October 25, 2024 • 20 mins
Join Nick Ferguson and Alex Hardy as they deliver a rapid reaction to the thrilling Thursday Night Football clash between the Los Angeles Rams and the Minnesota Vikings. The Rams, now 3-5, handed the Vikings their second consecutive loss, dropping them to 5-2. Nick and Alex dive into the controversial ending that saw the Vikings lose due to a missed face mask call, a decision that left fans and analysts alike frustrated.
The duo discusses the Vikings' recent defensive woes and the impact of losing their all-pro left tackle, Christian Darrisaw. They also highlight the Rams' offensive resurgence, led by the dynamic duo of Puka Nakua and Cooper Kupp, and the role of Kyren Williams in balancing the offense. With the Rams sitting just below .500, Nick and Alex explore their playoff prospects in a competitive NFC West.
Looking ahead, the hosts preview key Week 8 matchups, including the intriguing showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinnati Bengals. They speculate on the impact of DeAndre Hopkins joining the Kansas City Chiefs and how it bolsters their already potent offense, while also examining the Steelers' quarterback change and its implications.
00:00 Rapid reaction to Rams vs. Vikings Thursday Night Football
12:45 Impact of Christian Darrisaw's injury on the Vikings
22:30 Rams' offensive resurgence with Nakua and Kupp
35:00 Key Week 8 matchups: Eagles vs. Bengals
45:15 DeAndre Hopkins joins the Chiefs: What it means
NFL, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, Thursday Night Football, Puka Nakua, Cooper Kupp, Kyren Williams, Christian Darrisaw, Philadelphia Eagles, Cincinnati Bengals, Kansas City Chiefs, DeAndre Hopkins, NFL Trades, NFL Analysis, NFL Predictions, NFL Offense, NFL Defense
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:10):
We are those guys, we hope to beyour guys, bringing you a hot,
off the presses edition, Nick.
Remember newspapers?
That's right, we're here to rapidreact to Thursday Night Football.
This is coming to you, uh, earlyFriday, so we've got Week 8 with the
Los Angeles Rams, now 3 5 on the year,compared to the Minnesota Vikings who
started 5 0 and a drop two straight.
(00:32):
Correct me if I'm wrong.
He's Nick Ferguson, uh, correct onall things National Football League.
Hey Nick, what's going on, my man?
Hey man, just another week of football.
Well, the Vikings run into the Rams, theLions, and they don't look like the same
team we saw for the first five weeks.
Now, granted.
(00:53):
They scored, you know, two touchdownson Thursday night football.
Uh, they almost scored 30 against theLions losing on a last second kick.
I know we covered, um, what going intothat game for week seven, but listen,
they were down eight, they end up losingby 10 because there's a controversial
safety where Sam Darnold's face mask getspulled, ultimately deciding this game.
(01:17):
Um, but that's just kind of howthe cookie crumbles, isn't it?
Unfortunately, that's how the cookiecrumbles, but when we look at Thursday
night football, uh, we've seen badcalls, and this is something that
will make a lot of fans upset.
And, and granted, Listen, I'mnot a Minnesota Vikings fan, but
(01:37):
I hate to see a game, uh, kindof end in this particular way.
It was clearly, uh, a face mask.
And looking at it from the ref'sviewpoint, his view was a little
obstructed because he was from behind,you know, Sam Darnold when he was set.
But this was an opportunity.
For or where I think that the leagueshould be able to see an infraction
(02:00):
in New York, which they do by the wayMaybe a couple of seconds before we see
it on a regular broadcast Where theycan buzz down and say well, there was
a problem now They're probably goingto suggest well It is not our job to
correct the officials on the field ifthey don't make a call But we're talking
(02:20):
about a call that could have changedthe outcome and I know You The score at
that time was 28 to 20 and the Vikingswere backed up in their own territory.
But as we've seen, Alex, when we watchthese games, we don't know what can
happen, but it was really upsetting tosee the game end the way that it did.
Well, remember if I was Bill Belichick,I would tell you first of all, what a
(02:43):
superb job by Ethan Evans pinning theVikings back to the three yard line.
Uh, again, his favorite Ram usedto be Johnny Hecker, but we'll
settle with the new punter in.
And that's it, right?
You don't let the officialsdecide the outcome of that game.
Um, and it's just unfortunateto see how things kind of end.
We focus on the last play of that gameand not something that happens earlier on.
(03:06):
Is this a trend for the Vikings, knowingthat They've lost two straight and a
really rough injury to their starting lefttackle, Christian Darasaw, who's playing
at an all pro level, you know, protectingSam Darnold being the top priority.
Yeah, this thing makes thingsdifficult for the Minnesota Vikings.
First and foremost, when theywere undefeated, one thing
(03:27):
that helped keep them afloat.
Yeah, I mean, Sam Darnold was playinglights out, something that we didn't
anticipate, or at least I didn't.
But the biggest thing was.
Brian Flora's defense, they werenot giving up a lot of points.
They were creating takeawaysand they were setting their
offense up on the short field.
As of late over the past couple of weeks,they've done the total opposite of that.
(03:51):
And I think it started with a GreenBay game when Jordan Love wasn't
expected to play, but he did play,but the Packers ended up scoring,
I believe 20, 24 points and almosttaking the game from the Vikings.
So that's been a huge problem.
So if you're asking questions.
About what's going on with theVikings and why they are now losing.
It has a lot to do with theirdefense and how their defense isn't
(04:14):
playing the way that he playedat the beginning of the season.
Well, you have to givecredit to the Rams, right?
Who could have thought that theirtwo best wide receivers returning,
Nick, would have them become thisjuggernaut of an offense that we saw.
Make the playoffs a year ago,nearly 400 yards of offense,
almost six yards per play.
They, uh, they win in time of possession.
(04:36):
They win four of 10 on third downcompared to the Vikings two of seven.
Uh, plus that crucial fourth downconversion to set up the third
touchdown to go up 21 to 14.
Now I'm sort of wondering what the limitis for this Rams offense now that it's
taken them seven weeks But they're only agame below 500 and they've got their full
(04:58):
arsenal of players I mean, we hadn't heardanything about Puka Nakua being activated
off of IR and being able to play almostimmediately despite that 21 day window
just being open and now he is gettingDominant, leading the Rams receivers.
Seven catches, 106 yards, Cooper cut.
Meanwhile, 5 51 and a touchdown.
(05:19):
And of course, Demarcus Robinson,two catches, two touchdowns.
Well, for me, there's more tothe story than meets the eye.
Uh, the first thing you mentioned, PookaNakua coming back in that 21 day window.
I didn't expect for him to have thistype of day, but this shows you what Sean
McVay can do with healthy wide receivers.
The other thing is all weeklong, all we heard was.
(05:42):
Could Cooper Cup be on a trading blockand the Rams are taking phone calls and
they're asking for a second round pick.
I can't help but think that obviouslyhis relationship with Matthew Stafford
played a role in what was happeningtonight because there was a key.
Clutch, catch that Cooper Cup madein Cooper Cup fashion to keep the
(06:05):
drive moving and keep the ballaway from the Minnesota Vikings.
And I'm thinking once again,why receiver the quarterback?
They're trying to trade me, man,I need you to do something with
me to help put me back on a map.
So if they wanna trade me.
My value is going to be up, but I alsocan stick it to the team at the same time.
(06:25):
So I can see both guys saying, you knowwhat, we're going to show Les Snead and
Sean McVay that you're not going anywhere.
It's a balanced offense, right?
I mentioned all these weapons,including the healthy wide receivers.
Uh, Kyron Williams continues to bethe best player on that offense.
I mean, you, you Kup and three yearsago, having the receiving triple
crown and Puka Nakua's first game.
(06:47):
Uh, you know, going for, youknow, 106 receiving yards.
Being able to run that football,catching a touchdown as well.
Kyron Williams is the reason this offensewas able to maintain consistency and
to put up 28 points again, 30 becauseof the safety compared to the Vikings
who were trying to run the football.
Aaron Jones, meanwhile, one of hislowest rushing totals, uh, yards
(07:10):
per carry, certainly, uh, 19 of 58.
Uh, but here's the Puka Nakua statsfor you, Nick, as we were told
he was on a limited snap count.
That was actually true.
56 percent of the Rams offensivesnaps, 67 percent of their pass plays.
He was targeted on 41 percentof the routes that he ran.
A career high in a single game for him.
(07:31):
This all courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
Am I right about Kyron balancingthis offense, being the key piece of
that offense, or knowing Puka's outthere, he's gonna get the football?
Well, I mean, Puka's gonna getthe football regardless of, you
know, whatever they were sayingthat he was on the pitch count.
And just think about the numbers he putup for a guy that's on the pitch count.
(07:52):
So the way I look at that, itwas, uh, about efficiency, right?
Efficiency leads to effectiveness, whichultimately leads to great performance.
Now, Kyron Williams, who luckily I havehim on my fantasy team and I almost
did not start him because I was like,well, this could be the game that the
Vikings defense go back to what they,uh, were, but I'm glad that I did.
(08:17):
The Vikings defense gave menothing but maybe one point
in fantasy, but yet I digress.
But having a guy like Karen Williams,who can top the pill, consecutively
carries, and then you can hand it tohim inside, or you can give it to him
outside, or you can throw it to him.
He's going to get you thoseground them out yards.
That is what you need to take thepressure off of Matthew Stafford.
(08:38):
A quarterback, by the way,Alex, is a quarterback.
Who's not that mobile.
And Nick, that win for the Rams wascrucial moving to three and four.
They're in the thick of itin a very heated NFC West.
They have the tiebreaker with the head tohead victory over the 49ers, but 3 4 vs.
2 5 kind of keeps theirpostseason hopes alive, right?
(09:00):
Two wins puts them with theSaints, the Giants, Panthers 1 6.
Three wins now, they're right there inthe division, the NFC West, with the
Cardinals, the Niners, and of courseSeattle leading the NFC West at 4 3.
So this is wide open.
For a team that seems to be ascendingbased on how they played in primetime,
(09:23):
comparing that to the NFC North, allwith winning records, the Vikings
falling to 5 2, with the Lionsoutright taking that division lead.
Well, this is one thing, Alex, I loveabout the NFL in comparison to some
of the other leagues, professionalleagues, that is, is that in the NFL,
you have to live on a razor's edge.
(09:45):
You have 17 regular seasongames to make things happen.
And I used to think that it was ridiculousto say a team that starts 0 3 or 0 4
barely make the playoffs, but it is true.
You look at the situation thatyou're talking about with the Rams.
Yes, sitting at 3 and 4 is a wholelot better than sitting at 2 and 5,
because at 3 and 4, logically you tryto tell yourself, convince yourself
(10:08):
that, you know what, we're almost 500.
Right?
We're almost 500.
If we can get to 500, just imaginewhat we could do after that.
But also, the ability to be, have,the ability to have a team be really
confident and really push that confidenceas a coach, it is so vital when you
are 3 and 4, opposed to being 2 and 5.
(10:30):
So, the rest of the Week 8 slate, Nick.
Let's stay in the NFC and we'll goto a couple of AFC teams competing.
We'll Listen, I think knowing thatwe talked about the NFC North.
The Chicago Bears are in last placeat 4 2, coming off their bye week.
Playing the Commanders, you've got thenumber one pick, Caleb Williams, against
(10:52):
your number one pick, Jaden Daniels, eventhough he went number two, to Washington.
Um, this is A very exciting matchup,clearly not based on draft capital, but
they're getting those results early.
Well, they are, and all roads at themoment, current moment, uh, lead to
Jaden Daniels not playing in that game,and that was before The season started,
(11:17):
the league was looking forward to that.
You get two top picksplaying against one another.
So now you're not going tobe able to sell it that way.
But we still get to see twonumber one draft picks go at it.
Maybe not the ones that you wanted, butyou get Caleb Williams and Marcus Mariota.
Who, by the way, Came in off the benchand saved the bacon for the commanders.
(11:42):
So it's one of those things where youcan't just say, well, the commander
is going to be a pushover team becauseMariota, no, there's a savvy veteran
who's been in this situation before,and I, I'm sure that he wants to come
out and compete and not just reallyshow the commanders fans, but people
around the league and the critics aroundthe league, but that he still can be
a starting quarterback in this league.
(12:03):
Well, I think it'sfascinating, Nick, because.
Again, I assumed that when CliffKingsbury was fired by the Cardinals,
he had a one way ticket to Thailand,and we never see him again.
Is this his offense withtwo successful quarterbacks?
Basically
it is, because I'm gladyou brought that up.
I almost missed out on that, because CliffKingsbury was, last year, he was at USC.
(12:27):
Uh, with Caleb Williams.
So he knows a little about him andit's, and it's, wow, his was crazy.
Here's so you have Dane Daniels,who's currently now working
with Cliff Kingsbury, right?
Also, you have Kayla Williamsin the league who also
played for Cliff Kingsbury.
Then you have Kyla Murray, who'salso played for Cliff Kingsbury.
And no, by the way, oh, by theway, you have Patrick Mahomes who
(12:51):
also Play for Kliff Kingsbury.
So we hear about all these othercoaches being the quarterback, Whisper.
Have we, did we get that wrong?
Um, well, because Texas Tech had asub 500 record, I know we had that
incredible performance against BakerMayfield in Oklahoma, Patrick Mahomes.
(13:14):
Cliff Kingsbury does not getcredit for Patrick Mahomes.
Why?
Uh, because Patrick Mahomessat for a year in Kansas city.
I'd much rather give thatcredit to Andy Reid and Alex
Smith.
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
Now that's not fair, Alex,because how did Patrick Mahomes
get there in the first place?
Why did Kansas City wantedto move up to get him?
(13:35):
Because the numbers he put up atTexas Tech under the tutelage of who?
Drum roll please.
Kingsburg,
I mean, as a result of physical traitsthat like Cliff didn't give him.
Oh, son of a professional athlete.
Like, it's okay.
(13:56):
I under this, I under, Iunderstand there are tools.
Um, and clearly Nick, I'm a tool here forunderestimating Cliff Kingsbury there.
All right.
I'm not going to give him allthe credit in the world, but for
where the commanders are rightnow, I'm perfectly fine with that.
Him turning down that Raiders job turnedout to be a great decision by him.
Unless you wanted to see the bestversion of Gardner Minshew, I guess.
(14:19):
Uh, any other matchups here?
Week eight, Nick, that, uh, areyou're particularly interested in?
Well, yeah.
Uh, here.
Philadelphia at Cincinnati, right?
Uh, two, two highly talentedcollege quarterbacks.
Wait a minute, did Jaden Hurstplay for Cliff Kingsbury?
(14:39):
No, you're thinking of Lincoln Riley now.
Ah, that's right.
David, David in Oklahoma.
Okay,
right.
Alabama, Oklahoma.
They're like the
same guy, right?
Anyway, they're kind of like Now you're
giving too much credit to Blane.
No, but I'm looking forwardto this Philadelphia Eagles,
Cincinnati Bengals game.
You know, the Bengals early on in theseason, they looked like they were in
the cellar and we didn't know what wasgoing to happen with Joe Burr, but more
(15:03):
important, Jamar Chase, his contract,what the numbers are going to be, but
Jamar Chase continues to prove thathe is the number one receiver in this
league and then you look at Philly,you know, we found out what Philly is
when they don't have Devontae Smithor they don't have, you know, A.
J.
Brown, but they performed well lastweek on the road against division
(15:24):
rivals, the New York Giants, and let'sjust say Saquon got a little revenge.
So they're looking to keepthat train moving as they fly,
Eagles fly, into Hude Nation.
Nick, just like we talked about withthe NFC, the AFC, Uh, the Bengals
are desperate for that win becauseknowing that they would fall below
the likes of the Chargers and hangaround the Dolphins who get to a back,
(15:47):
but we'll see how that offense looks.
We're not going to lectureanybody about their health.
If he wants to go play,he's going to go play.
Um, and meanwhile, you've gotjust some fascinating things
with the rest of the AFC, Nick.
I don't want to completely focus.
You like the ascending Eagles.
That puts them with you.
You know, Washington and Minnesotaand, and Green Bay, uh, right there
(16:09):
in playoff positioning, but we've gottwo teams in the AFC with particular
interesting storylines, Nick.
I'll leave it up to you.
This is Nick before we split, right?
I'm going to ask you, Nick, our formerNFL veteran, before we split between the
6 0 Kansas City Chiefs that add DeAndreHopkins from the Tennessee Titans.
And the Pittsburgh Steelers who made achange under center with a quarterback
(16:33):
you are very familiar with, and theyput up a season high point total.
Nick, before we split themore important addition.
For this NFL team as they enter weekeight, the Kansas City Chiefs with
DeAndre Hopkins and Russell Wilson finallytaking over as the Pittsburgh Steelers.
You got one in particular?
(16:54):
Yeah, it definitely has tobe the Kansas City Chiefs.
And the reason why I know when thetrade was made for DeAndre Hopkins, it
didn't seem like, Oh, it was a splash.
He's going to changeanything for the Chiefs.
And he's, he's lost a step andhe's been on multiple teams.
I'm going to say this, theguy knows how the run rocks.
He has a large catch radius.
(17:16):
He's still physical, even atthis tenure in his career,
and he has very strong hands.
And oh, by the way, Andy Reed andPatrick Mahomes, they don't need New
Hopkins to stretch the field vertically.
That's why they had Miko Hartman.
But more importantly, Xavier Worthy.
That's his job.
He's the new Tyreek Hill.
And then you also have Juju SmithSushler, who's still on that roster,
(17:38):
even though he's a little banged up.
You get those two veteran wide receiverswho are now at this stage of their career.
They're just possession receivers.
They just added anotherTravis Kelsey to the mix.
That's all they did.
And it just, it's just crazy.
They, they keep getting better, eventhough the offense isn't that great.
(17:59):
And they're not as explosiveas they used to be.
And they're winningbecause of the defense.
They just somehow kind of armed up andgot another weapon, another weapon.
Come on, NFL.
We can't do this.
Yeah, here's my real Nick before we split.
Do we just ban teams let alone anotherAFC team from trading with Kansas City?
Tennessee is going to lookat that fifth round pick.
(18:21):
Rand Carthon, your guy, just like Ohman, the fact that we just made the
Chiefs so much better, I don't care.
That fifth round pick is going to pavethe way for the future of this franchise.
I mean, what are we doing here, Nick?
Well, the idea is that that fifthround pick has an opportunity to
move to a fourth round pick, andwhen you ran Carthon, you said,
look, Will Levis is not working out.
(18:42):
Mason Rudolph is not working out.
We got rid of Derrick Henry, right?
And look what he's doingwith the Baltimore Ravers.
A.
J.
Brown with the Eagles.
Exactly.
So what they have to do, they have tosomehow put their face back on and say,
you know what, we're going to put NewtonHopkins in a situation where we don't
really have to compete with him, butwe're going to root for him because.
(19:05):
The better he does in thatoffense, our pick, once again,
goes from 5 to a 4th rounder.
Well, he's Nick Ferguson.
10 year safety in theNational Football League.
You can find him at NickFergusonunderscore 25 for any
questions that you have.
He's breaking down tape as wellfor his Denver Broncos, for
any, any team that you want.
(19:25):
And Nick, you said somethingthat really piqued my interest.
You talked about the TennesseeTitans putting their face back on.
And correct me if I'm wrong, ifwe're talking about masks, uh, maybe
next week for our Halloween edition.
I think we've got a Figureout some teams and who they're
dressing up as for Halloween.
What do you think about that?
Yeah, there's some teamsmasquerading as contenders, but
(19:49):
they're nothing but pretenders.
All right, Nick, what do you have tosay for the people on the way out?
Hey, knuckle up.
That's right.
Is that time of the year?
It is fall and you definitelywant to make sure you knuckle up
and make sure that you bundle up.
That's the thing for me.
We're those guys.
We hope to be your guys.
Catch you for a spookyversion on Halloween.
(20:09):
Peace.
We are those guys, we hope to beyour guys, bringing you a hot,
off the presses edition, Nick.
Remember newspapers?
That's right, we're here to rapidreact to Thursday Night Football.
This is coming to you, uh, earlyFriday, so we've got Week 8 with the
Los Angeles Rams, now 3 5 on the year,compared to the Minnesota Vikings who
started 5 0 and a drop two straight.
(00:32):
Correct me if I'm wrong.
He's Nick Ferguson, uh, correct onall things National Football League.
Hey Nick, what's going on, my man?
Hey man, just another week of football.
Well, the Vikings run into the Rams, theLions, and they don't look like the same
team we saw for the first five weeks.
Now, granted.
(00:53):
They scored, you know, two touchdownson Thursday night football.
Uh, they almost scored 30 against theLions losing on a last second kick.
I know we covered, um, what going intothat game for week seven, but listen,
they were down eight, they end up losingby 10 because there's a controversial
safety where Sam Darnold's face mask getspulled, ultimately deciding this game.
(01:17):
Um, but that's just kind of howthe cookie crumbles, isn't it?
Unfortunately, that's how the cookiecrumbles, but when we look at Thursday
night football, uh, we've seen badcalls, and this is something that
will make a lot of fans upset.
And, and granted, Listen, I'mnot a Minnesota Vikings fan, but
(01:37):
I hate to see a game, uh, kindof end in this particular way.
It was clearly, uh, a face mask.
And looking at it from the ref'sviewpoint, his view was a little
obstructed because he was from behind,you know, Sam Darnold when he was set.
But this was an opportunity.
For or where I think that the leagueshould be able to see an infraction
(02:00):
in New York, which they do by the wayMaybe a couple of seconds before we see
it on a regular broadcast Where theycan buzz down and say well, there was
a problem now They're probably goingto suggest well It is not our job to
correct the officials on the field ifthey don't make a call But we're talking
(02:20):
about a call that could have changedthe outcome and I know You The score at
that time was 28 to 20 and the Vikingswere backed up in their own territory.
But as we've seen, Alex, when we watchthese games, we don't know what can
happen, but it was really upsetting tosee the game end the way that it did.
Well, remember if I was Bill Belichick,I would tell you first of all, what a
(02:43):
superb job by Ethan Evans pinning theVikings back to the three yard line.
Uh, again, his favorite Ram usedto be Johnny Hecker, but we'll
settle with the new punter in.
And that's it, right?
You don't let the officialsdecide the outcome of that game.
Um, and it's just unfortunateto see how things kind of end.
We focus on the last play of that gameand not something that happens earlier on.
(03:06):
Is this a trend for the Vikings, knowingthat They've lost two straight and a
really rough injury to their starting lefttackle, Christian Darasaw, who's playing
at an all pro level, you know, protectingSam Darnold being the top priority.
Yeah, this thing makes thingsdifficult for the Minnesota Vikings.
First and foremost, when theywere undefeated, one thing
(03:27):
that helped keep them afloat.
Yeah, I mean, Sam Darnold was playinglights out, something that we didn't
anticipate, or at least I didn't.
But the biggest thing was.
Brian Flora's defense, they werenot giving up a lot of points.
They were creating takeawaysand they were setting their
offense up on the short field.
As of late over the past couple of weeks,they've done the total opposite of that.
(03:51):
And I think it started with a GreenBay game when Jordan Love wasn't
expected to play, but he did play,but the Packers ended up scoring,
I believe 20, 24 points and almosttaking the game from the Vikings.
So that's been a huge problem.
So if you're asking questions.
About what's going on with theVikings and why they are now losing.
It has a lot to do with theirdefense and how their defense isn't
(04:14):
playing the way that he playedat the beginning of the season.
Well, you have to givecredit to the Rams, right?
Who could have thought that theirtwo best wide receivers returning,
Nick, would have them become thisjuggernaut of an offense that we saw.
Make the playoffs a year ago,nearly 400 yards of offense,
almost six yards per play.
They, uh, they win in time of possession.
(04:36):
They win four of 10 on third downcompared to the Vikings two of seven.
Uh, plus that crucial fourth downconversion to set up the third
touchdown to go up 21 to 14.
Now I'm sort of wondering what the limitis for this Rams offense now that it's
taken them seven weeks But they're only agame below 500 and they've got their full
(04:58):
arsenal of players I mean, we hadn't heardanything about Puka Nakua being activated
off of IR and being able to play almostimmediately despite that 21 day window
just being open and now he is gettingDominant, leading the Rams receivers.
Seven catches, 106 yards, Cooper cut.
Meanwhile, 5 51 and a touchdown.
(05:19):
And of course, Demarcus Robinson,two catches, two touchdowns.
Well, for me, there's more tothe story than meets the eye.
Uh, the first thing you mentioned, PookaNakua coming back in that 21 day window.
I didn't expect for him to have thistype of day, but this shows you what Sean
McVay can do with healthy wide receivers.
The other thing is all weeklong, all we heard was.
(05:42):
Could Cooper Cup be on a trading blockand the Rams are taking phone calls and
they're asking for a second round pick.
I can't help but think that obviouslyhis relationship with Matthew Stafford
played a role in what was happeningtonight because there was a key.
Clutch, catch that Cooper Cup madein Cooper Cup fashion to keep the
(06:05):
drive moving and keep the ballaway from the Minnesota Vikings.
And I'm thinking once again,why receiver the quarterback?
They're trying to trade me, man,I need you to do something with
me to help put me back on a map.
So if they wanna trade me.
My value is going to be up, but I alsocan stick it to the team at the same time.
(06:25):
So I can see both guys saying, you knowwhat, we're going to show Les Snead and
Sean McVay that you're not going anywhere.
It's a balanced offense, right?
I mentioned all these weapons,including the healthy wide receivers.
Uh, Kyron Williams continues to bethe best player on that offense.
I mean, you, you Kup and three yearsago, having the receiving triple
crown and Puka Nakua's first game.
(06:47):
Uh, you know, going for, youknow, 106 receiving yards.
Being able to run that football,catching a touchdown as well.
Kyron Williams is the reason this offensewas able to maintain consistency and
to put up 28 points again, 30 becauseof the safety compared to the Vikings
who were trying to run the football.
Aaron Jones, meanwhile, one of hislowest rushing totals, uh, yards
(07:10):
per carry, certainly, uh, 19 of 58.
Uh, but here's the Puka Nakua statsfor you, Nick, as we were told
he was on a limited snap count.
That was actually true.
56 percent of the Rams offensivesnaps, 67 percent of their pass plays.
He was targeted on 41 percentof the routes that he ran.
A career high in a single game for him.
(07:31):
This all courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
Am I right about Kyron balancingthis offense, being the key piece of
that offense, or knowing Puka's outthere, he's gonna get the football?
Well, I mean, Puka's gonna getthe football regardless of, you
know, whatever they were sayingthat he was on the pitch count.
And just think about the numbers he putup for a guy that's on the pitch count.
(07:52):
So the way I look at that, itwas, uh, about efficiency, right?
Efficiency leads to effectiveness, whichultimately leads to great performance.
Now, Kyron Williams, who luckily I havehim on my fantasy team and I almost
did not start him because I was like,well, this could be the game that the
Vikings defense go back to what they,uh, were, but I'm glad that I did.
(08:17):
The Vikings defense gave menothing but maybe one point
in fantasy, but yet I digress.
But having a guy like Karen Williams,who can top the pill, consecutively
carries, and then you can hand it tohim inside, or you can give it to him
outside, or you can throw it to him.
He's going to get you thoseground them out yards.
That is what you need to take thepressure off of Matthew Stafford.
(08:38):
A quarterback, by the way,Alex, is a quarterback.
Who's not that mobile.
And Nick, that win for the Rams wascrucial moving to three and four.
They're in the thick of itin a very heated NFC West.
They have the tiebreaker with the head tohead victory over the 49ers, but 3 4 vs.
2 5 kind of keeps theirpostseason hopes alive, right?
(09:00):
Two wins puts them with theSaints, the Giants, Panthers 1 6.
Three wins now, they're right there inthe division, the NFC West, with the
Cardinals, the Niners, and of courseSeattle leading the NFC West at 4 3.
So this is wide open.
For a team that seems to be ascendingbased on how they played in primetime,
(09:23):
comparing that to the NFC North, allwith winning records, the Vikings
falling to 5 2, with the Lionsoutright taking that division lead.
Well, this is one thing, Alex, I loveabout the NFL in comparison to some
of the other leagues, professionalleagues, that is, is that in the NFL,
you have to live on a razor's edge.
(09:45):
You have 17 regular seasongames to make things happen.
And I used to think that it was ridiculousto say a team that starts 0 3 or 0 4
barely make the playoffs, but it is true.
You look at the situation thatyou're talking about with the Rams.
Yes, sitting at 3 and 4 is a wholelot better than sitting at 2 and 5,
because at 3 and 4, logically you tryto tell yourself, convince yourself
(10:08):
that, you know what, we're almost 500.
Right?
We're almost 500.
If we can get to 500, just imaginewhat we could do after that.
But also, the ability to be, have,the ability to have a team be really
confident and really push that confidenceas a coach, it is so vital when you
are 3 and 4, opposed to being 2 and 5.
(10:30):
So, the rest of the Week 8 slate, Nick.
Let's stay in the NFC and we'll goto a couple of AFC teams competing.
We'll Listen, I think knowing thatwe talked about the NFC North.
The Chicago Bears are in last placeat 4 2, coming off their bye week.
Playing the Commanders, you've got thenumber one pick, Caleb Williams, against
(10:52):
your number one pick, Jaden Daniels, eventhough he went number two, to Washington.
Um, this is A very exciting matchup,clearly not based on draft capital, but
they're getting those results early.
Well, they are, and all roads at themoment, current moment, uh, lead to
Jaden Daniels not playing in that game,and that was before The season started,
(11:17):
the league was looking forward to that.
You get two top picksplaying against one another.
So now you're not going tobe able to sell it that way.
But we still get to see twonumber one draft picks go at it.
Maybe not the ones that you wanted, butyou get Caleb Williams and Marcus Mariota.
Who, by the way, Came in off the benchand saved the bacon for the commanders.
(11:42):
So it's one of those things where youcan't just say, well, the commander
is going to be a pushover team becauseMariota, no, there's a savvy veteran
who's been in this situation before,and I, I'm sure that he wants to come
out and compete and not just reallyshow the commanders fans, but people
around the league and the critics aroundthe league, but that he still can be
a starting quarterback in this league.
(12:03):
Well, I think it'sfascinating, Nick, because.
Again, I assumed that when CliffKingsbury was fired by the Cardinals,
he had a one way ticket to Thailand,and we never see him again.
Is this his offense withtwo successful quarterbacks?
Basically
it is, because I'm gladyou brought that up.
I almost missed out on that, because CliffKingsbury was, last year, he was at USC.
(12:27):
Uh, with Caleb Williams.
So he knows a little about him andit's, and it's, wow, his was crazy.
Here's so you have Dane Daniels,who's currently now working
with Cliff Kingsbury, right?
Also, you have Kayla Williamsin the league who also
played for Cliff Kingsbury.
Then you have Kyla Murray, who'salso played for Cliff Kingsbury.
And no, by the way, oh, by theway, you have Patrick Mahomes who
(12:51):
also Play for Kliff Kingsbury.
So we hear about all these othercoaches being the quarterback, Whisper.
Have we, did we get that wrong?
Um, well, because Texas Tech had asub 500 record, I know we had that
incredible performance against BakerMayfield in Oklahoma, Patrick Mahomes.
(13:14):
Cliff Kingsbury does not getcredit for Patrick Mahomes.
Why?
Uh, because Patrick Mahomessat for a year in Kansas city.
I'd much rather give thatcredit to Andy Reid and Alex
Smith.
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
Now that's not fair, Alex,because how did Patrick Mahomes
get there in the first place?
Why did Kansas City wantedto move up to get him?
(13:35):
Because the numbers he put up atTexas Tech under the tutelage of who?
Drum roll please.
Kingsburg,
I mean, as a result of physical traitsthat like Cliff didn't give him.
Oh, son of a professional athlete.
Like, it's okay.
(13:56):
I under this, I under, Iunderstand there are tools.
Um, and clearly Nick, I'm a tool here forunderestimating Cliff Kingsbury there.
All right.
I'm not going to give him allthe credit in the world, but for
where the commanders are rightnow, I'm perfectly fine with that.
Him turning down that Raiders job turnedout to be a great decision by him.
Unless you wanted to see the bestversion of Gardner Minshew, I guess.
(14:19):
Uh, any other matchups here?
Week eight, Nick, that, uh, areyou're particularly interested in?
Well, yeah.
Uh, here.
Philadelphia at Cincinnati, right?
Uh, two, two highly talentedcollege quarterbacks.
Wait a minute, did Jaden Hurstplay for Cliff Kingsbury?
(14:39):
No, you're thinking of Lincoln Riley now.
Ah, that's right.
David, David in Oklahoma.
Okay,
right.
Alabama, Oklahoma.
They're like the
same guy, right?
Anyway, they're kind of like Now you're
giving too much credit to Blane.
No, but I'm looking forwardto this Philadelphia Eagles,
Cincinnati Bengals game.
You know, the Bengals early on in theseason, they looked like they were in
the cellar and we didn't know what wasgoing to happen with Joe Burr, but more
(15:03):
important, Jamar Chase, his contract,what the numbers are going to be, but
Jamar Chase continues to prove thathe is the number one receiver in this
league and then you look at Philly,you know, we found out what Philly is
when they don't have Devontae Smithor they don't have, you know, A.
J.
Brown, but they performed well lastweek on the road against division
(15:24):
rivals, the New York Giants, and let'sjust say Saquon got a little revenge.
So they're looking to keepthat train moving as they fly,
Eagles fly, into Hude Nation.
Nick, just like we talked about withthe NFC, the AFC, Uh, the Bengals
are desperate for that win becauseknowing that they would fall below
the likes of the Chargers and hangaround the Dolphins who get to a back,
(15:47):
but we'll see how that offense looks.
We're not going to lectureanybody about their health.
If he wants to go play,he's going to go play.
Um, and meanwhile, you've gotjust some fascinating things
with the rest of the AFC, Nick.
I don't want to completely focus.
You like the ascending Eagles.
That puts them with you.
You know, Washington and Minnesotaand, and Green Bay, uh, right there
(16:09):
in playoff positioning, but we've gottwo teams in the AFC with particular
interesting storylines, Nick.
I'll leave it up to you.
This is Nick before we split, right?
I'm going to ask you, Nick, our formerNFL veteran, before we split between the
6 0 Kansas City Chiefs that add DeAndreHopkins from the Tennessee Titans.
And the Pittsburgh Steelers who made achange under center with a quarterback
(16:33):
you are very familiar with, and theyput up a season high point total.
Nick, before we split themore important addition.
For this NFL team as they enter weekeight, the Kansas City Chiefs with
DeAndre Hopkins and Russell Wilson finallytaking over as the Pittsburgh Steelers.
You got one in particular?
(16:54):
Yeah, it definitely has tobe the Kansas City Chiefs.
And the reason why I know when thetrade was made for DeAndre Hopkins, it
didn't seem like, Oh, it was a splash.
He's going to changeanything for the Chiefs.
And he's, he's lost a step andhe's been on multiple teams.
I'm going to say this, theguy knows how the run rocks.
He has a large catch radius.
(17:16):
He's still physical, even atthis tenure in his career,
and he has very strong hands.
And oh, by the way, Andy Reed andPatrick Mahomes, they don't need New
Hopkins to stretch the field vertically.
That's why they had Miko Hartman.
But more importantly, Xavier Worthy.
That's his job.
He's the new Tyreek Hill.
And then you also have Juju SmithSushler, who's still on that roster,
(17:38):
even though he's a little banged up.
You get those two veteran wide receiverswho are now at this stage of their career.
They're just possession receivers.
They just added anotherTravis Kelsey to the mix.
That's all they did.
And it just, it's just crazy.
They, they keep getting better, eventhough the offense isn't that great.
(17:59):
And they're not as explosiveas they used to be.
And they're winningbecause of the defense.
They just somehow kind of armed up andgot another weapon, another weapon.
Come on, NFL.
We can't do this.
Yeah, here's my real Nick before we split.
Do we just ban teams let alone anotherAFC team from trading with Kansas City?
Tennessee is going to lookat that fifth round pick.
(18:21):
Rand Carthon, your guy, just like Ohman, the fact that we just made the
Chiefs so much better, I don't care.
That fifth round pick is going to pavethe way for the future of this franchise.
I mean, what are we doing here, Nick?
Well, the idea is that that fifthround pick has an opportunity to
move to a fourth round pick, andwhen you ran Carthon, you said,
look, Will Levis is not working out.
(18:42):
Mason Rudolph is not working out.
We got rid of Derrick Henry, right?
And look what he's doingwith the Baltimore Ravers.
A.
J.
Brown with the Eagles.
Exactly.
So what they have to do, they have tosomehow put their face back on and say,
you know what, we're going to put NewtonHopkins in a situation where we don't
really have to compete with him, butwe're going to root for him because.
(19:05):
The better he does in thatoffense, our pick, once again,
goes from 5 to a 4th rounder.
Well, he's Nick Ferguson.
10 year safety in theNational Football League.
You can find him at NickFergusonunderscore 25 for any
questions that you have.
He's breaking down tape as wellfor his Denver Broncos, for
any, any team that you want.
(19:25):
And Nick, you said somethingthat really piqued my interest.
You talked about the TennesseeTitans putting their face back on.
And correct me if I'm wrong, ifwe're talking about masks, uh, maybe
next week for our Halloween edition.
I think we've got a Figureout some teams and who they're
dressing up as for Halloween.
What do you think about that?
Yeah, there's some teamsmasquerading as contenders, but
(19:49):
they're nothing but pretenders.
All right, Nick, what do you have tosay for the people on the way out?
Hey, knuckle up.
That's right.
Is that time of the year?
It is fall and you definitelywant to make sure you knuckle up
and make sure that you bundle up.
That's the thing for me.
We're those guys.
We hope to be your guys.
Catch you for a spookyversion on Halloween.
(20:09):
Peace.
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