Carmen Vitali & Tracy Sandler talk Brandon Aiyuk, NFL trending teams, and more!

Carmen Vitali & Tracy Sandler talk about who's trending up and down in the NFL, Brandon Aiyuk's situation in San Francisco, top 3 QBs right now in the NFL, previews of all the biggest games, and more!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio Radio.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Welcome, Welcome, Welcome. It is another Fox Sports Saturday. I'm
your host, Carmen Vitally, and I'm back. Had a week
off last week, but I'm back and joining me today
is the CEO of Fangirl Sports Network, forty nine Ers
beat reporter and my friend Tracy Sandler.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
How are you, Trace, I'm good, Carmen, how are you?

Speaker 4 (00:23):
I'm good. I feel like it's been forever since I've
talked to you.

Speaker 5 (00:26):
I know, I was actually thinking that this morning. I
was like, gosh, it feels silly. It's been two weeks,
but it's been a long two weeks without you, my friend.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
I'm very glad we're back together.

Speaker 4 (00:35):
That's that. I appreciate that.

Speaker 2 (00:37):
Uh, you just got off a plane and not for
forty nine Ers related reasons, but I understand you were
in Vegas to celebrate f one.

Speaker 3 (00:44):
Sure was, yes, I sure was so jealous.

Speaker 4 (00:47):
I love Formula One.

Speaker 2 (00:49):
I got into it with the Drive to Survive series,
and I'm very much enjoying just being a fan of it.
Though like I don't try to break it down, I
don't try to like know everything about it. I'm very
much like, this is gonna be my like outlet.

Speaker 5 (01:01):
Oh that is fair, And you know what, I don't
know a ton about it. I got invited to a
great event there last night and I was like, you
know what, I'm going to do it fifteen hours in Vegas.
I'm in my Formula one era got a seven am flight.
But my niece is a very big fan, and when
she heard I was there, the excitement level was just incredible,

(01:21):
which kind of made the whole thing. But it was
really fun. It's kind of everything you think it would be.
The thing that's crazy is that the streets of Vegas
or the racetrack, So there are all these streets closed down,
and you don't really realize what that does to a
city like Vegas.

Speaker 3 (01:35):
Until you're there. But it's cool.

Speaker 5 (01:37):
I mean, there was something very cool about like, oh,
I have to go over this bridge to get to
the hotel because there's a racetrack underneath.

Speaker 4 (01:44):
Because there's a race track underneath you.

Speaker 2 (01:45):
Yeah, they definitely the first the first year they did
a couple of years ago. There was definitely some there
were some kinks to be worked out, Like I think
like some of the manhole covers weren't up to par
and like I remember Ferrari ended up like busting their
one of their cars because of on the on the
qualifying rounds, and like it was just there was definitely
some bumps in the road. But I think you know,
they have the paddock that is a permanent fixture now

(02:08):
just right off the strip, and it's really really cool
if you haven't had a chance to just even go
see it, not not even during a race, but like
there's all this F One memorabilia, you get to get
up close and personal with some of the cars, and
I think they've kind of like figured it out now,
but I just think it's so cool. And it's a
night race too, because so much of the F one
audience is international, and so the race will the race
itself will kick off tonight at eleven pm Eastern, which

(02:31):
this think is is crazy, but it's also really cool
because it means you get all the Vegas lights as
the backdrop and it literally looks like I don't know,
I mean, I'm sure I don't know if you ever
played this. I was a weird video game kid that
loved Grand Turismo. Oh I like, oh my god, I
was obsessed with it. But like there were so many,
like different tracks and Grand Turismo too, where you can

(02:53):
like it was just like a night time thing. I
think there was one like I think going through like
Tokyo at one point, and it just like that's what
it kind of reminds me of, even though it here
in America. So I'm very jealous. I want it's on
the bucket list is to get to an F one
race either here or My ultimate bucket list would be Monaco.

Speaker 5 (03:09):
You and my niece she also would like to go
to Monaco, which I would like to say I volunteered
his tribute to take her serious. Someone wants to send us,
I'm you can come with us, carm the three of
us to can head to Monico for some F one.

Speaker 3 (03:21):
I'm so down.

Speaker 5 (03:22):
We just need to find someone who wants to send
us there, and I'm down.

Speaker 2 (03:25):
Twist my arm like I'll cover like I want to
be just a fan, but you know what, I'll cover
it for that like especially you know, I mean, I
know all the drivers and stuff still complain about Monico
because it's a track where you're kind of locked into
the position that you get in the qualifying round because
you can't really pass. It's such a small like narrow
track because it's so old. So a lot of those
I know a lot of the drivers don't really like it.

(03:46):
But I'm like, okay, before it goes away, and hopefully
it never does, but if it does, I want to
get there.

Speaker 5 (03:51):
I was there this summer, not for race, but for
one night on a vacation, went to Monico. It is
it's Vegas times one hundred thousand, Like it actually kind
of puts Vegas to shame in terms of all of
the glitz and the glamour and all of it. It's
something to be seen. I don't know if you're there
for f one. That's one thing. I don't know how
much time you'd want to spend there, just generally because

(04:13):
there's only so much to do. But it is everything
you think it would be times one hundred thousand.

Speaker 4 (04:19):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (04:20):
No, that's again so many things on my list. We're here,
we're talking. We're going to talk some football today. We've
got a great show for you. A lot of stuff
going on in the NFL. As we start to kind
of zero in, we're in week twelve, so I mean
there's still there's still a lot of football left and
for as wide open as all of these divisions are

(04:41):
right now, there's still I still think this is going
to look drastically different by the time.

Speaker 4 (04:46):
We get to week eighteen. Yeah, I agree, but we're
going to talk about it.

Speaker 2 (04:50):
And if you haven't already, be sure to subscribe to
Fox Sports Radio's YouTube channel. Just search Fox Sports Radio
on YouTube and you'll see our best videos from all
of our shows. Don't stop there either, hit that thumbs
up icon comment away. Let us know whose takes you like,
even those that you don't. Just search Fox Sports Radio
on YouTube and subscribe. So, in the vein of all right,
what do we make about the league right now? I

(05:11):
want to talk about teams that are trending up and down?
And I'm qualifying this with like, all right, teams that
even if like they're not necessarily playoff locks yet or
they're not necessarily locks to win their division, like, which
teams are like I'm feeling more optimistic about I think

(05:31):
that's like I equated trending up with optimism and that's
turning down with like with a little bit of pessimism.
Ok So, my first team I want to talk about
trending up is the Baltimore Ravens. Yeah, because we thought
they were left for dead. You know, Lamar Jackson got hurt,
he's out. Can they survive the stretch without him in there?

(05:52):
And it wasn't looking great well all of a sudden,
with that win over the Browns this past weekend, they're
at five hundred and they're second in the AFC North
with just one game back behind the Pittsburgh Steelers. So
now I'm like, and on top of that, they're getting
the Jets this weekend, then they get the Bengals, the
Steelers and the Bengals again, So this is a chance

(06:12):
to really make up your ground in the division if
you go and sweep this stretch. And I think they're
all winnable games.

Speaker 4 (06:19):
I mean, I know.

Speaker 2 (06:19):
Lamar didn't play great versus the Browns this last week.
He threw two interceptions, one was a pick six.

Speaker 4 (06:25):
But he is fully cleared now. He's off the injury report.

Speaker 2 (06:27):
He does not have a game designation for this week,
and he practiced fully on both Thursday and Friday. He
did he did miss Wednesday, but that's what he did
the week before. He still played so like there was
no and then the Ravens completely cleared him ahead of
this game, so it seems like he's finally healthy. And
Aaron Glenn was talking this week just about how he's like, yeah,

(06:51):
I'm assuming and from what I've seen, like this is
Lamar Jackson. This is Lamar that we're playing, and we.

Speaker 1 (06:56):
Know that well.

Speaker 5 (06:57):
And I think this is why we've talked with this
so much. These are the months that really matter. If
a team like the Ravens can sort of stay afloat
and then get hot. Now, a team like the Ravens
is gonna be hot and make it into the playoffs,
and this is when you hope guys start getting healthy.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
So I think you are right.

Speaker 5 (07:15):
They are very much trending up and playing a Steelers
team that may or may not be without Aaron Rodgers.
And there are a number of thoughts on that, but
I would definitely put them in the trending up category.
And I think that's better for football when they're trending up.

Speaker 2 (07:32):
It's the way I was so hesitant to give up
on the Ravens because I was like, I want I
want a league. I want a season where the Ravens
are competitive in that conference, especially that is fair.

Speaker 5 (07:45):
Well, I have one that I don't know if it's
a lukewarm or hot take on trending down.

Speaker 3 (07:51):
But should there should we be concerned about the Buffalo Bills?

Speaker 4 (07:56):
I had them in my trending down?

Speaker 2 (07:58):
Okay, this is this is again a way to qualify
this trending up and trending down. So it's not necessarily
making an ultimate decision on right if we think they're
going to make the playoffs or win the division or
this that the other. They're just kind of in a slump,
and I think that's an objective thing to say. I
don't think that's a hot take at all to say
that the Bills are in a slump right now, there's

(08:21):
I think this team is failing Josh Allen.

Speaker 5 (08:23):
It is, and I think as a result, Josh Allen
is pressing to make up for it and make plays,
which is then failing the team.

Speaker 2 (08:31):
Yes, because I mean he's trying to be Superman because
that's really the only option the.

Speaker 4 (08:36):
Team has left him.

Speaker 2 (08:37):
Yeah, and with the lack of resources and they like
the injuries that are happening, and then you have whatever
is happening with Keyan Coleman. I mean it's not and
the thing is, it's not an excuse for the Bills
as a franchise to be struggling, Like all of the
things that's wrong with the Bills are things that good
coaches can overcome. And I feel like every single year

(08:59):
we have this kind of conversation about Sean McDermott of like,
how good do we really think of a coach Sean
McDermott is, and how much of it is the fact
that he gets bailed out by Josh Allett.

Speaker 3 (09:09):
I think it's a lot of that.

Speaker 5 (09:10):
And I, Nicky and I talked about this some last week,
and I think you and I touched on a couple
weeks ago too. I think the Bills missed their AFC
East window because now they got a Patrons team that
is super hot and yeah, they tell you very much
trending it, Yes they have. Each week they have trended
up and up and up, and I think they may
have missed it. And I do think at the end

(09:32):
of the season, depending on what happens, the Bills have
to take a really good look at Sean McDermott and
think is this the guy? Because he has had years
where it should have been a no brainer, and they've
had years two where, you know, last year, I think
in that game against the Chiefs and the playoffs. Had
Josh Allen started better in those first five minutes, the
Bills win that game. And so there's a lot to

(09:54):
a lot of blames go around. However, the end of
the day is Sean McDermott the guy. To me, he's
not I'm not a Bills fan. I don't work for
the Bills, But to me, he's not. I just I
don't know. It'll be interesting to see because they are
very much trending down, which brings me to a team
that's trending up. And this is a good full circle.
I'm giving the Texans a little trending up. That defense

(10:16):
is believable.

Speaker 4 (10:17):
That's a great one. It is, and we've seen.

Speaker 2 (10:20):
I mean, I think there's another example in the same conference.
If you go look in Denver, what's happening in Denver.

Speaker 4 (10:25):
I think you're.

Speaker 2 (10:26):
Realizing again that how much defenses can carry you, especially
if it's the kind of defense like the Texans have,
like the Broncos have, where they get a tremendous amount
of pressure, they force quarterbacks into turnovers, and then you
give your offense those extra chances and you take you
limit points, you limit scoring opponent scoring because you are

(10:46):
just so suffocating upfront. And that's something that I think
the Broncos and the Texans have in common. I think
the Texans have the defensive player of the year and
Will Anderson on their team.

Speaker 3 (10:56):
Oh absolutely.

Speaker 4 (10:58):
I was very impressed with that Thursday night game.

Speaker 3 (11:01):
And they're trending up.

Speaker 5 (11:02):
With Davis Mills at quarterback, that says everything you need
to know about their defense. No disrespect to mister Mills
was the quarterback in this league and doing a great job.
But the Texans, I mean, I think that says everything
about their defense.

Speaker 2 (11:13):
It does call into question kind of the viability of
like an actually productive season from both of these teams,
Like do I trust them then once we get to
the postseason if they can't score points, and that's that's
a hard thing to overcome. Now, maybe you can. These
defenses can limit opponents that much that it only takes
a few field goals to win the game, or you

(11:33):
know what, like doesn't take very much to win the game.
But that's a hard way to live. So I agree
with you that they're trending upward. I'm not sure how
much I how sustainable it is once you get into
the postseason, especially with some of the AFC talent that
crops up and once they get into these playoffs. But
I was, I was just I mean, that was just

(11:53):
an incredible defensive performance. And you know, I loved it
for Damiko Ryans too, because I think he's a great
coach and I think, you know, he was repping for
the defensive coaches, which I think there are more this
year than there were last.

Speaker 5 (12:07):
I think with your right, I think your math is
right on that, which is which is an interesting trend
in itself, and that's just the NFL is so cyclical
in so many ways, and we are trending towards more
defensive coaches because I think you look like you look
at the Super Bowl last year, and obviously the Eagles
score a lot of points, but that defense was incredible
and it did kind of go back to the adage

(12:29):
of you know, defense which championships. It was a very
it was a very complete game by the Eagles. But
I think it just showed how important a strong defense is.

Speaker 2 (12:37):
So yeah, I think in the playoffs to get to
the Super Bowl, I think that you need to be
able to score points and you need to go toe
to toe with anybody, you need to be incredibly productive.
But I do think that once it comes down to it,
Like I was part of a team when I was
with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that won the Super Bowl
on defense. I mean it was the thirty one to
nine score. The Chiefs didn't score one single touchdown in

(12:58):
that game. Yeah, I don't think and that doesn't happen,
Like they don't win that game if they don't limit
Patrick Mahomes obviously.

Speaker 4 (13:05):
So that's something that I've noticed.

Speaker 2 (13:07):
You where over the last few years there's been a
couple of just really incredible defensive performances in the Super
Bowl itself. But can you get to the Super Bowl
without having a productive offense? That's what I don't know.
I don't know that we're there quite yet. And it
actually kind of brings me to a team that actually
went from a defensive head coach to an offensive head
coach really quick, because I have a big asterisk kind

(13:28):
of next, Guys, when I talk about trending up or
trending down, the Chicago Bears, Okay, I think most people
would say they're trending up, and I agree with that,
with like the caveat that I don't. I still don't
expect them to go very far when it comes to
the playoffs this year.

Speaker 3 (13:47):
Yeah, I think that's very fair.

Speaker 2 (13:49):
They like, I'm trying to figure out, like if they're
the worst best team or the worst good team or
the best bad team in the league, and I think
it's the latter. And that's not to say that I
think that they're going to be a bad team. I
think they found their answer at head coach in Ben
Johnson because everything I've seen, I'm in that building at
least once a week, I go to.

Speaker 4 (14:09):
Most of those home games. I've seen Ben Johnson.

Speaker 2 (14:12):
On the you know, on the practice field, and just
the consistency with which the messaging is getting across. Every
single player gets up to the podium or talks to
us to the locker room and says the exact same
things that Ben Johnson says to us. And I'm like,
it seems so simple. But to have that consistent and
clear messaging with something the Bears were sorely lacking up
until this point, and that to me is the sign

(14:32):
of a really good foundation being laid. Now they're going
to start this game against the Steelers. They don't know
if they're going against Aaron Rodgers, but they're going to
do it without three of their linebackers. They're starting linebackers.
They have had a bunch of injuries in the secondary.
This is a defense you can run on. It's not
getting the pressure either that you necessarily want. And then
this offense has been very erratic because they haven't gotten

(14:54):
into a rhythm because Caayleb Williams is still he's doing
these very heroic things and he can evade pressure better
than anybody on the planet, but it comes at the
cost of the kind of the rhythm of the offense, right,
and so like, I like you see these glimpses and
you see these things being pieced together, and I think
they've prioritized the right things because they've got the defense
is number one to takeaways or number two, they're really

(15:14):
good on third down. Like, there's these little aspects of
each side of the ball in Chicago that are good
places to start. But I just don't know if they're sustainable,
especially in the NFC North. So well, that's my caveat,
which is.

Speaker 3 (15:27):
A fair caveat.

Speaker 5 (15:28):
What I have found interesting about the Bears as someone
who has covered the forty nine Ers for years and
have seen two kinds of teams on the forty nine ers,
the ones that grab victory from the jaws of defeat
and the ones that grab defeat from the jaws of victory.

Speaker 3 (15:40):
And I think what gives me hope for the Bears
and easily that they are now there.

Speaker 5 (15:44):
They're the first, they are the former, and I think
in the past they were very much the latter.

Speaker 4 (15:48):
Absolutely they were a definition of the latter.

Speaker 5 (15:50):
They certainly were, and they actually oftentimes victory wasn't even
in the car, even close to being in the cards
for them.

Speaker 3 (15:55):
But I think I agree with you.

Speaker 5 (15:57):
I don't know how far they go in the playoffs,
but I think as an overarching trending up, this team
I think is found finally in theory, found what it
needs to become a really good team this league. I
think Kayla Williams is only going to get better. Coaches
make so much of a difference, and we're seeing that
with Ben Johnson.

Speaker 3 (16:16):
Your two make so much of a difference.

Speaker 5 (16:18):
And also they have Colston Lovelin, so they're gonna win
the Superow skin Man.

Speaker 4 (16:22):
Of course you're gonna root for that.

Speaker 5 (16:23):
Movie obviously, and I sall tell you how jealous I
am every time you both from the Bear facility.

Speaker 2 (16:28):
I'm like, Hi, Cols, I got to see him get slimmed.

Speaker 4 (16:32):
It was funny.

Speaker 3 (16:33):
I know, it was so jealous.

Speaker 2 (16:34):
We have so much more to talk about, and Tracy,
you're the best person to talk.

Speaker 3 (16:38):
Oh, I got you on this one.

Speaker 2 (16:41):
What is going on with Brandon I in San Francisco.
We're gonna find out right after this. You're listening to
Fox Sports Radio.

Speaker 1 (16:47):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
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listen live.

Speaker 6 (17:00):
Hey, we're Covino and Rich Fox Sports Radio every day
five to seven pm Eastern. But here's the thing, we
never have enough time to get to everything we want
to get to.

Speaker 7 (17:08):
And that's why we have a brand new podcast called
over Promised. You see, we're having so much fun in
our two hour show. We never get to everything, honestly,
because this guy is over promising things we never have
time for.

Speaker 1 (17:21):
Yeah, you blubber list jam in me.

Speaker 6 (17:22):
Well, you know what it's called over promise. You should
be good at it because you've been over promising women
for years.

Speaker 7 (17:27):
Well, it's a Covino and Rich after show, and we
want you to be a part of it. We're gonna
be talking sports, of course, but we're also gonna talk
life and relationships. And if Rich and I are arguing
about something or we didn't have enough time, it will
continue on our after show called over Promised.

Speaker 8 (17:41):
Well, if you don't get enough.

Speaker 6 (17:42):
Covino and Rich, make sure you check out over Promised
and also uncensored, by the way, so maybe we'll go
at it even a little harder. It's gonna be the
best after show podcast of all time.

Speaker 7 (17:51):
There you go, over Promising. Remember you could see on YouTube,
but definitely join us. Listen Over Promised with Covino and
Rich on the iHeartRadio appp podcasts or wherever you get
your podcasts.

Speaker 2 (18:02):
Early two thousands, Alt Rock. You guys keep playing things
that just like make me want to sit here and
listen rather than actually come back from break. I'm Carmen Vitally.
It's another Fox Football Saturday. I've got Tracy Sandler with
me today and we're just all going back to the
late nineties, early two thousands. I don't know when did
this come out.

Speaker 5 (18:21):
That's a good when did this come out? It feels
like two thousand e right, yeah, okay.

Speaker 2 (18:26):
Like my like my little angsty like entering, like my
angsty teenagers. I know where I'm just like, I have
so many problems. Well, you know, looking back on it,
I had no problems at all.

Speaker 3 (18:35):
Yeah, it's very very fair.

Speaker 4 (18:38):
But you know who does have a lot of problems.

Speaker 2 (18:39):
Right now, I want to get straight into this, Tracy,
because I'm so happy. I mean, I'm not happy that
this happened, but I'm happy that it happened, right while
when we're gonna have you on the show, right and
you're gonna co host with me, because like I didn't
even have to, like I have all of the questions
for you. So this week it's announced that the forty
nine SCOO forty nine ers avoided the guaranteed money in

(19:02):
Brandon Ayuk's contract, a contract that is a one hundred
and twenty million dollar contract he signed last season.

Speaker 5 (19:09):
It was last right at the end of training camp,
right before the season started.

Speaker 2 (19:13):
Before the yes, right before the season started. After a
tumultuous battle as it was of like is he going
to say?

Speaker 4 (19:19):
Is he going to go?

Speaker 2 (19:19):
Is he It was very dramatic very and after all
of that, the forty.

Speaker 4 (19:24):
Nine ers pay him.

Speaker 2 (19:24):
They give one hundred and twenty million dollars million million
dollar contract. Now he's been injured this season, but like, so,
what happened what they voided, you know, it seemingly came
out of the blue that they're avoiding his guaranteed money,
and now it looks like Brandon Ayuk is now no
longer going to be a forty nine Er after the.

Speaker 5 (19:44):
Season, and it apparently they avoided it in training camp,
which says lot it's it's very interesting. I think, first
of all, this is one of the bigger mistakes of
this regime in that he was coming off a heck
of a season, but there was so much drama in
a contract negotiation, and they had dealt with that before,
but this was a little bit different, and they were

(20:06):
very close to training him trading him, and talk about drama.
You had Kyle Shanahan running up the stairs to stop
the trade. You know, they give him the money, and
then the drama just continues.

Speaker 3 (20:17):
He comes to practice and a different.

Speaker 5 (20:18):
Pair of shorts, different color pair of shorts than everybody else,
and it becomes I forget about it. Yeah, there's the
thing with it, and it seems kind of silly, but
the reality is like you go to practice, everybody's in
the same thing, and it became a thing and he
had to change and he throws his shorts off with
Kyle Shanahan like it's a whole thing, and then he
doesn't play well, as happens to a lot of guys

(20:39):
who hold out through training camp, and then it's basically
like the first two weeks of the season are their
training camp. He gets hurt, he suffers a terrible injury,
and where I think things just never got better. I mean,
in my opinion, the writing was on the wall during
the holdout and even after he signed the contract, to
be honest, but you had him in August looking like

(21:00):
he was making tremendous progress in terms of coming back. Now, granted,
I am not a doctor, so watching him run a
route in a preseason game on the field pregame is
not the same as him doing it in a game.
You know, by any means, he's just running a route
during warmups that he was allowed to do. But at
that time, Kyle Shanahan felt like week six for him,

(21:20):
and Malak Mustafa was dealing with an acl injury.

Speaker 3 (21:24):
But as we got closer to week six, all of a.

Speaker 5 (21:26):
Sudden, Brandon and a Yuk who had been at practice
a lot with the guys, and it had been described
both by Kyle Shanahan and the fort Niners wide receivers
coach Leonard Hankerson is having another coach in the room.
He's not out of practice so much anymore, and and
by so much, you don't really see him and you
get the feeling things are off. And then week six

(21:49):
comes by, we're not opening the practice window. With seven,
week eight, week nine, ten, Here we are in a
week twelve. Practice window isn't open, and there isn't a
ton of explanation on it. Questions are asked, they're answered,
but not with a lot of detail, and so something
has gone wrong.

Speaker 3 (22:06):
And I think the reality of the.

Speaker 5 (22:07):
Situation is whatever the issues were during the holdout and
during the contract negotiations, they never got solved. The money
got solved, but the issues did not get solved. And
so as a result of that, it just got worse
and worse and worse, and then he has the injury,
and it's just I just think it was a big mistake.

Speaker 3 (22:25):
I think it's of this regime.

Speaker 5 (22:27):
I think it's one of their top two mistakes that
they have made, and.

Speaker 3 (22:32):
They should have traded him.

Speaker 5 (22:33):
They just should have traded him for and I and
Yere's the other thing I do want to say, in
fairness to Brandon Aiyuk, we're getting we're seeing like I'm
saying to you, I haven't seen him at practice. Things
seemed to change. I'm sure there are there is another
side here. I'm going to put a lot of blame
on a Yuke, but there's definitely gonna blame on the organization.
So impossible that there's not. But I think part of
that blame, in my humble slash expert opinion as someone

(22:56):
who's been covering the seam a long time, is that
the issues were not worked out. Like I said, the
money was worked out, and he should have been traded
then it would have been better for everybody. To his
own admission, when he signed the contract last year, he said,
I made things more difficult than they had to be
and the Fortnatters didn't like his antics. Then he'd gotten
to offer August twelfth, twenty twenty four, it's the same

(23:16):
offer he ended up signing, and he did make it
more difficult, and he said he ultimately wanted to be there,
but I don't know that he did want to be there.
And it was very interesting after the Super Bowl, and
people are very emotional after they lose a super Bowl
and we're doing locker clean out and he was asked about,
you know, you gonna want to sign extension and he said,
I just I don't know. I want to basically said

(23:37):
I want to be somewhere where I can be a champion.
And he was emotional. They were all emotional. Was a
tough loss. I never really understood what that meant, like
didn't want to be traded to the Chiefs. I didn't
really understand what that meant. But looking back on it,
the fact that that was even starting to come into
his psyche and to his mind says a lot. And

(23:57):
I think I think just mistakes were made, and I
think probably everyone should have parted ways a while ago,
and I think they will part ways at the end
of the season, and it's just kind of too bad
that it came to this for all sides.

Speaker 2 (24:10):
Yeah, I mean, listen, he has an Arizona State alum.
I want to root for him, But.

Speaker 5 (24:14):
I like Brandon I will say that too. I want
to root for him. He's always been really great to me.
In the locker room, I do a lot of I
call it fun, fun content. I do a think Niner's
unplug He's always when he's healthy, he's always available to
be a part of it. So I just think mistakes
were made all around, and they'd probably blame everywhere.

Speaker 2 (24:32):
I'm so curious to see, like what provisions were in
his contract that could potentially that you know, because we
hear that the Niners voided his guarantee.

Speaker 5 (24:39):
Well get how detrimental because he was not and he
didn't They didn't say behavior detrimental to the team, but
he wasn't living up to the terms of his contract, right.

Speaker 2 (24:46):
It's like, I would love to know what those specific
terms were because also if they did this all the
way back in training camp, did they actually do it
back in training camp or did they just backdate it
to that, And what the was the provision in the
contract that allowed them to do this.

Speaker 5 (24:59):
Because if they did fight it, I think, yeah, that's
not to interrupt you, but I think that's a huge
thing to me. He told the NFL PA he didn't
want to fight it. There's a lot of money to
not want to fight, and that tells me a lot, right, So.

Speaker 2 (25:12):
I'm like, okay, it does because is he like clearly
he's trying to open the door for a trade, because
you're not gonna be able to like trading someone with
that much guaranteed money would have been hard.

Speaker 3 (25:20):
It's probably getting released.

Speaker 2 (25:22):
Yeah or yes or released and the team's not going
to do that. He wants to go somewhere else. I
guess it is a better way to put that. I'm
just I'm so curious to know, Like, all right, if
it did happen in training camp, then like what.

Speaker 4 (25:33):
Was it that changed?

Speaker 2 (25:35):
You know, like like because theoretically then he wouldn't have
been at practice at all this season, And then all
of a sudden, you said week six he's not a
practice on microphe.

Speaker 3 (25:42):
Well, no, I didn't say week six. I said week six.

Speaker 5 (25:44):
Is they when they talked about opening his practice window
and that couldn't happen? He I would say he he
was at practice the first two weeks. It was early.
It was relative Okay, so it wasn't up until week six. Yeah,
it was relatively early that he stopped.

Speaker 3 (25:56):
Being at practice. Now I will say, Kyle Shanahan.

Speaker 5 (25:59):
It their Monday Night football, so today is like a
Friday for him in the NFL, so he'll be giving
the game status report. This will be the first time
he speaks to the media since since all this came out.
So I obviously am not there today because I am here,
but I will keep an eye on it. So if
anything kind of comes from that that I think is interesting,
I'll share it as the show goes on.

Speaker 2 (26:17):
Sounds good, Well, the show must go on, and let's
get to an update break with Martin Wise.

Speaker 9 (26:25):
College football result has got a lot of teams in
laughers right now. We're gonna skip over them for this moment.
Seventh rngth Oregon with a fourteen to seven league and
I just.

Speaker 4 (26:34):
Look at the Notre Dame Syracuse scorer.

Speaker 8 (26:35):
Good God, Carmen.

Speaker 9 (26:37):
They there's eleven minutes left in the first half, That's
what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (26:41):
There are forty two points nothing and with over eleven
minutes still left the calimpourn.

Speaker 8 (26:46):
They apparently elected to kneel.

Speaker 10 (26:48):
I mean to wait for the clock to run out
on third and goal rather than putting in that last
touchdown in the first quarter.

Speaker 8 (26:55):
Oh wow, Well, I guess you know kind move, but
I mean, what are we doing here?

Speaker 9 (27:01):
I mean, like East Alabama's playing Eastern Illinois forty two
to nothing.

Speaker 8 (27:05):
Thanks for coming out, you.

Speaker 9 (27:06):
Know I it's just earlier today, you know what.

Speaker 4 (27:10):
I'm not skipping.

Speaker 8 (27:10):
I'm going through it. Rutgers, thanks for coming out forty
two to nine.

Speaker 4 (27:13):
Notre Dad better like they're.

Speaker 2 (27:15):
Fourth stringers in the second half. Like that's all I
have to say.

Speaker 9 (27:18):
Jeremiah loves already out of the schedules, third ranked Texas
A and m first Samford, who has won one game
this year forty eight to nothing.

Speaker 4 (27:27):
I can go on and on about the SEC scheduling.

Speaker 9 (27:30):
Angry Okay, Georgia again, nice Charlotte appreciated thirty five to three.
All right, at least Missouri and Oklahoma had the dejcy
to play a ranked game seventeenth to six. Oklahoma gets
to win, you know, Miami, and listen, you'll find zero
arguments here as we're looking at USC in Oregon. I

(27:50):
think I already said this for fourteen to seven. The
Trojans with the ball to start of the second quarter.
Texas right now is Arkansas says two wins in Texas
has a two point lead as Arkansas just goes into
the end zone fourteen to twelve extra point pending for
Arkansas started the second quarter there, Tulane with a ten
to seven lead over Temple Maryland and Michigan. Michigan with

(28:12):
the ball and it's tied seven apiece with two minutes
left in the first quarter.

Speaker 8 (28:17):
And then see elsewhere in the NBA.

Speaker 9 (28:19):
Clippers guard Chris Paul and Alceill retire at the end
of this season. Paul's forty years old, eleven time All Star,
eleven time member of an All NBA team played twenty
three minutes today in a one thirty one to one
sixteen win over the Hornets. NFL notes Joe Burrow will
not play Sunday against the Patriots, just by practicing this week.

Speaker 8 (28:37):
Yeah, that was never happening.

Speaker 9 (28:40):
The Steelers defense will have Cam Hayward and Garius Slay
Sunday against Chicago. Aaron Rodgers still questionable with that left
wrist fracture.

Speaker 8 (28:47):
Back to you guys, Thank you.

Speaker 3 (28:48):
Martin, Thank you Martin.

Speaker 2 (28:50):
We're gonna see but game of the week, Ah, there's
like two games of the week. We'll get to that
in a second, but one of them for sure I'm
so excited to talk to our next guest about the
Bucks Rams game in LA and we have Greg Amman
from Fox Sports on the line.

Speaker 4 (29:08):
Greg, how are.

Speaker 10 (29:09):
You good, car? I'm good to hear your voice. I
hope you're doing well.

Speaker 4 (29:12):
Same and right back at you now. All right.

Speaker 2 (29:14):
So I already's preface this by saying this is a
game of the week. This is kind of one of those.
This is a must win for the Bucks to keep,
you know, the division going down the slippery slope of
perhaps losing this division and not having control of it
at the very least and not controlling their own destiny.
Rams are riding a five game win streaks. Theoretically, you
think maybe they could be due for a loss.

Speaker 8 (29:34):
Greg.

Speaker 2 (29:34):
I also know that there is there was a bug,
an illness that swept through the Bucks building this week.
Can you tell me how everyone's doing and what we
think is going to happen leading.

Speaker 4 (29:46):
Up to this game. Yeah.

Speaker 10 (29:48):
I think the illness was like a midweek thing more
than this a Sunday thing. They had like boths. When
we talked to Boles on Wednesday, I think he said
fifteen players and five coaches to where it's like epidemic,
and then by like sir say, I think everybody was
off the injury report, so, like I said, probably not
the healthiest week, but I don't think it's something that
will necessarily impact the game.

Speaker 4 (30:08):
Okay, all right, that's good news for the Bucks.

Speaker 5 (30:12):
I think that's very do you is Cartman called it
a Muslin game, and I could not agree with her more.
Is that kind of the feeling in the building even
with the illness or is that kind of the prevailing thought?
They may not call it that, but is that kind
of the vibe?

Speaker 4 (30:26):
You know.

Speaker 10 (30:26):
It's one of those where again, I think it's a
game they want to win. It's a game they would
do well to win as long as Carolina loses to
the Niners, and it's not really a must win. It's
one of those where, you know, the main thing it
probably hurts them is in terms of like seeding, like
they've done well so far to beat the Seahawks, to
be the Niners, to have kind of the edge on
whoever comes out of the NFC West, maybe for the

(30:48):
three seed in the NFC, and to lose to the
Rams would probably you know, hurt that it's a conference laws,
those kind of things. But they're going to come out
of this even if they've lost three in a row
and five out of six and then kind of another
mid season swoon for them, with a really easy last
six games, and as long as they kind of take
care of business there, they should have a division title,

(31:10):
have a home game, might not have more than that.
That's kind of where they are with the injuries they
have right now.

Speaker 2 (31:16):
I want to talk to you about what was one
of those injuries, or is one of those injuries or
I don't know what's happening.

Speaker 4 (31:21):
But what's the latest with Bucky Irving.

Speaker 2 (31:23):
They're they're running back who had a tremendous start to
the season and has now missed quite a few games
under some I don't know if you want to call
it kind of tenuous circumstances.

Speaker 10 (31:33):
Yeah, so Todd both talked about him briefly after practice Friday.
You know, Bucky hasn't played since Week four, the last
we had seen him. You know, at practice he was
in a boot when crutches had a shoulder injury. And
it's kind of been one of those cryptic things. We're
in the NFL. If you don't put a guy on
I R there's this expectation they might pull two or
three games, So it's just been as perpetual as a

(31:55):
injury for him. Both hays In necessarily had a lot
of details about him. We hadn't him at all. So
he returned to practice last week, and both made a
point to say Friday that there's a little bit more
going on and that when Bucky got hurt, he said
he didn't handle it well, hadn't really been hurt, hadn't
been away from the team before. So I do think
there's a little bit more on a personal level for

(32:16):
him than just having a shoulder injury right now. But
both did say that every expectation now is that he'll
be able to play in return next week at home
against Arizona. They get three games in a row at home,
and it's kind of like a little bit of the
cavalry for the final stretch, if you will. They get
They should get Chris Godwin back Sunday in Los Angeles,
and there's still a lot of pieces that could come

(32:37):
back for them, But getting Bucky Irving back obviously be
a huge help. Knowing how much of a big foot
threat he was and how central he was in their
run game been so much better last year than it
had been, or really how it's been this year. Greg.

Speaker 5 (32:50):
It's funny because this season in some ways has totally
flown by, and then you say six more games and
it feels like, wow, they still have six more games,
which is a lot of games left to play. But
with the Bucks and how they started, and they have
the big one over the Niners and then they have
all these injuries, has it felt like a number of
seasons rolled up into one in this last these last
six games are basically like a fresh season for them

(33:12):
in some ways a little bit.

Speaker 10 (33:14):
Yeah, it's like everybody used to do the midway point
or the quarter point, and now it's kind of weird.
With an eighteen week season, you can do thirds, and
the Box obviously had an amazing first third. If you
will to go five and one, they're like number one
and everybody's power rankings. You know, they're only losses and
are the Eagles and the Lions soon after that, and

(33:34):
then the second again, they've kind of had this where
if you have a first fight schedule and a really
bad division, the middle of your season can be really daunting.
So it's one of those words, you know, even if
they lose against the Rams. It's three losses to the Bills,
the Patriots, and the Rams. There's not really a bad
loss they've had yet. Like somebody, I think the Fox
Power rankings have them at like eleven, okay, and their

(33:56):
four losses are the teams that are like two, four, seven,
and nine, So there's not there's not a bad loss,
and they've beaten six and ten in the same power ranking.
I just think because they've had games that got away
from them. You know, Buffalo is a game where they
let in the fourth quarter right, and then they gave
gave up to eighty year touchdown drives to finish the game.
So there's definitely a sense of disappointment. And I think

(34:16):
if they didn't have this this huge asterisk of all
the injuries they're dealing with, especially on offense, I think
it'd be more of a concern. But I think it's
just they're dinged up and they have a chance to
kind of come together against weaker oppulements in the final
months of the season and try and make some hay
in the playoffs.

Speaker 2 (34:32):
How much do you think Chris Godwin coming back allows
Baker to push the ball down the field a little
bit more, which has been kind of notably absent in
these last if you want to say this last third
of the season.

Speaker 10 (34:42):
Yeah, I think it helps a ton. I mean, they
had such amazing receiver depth going into the year, and
if you lose three or top four, suddenly a Mecca
Abuka is really the only guy that that feels like
an every down receiver in the NFL. You know, I
think Ted Johnson has done amazingly well, but he's a
seventh round draft pick who has four touchdowns. Hilly Shepherd.
I think he has stepped up, but Shilly Shepherd, you know,

(35:03):
it's probably a fifth receiver on his team under normal circumstances.
So to get God went back in just the normal
scene and the reliability of having somebody that's consistent and
reliable downfield. He came back for two games against the
Eagles and the Seahawks, but probably wasn't himself. I think
he has like fifty four yards this season. So you're
talking about somebody that you know, was getting a huge contract.

(35:24):
You know, every hope that he'd be able to come
back from a major injury and it just hasn't happened yet.
So I think they've been careful with him to not
rush him back this time and again. I mean, it
could be a huge difference, just to give somebody else
that defenses have to respect downfield, somebody to take some
of the load off of Mecca Buka, who I think
has handled it. I don't think he expected to be

(35:44):
a receiver one in the NFL last year, but I
think it makes life easier for everybody else on offense
to have Chris Gottwin back.

Speaker 4 (35:53):
Yeah. I mean, I think that's just the biggest thing
that's missing with their offense right now.

Speaker 2 (35:56):
Well, Greg, I really appreciate you taking a few minutes
of your time, tik I'm on a Saturday to talk
to us as always, so thank you so much, and
enjoy the game tomorrow.

Speaker 10 (36:05):
Thanks for having me.

Speaker 4 (36:06):
All right, bye, Greg.

Speaker 2 (36:08):
All right, We've got our dues and the don'ts of
the week coming up after this. You're listening to Fox
Football Saturday. Welcome back in to Fox Sports Radio. It's
Fox Football Saturday. I'm your host, Karmen Vitally and I
have Tracy Sandler with me as well. Uh. We just
talked to Greg Ahman ahead of Bucks Rams, which is
going to be one of the games of the week.

(36:30):
I think the fun part about being in the back
third of the season now is that like every game
could really mean something, or at least between any sort
of team that's over five hundred. Yeah, so it's gonna
be a good game. If you've missed any of today's
show already, you'll want to catch the podcast. Just search
Fox Sports Radio wherever you get your podcasts. Right after
the show, today's podcast will be posted. Be sure to

(36:51):
follow the podcast rate at five stars, and you can
even provide a review.

Speaker 4 (36:54):
Again.

Speaker 2 (36:55):
Just search Fox Sports Radio wherever you get your podcasts,
and you'll find today's full show posted right after we
get off the air. All right, well, it's it's time
for our weekly segment, the Dues and the Don'ts of
the Week.

Speaker 6 (37:09):
High putting a spotlight on the don't The subject brings
me no joy.

Speaker 4 (37:15):
Don't do that. That's insane.

Speaker 1 (37:18):
It's time for the dues and the don'ts in sports.

Speaker 2 (37:21):
All right, I want, I'll start, I will start.

Speaker 4 (37:27):
Okay, go for it.

Speaker 2 (37:30):
I guess I'm starting with a don't and it's not
totally a complete sentence, but it's still complain especially when
you're faced with the decision between millions of dollars. And
I don't know if you know where I'm going with this,
but Lane Kiffin came out Ole Missus head coach came
out talking about systematic.

Speaker 4 (37:45):
Issues with the college calendar.

Speaker 2 (37:48):
While and listen, while he's not wrong, You're not the
one that needs to be complaining about this. You are
electively choosing to potentially leave a college a contender, a
lay off contender, if not a national champion, can tender
to go to another school.

Speaker 4 (38:05):
That doesn't happen.

Speaker 2 (38:07):
This is not a situation that literally, like anyone else
would find themselves in, except for.

Speaker 4 (38:13):
Lane Kiffen, who is being.

Speaker 2 (38:15):
Courted by Florida and LSU LSUS reportedly wants to offer
him ninety million dollars.

Speaker 3 (38:22):
Of course, just like I can't even wrap my head
around that.

Speaker 2 (38:25):
And like Ole Missus ad Cam comes out and says
like we're gonna wait on that, and like we'll we'll
have a decision on Lane's future here with the university
after the Egg Bowl, And I'm like, this is all
just absolutely insane, But like, if anyone's gonna complain about it,
it should be John summerl at Tulane. Who you know,

(38:46):
Tulane is ranked the twenty fourth ranked to Tulane. Like
John Sumral is clearly one of those coaches that is
ready for a bigger job. But like this is like
having to talk about that and maybe go out for
one of these jobs the LSU lord of jobs, these
these vacancies that are already there, Like he's kind of
put in a bad position because of the college calendar
and the way the hiring cycle is. But Lane Kiffin,

(39:10):
when you were electively choosing to potentially leave a contender
to go to another school, like I don't I don't
want to hear it.

Speaker 4 (39:16):
I don't want to hear it.

Speaker 3 (39:17):
That's fair. I think that's that's very very fair.

Speaker 5 (39:20):
I also think it's really funny that it's going to
be after the egg Bowl, which is a real thing,
but it just sounds fake. I mean, it makes it
the whole thing sounds just kind of ridiculous.

Speaker 4 (39:26):
But it is ridiculous. It is, well it is. It's
fittingly ridiculous.

Speaker 5 (39:30):
All eyes on the egg bowl, you guys, all eyes
on the egg ball. All right, I'm going to do
a do This is one of my favorite two weeks
in the NFL. Is my cause my cleats and NFL
players put literally put their causes on their cleats, raise
money for organizations, bring attention to organizations that mean a
lotch them. It's I just think it is such a
cool thing, and I my do is a little bit

(39:50):
to the NFL. Let my cause my cleats be all
year round. I mean, it's just such a cool time
of year. You get to really see what some of
these players are past about, and there's so many good ones.
Christian McCaffrey's The Logan Project is giving money to families
with children who are suffering from cancer. Curtis Robinson is

(40:13):
working with Solomon Thomas Thomas's Foundation on You Suicide prevention,
and you just it's just great and I wish it's
something that could be implemented year round, even if there
were two weeks to make it extra special. It's a
special time in the NFL, so to do pay attention
this weekend next to my cosmic cleats, what your players
are supporting, learn more about it because it's just.

Speaker 3 (40:35):
Really really cool and the cleats look great.

Speaker 4 (40:38):
Yeah, I love this.

Speaker 2 (40:39):
I mean working for a team was always like my
cause my cleates week was always insane because I wanted
to I was always writing like four to five features
about these guys causes, and it was like it always
all condensed into one week, and you were just you
wanted to do justice to each one of these stories,
and like you really it was hard, but it was
such good stuff and good work. So I loved it.
I loved them bringing Awareen. I think they should let

(41:01):
him do it all the time. But hey, we've got
a lot more comming up for you. Right after this.
You're listening to Fox Football Saturday. Welcome back in for
hour two of Fox Football Saturday. I am carme vitally.
I've got Tracy Sandler with me. We're having a great time.
It's been a great show so far. We talked a
little bit about this Brandon Ayuk saga that continues in

(41:25):
San Francisco, and I'm told Tracy have a little bit.

Speaker 4 (41:28):
Of an update.

Speaker 3 (41:29):
I do.

Speaker 5 (41:29):
Kyle Shanahan speaking to the media today for the first
time since the news broke. I'm obviously not there because
I'm here, but I'm keeping an eye on it and
a couple of things. He said that Brandon Ayuke's twenty
twenty six guarantees were in fact voided in July.

Speaker 3 (41:43):
He wouldn't get the specifics. But that was that. But
then he also said this one I'm not so sure of.
But he also said they.

Speaker 5 (41:50):
Were aiming to get Brandon and i Ayuke back on
the field. By now his progress is plateaued.

Speaker 3 (41:55):
Quote.

Speaker 5 (41:56):
I still hold out hope that he could get there.
In my expert opinion, that is not going to happen,
but we'll see. I mean, Kyle Shanhan knows more than
I do, but still I feel pretty confident in making
that prediction.

Speaker 3 (42:06):
But those are your updates.

Speaker 5 (42:07):
There were questions on when exactly in training camp were
these guarantees voided.

Speaker 3 (42:12):
What is interesting about.

Speaker 5 (42:13):
That is I took a video of Brinda Yuke at
a preseason game in August in Las Vegas, in pregame
warm ups, running routes, so those would have had it
been voided before that. For that, he was not one
hundred percent healthy by any means at that time. But
it is kind of interesting from a timing perspective, and
I'm sure we will learn more in the coming days.

Speaker 4 (42:35):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (42:35):
That goes back to then my question of all right,
so if these contracts or if these guarantees were avoided
in July, and you said that at least for the
first couple of weeks of the seasons. Yeah, that he
was out there, he was practicing, and like, if he wasn't.

Speaker 3 (42:49):
Practicing, if he wasn't practicing, his practices had not been right.
But he'd been. But he was there as an observer, right,
he was.

Speaker 2 (42:56):
He was out there at practice, yes, and with the team.
Sound like he was in the meeting rooms as well,
and he went through the full training camp like you
know again also supporting the team, doing all the things
that he needs to be doing while he's rehabbing. Then, like,
what changed it is because at that point he would
have known that these contents, these guarantees were avoided. And

(43:20):
I want, Yeah, I just I wonder, I wonder what
is the real story here?

Speaker 5 (43:24):
And I think we will get we'll probably get more
specifics on that. I understand Kyle not wanting to get
into them today and he probably doesn't want to get
into it at all, but they're gonna They're probably gonna
have to address it at sometime, even if it's John
Lynch who ends up addressing it.

Speaker 3 (43:37):
But we will see how this all plays out. But
that is kind of the the news of the moment.

Speaker 4 (43:43):
Why did it all come out now?

Speaker 3 (43:45):
And why did it all come out now?

Speaker 2 (43:48):
As you know, a lot of this stuff, especially like
stuff like this, it doesn't leak on accident, you know
what I mean.

Speaker 3 (43:54):
No, it does not.

Speaker 5 (43:55):
And great reporting from Mike Silver and Diana Russini and
they really did a great job on this to friends
from the athletic but no, it doesn't. It doesn't happen
on accident. So I don't know, it's going to be interesting.

Speaker 4 (44:12):
The ulterior motive to leaking this now.

Speaker 5 (44:14):
Yes, let's going they know, they did say in the story.
The forty nine ers didn't comment. Brandon Aiyuk's team didn't comment, so.

Speaker 4 (44:23):
This isn't new to them.

Speaker 3 (44:24):
No, it's but I'll tell you what it is, drama.

Speaker 5 (44:28):
The forty nine ers, who specialize in quarterback drama, are
broadening their horizons to wide receiver drama. And they've had
quite a bit of it the last year. So congratulations.
I think the more you can do, the better.

Speaker 4 (44:38):
Yeah, well, there you go, and listen. Hey, you're never
going to be short on storylines with a team that
you covered, Tracy.

Speaker 3 (44:44):
Oh, that is for sure, my friend.

Speaker 2 (44:46):
Another thing that's not short on storylines. Fox Sports pregame
show for the best pregame show every weekend, be sure
to tune in to Fox Sports Radios count Down to
kick Off, presented by Bett MGM every Saturday and Sunday morning.
We will count you down to all of the biggest
games for three hours right up until kickoff. For all
the best plays and up to the second injury news.
Tune in to count Down to Kickoff, presented by Bet
MGM every Saturday and Sunday morning right here on Fox

(45:09):
Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app. Okay, so let's get
into some stuff that's going to happen though tomorrow and
we're getting week twelve. We talked about a little bit
about this with Greg Alman, who we had on the
show last hour, but Bucks rams I mentioned it when
we talked to Greg in that something that's been missing

(45:30):
with Tampa over the last few weeks has just been
the explosive aspect to their passing offense. Baker just hasn't
been able to connect down the field, and again you're
down your top receivers.

Speaker 4 (45:39):
That makes sense.

Speaker 2 (45:39):
Guys get moved around, Guys get moved into positions where
maybe they weren't quite ready for them yet, or it's
just it's hard when a rookie, I mean, Abuka is
your only guy that you can considerably rely on down
the field. It makes it really easy easy for defense
is to take that away. But Mayfield's eleven point one
percent deep complete should rate over this span is the

(46:02):
from week seven to eleven is the span is the
lowest by any quarterback to attempt at least five deep passes. However,
they're going into a I mean they're going into LA.
They're in the Rams house, and the Rams defense has
allowed just four deep completions across the first six weeks
this season, which is tied for the third fewest, but
have surrendered eight deep completions since then, which is tied

(46:24):
to the third most. So they've kind of had. Now
we wonder, all right, do the Rams get back on
track defensively or does Baker get back on track offensively?
I think that's what a lot of what this game
is going to come down to, because you're gonna need
to push the ball down the field. You're gonna need explosives,
you're gonna need production and scoring points if you want
to keep up with the Rams.

Speaker 5 (46:40):
And you know Greg had said that should the four
Niners beat the Panthers. Yes, this would be a very
good game for them to win. It's at a Muslin game.
I don't think that the four nine ers ap are
one hundred percent beating the Panthers. I think they should
beat the Panthers. But I think this is a much
tougher game today than maybe it looked like a month ago.
So to me, and again I don't cover the Bucks.

(47:01):
I'm not in the building every day, but just from
the outside, this feels very must win. You mentioned the
Rams are on a five game winning streak. Are they
due for a loss? So which one of these two prevail?

Speaker 3 (47:15):
I don't know.

Speaker 5 (47:15):
Gut Gut tells me it might be Baker getting back
on track. But the issue I think is that Baker
could get back on track and the Rams defense could
also get back on track, right, in which case I
think the Rams have the up.

Speaker 2 (47:27):
Yeah, then who then who wins? And I mean, Matthew
Stafford is having an incredible season. I keep saying it,
But whatever was in that cryo chamber in training camp?
What it was that little aluminum trailer?

Speaker 5 (47:38):
I want it asap staff I mean in LA Maybe
I'll have to go check it out and just see hey, guys,
can I do it?

Speaker 2 (47:46):
Guess run I didn't mention it what Greg was on
with us because we kind of ran out of time.
But he wrote for Fox Sports dot Com. He wrote
an oral history of Baker's debut with the Rams a
few years ago. When he came in, Oh, I read
tremendous bat Like it was just a literal storybook like
movie like you know how people say, oh, it was
a movie. Like no, it literally was a movie, like

(48:06):
they could make a movie out of that. He had
gotten to the Rams two days prior and all of
a sudden, like and and Greg tracked down all of
those coaches that were there.

Speaker 4 (48:14):
He tried.

Speaker 2 (48:15):
He talked to Baker's wife and talked to her about
how like she almost didn't fly out because Baker was like, Oh,
there's no way I'm getting in and then like the
day before he was like, ooh, you might want to
get in here, and like she had to fly out
because he had just gotten released. So it was just
it was it's a very interesting article. I really encourage
you guys to go read it. Another The other Game

(48:35):
of the Week contender Colts chiefs uh, and we're going
to talk to Colts team reporter Laara Overton in this hour,
which I'm super excited about. But this game is so
interesting because we're finally kind of like, uh, are the
Chiefs actually in trouble? Like this is this to talk about?
It must win, Like the Chiefs have to win this game. Yeah,

(48:56):
and they're going against a red hot Colts team. And
the way that these matchups kind of work, I point
to one specific thing, and that's what I try to
do when we do this previous I point to one
specific thing that I think the game could ride on. Essentially,
and Daniel Jones for all of the wonderful things and
we'll get to this in a little bit that he

(49:17):
is doing right now. When using play action this season,
Daniel Jones has completed over seventy percent of his past attempts,
averaging the fifth most yards per attempt at nine point two.
You contrast that with how the Chiefs have done against
play action this season. They've allowed a league high eighty
one point two percent completion percentage against play action as
well as the second most yards per attempt with eleven.

(49:38):
So what Daniel Jones is extremely good at, the Chiefs
defense has been extremely bad at this year, and to me,
that could just mean sustain drives. That could mean points
and a lot of production out of this Colts offense
led by Daniel Jones against a Chiefs team that is
desperate for a win.

Speaker 5 (49:59):
Well, I hesitate to say what I'm about to say
because I'm saying it, so therefore it won't be. However,
I all season long have felt like I can't count
out the Chiefs.

Speaker 3 (50:09):
I can't count out with Patrick Mahomes.

Speaker 5 (50:11):
I think I'm getting to the point where the I
think I'm counting out the Chiefs. I just think it's
we talked about the NFL being cyclical earlier on in coaches,
but I think that their cycle, their time has maybe
not come to an end. But I'm kind of counting
out the Chiefs. They're just better teams, more complete teams.

(50:32):
Patrick Mahomes is incredible. I will not take that away
from He is absolutely incredible, and as long as he
has their quarterback, they have a chance. But they are
coming up against teams that are just playing better, that
are more complete, that just do the things that they
do better. And I feel like every week they're coming
up against a team where the thing that that team
does well the Chiefs going against it do really poorly

(50:53):
at and I just think it's it's kind of done,
and that's not a bad thing they've had. I mean,
it's probably for them, but they've heck of a run
and they'll probably have it again. But I am now
at the point where I think they're done. And because
I've said it, that probably won't be true, but I
they've that's what they've.

Speaker 3 (51:11):
Done to me. That's why they've done going in a listen,
I think it's understandable.

Speaker 2 (51:15):
I don't think I'm quite there yet, but I will
tell you why I'm closer to that than I'm not.

Speaker 4 (51:20):
Okay, And it's not necessarily even.

Speaker 2 (51:22):
Having to do with the Chiefs struggling, because again we've
seen them struggle and come back and be fine and
go to the Super Bowl, win the Super Bowl whatever.
What concerns me now is now you have these other
teams in the conference that are getting better and rising up,
and now the Chief's main competition is no longer just
the Buffalo Bills. It's now the New England Patriots again,

(51:43):
and it's the Denver Broncos, and it's perhaps even the Chargers,
it's the Colts, it's it's there's so many more teams
that are ascending right now in that conference that are
making the just just the competition level that much harder.
And now the Chiefs don't like you talk about how
the Bills might have missed their window, but like, and

(52:04):
it's for the same reason in that like, the Bill's
main competitor or competition was the Chiefs, and the Chief's
main competition was the Bills.

Speaker 4 (52:12):
And now like so many other teams have entered.

Speaker 5 (52:14):
The villa, yes, has entered the villa and multiple I
my AFC Championship prediction is Colts Francos. That is who
I see in the AFC Championship.

Speaker 4 (52:28):
Yeah, I mean I like it.

Speaker 2 (52:29):
I had I think at the beginning of the season,
I have my Super Bowl prediction was Packers Bills, which
I mean, it doesn't look as good as it did
in the beginning of the season, but I don't know.
But like, yeah, I mean, I think that when we're
talking about parody being at an all time high in
the NFL this season, it's going to manifest in a
Super Bowl matchup and a conference conference championship matchups that

(52:50):
perhaps we didn't see coming at the beginning of the year,
which I love. And one quick note just because we
have to get out of here soon. But still don't
know if Aaron Rodgers will play against Chicago this weekend
in yeah, Soldier Field, where he apparently owns.

Speaker 3 (53:06):
I mean, well his mere presence however, just for felled.

Speaker 4 (53:11):
Yeah, I don't know.

Speaker 2 (53:11):
The Steelers did upgrade a couple of players from their
questionable status to you know, not no game designation, saying
they're gonna go. Aaron Rodgers was not one of those players,
so he still has a chance, but he still listened
as questionable. Chicago, meanwhile, is missing their starting three linebackers.
They did not bring about Kyler Gordon or Jalen Johnson,
They did not activate them off of injured reserve, and
they added Tremaine Edmunds two injured reserve, just very quietly.

Speaker 4 (53:35):
They just added him to the website without telling anybody.

Speaker 3 (53:37):
It was quiet.

Speaker 5 (53:38):
It was like, oh, interesting, okay, don't get me started.

Speaker 2 (53:43):
But anyway, so this is gonna be I don't know,
it's gonna be very interesting because if Rodgers ends up
playing and the Bears defense is that banged up and
without where it's it's, Rogers might retain his deed.

Speaker 4 (53:53):
That's all I have to say.

Speaker 3 (53:54):
That's fair.

Speaker 4 (53:55):
All right.

Speaker 2 (53:55):
Coming up after this, we've got a top three quarterback discussion.
Who we think those are? Coming up? You're listening to
Fox Football Saturday. Welcome back in to Fox Sports Radio
for a Fox Football Saturday. I'm Carmon Vitally. That's Tracy Sandler.

Speaker 3 (54:12):
Hello.

Speaker 4 (54:12):
We're having a great show. I'm having fun.

Speaker 5 (54:16):
I'm having fun too. This is a great show. It
feels it just feels it feels very much like Weird
Week twelve of the NFL, and there's all the things
are happening, and it's just been really fun to get.

Speaker 2 (54:24):
All the thing Like it was so easy to like
come up with topics for today. I was just like, oh,
well we can talk about that. We can talk about that, Like,
I mean, there are things that I had to cut.

Speaker 3 (54:31):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (54:34):
Did you hear barking in the background? That is That
is my now one year old dog. He celebrated his
birthday yesterday.

Speaker 4 (54:40):
Happy birthday, Shout out, Mozzarelstick. His name is Mozzarelistick. He
goes by Mozzie.

Speaker 5 (54:47):
Happy Birthday, Mozzie, So I do prefer to call him
by his full name monzrelistic, mozrelistic.

Speaker 2 (54:51):
I know it's it's he's got a white stripe down
his chest and then he's like the color of the breading.
So it just it all worked out and it's hysterical.
But like when I get mad at him, I call
him by his full name, and I'm like, this is stupid.
I can't call him by his full name.

Speaker 3 (55:04):
Do you know the use checks?

Speaker 5 (55:05):
By the way, I have a dog named Mozzarella and
they call him Matfi. Really ye, Monzella and Parrogi, but Mozzarella.

Speaker 3 (55:11):
They go so cute.

Speaker 4 (55:13):
Wait are they? I mean, obviously Kyle is Polish, but
are they also Italian?

Speaker 3 (55:16):
I believe yes, because that's me. I'm assuming I'm Polish
and Italian.

Speaker 4 (55:20):
I'm the Chicago mix. It's great. Basically, I'm basically a
used check. This is fantastic.

Speaker 2 (55:26):
Okay, Well, moving back on to you can move full backs,
having onto quarterbacks before we get there. With the iHeartRadio app,
you can stream us and this conversation wherever you happen
to be. Catch us in all of our Fox Sports
Radio shows live twenty four to seven in the new
and improved iHeartRadio app. Just search Fox Sports Radio in

(55:47):
the app to stream us live all day every day,
and be sure to select Fox Sports Radio as one
of your presets in the iHeart app so that it
will always pop up the top of your screen. What
I want to talk about is the top of the
NFL when it comes to quarterbacks. And I want to
preface this by saying like, this is this is this year,
this is right now. I'm not taking into account past years.

(56:07):
I'm not taking into account passed Super Bowls. This that
the other I am talking about this year from weeks
one to now week twelve. Who are the top three
quarterbacks in the league. And there is a case to
be made that this goes Drake May, Sam Darnold, and
Daniel Jones in basically any order you want to put

(56:28):
them in, because Drake May leads the league right now
in EPA per drop back completion percentage. He's completing seventy
one point nine percent of his passes in is only
a second year in the NFL. Sam Donald leads the
league in success rate and first down percentage. Daniel Jones
is second or third in all of those metrics, and
just you know, is killing it for the Colts on
a red hot Colts team, it's you know, Lamar Jackson's,

(56:52):
Matthew Stafford, Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes. They deserve to be
in the convo here too, of course, But again, if
we're talking strictly this Sea, it's those three. And it's
why I love this stupid sport so incredibly much. Because
who in the world saw the league's top three quarterbacks
this season being Drake May, Sam Darnald and Daniel Jones.

Speaker 5 (57:16):
I think probably no one. Anybody who says they did
is lying. I'm sorry hearing.

Speaker 2 (57:21):
Oh, even if you believe that, like Sam Dnald was
changed for good to borrow a wicked phrase, you know,
from his time and it is from his time in Minnesota. Like,
even if you believed that, did you really see him
becoming one of the three best quarterbacks in the league.

Speaker 5 (57:37):
No, I mean, I know, I definitely did not. I'm
still a little on the fence there. So I looked
at this. I looked at this yes week one through twelve,
But also I looked at it kind of as we're
going down the stretch and who kind of is hot
right now, who's improving? I did not have darn on

(57:58):
my list, and part of the reason is because yes,
we're talking weeks one through twelve and not what's happened
in the past. But what I'm going to say happened
in the past and is continuing, and that's why I'm
going to bring it up. You know, Sam Donald, his
last two games as the Vikings, the two most important
games he played as a Viking, did not go well.
Multiple turnovers, multiple sacks, did not go well. They are

(58:19):
the Seahawks are really really good football team. I put
them in probably one of the top five teams in
the league right now. He has been playing tremendously well.
The turnovers are still the problem. He had a Monday
night game with five turnovers and he they won. They
had a game last weekgainst the Rams four turnovers they
almost won, which I think speaks to how good the

(58:40):
defense is and how good the Seahawks are over all.
The turnovers to me take him out of the top three.
And maybe that's not fair, but I think to me
that takes him the top three. I put Stafford in
his place because of how he's been playing all season.
But Sam Donald could very much prove me wrong or
change my mind by going through this final stretch into
the playoffs without those problems.

Speaker 3 (59:02):
I really like Sam Donald.

Speaker 5 (59:03):
He was at the Foe and Hours for a year,
really nice guy, did all the community events like great guys.
So I want him to be successful. But the turnovers,
to me, are just an issue that hasn't gone away.
And that's why I don't have him in my top three.
He's not far below, but I don't have him in
my top three.

Speaker 2 (59:21):
Yeah, And like when I, you know, talking about this year,
and I said, there's a case we made that those
are the top three, like those are I don't even
know if those are my top three because I really
did think I would put Stafford in there too, like
honestly because just of the season that he's having and
the season that the Rams are having, and the fact
that we're talking about Sam Donald again. I think he's
been phenomenal and I think he is a really good quarterback,

(59:43):
but he is being helped tremendously by a very like
one of the league's best defenses at this point. And
do I necessarily like, if if your game on the line,
like if you look at this or another lens of
like game on the line, who do I want under center?
Is it Sam Donald? Or is it Matt Stafford. Well,
the answer is Matthew Stafford.

Speaker 3 (01:00:02):
And it's probably Patrick Mahomes.

Speaker 2 (01:00:03):
It's probably Patrick Mahomes. It's probably Josh Allen. I know
Marje Allen.

Speaker 5 (01:00:08):
I actually don't know if I would say Pat Ja's
I don't know that.

Speaker 3 (01:00:11):
I think it's Josh hallandor Lamar Jackson.

Speaker 2 (01:00:12):
I kind of I was, you know, I can't talk
out of both sides of my mouth here because I
talked earlier about.

Speaker 3 (01:00:17):
You totally can I talked earlier about how.

Speaker 2 (01:00:19):
Josh Allen is being failed by the team around him,
and I'm like, if you put him with a good team,
like in my imaginary world where I'm putting who do
I want on my team under center, like, it's it's
Josh Allen, because I do think that he can overcome
so much and he has, you know, he can do
those things. I think he's being failed right now.

Speaker 3 (01:00:36):
But he can't. But I have one caveat to that.

Speaker 5 (01:00:38):
This is just one caveat, is he's not when you're
pressing like that, I think that's a not great under pressure.
And I think when we talked about the playoff game
with the Chiefs last year, he started pretty shaky got
a lot better, but he started shaky, and so I
still need to see him be that elite, cool, calm

(01:00:59):
guy in.

Speaker 2 (01:01:00):
Meanwhile, Matthew Stafford is just like you know these comfort
behind wins or just like I mean, he in Like
I don't know if there's anybody, I mean, other than
Patrick Mahomes. I suppose, but I don't know if there's
anyone that I would rather execute a two minute.

Speaker 4 (01:01:12):
Drill or win a game. Yeah, or than Matthew Stafford.

Speaker 9 (01:01:15):
One.

Speaker 3 (01:01:15):
I think that's totally totally fair.

Speaker 2 (01:01:17):
No, I mean, but like this is all semantics, and
it's really interesting, like if you're gonna broad this like
top five quarterbacks, like all of these guys are kind
of the ones that belong in there. And just the
sheer fact that Drake May as a member of the
New England Patriots. I was terrified last year when they
put him in mid season behind that offensive line. I
was like, they're gonna get him killed and he is

(01:01:39):
going to have a tremendous start to his career. And
who knows the effects that that's going to have because
we've seen it. We saw with Sam Darnold, we've seen
it with Daniel Jones, where like the start that you
get in the league matters so incredibly much from a
mental perspective and a mechanic's perspective, a development perspective, Like
just because you made it to the league doesn't mean
you're done developing, growing, or learning as a quarterback, especially

(01:02:02):
because it's the toughest division or it's the toughest position
in sports. And I was like, you're gonna put Drake
May out there behind this piecemeal offensive line. He's gonna
get lit up every other play. Turns out, it probably
was like the best thing to happen to him, because
I think it also let people know and it reminded
people just how athletic Drake May is. And it's why

(01:02:23):
one of the reasons why I was so incredibly in
love with him in the pre draft process, because I
was like, not only is this guy an incredible pastor
you can tell a really good processor, but he has
a lot of athleticism.

Speaker 4 (01:02:35):
To him that can get him. He can get himself
out of trouble.

Speaker 2 (01:02:38):
Yeah, And like he's not a running quarterback by any
stretch of the imagination, but like in those scrambles in
like kind of the pressure evading and even some of
those like really short kind of design runs just you know,
those outs to the to the sideline just to pick
up a few yards.

Speaker 4 (01:02:51):
This, that, and the other.

Speaker 2 (01:02:52):
He's incredibly decisive and he is making it look so
incredibly easy for someone that is this is his Like again,
he hasn't even started two full seasons yet, I'm just
I'm so impressed.

Speaker 3 (01:03:04):
Yeah, I could not agree with you more and I
think you're right.

Speaker 5 (01:03:07):
It was the best thing that happened to him, and
he really he really excelled under pressure.

Speaker 3 (01:03:12):
I mean, it's unbelievable.

Speaker 5 (01:03:13):
And then he had Mike Rabel this year and we
talked a lot about this last week.

Speaker 4 (01:03:17):
And to be the Patriots coach.

Speaker 5 (01:03:19):
Coaches, it makes such a difference, and we judge these
young quarterbacks and we make decisions on them a few
games into their career, and it's just so unfair because
there's so many factors and variables that go into it.
And we're talking about Matthew Stafford, who is we think
one of the top quarterbacks in the league and certainly
is and was an excellent quarterback with the Lions, taking

(01:03:39):
nothing away from that, but it was still got traded
and still got traded and but really always kind of
had that is he elite?

Speaker 3 (01:03:45):
Can he take a tea?

Speaker 5 (01:03:46):
Well, yeah he is, but you do have to be
in a decent situation. I mean, we're even seeing with Mahomes,
like Mahomes has been able to overcome so much and
this may be the year where he just can't because
there's just not enough around him to help him overcome it.
And that's just that's the nature of quarterbacking. So it's
it's really been fun to watch. It's been fun to
watch him. It's fun I think, you know, we talk
about Daniel Jones, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, these guys that

(01:04:08):
were written off and now they're in good situations and
they're excelling and you love to see it.

Speaker 2 (01:04:13):
We're gonna talk a little bit more about Daniel Jones
with our next guest, but first we're going to the
update room with Martin Weiss.

Speaker 9 (01:04:24):
This Oregon and USC game has been back and forth.
Now I got to check in real quick. Oregon just
missed a field goal. I'm sorry us. He just missed
a field goal twenty eight to fourteen.

Speaker 2 (01:04:35):
USC to cover. I'm just gonna say that right now.
I don't think they're gonna win.

Speaker 4 (01:04:38):
I need them to come within ten and a half.

Speaker 8 (01:04:40):
Ten and a half.

Speaker 9 (01:04:41):
I'll tell you what dway that Lincoln Riley's been calling
this game good luck.

Speaker 8 (01:04:45):
No, I will say this.

Speaker 9 (01:04:46):
I don't know if what Michigan needs to cover, but
that two minute drill before.

Speaker 8 (01:04:50):
That, which do you Watchchase? That ridiculous?

Speaker 5 (01:04:52):
I sure did watch it, but you would never know
by my demeanor, And we're.

Speaker 11 (01:04:56):
So professional, Tracy, I would have never guessed you know
what it's You were much more professional than the drive
that we just saw by Michigan as they go into
the half with a twenty one to ten lead, leaving just.

Speaker 9 (01:05:08):
All types of opportunities. All right, I'm gonna go get
into the rest of college football. Utah and Kansas State
in a war right now. Twenty one apiece, the twelfth
ranked that Utah, are you trying to hang in there?
Forty on far four minutes and forty five seconds left
in the first half. Two lane up big on Temple,
thirteen points, twenty to ten at the half.

Speaker 8 (01:05:25):
I shouldn't have said that's up big. Everywhere else is
up big.

Speaker 9 (01:05:28):
Vanderbilt twenty forty three over Kentucky at the half, the
Notre Dame was up twenty one to nothing before they.

Speaker 8 (01:05:33):
Touched the ball offensively.

Speaker 9 (01:05:35):
Today it's now fifty six to nothing with you know,
just they're still playing.

Speaker 8 (01:05:41):
So I'll leave it there.

Speaker 5 (01:05:44):
There should be, there should be, this is under there
should be.

Speaker 9 (01:05:47):
This is what happens when I play like the Road
to Glory road. Jeremiah love Is eight carries, one hundred
and seventy one yards and three touchdowns.

Speaker 4 (01:05:53):
I mean he's not in the gary work.

Speaker 3 (01:05:56):
No, he's on the bench right now taking pictures of him.

Speaker 4 (01:05:58):
That's good.

Speaker 8 (01:05:58):
That's a good two week run. He doesn't need to
be in the game.

Speaker 4 (01:06:00):
Anyway, right, No, and he shouldn't be, thank God.

Speaker 8 (01:06:03):
All right?

Speaker 9 (01:06:03):
And who else won't be playing? Joe Burrow He's not
playing Sunday against the Patriots. He did practice this week.
It'll be Flacco getting the start Brown with defense expecting
Cam Hayward and Darius Slay on Sunday. A Rogers still
questionable and the feel good story in the NFL. Nate
Landman this year signed with the Rams for one year,
one million dollars with no guarantees.

Speaker 8 (01:06:22):
There's no guarantees he's going to make the team.

Speaker 9 (01:06:24):
He's been one of the surprises in the NFC, one
of the best linebackers in the NFC thus far. This year,
he signed a three year, twenty two and a half
million dollar contractor with five fifteen and a half million
dollars guaranteed. You know what, I would love it if
somebody would multiply my guarantee money by fifteen that'd be awesome.

Speaker 3 (01:06:42):
Back to you, guys, hope they're listening.

Speaker 4 (01:06:45):
I know, right, Grace. I love hearing stories like that.

Speaker 2 (01:06:48):
It's so fantastic, the redemption stories, the guys that believe
in themselves when no one else did. And I can
think of another guy that we were just talking about
that maybe has similar kind of attitude, Daniel Jones of
the Indianapolis Colts. And to talk more about that, we
have Lara Overton, team reporter for the Indianapolis Colts joining

(01:07:10):
us now.

Speaker 12 (01:07:10):
Hi, Lara, Thank you ladies, so great to talk with you.
Thanks for having me on this afternoon.

Speaker 2 (01:07:15):
Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to talk to you.
I feel like I basically just get to see you
once a year at the Combine and that's just about it.
And that's just not enough, not enough.

Speaker 3 (01:07:24):
I'm going to see you next month though, Monday Night football.

Speaker 12 (01:07:26):
That's exciting You're coming to Indie when you're getting in
on Sunday. We'll give you all the recks and anything
you need.

Speaker 3 (01:07:34):
Fantastic. I will do that for sure, Lara.

Speaker 2 (01:07:37):
One of the biggest surprises this season has been just
how incredibly dominant this Colts team has been. You start
Daniel Jones at quarterback, with all of the things that
went down with Anthony Richardson back up this that the
other you land with DJ Danny Dimes. What has what
happened in Indy that has led to this kind of

(01:07:59):
resurgence for Daniel Jones.

Speaker 12 (01:08:01):
Well, it's funny because this has been certainly this surprise
story across the league. But I've talked to guys within
the locker room, especially over the last month, about the
fact that this start, this eight and two point to
the season that they are standing in right now as
they prepared to go in to Kansas City tomorrow for
the biggest test so far they've had this season. It's
not a surprise to any of them. They all saw

(01:08:23):
this was possible back when this group started coming together
during OTAs in the spring and then really came to
fruition during training camp, the investment in Loui an Arumo
as a defensive coordinator, and the scene he brought in defensively,
those guys who were returning your core pieces, you know,
guys like the Forest Buckner, z Ire Franklin, Kenny Moore.

(01:08:44):
And then you go out and you make moves. You
signed Mooney Ward and you signed camp Nam, and you
were starting to see the Indianapolis Colts make more big
swings in the off season and make some of these
investments that maybe hadn't been quite as characteristic as we've
seen in the past. So you thought from that standpoint,
and then you saw true competition at the quarterback position.
Of course, in previous years you had Anthony going up

(01:09:06):
against Gardner Minshew and Joe Flacco. This was a new
approach offensively in bringing in Daniel Jones, who had certainly
a chip on his shoulder having exited in New York,
felt like he was due for redemption, having added another
level to his game with what he was able to
gain from Kevin O'Connell in his time in Minnesota, and
all everyone collemptively felt like that this year was going

(01:09:27):
to be different and part of the reason was they
felt like that the core pieces of these guys who
have been here for a number of years, which is
a majority when you think about guys like Qwent Nelson,
Jonathan Taylor, Michael Pittman, and then a lot of the
defensive guys, they fixed felt like, you know, we're running
out of time at the prime of the careers. We
have guys who are playing at such high levels and
we're not making the most of it. We're tired of losing.

(01:09:50):
And then you bring in the influence of guys who
have won on the biggest stage, a guy like Mooney
warned mindwarg who.

Speaker 10 (01:09:56):
Has won a Super Bowl.

Speaker 12 (01:09:57):
He's been on of course, as Tracy knows, these incredibles
niners teams, you know with big playoff runs. You have
guys additionally, you know like Ambinam who were on teams
in Minnesota who had, you know, a great winning records
obviously didn't have the deep playoff runs as well. So
it was a culmination of some continuity that you had
and guys who were sick and tired of losing, and

(01:10:17):
then guys who had won big and you have that influence.
So it's a great and infusion of both areas, But
yet again, nothing that's a surprise to anyone in this room,
because they all felt like that they were put in
a position to take advantage of what was built this season,
and it was really intentionally built with the players they added.

Speaker 5 (01:10:34):
And Laura Lay they added someone pretty major at the
trade deadline, and Sauce Gardner and two new fans from
New York that are now now cold stands.

Speaker 3 (01:10:43):
But what did that move.

Speaker 5 (01:10:45):
Kind of say to the room, because that was a
big trade for them to make, What did it say
to the team in terms of it.

Speaker 3 (01:10:50):
We are all in here and we believe in you guys.

Speaker 12 (01:10:54):
That's exactly what it says if you don't make a
move mid season for a player of caliber unless you're
ready to put this team in a position to do
something special. Right now, you're capitalizing on the start that
they have already had, and then you're adding a piece
that's going to allow you to win big games and
win the type of games that it's going to take
to put you in a position to win the division

(01:11:16):
for the first time since twenty fourteen, and you know,
get back to the playoffs for the first time since
twenty twenty. So it resonated where this entire team. It
infused confidence in them in what ownership and what the
front office saw and what they'd done so far, and
then what they were willing to do to give them
additional pieces to take this team to another level. And

(01:11:37):
I was talking to one of the secondary coaches coming
out of the game in Berlin, and he said, he
has already impacted and begun to transform our room, not
just since his play on the field, but with what
he brings in and what he is going to allow
us to do as a defense.

Speaker 2 (01:11:55):
I want to talk to you a little bit more, Lara,
to about another influence that kind of took this year.
And so Jim Rsay, the Colt's owner, passes away, and
he had essentially been preparing his daughters to take over
this team and to run this organization. And we see
Carly Ersa Gordon on the sideline, she's very involved. And

(01:12:17):
what kind of changes have they made, what kind of influence,
What has their influence these girls, these women made on
this organization. Because I can't think that it's entirely a
coincidence that this organization is firing on some of these
unprecedented cylinders where maybe these these aren't moves and trades

(01:12:37):
and things that they would have made otherwise when they
do have kind of new life. As far as who's
running this organization, well, I.

Speaker 12 (01:12:46):
Think to what you're saying, kind of fruition. This year
is the culmination of the many years that Carly, Kaylin,
and Casey have all put in behind the scenes that
now they are at the forefront of leading the ownership
or of leading ownership as the you know leaders and
the you know, the pre the owners themselves you know,
without their dad now going into this twenty twenty five season.

(01:13:08):
And Carly is one of the things that she has
always done is she has immersed herself in this football team.
Her being on the sidelines, being on a headset, being
president every practice, being president in meetings. These are things
that she has done to prepare herself to be in
the position when she is that owner who it's the
final sign off on making a trade for soft Gardner,

(01:13:30):
or it's making these bigger swings that she is prepared
and she's in a position that she has done the
work to make those big decisions. So I think that
you're seeing that you're seeing the fact that all of
the things that she has intentionally done. Yes, certainly, Jim
Orsey prepared his daughters and provided them, you know, the
opportunity opened all of the doors to where you know,

(01:13:51):
they had the opportunity to be involved within the organization
at a very young age and took advantage of it
by not just working on the football side. Each of
them spent time all over the working in marketing, working
and ticketing, you know, working in the football side, every
single facet. They are hands on and involved. And so
that's why when there's a move that's going to be made,
or there's those tough decisions, or you have a team

(01:14:14):
that you need to buy in and capitalize on what
they've been in a position to do, Carly is not
only equipped, she also has all of the respect and
the notoriety of every single person in that building. She's
not making, you know, decisions based on you.

Speaker 10 (01:14:31):
Know, she's not just.

Speaker 12 (01:14:34):
Not doing the research, not putting the work in to
make decisions and making these without being informed and incredibly thorough.
Carly is one of the most diligent, intentional people in
every way that she operates and how she approaches her
work as a leader of the organization, and you see
it with not just how collectively when she's working with

(01:14:55):
Shane or Chris on some of these major decisions, but
it's how the players respond to her. All the players
respond when she's down there on the sideline, how they're
celebrating with her in the locker room. And it's because
she's not just showing up in the biggest moments. She's
showing up day in and day in out, doing the
things the right way, asking tough questions. And you think back,
you look at the quote that they was put out

(01:15:17):
from Chris Ballard when he asked Carly about, you know,
making this move and they were discussing that move, and
she said, do you want to band aid it or
do you want to fix it long term? These are
the type of statements and the type of approach that
she is coming from that has this team sitting exactly
where it is right now. And they're not just going
to be a conversation right now, as you know, we're

(01:15:37):
going into week twelve, but their team that's going to
make sure that they're part of the conversation in December
and January. Because Carly is she's not afraid to be bold,
and the reason she's not afraid to be bold is.
She doesn't just want to win games. She wants to
build great franchises and wants this team to be set
for sustainable success and be a team that's in contention.

Speaker 2 (01:16:00):
Put a woman in charge. Man, Thank you so much, Laura.
I really appreciate getting to talk to you this yeah,
and taking your time, taking time out of your Saturday.

Speaker 4 (01:16:10):
So thank you so much. Have so much fun at
the game tomorrow, and we will talk to you later.
Thanks again.

Speaker 12 (01:16:16):
I'd have to have more reasons to talk to you
guys soon, and Tracy's we'll catch up in Indian in a
couple of weeks.

Speaker 3 (01:16:20):
Yep, can't wait.

Speaker 2 (01:16:21):
All right, you guys, we have just one more segment
left after this. You're listening to Fox Football Saturday.

Speaker 4 (01:16:28):
Okay. So, for as much as.

Speaker 2 (01:16:29):
Everybody might have gotten the impression that I am a
huge classic rock slash alternative rock slash just rock person,
this is like a visceral reaction I early two thousands
of rapp and hip hop is where my heart truly lies.
So thanks for that, guys. I'm Carmen Batally. I have
Tracy Saylor with me. That was Chris Burfett. I have

(01:16:50):
to imagine that was his decision. Our technical producer, we
have bo Benson Martin Wise in the update booth. Thank
you guys so much for all you do for helping
us put on this show. Coming up in about ten minutes,
you're gonna have Tweedleddan tweetled dumb bucking fits. I can
say that because they're two very dear friends of mine

(01:17:13):
and they do tremendous work. They're fantastic, love their show.
I've known them, I've known Buck especially for a very
long time, and I can't get out of here without
giving him a little bit of flack. But stay tuned
for that. Tracy have just one segment left. I know
it's kind of a silly one too, it is, but

(01:17:34):
I really we really enjoyed talking to Lara over ten.
I talked to her again. Forever I only talked to
her once year. I talked to her when we go
down to the combine for Indianapolis because she's there and
she's fantastic. But I love hearing about everything the Colts
are doing, and I love hearing just about you know,
the Ursay family and the Ursay sisters who have just
taken control of this franchise and done so many good

(01:17:55):
things with it.

Speaker 4 (01:17:56):
Like I said, put a woman in charge. See what happens.

Speaker 3 (01:18:00):
Usually things go well.

Speaker 4 (01:18:01):
Just saying I'm just saying.

Speaker 2 (01:18:02):
We might be a little bussed, but that's okay, all right,
let's get to it. The lol moment of the week,
a story that made you laugh, because I am of
the belief that everybody should laugh a little bit more.

Speaker 8 (01:18:13):
Lord knows we.

Speaker 4 (01:18:13):
All need it.

Speaker 2 (01:18:16):
I will start and comes out of Fox twenty nine
in Philly. They went to an elementary school. I'm not
sure which one, but it is on their Twitter if
you want to go look at it. And they went
to this elementary school and it's you know, it's Dallas week.
They these little elementary school kids. They had these like

(01:18:39):
you know, like the boxing bags set up like the
free standing ones, and they put pictures of Cowboys players
up on the bags and gave the kids boxing gloves
and had them just punching these bags with Dallas Cowboy
players faces. Just like, you don't get to a rivalry

(01:19:03):
like that, you don't get to a fan base like
the Eagles have without starting. I'm really young and as
someone who my entire my dad is from Philadelphia, my
entire family still kind of lives in the Tri State
area on that side, and so I grew up actually
on my first jersey was an Eagles jersey, but I
grew up in Chicago, so it was kind of hard.
And I grew up at a time when he didn't

(01:19:23):
have Sunday ticket, so I couldn't watch the Eagles. So
I became a Bears fan. But that fan base is
something I'm tremendously familiar with, and it does it really
starts that early. Like my little nephews are just like,
I mean, they're all into the Eagles and they have
been since. Like they could talk, like they could do
the Eagles chant when they were like two years old.

(01:19:44):
It's just it's a tremendous Like whatever you think of
the Eagles and the Eagles and Eagles fans, like, you
have to respect the passion they have for their teams.

Speaker 5 (01:19:52):
You absolutely have to respect the passion they have for
the team. And mine is a quick on a on
a young fan of the Phoenix Sons who went viral
on eating popcorn like bigger than he was, and he
noticed he was on the Jembo tran and he smiled
and waved.

Speaker 3 (01:20:08):
Well, fast forward, he's.

Speaker 5 (01:20:09):
Back at the game last night and they put him
back on the JumboTron. He's three years old. Okay, all prefaces.
He's three years old. His name is Sterling. But he
noticed he was on the JumboTron. He smiled, He ate
his popcorn, and then he winked.

Speaker 3 (01:20:25):
Oh my god, just killed me. He winked.

Speaker 5 (01:20:28):
It was absolutely, absolutely amazing and everybody should go look
it up.

Speaker 3 (01:20:32):
It was fantastic.

Speaker 2 (01:20:33):
Oh gosh, I love stuff like that when you're just like,
you're three.

Speaker 4 (01:20:36):
Where did you learn that?

Speaker 3 (01:20:37):
Where did you learn to wink at your fans?

Speaker 2 (01:20:40):
Wink at your fans or like, you know, the gift
of the little kid at the Yankee game, like taking
off his hat for yes, but like their respect gifts.
Like I'm just like where like y'all are y'all your
parents are doing it right and we you were doing
it right today, Tracy. I loved this was a great time.
We'll see you next week. You're listening to Fox Football Saturday.