Mike Harmon & Jared Smith Preview Week 18 Games, Question The Scheduling, React To JSN's Response To Deommodore Lenoir, Lamar Jackson's Relationship With John Harbaugh, Stranger Things, And More!!

Mike Harmon and Jared Smith get started with week 18 of the NFL previewing the Sunday slate of games, while also questioning the scheduling choices. Mike and Jared also recap the Seahawks beating the 49ers for the division and 1st seed, with Jaxon Smith-Njigba responding in a cold clap back to rival Deommodore Lenoir's trash talking. Plus, the guys discuss Lamar Jackson's relationship with John Harbaugh whether it is good or bad, have some nerd talk with the Stranger Things series finale, and more!!

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Episode Transcript

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

Speaker 2 (00:04):
Let's go Week eighteen of your National Football League season.
Welcome to a brand new year. I know Larry David said,
it's the third that you need to be done. I
say no, I say extended. When you see people, you
give him a hearty hand shake, a slap on the back,
and you say you made it. Now go do something
great with it. And that's what we're gonna do here
for the next two hours with you. Greg coasell under

(00:27):
the weather a little bit so he is out today.
Jared Smith joins me to have a fun rock in
two hours of chaos as we look at incentives and
how they change betting lines. A number of starters, by
my count, will be at sixty two different quarterbacks will
have started a game in this National Football League season. No,

(00:47):
don't worry, we won't play a big who's your backup game,
although I started to write one in the middle of
the night, dreary eyed and sleep deprived. As we get
ready for a brand new campaign. Welcome in Fox Football
Sunday here Fox Sports Radio.

Speaker 3 (01:02):
Jared.

Speaker 2 (01:03):
Hopefully the new year's treating you well thus far. A
couple of games in the books full slate culminating in
the AFC North might be a WWE inspired loser leaves
Town match.

Speaker 3 (01:14):
We don't know. But how we doing this fine morning?

Speaker 4 (01:16):
I'm doing good. Yesterday's games I thought were unique. I
really think they should have put the Carolina Tampa game
in the same slot as New Orleans Atlanta. I think
they wanted to eke out another playoff game today because
really there's not as much drama and intrigue on the
Week eighteen carter as there typically is. I mean, we
really only have one high leverage game today. The rest

(01:41):
of the games are very much, you know, best against worst,
so to say, we.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
Have a lot of double digit spreads. But you never know,
right Mike.

Speaker 4 (01:48):
Sometimes Week eighteen, you think you're gonna get something that's
a little more, a little more bland, and we end
up getting the pecante the spicy menu.

Speaker 1 (01:57):
So you just never know what this league well.

Speaker 2 (01:59):
And that's been the beauty of the NFL all season long.
Jared to take it in the Macro conversation. As we
get to these final fourteen games, yes two hundred and
fifty eight of them in the books, as I start
to get a tier, it's kind of like towards the
end of you know, the last Harry Potter movie, and
they've got to bottle up the snape tears.

Speaker 3 (02:19):
I mean that's me right now at the end of
a regular season.

Speaker 2 (02:22):
I mean all the twists and turns and chaos, Like
I said, sixty two starting quarterbacks, teams that went on
runs and looked much better at times with their backup,
leading to a lot of eyebrow. Rais again certainly content
for us bloviators here on Fox Sports Radio and our
media brethren nationwide, Jared, but.

Speaker 3 (02:43):
Nothing surprises me anymore.

Speaker 2 (02:44):
That is I think where I come out of this
twenty five campaign of that the any given Sunday mantra
truly has risen up seemingly week after week. Sure, we
have these double digit spreads, and there's a bunch of
them today, but we go back to, all right, you're
playing for pride. People are putting stuff on tapes, Coaches
trying to put one last thing on tape, whether you're

(03:05):
a coordinator or a position coach or a head coach
trying to stave off elimination like you're on the latest
season a Survivor. I mean, all of those things come
into play, and for this week. Like you said, I
would have flopped Carolina Tampa because what do they always
want to do Anything that's affecting other playoff matchups will

(03:26):
be in that window. But you had the unique position
that in both sides of that coin, and Tyler Shuck
gets to a team that was expected to be one
of the bottom feeders is now one of the most
influential squads against Captain Kirk Cousins. Of all things we
want to talk about the lifetime and life cycle of

(03:47):
an NFL year, I think this is it.

Speaker 3 (03:50):
Here's a guy vying to.

Speaker 2 (03:51):
Make a late bid for Rookie of the Year title
in terms of Tyler Shuck, and on the other side,
Kirk Cousins trying to say I'm.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
Not dead yet. I'm not dead yet. I've still got
some football in me.

Speaker 4 (04:02):
Well, it's a unique situation too, because you get Kirk,
who I think is playing for a job.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
You know, yeah, maybe a deal, but yeah, so certain.

Speaker 4 (04:11):
There's a chance he gets traded, there's a chance he
gets moved. So I think if if, if, if he
plays well today, and he's played okay the last couple
of weeks, he hasn't played terrible.

Speaker 1 (04:20):
He's shown Okay, he's shown Okay, the.

Speaker 4 (04:21):
Last couple of weeks, I don't know what, Like I
was thinking yesterday what other game they would have put
in that spot, because I do think they should have
put Carolina Tampa in.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
New Orleans at Land in the same window.

Speaker 2 (04:32):
I think this is one where you take one of
the big brands and you just say people are going
to watch to hate watch the Cowboys or something like that.

Speaker 1 (04:40):
That would have been a good one, you.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
Know what I mean, Like, even if it's not the
most exciting of games, like it's still Dallas and New York.

Speaker 4 (04:46):
I thought it should have been the Arizona LA because
that it would have tied up the NFC West. And
I know because Seattle, right, because Seattle won, Now LA
can move up a spot, right, I think if that's
the way that the tie breakers work, So I thought
putting them in, like you should have put Arizona LA
in that early window and then San Francisco Seattle late,

(05:09):
and then you would have tied up the NFC West
Like that make the most sense to me. But I'm
not an NFL executive. So but in the end, I
think they wanted another playoff game.

Speaker 3 (05:19):
Well, but that's the big thing, Jared.

Speaker 2 (05:21):
When it gets down to it, we always and folks
get mad at me when I say it, and maybe
doubly mad when Jason Smith, my partner during the week,
says such things like how dare you the sanctity? It
is like, no, no, no, It's a TV show. It's
all a TV Yes. At the end of the day, yes,
a lot of people make a lot of money, but

(05:41):
in the end they are performers on a stage, real people.
We take it the highs, the lows and all of that.
We don't push that aside. We embrace the humanity of
it all. But in the end, it is a TV show.
And what are you trying to do? Steal as much
of the ratings and make your advertisers as happy as
you can as we have this ever changing landscape of

(06:02):
how things are streamed. And no, look, if you want
to do it at Swallowing Dome, at Fox Sports Radio,
at Jared Smith, that's if you want to complain about
how many services you had to log on to or
or pay for over the course of the football season,
I'm gonna say, I'm gonna say, remember the day when
you got two games, maybe three games on a Sunday.
I grew up little Mikey Harmon in Chicago, and Mark's

(06:24):
behind the desk, our technical producer.

Speaker 3 (06:26):
He's nod his head too. You got the Bears, and.

Speaker 2 (06:29):
Then you got whoever the Cowboys or the forty nine
ers were playing in the other game. And then you
got some random AFC usually involving the Steelers or the Raiders.

Speaker 3 (06:37):
Okay, that was that was all you got.

Speaker 1 (06:39):
And then you have the networks.

Speaker 4 (06:42):
Right it was like ABC or AFC on CBS, NFC
on Fox.

Speaker 1 (06:47):
Now it's like you don't even know.

Speaker 3 (06:48):
But that's just it.

Speaker 2 (06:49):
Right now, we got the amalgam, the merging of and
blending of everything back together. And you know, as Kevin Durant,
the great philosopher of our time, once said, if you
don't like it, don't watch, and.

Speaker 3 (07:00):
I feel for it. Everybody wants to watch their two
seventy two.

Speaker 2 (07:03):
Well, with that comes some hard choices in the economic
landscape in which we operate, and I understand it. It's
it's not easy, it's not cheap, and trying to retrain
people of wait, that's on what But as I always say,
like look at the number of people that already have
Netflix or Amazon subscriptions in their households. Most folks have

(07:25):
access to it or can get it pretty easy.

Speaker 1 (07:27):
Yeah, we all watch Stranger Things the other day, so
we all.

Speaker 3 (07:29):
I went to the theater.

Speaker 1 (07:31):
You went to the theater watching that. See. Isn't that funny?
Isn't that funny that a company that used.

Speaker 4 (07:35):
To sell you DVDs now creates a show that gets
you to a theater?

Speaker 1 (07:41):
Yeah? Very ironic. I wait, think about it.

Speaker 2 (07:43):
Yeah, I went for the Fall, Like I look, there's
a disabled red box Kiosk over by where my seven
to eleven in my name, Like there's vestiges of a world
gone by in terms of physical media.

Speaker 3 (07:54):
But yeah, the Stranger Things phenomenon was interesting.

Speaker 5 (07:57):
I like it.

Speaker 1 (07:58):
I loved it. People gave me a lot of crap
for liking it. I loved it all right.

Speaker 2 (08:03):
So here you go nerd out moment on a week eighteen.
As you can tell, we got a bunch of games
that are like some of your honey do list from
back in August might be back in effect today, So
be careful out there. So we'll get back to the
football football here in a minute. But in the end,

(08:23):
I thought the and those who haven't seen it you
don't care right like that, or maybe.

Speaker 1 (08:28):
I can see it.

Speaker 3 (08:30):
I can tell you to get into it.

Speaker 2 (08:31):
Like we went to the theater for the idea of
all right, you had this long road, but I want
to see the fans in action, like I want to
experience the good, the bad, the ugly. Right, if people
were gonna hate it, I wanted to be in a
theater where two hundred people were hating it. Everybody was
gonna be raucous and cheering along. I went, say Anaconda.
We had a raucous audience for that.

Speaker 3 (08:52):
I don't know.

Speaker 2 (08:52):
It was late at night, so that was a whole
other thing. But like stranger things, it was late at night, right,
people are redded up. Maybe they were watching and doing
a marathon all day. Maybe some of them it cheated
and saw that they put it up on the streamer
early because it was on Netflix earlier than it was
supposed to be. They gave you, They gave you early,
and if you stumbled upon it, to make sure nobody

(09:13):
got it spoiled by, you know, randomly looking for a
bowl score or something like that, like me.

Speaker 3 (09:18):
Hi and look for me.

Speaker 4 (09:21):
There.

Speaker 2 (09:21):
There was just one one thing. We got to the
endgame of fighting a little too early, and I like
the where are they nows?

Speaker 3 (09:28):
Or whatever? That was a long ware are they now?

Speaker 2 (09:32):
The music selections got me excited, you know, taking me
back to the time and and for one certain artist
and again we'll keep that if you haven't seen it yet,
it's surprising because licensing has always been an issue in
that regard, so that was exciting. And my favorite band
in the world for a while had the end of
one of those songs as their coda to their live events,

(09:53):
so shout out Afghan Weeks. But all of that to
say I liked it. You know, I gotta go back
and rewatch some of it with a fine tooth comb
of Season five in particular, like I had it on
in the background as as we're doing a million other
things in the holidays, trying to get caught up before
the finale. But I enjoyed it. And I think most
people left the theater or there were some there were

(10:15):
dry eyes, maybe a little grouse, so I was a
mess or another.

Speaker 3 (10:18):
But yeah, there you go.

Speaker 6 (10:19):
I was a mess too.

Speaker 3 (10:20):
I love that. I'm with you, man. I loved it.
It was so emotionally good, man.

Speaker 1 (10:27):
I loved it.

Speaker 4 (10:28):
Yeah, well, because you become attached. Like and remember when
I first watched, Like my life was in such a
different place when I first started watching this show.

Speaker 1 (10:37):
What did it come out? Like twenty sixteen, You're a decade.

Speaker 3 (10:40):
Yeah, you're like, yeah, it's a half.

Speaker 4 (10:42):
A full decade of your life. And like that was
pretty much my entire thirties. I'm about turn forty in
about a month, so like it was pretty much my
entire thirties was this was this show.

Speaker 1 (10:52):
It's wild.

Speaker 4 (10:53):
Yeah, it really attached to certain shows, like emotionally this
was one of them. It was just it was so
well done from the art going back to season one,
watched the season one this year.

Speaker 1 (11:04):
It was so well done.

Speaker 2 (11:05):
Now my only thing with it, which is where I
do the flip the coin, like I'm my guy's sugar.

Speaker 3 (11:11):
In No Country for old Men.

Speaker 2 (11:12):
Whether it's good or bad, whether I live or die,
is so blatantly borrows pays homage to pretty much every
other saga that's out there. It's like there's some Star Wars,
there's some Lord of the Rings, there's some Harry Potter,
there's some of you, there's some of you, there's the nerd. No,

(11:32):
that's it, so we get it all in together. The
trading cards that Tops put out the next day sold
out immediately at three hundred dollars a pack one autograph
or autograph relic her box, so I look forward to
seeing those hit the open marketplace. All right, there's our
nerd moment. Actually, we're just getting warmed up. We'll have
plenty of more at Jared Smith Betts on Twitter. There's

(11:55):
our guy. Patrick is in with us today. Mark's on
the board and we're just.

Speaker 3 (12:01):
Getting started Week eighteen.

Speaker 2 (12:02):
We're gonna look back at the Saturday games as we
continue here Fox Sports Radio. A little more on Carolina
and Tampa and of course Seattle San Francisco. Patrick's resplendent
in his Seahawks jersey over here Joe Hogs, so no
doubt he'll just keep yelling defense forty seven.

Speaker 3 (12:18):
Times as we go through the day. So much to
talk about, so much jockeying.

Speaker 2 (12:22):
Black Mondays tomorrow and of course the loser leaves town
match caps at all later on today we're broadcasting live
from the Fox Sports Radio studios, and this is Fox
Football Sunday.

Speaker 5 (12:33):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at Foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app search FSR to
listen live.

Speaker 7 (12:46):
Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning
on my podcast Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't
your typical sports pod pushing the same tired narratives down your.

Speaker 3 (12:57):
Throat every day.

Speaker 7 (12:58):
Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on all the biggest
sports headlines, accurate stats to help you win big at
the sportsbook, and all the best guests. Do yourself a
favor and listen to Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre on
the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Speaker 2 (13:17):
Hey, welcome back in Fox Sports Radios, Fox Football Sunday,
Mike Carmen, Jared Smith, if you at Jared Smith bets
at Swall and home, where you find me, Get us
all at Fox Sports Radio. Take us with you wherever
you're going on a Sunday, the highways and byways of life,
finishing off your holiday holiday holiday run with us. Be
safe out there, take care of each other, of course.

(13:39):
Take us with you on the iHeartRadio app, Global International,
out on space stations, I mean, everywhere they can pick
us up all over the place. One last note before
we move on from the stranger things.

Speaker 3 (13:52):
I know there were.

Speaker 2 (13:53):
Some some wagering possibilities that the sportsbooks that put those
out jared they collected handed because nobody died spoiler alert.

Speaker 1 (14:02):
Interesting.

Speaker 4 (14:03):
I didn't know you could bet, honestly, and I'm obviously
the betting guy. I didn't even know you can bet
on that.

Speaker 3 (14:08):
Well, I think this now makes me the betting guy.
Let's go Fox Sports.

Speaker 1 (14:12):
Analyst.

Speaker 2 (14:13):
No, it's it's more just I recognize where there are
levels of absurdity and markets that probably shouldn't be But
in this case, nobody got, nobody cashed out and and
well that's just it, right or maybe just down the street,
depending on how you're tapping in all of that to say, uh,
let's go to rewind on Saturday night. We had two

(14:33):
games to start it. We talked about Carolina and Tampa
in the Macro, but let's go to that Seattle San
Francisco game. Not exactly the offensive Juggernauts and an explosion
that you may have hoped for in this one. One
play in particular, which is gonna be our tire act
play of the day, really turned things out its head.

Speaker 8 (14:53):
Second and goal from the six snaps looks throws toward
the goal line. Ball is bobble just a bit, then
it's kicked off. He bobbled it into the hands of
Greg Thomas. Thomas hasn't. It's intercepted by the Seahawks down
inside the five yard line.

Speaker 3 (15:11):
They're at is tyraq player of the day.

Speaker 2 (15:13):
You see the interception goes down as one On brock
purdied a little bit behind Christian McCaffrey. But a ball
he's caught a billion times in his life. Instead, it's
an interception and the Seattle defense turns them away.

Speaker 3 (15:26):
That's the tyrac player of the day.

Speaker 2 (15:28):
For over forty years, Tyrack's been helping customers find the
right tires for how, what and where they drive, should
fast and free back by free road hazard protection with
convenient installation options like mobile tire installation, tire rack dot
Com the way tire buying should be. That was the
first time San Francisco had any semblance and continuity to
their offense at all, and just like that it was

(15:50):
taken away.

Speaker 1 (15:52):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (15:52):
Not a great offensive performance obviously by San Francisco. Their
offense had been all the rage since Brock had returned.
They were a top five offense across the board, but
that was against Arizona, Carolina, Cleveland, Tennessee, Indy.

Speaker 1 (16:05):
Chicago, Arizona.

Speaker 4 (16:07):
Like, you know, it just I think you manage up
in defensive you know scheme, and you see that that
Niners offense.

Speaker 1 (16:16):
Not that they're bad.

Speaker 4 (16:17):
I just think they thought they were gonna go hot
knife through butter, because that's what they have been doing
over the last.

Speaker 1 (16:23):
Two months and it's very difficult to do that.

Speaker 4 (16:26):
Thirty six percent success rate, ten percent success.

Speaker 1 (16:29):
Rate on rushing plays.

Speaker 4 (16:30):
I mean, they just could not get any traction going
on the ground. Seattle absolutely shut them down. Didn't help
that Trent Williams didn't play. But when I look at
some of the early down passing metrics, Brock was okay,
you know, over fifty percent success rate on early down
passes first and second down. So I think there's still
hope that San Francisco can make a.

Speaker 1 (16:49):
Run in the playoffs.

Speaker 4 (16:51):
They need to get their offensive line back intact, they
need to get some semblance of a running game on
the Seattle side.

Speaker 1 (16:58):
I'll be honest, I didn't the way Sam Donald played.

Speaker 4 (17:02):
I thought he had you know, some moments again where
it just looks like in big spots, like on that
first drive of the game where they're where they're you know,
in the red zone, and he misses Charbona on the
wide open touchdown, you know, on the goal line. And
I know charbone had a good game. They were able
to run it through this episode effect.

Speaker 2 (17:18):
Yeah, total yards three sixty one overall. But to your point,
that missed to Charbonay certainly. I know Seattle friends of
mine who in that moment puckering and everybody that doesn't
like Sam Donald. The poison pens were fully loaded, right,
They dipped into those ink wells and they were ready.
They did, they drop, they went and they took an

(17:39):
extra big dose because they were ready to give.

Speaker 3 (17:41):
It to him.

Speaker 2 (17:42):
And instead Kenneth Walker and sharbon A combined and on
the ground they take care of business.

Speaker 3 (17:47):
Overall.

Speaker 2 (17:48):
I mean one hundred and eighty one yards passing. Sam
Donald got to some of his contract incentives. That's one
of the themes of the day. As you're gonna watch
these games, two hundred and fifty k, there a million
dollars there, all of those things. But you run for
one hundred and eighty yards and that was the thing.
Right after that interception, you're still thinking, all right, San
Francisco defense, while they don't get a ton of run,

(18:10):
right because you don't have the pass rush there. Fred
Warner is in a hospital, you know, childbirth and all
this stuff going on that you don't have those guys
available to you through injury, et cetera. But you've got
them backed up, all right, So can you buck up
and get things done? Yeah, you got an empty possession,
but it stole another eight minutes. Is Seattle goes sixteen

(18:32):
plays eighty nine yards before the Meyers miss of a
field goal that you know, let's let's call it what
it is. We get to kickers at the collegiate and
pro level, and it's the you have to make it
no matter how well the guys played to that point
and how automatic they've been in the moment that opened
the door back up. But it didn't matter. San Francisco

(18:54):
goes down on downs their next possession. But yeah, with
Sam Darnold, folks are you know, waiting for the hammer
to fall. But San Francisco two of nine. On third down,
Kendrick Bourne got a giant stack of cash from somebody
which was great because pregame, that was the only cash
he was getting. He had a two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars incentive for nine yards. He had one target,

(19:16):
zero catches.

Speaker 4 (19:17):
Yeah, the incentives thing, Mike. So I was hot and
heavy on this from a betting standpoint back in twenty twenty.
And remember that was the year. That was the year
where it really burst onto the scene. So props weren't
that like they were popular, but they really became popular
throughout the pandemic time when people.

Speaker 1 (19:34):
Were like what are we betting on?

Speaker 4 (19:35):
And all of a sudden, you know, the NFL draft
props became a thing and people love that because it
was a sure thing, like I know, this guy's getting
taken in this spot, so I'm betting this. The contract
incentives props, you know, have a similar vibe to them,
where you think, Okay, this guy needs this many yards
or whatever and they're going to give it to him.
But it's more nuanced than that. A lot of times,

(19:55):
and I'm sure you've heard this doing shows over the
years with people that are in the know. A lot
of times the gms will go to the agents and say, hey, listen,
your guys close to this incentive, like we're gonna cut
you a deal, and the incentive will already like they'll
already get money before the incentive is even reached, because
they'll come to some kind of agreement where they'll you know,
spin that money forward into some workout bonus in the

(20:15):
offseason or whatever deal that they make, and they give
them they give him that money, and then the other
side of the coin is some owners are really frugal
and they don't want their person to get that. So
there's and also in an important game like San Francisco
Seattle last night, they're not thinking about Kendrick Bourne's receiving
yards incentive. They're not any game to get in the
one seed. Yeah, so there's a lot of nuance to

(20:37):
these contract incentive props.

Speaker 1 (20:38):
It's not always cutting dry.

Speaker 3 (20:39):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (20:40):
The fact that he's not more involved in the passing
game when you're down purecell and Kittle's compromised to a degree.
Five catches twenty nine yards for him, just four for
thirty five for Jennings. That you couldn't get to one
of your secondary options for those nine yards speaks well
of what Seattle's defense was cooking over the course of
the night. And certainly they came up big. The other

(21:01):
the side, obviously from the betting angle, is that remember
all of those are going to be cooked into the books.

Speaker 3 (21:08):
Over unders. Yeah, so they know exactly what somebody needs.

Speaker 1 (21:12):
You're not fooling anyone anymore with this stuff.

Speaker 4 (21:14):
Five years ago, remember when Gronk had the touchdown to
Brady and it was on like, hey, dob I need one.

Speaker 1 (21:18):
More couch, I need one more couch.

Speaker 4 (21:20):
Like it wasn't fully baked into the numbers then, because
there weren't people like me, like a million of us
all putting this information out there. I'm literally looking at
an account right now on X you know, one of
the gambling accounts who puts the entire list on a
spreadsheet and there's a million people that have viewed it. Like,
you're not fooling anyone with this stuff. It's all baked
into the market. It's all out there, and if the

(21:42):
information is out there, there's no value in betting it.

Speaker 3 (21:46):
That's just it, right.

Speaker 2 (21:47):
You might have gotten an extra yard or two early
in the week at this point that is gone, long gone,
unless we get a late rash of illnesses like the
giants or something like that, or so a lot of them.

Speaker 4 (21:59):
Are like sacks and stuff that like you can't really control, No,
it can't control when someone gets a sack.

Speaker 3 (22:05):
Yeah, are you gonna lay down for me? Please help
me out here?

Speaker 4 (22:08):
No?

Speaker 2 (22:09):
God, all right, let's lea This is my favorite in
the post game, right because we always talk about shadowing
and how do you try to take out a number
one wide receiver? Js In on the night had himself
a solid game, not spectacular, just six for eighty four,
but move those chains and get it done. But he
was asked about the whole shadowing effect as.

Speaker 3 (22:28):
A number one.

Speaker 6 (22:29):
Definitely definitely heard it. You know, it's it's hard to
respond back to all my fans. You know, I knew
that we were going to see him today and take
care of businessy len.

Speaker 2 (22:39):
Noor talking all week of oh I got him, I'm
gonna take him out. And obviously that's been addressed really
well by some coaches like, yes, you'd like to in theory,
but what do you do You then give up and
compromise the rest of your defense. If you just have
someone that's tracking that way, there's a lot of rotations
and things that then have to happen for it defense

(23:00):
to roll. It through, all right, let's roll back to
that other game real quick, Carolina Tampa Bay. It's been
an uneven run. Obviously, Baker Mayfield had those great performances
early on, a lot of fourth quarter heroics to match
some of what we've seen from Bo Nix and Drake
may and Caleb Williams.

Speaker 3 (23:16):
Throughout the year.

Speaker 2 (23:17):
But even as they got healthy, it's been an inconsistent run.
A lot of questions of officiating and plays blown dead
backward pass that was said, no, I was thrown out
a bound's like no, no, no, the dude picked it
up fifteen yards from the sideline. Okay, bad decision, but
no restitution, no coming together and you know, doing the

(23:38):
down over and the other options that they had, like nope,
they lost the seven yard somehow doesn't make sense. An
offensive PI against McMillan, which is by letter of the law,
offensive PI, but one that I don't know that you
can find an incidence for me, Jared that it's been called.
But in the end, you got to take care of business.
You had the inane play being put up against Cam

(24:02):
Newton High Cam. You get back in the news again
because people put your clown suit back on for not
diving on a ball in a Super Bowl when Bryce
Young had the handoff to Dowdell, who got to his bonuses. Boy,
he barely got to his bonuses. Didn't get his touchdown,
but he got his yardage bonus. But what looked to
be an aborted flee flicker when he slips in the

(24:22):
rain and Bryce Young wants no part of diving back
in for that football now when he's put himself in
harm's way. Yeah, but you're calling that when you're in
a one possession game, you're moving the football, and you
call that on a rainy, slippery Yeah, let's have our
running back who normally doesn't handle the ball in this capacity,
let's try that when the defense has owned us at

(24:42):
the line of scrimmage. Vita Vea might have made an
extra case for his Hall of Fame induction with what
he did to that run game yesterday. And they make
that call lot for Dave Canalis. That just leave me
scratching my head.

Speaker 1 (24:54):
Yeah, weird spot, weird spot for that call. I thought
Carolina played well enough to win. You mentioned it. They
had a bad whistle, which.

Speaker 4 (25:04):
Probably is you know, one of the reasons why they
lost that That weird flea flicker play was probably the
other main reason. But I think in general, Tampa Bay
still is hanging around, right, Like, I think they're They're
not a dangerous team in the playoffs. I think both
of these teams are going to be a first run
edgeit to San Francisco or the Rams. If it's Rams Panthers,

(25:27):
I mean, the Rams are gonna want to absolutely boat
race Carolina for upsetting.

Speaker 1 (25:32):
Them earlier this year.

Speaker 4 (25:33):
Is a double digit underdog, So I think that's a
bad matchup for Carolina. If it's If it's Panthers Niners,
we've seen that very recently too, that also feels like
a bad matchup for Carolina. I just don't think their
defense is going to be as equipped as Seattle's defense was.
So either way, whoever wins Atlanta New Orleans today, Like,

(25:53):
I don't think it really matters. I think both of
these teams, Tampa Bay Carolina are both kind of you know,
fish food for the for that NFC West team in
the first round.

Speaker 1 (26:03):
I think the books and the NFL probably want Tampa.

Speaker 4 (26:07):
I think that makes more in Like, I don't want
to be a conspiracy theorist, but it was a really
bad whistle for Carolina yesterday and Tampa Bay is a
much better draw with Baker and just what the Bucks
have been over the last decade.

Speaker 2 (26:19):
Yeah, offensive explosion is there, which as opposed to Carolina
where okay, you might get a big breakoff run. And
McMillan's been fantastic, take nothing away from him. He's one
of your favorites for the offensive Rookie of the Year,
him and Chuck leading the way right now. But you know,
and we'll get to that game here in just a moment,

(26:41):
but because that helps decide the other side of it.
But it's just one of those for Carolina. It's it's
been a great year overall and and over performed and expectations.
Bryce Young where he at in terms of his development
of what you've seen this year.

Speaker 4 (26:57):
Yeah, I think he's where I expect him to be.
I think I want to say he's kind of middle
of the road. And let me check my EPA numbers again.
So that's usually the metric that I use EPA per
drop back as kind of the measuring stick for these quarterbacks.
Because the reason I like EPA is because it takes
all of the things into account and gives you a

(27:19):
grade based off of that. Whereas yards can be very misleading,
so can success rate. Right, Like the difference between success
and I know we use these advanced metrics a lot,
but they're very helpful. The difference between success rate and EPA.
It brings me back to a baseball reference. Like in baseball,
a walk and a home run are both considered successful,

(27:40):
but you can't compare the two in terms of the
amount that it adds to the game, whereas EPA would
take that into account and wait a home run higher
than a walk. But in success terms, they're both successful,
so they both get log as a successful play. Similar
in the NFL, five yard run on first down is
a successful play, so is a.

Speaker 1 (28:00):
Fifty yard throw.

Speaker 4 (28:02):
They're both logged as a success, whereas EPA waits it differently.
It looks like Bryce Young twenty eighth out of thirty
two qualifiers and EPA per dropback this year. So he's
taken fewer sacks, he's gotten the ball out quicker, his
time to throw rate is quicker, but it's still.

Speaker 1 (28:21):
It's not high level quarterbacking.

Speaker 4 (28:24):
I think there's a lot of growth, like there's for example,
Tua Mariota Pennix Cousins, Perssett, Shuck Dart. These are all
guys that have a higher EPA per dropback than Bryce
Sung this year.

Speaker 2 (28:34):
Yeah, I mean some of it becomes down distance and
game situation, right, you take it, And this takes some
of the noise away from that, right because when we
look at yardage, right, you can pile up a lot
of yardage in a four yea fourth quarter of garbage
time and things of that nature. Again, they all count
in the larger scheme the same, especially for those fantasy

(28:58):
nerds with like me out there. But they're not all
created equally. And all you're looking for right now is
growth to say, okay, can this be our guy? And
I think you get one more receiver. Coker solid but
not consistent. Tight end position still needs some work. You
got a great backfield tandem, so you can build off
of that. So going into year three, there's at least

(29:19):
optimism that you're still pushing ahead. Right then we'll get
to Caleb and everything going on Bear's Land and with Detroit,
because a milestone is certainly within the offing for him.
But so much to say that, you know, at least
for Carolina, they're viable, functional, little more on the defensive
side as well, and you got yourself. I mean, it

(29:40):
was a winnable game. That's all you can ask for
is to be in the mix late in December and
into early January.

Speaker 4 (29:46):
I think they're gonna make the playoffs anyways, Mike, I
think Atlanta's gonna win today.

Speaker 3 (29:49):
All right, let's talk about that momentarily.

Speaker 2 (29:51):
With the iHeartRadio app, stream us wherever you happen to
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it'll always pop up at the top of your screen.
Let's go to that in New Orleans and Atlanta game

(30:14):
as we look at it again. We talked about it
at the opening Shuck versus Cousins, the two ends of
the continued Cousins. The big thing of whether he should
be the Atlanta starter as Michael Pennox returns right because
we've seen multiple injuries. That acl three times that he's
been felled with big leg injuries. Going back to his
collegiate career. Interestingly enough, at Indiana. That was the last

(30:35):
time we were talking about Indiana on a big scale
was when Michael Penix was winging it around there. But
we look at Kirk Cousins. The thing that always holds
it back is all right, someone's got to do something
with the money, right. That's why he wasn't presumably wasn't
dealt this offseason was Arthur Blanks that I'm not eating money.
And in the end they needed Captain Kirk and they

(30:56):
needed him in a big way. Drake London misses a
couple of games. B Jon Robson. He's at two thousand,
two hundred what fifty five total yards on three hundred
and forty eight touches. He needs two hundred and fifty
five yards to set the all time scrimmage record. Do
you know who the two ahead of him are for
a single season.

Speaker 1 (31:15):
All time scrimmage yards record.

Speaker 3 (31:17):
For one single season.

Speaker 1 (31:20):
I mean, I want to say Terrell Davis, but I'm
probably wrong.

Speaker 2 (31:25):
Now he's he's in the top ten, but doesn't he's
not on the metal stand. Metal stand is CJ two
K in two thousand and nine two five hundred and
nine yards and then going all the way back to
nineteen ninety five Marshall Falk.

Speaker 1 (31:41):
Nine, that should have been a guess.

Speaker 4 (31:42):
I'm surprised in the ninety nine season when the greatest
show on turf, he didn't.

Speaker 1 (31:46):
He didn't crack that. He probably was in the top
ten that year.

Speaker 2 (31:48):
Yeah, he's definitely a big as well for Shuck. He
goes no O Lave who had one hundred catches on
the year, blood cloud issue, wish him well. You got
estimate is now your leading rusher, and you got Kevin Austin,
the second year man out of Notre Dame, becomes your
number one option alongside Juwan Johnson, who's got seventy four
catches eight hundred twenty nine yards or eight hundred and

(32:10):
twenty eight yards on the year. You look at the
rest of their receiving corps guys either on the ir
or no longer with the team.

Speaker 3 (32:17):
Wow, that's it.

Speaker 2 (32:18):
Yeah, Austin's barely had a cup of coffee. Yeah, Shuck's
been fantastic, right.

Speaker 4 (32:23):
I think if the season was twenty weeks, I think
New Orleans might win the division. I think there's certainly
a vibe to me that says they're the best team
in the division right now. But Noah lave hurts, I
think that is. I think that's a big, a big
knock against their chances of winning today. Also, weirdly, Atlanta,

(32:45):
I've been sitting on over seven and a half wins
since July.

Speaker 1 (32:50):
They can win their eighth today.

Speaker 3 (32:51):
How about that? Certainly a thing you long thought dead?

Speaker 4 (32:55):
Oh well, the Green Bay over I thought was a
winner all year at nine and a half, and that's
gonna end up being a loser because they lost to
Cleveland and Carolina, and they pushed against Dallas and they
couldn't beat Chicago despite having a huge Like, that's a collapse.
Whereas the Atlanta over seven and a half, that was
toilet paper. I mean I was using that for Jackpot's betting,

(33:18):
you know, to put it in the dog, you know,
the dog crate for the last couple of months.

Speaker 1 (33:23):
But Atlanta's back from the dead.

Speaker 4 (33:25):
All four teams in the NFC South, barring Atlanta winning
by fifty today or New Orleans winning by seventy five,
we'll finish with a negative point differential again this division.
And I know the North, the AFC North will will
get a lot of crap too, because both of those
teams are right around the five hundred mark. Maybe Pittsburgh
Wednesday they get to ten. But Adar it'll be a
nine win team winning the North.

Speaker 1 (33:48):
In the AFC.

Speaker 4 (33:49):
I think the NFC South, it's every year it just
seems like that we can't get an elite team out
of this division.

Speaker 1 (33:57):
And I don't know what it is.

Speaker 4 (33:58):
It's just mediocrity is just the the word of the
of the of the year of the millennium for the NFC.

Speaker 3 (34:04):
The old rule of thumb.

Speaker 2 (34:05):
I don't need to outrun everybody else. I just need
to outrun you being chased by a bobcat, a bear,
a mountain lion.

Speaker 3 (34:13):
I mean, I'm rooking for today.

Speaker 1 (34:16):
I'm rooting for Kirk today. I am the guy. I
want to hurd Kirk succeed. He's such a good guy.

Speaker 3 (34:21):
See there you have it, the good guy.

Speaker 4 (34:22):
I want to see him win and go get a
job somewhere else. I don't know if it's he's going
to be any good, but like it just seems like
he's one of those quarterbacks that I think you could
do worse.

Speaker 1 (34:32):
Like I'm watching a lot of the quarterback play in
the NFL.

Speaker 4 (34:35):
And I know he's not very mobile, but you could
absolutely do worse in today's NFL.

Speaker 2 (34:40):
Yeah, it all comes back to contract eating and who's
willing to take on what's left of it?

Speaker 4 (34:44):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (34:44):
Two last points.

Speaker 2 (34:45):
One, I want Shuck to win for the other reason
because everybody told him he's too old and what are
they doing whatever? And all he's done is winging around. Gee,
those extra college starts sometimes work out pretty well for
a guy, don't they.

Speaker 4 (34:57):
He's gonna be the guy going far like that's it's
honestly him and Kellen Moore a matchmate and heaven, Yeah,
I think that's gonna be a very exciting and they've
got some really nice pieces on defense too. I'll be honest,
I think the Saints to win the NFC South next
year is already I've already made that bet in my mind.

Speaker 2 (35:09):
A couple of big moves that they'll have to consider
because they've got a couple of aging guys on both
sides of the ball. But one last point, I want
to get out in front of it because this begins
the forty eight hours seventy two hours week where we
complain about one of these teams getting in at eight
to nine or nine eight shut up, Okay, until they
get rid of the divisions. This is gonna happen. Okay,

(35:32):
just replay a best of for when you complained about
it three years ago. It's Sunday morning. I wanted to
keep the language clean, Okay, so I don't want to
hear it. Somebody gets screwed too bad. Go win a
playoff game on the road. Sometimes the division rises up
to get you c AFC West, CEE, NFC West.

Speaker 3 (35:52):
Other times beat the rams like a month ago. That's it.
There you go.

Speaker 2 (35:56):
He made my argument even better. He's Jared Smith. I'm
Byke Carmen. This is Fox Football Sunday, Fox Sports Radio.
As we continue Bears Lions, big big number on the line,
exercising demons like the Stranger Things finale.

Speaker 3 (36:12):
Will you be able to do it? We'll talk about
it next.

Speaker 5 (36:15):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to
listen live.

Speaker 2 (36:27):
Welcome back at Fox Sports Radio. It is Fox Football Sunday.
Mike Carman alongside Jared Smith having a blast with you.
Two hours of greatness ahead of Week eighteen of your
National Football League season. Congratulations like our guy Patrick, if
you brought home the gold in your fantasy league, or
at least finished in the money or maybe played spoiler

(36:47):
in those final weeks. We appreciate however you're interacting with
the game, and of course us at Fox Sports Radio
is part of our extended family. Not lost on us
all the different options that you have, So thanks for enraging,
being enraged, engaging however.

Speaker 3 (37:01):
You're consuming the show.

Speaker 2 (37:03):
We appreciate you, and we look forward to a big
twenty twenty six campaign, starting with the games later on
today at Jared Smith Betts where you find Jared find
me over at Swollen Dome. Isaac Lohenkron getting into the
news studio, he's already got a ream of paper printing
with all of the game time decisions and chaos and incentives.

(37:23):
I think he's just gonna read it like Robert Fickers
used to sit behind the bench and read from a
book when he wanted to enrage NBA players back in
the day. But one of the big games two hundred
and seventy yards, Jared, that's all that separates Caleb Williams
from becoming the first four thousand yard passer in Bear's history,
and we can finally put that narrative to rest once

(37:44):
and for all, because he's certainly heard about it. You'll
be the chosen one three and a half point favorites
at home against the Lions team drawing dead except for
the fact that, well they have a liking problem with
each other. Fifty and a half is the total as
we sit this morning.

Speaker 4 (37:59):
Yeah, it feels like a Chicago I don't want to
say hammer spot, but there's a lot of narrative and
motivation angles I think for Chicago outside of of course,
win and you get the two seed, which does matter
to me a little bit, even though Philly's resting starters.
Sure they could still beat the Commanders anyway, I hope
they don't because I've got an Eagles under eleven and

(38:21):
a half wins ticket, which is neither here nor there.

Speaker 2 (38:23):
McKee is your nemesis today, Yeah, Johnson, Danner, McKee, Right,
what come on?

Speaker 3 (38:28):
Wrong?

Speaker 1 (38:28):
Let's go but for the Bears.

Speaker 4 (38:31):
Right, So, first of all, you get the Ben Johnson angle,
and I'm sure Ben Johnson would love nothing more than
to beat his former team.

Speaker 1 (38:38):
But then you also get the fact that when these
teams played back.

Speaker 4 (38:41):
In September, it was a very one sided game, arguably
the most one sided, one of the most one sided
games of the year. Correct, And so I think you
know Turnabout's fair play, and I'm sure the Bears remember
that that outing.

Speaker 1 (38:55):
So I the market really disrespects Chicago week after week.
It's really wild.

Speaker 4 (39:00):
Like the Bears are a division winner facing a Lions
team that has been very down this year, and you
give Chicago at least a point and a half for
being at home and the numbers three. So what they're
telling you is on a neutral field, this game would
be almost to pick them. And I just don't buy that.
I think Chicago, even though they've been winning by this
game of their teeth, they are still winning games, and

(39:21):
I think you have to give them credit for that.
I would lay three with Chicago. I've seen some three
and a half's out there. I still think the Bears
are the side.

Speaker 2 (39:30):
They came back once again frantic effort at San Francisco
and nearly took that game. The ifs and butts, the
all twenty two's, We've talked about it, you and I
on our show in the evening, Jason Smith with me
when you've sat in talking about Caleb and some of
those misses and opportunities and growing moments. But like we

(39:50):
talk about with Bryce Young, this is year one of
a new campaign and a guy that's been rebuilt like
the six million dollar man from the ground back up.
So still expecting better days ahead, but this appears to
be a massive smash spot. Like you said, you know,
the revenge for Detroit more or less running it up
all those weeks ago. Remember they wanted Ben Johnson fired

(40:12):
after that game in Chicago after two games.

Speaker 4 (40:16):
Yeah, we've talked about it too. I think Ben is
very comfortable with the style that Caleb plays, which is
high risk, high reward.

Speaker 5 (40:25):
Right.

Speaker 4 (40:26):
He makes some of the easy throws look hard, but
then he makes the heart throws look easy. And based
off of Ben Johnson's vibe, he wants explosives. That's what
wins in the NFL. So he's very comfortable with that exchange.

Speaker 2 (40:35):
In the end, give me that physicality that he has
that very few can match. I'll teach him up on
the rest. I can't teach natural athletic ability. He's Jared Smith,
I'm Mike Carmen. It's Fox Football. Sunday here Fox Sports
Radio as we continue the loser Leaves Town match in
the North. Greetings, welcome back in hour two of the
program on a beautiful week eighteen of your National Football

(40:58):
League season. Thanks for being with us for the journey
as we get ready for the final regular season day
of the National Football League. Our long, arduous campaign, final
fourteen games too already in the books. And let's face it,
as Jared Smith in with me today and I talked
about a little bit in the first hour, reset it here.

(41:19):
You got personal incentives, teams maybe playing their way towards
draft seeding and operation shut down. Yeah, anything you can do,
I can do better. Like the Giants, here's THEO Johnson
can't disclose what's wrong with him, but there he is
court side at a Knicks game. But he's out with
an illness and that's disclosed forty eight hours before game time.

(41:43):
And just go on down the line. Wandale Robinson ninety
two catches. I was really hoping for another eight to
get to an even one hundred. He'll miss that game
against Dallas later on today, so you know, kind of
the musical chairs effect as we've got here, Jared. But
we do have a couple of big stakes still left
on the board as we played the chess match to

(42:03):
the number one seed in the AFC. We'll do that
in about twenty minutes. I picked up a snazzy Doovaal
shirt during my travels to clear Water in Tampa. I
don't know why there were a bunch of Jacksonville shirts
on that rack, but I loved it, and for five
dollars it became mine. But we've got the AFC North

(42:24):
and a lot swirling about as we've got the Ravens
and Steelers. That'll cap the season this evening. You'll always
find that one with so much drama, so many storylines.
You've got the Ravens a three and a half point favorite,
forty and a half the total, the coaches in the crossfire,
and of course Lamar Jackson. And we've got a clip

(42:46):
of Lamar Jackson to set this up here. Jared, going
back a couple of days, he had to address a
scathing column in the Baltimore Sun that talked about well.

Speaker 3 (42:56):
He said it was lazy.

Speaker 1 (42:57):
I heard I'm trying a game like one to two
in the morning.

Speaker 3 (43:00):
I won't even do that on summer, so I don't
know where I come from either.

Speaker 1 (43:03):
But yeah, I don't know, man, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (43:06):
I don't know where I come from.

Speaker 4 (43:07):
Latin what they said that you owned? How do you
get fonded?

Speaker 3 (43:12):
Do you think Harbaugh? Let you follow that's in the front, man,
I don't know, man.

Speaker 5 (43:19):
It is what it is.

Speaker 3 (43:20):
Like I said, you just know it.

Speaker 2 (43:22):
That's one of those where you start having fun with
who's the source who's telling you that he's falling asleep
in meetings and causing issues, uh and creating chaos because
uh well that just doesn't get ap peer out of
thin air there, Jared. But Lamar Jackson, with a lot
to play for today with his reputation, got to being
sullied one for not being on the field a bunch

(43:45):
here down the stretch. They're winning with Snoop Huntley in
different ways to get back in the mix, but now
in a winner take all all eyes on number eight.

Speaker 4 (43:55):
Yeah, let me just make this clear for anyone who
thinks that this is the case, Tyler Huntley is not
an upgrade over Lamar Jackson in no universe that.

Speaker 1 (44:05):
We live in.

Speaker 4 (44:06):
I just saw Elon Musk a tweet that we've entered
the singularity for those nerds out there. So maybe there's
some other alternate to mention where this is true. But
in this reality that I'm currently living in, Lamar Jackson,
a healthy Lamar Jackson is a million times better than
Tyler Huntley. I would say, if you want me to
give you an exact number on the points, bread, be

(44:26):
about a touchdown, be about a touchdown. Now, Lamar Jackson's
not one hundred percent, and that is where the differentiator
comes in.

Speaker 1 (44:35):
How healthy is he? I don't know. I can't answer
that question.

Speaker 4 (44:40):
Only Lamar and the training staff and everyone behind the
scenes in Baltimore can, and that information will not be
privy to us, because if it's privy to us, then
the Steelers will know it, and if the Steelers know
it well, then they can plan for it. So we
will not know how healthy Lamar is until the game
starts tonight. If the game starts tonight and Lamar looks spry,
and he looks like he's he got a little juice

(45:00):
to his legs and he's running around doing his thing, well,
then I think Baltimore is very much on the front
foot in this game. Now, for Pittsburgh, it's tough because
they're without their main deep threat, and I think that
makes their offense very one dimensional.

Speaker 1 (45:15):
And Aaron Rodgers doesn't have the ability.

Speaker 4 (45:17):
Even a healthy or you know, a fifty percent healthy
Lamar has more mobility than an Aaron Rodgers does. So
the Steelers offense, where Lamar can do things out of
spot in eighty Aaron has to be a little bit
more structured with the offense, and it's a little bit
less explosive, a lot less explosive without DK metcalf. So
I think there's this element of two questions in this game.

(45:39):
A how healthy is Lamar and how much are you're
gonna get from his legs? Because Derek Henry's been fantastic
and the Steelers have that times really struggle to stop
the run this year. And then the second question in
this game is what can the Steelers offense do without
their main weapon and also with t J.

Speaker 1 (45:56):
Watt coming back, can that part.

Speaker 4 (45:59):
Of the ball get a little bit like we haven't
seen the Steelers' best defensive games this year. This has
not been their best defensive year. I don't know why,
but it just hasn't been a great defensive year for them.
Can they raise the banner right? Can they go back
to the steel curtain for one night and keep Lamar
contained because I think they're gonna need their defense to
be really good in this game.

Speaker 2 (46:20):
Yeah, and that's the curiosity with Lamar is you know
all season long, was how healthy was he? Because he
went away.

Speaker 3 (46:26):
From running early on.

Speaker 2 (46:29):
Now they've also done disserviced at times and go back
a couple of weeks ago, Baltimore in their choice down distance,
et cetera. Derrick Henry historically has been that much better
in the third and fourth quarter when he's entering carries
twenty five to thirty right, because you get the lean
by your offensive line. He's road grading and we had
that twelve to fifty three that will always be up

(46:51):
there going what the hell? Why didn't he touch the
ball where maybe you would have made your life towards
the playoffs a lot easier if you'd had the hammer
with you Instead, you deployed him in a big way
of going up against Green Bay. But yeah, for the
Steelers middle of the road defensively giving up twenty two
to seven a game offensively fifteenth and twenty three to two.

(47:12):
Baltimore is still eleventh overall on the legs of Henry
oftentimes twenty five points scored per game and then giving
up twenty three to three. That's eighteenth overall. When we're
talking about takeaways, both teams, you know, not exactly turnover
differential heavyweights. When we get down to it. It's the
one thing Aaron Rodgers doesn't do a ton of is

(47:33):
put the ball in Harm's way. For the year, they're
plus eleven as you roll through, is Pittsburgh Baltimore down
at minus two, so basically a wash there, So curiosity
of how this game plays out. You look at the
receiving cores for Baltimore and even when they were talking
and I do a weekly spot out there, Jared and

(47:54):
a lot of the talk from the GM and everybody
as we built the great roster, show me the great receiver.
I like Jay Flowers, don't get me wrong.

Speaker 3 (48:02):
Good number two B who can step up on the game.

Speaker 1 (48:06):
He's a alpha, right, Socell, hope.

Speaker 2 (48:11):
He's feeling better, had his celebration cupcake, feeling better, felled
with the illness a little bit today, feel better, Greg,
He would say, you don't have your boundary X guy.
You go get a guy on the other side while
they're neutralized because dk Metcalf went and got himself suspended.
But you talk about the passing game, I mean, Mark
Andrews is your next leader. He's got forty six catches

(48:31):
and is a guy that we've seen fail in big
moments and then have some others what the hell are
you doing moments like that would be lateral a couple
of weeks ago where he just fired it out of
bounds curiosity, But it really all begins and ends on
Lamar Jackson's legs for how this game flows.

Speaker 4 (48:49):
Yeah, and again to answer the question that we started with,
like I don't know how healthy he is. I'm assuming
it's less than a hundred percent, probably significantly lose, but
I just don't know how much juice he has, Like
he only needs I would say, three to five runs
in this game scrambles to really keep Pittsburgh honest. The

(49:09):
Steelers have done a really good job generating pressure this year,
and that I think is the one thing I would
probably look to as Okay, if Pittsburgh does get pressure
on Lamar, that's something that they've done a great job
at this year, and if they can keep him him
in right. The Ravens offensive line hasn't been great, And

(49:30):
even if he does give you a few of those
runs per game, if the majority of his dropbacks are one, two, three, throw,
that's a win for Pittsburgh.

Speaker 1 (49:38):
That's a win for Pittsburgh. And again, WoT back.

Speaker 4 (49:40):
Today, I think the Steelers are going to be able
to get pressure on the quarterback, and I think that's
going to make things very difficult on the other side.
I'll be honest, I just don't know where Pittsburgh's offense
is coming from. Here, Like seventy five percent of their
passes are ten yards and inure from the line of scrimmage,
and the majority of the ones that aren't ard dk
met So how is Pittsburgh going to generate explosives?

Speaker 1 (50:03):
Because if you asked any.

Speaker 4 (50:04):
NFL offensive coordinator or head coach today, they will tell
you two things decide games. And it's not how many
yards you gain. It's not I mean, points obviously matter,
but the two metrics that are the most predictive in
winning a football game turnovers and explosives.

Speaker 1 (50:18):
Pittsburgh's not a good job of turnovers.

Speaker 4 (50:20):
You mentioned that this year Aaron Rodgers on a good
job keeping the ball out of harm's way, but without DKA,
I just don't know where the explosives are coming from. Now,
Kenneth Gamo has been a little bit of an explosive
monster this year. That's a guy, I think who can
create some explosives on the ground. But if Pittsburgh gets
into third and lungs, if they get into these obvious
passing downs, you know who's gonna be the guy? You know,

(50:40):
who's the Steelers alpha in this game? Like, you don't
even have that big tight end Washington either. So there's
just not a lot of muscle on this Pittsburgh offense.
And it scares me that if they get into a
negative game script, if the Ravens can be the hammer
to the Steelers nail.

Speaker 1 (50:56):
I'm not sure where the answer is from Pittsburgh.

Speaker 2 (50:59):
Now we're into our forties. With the number of times
that we've seen Tomblin and Harbaugh face off. Does that
continue in the new year or is one of them
in a booth or transitioning to a new job.

Speaker 1 (51:09):
That's a good question.

Speaker 4 (51:10):
I think Mike Tomlin should just go to the NFC
South because nine and eight's gonna win him the division
every year.

Speaker 1 (51:15):
So maybe that's a gram.

Speaker 3 (51:17):
I mean, maybe that's why, Yeah, you had to come.

Speaker 2 (51:19):
Back and sweet through four cities with that too good
full galactis, or I snapped these guys away.

Speaker 4 (51:27):
I mean, listen, if I was Mike Tomlin and nine
and eight's always on Mike docket.

Speaker 1 (51:31):
I mean, that's the division you want to be in.

Speaker 4 (51:33):
It does seem now the irony is And I've heard
a lot of these comparisons this year, and I really
like this. I really like this take, and I'm gonna
steal it from a couple of people that I've worked
with this year. I really think that the Harbaugh thing
reminds me of Andy Reid with the Eagles. Now, to
be fair, Andy Reid did get to significantly more Super
Bowls than Harbaugh did.

Speaker 3 (51:52):
Yeah, a lot of title games back in the day.

Speaker 4 (51:54):
Yeah, yeah, Harbaugh's won them. I mean, yeah, Harbaugh's won two,
whereas Reed didn't with Phil. But I do think there
is an element of he's probably a better coach than
what we've seen. But when the message and the roster
and the situation gets a little bit stale around.

Speaker 1 (52:12):
You, sometimes you lose that spark.

Speaker 4 (52:15):
And sometimes just being in a new place reignites your flame,
and that might be the best situation for Harball. I
could see the I mean, listen, the Raiders need a coach.
There's probably three or four other teams that are going
to be firing their.

Speaker 1 (52:30):
Head coach come Monday.

Speaker 4 (52:31):
So I wouldn't be shocked if there is this kind
of transition, going to a new conference, going to a
new division, changing the deck.

Speaker 1 (52:41):
But I do think there has to be a reason
if they win the AFC.

Speaker 4 (52:45):
North, with all the deal, you know, the difficulties that
they've had this year, I think it's actually a pretty
good coaching job. But they have to win this game
and we'll see what happens afterwards. But yeah, I can't
I could see the loser of this game leaving down.
I absolutely could see it.

Speaker 2 (53:00):
All right, because we want to keep for elements of time.
We're gonna do the AFC battle for number one and
grab those games together. A couple of big spreads still
in those as you've referenced Clayton Tune.

Speaker 3 (53:11):
What am I getting against Minnesota?

Speaker 2 (53:13):
And does Justin Jefferson get the fifty three yards he
needs to get his thousand on a year?

Speaker 4 (53:18):
Yeah, I think that's a good bet. I think Clayton
Tune is just a disaster waiting to happen. So here's
the nugget on the Packers that are unique, and this
is why I would have played my starters this week
if I was Matt Lafleur. So in the last twenty years,
only one team has ever entered the playoffs on a
four game losing streak. It was the Steelers last year

(53:40):
and then they got blasted by the Ravens in the
first round. So entering the postseason on a lengthy losing
streak is just not a great vibe. So I was
a little bit surprised, considering how poorly the Packers have
played over the last month, that they didn't push to
get Love back in this game, and his first game
back from a long layoff is going to be in

(54:01):
the playoffs against your division rival. Probably if Chicago wins
and takes care of business, it'll be the Bears in
that two to seven matchup. So I was a little
bit surprised, and I'll be honest, not just speaking selfishly,
because I have Packers over nine and.

Speaker 1 (54:15):
A half wins.

Speaker 4 (54:16):
You've got to get some kind of momentum heading into
the playoffs.

Speaker 1 (54:20):
So I'm a little bit.

Speaker 4 (54:23):
Disturbed at what Green Bay's doing, and I think they're
absolutely punting on the game and in no way could
you back Green Bay in any way, shape or form.

Speaker 3 (54:30):
Thirty seven is the total.

Speaker 2 (54:31):
Just remember all those years ago when the Bears kind
of laid down in the final week against the Packers
and they got into the playoffs and then went on
to play and win in the Super Bowl. The Jay
Cutler years Minnesota eleven point spread and the bleven point
favorite in this one. Thirty seven is your over under
for this one. So watching paint dry to some level

(54:54):
as well. Jets also seven and a half point dogs
to Buffalo. Josh Allen the big QUI shouldn't how hurt
is that foot?

Speaker 4 (55:02):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (55:03):
I'll be honest. I don't like this situation either.

Speaker 4 (55:06):
The Jets are a disaster though, Yeah, and they have
based off of what the Giants do in that Cowboys game,
you know they've got a chance to move up with
their draft pick and I would not be surprised.

Speaker 9 (55:19):
Now.

Speaker 4 (55:19):
Tanking is not done on the field. Once the game starts,
nobody cares and everyone's playing to win. But who's playing
in that game?

Speaker 2 (55:26):
Right?

Speaker 1 (55:26):
We saw it with the Raiders last week.

Speaker 4 (55:28):
You sit Crosby, you sit Bowers, You shit you sit
chin and you know you play Gino, which actually is
a great way to tank in today's NFL as.

Speaker 1 (55:36):
You let Gino Smith start a game. But who's playing
for the Jets? How many you know?

Speaker 4 (55:42):
What's the vibe of their game plan? Are they just
run run round? There's no briest haul in this game,
so who's carrying the load for the Jets' I don't
know how much Allen will play. I know he'll start
because he wants to get that streak a lot. I
have no idea how much will play. My guess is
a series, maybe a quarter, feels very much like a
preseason game. But the Jets are that bad to where
even the Jets ones going up against the Bills twos

(56:04):
might not be enough for them to get across the
finish line. So I would lean Buffalo. I would probably
tease Buffalo down. I would play Buffalo in the first half,
first quarter. I think that would be my vibe in
this game.

Speaker 2 (56:15):
Finishing things up at high Mark, they also had a
big thing twenty bucks an hour, plus a really nifty
looking pair of gloves if you wanted to come and
shovel out the stadium.

Speaker 4 (56:25):
It's the last game there too exactly how to get
a home game? Yeah, most likely in the playoff.

Speaker 2 (56:29):
Yeah, first five hundred shovelers got free high Mark Stadium
branded winter gloves. Those are really good good. I'm sure
they're selling well on eBay. We'll have to check the
current tote board for those as we run through. But yeah,
final game, there chance of snow as well. A few
more games on the slate that will run through in
fast style, great co sell. Normally I'll say, hey, what

(56:51):
do you think of this game? They go, I got nothing,
and then he gives me a quick nugget. It's like,
all right, we gave it its requisite thirty seconds. Moving on,
because we want to appeal to all of your fan bases,
no matter how lost your season may be.

Speaker 3 (57:03):
Mike Garment, Jared Smith with you here.

Speaker 2 (57:05):
It's Fox Football Sunday, Fox Sports Radio for the best
pregame show each weekend. Tune in to Fox Sports Radio
Countdown to Kickoff, presented by bet MGM every Saturday. You
hear Jared and of course following us a little later
on on Sunday morning, we caut you down all the
biggest games three hours right up until kickoff for all
the best plays up to the second injury news. Tune
in to Countdown to Kickoff, presented by BETMGM every Saturday

(57:27):
and Sunday morning right here Fox Sports Radio and the
iHeart app Coming up next.

Speaker 3 (57:31):
We try to sort out the top of the board
in the AFC. Who's gonna claim stake to it? And
can this Douve all?

Speaker 2 (57:39):
I gotta make sure I get all the US right.
Can they actually make it happen? We'll tell you next
here on Fox Welcome back in. It's Fox Sports Radio,
Fox Football Sunday, Bike Garment alongside Jared Smith.

Speaker 3 (57:53):
That's today.

Speaker 2 (57:55):
Having a good time as we career cruise into week
eighteen of your National Football League seas in final fourteen games.
We just talked about Baltimore and Pittsburgh, the always the
big question, and we were talking about it a little
in the break here in the studio. Jared the remember,
you fire a coach, you gotta go find the new one.
Good luck so Harbaugh Tomlin may maybe it's better, maybe

(58:17):
it's not. I just know from where I sit as
a Chicago kid and Bears fan, it's nice to play
meaningful football heading into December and January, not just riding
out the string and looking forward to what's behind the
next door, like you're getting a new holiday holiday holiday
gift to unwrapped. No, you're still playing football. So Pittsburgh

(58:40):
and Baltimore all these years, you've never had that big
bottom out moment that so many other franchises had.

Speaker 3 (58:46):
Maybe you need it. Maybe you need to get smacked
in the face.

Speaker 2 (58:49):
Like that kid from the small town that suddenly goes
to a prestigious college and realizes, Hey, I'm not that smart,
I'm just average here. Sometimes you need to get kicked
in the teeth because it tells you and teaches you
those life lessons.

Speaker 4 (59:02):
Well, that's an interesting point about tonight's game, Like these
games have been historically close. Yep, I think if you
I had the numbers earlier. So it's since two thousand
and five, the underdog in this game thirty twelve and
three against the spread seventy one percent, and in the
regular season the underdog is twenty five seven and three.
When Tomlin and Harball face each other, John not Jim obviously,

(59:27):
So these games have been historically close, the favorites have
not won with margin. Maybe this is the day that
we get it right, Like, maybe that's what it will
take for Mike Tomlin to finally succumb to the Pittsburgh
demons or vice versa. Right, Pittsburgh's underdog here, So we
don't expect the Steelers to blow out the Ravens by
two scores plus, but stranger things have happened pun intended, and.

Speaker 1 (59:51):
If that does happen, like, maybe that's what it would take.

Speaker 4 (59:54):
Now as a Jets van, I'm very used to seeing,
you know, December games go awry and have nothing to
play for in this, But maybe that's what it would
take for this ownership group on both sides to finally
say enough is enough, We're gonna move on.

Speaker 1 (01:00:11):
Maybe it's going to take an embarrassing loss, like not.

Speaker 4 (01:00:14):
Just the loss tight, right, these games have been historically
tight the age old cliches.

Speaker 1 (01:00:18):
You take three on either side, you're going to be
on the right side.

Speaker 4 (01:00:22):
Maybe it's one of those situations where Baltimore wins by
twenty and everyone's like, well, Aaron Rodgers, Mike Tomlin, you know,
don't let the baby out with the bathwater.

Speaker 2 (01:00:30):
As we look at the schedule later on today, we're
still battling for the number one seed in the AFC.
Also to settle the AFC South. We've got Jacksonville at
thirteen and a half point favorite over Tennessee. Is cam
Warden Company still try to fight through McCoy as the
interim coach, getting them to the finish line here, But
we've watched Trevor Lawrence just dominate these last few weeks.

Speaker 3 (01:00:54):
You've got the Chargers later on.

Speaker 2 (01:00:57):
Yes, we're going Trey Lance hunting here against bow Knicks,
Bo Nixon Company fourteen point favorites, thirty eighth the total
there in Denver and then newing On a twelve point
favorite against Miami. Lots of rumors about what changes are
afoot for twenty six in Miami, but plenty of time
to talk about that forty five and a half your total.

Speaker 3 (01:01:17):
Who's ending up with the number one seed?

Speaker 1 (01:01:19):
I think it's Denver. So the irony is the Chargers
are undefeated in the division this year.

Speaker 4 (01:01:25):
They're five and oh they won the first game against
Denver way back, and I think it was week three,
was very early in the season, and that was when
Justin Herbert was still upright and walking and not, you know,
essentially a bionic man.

Speaker 1 (01:01:38):
Denver's been so good though lately, and I think that's
where I lean.

Speaker 4 (01:01:44):
I leaned Broncos by a lot today over the Chargers
who are starting Trey Lance.

Speaker 1 (01:01:50):
And then the New England thing is interesting too.

Speaker 4 (01:01:53):
I think the Patriots situation right like, if the Patriots
win and the Broncos lose, then New England would be
the one seed. But the Patriots situation is interesting because
I'm curious to see and these games of course being
played at the same time in the late window today
because you don't want to give either team an advantage.
But the Patriots thing is interesting because how much does
Mike Rabel want to let Drake May cook for that

(01:02:15):
MVP award right because right now he's the favorite. I
think there's a reasonable debate about who's the MVP. I
honestly I would vote Stafford.

Speaker 3 (01:02:24):
Does the two games skid open that door?

Speaker 4 (01:02:26):
I So the thing about the MVP that's interesting is
there is a vibe of recency bias where what you've
done lately matters, and obviously Drake May would be the
guy if that's the case. But then there's this narrative
of you know, Lifetime Achievement Award where Stafford's never won it,
and obviously Drake May's up and coming. You know, he's

(01:02:48):
gonna be the guy. He's probably gonna be one of
the MVP favorites next year. But Stafford's never won it,
and the dude was like, you know, almost incapacitated in
the preseason with a back injury.

Speaker 1 (01:02:58):
So the fact that they just and they're probably.

Speaker 4 (01:03:01):
Gonna beat Arizona today, so they're gonna win twelve games
and they're gonna be the five seed in the division.
Of course, the only reason they're not divisioning champs is
because sattles Is had an unbelievable year where they've vastly overachieved.
So I think there's a vibe where you give Stafford
the nod because of what he's done a in common games,
right when New England and the Rams have played the
same teams this year and they're in different divisions, different conferences,

(01:03:23):
but they have played some common opponents, the Stafford numbers
have been better, and also Stafford's played a much tougher schedule,
and I just think in general, Drake May has kind
of feasted on that bad schedule where some of the
numbers are skewed.

Speaker 1 (01:03:35):
So I would still give it to Stafford.

Speaker 4 (01:03:37):
But if Drake May throws for five touchdowns today after
throwing for five last week.

Speaker 1 (01:03:41):
You know the voters are going to remember that. So
it is an interesting dynamic. I think with the Patriots today.

Speaker 2 (01:03:46):
Getting some run with Hunter Henry fifty five catches on
the year, touchdowns three of his last five, he's got
to be the leading guy.

Speaker 9 (01:03:53):
Right.

Speaker 2 (01:03:53):
We've got Hollins went to the ir booties out with
the concussion Stefan Diggs.

Speaker 3 (01:03:58):
Anybody want to touch that right now?

Speaker 2 (01:04:00):
No, but I see a lot of stuff about his
incentives thirty receiving yards and activating all sorts of playing.
I can't think he's playing, but we'll get that from
Isaac Lowankron if he's got any news on that one
as we go forward Jacksonville, Tennessee. But yeah, the the
MVP one is interesting because the other thing with New
England is also you mentioned strength to schedule. It is

(01:04:23):
decidedly different between what the Rams have run through versus
what the Patriots have.

Speaker 1 (01:04:28):
Something we've called it's a historically bad schedule for the Patriots.

Speaker 4 (01:04:31):
Yeah, look, you fan, because they winning all the games
in terms of softness historically soft.

Speaker 2 (01:04:37):
Yeah, you can only beat who's on the schedule, So
you run through Houston Indianapolis as we get to the
one last game, as we're talking about the AFC South
title thirty nine and a half c J. Stroud and Company,
Nicocollins obviously the one guy Jonathan Taylor paging Jonathan Taylor.
Last big game came with that two hundred and forty
plus yard effort that was a long, long time ago, Jared,

(01:05:00):
seems like another season ago that we had all those
good feelings there in Indianapolis as they turned back to
Riley Leonard.

Speaker 4 (01:05:07):
Yeah, I mean, this is a game where I actually
kind of like the dog a little bit here because
you would imagine, right, so Houston and Jacksonvill obviously play
at the same time. If Jacksonville wins, they clinched the
division and there's no real upside for Houston. And once
Jacksonville inevitably takes the lead on Tennessee, Houston probably you know,
sees that especially at half and kind of throttles down

(01:05:29):
and Riley Leonard, I mean, listen, I love the Philip
Rivers story. It's my favorite story in the NFL this year.
It's all about you know, overcoming fear and regret and
it's a fantastic story. Off the field, but on the
field it looked a little bit mushy. You go to
Riley Leonard, who can move a little bit. I think
this is gonna be an upside game for him. And

(01:05:50):
you mentioned Jonathan Taylor, like the Colts still have some
players on their team who can operate.

Speaker 1 (01:05:56):
And this line.

Speaker 4 (01:05:58):
You know about a month ago these teams play and
the Texans were a three point row dog.

Speaker 1 (01:06:02):
Now they're a double digit home favorite.

Speaker 4 (01:06:04):
So this number's moved a ton And I don't know
how big of a downgrade it is from banged up
Daniel Jones to Riley Leonard, who can move a little
bit where I think actually Leonard's an upgrade over Rivers.
So I kind of lean the dog here, especially if
Houston knows that they're out of it late and they
kind of take their foot off the gas in the
second half.

Speaker 1 (01:06:24):
I could see the Texans or the Cults slipping through
the back door.

Speaker 2 (01:06:27):
Well, you also have to be kind to Philip Rivers.
Are you putting them out there against that Houston front
and is phenomenal Riley Leonard can.

Speaker 3 (01:06:33):
At least try to run away.

Speaker 2 (01:06:35):
Yes, Philip Rivers, it was going to be like those
old toys that used to have where you'd press the
button and their legs would collapse and then they pop
back up, kind of like Peyton manny like just like
think about the old Peyton manny. I see a pressure
coming and I just turtled to the ground if I
can't throw the ball away.

Speaker 3 (01:06:51):
That was what Philip needed to do here.

Speaker 2 (01:06:53):
Riley Leonard, Let's see if you can get those feet
moving and create a little bit of chaos here against
Houston in the finale. A couple of games that we
want to touch. I was looking for and over under
on passing yardage and some of the other things. For
Dak Prescott, I can't find him because Dallas just a
three point favorite against the Giants on the road.

Speaker 3 (01:07:12):
Forty nine and a half is the total.

Speaker 2 (01:07:14):
So still expecting some fireworks, even with as I mentioned
a little bit earlier, some of those Giants principles are out.
No Theo Johnson, no Wandale Robinson. You got a chance
of snow in the low thirties there in New Jersey.
But for the Cowboys trying to finish it out, ibra
Flus will get blown out. But still some incentives to

(01:07:36):
be had for George Pickens and some of the members
of that offense.

Speaker 1 (01:07:39):
Yeah, and I've got Dallas over seven and a half wins, So.

Speaker 3 (01:07:43):
Yeah, see meant you gotta need that.

Speaker 2 (01:07:47):
Well, I look, wouldn't it be even sweeter if you
got it on the back of the r or the
arm of Joe Milton?

Speaker 1 (01:07:53):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (01:07:53):
No, there's no DAK props posted today, so that that
leads me to believe that there's some uncertainty with that situation.

Speaker 1 (01:08:00):
Yeah, it's kind of funny.

Speaker 4 (01:08:01):
I've got Cowboys over seven and a half wins, I've
got Eagles under eleven and a half wins, I've got
Falcons over seven and a.

Speaker 1 (01:08:07):
Half, and I've got Packers over nine and a half.
That one looks like toilet paper with Clayton toone, but.

Speaker 4 (01:08:12):
The McKee, Joe Milton, kirk Cousins, Kirk Cousins, I mean, listen.

Speaker 3 (01:08:21):
You're gonna do another parlay on that on those four guys.

Speaker 4 (01:08:26):
And the irony is the two biggest bets of those
are kirk Cousins and Tanner McKee. I mean, I really
need I need hey, Josh Johnson, but if you're listening,
I need you to have a big game today because
I really have a pretty big nugget on this. Eagles
under eleven and a half wins. I've been sitting on
it all year, and and how how cruel was it?
I've got Bills over eleven and a half too, but

(01:08:46):
I think they're gonna get home against the Jets.

Speaker 1 (01:08:48):
How cool was it last week? Mike Bills over.

Speaker 4 (01:08:51):
Eleven and a half wins, Eagles under eleven and a
half wins, and Josh Allen to Khalil Shakir wide open.

Speaker 2 (01:08:57):
Yeah not not to be still replaying that one in
my head. There are a number of indelibly etched moments
from this twenty twenty five campaign. But for the Bills,
I mean, if Josh Allen does sit down, I mean,
it's Mitchell Trubisky for me.

Speaker 3 (01:09:11):
And everybody knows I'm a big Trubisky.

Speaker 1 (01:09:13):
Backer from me steel better than Brady Cook.

Speaker 3 (01:09:15):
So there you go. Take it in. I think.

Speaker 2 (01:09:18):
So, we got a couple of games left to do,
the battle for Ohio records to be set, all of
that fun stuff. But it's time to take a trip
to the news desk to a man, lazy man legend
in his own right. It's our guy, Isaac Lowandrod for
the first time, I'm looking across.

Speaker 3 (01:09:34):
The studio and smiling at him.

Speaker 2 (01:09:36):
In a new year at Isaac Lowan Gron where you
find a part of the Chargers broadcast squad Angel CITYFC,
and he's on the corner telling you about the meaning
of life. For now, he'll tell us about INDs, outs
and the goods. Here on a Sunday morning, what's going on, Ilo.

Speaker 3 (01:09:51):
Hey wey, thank you Mike. Good morning to you, Jared.

Speaker 9 (01:09:54):
And we're gonna have a philosophy of life coming up
from a San Francisco forty nine er, Because on Saturday night,
the Seattle Seahawks won at San Francisco thirteen to three
to claim the one seed in the NFC. The forty
nine ers three points, the fewest they've ever scored under
Kyle Shanahan. They just had one hundred and seventy three
yards of total offense, only nine first downs. They were

(01:10:14):
two for nine on third downs. But afterwards, forty nine
Ers tight end George Kittle put everything into perspective.

Speaker 1 (01:10:21):
We'll also home a division rival for the division and
the one seed that sucks. That just is what it is.
And yes, I'll be very I'm disappointed about it. It's horrible.
Good news is I got to play football next week.

Speaker 4 (01:10:33):
Whether it's Saturday, Sunday, Monday, whenever it is, I gotta
play football again.

Speaker 9 (01:10:36):
Earlier on Saturday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers knocked off the
Carolina Panthers sixteen to fourteen.

Speaker 3 (01:10:41):
That means that the.

Speaker 9 (01:10:42):
NFC South will be decided by the Falcons Saints game today.
Carolina will win the NFC South, whether Falcons victory. Tampa
Bay will win the NFC South, whether Saints victory or
a tie. Multiple outlets reporting today that Houston Texans received
Nico Collins will be held out of their game against

(01:11:03):
the Colts. And finally, Mike and Jared, speaking of the Colts,
NFL media reports the teams are doing research on recently
unretired Colts quarterback Philip Rivers as a potential head coaching
Canada for next season. Get ready for a lot of

(01:11:24):
shoots and dangits during press conferences. If that should come
to fruition back to you guys.

Speaker 3 (01:11:30):
That would get me to watch Hard Knocks again. I
can tell you that I could see it the phraseology.

Speaker 9 (01:11:36):
Of Philip Rivers and it could be just hard knocks
with him and all his kids, that's enough for a
football team.

Speaker 2 (01:11:42):
Well, I mean eight is enough with Dick Van Patten
ran all those years ago, Thanks Ilo at, Isaac lohanngront
all the latest, give you that, Nico Collins nugget and
George Kittle. At the end of that quote, he also said,
go Cardinals, because if the Cardinals win, the forty nine
Ers get the NFC South winner. If the Cardinals lose,
the forty nine Ers will likely play the Eagles.

Speaker 4 (01:12:02):
That is a huge difference, just a little bit difference
between being a road favorite and a road dog.

Speaker 3 (01:12:09):
Here you go take Bigsby.

Speaker 2 (01:12:10):
Probably you'll see a bunch of him for Philly a
little bit later on today as well.

Speaker 3 (01:12:14):
All right, Arizona and the Rams.

Speaker 2 (01:12:17):
As we look at it, huge spread, what was it,
thirteen and a half, forty seven and a half, Sean
McVay saying, we're all playing, we're getting after that. I've
love watching Jacoby Brissett winging around three touchdowns per pick.
He has taken thirty seven sacks on the course of
the year. Wilson is ninety three yards from one thousand,
so the opportunity for him to hit a big mark

(01:12:38):
as he's like he's running as the number one right now.
Marvin Harrison uneven even when on the field. But for
McVeigh back to back losses back on twelve to seventeen,
we're crowding him as the best team in the NFL.
And now they've fired a special teams coordinator and come
towards the playoff with some questions.

Speaker 4 (01:12:57):
The first part about this game that I'll get to
is how bad Arizona's been this year is really unfortunate.
Their win total entering the season was eight and a
half and I bet the over like a dummy because
I really thought their defense was going to be significantly improved.
They address the defense in the draft and in the offseason,
and I really like Jonathan Gannon as a coach.

Speaker 1 (01:13:20):
They just don't have a quarterback. You know, we didn't
know what the Kyler Murray situation was.

Speaker 4 (01:13:24):
I think we know now based on how they've handled
that situation that it is not going to be a
positive future and probably will be the end of Kyler
Murray's tenure in Arizona. That aside the Rams decision to
play their starters, I think is what the Packers should
be doing right, and the Packers are in more dire
Straits than the Rams are because they've lost three in
a row and they're about to lose their fourth because

(01:13:46):
they're not beating the Vikings today as a double digit dog.
So I like the Rams decision to play their starters
today and now that there's obviously something to play for it,
you have to play your starters today. There is a massive,
massive difference this year between the five and the sixth seed.
Who cares, it's not a big it is a massive deal.
It is the difference again between being a road favorite

(01:14:06):
and a road underdog in Philly against the defending Super
Bowl champs in the first round. That is a huge difference.

Speaker 1 (01:14:11):
So the Rams will be all in. I would bet
the Rams in the first half.

Speaker 4 (01:14:16):
I would probably look to bet anything you can Rams related,
especially the running game props. I think that is you know,
for Williams and Corum, those have been the two guys.
I don't know which one will be the guy today.
That's been the issue with betting their props. But one
of them's got have a good game because the Cardinals
defense can't stop a nosebleed right now.

Speaker 2 (01:14:35):
Well, and that's the biggest thing I thought with Gannon
this year and he's one of those guys that we're watching.
Whether the sort of Dan mccles falls on Black Monday
or later on Sunday night with the ownership group and
whether they just spin it out to the next year.
Is that the defense was going to be better, right,
that's his reputation, that's what they built that they went

(01:14:55):
all draft. The entire draft was defense to go and
push things ahead, and instead it's spiraled. You've seen some
good work out of Brisset in the absence of Kyler Murray,
whose future there can we say is cloudy at best.

Speaker 3 (01:15:10):
So now we look forward.

Speaker 2 (01:15:12):
But yeah, for the Rams, I know a lot of
handwringing was going on when mc they said we're all
going to start. It's like, well, wasn't this guy that
didn't want to play preseason?

Speaker 3 (01:15:19):
Why is he playing? No, No, they're still seeding. This
still matters.

Speaker 1 (01:15:24):
It's very important.

Speaker 4 (01:15:25):
Yeah, it's kind of an I think for momentum too,
Like I think that's the same thing with the Packers,
like our stopped the sud have played starters today.

Speaker 2 (01:15:31):
I really do well, Clayton, tune one of your bets
that you're going to be looking at later on today.
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(01:15:54):
a holiday every day, like Elvis used to sing about.
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Speaker 3 (01:16:06):
Talk about records.

Speaker 2 (01:16:08):
One that's potentially one of the greatest single season feats
we can see. The other is a team looking to
do something that hasn't been done, that's in a stat
that's been tracked for a century.

Speaker 3 (01:16:19):
We'll talk about it next on.

Speaker 2 (01:16:20):
Fox Welcome back in It's Fox Sports Radios Fox Football Sunday.
Remember count Down to Kickoff presented about bet MGM. Coming
up next, you can hear my colleague year my partner today,
Jared Smith, every Saturday here as part of Countdown to
Kickoff at Jared Smith Bets where you find him for
all the latest. Follow him on Twitter as he lives
and dies with backup quarterback play in the National Football League.

(01:16:43):
By my count, Jared, we're up to sixty two different
quarterbacks will have started at least one game this year
by time we finished today.

Speaker 1 (01:16:52):
It feels like a lot.

Speaker 2 (01:16:53):
Yeah, it feels like well, I mean, it's becoming with
thirty two teams. Yeah, Unfortunately, it's starting to be the norm.
So all of you that we're able to get through
seventeen weeks, congratulations, here's your hearty handshake. Now later on today,
we got one record. That's one sack away. Miles Garrett
has twelve sacks of Joe Burrow in his career. Goes

(01:17:14):
for a Baker's dozen later today, Cincinnati eight point favorites
in this one. Chase Brown fifty three yards from one thousand,
fifty three seems to be a magic number. You're looking
at Jamar Chase at one seventeen thirteen, sixteen seven scores
two touchdowns last week, finally getting it.

Speaker 3 (01:17:30):
Done for Cleveland.

Speaker 2 (01:17:32):
Sixteen different players with the reception. But that's not out
of the order there we see receivers. How about twelve
different players with at least a single carry?

Speaker 1 (01:17:43):
Yeah, the rush for Cleveland. Our problem.

Speaker 4 (01:17:47):
Cleveland's defense is very different on the road than at home.
So if you're coming into this game thinking, oh yeah,
the Browns are going to be able to hold this
Bengals defair this Bengals offense in check. For some reason,
when Cleveland leaves their friendly confines, their defense reverts. The
team totals the game totals, like, we've seen this total

(01:18:08):
rise steadily throughout the week. I would lean under because
now we're at the point at forty six where it's
like it's pretty heavy and if you want to lay
more than a touchdown with this Bengals defense, good luck
to your friends.

Speaker 3 (01:18:22):
Good luck Swetsinger not playing here.

Speaker 2 (01:18:24):
He leaves with his one hundred and ninety nine ten Okay,
he's only got one hundred and fifty six, but the
decided favorite for the defensive Rookie of the Year. Conversely,
the Jets can do something that hasn't been done since
nineteen thirty three when they started tracking interceptions.

Speaker 3 (01:18:39):
They still don't have one.

Speaker 1 (01:18:41):
That's wild. They're coached by a former defensive back.

Speaker 3 (01:18:44):
How about that. It's funny.

Speaker 1 (01:18:47):
Guy, I'm a Jets fan, I'm biased, but he's not
the game.

Speaker 3 (01:18:50):
There you go, moving on, who do you want.

Speaker 1 (01:18:53):
Harball?

Speaker 3 (01:18:56):
Just cycle him here. I'll help him move as.

Speaker 1 (01:18:59):
You know, the move up the eastern quarter of the quarter.

Speaker 2 (01:19:03):
All right, one last thing, I want to get to
the final run. Look, Pete Carroll's probably gonna get bounced.
Genty is at the Chinese magic number of eight eighty eight.
That is a very lucky number. Needs like the Guards
to get to a thousand on the year, two big
games helping to fuel that. On the other side, oladok
in your quarterback for the Chiefs, Travis Kelsey needs two

(01:19:25):
receptions to move to eighth place all time.

Speaker 3 (01:19:29):
M how about that.

Speaker 1 (01:19:31):
Yeah, that's a tough one. I think. I think I
lean onunduring that game.

Speaker 4 (01:19:36):
There's just not a lot of offensive firepower. I think
it's gonna be pick it too right, Gino Smith is out?

Speaker 1 (01:19:42):
So yep.

Speaker 4 (01:19:44):
Yeah, that actually leads me to believe that the Raiders
have a chance and the irony is right. If they
win this game, doesn't it completely screw their number one pick?

Speaker 2 (01:19:55):
No, that's it then, and the Giants battling for a
looking over at each other, eating off their papers. Hey,
if you missed any of today's shows, catch the podcast
search Fox Sports Radio wherever you get your podcasts. Right
after the show, Patrick will get that up and you'll
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Search Fox Sports Radio wherever you get your podcasts, you'll
find today's show. Post it right after we get off

(01:20:15):
the air. Jared, we'll talk to her in the week
about college football.

Speaker 1 (01:20:18):
A good stuff, Brother, be good.

Speaker 3 (01:20:20):
Countdown to kick Off coming up next on Fox