WEBVTT - #564 Packers Unscripted: Difficult defeat 0:00:01.160 --> 0:00:14.160 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:14.160 --> 0:00:17.200 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spoffer, joined by my 0:00:17.239 --> 0:00:19.560 trusted colleague West Hodcoitz. We're coming to you hear from 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:21.799 our studios at lambeau Field. As you can see, we 0:00:21.840 --> 0:00:25.599 are wearing masks. And just to clarify, the NFL has 0:00:25.640 --> 0:00:30.520 issued strict protocols for all players team employees for the 0:00:30.560 --> 0:00:33.680 rest of the season. So because we are NFL employees 0:00:33.720 --> 0:00:35.879 and we are working in an NFL facility, we're going 0:00:35.920 --> 0:00:39.040 to follow those protocols. We will see how this goes 0:00:39.120 --> 0:00:42.280 west and perhaps come up with a more workable solution 0:00:42.880 --> 0:00:45.760 as the stretch run continues here for the Packers. But 0:00:46.560 --> 0:00:49.280 that stretch run did not start off the way Green 0:00:49.320 --> 0:00:54.160 Bay wanted. A very difficult thirty to thirty one overtime 0:00:54.200 --> 0:00:57.520 loss in Indianapolis. So much went right in the first half, 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:00.640 everything went wrong in the second half, and hill about 0:01:00.640 --> 0:01:04.280 the last eight five seconds or so, and uh, the 0:01:04.319 --> 0:01:07.840 Packers walked away from Lucas Oil Stadium with a with 0:01:07.880 --> 0:01:10.520 a tough one to swallow. Yeah, it's funny too, because 0:01:10.560 --> 0:01:13.360 I remember two thousand twelve. I didn't cover that game. 0:01:13.959 --> 0:01:16.920 I was I covered he did. I covered it from 0:01:16.920 --> 0:01:21.039 the comfort of my my living room, and I saw 0:01:21.080 --> 0:01:23.840 that stat about I forget who it was. I wish 0:01:23.920 --> 0:01:27.399 I could give the proper attribution to the outlet that 0:01:27.440 --> 0:01:30.640 had it. But basically, Rogers when he's up by fourteen 0:01:30.680 --> 0:01:33.560 and a halftime, like it's some some ridiculous record he has. 0:01:33.600 --> 0:01:36.880 It's like a hundred and twenty and four Packers are 0:01:36.920 --> 0:01:39.200 in those games, and two of those losses were at 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:42.919 Lucas Oil Stadium, with this most recent one being on Sunday. 0:01:43.480 --> 0:01:45.119 I don't know what it is. It doesn't matter who 0:01:45.120 --> 0:01:47.520 the quarterback is. If it's Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck, 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:50.880 Jacoby Brissett and now obviously Phillip Rivers, those games are 0:01:50.920 --> 0:01:54.840 always tough, and it was tough again. I thought Green Bay. 0:01:54.880 --> 0:01:57.040 It was funny. Someone mentioned an insider in box like, well, 0:01:57.040 --> 0:01:59.760 they got to start faster. They started just fine that 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:01.800 first half when according to a plan, they put up 0:02:01.800 --> 0:02:04.080 twenty eight points on the top ranked defense in the 0:02:04.160 --> 0:02:08.160 National Football League. And the problem was, though they have 0:02:08.240 --> 0:02:11.239 six offensive plays in the third quarter, they don't really 0:02:11.240 --> 0:02:13.680 get their wheels turning again until late in the fourth. 0:02:13.720 --> 0:02:16.440 In when you go up against a team like you 0:02:16.480 --> 0:02:19.440 know the Colts and Frank Reich and what they can 0:02:19.480 --> 0:02:23.600 do offensively, and certainly they're so well familiar with Philip Rivers. 0:02:23.600 --> 0:02:25.600 If you give them that much leeway, they're going to 0:02:25.760 --> 0:02:27.760 claw their way back, and they were able to do 0:02:27.840 --> 0:02:30.400 that on Sunday. I think the biggest takeaway from this 0:02:30.440 --> 0:02:33.840 game when you try to just analyze NFL football in general, 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:37.640 is when you hear coaches and players use the phrase 0:02:37.680 --> 0:02:41.640 complementary football. This is the type of game they're talking about, 0:02:41.680 --> 0:02:46.040 because in the first half, complementary football was the Packers 0:02:46.080 --> 0:02:50.760 were capitalizing on indies turnovers and scoring touchdowns. The Packers 0:02:50.840 --> 0:02:54.440 defense was stopping the Colts after the Packers had turnovers. 0:02:54.480 --> 0:02:58.560 That's what complementary football is. In the second half, when 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:01.400 the defense gives up along to the offense, can't go 0:03:01.480 --> 0:03:06.280 three and out, um, when the opposing team has had 0:03:06.320 --> 0:03:09.040 a large comeback and gotten the score back to even 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:13.280 you can't fumble a kickoff like That's where complementary football 0:03:13.320 --> 0:03:16.000 goes around. You have to have the different phases of 0:03:16.040 --> 0:03:19.680 your team working and supporting each other when things go 0:03:19.760 --> 0:03:23.520 well when things go poorly, and the two halves, as 0:03:23.560 --> 0:03:25.840 Matt Lafleur said after the game, it was a tale 0:03:25.840 --> 0:03:30.480 of two halves and the really the definition of complementary 0:03:30.480 --> 0:03:33.120 football in the good way and in the bad way 0:03:33.200 --> 0:03:35.680 for the Packers on on this long afternoon. And it's 0:03:35.680 --> 0:03:37.840 funny too, because why did they succeed in the first 0:03:37.880 --> 0:03:41.200 half because of complementary football. You know, they got point 0:03:41.360 --> 0:03:44.560 four teen points off a turnovers. The offense was really 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:47.160 moving the ball well. I thought the game plan that 0:03:47.200 --> 0:03:49.880 Matt Laflour and the coaches came up with was exceptional. 0:03:49.920 --> 0:03:51.960 They opened the game and a five receiver set, an 0:03:52.000 --> 0:03:54.880 empty backfield set, and they get the ball downfield the 0:03:54.960 --> 0:03:57.720 Davante Adams. They tried to find ways to find one 0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:00.640 on one opportunities and it just seemed like even at 0:04:00.680 --> 0:04:02.640 the end of the first half, I mean, being able 0:04:02.640 --> 0:04:04.400 to get the ball back and then you know, put 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:06.640 some more points on the board. They made some big 0:04:06.680 --> 0:04:08.600 plays from a lot of guys across the board. But 0:04:08.640 --> 0:04:12.000 just at halftime even you know, they even did they 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:14.840 stopped the Colts on that first possession, but then they 0:04:14.880 --> 0:04:17.560 go three and out and then Indianapolis just starts running 0:04:17.600 --> 0:04:20.960 the ball. They're having more success and third down situations 0:04:21.000 --> 0:04:24.120 they can't get off the field on fourth down. And 0:04:24.120 --> 0:04:26.480 and obviously they work their way back into this. But 0:04:27.240 --> 0:04:29.880 the big thing and the message that Aaron Rodgers sent 0:04:30.040 --> 0:04:31.919 after the game and that he has he has a 0:04:31.920 --> 0:04:33.920 lot of confidence in this team. He feels like they 0:04:33.920 --> 0:04:35.800 have what they need to get where they want to go. 0:04:36.440 --> 0:04:39.000 And I think that that might sound like a quarterback 0:04:39.040 --> 0:04:41.000 trying to prop his team up, but it really was. 0:04:41.040 --> 0:04:43.000 I mean, the energy was where they wanted it to be. 0:04:43.120 --> 0:04:45.520 That was a much more energetic team than the one 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:49.159 that beat the Jacksonville Jaguars a week earlier. They had 0:04:49.520 --> 0:04:51.640 done a lot of the but the problem is now 0:04:51.680 --> 0:04:53.560 you're playing a six and three team. Now you're playing 0:04:53.560 --> 0:04:56.159 a team that really has some blood on its teeth 0:04:56.200 --> 0:04:58.200 here and wants to, you know, carve out a division 0:04:58.240 --> 0:05:01.320 championship in a competitive com prince. And you've got to 0:05:01.360 --> 0:05:03.560 be able to play four quarters and you can't turn 0:05:03.600 --> 0:05:06.400 over the ball four times. Yeah. Absolutely, And and that's 0:05:06.400 --> 0:05:09.480 what Matt Lafleur emphasized on Monday was the Packers need 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:11.680 to when you play these good teams, you have to 0:05:11.720 --> 0:05:14.120 be able to play a four quarter football game. They 0:05:14.120 --> 0:05:16.520 played a one quarter football game in Tampa Bay and 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:19.479 kind of got smacked after that. They played a really, 0:05:19.520 --> 0:05:23.599 really good two quarters in Indianapolis, but that's not enough. 0:05:23.640 --> 0:05:26.240 And even with Aaron Rodgers almost pulling out, you know 0:05:26.320 --> 0:05:28.120 the miracle at the end, I'll be honest with you. 0:05:28.760 --> 0:05:31.840 After that second pass to Davante Adams got the Packers 0:05:31.839 --> 0:05:33.880 into the red zone to the fifteen yard line with 0:05:33.920 --> 0:05:36.440 about forty seconds on the clock. I thought Rodgers was 0:05:36.440 --> 0:05:38.080 gonna pull the thing out. I thought he was gonna 0:05:38.080 --> 0:05:40.320 get the ball in the end zone with maybe ten 0:05:40.400 --> 0:05:42.719 or fifteen seconds left, and and the Packers were going 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:47.920 to walk out with a victory. No, no overtime necessary. Unfortunately, um, 0:05:47.960 --> 0:05:49.599 they did have to settle for the field goal. The 0:05:49.600 --> 0:05:52.960 game went to overtime. As everybody knows, Marquis Valdes Scantling 0:05:52.960 --> 0:05:56.280 fumbled the ball on the second playoff overtime, erasing what 0:05:56.360 --> 0:06:00.520 was a tremendous play from with Aaron Rodgers launching the 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:03.080 pass out of his end zone on third and ten 0:06:03.760 --> 0:06:06.680 and Valdes Scantling coming down with it at midfield amidst 0:06:06.760 --> 0:06:09.839 three defenders, gave the Packers the chance to get the 0:06:09.839 --> 0:06:14.640 game to overtime. Um, just uh, you know, it's one 0:06:14.680 --> 0:06:16.680 of those things you you walk away, you walk away 0:06:16.760 --> 0:06:18.880 just just scratching your head. And as I think you've 0:06:18.920 --> 0:06:22.200 pointed out in our Insider Inbox column, the human element 0:06:22.200 --> 0:06:24.560 of this game you can't get away from. Great things 0:06:24.560 --> 0:06:27.880 can happen and crappy things can happen. And that's just 0:06:27.920 --> 0:06:29.680 the way this game goes. Some Yeah, and it does, 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:33.240 and it it's it's Corey Lindsley and Aaron Rodgers who 0:06:33.240 --> 0:06:36.120 have been together for seven years having a bumbled, you know, 0:06:36.240 --> 0:06:39.440 fumbled exchange. H Lindsley then leaves with a back injury. 0:06:39.440 --> 0:06:41.320 You don't know how much that was affecting him early 0:06:41.360 --> 0:06:45.080 on in that game. Darius Shepard, who's in for Tyler 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:48.600 Irvine who had the rib injury against the Jaguars, he 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:51.279 has a fumble on a kickoff return, and certainly Marquez 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:53.880 Valdes scantling, which has been a big topic of conversation 0:06:53.960 --> 0:06:57.120 this week. He had so many plays in that game, Mike, 0:06:57.200 --> 0:06:59.359 that is the reason why the Packers were able to 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:01.640 get into over time, whether it was blocking, whether it 0:07:01.720 --> 0:07:04.160 was drawn. The d p I for fifty one yards 0:07:04.200 --> 0:07:07.320 against Rocky Scene and then you know the forty seven 0:07:07.360 --> 0:07:09.840 yard catchy just touched on, and then there's the fumble. 0:07:10.040 --> 0:07:12.680 It's the miss blocking you know there with you know, 0:07:12.800 --> 0:07:15.240 Robert Tonyan and Alan Lazard in front of them. They've 0:07:15.280 --> 0:07:18.240 been so good all year long on those screens, being 0:07:18.280 --> 0:07:21.400 able to give the receiver an opportunity to get up field. 0:07:21.600 --> 0:07:23.880 This is one play where black Man makes a really 0:07:23.920 --> 0:07:26.640 solid kind of knife through and puts the pressure on 0:07:26.720 --> 0:07:29.200 Valde scantling there and the ball comes out. It's just 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:31.560 those type of moments that when you're in a close 0:07:31.640 --> 0:07:35.720 game ultimately decided, but it isn't one specific player. That's 0:07:35.720 --> 0:07:37.840 the one message that Matt Lafleur sent and it's the 0:07:37.840 --> 0:07:40.600 one message, frankly I've been sending with some of our content, 0:07:40.720 --> 0:07:44.560 is that, you know, we always look at how things end, 0:07:45.120 --> 0:07:47.760 but if you flip things, if the fumbled exchanges at 0:07:47.800 --> 0:07:50.320 the end, the narrative changes. If the kickoff return is 0:07:50.360 --> 0:07:53.119 at the end, the narrative changes. If the forty seven 0:07:53.200 --> 0:07:56.560 yard pass on third and one that ultimately forces over 0:07:56.600 --> 0:07:58.400 time is at the end of the game and you 0:07:58.440 --> 0:08:02.120 win it, it changes the narrative. But it's just the drama. 0:08:02.160 --> 0:08:05.000 It's what makes this game so great. It's why you know, 0:08:05.160 --> 0:08:07.520 people tune in because that game Mike on Sunday is 0:08:07.560 --> 0:08:10.080 a game you and I have never seen before in 0:08:10.360 --> 0:08:12.160 everything that's ever been played, the amount of games that 0:08:12.160 --> 0:08:14.560 we've covered, I've never covered a game like that before 0:08:14.880 --> 0:08:18.160 against the Colts. And unfortunately there's a winner and a loser, 0:08:18.560 --> 0:08:21.000 and there's heroes and their scapegoats, and it's just the 0:08:21.000 --> 0:08:23.880 way people process things. It's the way they compartmentalize it, 0:08:24.400 --> 0:08:27.680 and it's the reason in ultimately the way that stories 0:08:27.720 --> 0:08:29.720 and what not has written up for the following week. Yeah, 0:08:29.800 --> 0:08:32.840 we'll quickly hear West before I forget serious. X M 0:08:32.920 --> 0:08:36.880 NFL Radio Channel is the only radio outlet dedicated to 0:08:36.880 --> 0:08:40.160 the National Football League seven days a week, three and 0:08:40.200 --> 0:08:42.800 sixty five days a year. And Packers fans be sure 0:08:42.840 --> 0:08:45.280 to gear up for game day. Open a Packers checking 0:08:45.280 --> 0:08:48.520 account from Associated Bank and score a fifty dollar Packer 0:08:48.600 --> 0:08:52.479 Pro Shop gift card. Learn more Associated bank dot com 0:08:52.559 --> 0:08:56.760 backslash Packers all right from the postgame comments, West, I 0:08:56.880 --> 0:09:00.439 and I wrote my my postgame editorial about this hearing 0:09:00.520 --> 0:09:05.280 from Aaron Rodgers and Matt Lafleur. Now, as you said, 0:09:06.320 --> 0:09:09.120 they weren't just trying to to pump their team up. 0:09:09.160 --> 0:09:11.880 I really believe that Aaron Rodgers and Matt Lafleur were 0:09:11.920 --> 0:09:16.079 being honest when they said how much better they felt 0:09:16.120 --> 0:09:19.240 about the team. Everything through the week, the preparation, the 0:09:19.360 --> 0:09:22.280 energy and practice, it carries over to the game, and 0:09:22.360 --> 0:09:25.720 certainly the way the first half went. Now things went sideways. 0:09:25.760 --> 0:09:28.400 There's no two ways about that. And the Packers have 0:09:28.480 --> 0:09:30.800 to figure out a way in these big games against 0:09:30.800 --> 0:09:34.120 good teams, whether it's the forty and twenty nineteen, the 0:09:34.160 --> 0:09:38.080 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Indianapolis Colts in when things start 0:09:38.120 --> 0:09:40.240 to go sideways, you've got to figure out how to 0:09:40.679 --> 0:09:43.520 how to get things back on track a little more 0:09:43.600 --> 0:09:46.199 quickly than they have. They never did against Tampa Bay. 0:09:46.240 --> 0:09:48.200 They obviously got something right at the end of the 0:09:48.240 --> 0:09:50.720 fourth quarter in India, but you have to be you 0:09:50.760 --> 0:09:52.800 have to be able to turn it sooner. But in 0:09:52.840 --> 0:09:57.280 the bigger picture, they feel better about this team then 0:09:57.320 --> 0:10:00.400 they did a week ago coming off of the Jacksonville victory. 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:04.120 And we know winning is the bottom line. What you are, 0:10:04.200 --> 0:10:06.600 what your record says you are, that's what it is. 0:10:06.679 --> 0:10:08.960 But the Packers have six more games here in the 0:10:09.000 --> 0:10:11.880 regular season. They're obviously fighting for an NFC North title, 0:10:12.280 --> 0:10:15.120 fighting for the best playoff spot they can get in 0:10:15.160 --> 0:10:19.640 the NFC, and the outcome was not what they wanted. 0:10:19.800 --> 0:10:22.520 But I firmly believe, and I wrote about this, the 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.280 Packers are were a better team coming out of Lucas 0:10:25.280 --> 0:10:28.240 Oil Stadium than they were when they went home from 0:10:28.280 --> 0:10:31.160 lambeau Field after the victory over the Jaguars. They're a 0:10:31.160 --> 0:10:33.480 better team a week later. I really believe that, because 0:10:33.480 --> 0:10:36.160 here's the thing about wins and losses. Right, if you win, 0:10:36.720 --> 0:10:39.520 everybody talks about how great things went, even if some 0:10:39.640 --> 0:10:43.880 things go wrong. Ultimately, the biggest story is where they succeeded. 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:46.760 Marcus Valdis Scantling having a career high hundred forty nine 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:49.080 yards in that game, the first receiver in Packers history 0:10:49.120 --> 0:10:52.520 since I think it was was a boy Carol Dale, 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:55.400 to have over a hundred and thirty yards or whatever 0:10:55.400 --> 0:10:57.679 it was on less than for for or less fewer catches. 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:01.120 That that just becomes a narrative. A game like this, 0:11:01.160 --> 0:11:03.520 where it's a highly competitive affair against a team that 0:11:03.679 --> 0:11:05.600 is very well going to end up finding itself in 0:11:05.600 --> 0:11:09.480 the playoffs and maybe even entitled contention that but you lost, 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:12.200 So there's a negativity that's involved with that too, and 0:11:12.280 --> 0:11:15.960 that's fine, that's football. But where Matt Lafleur, if you 0:11:15.960 --> 0:11:18.360 listen to what he says and what Aaron Rodgers says. 0:11:18.400 --> 0:11:21.640 There's another game seven days from now against the Chicago 0:11:21.679 --> 0:11:23.760 Bears team that has lost four of its last five. 0:11:24.160 --> 0:11:27.439 Following that, you're also at home against a Philadelphia Eagles 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:29.880 team that, while leading the NFC East right now, has 0:11:29.920 --> 0:11:33.080 three wins on the season. There's the Detroit Lions coming 0:11:33.080 --> 0:11:36.360 down the line. They're having their struggles. You know, Carolina 0:11:36.400 --> 0:11:38.720 Panthers just shut out the Lions, but they've been in 0:11:38.760 --> 0:11:40.520 a bad spot for a lot of this season without 0:11:40.559 --> 0:11:43.559 Christian McCaffrey. I think you to look at Tennessee. That's 0:11:43.559 --> 0:11:45.480 gonna be a dog fight you close the season against 0:11:45.480 --> 0:11:49.040 the Bears. This thing still lines up well for Green Bay. 0:11:49.160 --> 0:11:51.480 And the reason I wrote an Insider Inbox this week 0:11:51.800 --> 0:11:54.320 that Matt Lafleur stays even keeled. The reason why Aaron 0:11:54.400 --> 0:11:56.319 Rodgers stays even killed. The reason why they point to 0:11:56.360 --> 0:11:59.640 the locker room is because that's how you avoid losing 0:11:59.640 --> 0:12:02.559 back to back games. That's how you avoid being able 0:12:02.600 --> 0:12:06.559 to let that negativity sort of permeate through your mindset 0:12:06.840 --> 0:12:08.920 and end up affecting you in the next game. The 0:12:08.920 --> 0:12:11.679 Packers have to play well for the same reason why 0:12:11.720 --> 0:12:13.840 they were able to play well against the San Francisco 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:16.240 forty Nights. They have to be able to find that 0:12:16.320 --> 0:12:18.120 response and this is going to be a big week 0:12:18.160 --> 0:12:20.880 for that. Yeah. And and that's the thing. As much 0:12:20.880 --> 0:12:23.920 as this is a bottom line business, when you're the 0:12:23.960 --> 0:12:27.640 head coach, when you're the quarterback the leadership on this team, 0:12:27.679 --> 0:12:29.719 as you move forward with so many games left to 0:12:29.760 --> 0:12:32.240 go and so much left to be decided, you can't 0:12:32.240 --> 0:12:35.480 get hung up on letting a game get away. And yes, 0:12:35.520 --> 0:12:37.440 the Packers let a game get away that they should 0:12:37.480 --> 0:12:39.800 have had. They should have been leaving Indianapolis with a 0:12:39.840 --> 0:12:41.800 big win and something to really hang their hat on. 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:44.600 It didn't happen. But if you get hung up on 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:47.559 the final result, you lose sight of the fact that 0:12:47.920 --> 0:12:50.600 the Packers were taking it to the number one defense 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:54.080 in the NFL and and having their way with them 0:12:54.120 --> 0:12:56.640 throughout the first half. Now, at the end of the day, 0:12:56.640 --> 0:12:59.640 the complimentary football did not work out in the second 0:12:59.640 --> 0:13:01.760 half in order to close out the victory, but there 0:13:01.760 --> 0:13:03.760 were a lot of things the Packers did well in 0:13:03.800 --> 0:13:07.000 this game. The defense getting two turnovers in the first half. 0:13:07.040 --> 0:13:10.280 We haven't seen that in a while. The offense capitalizing 0:13:10.640 --> 0:13:14.800 on those we're seeing now. Granted, Corey Lindsley is now 0:13:14.800 --> 0:13:16.880 out with an injury. We will see what happens there. 0:13:16.880 --> 0:13:19.560 But Alan Lazard got back into the mix. So the 0:13:19.559 --> 0:13:22.200 Packers are hoping here for the stretch run, you're going 0:13:22.240 --> 0:13:25.520 to have Davante Adams, Alan Lazard, Marquis Valda Scanling as 0:13:25.840 --> 0:13:28.600 your top three wide receivers moving forward. You want to 0:13:28.600 --> 0:13:33.000 see obviously Aaron Jones, Jamal Williams, maybe get Tyler Irvin 0:13:33.040 --> 0:13:36.760 back here hopefully at some point down the stretch. There's 0:13:36.800 --> 0:13:38.960 a long there's a long way left to go here. 0:13:38.960 --> 0:13:43.240 And the bottom line is this game coming up on Sunday, 0:13:43.240 --> 0:13:46.559 Sunday Night Football at lambeau Field Packers against the Bears, 0:13:46.840 --> 0:13:48.760 and we'll talk about this in our next show later 0:13:48.800 --> 0:13:52.480 this week as well. The swing here in this game 0:13:52.760 --> 0:13:58.240 is monumental because the Packers will either beat the Bears 0:13:58.360 --> 0:14:01.120 and go up by three gays in the NFC North 0:14:01.160 --> 0:14:04.920 with five to play, which puts you in the catbird seat, 0:14:04.960 --> 0:14:08.559 no question about it, or the Bears will win and 0:14:08.640 --> 0:14:12.440 cut the deficit to one game. With five games to play, 0:14:12.480 --> 0:14:15.560 and the Bears knowing that they get the Packers at 0:14:15.640 --> 0:14:20.480 Soldier Field in week seventeen. You have to move on 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:23.360 from this Indianapolis Colts game because this game against the 0:14:23.400 --> 0:14:25.920 Chicago Bears on Sunday night, and I would argue it 0:14:25.920 --> 0:14:28.720 would still be almost just as big even if the 0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:32.640 Packers had eaten Indianapolis because of the division opponent. It's 0:14:32.640 --> 0:14:35.720 the one you are fighting fighting with. And the Bears 0:14:36.160 --> 0:14:38.240 for all of their struggles going from five and one 0:14:38.280 --> 0:14:40.640 to now five and five with a four game losing streak, 0:14:40.920 --> 0:14:43.120 they're coming off there by this is their chance to 0:14:43.200 --> 0:14:46.240 reset and come out rested and ready to go against 0:14:46.280 --> 0:14:47.920 the team that they're chasing. And do you know what 0:14:47.960 --> 0:14:50.240 the percentage chances are the Packers will even see the 0:14:50.240 --> 0:14:52.840 Colts again this season, that both of these teams would 0:14:52.840 --> 0:14:56.120 find themselves both in the Super Bowl, it's pretty minute. 0:14:56.560 --> 0:14:58.960 You can't worry about what went wrong against the Colts. 0:14:58.960 --> 0:15:01.760 Now you have to learn about a run defense second half? 0:15:01.840 --> 0:15:03.960 What was the issue there? Why were they able to 0:15:03.960 --> 0:15:06.120 move the ball the way they did? Why defensively were 0:15:06.120 --> 0:15:08.280 we not able to get home? Why offensively did we 0:15:08.360 --> 0:15:09.880 end up going three and out. You have to do 0:15:09.920 --> 0:15:11.880 all that kind of self figure out the issues on 0:15:11.920 --> 0:15:14.880 special teams too, because especial Packers are losing the field 0:15:14.880 --> 0:15:18.040 position battle even without the turnover, Packers are losing the 0:15:18.080 --> 0:15:20.240 field position battle these last couple of weeks and they've 0:15:20.240 --> 0:15:21.760 got to get that straightened out. And that's something that 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:23.480 during the first month of the season they were doing 0:15:23.520 --> 0:15:25.600 really well. Exactly. You have to get back to that. 0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:28.080 But the reality is is that the teams that they're 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:30.400 facing here are the ones that ultimately impact how far 0:15:30.440 --> 0:15:32.800 they're going to be able to go, how this this 0:15:32.960 --> 0:15:35.320 whole format is going to play out with the postseason. 0:15:35.840 --> 0:15:37.480 And the thing for Green Bay is that if you 0:15:37.600 --> 0:15:41.080 beat thanks to Mike McCarthy and in the you know, 0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:44.320 the Dallas Cowboys against Minnesota, if you take care of 0:15:44.360 --> 0:15:47.000 business now against Chicago, hand them their fifth loss in 0:15:47.080 --> 0:15:51.040 six games, you are suddenly in a commanding lead at 0:15:51.080 --> 0:15:53.920 eight wins heading into the month of December. In this division, 0:15:54.440 --> 0:15:56.840 you get to ten wins, then you start looking at 0:15:56.840 --> 0:15:59.640 the seating. That's the only thing you can do right 0:15:59.640 --> 0:16:02.480 now and for you know, for everything else that's gone wrong, 0:16:02.520 --> 0:16:04.640 for as crazy as this season has been and and 0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:06.680 everybody in the NFC, and we're gonna talk about it 0:16:06.680 --> 0:16:09.160 here in a minute, but all these different scenarios that 0:16:09.200 --> 0:16:11.160 have played out in teams that has been like, Okay, 0:16:11.200 --> 0:16:13.560 they're grabbing the reins on this thing. The Green Bay 0:16:13.560 --> 0:16:15.480 Packers have a tough opponent coming up at the end 0:16:15.480 --> 0:16:17.840 of the season against Tennessee and they get them at 0:16:17.880 --> 0:16:21.040 home after a game at home against Carolina. So like 0:16:21.600 --> 0:16:23.680 in terms of the second half of the season, it's 0:16:23.720 --> 0:16:26.040 lined up really well for them. We talked about this 0:16:26.080 --> 0:16:28.680 in May when or June when the schedule came out. 0:16:28.720 --> 0:16:31.520 This final stretch is going to be important. And if 0:16:31.560 --> 0:16:33.600 you're able to execute, if you win at home, if 0:16:33.600 --> 0:16:35.080 you take care of what you need to take care of, 0:16:35.520 --> 0:16:38.880 you're not really too concerned about the intraconference games against 0:16:39.120 --> 0:16:42.120 you know, the Colts and in even Houston to some extent, 0:16:42.120 --> 0:16:44.040 that are played on the road. No, it's about the 0:16:44.120 --> 0:16:47.280 NFC matchups, about winning at home, and if you do that, 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:50.200 you're still in the thick of this thing in this race. Yeah, absolutely, 0:16:50.200 --> 0:16:52.680 Well elsewhere around the NFC. We'll touch on a few 0:16:52.680 --> 0:16:56.120 games briefly here before we sign off. The New Orleans Saints. 0:16:56.160 --> 0:16:59.080 They kept their winning streak alive despite the absence of 0:16:59.120 --> 0:17:01.880 Drew Brees. Taste Hill steps in as the starting quarterback. 0:17:02.480 --> 0:17:04.680 He holds down the fort and that New Orleans Saints 0:17:04.800 --> 0:17:09.000 defense west is playing as well as any defense in 0:17:09.080 --> 0:17:12.280 all of football right now. Quite frankly, um, the Saints 0:17:12.280 --> 0:17:14.600 have put themselves in position now at eight and two. 0:17:15.560 --> 0:17:18.240 They know they know they've got a backup quarterback that 0:17:18.320 --> 0:17:20.800 can that can win football games, and they will wait 0:17:20.840 --> 0:17:23.480 to see when they can get Drew Brees back and 0:17:23.800 --> 0:17:26.000 keep that defense playing at a high level. I wanted 0:17:26.040 --> 0:17:28.399 to tweet this, I never did because it just in 0:17:28.520 --> 0:17:32.040 sites rage from Packers fans, But because you have to 0:17:32.080 --> 0:17:33.480 take the motion out of it. You also have to 0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:36.119 understand that if Taysom Hill was still under control of 0:17:36.119 --> 0:17:37.760 the Packers, he wouldn't even be a Packer anymore. He 0:17:37.800 --> 0:17:39.560 would have been traded by now if you look at 0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:42.520 the number, the camp number he's pulling these days. But 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:45.280 there's no better story in football than Taysom Hill. Everybody 0:17:45.320 --> 0:17:47.240 has made this about, oh, is he going to be 0:17:47.280 --> 0:17:49.000 a great quarterback or is he just going to be 0:17:49.040 --> 0:17:51.560 a bust? Is is Sean Payton a genius or Is 0:17:51.560 --> 0:17:54.600 he just a maniacal you know, the guy that just 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.359 wants to just you know, throw chaos into the system 0:17:57.359 --> 0:17:59.080 with Hill. But he's really not that good a player. No. 0:18:00.040 --> 0:18:04.160 Taysom Hill finished every season at b y U injured 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:08.480 every year from beginning to end. His career was marred 0:18:08.480 --> 0:18:10.200 by injuries. And it also so happened that he went 0:18:10.200 --> 0:18:11.840 on a mission. He ends up going into the NFL 0:18:11.880 --> 0:18:14.679 at twenty seven years old. But the the health issues 0:18:14.760 --> 0:18:17.359 is why the guy wasn't drafted. Everybody knew the talent 0:18:17.480 --> 0:18:20.040 was there, nobody wanted to make the investment in him 0:18:20.119 --> 0:18:24.120 because of his health and running quarterback, can he actually throw? No, 0:18:24.119 --> 0:18:26.920 none of that. This guy has resurrected his career and 0:18:26.960 --> 0:18:30.440 he's managed to stay healthy in the NFL. Taysom Hill 0:18:30.560 --> 0:18:33.000 when he came into Green Bay. If he ends up 0:18:33.000 --> 0:18:34.359 being in a Hall of Fame player, I will end 0:18:34.400 --> 0:18:36.240 up telling the story. I was the first person to 0:18:36.280 --> 0:18:38.720 interview him. We always do those undrafted stories. I sat 0:18:38.760 --> 0:18:41.439 down with him in the Packers cafeteria. Man, does that 0:18:41.480 --> 0:18:44.760 seem like fifty years ago right now? But I sat 0:18:44.760 --> 0:18:46.880 down with him and I talked about his story and 0:18:46.880 --> 0:18:49.760 and just how chaotic it had been and basically him 0:18:49.760 --> 0:18:51.639 and his wife and the faith that they had that 0:18:52.040 --> 0:18:54.440 eventually things would just go the right way for him. 0:18:54.680 --> 0:18:56.399 People want to make this out to be a bigger 0:18:56.440 --> 0:18:58.639 thing because it makes for a really good conversation on 0:18:58.960 --> 0:19:02.000 you know, after and talk show. But the reality is 0:19:02.040 --> 0:19:04.560 this is just a really good story and he proved 0:19:04.600 --> 0:19:07.720 against the Atlanta Falcons, who are struggling this season, that 0:19:07.840 --> 0:19:09.720 he can be a guy that can lead an NFL 0:19:09.760 --> 0:19:12.679 football team. Me personally, if you can take the emotion 0:19:12.720 --> 0:19:15.879 out of it, I just think it's a fantastic tale. Yeah. 0:19:16.000 --> 0:19:17.960 A couple other things I want to touch on. An 0:19:18.000 --> 0:19:21.080 interesting Monday Night result with the Los Angeles Rams flying 0:19:21.240 --> 0:19:24.760 cross country to play at Tampa Bay on Monday Night 0:19:24.800 --> 0:19:28.159 football and they knock off Tom Brady and the Buccaneers. 0:19:28.200 --> 0:19:30.600