2023 Week 11 Recap

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Around the NFL Podcast.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
Will not be deemed a culture.

Speaker 3 (00:07):
Miss fan from the Chris Westling Podcast Studio and beyond.
It's Around the NFL, the Week eleven flagship program where
we break down everything that went down on this football Sunday.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
I am Dan Hansis, and I am joined.

Speaker 3 (00:23):
By two heroes in the afore mentioned Chris Westling Podcast studio,
Greg Rosenthal and Mark Sessler. I am in the guest
bedroom of Keith and Deb's. So that's that's the setup
as we begin today's show.

Speaker 4 (00:37):
And yet it's not even the biggest story about the
setup here. Very nice Mark to have you back in
the crest with Chris Westling Podcast Studio.

Speaker 5 (00:45):
Thank you.

Speaker 6 (00:46):
You know it's have a recurring health issue that is
bubbled up multiple times. And appreciate you guys, you know,
holding it down to anyone that some people that reached
out to me who have not had a chance to
thank some of the listeners. We've got a great group listeners,
So thank you, and I hope it doesn't occur ever again,
or at least not again during the regular season our playoffs.

Speaker 3 (01:09):
Yeah, I must say that we did miss you this week, Mark,
and the shows were I thought solid and entertaining, but
we need the cess dog in the mix, so getting
them back for the flagship show is a big deal.

Speaker 6 (01:23):
Yeah, just trying to be a culture fit at the
same time, So working on all these issues at once.

Speaker 4 (01:28):
Plus we got to have it back when the Browns
are seven and three. There's something that's never happened in
the history of our podcast, but I know we'll get
to that later.

Speaker 5 (01:36):
That's true.

Speaker 2 (01:36):
That's true, Mark, don't be a culture misfit, culture fit.

Speaker 6 (01:41):
I will say, Actually, the Browns were seven and three
once when Mike Petton was coach. I believe now it's
but they lost all the rest of their games, So
hopefully a different path this time for that crew.

Speaker 3 (01:52):
We're going to get to the Browns in just a
little bit because they are a very nice story here.

Speaker 2 (01:58):
But let's start with a game and a lot of
good games for the second straight Sunday. We had a
lot of games that went right down to the wire.

Speaker 3 (02:05):
Not as many field goal kicks to end it, but
there were a few of those as well. But let's
start in Detroit where the Lions did battle with the
Bears and it was a little tighter than we expected.

Speaker 6 (02:17):
Fields back, Lions rush four, field four, getting get hit
ball loose.

Speaker 5 (02:21):
It's not the fun.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
It's kicked out of the enzone. That's a safety, that's
a safe thing.

Speaker 4 (02:27):
The Lions are gonna win this game.

Speaker 1 (02:28):
Meg hudred six knocked loose.

Speaker 4 (02:31):
Itick went out of the back of the enzone and
the Lions are gonna lock this one down.

Speaker 7 (02:36):
What a game?

Speaker 2 (02:37):
What a game? Whoa man?

Speaker 3 (02:42):
We still got to get Dan Miller on the show,
but that is on the to do list.

Speaker 4 (02:46):
Yeah, put that on the potential top ten calls of
the year.

Speaker 7 (02:49):
Left.

Speaker 3 (02:49):
Sure, I think Miller's all over that list once we
get a look at the raw data.

Speaker 2 (02:55):
Yes, Miller for w x YT with the call.

Speaker 3 (02:57):
Jared Goff through a thirty two yard touchdown, tested Jamison
Williams with three to zero six to play and set
up David Montgomery. Gough had one yard touchdown run with
twenty nine seconds left, and then the defense that you
heard there closed things out in a thirty one to
twenty six win over the Chicago Bears, a Bears team
that got Justin Fields back on the field.

Speaker 2 (03:21):
Greg Gyard.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
Goff has been so good this year and yet this
game he wasn't here's a quote, it was not my
best ball for three and a half quarters. Where a
resilient crew, we're tough, we don't back down. So even
in a day when GoF was his old turnover bug
had returned, they still find a way a sign of
a good team.

Speaker 4 (03:41):
I was shocked by the end of this game because
for fifty five minutes it was one sided like it
wasn't like I know, Goff had the three interceptions, one
was tip, the other one like a receiver bumped off
his route, but he also had two that weren't caught
by the Bears that were terrible throws, and he was terrible.
But even beyond that, they were just outmanned. The time

(04:02):
of possession was thirty eight to sixteen going into those
final five minutes three hundred and forty three yards to
one ninety one. Justin Field's played fantastic, and yet they
got the ball with four thirty to go and they
were four to fifteen to go. It's the first time
all year any team down ten with five minutes to
go has won the game.

Speaker 1 (04:22):
And they scored so quickly.

Speaker 4 (04:24):
Six plays seventy five yards including that Jamison will Jamison
Williams touchdown, he gets free, they get a three and
out where justin fields after run run pass, you know,
Putt in a tough spot drops an absolute dime down
the field.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
Would have been the game winner. It was a it
was a.

Speaker 4 (04:40):
Gutsy throw to try, but it was a perfectly thrown
ball down the field. Tyler Scott drops the ball about
forty five yards down the field. Lions get the ball back,
score quickly, and then make that defensive play. Just handled
all the situational football so well and markets cut. I
think it's kind of one of those other things, like
the Lions are eight and two, but this is a

(05:01):
nice little thing to add to your resume on a
day where you kind of stink and you're getting outplayed,
that hey, we can go score two touchdown to win
a ball game.

Speaker 6 (05:09):
In the last five year, Yeah, in a way, it's
learning to win a different way. And then when they've
been dominant, they've been so dominant and this was a
typical and it was a typical Jared Goff from this
version that we've seen. He hadn't had a game like
this going back to like twenty twenty one, and I
love the way they talked about him after because I
think if you're Jared Goff, like one of my seared
memories that affected my idea of GoF for songs, we

(05:30):
saw that Rams Patriots super Bowl in person, and you
could just tell pregame the moment just seemed too big
for him. And this could have been a chance he's
getting booed in, you know, by the fans during a
year where the Lions become the biggest story around. It's like,
are we gonna slink back and go back to our
old ways? And he found a way out of it.
And I thought another part of this too was that
for all the ups and downs, like they did hold

(05:52):
the Bears on third down, they stopped him a bunch
and some potential touchdown drives or field goals. I think
that mattered a lot. And you can't go blame justin Fields.
This was just a Lions team that finds different ways
to win, and today it was like, go into the
darkest corner and work your way out.

Speaker 2 (06:08):
Fields' return was successful.

Speaker 3 (06:10):
They didn't get the win out of it, but he
finished sixteen to twenty three for one hundred and sixty
nine yards and a touchdown. Had a very nice deep
ball in this game. Including a touchdown throw to DJ More.
But in the end, yes, they weren't able to win
a game in which they turned the ball over on
the other side four times.

Speaker 2 (06:28):
That's a bitter pill to swallow.

Speaker 3 (06:30):
And I think Shuk brought this up Greg on the
preview show, and it's worth bringing up again because I
don't want to take any air out of the balloon
to the Lions. We're off to their best start in
many years now at eight and two, steaming towards a
Thanksgiving Day game where they were always kind of like
the laughing stock of Thanksgiving, and now they're one of
the top dogs in the league.

Speaker 2 (06:50):
That's great, but you know, this schedule is not imposing.

Speaker 3 (06:54):
So you take care of business against a team like
the Bears, there's gonna be questions about Detroit all the
way to the playoffs because this is kind of what
their schedule is. I'm not not trying to be that guy,
but I'm just saying, like you had to pull a
rabbit out of your hat against the Bears, They're gonna
have to be sharper than this when the real schedule arrives,
which might not be till the middle of January.

Speaker 4 (07:13):
Right, They've got the Vikings a couple of times. They
have basically I think they have an at Cleveland in there.

Speaker 5 (07:19):
I believe, well the Saints, Oh.

Speaker 1 (07:22):
No, they have the Saints.

Speaker 4 (07:24):
They're gonna end up losing one or two of these
games because they're not perfect. Because we saw what could
happen to golf today. They did run the ball very effectively,
including on even on those game you know, winning drives.
In the fourth quarter, they threw in a couple of
runs and that was good. Jameson Williams is starting to
make plays. But I was concerned about their defense now
coming off some bad performances out of the bye, and

(07:45):
then you play against Justin Fields.

Speaker 1 (07:48):
He was the best player on the field.

Speaker 4 (07:50):
I mean, he made good decisions, he made good throws.

Speaker 1 (07:54):
It could have been more.

Speaker 4 (07:55):
They scored, I believe, on five straight drives before that
last five minute sweequence, where again I pointed out how
Fields actually had a nice throw that was dropped on
the last drive.

Speaker 1 (08:06):
They really had a chance.

Speaker 4 (08:07):
And you're right, Mark, it was these fourth down decisions,
which if you look at each one, you can't kill Eberflus.
But he kicked a couple field goals in fourth down
situations one to go up two scores, but it was
fourth and one and they really had the Lions on
the rope, and he decides to kick a short biegal
and then another fourth and five when they decide to

(08:28):
go from nine to twelve. I didn't like that one
at all, and I think, big picture for the Bears,
his defense again after a great game like collapses in
the big spot and he is now I think something
like five and twenty three, and I think games like
this they're not gonna help him stick around picks.

Speaker 2 (08:47):
Any other thoughts on this one, Greg that you took
out of.

Speaker 4 (08:49):
It by the way six and twenty two. I want
to be accurate when I'm getting after it. No, I
think I hit the big ones. I will give the
Lions some credit here that they ran the ball really
well against a good Bears run defense. It's been good
all year, and Gibbs Montgomery like that is a thing.
It shows in this game they do not want to
fall behind and like get into those sort of game scripts,

(09:11):
because when they can get ahead and run the ball,
they are toughest.

Speaker 6 (09:14):
There was a play in this game where Jill and
Johnson dropped what would have been another interception in oh
yeah six. It's like goth Not all of those interceptions
interceptions were on him, but he came close to us
talking a very different way about him this evening.

Speaker 4 (09:26):
He could have had five picks. He could have had
that pick six that Jalen Johnson dropped. It would have
ended the game. So the Lion's getting a little lucky too,
but that never hurts, all.

Speaker 3 (09:34):
Right, So the Lions get the Packers. On Thanksgiving Day,
it was the Packers fighting for their playoff lives against
the La Chargers, and it's another one that went down
to the very end.

Speaker 2 (09:44):
At the thirty five Keenan, Allen and Merchant left.

Speaker 8 (09:47):
Herbert had the shotgun fourth and one for the Chargers
twenty three seconds ago.

Speaker 9 (09:53):
Snap to Herbert, looks, wait, fires it.

Speaker 2 (09:57):
Come play down, Tenny Clark. The biggest play of that game.

Speaker 8 (10:04):
Yeah, the Chargers, we are dismissed with nineteen seconds to go.

Speaker 2 (10:11):
There is your dagger, delivered.

Speaker 8 (10:15):
By the Green Bay defense in particular Tenny Clark.

Speaker 2 (10:20):
Yes, Kenny Clark with a big paw. He got that
big play.

Speaker 3 (10:23):
You got that big meat hook up there, knocked it
away the Herbert pass, ending another frustrating game for the
LA Chargers under Brandon Staley. In the end, it was
a twenty three to twenty victory for the Green Bay Packers.
Jordan Love had perhaps the best game of his young
career here, throwing for three hundred and twenty two yards,
and he hit Romeo Dobbs for a twenty four yard

(10:44):
touchdown with two thirty three to play that put Green
Bay ahead, and then they get the stand on defense
to shut it down. So this was kind of a
good opponent for Green Bay because we know the Packers
are a.

Speaker 2 (10:55):
Team this year that have struggled.

Speaker 3 (10:58):
Down the stretch of games trying to find ways to
close games out. And they found a Chargers team that
this is their business, this is their bread and butter.
They take games that they should win and they find
ways to lose them. And that is absolutely what I
saw here today. And we're getting to the point now
with the Chargers mark where you start to ask questions

(11:21):
about I understand management side of it. They're not a
team that is known for firing coaches in season, but
you know, after another day where the offense or the
defense that's supposed to be his baby gets shredded, this
time by Jordan Love. And a Packers' offense that has
not been dynamic this season, Like, are they a team
that is a candidate here to pull the trigger in
season on a move in a desperation ploy to save

(11:43):
their season because we are heading to the life support
ward right now for the Chargers.

Speaker 6 (11:47):
Yeah, on the hottest seat around maybe west of Ron Rivera.
And it's because of the way these games dissolve for
the Chargers. It's like you have bad dropped by Keenan
Allen Quentin Johnson's like signature move at this point is
like game defining bobbles and drops that like change everything.

Speaker 4 (12:06):
And I don't need to hear that Justin Herbert can't
like game winning drive he puts that pass out there
for Johnston.

Speaker 6 (12:12):
Yeah, it's like I think it's like you'd have to
be had not watched to blame it, to blame it
on Justin Herbert. But I thought this was sort of
like an acid test for this defense. It's been as
struggling up and down Packers offense, and instead we come
out of this with Love playing one of his finer performances,
and guys like Jaden Red and Luke Musgrave and Dante
Avian Wicks like showing up and making the offense look functional.

(12:33):
It's like, what this is the opposite of what Brandon
Staley can argue. But I think after the game like
his comments were baffling people as well.

Speaker 3 (12:40):
Here's Brandon Staley asked about changes for the team that
is struggling badly as we reach late November.

Speaker 10 (12:49):
I have full confidence, like I've told you, and like
I told you from the beginning, I have full confidence
in our way of playing. Full confidence in myself is
the play caller and the way that we teach and
the way that we scheme. Full confidence in that we
got to bring this group together and do it consistently. Okay,
And that's where it's at. So you can stop asking
that question. Okay, I'm going to be calling the defenses, okay,

(13:12):
So we're clear, so you don't have to ask that again.

Speaker 2 (13:16):
And this is you know, we've been doing this long enough.

Speaker 3 (13:18):
When you hear that tone in a head coach, it's
it's a little defiant, but it's also there's a defensiveness
and a sensitivity that you're picking up on.

Speaker 2 (13:27):
This is a coach who knows that he's in trouble.

Speaker 3 (13:30):
Joey Bosa limped off the field in the first quarter
with a foot injury, showed up in the second half
in street clothes and in a walking boot. It had
all the all the looks of a serious injury and
maybe Greg, you and I were texting, maybe this is
the last snap that Joey Bosa ends up playing for
the Chargers. Day was not happy being prodded about Bosa's situation.

Speaker 2 (13:54):
Either, I don't.

Speaker 4 (14:00):
Man, there, he goes.

Speaker 6 (14:01):
It's I mean, you've all been like in hot water
with a like a significant other, and like when things
get testy, it's like this is like that's it makes
me feel that same way. It's like he he came
in as such a likable guy by the media and
not a tough group of media people in general in
covering this team, and it's like it's dissolving before you
ours And you're right, Dan, it reminds you of like

(14:22):
other coaches in the eleventh hour, and not a good
eleventh hour.

Speaker 4 (14:25):
No, I mean, I feel like we could play Brandon's
daily clips all night. I don't even want to. But
it's the it's the defensiveness like that. At one point
he talked, you know, talked about he's not here to
talk about the fan base. They talk to the fan base,
and it's not like we haven't made improvements. We have
made improvements. It's not the true that truth that we
haven't made improvements. And he's just feeling this all personally,

(14:46):
and then as he's trying to defend the defense, he
points out essentially, you know, the offense kind of blew
this one too, which is like, not not a great look.

Speaker 1 (14:55):
It's absolutely true.

Speaker 4 (14:56):
Keenan Allen drops a touchdown, Quentin Johnson drops another, past
they are zero and five in games decided by three
points or less, and I just think, I just think
of this team, and I think of sloppiness like that
Jane Reid rushing touchdown, where like none of the guys
on the second and third levels are in their run
fits at all. It's just you know, Austin Eckler getting

(15:17):
stuff at the goal, and it's just all these little
things add up when you watch a Chargers game.

Speaker 3 (15:22):
It was to kind of even underline the point you
just made, Greg, five of the Chargers six losses have
been for a combined fourteen points. So the difference between
ten and seven and seven to ten is right there.
That inability to kind of find a way. And you know,
this is a team that has a lot of stars
on it, a lot of big names, and it's never

(15:45):
really happened. Khalil Mack went over double digit sacks in
this game. You have Herbert, you have Keenan Allen Havn
arguably the best season of his career. You also have
Austin Eckler. I just want to Austin Eckler. Two things
I noticed here with their star players. Eckler broke away
in the first half into the open field and it

(16:05):
was like he had a piano on his back. And
that has been kind of a kind of sneaky, quiet
situation with Eckler this season. I feel like he has
not been nearly as explosive, and he did deal with
injuries earlier in the year, and I'm just wondering if
he's playing healthy. Obviously not good for a guy trying
to get a deal. And then the other thing I
want to note is Herbert, who did really nothing to

(16:27):
lose this game. But you actually sometimes I want Herbert
to be a little bit more like Why I like Burrow,
for instance, more than Herbert as a player to watch
is I love the fiery charisma that Burrow possesses, which
Burrow that Herbert doesn't naturally possess. But I want to
show you one play again the dysfunction and the failures

(16:47):
of the team to do the little things. It's late
in the game. It's a fourth and short play. Excuse me,
it's late in the game and they're trying to get
something going with seven forty to play.

Speaker 2 (17:00):
They don't get the playoff.

Speaker 3 (17:02):
They have a backup center in and you see Herbert
spike the ball into the ground, scream at his line,
and it's just like I actually liked seeing it, but
it also I thought was a snapshot into the frustration
around that has to be in that building right now,
and you're just wondering, we're gonna get to the Jets
a little bit later, how long before it starts leaking
out and that could be the death knell for the coach.

Speaker 2 (17:24):
Ultimately, I just I have a bit of.

Speaker 3 (17:25):
A just a suspicion that Staley is in mortal danger
this week and in the next twenty four hours.

Speaker 2 (17:31):
I guess we'll see.

Speaker 6 (17:32):
Yeah, we'd almost have to publish like a flashpoint focus
probably right after the show to get ahead of that.

Speaker 4 (17:38):
I think we're a little late. I'm like saying that
the Chargement.

Speaker 6 (17:40):
We're a little late, but I mean, I do think
that Herbert has shown like insane toughness and like total competitives.
I know what you mean, Dan, but it's like he's
also finally got reasons every game to feel frustrated and.

Speaker 5 (17:52):
That reaction just has to be natural.

Speaker 6 (17:54):
And it's like these players are not children, they're not
college players. It's not hard to lose a lot a
month ago, and so I really wonder what's happening inside
the building, because you're right, Dan, they don't do the
little things right. They remind you of a team that
doesn't close when they need to, and it goes beyond
just the game to execution.

Speaker 1 (18:11):
Well.

Speaker 4 (18:11):
They also got their leading rusher out of Justin Herbert
today eight carries for seventy three yards, which to me
shows he knows how desperate the situation is.

Speaker 1 (18:19):
He is not someone that is looking to run.

Speaker 4 (18:21):
A lot of those were runs up the middle where
he took some big hits and everything. I know Packers
fans are geting on us. We spent all this time
in the Chargers.

Speaker 1 (18:28):
I said it.

Speaker 4 (18:28):
If you go check out NFL Plus last week or
no was it. It was on our podcast. Actually we
talked about snaky stories. It's so hard about Yeah, we
thought Jordan Love. I thought Jordan Love had his best
two games of the season in a row, and here's
another nice game. Doesn't even you know, Christian Watson is
their seventh leading receiver on this gate and they still
get it done. So three twenty two, you get to

(18:49):
four and six, you're on Thanksgiving. You're not out of it.
Actually going into Thanksgiving here against millions.

Speaker 3 (18:54):
I know the lines are eight and two, but that
is not an impossible ask if they can find a
way in that game, in that conference. The NFC is very,
very soggy in the bottom half of the playoff picture
the whole season. Even if all these struggles is right
in front of you and I do have a bad
feeling everything they do from here on out might be

(19:17):
without Aaron Jones, who suffered an ugly looking knee injury.
He was helped off the field then carted and it
looked like something that's you know, the dreaded cart with
the towel over the head.

Speaker 6 (19:30):
But with mattla Floor did say that he didn't think
it was long term that he's in good spirits. We'll
see what that means, but we're not gonna probably see
him four or five days from now.

Speaker 2 (19:39):
Yeah, we shall see.

Speaker 3 (19:40):
Yeah, probably asking a lot for Thanksgiving, and that would
be great news if it's not a long term injury.

Speaker 2 (19:45):
If it is something that costs some time.

Speaker 3 (19:47):
AJ Dillon gets yet another chance to establish himself in
that backfield. Let's move to Houston where, yes, like Justin
Herbert and Joe Burrow, there's a young crop of quarterbacks
that are the tomorrow of the league. No, nay, the today,
the right now C J. Stroud looking to keep it going.

Speaker 2 (20:06):
Here's the game.

Speaker 1 (20:07):
Here comes the blitz.

Speaker 5 (20:08):
Fourth and eight at the Houston twenty seven.

Speaker 2 (20:11):
Murray and the gun.

Speaker 1 (20:12):
Murray throwing downfield to his left hand. They cut play,
knocked the way. Steven Nelson and the Texans takeover on.

Speaker 11 (20:20):
Downs twenty one, sixteen day at the ball with thirty
seconds to go.

Speaker 2 (20:29):
Interesting, Okay, there was I don't know, man, it was
a hard week.

Speaker 4 (20:34):
It was.

Speaker 2 (20:35):
It was here this one. I was thinking maybe the
Rams game.

Speaker 3 (20:37):
I don't know, Roberts, we're giving out bongos and beating
the Cardinals.

Speaker 1 (20:41):
I don't know, man, it was a fun game.

Speaker 2 (20:43):
The text.

Speaker 1 (20:43):
The Texans were almost team of atm man.

Speaker 2 (20:45):
What are we doing?

Speaker 5 (20:46):
I don't know's choice?

Speaker 2 (20:47):
Like, I don't care. It was a fun game. Where
would you have gone this week?

Speaker 4 (20:50):
Oh he don't want to know.

Speaker 2 (20:52):
Yeah, Bill's jets. I don't want. I didn't want to
do Bill jets to you, Dan, give it to me.

Speaker 5 (20:58):
No musical instruments in that event.

Speaker 3 (21:00):
I mean, I think, I think if we're if you
asked me so now I'll answer, I would have given.

Speaker 2 (21:04):
Them to the Packers.

Speaker 3 (21:05):
Really okay, getting back in the mix, Well you asked me.

Speaker 2 (21:10):
Yeah, you win, semmy loosen. CJ.

Speaker 3 (21:13):
Stroud threw for three hundred and thirty six yards with
two touchdowns.

Speaker 2 (21:19):
That was Mark Vandermire on the call. By the way,
Kilt and the.

Speaker 3 (21:22):
Texans on a day where they weren't overly sharp, still
do what they need to do to beat the Cardinals
twenty one to sixteen. And Mark, greg excuse me, that
was the call that we heard. Was once again the
defense getting the big stop when it came down to
it in a sign of, you know, the emerging idea
that the Texans have some depth here to win games

(21:45):
on both sides of the ball. That's a huge step
in becoming a team.

Speaker 4 (21:49):
Right defense, Will Anderson Derek Stingley, their top five pick,
their top three pick from a year ago makes a
huge interception. Their offensive line is playing much better. And
this game, while I get what you're saying with the bongos,
it was about as crazy as humanly possible a game
could be that had only seven points in the second half.
It was just like turnover after turnover, fourth down stop

(22:11):
after fourth down stop.

Speaker 1 (22:12):
Three times in.

Speaker 4 (22:13):
The fourth quarter, Kyler Murray had a chance to go
maybe take the lead with the touchdown, and three times
they came up short on fourth and short, so they
had three straight turnovers on dons. One was just a
total miss by Kyler. He had a couple throws today
that were just off target, and so that sometimes happens
when you returned from a torn acl You didn't really

(22:34):
see it the first week. You saw it this week,
just like fluttering balls. Maybe it was just weird. One
came on a well time blitz. We heard that. That
was the last play call. I think the Demico Ryans
just one right there, and then one was on a
bad route I thought by the receiver didn't make a
good play. So it all happened, and they were only
in this game because the Texans, who racked up three

(22:55):
hundred and thirty three yards in the first half, just
couldn't quite put as many points as they should have
on the You mentioned Stroud with three interceptions, but other
than those three interceptions, and one was on a drop mark,
like he couldn't have possibly played any better. That's a
big other then, But other than those two interceptions, he
made some absolutely insane play.

Speaker 6 (23:11):
I just find him so watchable, like he's like a
fringe MVP guy for me. I know that this game
like this could you know, I get shadows some of
that kind of voting, but I think it's incredible to
see that a rookie quarterback because we're watching so many
like second and third year quarterbacks still struggle and show
inconsistency and a lack of growth, and then it's so
frustrating to watch.

Speaker 5 (23:31):
But CJ.

Speaker 6 (23:32):
Stroud, like his relationship already with a fellow rookie in
Tank Dell. I mean, there were some plays today where
like their connection and their mind mild is already one
of the best in the league. And it's like I
forgive some of these turnovers because that I just would
expect from a rookie, especially one that's throwing the ball
as much as he is. And it's like the upside
is just simply insane, and it's like send them right

(23:53):
into the second round of the playoffs.

Speaker 5 (23:54):
That's how I view the text, right, Yeah.

Speaker 2 (24:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (24:00):
Stroud had three interceptions excuse me, two interceptions. Uh, he
was throwing the ball into tight windows. Didn't it always
work out? But you know what the guy believes. He
finished with three Sunday excuse me, and he had two
all season entering the game. After the game, he did
not like sound like a young quarterback who's going to
turn gun shy after making some mistakes.

Speaker 12 (24:24):
And man, Steph Curry, don't ever stop shooting. I'm gonna
keep I'm keep laying to ride, you know. And I
got a shame of my game. I definitely gotta be smarter,
but I don't like, I don't know confidence is taken
away from me. I'm gonna keep laying to fly.

Speaker 3 (24:37):
I mean, that's obviously what you want to hear from
your quarterback unless he continues to have three interception games.

Speaker 2 (24:44):
But you obviously giving him a pass.

Speaker 3 (24:46):
Here Mark and that is also a famous Cesstag quote,
ain't no shame to my game.

Speaker 2 (24:50):
I've heard you say that, Yeah you can.

Speaker 6 (24:53):
You can hear me saying that around the building. Uh,
you know at any time of day. That's true.

Speaker 4 (24:57):
His his like throw at the end of the half,
and I'm sure people have seen it. The forty yard
touchdown Tank Dell was just it showed everything from these
two players. It was just an insane route. I don't
you know it was a triple move. I don't think
the third move was play on. That was freestyle. But
Dell is snapping off these routes in a way that
I still have a feeling like as high as you think,

(25:18):
like the ceiling is for Tank Dell, Like, I don't
think people realize it's not high enough.

Speaker 1 (25:23):
He is as good as like.

Speaker 4 (25:25):
As any rookie that's come into the league this year
in terms of his wide recet, Like, his routes are insane.
The way he wins is insane, the way he wins
on the outside he ends up with eight for one,
forty nine and one, And because he's one hundred and
sixty five pounds, I think people think it's like some
sort of weird creation of the system. But no, it's
like he is just getting wide open. I mean, Stroud
was on pace at halftime for five hundred yards in

(25:47):
this game, and a lot of them were like these,
like third third reads where he's getting into tight windows.
It was really really awesome to watch, even though they
kind of blew it in the in the second half.
And Kyler at least he's running well, like he didn't
throw it great, but seven for fifty one on the ground,
including a touchdown a forty yard run called back by penalty.

Speaker 1 (26:06):
Like he looked ready to go this sea two weeks
in a row. Yep.

Speaker 3 (26:11):
All right, let's take a break and then we will
continue on. All right, we are back. Let's dive right
back into the games. And it's time now for the
Sunday Drive presented by the first ever Toyota Grand Highlander.

Speaker 2 (26:27):
Oh.

Speaker 3 (26:27):
Another game that went right down to the end, Rams Seahawks.

Speaker 2 (26:31):
The rivalry goes on from.

Speaker 11 (26:33):
The left hash fifty five yards, So decide Week eleven.

Speaker 2 (26:36):
Here's his kick, very right. It is no God, no God?
Why rights?

Speaker 11 (26:45):
And the Rams celebrates a week eleven to three seventeen sixteen,
and only three seconds left. The three game losing streak
is over. The November losing streak. He's over.

Speaker 3 (27:03):
The great JB Long for Rams Radio with the call,
and yes, it was Jason Myers who could not connect
from fifty five yards out with three seconds to play
and have allowed the Rams to escape with a seventeen
to sixteen win over the Seahawks. And yes, like JB said,
that's ended the losing streak for the Rams and it

(27:23):
also keeps them live four and six in the NFC
playoff picture. Greg let's start with the quarterbacks because Matthew
Stafford he returned from an injury. He led the team
on two scoring drives in the fourth quarter to complete
a comeback. Gino leaves with an injury of his own

(27:44):
and then comes back in a lot of drama down
the stretch here.

Speaker 1 (27:48):
So much drama.

Speaker 4 (27:49):
Cooper Cupp also left this game early with an ankle injury,
never returned. Ken Walker left with an oblique injury right
off the bat, never returned, and that sounds like a
multiple week injury the way Pete Carroll talked about it.
But Gino missed two drives in the second half and
it ended up being really crucial. And it was interesting
because on the second of those two drives, he had

(28:10):
his helmet on and he looked like he wanted to
go in, but they decided at that point they're still winning,
and I think the score was sixteen to seven or
sixteen to fourteen at that point, and they went with
a second drive for Lock, and he throws an interception
on that drive. Even though Gino seemed like he was ready,
he got hit in the elbow by a helmet and
was able to play through it. Gets the ball back

(28:32):
with one thirty one to go and no timeouts and
gets them into field goal range. The problem was they
could have been much closer. You kick a fifty five
yard field goal at eight seconds left, it's not a
bad job to get in that position. But they were
in that position with thirty seconds to go, and they
ended up handing the ball off for two yards and

(28:54):
everyone including myself, is killing Pete Carroll. But Gino said
after the game that that communication and his helmet went
out and he thought he saw a look quickly and.

Speaker 1 (29:05):
And he he just was at.

Speaker 4 (29:06):
That point freestyling and making the calls and he called
the running play there, so unfortunate timing for the headset
to go out there, an unfortunate decision ultimately by Gino
not to clock it there or throw a pass, because
they could have gotten a lot closer than that fifty
five yards.

Speaker 3 (29:25):
Can I just say Mark or or Gino messed up
and then he made up the headset thing and and
Greg bought into it.

Speaker 4 (29:31):
Hooklines, Well, that's him, that's him taking the blame. That's
him taking the Because Pete Carroll, you know, the way
he talked about it so obliquely, I'm like, what is
he talking about here, Because he's like, well, that didn't
go the way we wanted. He admitted it, but he
he basically was trying to cover for what happened, and
you know, just told them the truth. That was not

(29:52):
covering himself. He's saying, I messed up. I should not
have called a run there.

Speaker 6 (29:56):
Well, yes, I think to Dan's point, we just don't
tech a lot, have like a z Repruiter film on
what exactly happened on that effect.

Speaker 5 (30:03):
And that's fine.

Speaker 6 (30:03):
But the Seattle starts four and four on third downs
and then goes one and eleven the rest of the game.

Speaker 5 (30:09):
They kind of, I think part of the story here.

Speaker 1 (30:10):
They're the worst third down team in the NFL. They
have been all year.

Speaker 6 (30:13):
It's plagued them NonStop. And the Rams, who in two
games have allowed three points to Seattle in the second half.
I thought you kind of remind me of when we
were in London and they came out against the Cardinals.
The Rams, after very being able to do nothing on
the ground, came out and kind of dominated and had
a couple of drives where they just marched up and
down the field running the ball. But they kind of
let Seattle back into this by throwing that pass down.

Speaker 5 (30:36):
With it the Rams did.

Speaker 6 (30:38):
They let Seattle back in that choice to throw it
and it gives Seattle to essentially the ball back with
about a minute forty.

Speaker 4 (30:44):
Yeah, there were a lot of fascinating game management decisions.
I think Pete Carroll really blew it at the end
of the first half by not taking a time out,
could have given his team when the Rams were going
into score, some time to possibly respond. And like, that's
just that's just how Pee Carroll works defensively, not being aggressive.
But what you're referring to, Mark is the Rams y
had the ball inside the ten after two really impressive

(31:07):
drives where they ran it down the Seahawks' throats in
the fourth quarter, to score those ten points and make
this comeback, and they chose to pass instead of making
those Seahawks burn their timeouts. In hindsight, I was with you,
that was my first reaction. But in hindsight, you had
to throw the ball to try to score a touchdown there,
So I just I can't kill them. They tried to
be aggressive going to Puka Nokua. They didn't execute it there.

(31:30):
Either way, the Seahawks would have gotten the ball back,
it just would have been with like fifty five seconds
in no timeouts. It's it's such a collapse though, Dan,
and this is one of those games if you're a
Seahawks fan that feels like, oh my god, this game
might ruin our season. Because at one point in the game,
the Seahawks had thirty four offensive plays to the Rams

(31:50):
nineteen yards, So they had two hundred and five yards
on those forty five plays to nineteen yards. For three quarters,
they absolutely looked like the better team, and they just
didn't quite take advantage of enough. Gino gets hurt, and
then the fourth quarter their run defense, which has been
great all year, kind of gets mowed over by freaking
Royce Freeman.

Speaker 1 (32:11):
It is a tough way to lose.

Speaker 2 (32:13):
Now, I can't Royce Freeman still in the league. I
love it.

Speaker 3 (32:16):
Yeah, it's twelve penalties, Greg, Yeah, for one hundred and
thirty yards, the most penalties for any team this season,
the most for Seattle since twenty and eighteen. And you're right,
like you say that this might ruin our season. This
is just one game. There's still a team with a
winning record. In fact, six and four is pretty nice

(32:36):
spot to be. But then you look at the schedule
up ahead. They got the Niners on Thanksgiving Night, then
they get the Niners again in a couple of weeks,
and they also get the Cowboys and Eagles. This is
a murderers roa stretch. So this is a win at home.
Excuse me, there's a win on the road. You want
to stick in your back pocket and then set up
and say and hope, you know, maybe we could split
those next four. Now you kind of have to find

(32:59):
a way to win and then maybe three, or you're
gonna find yourself in dangerous, dangerous spot late in the
regular season.

Speaker 6 (33:05):
I would tend to think we probably will not trust
Seattle after that rugged three game stretch.

Speaker 5 (33:09):
And I don't need a.

Speaker 4 (33:10):
Score game and it's the next four too, so you
got to win one of those scours.

Speaker 5 (33:13):
Trust them.

Speaker 6 (33:14):
Coming out of this game, I do have a question,
like if you're Geno Smith, like in terms of medically
clearing Gino Smith, like you're out. He's got a big
rap on his arm and shoulder. Yeah, and then it's
like you're in. You're playing again. What happened over the
course of five or six minutes that suddenly greenlit Gino Smith.
We don't even know if he'll be able to play
on Thanksgiving.

Speaker 1 (33:31):
I I I think he just can't heat.

Speaker 4 (33:33):
What Pete Carroll said was Gino convinced them he could play,
and I'm sure they're thinking twice because I think he
was ready to go to the drive before and they
decided to leave Locke in there. And Gino had a
good game overall, two thirty three and a touchdown.

Speaker 1 (33:47):
You know, avoided the interception.

Speaker 4 (33:49):
He he made good decisions and throws it in the last drive,
but the balls did kind of come out funny if
you were looking at him. He had one weird sideline
pass the metcalf and even the one over the middle,
like they went in right direction. It got there, but
they were a little wobbly, So I don't know if
this elbow injury is going to be an issue. And
one reason I don't I just don't believe in the
Seahawks team right now because they just have too many

(34:10):
things going wrong with them. Neither of these teams could
protect Stafford and Gino were just bruised and battered.

Speaker 1 (34:15):
Both of them are running for their lives the whole game.

Speaker 2 (34:18):
I'm bummed about Cooper Cup.

Speaker 3 (34:20):
This is now back to back seasons where the injury
bug is biting on him hard in that you know,
we talked about the idea of getting Stafford back, and
then you get the Big three with Nakua and Cup
together and it just seems like it's starting to be
one of those seasons for the Rams where you can't
get your guys back together at the same time for
any length of time. But otherwise, a very nice win

(34:42):
for Sean McVay and company. It always, you know, it
always means a little more in the NFC West.

Speaker 4 (34:47):
To get swept him by the way he owns Pete Carroll.
There's something about this matchup. He swept them, and he's
kind of killed him since Pete Carroll, especially in the
second hand there are Ye.

Speaker 3 (34:56):
That was the Sunday Drive presented by Toyota. Let's go play.
Learn more at toyota dot com slash Grand Highlander. All right,
so it wasn't you know, I'm in New York this
weekend and you know, spending getting a lot of family
time in It's very nice. At the last moment, I
decided to bring my two boys as well, so they
they've been bonding with their cousins and.

Speaker 2 (35:19):
Their uncles and aunts. It's been very nice.

Speaker 3 (35:21):
And to kind of keep it all in that headspace
of where I grew up, I did draft the Giants
Mark on Thursday show, So Poppy's not next to me
sitting in the big brown chair drinking roop here cursing
off Phil Simms. But still there was something nice about
watching the Giants the Autumn Leaves and the Crisp November air,

(35:43):
and they delivered a performance set reminded you of the
old Giants on Sunday.

Speaker 9 (35:49):
Takes the snap back to throw, steps up under pressure,
runs out of a sack, then loves it.

Speaker 13 (35:54):
And it's intercepting by Isaiah Sevens running down the love
sideline twenty fifteen ten to five touchdown. Giants Isaiah Simmons
with the pick six to enter with sixteen seconds to go,
third interception by Howell, and the Giants take out the groom.

Speaker 5 (36:14):
They're sweeping Washington again.

Speaker 1 (36:18):
Get gone.

Speaker 2 (36:19):
Who I mean that's Bob Papa.

Speaker 4 (36:22):
I mean.

Speaker 2 (36:24):
Lost season for the Giants.

Speaker 3 (36:25):
It's a nice I would maybe give the Giants of
bongos for one night.

Speaker 4 (36:29):
Yeah, yeah, I think you know, when Tommy DeVito gets
thirty one on you, you get some bongos.

Speaker 2 (36:35):
He got to veto throwing three touchdown passes.

Speaker 3 (36:38):
He got Isaiah Simmons pick six taken to the house
one of six. Count them six commander's turnovers in a
thirty one nineteen home loss to the last place New
York Giants. Great line here, you know the old writing
on deadline. You'll have those one sentenced grafts that hit hard.

(37:02):
The ugly game got even smellier afterward when there was
no hot water in the stadium for players to shower.

Speaker 2 (37:09):
You know, it's the.

Speaker 3 (37:10):
Most annoying thing. We can't even blame Daniel Snyder. Well,
we kind of can still blame him.

Speaker 2 (37:14):
This is his old dilapidated building.

Speaker 3 (37:16):
Yeah, but what a dark, dark game for the Commanders
and I guess I'll just start with the Commanders, because
they are a team that, at least entering Sunday, had
some more relevance than the Giants.

Speaker 2 (37:28):
I think it's not just us, it's everyone.

Speaker 3 (37:31):
Every time we seem to get behind the idea of
Sam Howell, he has an outrageously poor game, and this
was an outrageously poor game. By how he didn't get
a chance to watch this yet some of these interceptions
he threw were just wretched, and he did not give
his team a great opportunity to win this game. And

(37:53):
I got a shout out mark Tommy DeVito because this
guy who's become something of an internet meme at this point,
and we talked about on an NFL Plus last week.
Greg just having fun with the idea of the guy
that has his mom making his bed and he's starting
for the NFL. He played really well in this game,
lighting up Washington's defense despite taking a beating. He got

(38:14):
sacked five times in the first quarter in this game,
but hung tough, much tougher than his counter counterpart in
New York, Zach Wilson. And this was a nice win
for the Giants and a good look for Brian Dable
quite frankly, whose team in a lost year was playing
very hard throughout.

Speaker 6 (38:31):
Yeah, because de Veto looked completely utterly lost at sea
when we first saw him. And this is a short
amount of time to get someone who's not a high
draft picked on any level ready, and that's kind of
what dables special sauce was meant to be.

Speaker 5 (38:44):
So I think it's a win for him.

Speaker 6 (38:46):
If you're Ron Rivera, you were kind of hitching your
wagon to the fact that you stood by Sam how
and no one really believed or necessarily thought that was
the smartest thing to do.

Speaker 5 (38:54):
Howell has been I thought, really watchable.

Speaker 6 (38:57):
He had been keeping the turnovers down prior to this week,
and even the like six nine sack games had disappeared.

Speaker 5 (39:03):
But this kind of sounds like that Buffalo wipeout.

Speaker 6 (39:06):
And if you get that version of him, that's wild
because like you have to go back to nineteen eighty
four when a Washington team that sacked a quarterback nine
or any team sacked a quarterback nine plus times and
still lost by double digits.

Speaker 5 (39:18):
It's like, if you're on Rivera, your.

Speaker 6 (39:20):
Calling card is no matter what, our defense is gonna
cause a problem for the opposing quarterback and it's like
you didn't do any of that today.

Speaker 4 (39:26):
Well no, I mean, and it has an all season,
which is why we don't need to belabor it. Rivera
is the one coach out there that, like, we know
he's not making it. He's ann next season. I guess,
I guess you could create a scenario where they win
out like then maybe he would have a chance. But
borring that, it's a tough spot. And it's because his
defense has been so bad. And how about DeVito dimes

(39:46):
out there? He now has six touchdowns. I mean, that's
I don't even need to check. That's gotta be more
than Daniel Jones.

Speaker 1 (39:52):
Has this year.

Speaker 4 (39:53):
It is, It's definitely more than Kenny Pickett has this year. Uh,
de Vito, it's happening in Sequon we talked about Saquon
has been running his ass of one hundred and forty
yards from scrimmage in two touchdowns.

Speaker 1 (40:04):
Nice job by Saquon.

Speaker 3 (40:06):
Hey, Eric Roberts, you know it's not too late. We
can give Tommy de Vido some bongos on a Sunday night.

Speaker 6 (40:11):
It might be his last chance, all right, I mean
I'm down if you guys are like an unshowered deviat.

Speaker 4 (40:15):
I didn't know that we could do it in the
middle of the game.

Speaker 2 (40:18):
Hey, you know, hey, you know what really?

Speaker 3 (40:21):
You know, when he after he threw his first touchdown
through two touchdowns to Barkley, he went sprinting down the
field doing that, you know, like the Italian dude thing.

Speaker 2 (40:31):
We're like holding the fingers up like he is.

Speaker 3 (40:35):
There's there's a level of self awareness Greg that I
was not expecting from a guy that said his all
time dinner features Elon Musk, who else was it?

Speaker 4 (40:44):
Floyd Mayweather and Jeff Bezos.

Speaker 3 (40:46):
Like, yeah, there was a little more depth of character
or a sense of humor than I was expecting.

Speaker 4 (40:52):
Yeah, a couple of creeps and maybe another creep. Okay,
selling your own plank.

Speaker 2 (40:57):
No, But honestly, he played very well. He really did.

Speaker 3 (41:00):
And and I'm not saying he's the future of the position,
but he's really helping out Dable here because this could
have this could have really degenerated into an all time
humiliation season that would put Dable in trouble. But now
I'm starting to think they're going to be able to
kind of get to the finish line with Dignity Attack
because I think he's good enough.

Speaker 2 (41:20):
Like with the old trope Gregory, we talked about it
last week.

Speaker 3 (41:23):
You know what, with this game, he's going to be
around for ten years as a backup.

Speaker 2 (41:26):
You know, he bought a whole career.

Speaker 3 (41:28):
It's like, yeah, sure, but I bet but right now,
but for one for one day, he really did play
well and good for him. And uh and and I'll
give a shout out Mark.

Speaker 2 (41:40):
I didn't get a check. Chance to check his final line.

Speaker 3 (41:43):
But every time I do a Giants game on Sundays,
Cavon Thibodau's making plays and he really is having a
nice year or two with the Giants. He's absolutely made
the leap, and I think they have a guy going
forward that can anchor that that line.

Speaker 6 (41:58):
Yeah, two sacks, two tackles for loss, Like he seems
to be the guy that shows up regularly. And this defense,
I mean, I know, like they've had a couple of
sneaky good games. I look back on the Bills when
I'm like, all right, I'm not sure what to make
of that one because of what's happened in Buffalo. But no,
this isn't great anything you can cling to if you're
Brian's able.

Speaker 1 (42:15):
This is great. They now passed the Patriots in Tankathon.

Speaker 4 (42:19):
The tank the Patriots are into that top three here,
and we got a big Patriots Giants Tankathon matchup next week.
Well you should pick We need that quarterback to Vito. Yeah,
save your job, get out of they watch.

Speaker 2 (42:30):
Look, we haven't heard that a lot either.

Speaker 3 (42:37):
And I was watching the games with Keith Hansas for
the first time, like on a football Sunday in fourteen years.
Wo And you know, he's a little rusty on like
you know, who to be rooting for and against. It's
good that I was there to help him because he
likes Herbert a lot.

Speaker 2 (42:51):
So he's rooting for the Chargers.

Speaker 3 (42:52):
And I'm like, Dad, because I have these two games
on as like, Dad, actually the Chargers have the tiebreaker
on the Jets and they have a similar record, so
we've got to be against the Chargers.

Speaker 2 (43:03):
And then he's like, oh, those Giants, those dogs.

Speaker 3 (43:05):
My dad hates the Giants more than anyone hates anything
in the world. And I was like that the Giants
win this game, it actually gives them a worst draft
pick and they fall out of contention for one of
these big college prospects. He's like, all right, Danny, So
it was good to have, like have that dynamic back
and forth.

Speaker 2 (43:23):
I've missed it.

Speaker 5 (43:25):
You're a man of reason.

Speaker 2 (43:28):
Oh you're right, Danny. All right, let's move on and
uh yeah.

Speaker 3 (43:33):
Check in with the other team that plays in the Meadowlands,
who traveled up to Orchard Park to face a Bills
team that needed a win in the worst way, and
they got it.

Speaker 4 (43:44):
Bobby, Bobby Alan making a check Bobby Wagner back to
the shotgun.

Speaker 6 (43:50):
He goes, here's the snap, pre man Rush Jets drop
an eight and the passes complete to Shakir gets away
for the tag un to the.

Speaker 5 (43:57):
Corty thirty five thirty.

Speaker 3 (43:58):
Doubles back to the twin still loose piece, going all
the way for the touchdown.

Speaker 13 (44:05):
Eighty one yards to paydirt Khalil ship here.

Speaker 2 (44:10):
Wow, Chris Brown with the call, WGR.

Speaker 3 (44:16):
I think that's a fitting call for this game, which
was a very one sided affair thirty two to six
in favor of the Bills over the fading Jets. And
it was Sauce Gardner that got beat in coverage by
Shakiir on that beautiful throw by Josh Allen and then
a Gardener sprints down the field, uses his ketchup speed

(44:38):
and then is unable to bring it down. Shakira in
around the twenty or so and he goes in. And
this was kind of the game where the dam finally
broke for a Jets defense that had been carrying this
team all season, and after another disgraceful effort by the offense,
it was the defense that also caved.

Speaker 2 (44:55):
Josh Allen led the way.

Speaker 3 (44:57):
A very strong effort from Allen with his new offensive coordinator,
and a Buffalo team that scored points on six of
its first eight possessions gets back above five hundred. And also,
I think importantly Mark has a win that they can
kind of feel good about. And you could kind of
sense that with some of the it was an endless game,

(45:18):
the game would not end it Maybe.

Speaker 2 (45:20):
I have to check.

Speaker 3 (45:21):
It might be the longest four quarter game of the season,
and considering it was so one sided, it felt terminal
at least for interminable for this Jets fan. But there
was some swagger in this game and some chess pump pumping,
and this idea that the Bills, who have been struggling
to really find their swagger. This is the type of
game against the Jet team that's fading but still where

(45:43):
you can find yourself a little bit and build off it.

Speaker 6 (45:45):
Yeah, there was a legitimate stink on Buffalo all week
leading up to this game, so it take I mean,
I don't recall at any moment Sean McDermott being widely
criticized by so many different people for so many different reasons,
and you just felt like the bow could break down,
will come baby and cradle and all and all that business.

Speaker 5 (46:02):
But this kind of stops all that. And yet I'm.

Speaker 6 (46:06):
Not sure totally what to take from it, because you're
watching a non functional offense and it's like, I kind
of felt like a game when they took away the
opening kick return, the Bills and the Jets were suddenly
a sitting duck. And out comes the offense in twenty
minutes into this affair, they have zero yards. Obviously, zero
yards per play. That is pretty unusual. We've seen some
weird games this year, but you're watching a non functional offense,

(46:29):
and I think that that weight of that and probably
what is a fractured locker room at some point, to
some degree, what can you do as a defense. The
Bills start to make plays and It's like there are
a couple teams out there where they're leaning hard on
their great defense and really problematic offense and you're gonna
get these things. And it's like the four and six
Jets right now, there's got to be a lot of
division inside that locker room.

Speaker 3 (46:51):
They're cooked. I mean I would stick a fork in them.
But I'm emotional right now because they're my team.

Speaker 1 (46:57):
And it's a tough game Friday Field.

Speaker 3 (46:58):
Yeah, they got their on Black Friday, and but they're
getting They're going there.

Speaker 2 (47:03):
They're playing the Dolphins. It's at the metal ends.

Speaker 3 (47:06):
But their confidence is at an all time low as
a team. I could tell you that for sure just
by watching them. And they finally benched Zach Wilson in
the third quarter. I mean, this is a game that
it's all there again, and it's so frustrating that we're
back here where the Jets are the butt of jokes.
But this is just what seems to happen when you

(47:26):
tie your wagon to a team like this. Like Wilson
at one point, coming off the sideline coming back from
break is backpedaling. I guess what he's kind of communicating
with the coach and he falls over, he trips on
his own feet and falls to the ground, and I
looked over to my brother and I said, you know,
he's throwing an interception now, because this is the jet thing,

(47:47):
and not only is that gonna happen. And sure enough,
three plays later, he throws the interception that more or
less puts the game to bed. They finally put in
Tim Boyle, and obviously he doesn't do much either. They
scored six points one touchdown in the first half. But
this is a team that is getting everything they deserve
now because it's all exposed all the things that they
were skating by on with all those crazy wins, and

(48:10):
they were ignoring the real problems with this offense and
refusing to make real changes, and this was all coming
and building to this point in these last few weeks
during this losing streak, I think everyone has been exposed,
from Joe Douglas on down for making a terrible mess
out of what could have still been a fun, exciting season,

(48:31):
even after the Aaron Rodgers injury. So they deserve everything
they're getting right now. With the with the quarterback play,
the fact that Nathaniel Hackett has a free pass on
this team is absolutely atrocious.

Speaker 2 (48:42):
But you know exactly why he has a free.

Speaker 4 (48:46):
He's the one guy.

Speaker 2 (48:47):
Oh that's the change. He's the guy changes.

Speaker 4 (48:49):
Changed it, but it didn't make any difference.

Speaker 3 (48:52):
Here are the big changes that I noticed in this game.
You put the overmatched offensive coordinator in a booth. You
cut the third string running back in this game. I
didn't see much else. And they're trying to pull the
wool over the eyes of the fan base and acting
like they're trying to really make changes, but the truth
is they're not doing anything.

Speaker 2 (49:12):
And this is what happens. And if I'm Aaron.

Speaker 3 (49:14):
Rodgers, who supposedly reportedly was targeting a Christmas Eve return, no, bro,
You've got a terrible offensive line that got further weekend
by Makai Becton's ankle injury today. And I think it's
just a matter of time now before this whole locker
room breaks because they already had a players meeting players
only meeting heading into this game, and now they're going

(49:36):
to face a Miami team in prime in a game
at an Island game, it is gonna be potentially a
grizzly scene at the Metal Lens. And again, like these
are games that Jets fans are supposed to be looking
forward to all these spotlight games and now there's a
sense of dread around them, and it just sucks. They
let the fan base down with their decision making and

(49:58):
it's really tough to swallow.

Speaker 6 (49:59):
Yeah, they're third loan touchdown was their first and forty
one drives, I believe, and I think you're you're hamstrung
because you have a super empowered quarterback and you knew
what came along with that, but he's tied at the
hip to an offensive coordinator and at Daniel Hackett that
is arguably and maybe overtly having an even worse campaign
than a year ago. And that was one of the
worst head coaching stints we've ever seen. So it's like,

(50:22):
you could have made changes here, like the but for instance,
Bill's at least went out and got someone like Roseull Douglas,
who had three takeaways today. It's like, you know, go
and try to change the situation, and the Jets did
nothing and stuck with a non functional quarterback who somehow
is playing less adequately than a Giants quarterback that no
one had heard of, you know, a fortnight ago. It's
just like it couldn't get any mess year, And if

(50:43):
you don't have the guts to switch quarterbacks or go
and get one, it's all on you and the floor
falls out and they have no one to blame but themselves.

Speaker 4 (50:50):
Well, Zach Wilson, And you know, the thing that is
similar between this year and last year is not the
play card.

Speaker 1 (50:55):
It's Zach Wilson.

Speaker 4 (50:56):
And like Mike, I have a feeling Mike Lafleur could
coach some offense had a quarterback.

Speaker 1 (51:01):
So to me, it's the quarterback, it's the offensive line.

Speaker 4 (51:03):
Rodgers, ultimately the choice is gonna be made for him,
like if they have eight once they have eight or
nine losses, he's.

Speaker 1 (51:09):
Not coming back anyway.

Speaker 4 (51:10):
So if they get to that point and the Bills
have I think they're at Philly next week before a
late bye, but it's now they could even if they
lose that game. I look at this AFC and I
know the point differential. Thing's crazy. They're now like plus
one hundred for the year, which is just nuts. You
know all their offensive statsic. I actually think Josh Allen

(51:30):
is having a good season. I know it's wrapped around
a couple like clunky, turnover prone games, I really do.
If you take out like those two games, I think
he's been a total top five.

Speaker 1 (51:43):
Quarterback, if not better.

Speaker 4 (51:44):
And you could say that basically about any quarterback this year,
if you could pick out one or two bags. My
point is they're running the ball well. You get a
big day out of Leonard Floyd and Ed Oliver. I
know it's against the Jets, but ed Oliver's playing with
his hair on fire lately, and you've been running it better,
and you have Alan. I think they are still a
playoff team even if they go six and six, and
I know that the schedule's tough.

Speaker 1 (52:03):
I think there's a lot to like though. I'm not
giving up on the Bills. Is my point.

Speaker 3 (52:07):
Well, you shouldn't give up on the Bills, but let's
not go around the knack like Josh Allen is a
couple of bad throws away from having a good year.
You look, I mean, you had the first Jet game,
you have the Giant game, you have the Denver game.
I'm looking at multiple weeks where they scored less than
twenty points.

Speaker 4 (52:23):
Yes, on a down to down like play to play basis,
I think he's not been much different than he always is.
He is a quarterback that matters that is playing reasonably well.

Speaker 1 (52:35):
I think they have a chances off I.

Speaker 6 (52:37):
Would say globally though, like what they are is an
offense like today is not a measuring stick of that
like they seem.

Speaker 1 (52:42):
I think it is. People love to say like and
I get it.

Speaker 4 (52:44):
The defense caved in eventually, but it's also the same
defense that's totally stopped the Bills in games before when
their offense wasn't doing anything. So you can't have it
both ways. You got to give them some credit for
being able to move the ball today.

Speaker 1 (52:59):
It's a nice day for.

Speaker 6 (52:59):
Them lost cause, but there's definitely issues with the Bills
in general, and I think three weeks from now we'll see.
But it's like date, go out and show us that
you're a good team against a different team against the Jets.
Like Josh Allen has a ton of touchdowns and I'm
not saying he's like a major issue, but this isn't
the same version I think of Josh Allen that we
got it's certain heights in the last two seasons.

Speaker 3 (53:20):
I think the point is great because I nobody would
argue that Allen hasn't had moments of this season and
stretches where he looked as good as ever. I think
he has the ability, he has the natural ability and
the players around him to be the best quarterback in
the league for the rest of the season. But this
year has been marked by inconsistencies on their offense. So
I think we've gotten but we've gotten sucked in before

(53:43):
Greg by the Bills this year where it felt like, Okay,
this team is on track and then they lay an egg.

Speaker 2 (53:48):
I guess I just need to see a real.

Speaker 3 (53:50):
Extended stretch here where he's not shooting himself in the
foot and they're not putting the ball on the ground.
And maybe the scheme alteration with the new OC makes
a big difference. And maybe Allen who kind of got
his offensive coordinator fired, Greg, like maybe that was the
way you call he needs in some level, I don't know.
I just don't want to like paint like a rosy
picture of a guy that I think he got Lombardi.

(54:12):
Excuse me, I think he got Dorsey run out of
town with his sloppy play this year.

Speaker 4 (54:15):
I just I just think people go so far in
one direction or the other.

Speaker 2 (54:18):
Now.

Speaker 4 (54:19):
I don't think these stats like paint the total picture,
but I also kind of get it that, like his
EPA per play is a career high, he's second in
the league to a Purty, He's top five in QBR.
He usually doesn't rank that high. Completion percentage over expected,
these are down to down things. They're actually at or
above his career high. Now, no one's saying he's having
his best season, but I think he's having a better

(54:39):
season than people recognize. And there's a decent chance, because
he's often been pretty up and out, there's a decent
chance he gets on a heater down this stot.

Speaker 6 (54:46):
I just don't think anyone's walking around saying that he
is some sort of a disaster either.

Speaker 5 (54:51):
People aren't saying that, no one.

Speaker 4 (54:53):
I feel like all of last week was spent on
like what a problem.

Speaker 2 (54:57):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (54:57):
I think part of it is, like to what Dan
just said that, like, did are you the reason your
OC just got canned? When all those stats are true
about what the OC produced as well, A lot of
those are from their highs.

Speaker 4 (55:06):
I think the OC got caned because Don mcdermom didn't
like him.

Speaker 1 (55:11):
That's my that's my room.

Speaker 4 (55:12):
They can't be best pals, well you mean like personally, Yeah,
I mean just that they didn't like working together.

Speaker 2 (55:17):
I mean when you got there, Greg, not a little stupid.

Speaker 4 (55:20):
Nothing other than like no one with that sort of
track record and production. Ever it gets fired in the
middle of season. I mean he clearly didn't want to
work with him anymore.

Speaker 1 (55:28):
He got rid of him. You gown, well, you.

Speaker 6 (55:32):
Keep firing people until you're next in line, exactly.

Speaker 2 (55:35):
I think.

Speaker 3 (55:37):
I think that's a team under an extreme amount of
pressure to get this thing figured out, and I think
that hurt Dorsey as well, like the amount of pressure
on them to not let this season go down in
infinity infinity for Buffalo fans.

Speaker 8 (55:50):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (55:50):
By the way, safety Tailer Rafts.

Speaker 3 (55:52):
To stained a neck injury, came off the field in
an ambulance, a scary scene, but it looked like he
had feeling like in his extremities, so that that's good.

Speaker 2 (56:00):
But they also lost.

Speaker 3 (56:02):
Dan Jackson and Toron Johnson to head injuries, so they
they've been they've been a bit hard. It's not just
the offense with the turnovers. They've had a ton of
injuries this year and they and now they get the
Eagles coming up, and that's gonna be potentially a fun
little shootout all right, good, good, good.

Speaker 2 (56:23):
All right.

Speaker 3 (56:23):
So a little like I said at the top of
the show, a little bit of a different week. I'm
back east, so with my family on the other side
of the store, I am going to We're gonna take
a break here, and then when we get back, it
will be Nick Shook tagging.

Speaker 2 (56:41):
I'm tagging in. Man. Imagine Nick Shook as your tag
team partner.

Speaker 5 (56:45):
Oh my god, you play different roles.

Speaker 6 (56:47):
That would be you'd be the guy with like the
dust and the little thing that you scored in someone's face.

Speaker 3 (56:52):
Well, wait, that's the valet. Let's give me a little
more credit than that. But he's definitely the guy that, like,
I just gotta like not get pinned. And if I
could just get to that corner where Shook is at
the turnbuckle and slap his hand, He's gonna hulk up
and just clean house.

Speaker 2 (57:08):
So that's what I'm gonna do at this break.

Speaker 3 (57:10):
And I will see you guys tomorrow night for the
Super Bowl rematch recap of Monday night football. Let's take
a break and then Shook will join us.

Speaker 1 (57:23):
All right, welcome back.

Speaker 4 (57:25):
Let's head where we always head when Nick Schuck is
coming on the show.

Speaker 1 (57:29):
Let's go to Cleveland.

Speaker 9 (57:30):
Twenty four yard line is where they spotted thirty four
yard field Goala tap, five seconds to go. Here we go.
She look ready to put the ball, back step to it,
back ball down.

Speaker 14 (57:42):
Hopkins in with flag down, kick us up and the
kick is good. We're two seconds left. There's a flag down.
It looks like the Snailers were offside. Two seconds left
and Dustin the Hopkins puts the Brown toad.

Speaker 5 (57:58):
Thirteen to ten offside.

Speaker 4 (58:00):
You bet indeed, Jim Donovan back in the house. That's
great to hear. Longtime Browns play by playban is healthy
again for w k r K. Dustin Hopkins. He's been
a difference maker all season. Fitting he gets the field

(58:20):
goal in a thirteen to ten Brown's victory over the Steelers.
If you're watching on YouTube, you can see Dorian Thompson
Robinson overcome by emotion. He says he's a winning starter
in the NFL. Also overcome by emotion. Nick Shook and

(58:42):
Mark Sessler because they're both Browns fans, even if they
don't want to honk about it. This had to be satisfying, Nick,
beating the Steelers with your backup quarterback.

Speaker 15 (58:53):
Oh I mean, it was.

Speaker 7 (58:54):
It was an ugly game, but you know, you take
the wins, Harvey can if you're the Browns, the slap
walk through the third quarter and then most of the
fourth quarter, and then found it when they needed it most,
and they turned the rookie who was able to complete
a few passes, get them in range and pull off
a drive that you desperately needed to kick a field
goal that I was certain was not going to happen
in this game. And sometimes the spice of life is surprises,

(59:17):
and it was today.

Speaker 6 (59:19):
I mean, for the first time ever, the Browns have
beaten the Ravens and Steelers and back to back contests.
If you go back through time, so many of these
games would end so differently because you have issues at
the field goal pick kicking position, You've lost your starting quarterback,
you've lost the center of your offense, your star running back,

(59:40):
and countless you've got issues at the tackle position, and
you're facing the Steelers defense that is even with your
starting tackles reak tavoc for a decade plus. So a
lot was going on wrong for the Browns going into
the game.

Speaker 5 (59:52):
And it was ugly.

Speaker 6 (59:54):
But it's ugly, I thought, because You've got something truly special,
and it is a beautiful defense, and it is really
rewarding to see Miles Garrett, who's been surrounded by very
little his entire career, making game changing place. I gotta
ask you, Nick, like that, I thought that was a
safety out of the gate when Miles Garrett comes to
tearing up the belly and blows up picket and it's

(01:00:16):
it like the camera says, we'll see it to Pennstreet
where the rep solid.

Speaker 5 (01:00:20):
But Jean Sarahtor said, you should have challenged that.

Speaker 1 (01:00:22):
You gotta challenge a potential scoring place.

Speaker 7 (01:00:24):
Absolutely, it was a really bad day of challenges for
the Browns because they didn't challenge that, and on that
sideline angle, you could see the balls clearly over the
goal line. The entire football has to be out of
the goal line for it to not be a safety.
We're not gonna split hairs with the rules here, but
it should have been challenged. Then they go challenge the
Jerome Ford touchdown, which they somehow get overturned and turned
into a touchdown because it wasn't initially ruled as a

(01:00:47):
touchdown even though there's really no conclusive evidence. I feel
like that was a makeup review there, and then they
went and challenged another play in the second half that
was just a terrible challenge, like it was just swings
and misses, and they lucked out on the one that
went their way. I wonder who is in the booth
making these decisions for them, because they need to be replaced.

Speaker 4 (01:01:05):
That is something we can investigate. I think you're right
Mark to bring up Garrett right away, because it's hard
not to think about TJ. Watt, Miles Garrett, and you
know TJ. Watt had a couple quarterback hits in a
sack in this game. But when it comes down to
it in the fourth quarter in a huge spot where
Steelers I think they had the ball in great field position,

(01:01:26):
they got over the fifty yard line, I believe before
Miles Garrett puts them back with a big time sack
in that moment. He just keeps stacking those moments this year.
It is pretty special. It is crazy. They are seven
and three. They're seven and three.

Speaker 6 (01:01:42):
No, I mean, they're winning games in ways they would
have lost them in the past, and I think that
there is a difference here. If you watch Kevin Stefanski's
postgame locker room speech, to the team I think is
even kealed nature through all sorts of stuff that's happened
affects them. I think there's a Browns team that leaves
in each other in a way that you typically would

(01:02:02):
look at the Steelers and say, that's how they feel
about each other. And meanwhile, all this chaos could have
caused disunity, and I've seen the opposite, and it's stories
of people like Dave and Nadjoku who like keeps showing
up in big moments. And it's the fact that you've
had three different quarterbacks and even your starter.

Speaker 1 (01:02:17):
Fifteen targets for Dadoku today.

Speaker 6 (01:02:19):
Really, I mean, I think in other years he says inconsistent,
He's still gonna give you the drops. But it's like
you made out you made a pinpoint passes coming at
you in some of these situations this season, but certain
guys have stepped up, and I just think it's kind
of a season altering win back to back to beat
the Ravens and Steelers. I think it means a lot
to a Browns franchise that like has not been able
to do that consistently in twenty years.

Speaker 15 (01:02:43):
There's something weird around this team right now, and it's built.

Speaker 7 (01:02:46):
You know, it's centered on their defense, because you know
when you have a good defense, it's gonna give you
a chance in every game. But there's like a sense
of belief and it's like cautious optimism within the fan base,
whereas this team's just going out there and trying to
prove every week believe in us, believe in us. And
they stack a couple couple of wins that are coming
wildly different fashion with different quarterbacks who have massively different
stat lines, and yet the one true reliable factor is

(01:03:07):
that defense. And I don't know if we're in that
era anymore in which a defense can win new championships,
like I don't know if the Ravens and Trent dilferd
win a championship in this era. But you are looking
for a unit that's going to come about as close
as possible to getting you there. This is the defense
this year that's been that so far. It's the only
thing they've been able to count on in most of
their games. And even today, I felt like Kevin Stefanski

(01:03:28):
coached very passively in the third quarter, and I thought
he's done a really good job in the last month.
But today there was a stretch where they just were
so conservative and so predictable offensively, and they had two
times where they had the ball in Pittsburgh territory, started
drive and they did absolutely nothing with it, took no
time off the clock, clinging to a three point lead.
And I'm sitting there watching this, going the Browns are
going to lose this game. They are coaching not to
lose instead of coaching to win right now, and it's

(01:03:49):
gonna happen.

Speaker 15 (01:03:49):
And yet every time the defense bailed them out.

Speaker 7 (01:03:51):
And just like you said, that sack, that Miles Garrett
sack that took them out of field goal range late,
that's the defense coming through.

Speaker 15 (01:03:57):
Yet again, that's what gave them the opportunity here.

Speaker 7 (01:03:59):
And I want to be like sitting back and think, oh,
eventually it's gonna falter. And it's broken down a couple
times in the past, but it is more reliable and consistently.
I fully believe that they'll have a shot in every
game from here on out.

Speaker 6 (01:04:11):
Yet I think some of the passive coaching came on
Pittsburgh's offensive side. Where can you Pickett said afterwards that
you know they were expecting Cleveland out to come out
and play man from wire to wire and they switched
that up.

Speaker 5 (01:04:23):
They confused them.

Speaker 6 (01:04:24):
This is a division opponent, and he said, we've got
to adjust better. And then Naji Harris, we know that
he's been upset with a few things. You got Jayleen
Warren going off for a big touchdown. But Naji Harris,
I think was another crack in the armor about what's
going on with this offensive coaching staff.

Speaker 5 (01:04:38):
Let's listen to it.

Speaker 4 (01:04:39):
There's just a lot of stuff that just goes around.

Speaker 7 (01:04:41):
It's just.

Speaker 2 (01:04:44):
It's just that you guys don't see as I say.

Speaker 7 (01:04:47):
It's just true.

Speaker 2 (01:04:49):
I'm miss at a point where it.

Speaker 7 (01:04:50):
Was just like, I'm just tired of it.

Speaker 4 (01:04:53):
Let's let's hear some more, because that, especially from Najia Harris,
was pretty telling, knowing that they're six and four or
but that they've once again been out gained.

Speaker 1 (01:05:02):
Wait where are they outgain?

Speaker 4 (01:05:03):
We kept it going, Yes, two fifty nine to two
forty nine. They they kept the streak going. Let's hear
him talk about that this record might be fools gold Meeks.

Speaker 2 (01:05:13):
The two things. You can look at the record and say, Okay,
well we're still.

Speaker 3 (01:05:15):
Good right now.

Speaker 12 (01:05:15):
We can look at the record and.

Speaker 14 (01:05:16):
We like, you know, if we keep playing this type
of football, how long is that last?

Speaker 4 (01:05:20):
Right?

Speaker 1 (01:05:22):
I look at it, like, how long does it last?

Speaker 4 (01:05:25):
Mandalkamhad like I said, good record players, I missed the NFL.

Speaker 2 (01:05:29):
You know it's winning, Like, how we did it?

Speaker 4 (01:05:32):
Chiphold, It's not gonna get us nowhere? Wow, that's selling
to me because that Naja Harris is kind of known
for being a leader. I think it's one of the
reasons why he was drafted so early. Like he is
that dude that has a sense of the locker room
and wants to lead by example. So for him to
be saying that, he's probably not too happy either. He had,

(01:05:55):
you know, thirty five yards on twelve carries. Jalen Warren
was basically their entire offense, and Kenny Picket has one
hundred and six yards and twenty eight attempts. Ben Solak
of The Ringer sent out this cut up of every
pass he threw beyond the line of scrimmage today, and
it's first of all, it's only forty three seconds long.
Second of all, I only count I think there's only
two completions. I'm not sure they don't have a passing attack.

(01:06:19):
And we got to move on from this game soon, Mark,
But when he was getting tested for potential concussion, I
know you thought maybe he was playing despite a concussion.
Like I was thinking, Trubisky's gonna give them a better
If I'm rooting for the Browns, and I was today
because I picked the Browns and I root for my picks,
I'm thinking Trubisky gives them better chance. Because yes, there'll
be more, there'll be some variance, but he's at least

(01:06:43):
an NFL quarterback, and Kenny Pickett right now is making
you wonder whether he's an NFL.

Speaker 6 (01:06:48):
Well, you could feel a switch potentially coming at some point.
I'd say Picket if he has had one thing to
offer in close games like this Nick in the fourth quarter,
he's had sort of a little bit of a flare
to him where suddenly he awakens and they're winning types.
That's why their record is what it is. They're not
blowing people out. They're winning very close games, one score games,
and you need great play and you came out against

(01:07:09):
a nasty defense, So no luck today.

Speaker 7 (01:07:11):
Yeah, that defense is in his head. It was very
obvious in the way that he was carrying himself. And
I think that these players have gotten to the point
of frustration, and now he has multiple reasons to be frustrated,
by the way, because he's also losing his job. Yeah,
as we speak, but this scheme just doesn't empower any
of them. I mean, third and long too many times
over the course of the entire season, even the last
two weeks has been Pickett drops back, throws up a
prayer to George Pickens incomplete, throws up a prayer to

(01:07:32):
Deontay Johnson incomplete. And when they did that on their
last possession this game to day, where they had to
solely rely on the pass, I knew they were doomed
because they hadn't done it all day. And I don't
think he trusts his offensive line. Dan Moore, by the way,
got dominated by Miles Garrett. If you dive in the
next gen stats, he owned him there. And I can't
blame Kenny for being uncertain in that situation.

Speaker 2 (01:07:49):
Right.

Speaker 4 (01:07:49):
Dalen Warren goes for one in this game, the rest
of the team went for one hundred in four yards.
Steelers fall to six and four, or it is messy
in the AFC.

Speaker 1 (01:08:03):
Let's go to the AFC south.

Speaker 16 (01:08:05):
First down at the twenty yard line of Tennessee under
center as Trevor.

Speaker 1 (01:08:11):
Play fake again. Trevor's avoids trouble close to the corner
of the end of the Paul is gonna be caught.

Speaker 14 (01:08:18):
That is a touchdown to Calvin Redley.

Speaker 8 (01:08:23):
Twenty yard touchdown pass from Trevor Lawrence to Calvin Ridley
as extended the lad.

Speaker 4 (01:08:31):
It's one of those weeks, one of those weeks where
Calvin Ridley goes off. It's been a while. Seven for
one oh three and two touchdowns. What's his third one
hundred yard game of the season. Somehow they win, they
being the Jacksonville Jaguars thirty four to fourteen.

Speaker 1 (01:08:46):
This was not close.

Speaker 4 (01:08:49):
That was our friend Frank Frangie from w ok D.

Speaker 5 (01:08:56):
We are friends.

Speaker 4 (01:08:57):
Jaguars needed to bounce back after one of the worst games.
He was maybe the worst game of the Doug Peterson era,
and they did it in style. Nick, How'd they get
it done?

Speaker 7 (01:09:07):
Trevor Lawrence, Baby, I would even want to say he's back,
because I don't think he ever really left.

Speaker 15 (01:09:11):
But man, he looks so good today. He looked so confident.

Speaker 2 (01:09:14):
You know.

Speaker 7 (01:09:14):
This is a few days after we talked about I
wrote a post about Doug Peterson and Trevor Lawrence talked
about how his bum knee has been limiting him and
he can't move in the pocket. Well, he's sure moved
on that touchdown pass. He moved on another big throw
to Dearnest Johnson down the sideline escape in the pocket,
doing everything on the run. He's got the mobility back.
He looks exactly like he did at his peak last year.
And yeah, it's the Titans, but you still got a

(01:09:36):
formidable front that you have to respect. Formidable front, by
the way, included a defensive tackle to score a touchdown
mister Jeffrey Simmons.

Speaker 15 (01:09:43):
But that was in the blowout portion of the game.

Speaker 7 (01:09:45):
And it was a blowout because Trevor Lawrence was on
fire today and Calvin Ridley ended up being the main
beneficiary of it.

Speaker 6 (01:09:53):
I think when you get this version of Calvin Ridley,
they're a different offense. And I mean he was six
for eight Trevor Lawrence on fifteen plus air yard passes,
and that kind of explosive action through the air changes
what they can do. They dominated in time of possession,
and this version of the Jacksonville Jaguars, like last week,
was a little concerning because it's like, wait a minute,
this is the kind of team you're going to play

(01:10:14):
at some point in the playoffs if you overachieve and
they got their doors blown off, it's like a response game.
I like to see a young team that's learning how
to win come back and do it. You got a
special quarterback, and I think you also have a defense
that's obviously a game changing defense. For a year ago
that was your achilles heel.

Speaker 4 (01:10:31):
Right, because the final stats nick for Levis look good,
the thirteen for seventeen one to fifty eight. You know
that that's great per attempt, But what was happening in
the early portion of the game, basically the first three
quarters when it got to twenty seven nothing before They
kind of made it look better at the end.

Speaker 7 (01:10:47):
Yeah, those numbers are fulls gold, like the passer ratings
through the roof, And that's wasn't what the game was.
It's not really his fault. It's a lot of like
what we saw last week and they played Tampa. It's
will Levis knows that well, the defense knows that Will
Levis has no running game to support him.

Speaker 15 (01:11:00):
The offensive line is subpar.

Speaker 7 (01:11:02):
They're not going to protect him well he's going to
stand there and take his lumps, and they're gonna blitz
the crap out of him and see what he does
and be willing to take the risks. Like that touchdown
pass to DeAndre Hopkins was on a trick play where
Lewis motioned back after the snap into the pocket and
caught the pitch and then turned and found Hopkins wide
open run down the field. That was their first sign
of life, and at that point it was a blowout

(01:11:23):
because what they do traditionally in the past, leaning on
Dereck Henry to kind of open up the passing game,
none of that is working, and he's just it's an
uphill climb. I feel bad for him because I actually
think he's got something to him. It's just that we're
not going to really ever see it until they figure
out how to balance out their offense right now, and
there's no hope for that.

Speaker 15 (01:11:37):
Their offensive line is just not good enough. The Texans
next week, ooh, that's good.

Speaker 4 (01:11:41):
Jaguars are at seven and three. We mentioned the Texans
at six and four. There is absolutely a route for
both of these teams to get into the playoffs, but
the Jaguars need to win that game where they give
up first place in the division because Texans already won earlier,
Titans totally out of it at three and seven.

Speaker 1 (01:11:58):
It's strange.

Speaker 4 (01:11:58):
I just kept way because there are the Titans that
that like they're gonna ugly into some of these wins
and like they'll end up sneakily playing in a game
that matters with playoff implications in week sixteen or seventeen,
and it just is not looking like it's gonna happen.

Speaker 1 (01:12:15):
They are three and seven.

Speaker 4 (01:12:17):
Their defense just has a lot of resources put into it,
and it is not good enough. Our friend Justin Graver
pointed out to me, I believe now that they lost
this game, they'll have gone a full calendar year without
winning a road game.

Speaker 6 (01:12:32):
So that's they're looking fourteen in their last in that stretch.
And so the plan they came into the season with
already there was evidence that it wasn't gonna work.

Speaker 4 (01:12:40):
Yeah, that is that is not a good sign. Hopefully
they I don't know, they got to stick with Levis,
but for now, we're gonna stick with Nick Schuok. He
doesn't know this, but he's staying on for a third
game because I know you watched forty nine ers bucks
and we didn't tell you, but we're gonna ask you
what you think about forty nine ers bucks.

Speaker 1 (01:12:57):
Let's go to San Francisco.

Speaker 15 (01:13:00):
Heard he goe a can to play?

Speaker 16 (01:13:01):
Here is three receivers, right I you came to you
check left, going deep down the sideline for are you?

Speaker 13 (01:13:07):
He's got it and he's gone twenty ten five touchdown, Sarin.

Speaker 1 (01:13:17):
Frid Cisco, are you? Are you a yuk is on fire?

Speaker 4 (01:13:23):
High call?

Speaker 2 (01:13:24):
Baby?

Speaker 1 (01:13:24):
What a throw from brock Perty.

Speaker 4 (01:13:28):
It's all great throws from brock Perty twenty seven to fourteen.
The forty nine ers get it done on a day heck,
they could have won by even more potentially. That was
Greg Papa and Tim Ryan on k NBR. We should
always call uh for ayuk touchdown because that means we
get the little single on brock party Mark. He came

(01:13:49):
out of the bye week and he did it again.
He's basically been perfect for two weeks. He finishes with
three hundred and thirty.

Speaker 1 (01:13:56):
Three yards in three touchdowns.

Speaker 6 (01:13:58):
I'm only twenty five, twenty one of twenty five total
pristine operation, the first Niners quarterback to have a perfect rating.

Speaker 5 (01:14:07):
I know everyone's like.

Speaker 6 (01:14:08):
Don't care about QB rating, but but it has not happened.

Speaker 1 (01:14:10):
I am everyone, wouldn't you say everyone?

Speaker 6 (01:14:12):
Well, no, because I mean I get it, like it's
it's an imperfect stat. But the last time it's happened
to a Niners quarterback, and it's been a lot of
good Niners teams was Joe Montana and Steve Young back
in nineteen eighty nine tot it.

Speaker 5 (01:14:22):
So it's like it was that kind of a game.

Speaker 6 (01:14:24):
And I thought Nick that there were there was a
stretch of play here. We've seen it before from the Niners,
but it feels like that good old four o'clock Eastern
Niners game when they're really rolling, where Brandon Ayuk, who
has developed into an absolute star wide receiver, was utterly
unstoppable at one point, went back Jamal bats and Jamal Deane,
who like got injured on the play because Ayuka just

(01:14:46):
is like insane with his speeding what he's doing.

Speaker 5 (01:14:49):
George Kittle is back in the mix.

Speaker 6 (01:14:51):
They didn't even really need a lot of from Deebo
Samuel until late Christian McCaffrey an incredibly powerful first drive,
then they kind of rested him. It's like they seem
to me like they were gonna win this game forty
five to ten. And I would say this the only
thing I came him a little concerned with the Steve
Wilkes defense, where it's like they could not put the
bucks away the way you would have thought down the stretch.

(01:15:13):
Baker Mayfield's been spicy. Evans and the crew have been
that way too, But it's like, there was a chance
for the Niners to win this game by twenty five
thirty points and it got way too close or just
a little too nasty down the stretch.

Speaker 7 (01:15:26):
Yeah, where it really turned was when they the Baker
Mayfield let at five play seventy five yard touchdown drive
that happened really really quickly, like two and a half
minutes worth of time in the fourth quarter, and it's like, oh,
we do kind of have a game. Then they get
right back down there, they're on the doorstep of the
end zone and they fail to convert. Then they get
down there again and Baker throws a pick because Chris
Godwin didn't really sell out for the ball, and so

(01:15:48):
you do our concerned about that. And Christian McCaffrey was
frustrated because in the possessions in between first they were coming.
In the blink of an eye, it was like three
and out up, We're give them the ball back. I look
up and all of all of a sudden, they're putting back
to the Buccaneers again. But Christian mca haffrey was frustrated
because it's fourth and one and they can't convert and
they turn it over on downs and he comes over
and starts punching a Microsoft Surface tablet on the sideline

(01:16:08):
out of frustration when they're up thirteen points, when there's
four minutes left in a game in which their defense
has already stopped them twice. Like you think it's not
that big of a deal, but they sense that too,
which you really have to appreciate because a lot of
teams of lesser caliber that maybe don't have as high
of expectations as these forty nine ers do would be
laughing on the sideline in that instance, and he wasn't.
He was upset because they do need to clean that up.

(01:16:28):
But man, what a day for brock Purty. I feel
like the concerns that we had about them during their
three game losing streak feel like a month and a
half ago.

Speaker 15 (01:16:35):
It was like three weeks ago. But it feels like
twice as long.

Speaker 7 (01:16:38):
Games like this will instantly make you forget about that
he's super efficient. The splash players were there. He was
incredible on passes of ten to fifteen plus are yards.
He was perfect on passes of twenty plus are yards.
Everything worked for them, And when this offense is humming
like it is like it did today, they're gonna be
a tough team to be well.

Speaker 4 (01:16:55):
Kittle's having his best year in three or four years.
He goes eight for eighty nine in a touchdown. He's
getting chunk plays out of twenty four years, I'd open
all day A Yukas is a true one. Deebo's healthy
at least again did get it like a forty yard er.

Speaker 1 (01:17:07):
Later.

Speaker 4 (01:17:07):
I think McCaffrey's punching his tablet because they aren't a
great running team right now, even though they have Christian McCaffrey.
They're just not and they haven't really been for two months.
So that is a little jarring that you're a forty
nine ers team that when you absolutely need a yard
you can't just hand it to Christian McCaffrey and be
confident you're gonna get that yard. But that's that's one
little fly in the ointment when they're throwing the ball

(01:17:28):
this well, and Fred Warner's kind of making his great
plays again, and both Chase Young and Bosa get sacked,
so like, I'm not gonna I gotta watch it closer
and everything. But they did well, you know, out gain
him by one fifty, held him under three hundred, ultimately
win by a couple scores, and with the Seahawks losing,
you know, you get up a game in the NFI.

Speaker 6 (01:17:48):
I think it says a little bit about Baker Mayfield too,
and the fact that, like, yes, he's imperfect and they're
gonna be frustrating moments, but.

Speaker 5 (01:17:55):
He kind of just refused to give up.

Speaker 6 (01:17:57):
And he did have good chemistry with his wide receivers,
so it wasn't just the Niners having their own issues.

Speaker 5 (01:18:02):
And that's sort of I'm not trying to nitpick.

Speaker 6 (01:18:03):
It's just that, I don't know, kind of reminds me
of a couple of weeks ago in primetime when the
Bill should have won by fourteen more points than they did.
It's like the Niners kind of just let them back
in and that that doesn't matter today, but will it
matter in the NFC title game for the fourth time
in five years or whatever.

Speaker 7 (01:18:20):
Yeah, that's that's a valid concern if they do get
to that point. You know, you bring up Baker just
real quick. This is the first time ever gonna admit
this in my life because the first time I've ever
experienced this feeling. I felt bad for Baker today, Like
I seriously felt bad for him. Like he's out there
giving it his all, and his teammates just aren't footing
their end of the bill. Like it just he's he
tries hard, man, he's having a good year. He makes

(01:18:41):
some mistakes. He probably should have got picked off two
more times than he did they had. I think the
Niners dropped three would be interceptions that were right there.

Speaker 1 (01:18:47):
All right, let's not feel too bad for him.

Speaker 4 (01:18:50):
He's yeah, he's playing out there, Sharon and Trey Palmer
and yeah all these days.

Speaker 1 (01:18:56):
No, I'm with you. I think you know.

Speaker 4 (01:18:58):
We Dan pointed out a cleice, like when a backup
quarterback plays a couple of good games. We said, like, well,
he's he's earned like ten years in the league. I
think Dave Canalis, the play caller offensive coordinator for the Bucks,
has earned himself like eight years now. In the NFL
as a play caller, because he was the guy who
was there when Gino Smith's career turned around in Seattle,

(01:19:20):
and he's turned Baker Mayfield and the guy that I
didn't think I'd ever see with Baker Mayfield. And so
this staff is gonna have to win the division to
keep their jobs. Probably, I think they have a much
better chance than the outside does. They really don't have
any hard games the rest of the year, and I
think they're probably the best team in that division if
I had to choose one.

Speaker 1 (01:19:39):
So I think they have a chance. But Canalis has
done a nice job.

Speaker 4 (01:19:42):
It's gonna be tougher though, because they lost Jamel Dean,
Carlton Davis, and Levonte David the injuries in this game,
and so that is disappointing for that defense. You know,
it's never disappointing. He's having old Nick Shookhan. No, it's
not Nick. Go go celebrate in the streets. Seems like
people are celebrating a little too much in Cleveland. Actually
stay inside and stay safe.

Speaker 7 (01:20:04):
Away from the windows. Yeah, I'll do that, guys, take care,
appreciate it.

Speaker 4 (01:20:07):
A little inside joke that things are going a little
whild there in the Cleveland streets.

Speaker 1 (01:20:11):
Thanks Chookie, We'll talk to you next week.

Speaker 4 (01:20:15):
All right, that's it for Nick, But Mark, we got
a couple games left before we get to Sunday Night football.

Speaker 1 (01:20:20):
Let's go to Miami.

Speaker 16 (01:20:21):
Thirty two seconds remains Aiden O'Connell, the rookie maman the
thirty nine yard line back to throw, looking, looking, lots
of time, goes seep.

Speaker 11 (01:20:34):
To the end, tensed by Jalen Ramsey perfects.

Speaker 2 (01:20:38):
A tremendous diving interception, his second of the ball game
is third of the year. And there is your MVP
right there.

Speaker 4 (01:20:47):
Joe, Jimmy, Sephalo and Joe rose on wb D G
Ramsey with his second big time interception.

Speaker 1 (01:20:59):
Of the game.

Speaker 4 (01:21:00):
That was an incredible read and play just all around
awesome by Jalen Ramsey. Clinch is a closer game than
a lot of people expected twenty to thirteen, with the
Raiders having a chance there at the very end. Mark,
there is not a game today I know less about
than Dolphins Raiders.

Speaker 1 (01:21:20):
Why was it that close at the end.

Speaker 6 (01:21:22):
You know they've been They're seventeen and two at home
in their last nineteen home games, the Dolphins, and they've
been blowing people's doors off in super sweltering hot Miami today.
It took a couple, it took a different type of win,
and it took it different heroes like Jalen Ramsey to
step up, who had that game ceiling interception, which was
one of the most athletic picks we'll see all year.

(01:21:43):
Had another one that was really high quality and tough.
That was the Raiders melting down late. What the reason
it was close was that the offense we've seen from Miami,
which if anything else too, has been extremely efficient. They've
been statistically right at top of the charts no matter
how you look at it. But it came out of
the gate with on a scamper loses the ball at

(01:22:04):
his own thirty one, leads to a Raiders field goal.
They had a twelve pay play drive that ended on
downs at the Vegas three. That's a lost opportunity. There
was a Julian Hill fumble at Miami's thirty two that
led to another Raiders field goal. Tua was picked off
on a deep shot. Later in the game, Jake Bailey
missed a fifty yard field goal. So stuff cropped up

(01:22:25):
where Miami just hasn't been doing these things and it
kept the Raiders in the game. The Raiders, to me,
I will say this, it was not an overly impressive
performance for Aidan O'Connell because the turnovers down the stretch
were a death knell. They could not run the ball
well today two point three yards per Kerry. But their
defense under Patrick Graham, I think there's just more unity

(01:22:45):
and cohesion in that coaching staff. The Raiders were dancing
around early, the players on the sideline, and there's something
about the Raiders experience where you lose this game, but
I see a different team.

Speaker 5 (01:22:55):
I think we all do.

Speaker 6 (01:22:56):
And it came very close because Miami just lacked what
slacked in other games. But I'll say one last thing.
Tyreek Hill did some incredible things in this game. He
did some incredible things, so it was kind of like
we need two heroes to step up. It was Jalen
Ramsey and Tyreek Hill with a catch and run touchdown
unlike anything else you'll see from anyone but Tyreek Hill,
and he did it again. So they did just they

(01:23:16):
got just enough from their offense.

Speaker 4 (01:23:18):
So ten for one and one touchdown, and that's why
you give up all those picks for Tyreek Hill. Sure,
a day like today where he just carries you. On
a day where, yeah, you mentioned two, I had a
couple of mistakes. You know, he's already at his interception
total for a year ago.

Speaker 1 (01:23:35):
I just find that, you know, interesting.

Speaker 4 (01:23:37):
He obviously only played ten games and he's had like
nine fumbles. Now, some of those were bad snaps, so
I'd have to go back and through and and see
some of those weren't really on him. But that's a
ton of fumbles. But you get him, you trade the
pick for Jalen Ramsey. It was more about just like,
we're gonna take on his contract and we're not gonna
worry about it.

Speaker 1 (01:23:54):
And that's what it's for.

Speaker 4 (01:23:56):
On days where like everything else is relatively even and
you're playing a five and six Raiders team that's playing
above their heads, it's like, yeah, we have dudes that
are better than your top dudes other than DeVante Adams,
who is dude who got a nice long one.

Speaker 6 (01:24:09):
Hunter renfro Is back in this offense and made an
incredible catch.

Speaker 1 (01:24:12):
Wow, five for forty two.

Speaker 5 (01:24:13):
Yeah, they're using him again.

Speaker 6 (01:24:15):
So it's another thing i'd point to that's a positive
for the Raiders who are still very much alive in
this thing. But I like to see Miami closing the
game with two interceptions.

Speaker 5 (01:24:24):
Of course that.

Speaker 6 (01:24:25):
Took you know, the acabatomy from Jalen Ramsey. But they
won this one a little bit differently, And I really
think for this team, depending on what happens, like if
they get a situation where they can play a couple
home games in the playoffs versus having to go on
the road, they're just a different team at home.

Speaker 1 (01:24:41):
It's a long way though.

Speaker 4 (01:24:42):
I know they're seven and three and that sounds like
a big lead over the Bills, which are six and five,
But I am concerned. They came into this week ranking
twenty first in EPA for the three weeks preceding the bye.
This is another game that you know, might not raise
that by much. So that offense, I don't think from
the first month is coming back fully because just because

(01:25:04):
that's not how it works to me. The question is
can they're improving defense? And it's definitely improving Jalen Phillips,
they're healthier, Jalen Ramsey like, they're better, they've been getting better.
Can their defense improve enough and can they show that
they can start to win closer games against better competition
to make up for the offense coming back to Earth,
because it's coming back.

Speaker 6 (01:25:23):
To Earth it is, Or can the schedule help you
because you've got the Jets, the Commanders, the Titans, and
then the Jets again over your next four games.

Speaker 1 (01:25:30):
That's it's a fair point.

Speaker 4 (01:25:31):
If you don't come out of there ten and four
at the worst, you're you're deeply disappointed. And there, Yeah,
there's absolutely a chance you win all of those games. Sure,
I mean they'll be favored significantly. That's a fair point.
They were excited to get Devon Aheen back in this game,
and he got hurt almost right away.

Speaker 6 (01:25:50):
It sounds like they're not because they kept him like
they didn't rule him out or anything, because they thought
he might be able to play. But was a knee
injury and it was the same knee as before, so
I think they were just being very cautious.

Speaker 15 (01:26:00):
So a short week, Yeah, Tyreek Hill.

Speaker 6 (01:26:02):
Hurt his hand and like continue to play awesome with
what looks like a bandaged kind of glove situation. So
you know, he's tough as nails. He's back in there.
But I think with a chan it's like I want
to wait and see what happens with that. But they
played soon. They played the Jets on.

Speaker 4 (01:26:16):
That button Friday, a very rare four day week for them.
I guess that literally never happened if we ever have
Friday games.

Speaker 1 (01:26:24):
I not that we did.

Speaker 5 (01:26:25):
A year ago, I believe. Am I incorrect about that?

Speaker 4 (01:26:28):
I don't know who can remember all this stuff. They're
just changing things around. During the COVID year, there was game.

Speaker 5 (01:26:33):
It was a Wednesday game.

Speaker 4 (01:26:34):
Any any day of the week that was wild. That
was the Pittsburgh game. Aiden O'Connell. Look, he's he's moving
the ball a little bit. He could be a lot worse.
In fact, I would say he's been better than the
twenty twenty three version of Jimmy Garoppolo.

Speaker 1 (01:26:47):
You know what else is better?

Speaker 4 (01:26:49):
Wrapping up our early games, Cowboys at Panthers, let's get
to it.

Speaker 3 (01:26:53):
From the twenty five play action, Young Froze the bcept
it that's a thirty yard line coming.

Speaker 5 (01:26:58):
Down the left side is touch it to five?

Speaker 1 (01:27:01):
He did it again.

Speaker 5 (01:27:03):
He did it again.

Speaker 2 (01:27:07):
Unbelievable what he has doored.

Speaker 9 (01:27:11):
Undercut the first down pass and Deran Bland said, I
don't think I've scored in about two weeks.

Speaker 4 (01:27:17):
Oh man, just like, make a list of all the
great players in the NFL this season who have not
caught three touchdown or four touchdown passes. They've all scored
less than Deron Bland. Somehow, this Digs injuries like worked
out pretty well for the Cowboys. Not for Diggs. I

(01:27:37):
feel bad for him, but four pick six is this
season and Deron ban gets his hands on a lot
of other passes too that he doesn't even return for
a pick six, like he's a legitimately good cornerback. Thirty
three to ten is the score here. Dallas goes to Carolina,
they take care of business. That was Brad Sham, the
Sham God of course from k rl D. What was

(01:28:01):
the most interesting thing about a score line mark that
felt entirely predictable.

Speaker 6 (01:28:06):
Well, there is the pick six right there, and be
fright before that, Tony Pollard with a really powerful touchdown run.
I thought he ran really well, maybe one of his
best games of the year. It's not the most impressive
box score, but he looked a little different to me,
and I think that within that couple of minutes in
the game, the explosiveness from two different parts of your
team that put the Panthers away because this is a

(01:28:27):
frustrating one for the Panthers.

Speaker 5 (01:28:29):
Of course, no one's thinking they're going to win.

Speaker 6 (01:28:31):
But they kept this thing really close, and they shot
themselves in the foot at key times.

Speaker 5 (01:28:38):
There was a drive where essentially the.

Speaker 1 (01:28:40):
Cowboys as a one score game entering in.

Speaker 6 (01:28:43):
The fourth course, and it looked like it, and it
was seventeen to nothing after a drive where the Panthers
had no business giving up a touchdown, but they had
they I have not seen this before. Xavier Woods was
flagged for simultaneously the unusual combination of a face mask
and a horse collar on the same play.

Speaker 5 (01:29:04):
It doesn't happen too often.

Speaker 6 (01:29:06):
That puts him in a situation where Dallas could have
had a field goal, right, But then there's two more
personal fouls against this team as well on third down.
It's like the Panthers just kept letting the Dallas back
into a game where like it wasn't the Dallas didn't
look effective or good.

Speaker 5 (01:29:20):
Dak Proscott, he looks.

Speaker 6 (01:29:22):
He's throwing the ball as went as well as anyone
in the NFC or the NFL. But it was like
you could have gotten Dallas caught into one of those
situations and Bryce Young they put together the longest drive
of the year seventeen plays, seventy yards, nine plus minutes
and made it that made it seventeen to ten in
the third quarter. But then the Cowboys exploded with the
Tony Pollard touchdown Deron Plan pick six, and it's like

(01:29:43):
they just Dallas against Obviously these these like lesser teams,
is way too much to handle. And Carolina by the
end was like completely underwater.

Speaker 4 (01:29:52):
Right, the Cowboys are now seven and three. They had
that one slip up to the Cardinals in Week three,
but otherwise they got a forty to nothing against the Giants,
a thirty to ten against the Jets, a thirty eight
to three against the Patriots, a forty three to twenty
against the Rams, and a forty nine to seventeen against

(01:30:13):
the Giants.

Speaker 1 (01:30:13):
I'm not gonna pick on them.

Speaker 4 (01:30:14):
That is a sign of a great team, teams that
beat up on bad teams. And yeah, they got to
prove it against the better team. Fine, but in the meantime,
like we'd be killing them if they lose any of
these games, or even if it came down to the
last few plays. So they're getting it done only five
yards per attempt for Dak today, but you know, no
turnovers or anything. Maybe playing it a little safer, like

(01:30:37):
he comes down to earth somewhat. But they're in good
position and any away win for them is massive because
they can't be beat at home.

Speaker 2 (01:30:45):
It team.

Speaker 6 (01:30:46):
Yeah, their road like splits are very differently. I would
say Micah Parsons three sacks today. They absolutely dominated Bryce Young,
especially on third and long. Frank Reich has taken over
play calling and the one thing I'd say they used
a lot more tempo. They tried to go a little
new no huddle, and I think it helped Bryce Young
to some degree. But this team feels so lost to

(01:31:07):
me on third down, especially, and there's a lack of
creativity and they get stuck in a lot of third
and unmanageable yardage situations and Dallas just teed off at
that point. It's you know, it's like, I don't know,
great coaching helps a rookie quarterback out and puts him
in the best possible situation. And outside of Adam Thieling
Felun playing above his head like there's just nothing else

(01:31:28):
happening with this offense.

Speaker 4 (01:31:29):
I mean, they haven't scored more than thirteen points in
a four games, and then the last time they scored
more was fifteen.

Speaker 1 (01:31:35):
I mean, it's it's tough.

Speaker 4 (01:31:38):
He had two point one yards per play on passing
plays because he was sacked seven times. He was hit
eleven times. And you mentioned Parsons having a monster game.
If it wasn't for Garrett, I swear Parsons is just
on another planet. He's over ten sacks for the third
straight season to start his career. I mean that seems

(01:31:59):
like that's a low bar for him. But only nine
people since they started keeping track I've ever done that
to start their career. So that is the type of
company Michael Parsons is keeping, and they keep it rolling.
I like that. We have some powerhouse teams that stay
good for the most part week after week.

Speaker 1 (01:32:14):
That is the Cowboys.

Speaker 4 (01:32:15):
That is not how you would describe our two teams
playing Sunday night football, but they are fun. Let's finish
up with the Vikings and the Broncos.

Speaker 9 (01:32:23):
Snap Plucket two at one all out, puts them away.

Speaker 2 (01:32:26):
Give it up. Pruss Rust throws the ball.

Speaker 1 (01:32:27):
To the end zone.

Speaker 4 (01:32:28):
It is touchdown.

Speaker 2 (01:32:32):
That is Clatland seven his a three zone touchdown of.

Speaker 8 (01:32:36):
The year, sixteen yard touchdown Wilson's to seven.

Speaker 2 (01:32:44):
He went up all from McKay Brockman.

Speaker 8 (01:32:46):
And the Broncos with sixty three seconds left are in
front of the Vikings twenty one twenty.

Speaker 4 (01:32:53):
Oh Yeah, those two men did it again. Courtland signed
Russell Wilson. Dave Logan's back on the show. Week after
week koa Denver Wow, still stunned by this one. Courtland
Sutton's fifteen yard touchdown catch from Russell Wilson put the Vikings.

Speaker 1 (01:33:18):
Behind twenty one to twenty.

Speaker 4 (01:33:20):
Broncos take this one after shutting down a Josh Dobbs
would be game winning field goal drive with a bunch
of pressure in his face. Mark, the Denver Broncos are
five and five. And you mentioned, as we're walking in here,
the unlikely source of great primetime drama in the last

(01:33:42):
two weeks.

Speaker 5 (01:33:42):
Yeah, a couple weeks ago.

Speaker 6 (01:33:43):
When you scan this, you know the future schedule, and
they're sitting out there in these island games.

Speaker 5 (01:33:48):
It's like, I don't want to be taken to that island.
But they've been.

Speaker 6 (01:33:51):
They've been a different team, and I think, like tonight,
you know, it continued a theme for them. They've got
twelve takeaways in the last three games, and you.

Speaker 1 (01:34:01):
Know thats sustainable. You wouldn't think, no, it's not.

Speaker 6 (01:34:04):
And they talked about a streak like that not occurring
for that team in almost a quarter century. But those
little moments in a game like this made a big difference,
because I thought the Brian Flores Vikings defense did a
great job of shutting down what would be touchdown drives
for much of the game, stopping them at the Minnesota's thirteen, twelve,
thirty four, nineteen, and ten. Those were all field goal drives,

(01:34:25):
but two of those field goal drives came off of
Vikings fumbles.

Speaker 5 (01:34:29):
That was their problem earlier in the year. It crept
up again tonight.

Speaker 6 (01:34:32):
Then Dobbs had that one interception that led to a
fifth field goal. And I would point to one other
thing right before the half, Kevin O'Connell, and I love
what he did tonight with a fake punt. I thought
he did a nice job in the second half trying
to give his offense a chance. But they had a
fourth and one opportunity from the Denver forty eight with
a minute left before halftime, and they punt. That's your choice,
but then Russell Wilson drove the team right down the

(01:34:55):
field to make it ten to nine before the house.
So these little moments in a twenty one to twenty
game added up up for the team of ATLS oh
ugly evening for us for that franchise that.

Speaker 4 (01:35:05):
It was a sad end. And yes, the first loss
by the Vikings as the team of the Around the
NFL podcast, that's a great point mark that you made
about the end of that first half. And that's unlike
O'Connell to be passive, but.

Speaker 2 (01:35:20):
That's a great point mark.

Speaker 6 (01:35:24):
I don't know if Tony Grossi ever listens to the
show or is aware that this is happening.

Speaker 4 (01:35:29):
No, I don't think so. I know he's enjoying this
Brown season. I'm sure he's a little surprised to see
Josh Dobbs, the former Browns quarterback, in such big spots.
Maybe we shouldn't be surprised, but I am surprised. Russell
Wilson at the end of these games two minute drill,
that is where he's at his best. So he did
it at the end of the first half to get

(01:35:50):
those three points, and then he did it to end
the game calmly moving down down the field. Most of
it was what the Broncos offense has been all see,
which is dum dumpoffs to the running backs. I mean,
Samaji p Ryan had a good chunk of that drive
on just these dumpoffs. But Russell Wilson's been in those
situations so many times. The Vikings actually didn't bring that

(01:36:14):
much pressure in that drive. I'm sure Flores will think
about his strategy then when they were rushing for that
wasn't working. They tried rushing two and three in that drive.
They weren't sending a ton of heat in that drive,
and Russell Wilson generally was just backing up quickly, surveying
the scene and getting about seven ten fifteen yards to
p Ryan. And you get a little break that p

(01:36:34):
Ryan's fumble that he had went out of bounds, yes,
right before the game winner, and Russell Wilson, to his credit,
just throws it up on a play where they did
send pressure. I should point out the touchdown came when
they did send the house, and Russell Wilson had an answer.
When that ball's in the air, I'm thinking, man, there's
two Vikings defenders over there. But the difference is those

(01:36:55):
two Vikings defenders are like five ten five of it.
In Courtland Sutton, I believe is seven foot nine when
he's jumping up in the as.

Speaker 6 (01:37:01):
To be and like he's quietly having, you know, a
great year, and Russell Wilson looks like a different player
obviously from a year ago. There was another throw with
total heat on Russell Wilson and he threw that dart
to Jerry Judy in the end zone that should have
been caught. But it's another example of him looking more
organized and you know, less outside of his head than
he was a year ago when he was lost at Sea.

Speaker 4 (01:37:22):
Yeah, it's I don't know what to make of this
Bronco seem I don't think you have to make anything
of it. I think they were much better than their
one in five record indicated. They had the one seventy
point game they gave up, but the other a lot
of their other losses were like these tight losses, and
now they're winning tight games. And these two teams are
pretty emblematic of the NFL this season. I mean, the

(01:37:44):
Vikings a completely unlikely five game winning streak. They almost
moved it to six here, and I still think they're
in good shape. To make the playoffs, but who knows
with them. I think they're gonna be fine. I think
they will make the playoffs, but they're not going to
be blowing teams out. And the Broncos have won four
straight games. Im probably they were one and five and
now they're they're five and five, and I guess we

(01:38:06):
have to talk about them as a playoffs.

Speaker 6 (01:38:09):
Yeah, it's like I can take them seriously with the
way that they're taking the ball away. And you know,
I thought I thought they made Josh Dobbs uncomfortable in
that final drive and on previous drives too, but their
pressure made a big difference. I mean, Dobbs is playing
out of his mind and he's it's still hard to
comprehend now you know how little he knows about even
the team around him.

Speaker 5 (01:38:30):
Still a couple of weeks can really help with that.

Speaker 6 (01:38:31):
But he had that incredible first touchdown pass to Josh
Oliver where he you know, escapes he's nearly yang to
the ground and then destroyed by two people as he
gets the pass off right, and he had he ran
for He's been a great running quarterback all year and
so he's leaning on his athleticism and I think he
makes good decisions. I thought on that final drive though,
that kind of just he was forced to run all

(01:38:53):
around all over the place to like eighteen figure eights
and he's having to make wild throws to try to
keep the Vikings alive, and that that's not the situation
you wanted to be in.

Speaker 15 (01:39:01):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (01:39:02):
I wonder if teams will look at the way this
game ended in thought and think, like, Okay, Josh Stobbs smart,
playing well, but it's asking a lot for him to
know all the protections and communicate that to the offensive line,
and the offensive line to be cohesive enough. And because
guys were getting free and they just did not have answers.

(01:39:24):
They have the Bears next week, and then which is
on Monday Night football. Wow, Josh Stabbs is living in
primetime now. And then they have the bye week, which
I think for them will be really great to reset
a bit. Because he was scrambled in this game. He
lost the fumble early. That was a fumble that I
would put on him. It was kind of loose with
the ball.

Speaker 5 (01:39:43):
He had three of them in this game too, had a.

Speaker 4 (01:39:45):
Few other plays that could have been intercepted, So this
game could have gone a few different ways. I think
the Vikings will be really happy that they ran the
ball for one hundred and seventy five yards. Madison looked
as good as he looked all season. The Broncos haven't
been able to stop the run all They only end
up with thirteen first downs in this game, but they
just keep finding a way. And look, there's not that

(01:40:08):
much that separates the good teams from the bad teams
this year. There's definitely not a lot that separates like
the Broncos from the Vikings. And if you look at
these two teams as scheduled, they just both have a
bunch of games where you're like, yeah, they could win
that game, or yeah they could lose that game, and
that's kind of the middle of them.

Speaker 6 (01:40:22):
Yeah, Like the Vikings can't come into these games and
lose the turnover battle the way they deny. The Broncos
were two for twelve on thirteen. At one point, I
think they were like zero for seven. They had like
five yards rushing in the first half, so there wasn't
a lot of balance around Russell Wilson and they just
made the plays down the stretch and it's like, I
don't know, like this is a weird team in a
weird outside of the Chiefs, the rest of the AFC
West is really bizarre. So I don't know what they

(01:40:43):
can do at this point. They could win some division games.
It's hard to take them like overly seriously, but why not, Like.

Speaker 4 (01:40:49):
Well, they got the Browns next, they're at Texans. I
like the good thing of having all these little two
games in the mix is these games between all these
teams in the middle.

Speaker 1 (01:40:59):
This tonight as a perfect example.

Speaker 4 (01:41:01):
We kind of know these two teams aren't going to
super Bowl, but it makes these types of games more fun.
There's going to be more meeting. We're getting into the
meat of the season. It's Thanksgiving week, it's week twelve
coming up. We will be back Monday night. Believe it'll
be all three of us well on that show. Okay,
we'll be back Monday night. Dan's gone.

Speaker 1 (01:41:22):
I'm just like I'm scrambled.

Speaker 5 (01:41:24):
Let's try to get let's try to get some consistency here.

Speaker 1 (01:41:26):
Let's get up.

Speaker 4 (01:41:27):
Let's get a Sessler winning streak going. It is great
to have you back. And then we will tape a
preview of all the games, including Thanksgiving games on Wednesday morning.
We'll be taping a little earlier than normal. We'll try
to get that out as soon as we can on Wednesday,
but that's going to include the Thanksgiving Day game previews
and all the games, and then we'll wrap the Thanksgiving

(01:41:48):
games on Friday. Until then, for Dan Hansis, Nick Shook,
Mark Sessler, Tony Grove, Grossy, and

Speaker 1 (01:41:58):
Dorian Thompson Robinson the call

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