Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Go right up to the kacuaster with hotline and bring
on our guy, Lance santorson at Lance s Underscore.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
M h h, he's of course, work sure, mile high huddle.
We always enjoy having them on. Lance. How you doing.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
I'm doing good, Dan, It's it's been a while now,
but good to be on. Thanks for having me. How
do you guys doing tonight.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm a little under the weather, but muddling through, so
we'll see what happens here. Is I power through the
same way the Broncos seem to be powering through everybody
on the schedule so far, finding ways to pull it out,
you know, when they need to. And you know, for me,
I find it fascinating to be on this side of it,
covering that, you know, this kind of phenomenon where you
look at something you say, this absolutely isn't sustainable, and
(00:39):
then of course they just keep sustaining it, and so
it's it's it's sort of fascinating being on this side
of it and watching it unfold. I guess in real time,
the Washington Matters didn't have anything to play for. They
came out and you know, they played us tough, but
the Broncos once again did what they do, which is
making plays at the times when it is critically needed
and when it count els, and came away with yet
(01:01):
another victory, pulling themselves to ten wins before even hitting
them on the December.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Yeah. So the crazy thing about this team right now
is that that like they're in that weird kind of
the bottom of the pendulum when you think about like
how teams win. So if you're in the middle of
a rebuild, if you're going to lose a lot of
big games, you're gonna lose a lot of small games.
And then when you finally get to the bottom of
that pendulum, you're going to lose a lot of small
games and then start winning small games and then you
eventually kick that pendulum back up and start to win
(01:29):
big games and start to compete for championships. And honestly,
right now with this Broncos team is kind of currently
constructed with the defense game as good as it is,
you're on the cusp of we're winning small games, winning
all these close games over and over and over again.
And they're what number two in the ANFC right now
because the New England Patriots haven't they played one more
(01:51):
game than the Broncos have. This team is one of
the best teams in the NFL. Just break it down
by how the games are going. Every single time that
this team has an opportunity to win a close game,
they find ways to make plays. That shows consistency with
the coaching. It shows consistent playmaking ability, even though it
may not be explosive plays. We're making the plays that
(02:12):
we need to when we absolutely have to have them
to finally pull these wins out and slip it to
your team, the Kansas City Chiefs. I know you're a
Kansas City Chiefs fan. Look at where they're at right now.
Last year they won a whole bunch of really close games.
I think they're what twelve and one in One Tour
games on their way to losing into the Super Bowl.
(02:33):
Now they're losing all these one Tour games and that
pezum swinging back in the opposite direction. And for me
as a Broncos fan, as a Broncos analyst, I could
not be more happy about where the Broncos are as
compared to where the Chiefs are at right now.
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Hey, Lance grant here, I heard a stat yesterday on
KOA Sports with Dave Logan that there's been like two
hundred and two instances where a team had been behind
in their first twelve games in every game, and the
Broncos have the best record by far with ten wins
in those twelve games, And that just seems like they
do keep finding ways to pull it out. But it
feels like the offense is finally starting to figure it
(03:07):
out a little bit more as well. And it feels
like bo Nicks is starting to grow up right in
front of our eyes, going through his reads, not bailing
out of the pocket so quickly. What have you seen
in his evolution in year two in the Sean Payton offense.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
Well, tie it back all the way to the back
half of last season. I mean specifically the Chargers game,
specifically the Bengals game where he hit Marvin EM's on
those two long touchdown throws. He's through the first half
of this season. His footwork has been so erratic because
he even mentioned that he had been trying to focus
(03:40):
on utilizing his athleticism, utilizing his legs to try to
open up playmaking opportunities while also still understanding you can't
take negative plays. So it was a weird combination of
him where like go back to the Chargers game Week three,
where he was like sprinting into the pocket, clean pockets
and throwing all on the run, looking like an outfielder
(04:01):
trying to throw a runner out from third base out
at home, you know, like he was constantly gassing up
all these throws over the last handful of weeks though,
And I'm gonna go back to the Kansas City Chiefs
game where it looked like he was more calm in
the pocket. It looked like he was trusting his protection,
which is the best offensive line of football. Right now,
(04:22):
he's trusting where his eyes are going, his feet are
tied to his eyes a lot better, and he's finally
seeing the field, especially over the middle of the field
a little bit better. And that, to me, I think
is something you can build on, especially watching what happened
against the Commanders, where that last ride where he hits
Evan Ingram over the middle of the field on that
little jerk route for forty one yards sets him up
(04:45):
and they go down score a touchdowns, take the lead
in overtime. Like that, you can see these small, little
linear progressions with him, and it makes me really optimistic
about how this offense could develop. Moving forward. I mean,
Sean Payton's doing a great job play card. I know
there's a lot of people that hate the trick plays
and the sequencing issues at times, but there are wide
(05:07):
receivers open all over the field, whether it's Pat Bryant,
whether it's Portland Sudden, whether it is Troy Franklin dialing
up these shot plays and Bose just not taking them
because he's not settling his feet down. Over the last
handful of week, he has them and they're starting to
hit these more explosive plays over the middle of the field,
and that to me is a positive sign going forward.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
Yeah, and I think it will be a positive thing
going forward. Talking with last statursay from Hud, I think
that's that's sort of the thing is finding and getting
into your comfort zone, getting into your groove. And for
bo it's been a combination of things. You know, you
talked about the mechanical breakdown. For me, a lot of
that starts upstairs, though a lot of that starts mentally.
You start games where your motor seems to be run
a little hot, you look a little frenetic. They're trying
(05:49):
to find ways to settle him down a little bit quicker.
And get him into that groove, you know, that the
fourth quarter groove as it were throughout the season. But
it seems to have been it seems to have been
a little bit better over last a couple of weeks.
But you know, I don't really care about the trick plays.
It just to me, I don't I don't like. I
don't like taking guys out of what they're best at
to to try something that they're not really adept at
(06:12):
in critical situation. I'm like, all right, look, and I
get it, you know, second one, a double reverse, you know,
flea flicker thing whatever. Cool, But maybe let's get a
lead first before we do stuff like that. Maybe let's
get the basics down before we but before we put
the the rastle dazzle in.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Just just my my point oh two.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
But then again, that's why I'm the dork with a
microphone and not you know, out there coaching coaching football.
The other big thing I think, you know, and again
I talked about this earlier. I hate it at this
point because now it's like nitpicking. But the run game,
we've we've got to figure something out here. We've got
to find consistency with that because you're entering the part
of the schedule where you're gonna need that you're gonna
need to take the pressure off both times and and RJ,
(06:49):
you know, yeah, you got the two touchdowns, but two
point seven to carry over your last two games is
not get it done.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Look for me, I think that a big thing with
r J. Harvey is he's I don't want to call
it like seeing it too fast or seeing it too slow.
He's just not seeing it the right way because at
times when it's like the holes right there, he hits
it and he takes it for you know, five or
six seven yards on a play that's only blocked for
like two or three, and he's got some quick jump
(07:17):
cut and just get the ability to get skinny through
some gaps. And then there's times where it's like the
holes there and he doesn't see it and he runs
directly in the back of an offensive lineman. Like so
it's I wonder Ben, and I'm gonna I'm gonna put
this tea. As a as a former quarterback, I know
that you played quarterback position throughout high school. With with
(07:38):
r J. Harvey being a quarterback going to UCF, is
he's seeing the game like a quarterback and trying to,
you know, find the perfect play, find the right exact
example of how I can exploit as many yards on
this particular run and not running with patients and vision
at the same time, because there there there does seem
(07:59):
to be vision issues, There does seem to be patience issues,
and the burst that he plays with makes it so
that those two issues combined takes yards off the field.
Where like go back to the Dallas Cowboys game where
he ran that what forty yard touchdown run? He had patients,
he had vision, The Dallas Cowboys had a horrible defensive
(08:22):
lineman because Matt Erifus does not know how to call
defensive run alignments, and he ran for forty yards untouched.
He also had the big run against the Tennessee Titans
where Ben Powers tacked out, blew out Jeffery Simmons in
the a gap. R J. Harvey cut it back behind,
got behind. I believe it was Sutton Troutman and Quinn
(08:44):
Minors as they moved up to the second level cut
it back for a fifty yard run. There are options
for there are times where he looks like he's seeing
it correctly, not having the patients or he's not having
the patients and not seeing it correctly. It's a rookie
running back at the NFL level, and he's also a
converted quarterback. Like it's there seems to be so many
(09:05):
issues with Harvey alone that with him being as young
of a player as he is, especially new to the position,
that are causing more issues for this Broncos running game
than that's than you need to have.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
Yeah, I think I would put it back on the
fact that ninety five percent of the games he's played
in until he got to the NFL, he was the
best athlete on the field.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
I think part of the absolutely true.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
I think I think you nailed it with the vision
of the patients that comes, you know, hopefully to running
backs as they settle in. But I think part of
it is, you know, I mean, down at UCF, this
guy could just boat race whole defenses to the edge
and beat them because he was one of the best athletes,
if not the best athlete on the field. And so,
you know, I think there's I think there's something to
sort of rewiring yourself to and especially in this type
(09:48):
of offense, to finding ways to just settle down, you
move off the initial snap. You don't have to have
that burst, just move at forty percent speed, let the
blocking set itself up, and then finding those little creases
and going.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
It reminds me of a lot of a running back
at Tampa used to have.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
He actually played for the Broncos later his career, but
early on in his career, Michael Pittman was that dude.
I mean, he was so fast he would just outrun
his blocking and it was it was ineffective down there
for the Tampa Bay Bucks. And you know, then later
on in his career, you know, he put on weight
and everything else, and you get he started slowing down.
He became much better running back when he had the vision.
You look at you look at some of the great
(10:23):
some of the guys like in recent years like Leveon Bell.
Levo Bell ran it, you know, at forty percent speed
behind that line of scrimmage until the blocking set.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Up and then he took off. And there's there's an
art to it.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
There's an art to developing sort of that patience, just
letting that stuff set up, having the patients and the
ability to then dart through and take the crease. And
I think it'll come to Rjrvey right as it sits
right now, just looks like a guy who was the
best athlete on the field his whole life and is
trying to add athlete guys in a level where you
can't do that anymore.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And so I think that's I think that's where we're.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
At with it. Yea, I completely agree with you. It's
frustrating too, because when you watch this offensive line on
the ELT twenty too, you see the way that they're working.
They're ceiling guys down. Luke Lautenberg has been playing really,
really well at the center position, and congratulations to him,
I getting that that big new contract for him. But
(11:09):
like so the interior run game, when when I run
forcing handoff inside zone, you need to know when to
cut it back and not just die directly in between
your garden tackle. You need to know to cut back
behind your center and let him get up to the
second level. It's to me, it's it's it's not only
just that I about athnite everybody, it's I don't know
(11:29):
how to read this play correctly at this particular point
in my career. But once I do figure that out,
when he hits that hole and he does put his
foot in the round. He can out out athlete everybody
at the second level. That dude's let you run a four,
four to one something like that at the combine. Look Yeah,
like like the dude. The dude has a quick twitch
(11:51):
explosiveness and the ability to get north and south really
really quickly. He just needs to see it correctly first
and also have the patience to allow it to for
him to see it.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Yeah. I think the other part of this year is,
you know, you go back and look at the college
offense he was in there with with Gus Malson and
if you're familiar with that at all, and mean it's
qbvre with with the running back going outside, and so
he's used to that. He's used to reading it outside,
you know, used to try to straight out. Like I said,
it just takes rewiring it, But I think I think
it's there real quick. Last one for me, you know, No.
One of the Saints finally started Devon Valley at a
(12:21):
game and he went absolutely off in that game.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
I don't know if you got a chance to watch
any of that.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
He wound up with like somebody eight catches for for
almost one hundred yards, got an onside kick recovery.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
Just a great game for him, Wishing him well.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
Broncos receivers, you know, have had kind of a Valia
sized hole in him this year. You know, Franklin's gotten
a ball of the targets but hadn't been efficient.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Bryan's been hit or miss.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
There's flashes there, but it's just not put it all
together just quite yet. And I can't wait to use
He's rated PB thirteen. Anytime he starts making a play.
It's a little it's a little fun. But they signed
a log and more to the practice squad today. Is
there anything you're seeing out of these receivers that looks
like somebody's going to step up to the plate and
be the guy down the stretch.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
Honestly, I've been one of the biggest Pat Bryant fans
in all of Broncos country over the last handful of weeks.
This dude is actually playing incredibly well, especially as a blocker,
like he's without question and no offense to Court and
Sutton here, because Colton Sutton's a fantastic physical receiver, but
at the point of attack, Pat Bryant as a blocker
(13:21):
has been the best blocking receiver on this team. Without question,
and the dude is always open. Going back to what
I've talked about with bow Nicks and getting his feet
settled down, getting his eyes settled down, tying his eyes
to his feet in the progression Tim Tim Jenkins talks
about this all the time, keeping your eyes tied to
your feet throughout your progressions. You will eventually get to
the receivers that you need to get to on your
(13:43):
second and third read to then deliver them to football.
Pat Bryant has been wide open more times than I
can count, go back through the AL twenty two. The
guy is completely like, always always open and consistently making
great catches. He's consistently making big plays. Doesn't seem like
he gets enough opportunity, And to me, I think that
(14:03):
ties back into not only Boonix, but the play calling
when you really need to focus in on a guy
that is getting into a rhythm. Bo doesn't want to
really stay with that read. He wants to get the
ball out of his hands quickly. He doesn't want to
keep his feet tied in tied into his eyes. He's
just trying to get the ball out of his hands
so quick and not take that negative plate and not
(14:25):
take that sack and you're missing a lot of opportunities here.
And I get the connection with him and Troy Franklin,
but I don't see what Troy Franklin brings to this
offense outside of like verticality that Pat Bryant does over
the middle of the field. If you can get Pat
Bryant going over the middle of the field, this offense
(14:45):
can completely flip itself over the head. And then every
now and again, hit those deep shots to Marvin and
he hit those deep shots to Troy Franklin. Stop redlining
all these throws both. Like that's to me where this
passing offense kind of is like the takeoff point. If
you both can get settled in the pocket. If he
can deliver the football on time, he can actually open
(15:07):
up this offense because there's receivers open on every play.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Yeah, and that's and that's the thing I just you know,
for my edification, I've always wondered who's gonna be the
guy going down the stretch shot Lance Sanderson uh from
Mile High Hull.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
We always appreciate you having you on. I'm I'm obliged
to tell you that.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Profit texted in and said, you need to tell Lance
I'm still ready for that. Let's sign your bake off.
So we'll have to get you guys squared away here soon.
We appreciate the time though.
Speaker 3 (15:29):
Brother, Yeah, thanks for having me on in profit. I'm
always ready for the challenge. We just got to figure
out the time and place and get me down there,
down to Denver or bring your up, bring your butt
up to Wyoming and let's let's let's figure it out.
We will.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
We will get that squared away. That is the fans
have clamored for it. We We've wasted enough time. We'll
get that worked out. Have a have a good one, brother,
look forward to talking again.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
So yeah, thanks Ben for having me on. I appreciate it, buddy.
We'll talk to you later.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Absolutely, take care. Lance Sanderson from Mile High Huddle NFL
six pack.
Speaker 3 (15:57):
We come back.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
What a thank you, Parker Gabriel and Lance Sanderson's well,
Steve Atwater for joining us tonight. And you missed any
part of that you guys go to Broncos Country down
at dot com, slash podcast or where we get your
podcast Apple iTunes, Spotify, the free redesigned iHeartRadio. We gets
ta you regretted podcast archives as well.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
I'm with that. Let's get to an NFL six package.
Bags time for the NFL six pack. I'm gonna drink
a lot of beer.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Insight and insight information you can't find anywhere else.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
I know six the top six NFL headlines.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
What he makes everything look terrible. Sante Samuel Senior blames
DK Metcalf for.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
Aaron Rodgers struggles.
Speaker 4 (16:41):
Pittsburgh Steelers obviously made several big changes to their offense
this past offseason. That started with trading for DK Metcalf
and signing him to a massive contract extension. It looked
good at the time, it hasn't paid off. This season.
Metcalf only with forty five catches and six hundred five
yards and five touchdowns in twelve games. Sante Samuel Senior,
(17:01):
former NFL cornerback and father of current Steelers quarterback as
Sante Samuel Jr. Thanks Metcalf is to blame for the
Aaron Rodgers struggles this season. On his podcast Say What
Needs to Be Said, Samuel said he's a non factor.
He is most of the problem. At the end of
the day, Aaron Rodgers needs someone to throw to. He's
used to having elite receivers that can suddenly get opened.
(17:24):
DK Metcalf can't provide that for Aaron Rodgers, and DK
Metcalf is the reason that Aaron Rodgers is looking so
old because he keeps trying to throw DK Metcalf the
football and he is not even getting an ounce of separation,
especially when he's going against press coverage. Aaron Rodgers continues
to try to look for him, and he makes everything
look terrible and old and outplayed and outdated. How much
(17:47):
do you blame DK Metcalf for Aaron Rodgers and the
Steelers struggles.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
As of late, Well, I mean he has there are
some things that he's saying there that are true, that
are in fact true, But I don't know.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
The DK Metcalf is net the whole problem.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
The success percentage there is is not great.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I mean, they's had.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
Forty five receptions on seventy five targets this year, and
part of that is true, part of it is and
the other part of these seas they cut nothing around
DK Metcalf. I mean, they just picked somebody up to
day and I assume we'll get to that later in
the six.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
Pack, but.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
You've got nobody around him.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
The next Beast wide receiver on the team is is
Calvin Austen.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
You know the other is as far as.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
That, you'd have to go past the whole slew of
running backs and tight ends before you even get to
another receiver that that has caught ten balls this year.
You know, John Smith, Pat fryar Muth, Darnell Washington, Jaylen Warre,
and Kenneth Gainwell, those guys have all caught more balls
than the next receiver on the roster, which is Roman Wilson,
who has has targeted twenty one times and caught twelve balls.
(18:52):
Like they just they just don't have receive They just
don't throw receivers. They don't have receivers over so it's
not just Dkay's the receiving corps and they went out
added you know, more than a thling Adam theland today.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
But I don't know how much that is.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
Aaron Rodgers throughout his career has a history of loving
to hit those deep ISO routes. You just don't have
guys that could do that in this offense. That was
the thing that was interesting to me because you have
Arthur Smith there and I was like, well, this offense
just isn't designed for Aaron Rodgers. It's just not and
so you know, I don't know that always felt like
(19:26):
something was gonna end in disaster to me. Rogers for
his part, nineteen touchdowns seven seven interceptions on the year.
But I just I don't know. I don't know what
else to say about this. I don't think that's entirely correct.
I think there is truth to what he's saying about DK,
But then you look at the rest of the receiving corps,
it's way worse.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
How do you feel if you're a Santa Samuel junior
while you're currently on this Steeler, So you got your
dad out there running his mouth about the team you're
currently playing for.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Maybe that got put through Aaron Rodgers too. A Sante
junior to put out through a Sante senior.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
You know, you never know that.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
You know, Aaron can't call out and k make a publicly,
but he could something through a brand new signing to
send to his dad to put out there. I don't know,
I don't know, you know, I don't know. This sounds
like it's coming from Aaron Rodgers. Two, Well, you mentioned
it briefly there. Don't want to make you wait long
for it. For his birthday.
Speaker 4 (20:18):
The Pittsburgh Steelers got Aaron Rodgers a new receiver. The
team was awarded former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen
off waivers. The addition comes amid a flurry of moves
that also saw the Steelers wave veteran cornerback Darius Slay. Additionally,
the Steelers are signing quarterback before mentioned a Santae Samuel
Junior to the active roster from their practice squad. Steeland
(20:39):
was waived by the Vikings a day after he was
a healthy scratch in the team's twenty six to zero
loss to the Seahawks. Vikings general manager said Steelan's agent
asked for a release last week as a thirty five
year old receiver sought to make a greater contribution elsewhere
in the final weeks of his season before retirement. Once
Minnesota's wide receiver corps returned to four strength following Jordan
(21:01):
Addison's reinstatement, Deelan's role dwindled. He played just three snaps
in his final game against the Packers in Week twelve.
Since this past spring, I knew this was going to
be my last season playing in the NFL, Theland wrote
in a post on social media, given that the Vikings
allowed me the opportunity to go compete elsewhere for the.
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Last few weeks of my career.
Speaker 4 (21:21):
How big of an impact do you think Delan makes
on this Steelers roster as they're trying to stay atop
the AFC North and with the Broncos signing a wide
receiver today, Elijah Moore, would you have liked to see
the Broncos make an effort to get Delan as well?
Or did they? And just behind the Steelers on the
waiver claim?
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Absolutely not on Adam Thalon. You know, they talk about
a diminished role. Adam deln has eight receptions on the
year eight. His role was already diminished. This is already
a guy doesn't really get open and you know, like
I get it. They hit quarterback played it was a
problem there. But you're about to find out the other
part of this is Adam Deland's thirty five years old, right.
(22:00):
He hasn't had a meetingful season since twenty twenty three
in Carolina where they were force feeding him the ball
on easy stuff. Prior to that, it had been another
four or five years since he'd had, you know, meetingful
seasons in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
He's he's just not that guy.
Speaker 1 (22:13):
He's had a great career, but he's far far past
you know, the prime years of you know.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Twenty sixteen through twenty eighteen, whatever.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
That was when he was he was bawling out of
control from Minnesota, playing opposite Stevan Diggs and everything else.
I just, I mean, he has eight catches this year.
He's a complete non factor. I don't know what kind
of a factor he's going to be in trying to
learn the Steelers offense here at the end of the year,
I imagine it's not going.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
To be much.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
You know, at this point, you're hoping he can get
to twenty catches on the year three.
Speaker 4 (22:45):
Sticking with the wide receiver theme so far in the
six pack, Kyle Shanahan hopeful but not.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
Counting on Brandon Ayuk's return.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
Forty nine Ers general manager John Lynch said this morning
he is not sure Brandon Ayuk return as real.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Stick this season.
Speaker 4 (23:01):
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday afternoon earlier today that he
remains hopeful the wide receiver will come back, but knows
it's unlikely. Oh, I'm definitely still hopeful, Shanahan said on
KMBR i'not counting on it, but I'm definitely still hoping
that can happen. Ayuk is rehabbing a tearing of the
MCL MCL I say MCL twice seal twice ACL MCL
(23:25):
at meniscus in his right knee during a game against
the Chiefs on October twentieth of last year. He remains
on the physically unable to perform lists, with only four
regular season games left and still at the bottom of
my fantasy football roster. His future with the team is
uncertain after the forty nine Ers avoided the remaining guarantees
on Ayu's contract earlier this year. A recent ESPN report
(23:47):
suggested the tensions between Ayuk and the forty nine Ers
may stem from his failure to attend offseason rehab sessions.
I don't necessarily know that the reporting was an inflection point,
but I think the entire time it hadn't been great,
and Unch said, and so you do your best directify
those things, and then everyone's got to be professionals and
conduct themselves in that manner. From these comments from John Lynch,
(24:09):
it seems like we've seen the last of Ayuk in
a forty nine Ers uniform.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah, he's not coming back. He's not going to be back.
You know, despite other you know, couching of that. After
the reporting came out, it was pretty obvious there was
some couching of that.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
After all.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
Well maybe you know the works stuff out they're trying
to work towards Yeah, they're not trying to work towards anything.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
Brandon Ayuke's out. He's going to be out.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
He's not coming back. He wants nothing to do with it.
They Niners want nothing to do with him. This could
not be a more we're playing the diplomatic game through
the media right now. We can't wait to be rid
of each other situation.
Speaker 4 (24:38):
Have you heard any potential landing spots or is that
something for the offense?
Speaker 1 (24:41):
I mean Pittsburgh was, you know, was looking at him
before all that. Maybe he winds up there after all,
you know, as far as that kind of stuff goes.
Feeling's only gonna be there for a couple of games.
I mean's not gonna be there next year. That's not
a plan. And they need something opposite Dk metcalf for
whoever is throwing the ball, whether that's Aaron Rodgers or
someone else.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
They got to figure something out.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
There for Joe Shane. There are pieces in place. I
know we're going to get it right at Giants GM.
After they fired head coach Brian dave Ball last month,
they announced that general manager Joe Shane will lead the
search for day Ball's replacement. Dayball and Shane were both
hired in twenty twenty two, which made the decision to
(25:19):
fire one and not the other a major topic of
conversation at Shin Shane's bye week press conference on Tuesday,
Shane said, my hands in it just like Brian's is
in regard to the team's dismal records since their arrival,
but that is it was an ownership decision and that
he will control what I can control. Shane said that
he thinks he's better at the job today than he
(25:41):
was when he joined the team, and acknowledged that the
chances of me battling batting eight thousand in terms of
his moves.
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Is long gone.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
I think that's the understatement of the year.
Speaker 4 (25:50):
He said that he learns from what's gone wrong and
is not going to make the same mistake twice, while
noting the presence of playing players like Jackson Dart Malik
neighbors Brian Burns, Andrew Thomas and others as signs that
they've gotten some things right as well. He cited those
things as basis for his belief that he can take
the team where it wants to go in the future.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
There's pieces in place, he said.
Speaker 4 (26:11):
I do have confidence and our ability and our process
to find the next coach to lead the organization.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
I do believe in that process. I know we're going
to get it right. What's your confidence level? And Joe
Shane getting it right for the New York Giants, well,
I don't know. You know, the opportunities are out there.
It's probably in my estimation. I think the big names
there are Louna Roumo, Advanced Joseph. I think they're going
to hire a.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Strong defensive coach who brings a good O C plan
and a pension for quarterback development for Dark and Scatibo.
You know, I wouldn't be surprised the advanced Joseph Davis
Web combination in the in the mix there maybe.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
And see what that is.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Web of course played quarterback in the New York Giants.
He played several years in Brian Deables offense. Knows the
terminology be an easy transition there if he wants to
be the offensive coordinator, be easy transition and helping him
transition to whatever offense.
Speaker 2 (27:02):
He was going to run with, which Acon Dart having
the intimate knowledge of the uh you know, of the offense.
So a perfect setup there. So we'll see.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
I think they're going to be very firmly in the
mix for that, especially they keep winning winning games like this,
Joe Shane's gonna be the general manager there. Like I'm
hate break to you, He's gonna be the general manager
there for this pick. Now, this doesn't work out, he's
gonna be gone, but he's going to get the opportunity
to get a second.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
Shot at it. And that's kind of how you do it.
Speaker 1 (27:25):
I mean, you give a you give a coach, two quarterbacks,
you give a general manager two coaches, and then you
go from there.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
I'll just never get over that hard knocks moment. Yeah,
you know, Joe Shane's bye. By the way, What am
I doing with my life? Good question?
Speaker 3 (27:39):
Five.
Speaker 4 (27:41):
The new college football playoff rankings were released earlier tonight,
and there was a major change at the top of
those rankings after Texas A and M lost to Texas
over the weekend, they dropped from the number four seed,
which gets a first round by to number seven. He's
dropped a lout Texas Tech to climb into the top
four at number four. Georgia also climbed one spot to
(28:03):
number three, while Ohio State in Indiana remained number one
and number two ahead of the Big Ten championship game
this weekend. Notre Dame slipped one spot to number ten
after sitting at nine for several weeks. Alabama leapfrog the
Fighting Irish after closing its season with a narrow twenty
seven to twenty victory against end state rival Auburn. Crimson
(28:23):
Tide can submit their status in Saturday's SEC championship game
against Georgia, while Notre Dame as an independent left at
left its last impression on the selection committee in week fourteen.
Speaker 2 (28:34):
Looks like ole.
Speaker 4 (28:35):
Miss will be unaffected by coach Lane Kiffin's departure for LSU.
The Rebels still ranked six, which gives them hope and
field advantage on the projected college football playoff bracket. Retaining
most of the remaining coaching staff through the postseason.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
At least likely helped ole Miss his outlook.
Speaker 4 (28:51):
Tulane remain the highest ranked group of five school at
number twenty, which will give the Greenway the number twelve
seed and the projected bracket, Virginia would sit at the
eleven seed if they are able to take care of
business against the Duke in the ACC Championship game. What
do you think the latest college football playoff rankings?
Speaker 1 (29:10):
Some of these stuff I I look at and I.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I just don't understand, you know, you look at it's
some of these some of these teams, and the hundred year.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
Check gets on TV, it starts giving these It's.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Like they're making it up as they go along.
Speaker 3 (29:26):
You know.
Speaker 1 (29:27):
I think it feels that way. You can almost just
bring the VCS computers back. Everybody hated them, but I
mean they weren't wrong. Just bring the VCS computers back
and do that kind of stuff. But it's it's been
weird watching them get on there and sort of have
this this, well we do this because that, we do
this because that, But none of it seems consistent, you know,
(29:47):
with how any of that stuff goes. I do think
Ohio State, Indiana, Georgia, Oregon, Old miss Texas Tech Tech
a M.
Speaker 2 (29:54):
Those guys are those guys are locks?
Speaker 1 (29:56):
You know you get to uh, you start getting too Oklahoma,
and that's where you start, you know, kind of eyeball
at it a little bit.
Speaker 2 (30:01):
Uh, notre dame to eyeball it a little bit Alabama.
Speaker 3 (30:04):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
My contention is that, you know, is that Vanderbilt is
gonna be the team that gets left out here that
shouldn't be And if it bugs me like that, that
they absolutely belong in the conversation. And there's too much
you know, overvaluing some of this other stuff. People try
to squeeze Texas in there or trying to you know,
squeeze somebody else.
Speaker 2 (30:22):
It's it's just ridiculous to me.
Speaker 4 (30:23):
Six quickly head in the back time bed already. Did
Lane Kiffin leave his dog Chuck?
Speaker 3 (30:32):
Did they leave Juice?
Speaker 2 (30:33):
That old messy lane Kevin didn't anything to do with
that dog.
Speaker 1 (30:36):
Is a pr stunt by his agency was absolute nonsense
and uh practice kind of gross.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
But yes, he left the dog that he did not
own or even live at his house. They're at Old
Miss Broncos Country tonight's back after this ser that's one
way to put it. Uh, somebody who's got a little
weight on the back end, you know what I mean.
Go right up to the kacuaster with hotline and bring
on our guy, Lance santorson at Lance s Underscore.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
M h h, he's of course, work sure, mile high huddle.
We always enjoy having them on. Lance. How you doing.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
I'm doing good, Dan, It's it's been a while now,
but good to be on. Thanks for having me. How
do you guys doing tonight.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm a little under the weather, but muddling through, so
we'll see what happens here. Is I power through the
same way the Broncos seem to be powering through everybody
on the schedule so far, finding ways to pull it out,
you know, when they need to. And you know, for me,
I find it fascinating to be on this side of it,
covering that, you know, this kind of phenomenon where you
look at something you say, this absolutely isn't sustainable, and
(00:39):
then of course they just keep sustaining it, and so
it's it's it's sort of fascinating being on this side
of it and watching it unfold. I guess in real time,
the Washington Matters didn't have anything to play for. They
came out and you know, they played us tough, but
the Broncos once again did what they do, which is
making plays at the times when it is critically needed
and when it count els, and came away with yet
(01:01):
another victory, pulling themselves to ten wins before even hitting
them on the December.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Yeah. So the crazy thing about this team right now
is that that like they're in that weird kind of
the bottom of the pendulum when you think about like
how teams win. So if you're in the middle of
a rebuild, if you're going to lose a lot of
big games, you're gonna lose a lot of small games.
And then when you finally get to the bottom of
that pendulum, you're going to lose a lot of small
games and then start winning small games and then you
eventually kick that pendulum back up and start to win
(01:29):
big games and start to compete for championships. And honestly,
right now with this Broncos team is kind of currently
constructed with the defense game as good as it is,
you're on the cusp of we're winning small games, winning
all these close games over and over and over again.
And they're what number two in the ANFC right now
because the New England Patriots haven't they played one more
(01:51):
game than the Broncos have. This team is one of
the best teams in the NFL. Just break it down
by how the games are going. Every single time that
this team has an opportunity to win a close game,
they find ways to make plays. That shows consistency with
the coaching. It shows consistent playmaking ability, even though it
may not be explosive plays. We're making the plays that
(02:12):
we need to when we absolutely have to have them
to finally pull these wins out and slip it to
your team, the Kansas City Chiefs. I know you're a
Kansas City Chiefs fan. Look at where they're at right now.
Last year they won a whole bunch of really close games.
I think they're what twelve and one in One Tour
games on their way to losing into the Super Bowl.
(02:33):
Now they're losing all these one Tour games and that
pezum swinging back in the opposite direction. And for me
as a Broncos fan, as a Broncos analyst, I could
not be more happy about where the Broncos are as
compared to where the Chiefs are at right now.
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Hey, Lance grant here, I heard a stat yesterday on
KOA Sports with Dave Logan that there's been like two
hundred and two instances where a team had been behind
in their first twelve games in every game, and the
Broncos have the best record by far with ten wins
in those twelve games, And that just seems like they
do keep finding ways to pull it out. But it
feels like the offense is finally starting to figure it
(03:07):
out a little bit more as well. And it feels
like bo Nicks is starting to grow up right in
front of our eyes, going through his reads, not bailing
out of the pocket so quickly. What have you seen
in his evolution in year two in the Sean Payton offense.
Speaker 3 (03:20):
Well, tie it back all the way to the back
half of last season. I mean specifically the Chargers game,
specifically the Bengals game where he hit Marvin EM's on
those two long touchdown throws. He's through the first half
of this season. His footwork has been so erratic because
he even mentioned that he had been trying to focus
(03:40):
on utilizing his athleticism, utilizing his legs to try to
open up playmaking opportunities while also still understanding you can't
take negative plays. So it was a weird combination of
him where like go back to the Chargers game Week three,
where he was like sprinting into the pocket, clean pockets
and throwing all on the run, looking like an outfielder
(04:01):
trying to throw a runner out from third base out
at home, you know, like he was constantly gassing up
all these throws over the last handful of weeks though,
And I'm gonna go back to the Kansas City Chiefs
game where it looked like he was more calm in
the pocket. It looked like he was trusting his protection,
which is the best offensive line of football. Right now,
(04:22):
he's trusting where his eyes are going, his feet are
tied to his eyes a lot better, and he's finally
seeing the field, especially over the middle of the field
a little bit better. And that, to me, I think
is something you can build on, especially watching what happened
against the Commanders, where that last ride where he hits
Evan Ingram over the middle of the field on that
little jerk route for forty one yards sets him up
(04:45):
and they go down score a touchdowns, take the lead
in overtime. Like that, you can see these small, little
linear progressions with him, and it makes me really optimistic
about how this offense could develop. Moving forward. I mean,
Sean Payton's doing a great job play card. I know
there's a lot of people that hate the trick plays
and the sequencing issues at times, but there are wide
(05:07):
receivers open all over the field, whether it's Pat Bryant,
whether it's Portland Sudden, whether it is Troy Franklin dialing
up these shot plays and Bose just not taking them
because he's not settling his feet down. Over the last
handful of week, he has them and they're starting to
hit these more explosive plays over the middle of the field,
and that to me is a positive sign going forward.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
Yeah, and I think it will be a positive thing
going forward. Talking with last statursay from Hud, I think
that's that's sort of the thing is finding and getting
into your comfort zone, getting into your groove. And for
bo it's been a combination of things. You know, you
talked about the mechanical breakdown. For me, a lot of
that starts upstairs, though a lot of that starts mentally.
You start games where your motor seems to be run
a little hot, you look a little frenetic. They're trying
(05:49):
to find ways to settle him down a little bit quicker.
And get him into that groove, you know, that the
fourth quarter groove as it were throughout the season. But
it seems to have been it seems to have been
a little bit better over last a couple of weeks.
But you know, I don't really care about the trick plays.
It just to me, I don't I don't like. I
don't like taking guys out of what they're best at
to to try something that they're not really adept at
(06:12):
in critical situation. I'm like, all right, look, and I
get it, you know, second one, a double reverse, you know,
flea flicker thing whatever. Cool, But maybe let's get a
lead first before we do stuff like that. Maybe let's
get the basics down before we but before we put
the the rastle dazzle in.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Just just my my point oh two.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
But then again, that's why I'm the dork with a
microphone and not you know, out there coaching coaching football.
The other big thing I think, you know, and again
I talked about this earlier. I hate it at this
point because now it's like nitpicking. But the run game,
we've we've got to figure something out here. We've got
to find consistency with that because you're entering the part
of the schedule where you're gonna need that you're gonna
need to take the pressure off both times and and RJ,
(06:49):
you know, yeah, you got the two touchdowns, but two
point seven to carry over your last two games is
not get it done.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Look for me, I think that a big thing with
r J. Harvey is he's I don't want to call
it like seeing it too fast or seeing it too slow.
He's just not seeing it the right way because at
times when it's like the holes right there, he hits
it and he takes it for you know, five or
six seven yards on a play that's only blocked for
like two or three, and he's got some quick jump
(07:17):
cut and just get the ability to get skinny through
some gaps. And then there's times where it's like the
holes there and he doesn't see it and he runs
directly in the back of an offensive lineman. Like so
it's I wonder Ben, and I'm gonna I'm gonna put
this tea. As a as a former quarterback, I know
that you played quarterback position throughout high school. With with
(07:38):
r J. Harvey being a quarterback going to UCF, is
he's seeing the game like a quarterback and trying to,
you know, find the perfect play, find the right exact
example of how I can exploit as many yards on
this particular run and not running with patients and vision
at the same time, because there there there does seem
(07:59):
to be vision issues, There does seem to be patience issues,
and the burst that he plays with makes it so
that those two issues combined takes yards off the field.
Where like go back to the Dallas Cowboys game where
he ran that what forty yard touchdown run? He had patients,
he had vision, The Dallas Cowboys had a horrible defensive
(08:22):
lineman because Matt Erifus does not know how to call
defensive run alignments, and he ran for forty yards untouched.
He also had the big run against the Tennessee Titans
where Ben Powers tacked out, blew out Jeffery Simmons in
the a gap. R J. Harvey cut it back behind,
got behind. I believe it was Sutton Troutman and Quinn
(08:44):
Minors as they moved up to the second level cut
it back for a fifty yard run. There are options
for there are times where he looks like he's seeing
it correctly, not having the patients or he's not having
the patients and not seeing it correctly. It's a rookie
running back at the NFL level, and he's also a
converted quarterback. Like it's there seems to be so many
(09:05):
issues with Harvey alone that with him being as young
of a player as he is, especially new to the position,
that are causing more issues for this Broncos running game
than that's than you need to have.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
Yeah, I think I would put it back on the
fact that ninety five percent of the games he's played
in until he got to the NFL, he was the
best athlete on the field.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
I think part of the absolutely true.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
I think I think you nailed it with the vision
of the patients that comes, you know, hopefully to running
backs as they settle in. But I think part of
it is, you know, I mean, down at UCF, this
guy could just boat race whole defenses to the edge
and beat them because he was one of the best athletes,
if not the best athlete on the field. And so,
you know, I think there's I think there's something to
sort of rewiring yourself to and especially in this type
(09:48):
of offense, to finding ways to just settle down, you
move off the initial snap. You don't have to have
that burst, just move at forty percent speed, let the
blocking set itself up, and then finding those little creases
and going.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
It reminds me of a lot of a running back
at Tampa used to have.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
He actually played for the Broncos later his career, but
early on in his career, Michael Pittman was that dude.
I mean, he was so fast he would just outrun
his blocking and it was it was ineffective down there
for the Tampa Bay Bucks. And you know, then later
on in his career, you know, he put on weight
and everything else, and you get he started slowing down.
He became much better running back when he had the vision.
You look at you look at some of the great
(10:23):
some of the guys like in recent years like Leveon Bell.
Levo Bell ran it, you know, at forty percent speed
behind that line of scrimmage until the blocking set.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Up and then he took off. And there's there's an
art to it.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
There's an art to developing sort of that patience, just
letting that stuff set up, having the patients and the
ability to then dart through and take the crease. And
I think it'll come to Rjrvey right as it sits
right now, just looks like a guy who was the
best athlete on the field his whole life and is
trying to add athlete guys in a level where you
can't do that anymore.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
And so I think that's I think that's where we're.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
At with it. Yea, I completely agree with you. It's
frustrating too, because when you watch this offensive line on
the ELT twenty too, you see the way that they're working.
They're ceiling guys down. Luke Lautenberg has been playing really,
really well at the center position, and congratulations to him,
I getting that that big new contract for him. But
(11:09):
like so the interior run game, when when I run
forcing handoff inside zone, you need to know when to
cut it back and not just die directly in between
your garden tackle. You need to know to cut back
behind your center and let him get up to the
second level. It's to me, it's it's it's not only
just that I about athnite everybody, it's I don't know
(11:29):
how to read this play correctly at this particular point
in my career. But once I do figure that out,
when he hits that hole and he does put his
foot in the round. He can out out athlete everybody
at the second level. That dude's let you run a four,
four to one something like that at the combine. Look Yeah,
like like the dude. The dude has a quick twitch
(11:51):
explosiveness and the ability to get north and south really
really quickly. He just needs to see it correctly first
and also have the patience to allow it to for
him to see it.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Yeah. I think the other part of this year is,
you know, you go back and look at the college
offense he was in there with with Gus Malson and
if you're familiar with that at all, and mean it's
qbvre with with the running back going outside, and so
he's used to that. He's used to reading it outside,
you know, used to try to straight out. Like I said,
it just takes rewiring it, But I think I think
it's there real quick. Last one for me, you know, No.
One of the Saints finally started Devon Valley at a
(12:21):
game and he went absolutely off in that game.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
I don't know if you got a chance to watch
any of that.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
He wound up with like somebody eight catches for for
almost one hundred yards, got an onside kick recovery.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
Just a great game for him, Wishing him well.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
Broncos receivers, you know, have had kind of a Valia
sized hole in him this year. You know, Franklin's gotten
a ball of the targets but hadn't been efficient.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Bryan's been hit or miss.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
There's flashes there, but it's just not put it all
together just quite yet. And I can't wait to use
He's rated PB thirteen. Anytime he starts making a play.
It's a little it's a little fun. But they signed
a log and more to the practice squad today. Is
there anything you're seeing out of these receivers that looks
like somebody's going to step up to the plate and
be the guy down the stretch.
Speaker 3 (13:01):
Honestly, I've been one of the biggest Pat Bryant fans
in all of Broncos country over the last handful of weeks.
This dude is actually playing incredibly well, especially as a blocker,
like he's without question and no offense to Court and
Sutton here, because Colton Sutton's a fantastic physical receiver, but
at the point of attack, Pat Bryant as a blocker
(13:21):
has been the best blocking receiver on this team. Without question,
and the dude is always open. Going back to what
I've talked about with bow Nicks and getting his feet
settled down, getting his eyes settled down, tying his eyes
to his feet in the progression Tim Tim Jenkins talks
about this all the time, keeping your eyes tied to
your feet throughout your progressions. You will eventually get to
the receivers that you need to get to on your
(13:43):
second and third read to then deliver them to football.
Pat Bryant has been wide open more times than I
can count, go back through the AL twenty two. The
guy is completely like, always always open and consistently making
great catches. He's consistently making big plays. Doesn't seem like
he gets enough opportunity, And to me, I think that
(14:03):
ties back into not only Boonix, but the play calling
when you really need to focus in on a guy
that is getting into a rhythm. Bo doesn't want to
really stay with that read. He wants to get the
ball out of his hands quickly. He doesn't want to
keep his feet tied in tied into his eyes. He's
just trying to get the ball out of his hands
so quick and not take that negative plate and not
(14:25):
take that sack and you're missing a lot of opportunities here.
And I get the connection with him and Troy Franklin,
but I don't see what Troy Franklin brings to this
offense outside of like verticality that Pat Bryant does over
the middle of the field. If you can get Pat
Bryant going over the middle of the field, this offense
(14:45):
can completely flip itself over the head. And then every
now and again, hit those deep shots to Marvin and
he hit those deep shots to Troy Franklin. Stop redlining
all these throws both. Like that's to me where this
passing offense kind of is like the takeoff point. If
you both can get settled in the pocket. If he
can deliver the football on time, he can actually open
(15:07):
up this offense because there's receivers open on every play.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Yeah, and that's and that's the thing I just you know,
for my edification, I've always wondered who's gonna be the
guy going down the stretch shot Lance Sanderson uh from
Mile High Hull.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
We always appreciate you having you on. I'm I'm obliged
to tell you that.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Profit texted in and said, you need to tell Lance
I'm still ready for that. Let's sign your bake off.
So we'll have to get you guys squared away here soon.
We appreciate the time though.
Speaker 3 (15:29):
Brother, Yeah, thanks for having me on in profit. I'm
always ready for the challenge. We just got to figure
out the time and place and get me down there,
down to Denver or bring your up, bring your butt
up to Wyoming and let's let's let's figure it out.
We will.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
We will get that squared away. That is the fans
have clamored for it. We We've wasted enough time. We'll
get that worked out. Have a have a good one, brother,
look forward to talking again.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
So yeah, thanks Ben for having me on. I appreciate it, buddy.
We'll talk to you later.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Absolutely, take care. Lance Sanderson from Mile High Huddle NFL
six pack.
Speaker 3 (15:57):
We come back.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
What a thank you, Parker Gabriel and Lance Sanderson's well,
Steve Atwater for joining us tonight. And you missed any
part of that you guys go to Broncos Country down
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Speaker 2 (16:16):
I'm with that. Let's get to an NFL six package.
Bags time for the NFL six pack. I'm gonna drink
a lot of beer.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Insight and insight information you can't find anywhere else.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
I know six the top six NFL headlines.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
What he makes everything look terrible. Sante Samuel Senior blames
DK Metcalf for.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
Aaron Rodgers struggles.
Speaker 4 (16:41):
Pittsburgh Steelers obviously made several big changes to their offense
this past offseason. That started with trading for DK Metcalf
and signing him to a massive contract extension. It looked
good at the time, it hasn't paid off. This season.
Metcalf only with forty five catches and six hundred five
yards and five touchdowns in twelve games. Sante Samuel Senior,
(17:01):
former NFL cornerback and father of current Steelers quarterback as
Sante Samuel Jr. Thanks Metcalf is to blame for the
Aaron Rodgers struggles this season. On his podcast Say What
Needs to Be Said, Samuel said he's a non factor.
He is most of the problem. At the end of
the day, Aaron Rodgers needs someone to throw to. He's
used to having elite receivers that can suddenly get opened.
(17:24):
DK Metcalf can't provide that for Aaron Rodgers, and DK
Metcalf is the reason that Aaron Rodgers is looking so
old because he keeps trying to throw DK Metcalf the
football and he is not even getting an ounce of separation,
especially when he's going against press coverage. Aaron Rodgers continues
to try to look for him, and he makes everything
look terrible and old and outplayed and outdated. How much
(17:47):
do you blame DK Metcalf for Aaron Rodgers and the
Steelers struggles.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
As of late, Well, I mean he has there are
some things that he's saying there that are true, that
are in fact true, But I don't know.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
The DK Metcalf is net the whole problem.
Speaker 1 (18:01):
The success percentage there is is not great.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I mean, they's had.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
Forty five receptions on seventy five targets this year, and
part of that is true, part of it is and
the other part of these seas they cut nothing around
DK Metcalf. I mean, they just picked somebody up to
day and I assume we'll get to that later in
the six.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
Pack, but.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
You've got nobody around him.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
The next Beast wide receiver on the team is is
Calvin Austen.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
You know the other is as far as.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
That, you'd have to go past the whole slew of
running backs and tight ends before you even get to
another receiver that that has caught ten balls this year.
You know, John Smith, Pat fryar Muth, Darnell Washington, Jaylen Warre,
and Kenneth Gainwell, those guys have all caught more balls
than the next receiver on the roster, which is Roman Wilson,
who has has targeted twenty one times and caught twelve balls.
(18:52):
Like they just they just don't have receive They just
don't throw receivers. They don't have receivers over so it's
not just Dkay's the receiving corps and they went out
added you know, more than a thling Adam theland today.
Speaker 2 (19:04):
But I don't know how much that is.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
Aaron Rodgers throughout his career has a history of loving
to hit those deep ISO routes. You just don't have
guys that could do that in this offense. That was
the thing that was interesting to me because you have
Arthur Smith there and I was like, well, this offense
just isn't designed for Aaron Rodgers. It's just not and
so you know, I don't know that always felt like
(19:26):
something was gonna end in disaster to me. Rogers for
his part, nineteen touchdowns seven seven interceptions on the year.
But I just I don't know. I don't know what
else to say about this. I don't think that's entirely correct.
I think there is truth to what he's saying about DK,
But then you look at the rest of the receiving corps,
it's way worse.
Speaker 4 (19:44):
How do you feel if you're a Santa Samuel junior
while you're currently on this Steeler, So you got your
dad out there running his mouth about the team you're
currently playing for.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Maybe that got put through Aaron Rodgers too. A Sante
junior to put out through a Sante senior.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
You know, you never know that.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
You know, Aaron can't call out and k make a publicly,
but he could something through a brand new signing to
send to his dad to put out there. I don't know,
I don't know, you know, I don't know. This sounds
like it's coming from Aaron Rodgers. Two, Well, you mentioned
it briefly there. Don't want to make you wait long
for it. For his birthday.
Speaker 4 (20:18):
The Pittsburgh Steelers got Aaron Rodgers a new receiver. The
team was awarded former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen
off waivers. The addition comes amid a flurry of moves
that also saw the Steelers wave veteran cornerback Darius Slay. Additionally,
the Steelers are signing quarterback before mentioned a Santae Samuel
Junior to the active roster from their practice squad. Steeland
(20:39):
was waived by the Vikings a day after he was
a healthy scratch in the team's twenty six to zero
loss to the Seahawks. Vikings general manager said Steelan's agent
asked for a release last week as a thirty five
year old receiver sought to make a greater contribution elsewhere
in the final weeks of his season before retirement. Once
Minnesota's wide receiver corps returned to four strength following Jordan
(21:01):
Addison's reinstatement, Deelan's role dwindled. He played just three snaps
in his final game against the Packers in Week twelve.
Since this past spring, I knew this was going to
be my last season playing in the NFL, Theland wrote
in a post on social media, given that the Vikings
allowed me the opportunity to go compete elsewhere for the.
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Last few weeks of my career.
Speaker 4 (21:21):
How big of an impact do you think Delan makes
on this Steelers roster as they're trying to stay atop
the AFC North and with the Broncos signing a wide
receiver today, Elijah Moore, would you have liked to see
the Broncos make an effort to get Delan as well?
Or did they? And just behind the Steelers on the
waiver claim?
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Absolutely not on Adam Thalon. You know, they talk about
a diminished role. Adam deln has eight receptions on the
year eight. His role was already diminished. This is already
a guy doesn't really get open and you know, like
I get it. They hit quarterback played it was a
problem there. But you're about to find out the other
part of this is Adam Deland's thirty five years old, right.
(22:00):
He hasn't had a meetingful season since twenty twenty three
in Carolina where they were force feeding him the ball
on easy stuff. Prior to that, it had been another
four or five years since he'd had, you know, meetingful
seasons in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
He's he's just not that guy.
Speaker 1 (22:13):
He's had a great career, but he's far far past
you know, the prime years of you know.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Twenty sixteen through twenty eighteen, whatever.
Speaker 1 (22:19):
That was when he was he was bawling out of
control from Minnesota, playing opposite Stevan Diggs and everything else.
I just, I mean, he has eight catches this year.
He's a complete non factor. I don't know what kind
of a factor he's going to be in trying to
learn the Steelers offense here at the end of the year,
I imagine it's not going.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
To be much.
Speaker 1 (22:39):
You know, at this point, you're hoping he can get
to twenty catches on the year three.
Speaker 4 (22:45):
Sticking with the wide receiver theme so far in the
six pack, Kyle Shanahan hopeful but not.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
Counting on Brandon Ayuk's return.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
Forty nine Ers general manager John Lynch said this morning
he is not sure Brandon Ayuk return as real.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Stick this season.
Speaker 4 (23:01):
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday afternoon earlier today that he
remains hopeful the wide receiver will come back, but knows
it's unlikely. Oh, I'm definitely still hopeful, Shanahan said on
KMBR i'not counting on it, but I'm definitely still hoping
that can happen. Ayuk is rehabbing a tearing of the
MCL MCL I say MCL twice seal twice ACL MCL
(23:25):
at meniscus in his right knee during a game against
the Chiefs on October twentieth of last year. He remains
on the physically unable to perform lists, with only four
regular season games left and still at the bottom of
my fantasy football roster. His future with the team is
uncertain after the forty nine Ers avoided the remaining guarantees
on Ayu's contract earlier this year. A recent ESPN report
(23:47):
suggested the tensions between Ayuk and the forty nine Ers
may stem from his failure to attend offseason rehab sessions.
I don't necessarily know that the reporting was an inflection point,
but I think the entire time it hadn't been great,
and Unch said, and so you do your best directify
those things, and then everyone's got to be professionals and
conduct themselves in that manner. From these comments from John Lynch,
(24:09):
it seems like we've seen the last of Ayuk in
a forty nine Ers uniform.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah, he's not coming back. He's not going to be back.
You know, despite other you know, couching of that. After
the reporting came out, it was pretty obvious there was
some couching of that.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
After all.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
Well maybe you know the works stuff out they're trying
to work towards Yeah, they're not trying to work towards anything.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
Brandon Ayuke's out. He's going to be out.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
He's not coming back. He wants nothing to do with it.
They Niners want nothing to do with him. This could
not be a more we're playing the diplomatic game through
the media right now. We can't wait to be rid
of each other situation.
Speaker 4 (24:38):
Have you heard any potential landing spots or is that
something for the offense?
Speaker 1 (24:41):
I mean Pittsburgh was, you know, was looking at him
before all that. Maybe he winds up there after all,
you know, as far as that kind of stuff goes.
Feeling's only gonna be there for a couple of games.
I mean's not gonna be there next year. That's not
a plan. And they need something opposite Dk metcalf for
whoever is throwing the ball, whether that's Aaron Rodgers or
someone else.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
They got to figure something out.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
There for Joe Shane. There are pieces in place. I
know we're going to get it right at Giants GM.
After they fired head coach Brian dave Ball last month,
they announced that general manager Joe Shane will lead the
search for day Ball's replacement. Dayball and Shane were both
hired in twenty twenty two, which made the decision to
(25:19):
fire one and not the other a major topic of
conversation at Shin Shane's bye week press conference on Tuesday,
Shane said, my hands in it just like Brian's is
in regard to the team's dismal records since their arrival,
but that is it was an ownership decision and that
he will control what I can control. Shane said that
he thinks he's better at the job today than he
(25:41):
was when he joined the team, and acknowledged that the
chances of me battling batting eight thousand in terms of
his moves.
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Is long gone.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
I think that's the understatement of the year.
Speaker 4 (25:50):
He said that he learns from what's gone wrong and
is not going to make the same mistake twice, while
noting the presence of playing players like Jackson Dart Malik
neighbors Brian Burns, Andrew Thomas and others as signs that
they've gotten some things right as well. He cited those
things as basis for his belief that he can take
the team where it wants to go in the future.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
There's pieces in place, he said.
Speaker 4 (26:11):
I do have confidence and our ability and our process
to find the next coach to lead the organization.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
I do believe in that process. I know we're going
to get it right. What's your confidence level? And Joe
Shane getting it right for the New York Giants, well,
I don't know. You know, the opportunities are out there.
It's probably in my estimation. I think the big names
there are Louna Roumo, Advanced Joseph. I think they're going
to hire a.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Strong defensive coach who brings a good O C plan
and a pension for quarterback development for Dark and Scatibo.
You know, I wouldn't be surprised the advanced Joseph Davis
Web combination in the in the mix there maybe.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
And see what that is.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Web of course played quarterback in the New York Giants.
He played several years in Brian Deables offense. Knows the
terminology be an easy transition there if he wants to
be the offensive coordinator, be easy transition and helping him
transition to whatever offense.
Speaker 2 (27:02):
He was going to run with, which Acon Dart having
the intimate knowledge of the uh you know, of the offense.
So a perfect setup there. So we'll see.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
I think they're going to be very firmly in the
mix for that, especially they keep winning winning games like this,
Joe Shane's gonna be the general manager there. Like I'm
hate break to you, He's gonna be the general manager
there for this pick. Now, this doesn't work out, he's
gonna be gone, but he's going to get the opportunity
to get a second.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
Shot at it. And that's kind of how you do it.
Speaker 1 (27:25):
I mean, you give a you give a coach, two quarterbacks,
you give a general manager two coaches, and then you
go from there.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
I'll just never get over that hard knocks moment. Yeah,
you know, Joe Shane's bye. By the way, What am
I doing with my life? Good question?
Speaker 3 (27:39):
Five.
Speaker 4 (27:41):
The new college football playoff rankings were released earlier tonight,
and there was a major change at the top of
those rankings after Texas A and M lost to Texas
over the weekend, they dropped from the number four seed,
which gets a first round by to number seven. He's
dropped a lout Texas Tech to climb into the top
four at number four. Georgia also climbed one spot to
(28:03):
number three, while Ohio State in Indiana remained number one
and number two ahead of the Big Ten championship game
this weekend. Notre Dame slipped one spot to number ten
after sitting at nine for several weeks. Alabama leapfrog the
Fighting Irish after closing its season with a narrow twenty
seven to twenty victory against end state rival Auburn. Crimson
(28:23):
Tide can submit their status in Saturday's SEC championship game
against Georgia, while Notre Dame as an independent left at
left its last impression on the selection committee in week fourteen.
Speaker 2 (28:34):
Looks like ole.
Speaker 4 (28:35):
Miss will be unaffected by coach Lane Kiffin's departure for LSU.
The Rebels still ranked six, which gives them hope and
field advantage on the projected college football playoff bracket. Retaining
most of the remaining coaching staff through the postseason.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
At least likely helped ole Miss his outlook.
Speaker 4 (28:51):
Tulane remain the highest ranked group of five school at
number twenty, which will give the Greenway the number twelve
seed and the projected bracket, Virginia would sit at the
eleven seed if they are able to take care of
business against the Duke in the ACC Championship game. What
do you think the latest college football playoff rankings?
Speaker 1 (29:10):
Some of these stuff I I look at and I.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I just don't understand, you know, you look at it's
some of these some of these teams, and the hundred year.
Speaker 1 (29:22):
Check gets on TV, it starts giving these It's.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Like they're making it up as they go along.
Speaker 3 (29:26):
You know.
Speaker 1 (29:27):
I think it feels that way. You can almost just
bring the VCS computers back. Everybody hated them, but I
mean they weren't wrong. Just bring the VCS computers back
and do that kind of stuff. But it's it's been
weird watching them get on there and sort of have
this this, well we do this because that, we do
this because that, But none of it seems consistent, you know,
(29:47):
with how any of that stuff goes. I do think
Ohio State, Indiana, Georgia, Oregon, Old miss Texas Tech Tech
a M.
Speaker 2 (29:54):
Those guys are those guys are locks?
Speaker 1 (29:56):
You know you get to uh, you start getting too Oklahoma,
and that's where you start, you know, kind of eyeball
at it a little bit.
Speaker 2 (30:01):
Uh, notre dame to eyeball it a little bit Alabama.
Speaker 3 (30:04):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
My contention is that, you know, is that Vanderbilt is
gonna be the team that gets left out here that
shouldn't be And if it bugs me like that, that
they absolutely belong in the conversation. And there's too much
you know, overvaluing some of this other stuff. People try
to squeeze Texas in there or trying to you know,
squeeze somebody else.
Speaker 2 (30:22):
It's it's just ridiculous to me.
Speaker 4 (30:23):
Six quickly head in the back time bed already. Did
Lane Kiffin leave his dog Chuck?
Speaker 3 (30:32):
Did they leave Juice?
Speaker 2 (30:33):
That old messy lane Kevin didn't anything to do with
that dog.
Speaker 1 (30:36):
Is a pr stunt by his agency was absolute nonsense
and uh practice kind of gross.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
But yes, he left the dog that he did not
own or even live at his house. They're at Old
Miss Broncos Country tonight's back after this ser that's one
way to put it. Uh, somebody who's got a little
weight on the back end, you know what I mean.
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