WEBVTT - #571 Packers Unscripted: Pondering the Panthers 0:00:00.720 --> 0:00:14.520 Hi, everyone, Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:17.880 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined as always 0:00:17.880 --> 0:00:20.400 by my trusted colleague West hod Kuwitz. Were coming to 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:26.079 you from socially distant locations at lambeau Field, West Packers 0:00:26.120 --> 0:00:31.400 Panthers lambeau Field Saturday Night football in prime time. A 0:00:31.440 --> 0:00:35.040 couple of thoughts about this Carolina Panthers team started the 0:00:35.080 --> 0:00:38.760 season three and two, but since then seven losses in 0:00:38.800 --> 0:00:41.479 their last eight games. But it comes with a bit 0:00:41.479 --> 0:00:44.680 of a caveat because not only has Christian McCaffrey missed 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:49.320 the majority of the Panthers games this season, but during 0:00:49.320 --> 0:00:53.720 this struggling time for them, they lost by three points 0:00:53.760 --> 0:00:56.400 to the New Orleans Saints, two points to the Kansas 0:00:56.440 --> 0:00:59.600 City Chiefs, and by one point to the Minnesota Vikings. 0:01:00.160 --> 0:01:02.440 This isn't a team of four and nine team that's 0:01:02.480 --> 0:01:05.039 got a whole bunch of blowouts on its ledger. These guys. 0:01:05.400 --> 0:01:08.200 These guys play four quarters. They've been in pretty much 0:01:08.240 --> 0:01:10.479 every game they've played this year, and I think that's 0:01:10.480 --> 0:01:14.160 what the Packers can expect even without Christian McCaffrey. On 0:01:14.200 --> 0:01:16.560 Saturday Night. It kind of reminds you of the first 0:01:16.640 --> 0:01:19.120 year that Mike McCarthy was in Green Bay sort of 0:01:19.160 --> 0:01:20.399 you know, I mean, I know they're not getting on 0:01:20.440 --> 0:01:22.040 that run at the end of the season here, but 0:01:22.680 --> 0:01:25.120 a lot of one score games, a lot of close losses. 0:01:25.160 --> 0:01:27.160 I mean, you look, they lost by five to Denver, 0:01:27.360 --> 0:01:30.360 They lost by one at Minnesota, we all know that story. 0:01:30.840 --> 0:01:32.920 They did get blown out by Tampa Bay. But a 0:01:33.000 --> 0:01:36.400 two point loss at Kansas City, Uh, an eight point 0:01:36.440 --> 0:01:39.679 loss to Atlanta, in a three point loss at New Orleans. 0:01:39.720 --> 0:01:41.399 This has been a really you know, tear you know, 0:01:41.480 --> 0:01:43.959 kind of tough schedule that the Panthers have had to 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:45.480 weather this year. And they've had to do it with 0:01:45.560 --> 0:01:49.040 the exception of three games without Christian McCaffrey. Uh, you know, 0:01:49.080 --> 0:01:51.520 one of the top playmakers in the National Football League. 0:01:51.560 --> 0:01:55.960 So for Matt Rule, it's interesting him coming into this situation. 0:01:56.800 --> 0:02:00.120 He's been familiar with rebuilds before, and with rebuilds you 0:02:00.120 --> 0:02:03.160 occasionally take your lumps early on. Uh. They've had some 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:06.240 good adjustments. We'll talk about some of those here momentarily. 0:02:06.280 --> 0:02:08.840 But UH, the fact that they still sit four and nine, 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:11.280 it is what it is, and you have to imagine 0:02:11.280 --> 0:02:12.960 this is a team that's still looking to finish this 0:02:13.080 --> 0:02:15.839 year on an upswing and show that year one under 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:18.480 Rule was indeed a success. Well, you look at this 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:20.959 offense and what it does have going for it even 0:02:21.000 --> 0:02:25.840 without Christian McCaffrey. Teddy Bridgewater obviously a productive player. He's 0:02:25.880 --> 0:02:28.600 done it in a few different locations now and uh, 0:02:28.639 --> 0:02:31.720 and he's putting together a pretty solid season. Mike Davis 0:02:31.760 --> 0:02:34.360 at running back is certainly no slouch, and they're getting 0:02:34.400 --> 0:02:37.880 dj more back um in their receiving corps and they 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:41.200 have kind of that you know, trickster gadget play guy 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:44.440 in Curtis Samuel that they do some different things on offense. 0:02:44.720 --> 0:02:47.160 This is a team that, certainly when you look at 0:02:47.160 --> 0:02:49.840 guys like Samuel and Moore, has a lot of speed 0:02:50.000 --> 0:02:52.200 on the perimeter on the outside, and the Packers are 0:02:52.200 --> 0:02:55.160 gonna have to be ready for that speed on Saturday Night. Yeah, 0:02:55.200 --> 0:02:57.320 and the big thing was getting more back to i 0:02:57.320 --> 0:03:00.200 mean eighteen point five yards to catch this season. We 0:03:00.440 --> 0:03:02.560 and he's proven product. It's not that this this guy 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:04.000 just came out of nowhere. I mean he's had a 0:03:04.000 --> 0:03:06.160 lot of success in Carolina for a number of years now, 0:03:06.200 --> 0:03:08.680 so having him back is huge. The big thing with 0:03:08.800 --> 0:03:11.800 Bridgewater that I find so interesting and compelling is he 0:03:11.840 --> 0:03:15.239 only has fourteen touchdown passes this year, but he's completing 0:03:15.320 --> 0:03:20.000 his passes at a seventy clip h eight interceptions, you know, 0:03:20.160 --> 0:03:23.040 pretty modest stats for the most part, but he also 0:03:23.080 --> 0:03:25.120 adds that dimension where he can run with his feet 0:03:25.120 --> 0:03:27.480 and extend plays as well. So this is gonna be 0:03:27.520 --> 0:03:29.680 a great matchup, I think, a great test for this 0:03:29.720 --> 0:03:33.720 Packers defense. Mike Davis, the backup, the veteran that has 0:03:33.720 --> 0:03:35.640 been there for a number of you know, number of 0:03:35.640 --> 0:03:38.280 different teams, whether it with San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, he 0:03:38.320 --> 0:03:40.800 had to cup a coffee with. He's settled in really 0:03:40.800 --> 0:03:43.520 well into this backfield and it has allowed rule in 0:03:43.520 --> 0:03:45.840 this offense to stain a lot of the same concepts 0:03:45.840 --> 0:03:48.880 that they were wanting to do with Christian McCaffrey. So 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:52.800 again with with Bridgewater, in these various weapons that they have, 0:03:52.880 --> 0:03:54.640 it's it's an opponent you can't take for granted, and 0:03:54.680 --> 0:03:56.680 they are battle tests to throw out the courses thirteen 0:03:56.680 --> 0:03:59.520 game season. Yeah, well, right, before we get to some 0:03:59.600 --> 0:04:01.360 of the key used to victory here for Green Bay, 0:04:01.360 --> 0:04:03.880 I will take care of our sponsor business. So serious 0:04:04.080 --> 0:04:07.720 x M NFL radio channel is the only radio outlet 0:04:08.080 --> 0:04:10.680 dedicated to the National Football League seven days a week, 0:04:11.120 --> 0:04:13.960 three hundred sixty five days a year, and Packers fans 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:16.839 score up to five dollars for your devotion to the 0:04:16.839 --> 0:04:20.200 pack when you open a Packers checking account from Associated Bank. 0:04:20.320 --> 0:04:23.880 Learn more at Associated bank dot com back slash Packers. 0:04:24.320 --> 0:04:27.320 All right, Well, keys to victory here for green Bay West. 0:04:27.360 --> 0:04:29.919 When I look at things on the offensive side of 0:04:29.920 --> 0:04:32.640 the ball for Green Bay, there are three things that 0:04:32.680 --> 0:04:35.880 come to mind for me. One is that this Panthers 0:04:35.960 --> 0:04:41.680 defense has eighteen forced fumbles and thirteen fumble recoveries on 0:04:41.760 --> 0:04:45.279 the season, so the Packers do a good job protecting 0:04:45.279 --> 0:04:47.560 the football. It is always an emphasis, but when you 0:04:47.600 --> 0:04:51.440 see numbers like that heading into a game, you definitely 0:04:51.640 --> 0:04:55.520 it definitely gets your attention because those are some significant 0:04:55.520 --> 0:04:59.440 fumble statistics for this Panthers defense. And the other the 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:02.479 other two things for me are what the Packers have 0:05:02.520 --> 0:05:04.560 done on third down and what the Packers have done 0:05:04.560 --> 0:05:07.000 in the red zone. Green Bay right now second in 0:05:07.000 --> 0:05:09.680 the league and third down conversions just to shade under 0:05:09.680 --> 0:05:13.200 fifty and number one in the league in red zone, 0:05:13.320 --> 0:05:17.320 or I guess the gold zone offense at seventy seven percent. 0:05:17.800 --> 0:05:21.640 And just to put this in perspective here, last year, 0:05:22.040 --> 0:05:24.839 the Packers were just thirty six percent on third down 0:05:24.839 --> 0:05:27.560 and they ranked twenty three in the league. They've gone 0:05:27.560 --> 0:05:31.400 from thirty six percent to over and all the way 0:05:31.480 --> 0:05:33.120 up to number two in the league. That is a 0:05:33.200 --> 0:05:36.120 huge jump. And the Packers were still actually pretty good 0:05:36.120 --> 0:05:38.760 in the red zone last year at sixty percent, ranked 0:05:38.800 --> 0:05:41.640 eighth in the league, but they've jumped from sixty percent 0:05:41.680 --> 0:05:44.000 to seventy percent and all the way up to number 0:05:44.040 --> 0:05:46.919 one in the league. If the Packers continue to convert 0:05:47.000 --> 0:05:50.240 on third downs and convert in the red zone slash 0:05:50.320 --> 0:05:54.039 gold zone at those paces at at at those kind 0:05:54.040 --> 0:05:57.080 of rates, that's how you continue to rack up victories 0:05:57.080 --> 0:06:00.320 and keep yourself in this position that Green Bay finds itself. Well, 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:03.280 they're just so vastly improved in efficiency. I think you 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:05.720 looked at last year, Mike, they had this talent in 0:06:06.000 --> 0:06:07.719 the ability, you know, with a lot of these guys 0:06:07.760 --> 0:06:10.120 to be productive and in to score touchdowns in that 0:06:10.200 --> 0:06:12.600 but uh, this year, the way that they're finishing drives, 0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:15.400 the way they're finishing third downs has been probably the 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:18.200 biggest jump that they've made in year two underneath Matt Lafleur. 0:06:19.000 --> 0:06:20.400 It was kind of comical a little bit. We were 0:06:20.440 --> 0:06:24.400 talking with Mason Crosby on Wednesday, and obviously coming off 0:06:24.400 --> 0:06:27.400 of that fantastic performance that he had in Detroit, and 0:06:27.440 --> 0:06:29.160 he talks, you know, about the relationship he has with 0:06:29.279 --> 0:06:30.800 Rogers and how long they've been around each other, and 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:33.600 he mentions, you know, his ability to watch excellence as 0:06:33.600 --> 0:06:35.880 he calls it from the sidelines. There's been a lot 0:06:35.880 --> 0:06:37.960 of times this season where he's been revved up, getting 0:06:38.000 --> 0:06:40.080 ready to go out there to be mentally prepared to 0:06:40.160 --> 0:06:42.640 kick a thirty or forty fifty yard field goal. The 0:06:42.720 --> 0:06:45.839 offense just keeps driving Aaron Rodgers, keeps pushing them downfield, 0:06:46.040 --> 0:06:47.560 and next thing you know, he's kicking a thirty three 0:06:47.640 --> 0:06:50.280 yard extra points. So, uh, that's just the way of it. 0:06:50.560 --> 0:06:53.719 Crosby leads the league and in extra points attempted and 0:06:53.800 --> 0:06:55.960 made this year. I mean that that's how this offense 0:06:56.000 --> 0:06:58.520 has played out. Now you put that in contrast with 0:06:58.600 --> 0:07:02.200 what the Carolina There's do. This is a completely renovated 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:05.839 scheme here. Uh, in the first year underneath Matt Rule. Obviously, 0:07:06.200 --> 0:07:08.919 Luke Kickley retired, they still have a lot of great 0:07:08.960 --> 0:07:11.880 weapons in that defense. I mean, and being able to 0:07:11.920 --> 0:07:13.800 get a guy like Brian Burns last year I thought 0:07:13.800 --> 0:07:16.160 was such a big thing for them. Uh, one of 0:07:16.160 --> 0:07:18.160 the big pass rushers that I was really high on. 0:07:18.560 --> 0:07:20.840 Not really as many sacks are on the you know, 0:07:20.920 --> 0:07:23.840 same toward pace he was a year ago, but very effective, 0:07:23.920 --> 0:07:26.440 very efficient, but I mean so many different areas where 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:28.360 they can take the ball away. And then as you mentioned, 0:07:28.720 --> 0:07:31.000 you know their ability to they've forced, they've recovered. I 0:07:31.000 --> 0:07:34.240 believe it's thirteen fumbles and they've only lost three. I mean, 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:37.600 to have that kind of difference in your turnover differential, Uh, 0:07:37.600 --> 0:07:39.280 that that's that's gonna be something that's gonna keep you 0:07:39.320 --> 0:07:41.840 in a lot of games. Yeah. And on the defensive 0:07:41.840 --> 0:07:43.760 side of the ball for the Packers, we talked about 0:07:43.800 --> 0:07:46.840 the speed and these weapons that Teddy Bridgewater has. It 0:07:46.920 --> 0:07:48.840 kind of feels like, doesn't it, West, that it just 0:07:48.880 --> 0:07:52.240 comes down to preventing those really big explosive plays that 0:07:52.280 --> 0:07:54.600 can hurt you. You have to make this Panther's offense 0:07:54.960 --> 0:07:57.480 earn its way down the field, you know, seventy seventy 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:00.720 five yard drives, but doing it doing in in in 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:03.760 little chunks, and if this Packers defense can you know, 0:08:03.880 --> 0:08:06.240 can get them into a third and seven or a 0:08:06.280 --> 0:08:08.400 third and nine, that's going to be the opportunity to 0:08:08.400 --> 0:08:09.920 to get off the field and get the ball back 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:13.040 to number twelve. Yeah, and that's where you know the 0:08:13.080 --> 0:08:15.400 counter punches with the Panthers that they can do it 0:08:15.480 --> 0:08:17.160 both ways. I mean, as we mentioned, you have a 0:08:17.160 --> 0:08:18.800 guy like d G. Moore back in the lineup, one 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:21.200 of the most explosive receivers in this league. And then 0:08:21.240 --> 0:08:22.920 you have a guy like you know, Mike Davis who 0:08:22.920 --> 0:08:24.560 can kind of chip away at you a little bit 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:26.440 with the passing game and the running game. I think 0:08:26.480 --> 0:08:28.640 as long as carry this year is only twenty five yards, 0:08:28.640 --> 0:08:31.080 but he's been effective in averaging, you know, over four 0:08:31.600 --> 0:08:33.800 four point one four point two yards per carry this year. 0:08:34.080 --> 0:08:36.360 So depending on which direction they want to go, they 0:08:36.400 --> 0:08:38.000 can kind of wear you down and hit you with 0:08:38.040 --> 0:08:41.000 the big punch. But the other side of this thing 0:08:41.040 --> 0:08:43.679 I that I look at is the difference in the quarterbacks, 0:08:43.679 --> 0:08:46.920 a difference in the experience level. Aaron Rodgers goes into 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:49.480 this thing, he's looking to hit that tipping point again 0:08:49.520 --> 0:08:52.960 for forty touchdowns. He's over five you know, fifty career 0:08:53.000 --> 0:08:56.080 passing yards, has been one of the biggest and most 0:08:56.120 --> 0:09:00.320 consistent performers in one specific offense for so many years 0:09:00.520 --> 0:09:02.800 and then now has taken those traits and translated to 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:06.760 what Matt Lafleur does. On contrast, Teddy Bridgewater, who's a 0:09:06.760 --> 0:09:09.199 guy I've always been really high on. He's gone through 0:09:09.280 --> 0:09:12.320 multiple offensive systems now, and he was brought in this 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:14.000 year because of a lot of things he did in 0:09:14.120 --> 0:09:18.240 spot duty in New Orleans, obviously coming off of the big, 0:09:18.400 --> 0:09:20.480 terrible leg injury that he had that ended his time 0:09:20.559 --> 0:09:23.400 in Minnesota. So, uh, you haven't seen a lot of 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:25.360 these type of matchups. It's been a while since Bridgewater 0:09:25.400 --> 0:09:28.320 has played the Packers, So I think that that's gonna 0:09:28.360 --> 0:09:30.680 be one of these these type of matchups and and 0:09:30.720 --> 0:09:33.560 how things shuffle out here, Um, that's gonna tell you 0:09:33.559 --> 0:09:35.480 a lot, not only about this Packers defense, but also 0:09:35.480 --> 0:09:37.199 this Packers offense trying to stay in the rhythm that 0:09:37.240 --> 0:09:40.079 they've been in. Yeah, and on the special teams side 0:09:40.120 --> 0:09:43.360 of things, we've seen obviously the Packers have had some 0:09:43.440 --> 0:09:47.280 issues with their coverage units and this Carolina Panthers special 0:09:47.280 --> 0:09:50.040 teams unit, Trent and Cannon kickoff returner. He's got a 0:09:50.120 --> 0:09:53.239 ninety eight yard kickoff return, had that against Tampa Bay 0:09:53.240 --> 0:09:56.719 this season. Pharaoh Cooper is their punt returner. He was 0:09:56.760 --> 0:09:59.200 a pro bowler a few years ago. But on the 0:09:59.200 --> 0:10:02.760 flip side of things, Carolina has allowed an eighty three 0:10:02.800 --> 0:10:05.840 yard punt return for a touchdown this season. Packers have 0:10:05.880 --> 0:10:09.360 Tavon Austin back there now, a different a different weapon, 0:10:09.400 --> 0:10:12.280 a new guy that they're working into uh into the mix. 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:15.960 So special teams could definitely play a factor in this game. 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:19.160 Not just the kicking game with with Mason Crosby and 0:10:19.360 --> 0:10:22.880 Joey Slye, but but those the returns and the coverage 0:10:23.000 --> 0:10:25.839 that could definitely be a factor Saturday night. Yeah, And 0:10:25.880 --> 0:10:27.720 if I remember right, I think sly actually had a 0:10:27.720 --> 0:10:29.800 missfield goal there that kind of loom large in that 0:10:29.800 --> 0:10:31.800 that game last year too. From what I recall, I 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:35.360 mean this this is the area with the third phase 0:10:35.440 --> 0:10:37.080 that you're gonna see a lot of these games be 0:10:37.120 --> 0:10:39.160 decided down the stretch. And I think that's one of 0:10:39.160 --> 0:10:42.280 the big things of why Matt Lafloor Shawn Menee have 0:10:42.320 --> 0:10:44.840 talked about wanting to shore up the areas where they've 0:10:44.880 --> 0:10:47.120 fallen short. Crosby touched down in it as well. I mean, 0:10:47.480 --> 0:10:50.040 they've had these moments where you get thirty plays and 0:10:50.120 --> 0:10:51.640 you know, twenty eight of them, twenty nine of them 0:10:51.679 --> 0:10:54.080 look okay. But then you let a seventy one yard 0:10:54.120 --> 0:10:56.240 kickoff return go, or you have a blocked punt or 0:10:56.360 --> 0:10:59.079 a punt return for a touchdown. Those things won't fly, 0:10:59.360 --> 0:11:02.120 especially down the final stretch here. So the one thing 0:11:02.200 --> 0:11:05.680 I you look at Tavon Austin, Uh, this is a guy. 0:11:05.800 --> 0:11:07.240 I said it to you last week because we were 0:11:07.240 --> 0:11:10.440 watching the game, Mike. He catches the ball fluidly on 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:12.800 punt returns. Now, it's one thing to be a really 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:16.480 good returner. Jeremy Ross was an excellent punt returner, but 0:11:16.559 --> 0:11:18.720 he wasn't always the best at catching the ball fluidly 0:11:18.800 --> 0:11:21.440 and looking natural back there when he receives it. That. 0:11:22.120 --> 0:11:24.080 There wasn't a lot that we saw from Tavon Austin 0:11:24.120 --> 0:11:26.079 that first game. It was a very modest workload that 0:11:26.120 --> 0:11:28.640 he had. They only used him on punts especially, But 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:31.280 you can just tell the confidence he has there. This 0:11:31.320 --> 0:11:33.720 is a guy that's been doing that his entire life. 0:11:33.760 --> 0:11:36.600 He's done it every single season he's been in the NFL. 0:11:37.120 --> 0:11:39.080 It's a second nature and it is one of the 0:11:39.120 --> 0:11:42.280 most underrated positions in the National Football League that when 0:11:42.320 --> 0:11:44.120 you have a guy there that you have confidence that 0:11:44.120 --> 0:11:45.760 he's not only gonna be able to catch the ball, 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:48.120 but it is naturally gonna be able to turn up field. 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:50.960 That's where the Packers are trying to get something here 0:11:51.000 --> 0:11:53.319 during this final stretch. Last year it was Tyler Irvin. 0:11:53.440 --> 0:11:56.600 This year they needed to be Tavon Austin. Yeah. Absolutely well. 0:11:57.000 --> 0:11:59.680 In looking at where the Packers sit, as we talked 0:11:59.720 --> 0:12:01.760 about on our last show, the NFC North is in 0:12:01.800 --> 0:12:05.080 the books. The Packers are the division champions and currently 0:12:05.600 --> 0:12:08.240 sitting in control of the number one seed, tied with 0:12:08.280 --> 0:12:10.400 the New Orleans Saints at ten and three for the 0:12:10.440 --> 0:12:13.200 top record in the NFC. The Packers have that head 0:12:13.240 --> 0:12:16.679 to head tiebreaker over New Orleans. Three victories in these 0:12:16.720 --> 0:12:18.880 last three games and the Packers will be the number 0:12:18.880 --> 0:12:22.400 one seed in the NFC and get that first round 0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:25.680 by Obviously, you'd love to be able to get some 0:12:25.960 --> 0:12:29.200 breathing room, right, I mean um, And this is an 0:12:29.240 --> 0:12:31.760 opportunity this week is an opportunity for the Packers to 0:12:31.800 --> 0:12:34.880 do that, You're you're hosting a Carolina Panthers team that 0:12:35.000 --> 0:12:38.240 is significantly below five hundred. While the New Orleans Saints 0:12:38.800 --> 0:12:41.600 unsure whether or not Drew Brees will be back from 0:12:41.679 --> 0:12:44.120 his rib injury, they have to take on the Kansas 0:12:44.160 --> 0:12:46.400 City Chiefs, the top team in the a f C, 0:12:46.559 --> 0:12:48.920 A team that I think has lost only one of 0:12:48.960 --> 0:12:52.280 its last six or twenty seven games dating back to 0:12:52.400 --> 0:12:55.120 last year and through the Super Bowl and everything like that. 0:12:55.600 --> 0:12:59.440 So everything went right for the Packers last weekend that 0:12:59.440 --> 0:13:01.200 you could have asked for in terms of what you 0:13:01.280 --> 0:13:03.680 wanted to happen in the position you wanted to be. 0:13:03.800 --> 0:13:06.920 And you get a win here and uh and a 0:13:06.960 --> 0:13:09.839 win from Kansas City over New Orleans, then things are 0:13:09.880 --> 0:13:12.200 really really looking good heading into the last two weeks 0:13:12.200 --> 0:13:14.280 of the regular season. Yeah, they really are. I mean, 0:13:14.280 --> 0:13:18.000 because I think before that game last week for the 0:13:18.080 --> 0:13:21.520 Saints going up against the Philadelphia a lot of a 0:13:21.520 --> 0:13:24.160 lot of the thinking was, Okay, well, the Saints could 0:13:24.200 --> 0:13:26.160 run the table here, but it's that Kansas City game 0:13:26.200 --> 0:13:27.920 that we have to keep an eye open for. When 0:13:27.960 --> 0:13:30.679 the door opens after a loss like that to the Eagles, 0:13:30.840 --> 0:13:35.000 especially heading into a game with Kansas City. That's where 0:13:35.000 --> 0:13:37.520 it starts to raise some questions there. Taysom Hill has 0:13:37.520 --> 0:13:40.560 done a fantastic job of keeping that ship afloat for them, 0:13:40.760 --> 0:13:43.920 But I think you've seen defenses kind of make their adjustments. 0:13:43.920 --> 0:13:46.200 Now he's gonna have to find ways to win in 0:13:46.320 --> 0:13:50.160 different ways now where it's not just gonna be the same. Okay, 0:13:50.559 --> 0:13:52.440 you know we're gonna throw on this place, so it's 0:13:52.559 --> 0:13:54.840 looking down the receiver and there he is and throw 0:13:55.200 --> 0:13:57.840 the past or or going out and trying to scramble 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:00.760 and make something happen. Hill's really talented. But that's going 0:14:00.800 --> 0:14:02.600 to be the CounterPunch here. And this is going to 0:14:02.600 --> 0:14:04.719 be a matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs where they 0:14:04.720 --> 0:14:06.320 have a defense that's going to be able to get 0:14:06.360 --> 0:14:09.280 after him and pressure him up the middle. So that's 0:14:09.320 --> 0:14:11.839 gonna be something to follow. But for Green Bay standpoint, 0:14:11.960 --> 0:14:13.720 as we talked about just now, where you can't really 0:14:13.760 --> 0:14:17.280 look past Carolina. It doesn't matter if it's offense or defense. 0:14:17.320 --> 0:14:19.760 You have Jeremy Chin on the defensive side for Carolina too, 0:14:19.760 --> 0:14:22.120 is a defensive Rookie of the Year candidate. At this point, 0:14:22.600 --> 0:14:25.960 they can't look past this opponent either. So because you 0:14:26.040 --> 0:14:28.760 have the Tennessee Titans coming up on the horizon as well. 0:14:29.560 --> 0:14:32.000 It's what makes playoff football so compelling, it what makes 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:34.160 the last two or three weeks of the regular season great. 0:14:34.440 --> 0:14:37.000 I wish this game wasn't playing being played on Saturday night. 0:14:37.040 --> 0:14:39.680 I wish you and I were watching it at New 0:14:39.720 --> 0:14:41.960 and Central time on Sunday. But that's not the world 0:14:42.040 --> 0:14:43.960 we live in. The Packers had to make that adjustment 0:14:44.000 --> 0:14:46.840 this week, and we'll see how they handle this in 0:14:46.840 --> 0:14:49.880 the past when things are unique, when schedules aren't really 0:14:49.960 --> 0:14:52.600 typically set and they have to create, you know, a 0:14:52.640 --> 0:14:55.280 new plan. Matt Lafleur and his coaches have done a 0:14:55.280 --> 0:14:57.840 pretty good job of it. Well. A couple other games 0:14:57.880 --> 0:15:00.480 that will be interesting in terms of the NFC playoff 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:02.920 picture that are worth talking about as well. Right in 0:15:02.960 --> 0:15:05.760 the NFC North, you can almost call it a playoff 0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:10.240 game on Sunday, the Vikings taking on the Chicago Bears. 0:15:10.280 --> 0:15:13.520 Both teams are six and seven. I mean, really, the 0:15:13.560 --> 0:15:15.640 simplest way to explain it is the winner of this 0:15:15.720 --> 0:15:17.760 game is going to still be alive for a wild 0:15:17.840 --> 0:15:20.560 card spot, and the loser of this game is probably out. 0:15:20.640 --> 0:15:24.000 It really is almost a playoff game for these two 0:15:24.000 --> 0:15:27.000 teams that are trailing the Packers in the NFC North, 0:15:27.040 --> 0:15:29.280 What are your thoughts here as the Bears and the 0:15:29.360 --> 0:15:31.320 Vikings go head to head for a second time in 0:15:32.400 --> 0:15:35.040 the Bears and Vikings, in two very different ways, are 0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:38.120 both just screaming towards eight and eight seasons. And that's 0:15:38.120 --> 0:15:40.480 a phrase I've used in the past because they've just 0:15:40.560 --> 0:15:42.480 been two up and down, and when you're two up 0:15:42.480 --> 0:15:44.680 and down as a team, you typically end up falling 0:15:44.720 --> 0:15:47.360 right under that five hundred line throughout the course of 0:15:47.400 --> 0:15:51.320 a year. From Chicago standpoint, it's funny how one game 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:53.440 can kind of make you get your confidence back, your 0:15:53.440 --> 0:15:56.080 swagger back a little bit. Mitchell Robinsky was up for 0:15:56.120 --> 0:15:59.520 FedEx Air Player of the Week after everything he's been 0:15:59.560 --> 0:16:01.920 through to have a three touchdown performance where he really 0:16:01.920 --> 0:16:04.000 looked like he had a command of the offense. Matt 0:16:04.080 --> 0:16:06.080 Negie was talking about it. He sees a difference in 0:16:06.160 --> 0:16:08.560 him right now. But can you carry that over? Can 0:16:08.600 --> 0:16:11.440 you do it again against Mike Zimmers defense? Can you 0:16:11.440 --> 0:16:14.040 finish the year strong and make your team convinced that 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:15.920 you're not a guy that can step up and make 0:16:15.960 --> 0:16:18.400 throws and make plays. You know here and there that 0:16:18.480 --> 0:16:21.200 shows those bright spots that that you can be a real, 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:24.240 you know, franchise quarterback. Can you do that? Every single 0:16:24.280 --> 0:16:26.480 week I keep throwing out that line about Aaron Rodgers 0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:30.480 thirteen games this season, twelve of them over eight passer rating. 0:16:30.520 --> 0:16:32.640 It's so difficult to do. That's not easy to do. 0:16:32.680 --> 0:16:35.080 But that's what the elite quarterbacks can do in this league. 0:16:35.320 --> 0:16:37.480 And that's just one the one area where Troubinsky has 0:16:37.480 --> 0:16:42.040 fallen short to this point. Minnesota, they made the rally, 0:16:42.280 --> 0:16:45.320 they got back into this thing. Sometimes you wonder can 0:16:45.360 --> 0:16:47.720 you maintain that? Can you finish the race here to 0:16:47.760 --> 0:16:50.840 the to the final bell. That's what we're gonna find 0:16:50.840 --> 0:16:53.520 out very soon. They have weapons, we've seen them all 0:16:53.720 --> 0:16:55.960 they had, they could honestly as as good as Delvin 0:16:56.000 --> 0:16:58.560 Cook is, they could become one of the top passing 0:16:58.680 --> 0:17:00.720 offenses in the National FOOTBA. Like if they just if 0:17:00.720 --> 0:17:02.640 that's the focus of how they wanted to do things, 0:17:02.920 --> 0:17:04.960 they're built to win in a lot of different ways. 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:08.760 But unfortunately for them, again, it's been one step forward, 0:17:09.040 --> 0:17:12.320 one step back. Yeah, it's really interesting when you when 0:17:12.320 --> 0:17:14.480 you look at these two teams, they're sitting there, sitting 0:17:14.480 --> 0:17:16.879 there at six and seven. Both of them have a 0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:21.080 very recent loss that looks extremely damaging to their playoff 0:17:21.160 --> 0:17:23.320 chances right now. The Vikings lost that game a few 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:26.200 weeks ago to the Dallas Cowboys, which really they had 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:29.040 no business losing to a team like the Cowboys and 0:17:29.080 --> 0:17:31.840 the struggles that they were going through, but it happened. 0:17:32.160 --> 0:17:34.960 The Bears. They had the Detroit Lions on the ropes, 0:17:35.000 --> 0:17:36.960 They had a ten point lead with four minutes to 0:17:37.000 --> 0:17:39.120 go in their own building and had the Lions backed 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:41.080 up near their own goal line, and they let them 0:17:41.119 --> 0:17:45.840 off the hook. And those those individual losses for those teams, 0:17:46.720 --> 0:17:48.800 those are the ones that you lament. But as you said, 0:17:49.160 --> 0:17:51.919 that's that that's sort of what happens to teams that 0:17:52.000 --> 0:17:54.320 ride the roller coaster up and down like that. And 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.679 so now they have to forget about those results. They 0:17:57.840 --> 0:18:01.480 they've got a de facto playoff game against one another 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:03.720 here on Sunday. The other one I want to ask 0:18:03.760 --> 0:18:07.920 you about um two division leaders actually in the NFC. 0:18:08.480 --> 0:18:15.600 Seattle is at Washington, and we've seen this Washington. We've 0:18:15.600 --> 0:18:18.639 seen this Washington football team though West. I mean the 0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:22.320 you know Alex Smith, Alex Smith is playing you know 0:18:22.440 --> 0:18:25.000 Alex Smith football, he's he doesn't make a whole lot 0:18:25.000 --> 0:18:27.520 of mistakes. They found a little bit of a running game. 0:18:27.640 --> 0:18:30.840 But this Washington team is doing it with defense. Chase Young. 0:18:31.080 --> 0:18:35.400 Chase Young that high draft pick, and this Washington team 0:18:35.440 --> 0:18:37.600 has has shown in the last few weeks it's not 0:18:37.680 --> 0:18:39.400 easy to just go out there and you know, put 0:18:39.480 --> 0:18:44.119 up points on these guys. Seattle, they're in a you know, 0:18:44.240 --> 0:18:47.280 a real dog fight in the NFC West with the 0:18:47.320 --> 0:18:49.640 Los Angeles Rams. Those two teams are going to play 0:18:49.680 --> 0:18:53.720 each other next week. Um the Rams sort of get 0:18:54.000 --> 0:18:55.639 you know, if you can call it such in the 0:18:55.760 --> 0:18:58.399 NFL the gimme game. They have the New York Jets, 0:18:58.400 --> 0:19:01.119 which was the team that Seattle be up on last week. 0:19:01.720 --> 0:19:04.520