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Speaker 1: Welcome to the Friday, December twenty first edition of Between

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Speaker 1: the Horns, Everybody. Miles Simmons here to take you through

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Speaker 1: the biggest storylines of Week sixteen as the eleven and

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Speaker 1: three Rams get ready to play the three and eleven

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Speaker 1: Cardinals for the penultimate game of the regular season. And

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Speaker 1: let's begin with the health of running back Todd Gurley,

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Speaker 1: who's been suffering from knee inflammation since last Sunday's lost

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Speaker 1: to the Eagles. Head coach Sean McVay said on Wednesday

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Speaker 1: that he's expecting Girly to play, and while Girly didn't

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Speaker 1: practice on Thursday and may not practice all week, the

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Speaker 1: running back himself said that he's planning on being out

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Speaker 1: there nothing. I'll be fine, man, Just taking it day

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Speaker 1: by day, recovering, resting China. You know, I'm trying to

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Speaker 1: feel better. But what about the playoffs and Girly's potential

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Speaker 1: health for the playoffs. Those were questions that seem to

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Speaker 1: get repeated for Girley throughout his Thursday press conference. Of course,

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Speaker 1: the Rams want their start running back to be as

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Speaker 1: healthy as possible for January and hopefully beyond, but it's

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Speaker 1: not like the team is going to do anything to

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Speaker 1: put him in a compromising position, and Girly said he's

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Speaker 1: not going to do anything that would jeopardize his future

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Speaker 1: either for that matter. So he knows there's urgency for

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Speaker 1: the Rams to come away victorious in Arizona for a

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Speaker 1: number of reasons, and that's why he wants to be

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Speaker 1: a part of it. We got a game to win, brother,

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Speaker 1: my mom, and I'm pretty sure of me being out there.

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Speaker 1: If I can be out there, I would put this

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Speaker 1: team in a good position to help them win. So

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Speaker 1: why wouldn't I'd be out there, you know, if I

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Speaker 1: can play in this situation that we are, we're just

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Speaker 1: lost to We're trying to get a first round by like,

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Speaker 1: that's what we're trying to do. We're trying to win. Unfortunately,

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Speaker 1: Girly is not the only Los Angeles running back dealing

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Speaker 1: with injury, and because of that, the Rams have added

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Speaker 1: a veteran who has played at a high level throughout

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Speaker 1: his career. For more on that, your staff writer Clarence Dennis.

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Speaker 1: The Rams added some veteran depth to their ding up

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Speaker 1: running back corp on Tuesday, signing former bron Goes running

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Speaker 1: back in Super Bowl Champion C. J. Anderson. Anderson rushed

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Speaker 1: for a thousand yards for the first time in his

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Speaker 1: career last season in Denver, and he's likely the first

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Speaker 1: running back behind Todd Gurley, who suffered a minor knee

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Speaker 1: injury last week. With backup running back Malcolm Brown out

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Speaker 1: for the season and second year back Justin Davis dealing

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Speaker 1: with a shoulder issue, head coach Sean McVay said Anderson

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Speaker 1: can make an immediate impact, could see him playing a

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Speaker 1: role as early as this week, and really impressed just

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Speaker 1: being around him in the initial of twenty four hours

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Speaker 1: or whatever. It's been very sharp, cerebral player. He's played

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Speaker 1: in some systems, very similar in terms of the verbiage,

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Speaker 1: some of the things that we try to emphasize specific

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Speaker 1: to the running game and in protections. Just with his

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Speaker 1: with background, you know, from being with coach Kubiak, so

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Speaker 1: you know it's going to be good to be able

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Speaker 1: to get him in here, get him up to speed

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Speaker 1: as quickly as possible. I can tell Skip's already done

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Speaker 1: a really nice job, so that's positive. Quarterback Jared Goff

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Speaker 1: said he's already noticed Anderson's veteran experience based on how

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Speaker 1: quickly the running back picked things up in his first

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Speaker 1: walkthrough with the team. Anderson played two seasons under head

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Speaker 1: coach Gary Kubiak in Denver and said mcvay's system is

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Speaker 1: not all that different from what he's played in before,

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Speaker 1: pointing to Mike Shanahan's coaching tree that extends throughout the

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Speaker 1: league XS and O's aside, Anderson says he's ready to

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Speaker 1: rule whatever they need me to do. You know what

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Speaker 1: I'm saying. I know I'm gonna goal. I'm gonna do

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Speaker 1: everything I possibly can is week could be ready to play,

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Speaker 1: so you know, mcvayh and teammates and everybody can feel

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Speaker 1: comfortable with me out there if that opportunity presents itself.

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Speaker 1: But you know, till then, I'm just gonna keep my

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Speaker 1: head down, keep pushing. With the playoffs right around the

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Speaker 1: corner and much to play for in the season's final

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Speaker 1: two games, McVay needs Anderson to provide a relief for

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Speaker 1: his star running back when needed and contribute with starters

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Speaker 1: experience if he's called upon cornerback and keep Talid played

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Speaker 1: with Anderson in Denver and expanded on what the ram's

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Speaker 1: newest running back has to offer. He's a smart player.

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Speaker 1: He's a real smart player, just him being in being

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Speaker 1: in with Peyton man Payton ain't play about no protections

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Speaker 1: and stuff, so he'd definitely be on hist P's and

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Speaker 1: Q's as far as protections and all that nut. And

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Speaker 1: he had tough tackle, a real tough tackle. Man. I

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Speaker 1: see him break a lot of tackles, especially in this

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Speaker 1: time of the season. Tali was referring to former Broncos

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Speaker 1: quarterback Peyton Manning and anderson special attention in protecting the

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Speaker 1: future Hall of Famer and route to a Super Bowl championship.

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Speaker 1: There's some good, some good d's keeping eighteen on his feet. Um,

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Speaker 1: you know he didn't help him play year to twenty,

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Speaker 1: but at Kevin on his feet, you know, hasking fun,

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Speaker 1: Kep Cam on his feet, Trevor brock. So I take

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Speaker 1: pride in press protection, you know, and trying to help out.

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Speaker 1: You know, when you got to when you got one

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Speaker 1: of those just like jg over here, when you got

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Speaker 1: one of those guys who could win the game at

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Speaker 1: any point, you know, the best thing you got to

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Speaker 1: do is try to keep him melky. So I was

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Speaker 1: just gonna do my part when that part's called. Anderson's

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Speaker 1: comments on supporting Girley is needed and taking pride in

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Speaker 1: protecting golf likely come his music to mcvay's years. As

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Speaker 1: crunch time approaches, and as Talib said, Anderson has plenty

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Speaker 1: of experience as the calendar reaches late December, here's Miles

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Speaker 1: Simmons asking Anderson about joining a team preparing for a

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Speaker 1: Super Bowl run having had the championship experience. I mean, outsighting,

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Speaker 1: is it to you to be able to come into

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Speaker 1: a team that has those kinds of as it's huge?

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Speaker 1: You know, it's huge. You know these players, you know,

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Speaker 1: and coaching staff and what they've done over the past

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Speaker 1: two years. Um, definitely had the opportunity. And I'm not

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Speaker 1: saying I'm the missing peace over the hunt. I'm not

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Speaker 1: saying none of that at all. But they definitely got

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Speaker 1: the opportunity and to contru anyway possibly I can't. It's

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Speaker 1: always gonna be special. So UM, you know I'm on

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Speaker 1: the ride late. Obviously I didn't go eleven and three

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Speaker 1: with the team, but you know, these final this final

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Speaker 1: stresses final run is gonna be important. It's gonna take

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Speaker 1: off fifty three of us. That's Clarence Dennis with that

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Speaker 1: report on c. J. Anderson, thanks Clarence Elsewhere. On offense,

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Speaker 1: quarterback Jared Golf is still working to find his rhythm.

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Speaker 1: Following the bye week. Golf has only thrown one touchdown

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Speaker 1: pass to six interceptions in the last three games. So

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Speaker 1: was there something specific Golf can put his finger on

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Speaker 1: for what's gone wrong? I think each games independent of

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Speaker 1: each other. I don't think there's one singular thing. Um,

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Speaker 1: look at last game. You know, it's just made a

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Speaker 1: couple of dumb plays that you know, hurt us and

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Speaker 1: can't do that, and that's just something that I kind

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Speaker 1: of think of every game. But at the same time,

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Speaker 1: you know, towards the end of that game, in the

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Speaker 1: second half, I felt like we moved the ball really

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Speaker 1: well and we're able to build off some things there

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Speaker 1: and you know, able to you know, kind of take

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Speaker 1: what the defense has given us and and felt like

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Speaker 1: I learned a lot in the last in the last

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Speaker 1: game and was able to grow. Head coach Sean McVay

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Speaker 1: has seen some positive aspects within Goff's game as well,

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Speaker 1: particularly with this decision making. Certainly Golf hasn't been perfect,

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Speaker 1: but it really hasn't been all bad either. Well. I

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Speaker 1: think there's been some decisions that we want back. But

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Speaker 1: I mean, I think when you look at it, there's

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Speaker 1: specific plays. I mean, you're talking about sixty five to

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Speaker 1: seventy plays in every single game. Unfortunately, and him, you know,

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Speaker 1: we keep talking about two plays and that's the nature

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Speaker 1: of the quarterback position. But I would say this will

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Speaker 1: continue to learn from it. There's been some decisions that

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Speaker 1: we would like to do differently than what we did,

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Speaker 1: But like me as a play caller, there's certainly a

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Speaker 1: lot of decisions that I have that I'd like to

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Speaker 1: have back as well. So if we learn from him,

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Speaker 1: we trust that we can improve from that. Still, Golf

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Speaker 1: said he does feel an increased sense of responsibility with

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Speaker 1: the offensive ball security issues of the past few weeks. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: it's I need to take care of the ball better

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Speaker 1: and will And I know I've said that two weeks

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Speaker 1: in Ronaw, but felt like it did a better job

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Speaker 1: of it last week and continuing to grow and improving

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Speaker 1: it better. And I feel like throughout my whole life,

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Speaker 1: I've been really good at that, and sometimes things happen

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Speaker 1: and you're just not as sharp as you want to

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Speaker 1: be and don't take care of the ball. As well

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Speaker 1: as you want to, and for a multitude of reasons.

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Speaker 1: But you know, just rely on a lot of stuff

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Speaker 1: I done in my life and get back to that.

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Speaker 1: And finally, let's turn it to Aaron Donald, who was

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Speaker 1: named to his fifth Pro Bowl this week, which means

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Speaker 1: he's officially been a Pro Bowler in each of his

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Speaker 1: first five years to start his career. And while he

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Speaker 1: still leads a league with sixteen and a half sax,

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Speaker 1: he actually has not gotten one since week thirteen. What

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Speaker 1: gives Thundle talked about that on Thursday. There's get a

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Speaker 1: lot of attention. You know, it is not excuse. Still

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Speaker 1: got to found a way that you know, debated and

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Speaker 1: found a way so I'll get going hopefully, you know,

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Speaker 1: so they don't keep playing. But perhaps more importantly, Donald

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Speaker 1: received a nice reminder of a meaningful text you once

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Speaker 1: sent to a former college teammate. This week, Steelers running

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Speaker 1: back James Conner posted on Instagram along text that Donald

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Speaker 1: sent to him three years ago when Connor was first

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Speaker 1: diagnosed with cancer, and in that text, Donald told Connor

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Speaker 1: he'd eventually have several Pro Bowls to his name. Built

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Speaker 1: a great relationship with him, you know, he trained with

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Speaker 1: me do on an off season, so I know the

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Speaker 1: work I think he got so um. You know, he's

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Speaker 1: a special type of players, so you know he was

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Speaker 1: going through a lot. Two years ago. I sent him

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Speaker 1: a message and you know, just let him know that.

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Speaker 1: You know, they just to start. You know, you're gonna

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Speaker 1: be able to beat in it and be better than average.

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Speaker 1: So to see him make us for the Pro Bowl

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Speaker 1: and had a success he's having thus far, you know

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Speaker 1: they're gonna continue to get better, and I'm just proud

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Speaker 1: of him. So Connor saved that text for a long

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Speaker 1: time again three years and when a d saw it again,

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Speaker 1: that was pretty special when he told me. I told

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Speaker 1: I started Tarrett when I seen it. You know, this

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Speaker 1: is films. But because you know, he's family with me,

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Speaker 1: so I'm just proud of it. You know, I'm as

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Speaker 1: big as fans, so I'm just having to he's having Susy.

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Speaker 1: It's always nice to here about former college teammates connecting,

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Speaker 1: especially on a feel good story like that. Both Connor

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Speaker 1: and Aaron Donald should be in Orlando if their teams

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Speaker 1: are not playing in the Super Bowl, So everybody that

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Speaker 1: will do it. For this December twenty first edition, of

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Speaker 1: between the Horns for Clarence Dennis. I'm Miles Simmons saying

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Speaker 1: thanks so much for listening. Kickoff between the Rams and

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Speaker 1: Cardinals will be at one o five Pacific on Sunday.

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Speaker 1: You can catch that game on TV on Fox or

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Speaker 1: catch the call with JB. Loong, MJ D and DeMarco

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Speaker 1: far on ESPN LA. Have a happy holiday season and

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Speaker 1: enjoy the game. Rabbit