
Speaker 5: a little vending machine. I thought I'd just throw that
Speaker 5: on there.
Speaker 3: What about the bathroom?
Speaker 5: Not the first thing I'd want to like discuss at, right,
Speaker 5: But you're right, that's why you go to a rest up.
Speaker 3: Good app, Good app. I do think there's stressed out
Speaker 3: about the show, and I'm checking some injuries.
Speaker 2: There is rest Stop has gotten versatility because I do
Speaker 2: I'm on the corner of too much rest stop. I
Speaker 2: do not want Joe Flacco disappearing for two weeks two
Speaker 2: and a half weeks here, right. I like Joe Flacco
Speaker 2: staying in the mix. But again, it's the right play
Speaker 2: that you keep the big man up right because you
Speaker 2: got big games to play ahead.
Speaker 3: How exciting is that? Mark? It's interesting to see who
Speaker 3: they play. Nothing better than having playoff games to look
Speaker 3: forward to.
Speaker 4: I kind of remember it favored by seven in minus
Speaker 4: two ninety eight, so that is a reflection of the
Speaker 4: Browns sitting all their starters and the Bengals not. Although
Speaker 4: I figure what t Higgins is like banged up. They're
Speaker 4: not going to force wait is Garrett to play week
Speaker 4: week a team, but damar Chase, it sounds like he'll
Speaker 4: play like they're they're trying to win. The Bengals are
Speaker 4: zero to five in the division. I think they want
Speaker 4: to win one game before.
Speaker 2: I wonder what they'll do with Garrett because he has
Speaker 2: hardware on the line. Potentially he does, but he's I
Speaker 2: wouldn't play the City band to six in sacks right now,
Speaker 2: but I know the awards about other things.
Speaker 5: But I wonder what he'll want to play. It would imagine.
Speaker 5: But he's got this like band around his shoulder.
Speaker 3: Still.
Speaker 4: I don't think he's gonna play in this game, all right, Greg,
Speaker 4: I think it's back to you that right is Mark.
Speaker 4: I've taken two, so you have taken two, all right,
Speaker 4: So I will take another early game. I will take
Speaker 4: Vikings at Lions. Lions are favored by three and a half.
Speaker 4: The money line is minus two of five. They're sending
Speaker 4: uh Joe Davis and Daryl Johnson, Moose Pam Oliver, putting
Speaker 4: them on a plane.
Speaker 3: I think that's their.
Speaker 4: Number thing, to put them over there, probably flying right now.
Speaker 4: Number three team. The Lions have said they're playing the
Speaker 4: wit makes sense in a week where everyone's sitting guys,
Speaker 4: the Lions are not, and they don't really have anything
Speaker 4: to play for, so they're going the other out. This
Speaker 4: is one situation where I don't have like crazy hot take.
Speaker 4: I think that's okay too, if that's what Dan Campbell
Speaker 4: thinks his best and Belichick was interesting when he would
Speaker 4: add the opportunities and I think this is the right
Speaker 4: way to do it. He would do it sometimes and
Speaker 4: he wouldn't do it other times. It would depend on
Speaker 4: factors of health and how the team.
Speaker 2: Is playing and Wes Welker what he thinks about that
Speaker 2: plan blew out that acl that one.
Speaker 4: It's it's really unfortunate. But I just think, like, I
Speaker 4: don't know, it's ball and you can't. You can't totally.
Speaker 4: If you think it's best to play and try to
Speaker 4: win and get this back, then that's fine.
Speaker 3: There. The Vikings defense has struggled. Maybe they can.
Speaker 4: Maybe he'll do the thing where he plays the starters
Speaker 4: for a little while and then takes him out, and
Speaker 4: then this line is gonna look silly because the Vikings
Speaker 4: should be favored. Nick Mollins is back as the starter,
Speaker 4: and uh, I think Jared Goff showed a lot a
Speaker 4: couple of weeks ago when he played this defense, and
Speaker 4: they just had answer after answer. The Vikings defense entered
Speaker 4: Week fifteen third in the league and EPA play or
Speaker 4: fifth in the league. They were the number five defense
Speaker 4: on the league for the season. The last three weeks
Speaker 4: they are second to last. They've been terrible. All this
Speaker 4: talk about the quarterbacks, it's like, I get it, that
Speaker 4: also makes sense, but their defense has kind of turned
Speaker 4: into a pumpkin. Maybe it was a little a little
Speaker 4: uh I don't know what the word is. What word
Speaker 4: would you use on a pig?
Speaker 3: Yeah? Like fake, like uh gazi charade. It was a
Speaker 3: charade a little bit.
Speaker 5: I mean, but in the year with like like they
Speaker 5: were trading players away before the season. I think Brian
Speaker 5: Flores did a pretty great tea, did an incredible job
Speaker 5: and even overall at work.
Speaker 4: But it's like you can only win maybe with schemes
Speaker 4: so long they might get the Lions, might get Alee
Speaker 4: McNeil back and the lie the Vikings are not out
Speaker 4: of the playoffs.
Speaker 3: What about that? Nope, there's a chance. How should we
Speaker 3: uh yeah, because that's why it's the path. They have
Speaker 3: the team around the NFL, so we should know.
Speaker 5: What they need to all a path I'd call it
Speaker 5: like a path with like machine guns firing.
Speaker 4: But they have not been eliminated. They have a lot
Speaker 4: of good tie breakers on their side. They need to win.
Speaker 4: They need the Packers to lose, they need the Seahawks
Speaker 4: to lose, and they need either the Saints or the
Speaker 4: Bucks to lose. So basically, look at it like it
Speaker 4: there's four teams, it's not that crazy. There's four teams
Speaker 4: in line for that.
Speaker 3: Pasidonto Rico was like laying up for us.
Speaker 4: I mean, it's crazy enough. I think winning this game
Speaker 4: might be hard enough, especially if the Lions really try.
Speaker 4: But there's four teams in line for the wild card.
Speaker 4: Packers are first, Seahawks are second, Saints or Bucks are third,
Speaker 4: and then the Vikings are fourth.
Speaker 2: Kind of like in the later levels of the old
Speaker 2: Super Mario Brothers when you get to Bowser's Headquarters and
Speaker 2: you have to make the seven jumps in a row,
Speaker 2: and then the big.
Speaker 3: Fireball wheels going around, and then.
Speaker 2: There's another fireball, and then you got to get under
Speaker 2: that and you have all those.
Speaker 3: Like what are those? Remember the brown things? What are
Speaker 3: they called? The I didn't get to Bowser's headquarters. You didn't.
Speaker 3: I don't know. I wasn't my.
Speaker 5: Favorite game, but I watched people play it a lot.
Speaker 5: They're like Mario, I did not like it. I just
Speaker 5: was like I had other interests, other diversions, other Nintendo
Speaker 5: things I liked, Like what Hidigrius was one game? You know,
Speaker 5: the minute like Techmobile came out, little little obvious, But
Speaker 5: what about the hockey where you could pick the fat
Speaker 5: guy the thin guy? You always go one of each? Yeah,
Speaker 5: you got to pick up ice hockey. It was coaching,
Speaker 5: learning about coaching.
Speaker 2: You could you could win with two fat guys in
Speaker 2: a little two fat he's in a little I like
Speaker 2: to have a mid guy there though.
Speaker 3: Mid guy keeps things balanced. All right, I.
Speaker 2: Am, I'm up, and uh this one will be.
Speaker 3: No Stafford. There's like forty two minutes of fat.
Speaker 2: You know, let's take about how about this, Let's take
Speaker 2: a break and then we'll finish.
Speaker 4: Finish only one game that matters left, all right, we'll
Speaker 4: be right back.
Speaker 2: All right, welcome back. We have a few more games
Speaker 2: to hit here Week eighteen. I will start with, Man,
Speaker 2: this was the game that I really had circled on
Speaker 2: the calendar for so long, you know, at least before
Speaker 2: the season started.
Speaker 3: Jet Jets at Patriots.
Speaker 2: There's been so many things that went wrong with this
Speaker 2: Jets season, and we don't need to relitigate it, but
Speaker 2: it has been a crushing year in so many ways,
Speaker 2: and one that I think fundamentally has changed me as
Speaker 2: a fan. When Rogers went down four plays in, I
Speaker 2: think it, I think and we'll see, I think it
Speaker 2: extinguished the last what made me a little different as
Speaker 2: a Jets fan. Of that I always had some optimism
Speaker 2: that there was something good around the corner.
Speaker 3: I don't.
Speaker 2: I feel like this is a team that is just
Speaker 2: destined to always destroy me now until they prove otherwise.
Speaker 3: I always looked at this.
Speaker 2: Game in Foxborough with Aaron Rodgers as like they'd be
Speaker 2: clinching the playoffs, or they would be winning a division
Speaker 2: and it would be beating Belichick on the road and
Speaker 2: slaying all these demons.
Speaker 3: Instead, they're kind of a joke, and they're going in
Speaker 3: the wrong direction.
Speaker 2: And they just got blown out by Cleveland a Thursday night,
Speaker 2: and the owner, for whatever reason, gave everybody a pass
Speaker 2: this year. And and we'll see what happens when they
Speaker 2: run it back with the same gang and a potentially
Speaker 2: healthy Rogers next year. And now it's just playing out
Speaker 2: the string against a dreadful Patriots team, which is somehow,
Speaker 2: and this tells you a lot. Getting two points against
Speaker 2: the Jets, Zach Wilson has played his final game. That is, yeah,
Speaker 2: as a Jet, ninety nine point nine percent. Sure he
Speaker 2: does never he never got cleared from concussion protocol, So
Speaker 2: his concern internally that the Jets would get him hurt,
Speaker 2: he was absolutely correct. If that's indeed the true story
Speaker 2: because he got his head beat in and then has
Speaker 2: been basically out of the mix now. And maybe he
Speaker 2: wasn't rushing to come back either, and I wouldn't if
Speaker 2: I were him now. The Patriots, Greg, this is a
Speaker 2: big game for them in terms of the draft standing
Speaker 2: really for both, but especially the Patriots because the way
Speaker 2: the schedule sets up here, New England finds a way
Speaker 2: to lose to the Jets, which they never do. They
Speaker 2: never lose to the Jets, but if they somehow do
Speaker 2: find a way to lose here, they most likely get
Speaker 2: one of the top two quarterbacks in this draft. Right
Speaker 2: they are locked the way the schedule has played out
Speaker 2: and last week helped them.
Speaker 3: If they win, then they kind of fall.
Speaker 2: Back potentially into a more crowded mix, but they have
Speaker 2: from the tank perspective, which I don't love to focus on,
Speaker 2: but given what the trajectory of their season has been
Speaker 2: and potentially Bill Belichick's last game, a loss would help
Speaker 2: them in the long run.
Speaker 4: It would They could be anywhere from the two to
Speaker 4: the seven pick they're most I mean, that's a big,
Speaker 4: the big difference, and it could be more like the
Speaker 4: six if they won that's strength the schedule stuff. Even five,
Speaker 4: they're probably not the two pick though, Dan, they're probably
Speaker 4: the three pick. Washington is likely the two pick. But
Speaker 4: there are strength of schedule variables that can change. Basically
Speaker 4: the opponents that the Patriots play, and they got to
Speaker 4: hope that they lose and vice versa. There is a
Speaker 4: path to them passing Washington, and strength to schedule is
Speaker 4: this week. Yeah, yeah, it's possible, but it's unlikely if
Speaker 4: you look at what they would need a lot to happen.
Speaker 4: So that said, I just see that, like someone responded
Speaker 4: to a something I wrote on Twitter and was like, oh,
Speaker 4: you know, I was just like saying, Belichick's gonna play
Speaker 4: the hits. He went back to my face and tweeter
Speaker 4: or whatever, like he intentionally mispronounces the social media sites.
Speaker 4: And he went back to that this week when they
Speaker 4: were talking about you know, strike the schedule all this stuff,
Speaker 4: It's like, or like, what's going on in terms of rivers,
Speaker 4: Like he's playing the hits and what's what's the ultimate
Speaker 4: Belichick hit? I mean, you know at the end of
Speaker 4: the show, this feels like the end of the show
Speaker 4: has everyone is just waiting for him, just just just
Speaker 4: to play it.
Speaker 3: You know, you gotta play with or without you.
Speaker 4: For for Arcade Fire, for instance, it's like it's wake up,
Speaker 4: they have to play wake up.
Speaker 3: Last.
Speaker 4: For Belichick, it's beating the Jets for the sixteenth straight time.
Speaker 4: I can't. I can't pretend that I like it doesn't
Speaker 4: Some guy was saying, it's like, oh, he would just
Speaker 4: you know, torpedo their future if he loses the game. Okay,
Speaker 4: calm down, Like the difference between the three and the
Speaker 4: six pick. It might mean a lot, it might not
Speaker 4: mean a lot, like it might be better for you.
Speaker 4: You actually don't know, so just shut up about it.
Speaker 4: It's not that big of a deal. I kind of
Speaker 4: think the Patriots will win this game.
Speaker 3: I'm doing this.
Speaker 5: I'm doing this for Dan and for the future of
Speaker 5: the Jets because a Jets win doesn't help their drafts either.
Speaker 5: It's like, let's just don't worry about a win.
Speaker 3: Now. They could move up a few spots.
Speaker 5: But I'm saying that they lose it helped they already,
Speaker 5: even some of their meaningless wins in previous weeks have
Speaker 5: only tarnished their draft stock. Sit at number eight right now.
Speaker 5: But you don't want the Patriots coming out of this
Speaker 5: post Bill Belichick experience, picking one of the great quarterbacks
Speaker 5: of the future in the AFC East. I want them
Speaker 5: falling back down to six or seven. So I think
Speaker 5: Belichick is going to do everything he can going out
Speaker 5: against the Jets to win. I'm locking up New England
Speaker 5: with confidence, but it's for the Jets.
Speaker 2: I like it. By the way, I missed mine before
Speaker 2: I completely forgot. I am locking up the Lions against
Speaker 2: the team around the NFL. Well, let's get that on
Speaker 2: the record. It's become soiled.
Speaker 3: It's it's over on that front.
Speaker 2: It's Trevor Simeon on the road against a pretty good
Speaker 2: New England.
Speaker 4: Defense, and it sounds like it's Bailey Zappy after throwing
Speaker 4: like three interceptions.
Speaker 3: Have you watched how just that Brown Patriots defense. They're
Speaker 3: ready to go. It sounds like it's going to be
Speaker 3: potent snow game too.
Speaker 4: It's a minus won thirty five money line minus two.
Speaker 4: We don't have to say the over under, but this
Speaker 4: one's so funny I want to it's thirty thirty and
Speaker 4: a half.
Speaker 3: That is Is that a low for the entire season?
Speaker 4: Well, there was that Steelers Patriots game which turned into
Speaker 4: a shootout in the first half.
Speaker 2: The Jets aren't just rogers away from contending their defense
Speaker 2: has been good, better than great this year. They got
Speaker 2: lit up by Jake Briskett in the second half against
Speaker 2: Washington and then destroyed by Joe Flacklin.
Speaker 3: Well be happy.
Speaker 4: The first reg zuer line is the reason why the
Speaker 4: Patriots don't have the number two pick because he hit
Speaker 4: that freaking kick.
Speaker 3: Though, the Jets should be very proud of themselves.
Speaker 2: Very proud. I have plenty of reasons to be proud.
Speaker 2: All right, let's keep moving. I will take one last
Speaker 2: look at the Kansas City Chiefs before the playoffs. They
Speaker 2: travel to across the sidewalk here to face the Los
Speaker 2: Angeles Chargers. It is the Chargers getting three and a
Speaker 2: half points. Well you know where that is. No Patrick Mahomes.
Speaker 3: They're not going to play them at all. Nope, playing
Speaker 3: gap baby. I don't know if I think that's the
Speaker 3: right move.
Speaker 2: I gotta I gotta be consistent. I have to be
Speaker 2: consistent that it is the right move. You don't risk anything.
Speaker 2: Look at the Chargers themselves, and they got Mike Williams hurt.
Speaker 2: But do the cheat I guess there's what what could
Speaker 2: they possibly do? At this point, I would never play
Speaker 2: my home.
Speaker 4: Yeah, they're locked into their seed, so they I think
Speaker 4: they were very fortunate that they happen to get locked
Speaker 4: in because now they get a bye week.
Speaker 2: Yeah that's good, and they could just completely uh almost
Speaker 2: you have to lay, which is crazy. But this is
Speaker 2: their different type of team with a different track record,
Speaker 2: So the perspective is difference. But you gotta flush your
Speaker 2: ten win season and just kind of move.
Speaker 3: Now.
Speaker 2: This is January, and I feel like there have been,
Speaker 2: you know, the truly great teams across different sports that
Speaker 2: have had runs that the regular season becomes this really
Speaker 2: difficult thing and then against all odds and and really
Speaker 2: based on what you've watched season, they somehow flip a switch.
Speaker 3: Could the Chiefs do that?
Speaker 2: Could flip a switch and be proficient on offense and
Speaker 2: then pair that with a good defense. I think it's possible,
Speaker 2: but that would be almost a betrayal of what we do,
Speaker 2: which is actually watch the games all year and watch
Speaker 2: how this team is played and the scheme and the
Speaker 2: play of the guys around Mahomes. I still have big
Speaker 2: time questions about them being able to score twenty one
Speaker 2: points in a playoff game.
Speaker 3: So we'll see the Chargers. We don't really need to
Speaker 3: talk about them.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I mean, they've got fewer than twenty points in
Speaker 5: seven games this year. Is it's just a different experience
Speaker 5: watching this team, and I don't need to kind of
Speaker 5: trust or believe or come up with concepts and why
Speaker 5: they're going to suddenly flip the switch and become what
Speaker 5: they were even in last year's playoffs.
Speaker 3: It's like they there's a personnel issue.
Speaker 5: I think they got a lot of work to do
Speaker 5: in the offseason, and they masked over the Tyreek Kill
Speaker 5: absence last year very well, and it's why there was
Speaker 5: faith they could do it again.
Speaker 3: But they missed a player like that. I think, just
Speaker 3: a player like that.
Speaker 2: I think any team in the AFC playoffs can pick
Speaker 2: off this Chiefs.
Speaker 4: Team, sure absolutely, and they might end up playing the
Speaker 4: Dolphins if the Dolphins lost on Hey, he's twenty eight
Speaker 4: years old, decent stick. I think he probably earned himself
Speaker 4: a couple more years in this league. This is the
Speaker 4: least of all the games. I'm voting this one actually
Speaker 4: the least important. All right, no impact on anything, all right,
Speaker 4: then let's move on Greg, you're up. I'm gonna take
Speaker 4: Rams Niners. The Rams are four point underdogs in this game.
Speaker 4: The forty nine ers who's playing in this game? Fifty
Speaker 4: Neither starting quarterback is playing. Aaron Donald looks like he's out.
Speaker 4: Kyron Williams is out. They announced I was Cooper Cup
Speaker 4: on the list of I think are also out. So
Speaker 4: the stars for the Rams are definitely out. The Niners
Speaker 4: are doing something different, at least publicly. Sam Donald is starting,
Speaker 4: but according to Kyle Shanahan, at least the way he
Speaker 4: explained it was, well, I only know this amount of inactives,
Speaker 4: and we have this many injuries. We actually only have
Speaker 4: one inactive to play with. I'm gonna choose my quarterback
Speaker 4: as that one. And he made it sound like he's
Speaker 4: gonna play his starters in the way I just guessing
Speaker 4: how he sounded was he's got to play him for
Speaker 4: a little bit. I think he's gonna like he's gonna
Speaker 4: play some starters with Donald. And he explained it that
Speaker 4: we want to be more prepared than we were a
Speaker 4: year ago. If Bert Brock gets hurt, we want some
Speaker 4: reps with Sam with the starters. And so that is
Speaker 4: why they're approaching this game this way. I mean, to me,
Speaker 4: it should be bigger than four because their backups I
Speaker 4: just feel like are gonna be Their backups are pretty good,
Speaker 4: and uh, they've owned this matchup lately, but who knows,
Speaker 4: I guess when it comes to backups.
Speaker 2: Handshake the feeling. I've had it all year that Donald's
Speaker 2: gonna be on the field in a big spot for
Speaker 2: this team and I'm not rooting or hoping for an
Speaker 2: injury to party and he's not gonna get benched.
Speaker 3: But like, I don't know, it just feels like there's
Speaker 3: something in the star.
Speaker 4: Let's see what I think it could have the most
Speaker 4: interesting part of this game time.
Speaker 3: It would be not what the Niners want, but I
Speaker 3: hear you.
Speaker 4: Is the decision that the Rams are making to me
Speaker 4: is interesting. They're starting Carson Wentz. I don't know if
Speaker 4: they're gonna throw Puka and Kobe Turner out there to
Speaker 4: like work on some rookie the Year stuff that seems silly.
Speaker 3: Pooka has been banged up all year, but thank you Walker.
Speaker 4: I do think it's interesting that they're saying we don't
Speaker 4: care about becoming the seventh seed, which they will become
Speaker 4: instead of the sixth seed if the Packers win. They're
Speaker 4: just saying the risk of that happening and it might
Speaker 4: not happen isn't worth it. We want to take a rest.
Speaker 4: We're fine going to Dallas instead of going to Detroit,
Speaker 4: which is you know what, And again there's a lot
Speaker 4: of variables. Maybe it's Philadelphia, maybe the Packers lose anyways,
Speaker 4: And I think that's part of it, is like, yeah,
Speaker 4: you can tell us we're going to Dallas, but maybe
Speaker 4: we're not, because the Packers are going to lose anyways,
Speaker 4: and the rest is the most important thing.
Speaker 3: But they're deciding that they don't care, which.
Speaker 2: You can make compelling Hayston either way there and you
Speaker 2: can't really get on them.
Speaker 3: All right, let's close this out, mark all right.
Speaker 5: Two more games they're both mine. I will go Seahawks
Speaker 5: at Arizona. Doesn't matter what order I go in here,
Speaker 5: but can start their Seattle.
Speaker 3: Let's see here game actually matters.
Speaker 5: The Seahawks can clinch a playoff birth if they win
Speaker 5: and Green Bay loses to Chicago, so that's not impossible.
Speaker 3: Atamish, I took this game just space.
Speaker 4: I'd be happy to give it to you if you want, like, okay, clip,
Speaker 4: nice guy, thank you.
Speaker 3: I know you did get it. You can get a
Speaker 3: draft pick from from next week.
Speaker 2: Make them for that bad they go trade for it.
Speaker 3: Get draft pick next week. Yeah, we're still doing all right?
Speaker 3: Do we do drafts? Playoffs? Playoffs where I'll watch it?
Speaker 2: I mean yeah, I'd.
Speaker 5: Be like maybe five bucks twenty twenty four, twenty four
Speaker 5: draft pick?
Speaker 3: How much would it cost?
Speaker 2: Three bucks?
Speaker 3: We should.
Speaker 2: First remember would you pay them three bucks to switch
Speaker 2: three dollars? Now? Now, no, how about a lunch?
Speaker 3: They could watch it anyways. You know, you can do
Speaker 3: whatever you want. What did you pay for marks lunch?
Speaker 4: And now that anything about it? Let's keep going.
Speaker 5: Okay, we'll just we'll deal with this later potentially, keep going.
Speaker 3: I thought's all this interesting.
Speaker 5: Stat that the Seahawks have trailed for you know how
Speaker 5: we talked about how like, what was it the Ravens
Speaker 5: that have been trailed for like eighteen minutes or something
Speaker 5: this whole season.
Speaker 3: Never trail.
Speaker 5: The Seahawks have trailed for seven hours, nineteen minutes, and
Speaker 5: twenty one seconds, which is tells you something fifth worst
Speaker 5: in the league, fifth worst?
Speaker 3: Yeah, whoa worst? Yeah? Minor Miracle Giants.
Speaker 5: They're playing for those and they're playing the Cardinals who
Speaker 5: are on that list too. But this Cardinals team, I
Speaker 5: don't know. Seattle's defense just leaves you ultra suspicious. And
Speaker 5: the version we're getting to James Connor, I'm going to
Speaker 5: be talking about him a little bit on our NFL
Speaker 5: Plus feature today.
Speaker 3: I think he's been like talk about guys that have not.
Speaker 5: Just saved their career because he was already a good player,
Speaker 5: but like he's in their future plans.
Speaker 3: And not only that.
Speaker 5: I thought one of the biggest news items that came
Speaker 5: out and I love it because it solves us potentially
Speaker 5: a lot of nonsense in the offseason. I love when
Speaker 5: this happens now is that Jonathan Gannon basically came out
Speaker 5: and said, Kyler Murray is our guy. There's no any
Speaker 5: of these whisper campaigns that we could trade him. We
Speaker 5: can go somewhere else, we can do They they've got
Speaker 5: a bunch of draft picks too, so they were in
Speaker 5: that world where like if they fell in love with
Speaker 5: a different quarterback, you could trade Kyler Murray, someone will
Speaker 5: want him and you could move up even higher in
Speaker 5: the draft to get your guy.
Speaker 3: But he came out and said that.
Speaker 5: And I feel like the way Jonathan Gannon's operated, the
Speaker 5: way they've operated with Kyler Murray this whole season, They've
Speaker 5: been pretty clean and fair about it, and honestly, they're
Speaker 5: just keeping him and he's been.
Speaker 4: Good to know because he's in a normal offense. It's
Speaker 4: nice to see there is never any motivation to trade
Speaker 4: him because you take such a huge financial penalty that
Speaker 4: it was only gonna make sense if they didn't like
Speaker 4: him or if he struggled, and he's looked great. They're
Speaker 4: lighting up defenses with Michael Wilson Indorshin McBride. How about
Speaker 4: we bring in some a good receiver. It just only
Speaker 4: because of the contract and because Kyler is very good.
Speaker 4: But even if you take out that, it never made sense.
Speaker 4: And I think they're gonna win this game. I'm picking
Speaker 4: the Cardinals to win. They are two and a half
Speaker 4: point underdogs. It's the Seahawks are minus one forty eight.
Speaker 4: I like that For Arizona. To me, I think they're
Speaker 4: they're better, They're similar offense, and they're there.
Speaker 3: I don't know.
Speaker 4: I just feel like this sex team can't stop power running,
Speaker 4: and that's what Arizona's gonna I'm gonna.
Speaker 2: Give Arizona some flowers for the first time in a
Speaker 2: while on this show. I think they handled the Murray
Speaker 2: situation perfectly, where remember before the seasons started, there was
Speaker 2: this talk are they gonna trade them? Are they gonna
Speaker 2: bench them for the whole year to protect you know,
Speaker 2: their asset and then move them, But instead they said, no,
Speaker 2: you know we're gonna do We're gonna rehab them the
Speaker 2: right way. We're not gonna rush him back, but we're
Speaker 2: not gonna be overly cute about it. When he's ready
Speaker 2: to play, he's gonna play. And then we are going
Speaker 2: to use that half season as an evaluation period. And
Speaker 2: then Kyler joined the lineup and and with very few skips,
Speaker 2: has really resembled his old self and and I think
Speaker 2: everyone now is in a place, especially coming off last
Speaker 2: week's game, is like, yeah, this is a guy that
Speaker 2: you build around, and we got we potentially have a
Speaker 2: future with Kyler, which has always been kind of I
Speaker 2: know they invested in him financially, but it's always been
Speaker 2: up in the air air. I thought this this season
Speaker 2: has been really good in calming down a lot of
Speaker 2: the melodrama around the situation, and he's their dude.
Speaker 3: Doesn't the whole organization feel in a better place? In general?
Speaker 5: It just seems like there's no storylines. It's like it's
Speaker 5: well cochd to get that.
Speaker 4: I think they're sneaky good coaching staff. I think Petsing
Speaker 4: has done a good job offensively. Gannon at least try stuff.
Speaker 4: We'll see once they get some players in defensively. And
Speaker 4: I think this would be a feather in their cap.
Speaker 4: I know it hurt their draft pick, but I think
Speaker 4: they would feel pretty great going into the offseason if
Speaker 4: they beat the Eagles in Seahawks in a row. And yeah,
Speaker 4: this could be a little bit of a coach coach
Speaker 4: killing spree here. They could go on if if they
Speaker 4: take out the Eagles and Seahawks, who knows in a row,
Speaker 4: what could happen in Seattle.
Speaker 3: I don't know what.
Speaker 2: I don't know. I don't want that to happen, but
Speaker 2: I don't want out. I just think an insider, No, oh,
Speaker 2: I did ask about that. It's more of my ideas.
Speaker 2: All right, last one, Let's let's finish this up, all right.
Speaker 2: Broncos at Raiders. And it feels like a last give
Speaker 2: us one minute on this game.
Speaker 3: One minute.
Speaker 5: The Broncos are getting three points moneyline minus one fifty five.
Speaker 5: If you're on the Denver side of things, I think
Speaker 5: it's I think it matters for Sean Payton in general,
Speaker 5: like to close out strong, and there's a lot for
Speaker 5: them to deal with Russell Wilson the rest in this offseason.
Speaker 5: But I think it's a bigger game for Antonio Pierce,
Speaker 5: like keep this.
Speaker 3: Job or not his job or not.
Speaker 5: And I think he's look at they lead the NFL
Speaker 5: in scoring defense since he's taken over in Week nine, that's.
Speaker 4: Possible he has no chance, and it's possible he's got
Speaker 4: it already wrapped up.
Speaker 2: So it's hard does scoring defense.
Speaker 5: I think he's a defensive It's not just that, it's
Speaker 5: like the players love him, Like there's people talking from
Speaker 5: inside the building, like people coming out saying.
Speaker 3: We want this guy.
Speaker 5: It's the same thing that happened with Basaccia and Mark
Speaker 5: Davis didn't do it.
Speaker 3: It's the Mark Davis side of it matters.
Speaker 2: What's so are we really still like, Oh, if only
Speaker 2: Rich besides you was coaching the Raiders right now, things
Speaker 2: would be different.
Speaker 5: So like they go get some other retread that failed ahead.
Speaker 3: Don't do that. Don't do that either.
Speaker 2: I mean, I guess you could go get They'll get
Speaker 2: a young offensive mind that.
Speaker 3: It's a young coach too, though I guess I don't know, like.
Speaker 4: I kind of like it just because I like him,
Speaker 4: and I don't know if they're going to do any better.
Speaker 4: Who knows. It could be the end of DeVante Adams there,
Speaker 4: you never know. It could be the end of dossh. Jacobs. Definitely,
Speaker 4: the end of Russell Wilson. The one thing that made
Speaker 4: me laugh this week of all the like insidary reports
Speaker 4: about Russell Wilson.
Speaker 3: Oh, they don't, you're not. You're not trading Russell Wilson.
Speaker 3: No one is trading you anything for Russell Wilson. Stop it.
Speaker 4: Stop trying to puff up his value the contract? Did I.
Speaker 3: Stop it? Go ahead, you can say it again. It's
Speaker 3: all right, is it? That was it? That's ridiculous.
Speaker 2: Also, Dalvin Cook is a dynamic playmaker with fresh legs.
Speaker 2: You should know that as well.
Speaker 3: That's true.
Speaker 4: You're right, I did say this last day. Did too
Speaker 4: many shows? Hey, pa Jays?
Speaker 3: All right?
Speaker 2: That is the Week eighteen preview this is the triple Actually, no,
Speaker 2: no longer a triple Adeddit is no Thursday night football doubleheader,
Speaker 2: though NFL Plus Mark had a little tease earlier. The
Speaker 2: Dreamatorium is open for business, so check that out an
Speaker 2: NFL Plus. And then Sunday night, we recap every game
Speaker 2: that we just previewed.
Speaker 3: You gotta be there for the flagship program till then
Speaker 3: he the call.