October 9, 2025 • 27 mins
Mike and Wes preview the matchup with the Bengals, looking at QB Joe Flacco’s arrival (:33), his playmakers in the passing game (6:26), and their defensive struggles. They also give their keys to victory (13:00) and look around the league at other key Week 6 matchups (18:47).
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from
Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined by my
partner at All Things Packers, Wes Hodko. It's coming to
you hear from our studios at Lambeofield to preview Sundays
matchup at Lambeoufield. It will be between the Packers and
the Bengals. Is a three to twenty five pm Central
Time kickoff. The Bengals come in to Green Bay at
(00:29):
two and three and west. On our last show, we
talked about all these different possibilities at quarterback for the
Cincinnati Bengals. One possibility we didn't consider, however, was that
the Bengals would trade with their in state in Division
rival Cleveland Browns for Joe Flacco. Just so people understand. So,
(00:50):
we recorded our last show on Tuesday morning, and a
couple of hours later, as our wonderful producer Hannah was
putting the finishing touches on it getting the episode posted,
was when the news broke that the Cincinnati Bengals had
traded for Joe Flacco, whom the Packers of course faced
as the quarterback of the Browns just a few weeks ago.
(01:11):
Then on Wednesday, Zach Taylor, the head coach of the Bengals,
said they are starting Joe Flacco against the Packers short week.
You know, cramp preparation, all that, but the Packers are
going to see the same quarterback for a different team
within the span of a month. As I like to say,
just when you think you've seen it all in this league,
(01:33):
they play another game.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
It's crazy, Mike. The fact that nothing like this has
happened in the last thirty years is just mind boggling.
So in terms of a player being traded within the
division in the division season, yeah, it's not happened since
at least nineteen fifty five. The NFL in nineteen ninety five.
The NFL has unbelievable resources. Not even they could find
(01:57):
anything in the last thirty years, but then even had
to hedge it because it's just so rare that you
see anything like this happen. And I believe it was
a statistic from ESPN's stats and info that said, this
is the third time a team has even traded a
quarterback within a division, a starting quarterback within a division
in the twenty first century, the last twenty five years,
(02:18):
and I think it was Donovan McNabb was the one.
If you go back to ninety nine, it was Rodney
Pete going from Philly to Washington. And then there was
one other example that's escaping my mind or oh, Drew Bloodsoe,
the Brady and Bledsoe trade back in two thousand and one,
when they set the table for the Tom Brady era.
This stuff doesn't happen, is the point that I'm trying
to raise here. Now. I think Matt Lafleur had a
(02:39):
really good headspace on this when he was talking about
this with the media because a lot of people were
asking and it's obviously a big topic, and it was
in our Insider Inbox column and everything else. How does
this change things? In a lot of ways, it really doesn't,
because from the Packers' perspective, it's still Zach Taylor's offense.
There's still the same weapons that they had before. It's
a different conductor behind all of this. And realistically, as
(03:01):
Evan Williams in a humble way but also factual way said,
Packers had some success against Flacco in that game against Cleveland.
They didn't lose that game against Cleveland because of Joe Flacco.
So you reset the board, but at the end of
the day, it's still a very similar game plan.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
Yeah, and for those who are interested in the history lesson. So,
the last time the Packers faced the same quarterback for
two different teams in the same season was twenty eleven
when Kyle Orton early in the year was with the
Denver Broncos and came into lambeau Field. The Packers won
that game, and then late in the season he was
with the Kansas City Chiefs, and then he was actually
(03:38):
the quarterback of that Kansas City team that ruined Green
Bay's undefeated record late in twenty eleven. And what we've heard,
it's been reported in several areas, the only quarterback anybody
could find in league history basically, or at least I
should say, in I guess you'd say the somewhat modern
(04:00):
era of the NFL to beat the same team twice
in the same season as a quarterback of two different
teams was Jack Kemp. Back in the old AFL in
nineteen sixty two, he beat the New York Titans as
a as the quarterback of both the Chargers and the
Bills nineteen sixty two AFL action. So Jack Kemp, who
(04:20):
then went on to become a member of cabinet in
Washington and member of Congress and all that kind of stuff.
Led quite a life anyway.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
A lot of superlatives for that man.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Yes, But getting back to the here and now with
the Cincinnati Bengals, Joe Flacco will be the quarterback. As
you said, the weapons the Bengals have don't change. And
the two that of course jump off the page is
that one two punch out wide receiver Jamar Chase and
t Higgins. They have combined for five touchdown catches. Despite
(04:54):
Cincinnati struggles on offense with Jake Browning, the Bengals have
eight touchdown passes as an offense and those two guys
have five of them. And they're a handful for any
secondary to deal with. And certainly Zach Taylor is counting
on Joe Flacco to number one protect the football better
than Jake Browning did, but then number two come up
(05:17):
with ways to get his weapons the football more often
to see if they can make some plays and jump
start this Cincinnati team.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Yeah, I was saying in our Insider Inbox column, second
time I've dropped that in six minutes, that this seems
to me like this move to a choir Flacco is
a pretty good indication of they just want to get
the ball in Higgins in Chase's hands, yep, and just
see what happens.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
Because that's exactly how I feel about it too.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Yeah, Because, like we were talking about Evan Williams, and
Evan Williams was fantastic. David McKinney talked on this as well.
But you know, Evan Williams was saying, he's like, you know,
Browning was averaging two picks a game during his tenure there.
It's not like Flacco has been protecting the ball great.
He has six picks. Those are two of the top
three most intercepted quarterbacks through the first month of the season.
But I think what Cincinnati's looking for is someone that
(06:06):
is going to take chances with the ball, but also
give receivers a little bit better of a chance.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Well, I mean, if you look at the clips from Browning,
particularly in that Detroit game, it wasn't great. There were
some of those five hundred scramble balls that were thrown
up there, not even fifty to fifty, more like twenty
five to seventy five. It seemed like tilting towards the
favor of the defense. So with Flacco coming in, it
really seems to me like, Okay, can we get Chase going,
can we get Higgins going? And then maybe that's what
(06:30):
breathed some life into the restless thing, Mike, because right
now it ain't looking good for the Cincinnati Bengals. You
are talking presently about the last ranked total offense in
the National Football League two hundred twenty eight yards per game,
the thirty second ranked also last ranked rushing offense in
the game. Michael, the Cincinnti Bengals right now are averaging
fifty seven yards per game rushing the ball. Pittsburgh is
(06:53):
second to last with eighty yards rushing per game. Chase
brown has had no room with which to work. Ryan
has had a little bit more success, but they don't
have a carry over thirteen yards this season, and it
was Jake Browning was the one that did it. This
really comes back to Jamar Chase still finding ways to
make an impact with the ball. And as Evan Williams said,
(07:14):
his a yack monster. He gets the pass, but it's
what he does with the ball after the catch, his
ability to run up field. It almost is like he
turns into a running back in some regards. T Higgins
has had kind of a hard time getting going here
since the extension, but also still a guy you have
to be wary of. If the Cincinnati Bengals are going
to accomplish anything during this interim basis here or however
(07:35):
long this goes without Joe Burrow, if they're going to
keep this ship afloat, it has to be through those
two running backs.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Yeah, they've just been severer sorry, Yeah, they've just been lacking.
They've been lacking the big plays, and not just on
the ground. Chase Brown only averaging two point five yards
per carry on the season. It has been a really
tough slog. But even you look at Chase and Higgins,
that wide receiver, Chase is averaging eleven point seven yards
per catch, Higgins twelve point two. That is not what
they are used to. And that eleven point seven for
(08:02):
Chase includes a sixty four yard touchdown last week against
the Lions when he got behind the defense in the
fourth quarter and was able to make one of those
big plays.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So the game was completely out of hand too at
that point. Yeah, Like it's like it's just i mean,
not called a garbage time touchdown, but like, yeah, it
was a lapse for Detroit and which didn't really truly matter.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
But even then, he has a sixty four yard touchdown.
Yet for the season, he's averaging only eleven yards per catch,
which is not which is not typical Jamar Chase numbers.
So they've been lacking the explosive plays. They've been lacking
the you know, the the typical threat to the defense
that those guys have been because Joe Burrow is not
the quarterback. On the defensive side of the ball, it's
(08:43):
been a struggling unit there as well. The last three games,
the Cincinnati Bengals have surrendered forty eight, twenty eight, and
thirty seven points. The star on that defensive side is
edge rusher Trey Hendrickson. He's got four sacks on the season.
He is still a handful for anybody to deal with,
can make a play at any time. But the Bengals.
(09:06):
The Bengals failed to make the playoffs last year because
of their defense, and this is not a defense that
has improved at all. They Hemden had all off season
about whether to pay Trey Hendrickson when he's holding out
and he's their best defensive player on a bad defense,
and they still weren't sure if they wanted to pay
the guy. So their defense, their defense isn't any better.
(09:28):
So and we'll get to our we'll get to our
keys to victory in a minute here. But my whole
thing all week long that I've I've said it in
multiple forms here, multiple platforms, WES, is that this this
game isn't even about the Cincinnati Bengals. This game is
all about the Green Bay Packers. This is about This
is about the Packers coming back home, playing their game,
(09:50):
doing their thing. I don't care if it's Joe Flacco
at quarterback. Yes, you you have to concern yourself with
Jamar Chase and T Higgins and Trey Hendrickson. Those are
the stars of the Cincinnati Bengals, so you can't just
ignore them. But this is about the Packers getting back
to who the Packers are, who they believe they can be.
The Packers team that we saw for the most part
(10:11):
in that five day span to open the regular season
against two really good football teams, when they posted wins
over the Lions and the Commanders. If the Packers get
back to that squad, they shouldn't have any trouble with
the Cincinnati Bengals. That's the bottom line.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
I agree, Mike, that is the number one thing that
I look at with this game. It's for the Packers.
Everything is set up, it's on the table for you here.
Particularly when you look at the fact that Zach Tom
and Aaron Banks have both been back at practice this
week on a limited basis. It you know, signs are
looking promising, particularly with Banks. As far as what Sunday
looks like right now, you have a lot of positive vibes.
(10:50):
I think around this team understanding, okay, we let these
two opportunities go. But I don't think the confidence has
diminished at all. I think the Packers very much feel
like they could be four and zero right now. And
and honestly, the way that the Cowboys played against the
Jets probably reinforces that. You know, they probably played a
pretty good team and didn't do enough to solve Dak Prescott.
But it's not like they went in there and just completely,
(11:11):
you know, made an embarrassment of themselves. But when I
was looking at the Cincinnati defense, in addition to the
fact that I think they're thirtieth right now in total
defense this season, Trey Hendrickson four sacks, eight quarterback hits.
Do you know who's second right now for the Cincinni
Bengals and quarterback hits? No, TJ Slayton, And I love TJ.
(11:32):
He's the man.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
He was.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
He was a good run stuffer in Green Bay. They
did not sign TJ. Slayton in the offseason pressuring.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Not to rush the passer. No, that was not his
was not his forte in Green Bay and was not
what he got that contract for.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
I don't know. When you're in the next thing, I'm
gonna look and see how many quarterback hits TJ had
in his time in Green Bay. Think he had a
sack or two, but he.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Was hardly on the field on third down. That his defense.
But but you know, the Packers used him for a
specific role.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
So it is good to see TJ doing that. But
if you're the Cincinny, that's not a positive sign, mostly
a reflection your defense. And Shamar Stewart's been hurt. So
then in addition to the fact that Stuart had all
these you're talking about the contract negotiations with Trey Hendrickson,
Shamar Stewart's contract talks as a first round pick, and
how tedious that got for Cincinnati. Well, then he ends
(12:17):
up having the ankle injury. Has barely played this year,
as two tackles on the season, so he did return
to practice on Wednesday. We'll see what his availability looks
like for Sunday. I liked Stewart a lot coming out
in the draft, but.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Sure a lot of people did.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
The point is, though, Mike, again, this is not Cleveland,
and and one of the points that I raised in
some of our commentary and our columns this week is
that yes they have a game wrecker and Trey Hendrickson,
they cannot allow him to wreck the game. Tucker Craft said,
I mean this is a guy that is slippery with
his hands, He is smooth. I mean, this is a
guy that can get after the quarterback if you give
him that opportunity. The Packers have to neutralize him. But
(12:50):
the pieces around him. Unlike the matchup with Cleveland where
you had Miles Garrett, it is not nearly as deep
and is not as nearly as dangerous.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Yeah, well, let's dive right into our keys victory for
this game, and I'll start because to me, to me,
this is very simple, one key thing on each side
of the ball, on offense, this game is about finishing
drives because the Packers are going to move the football
against the Cincinnati defense. They are going to move it,
(13:18):
but you can't be settling for field goals. Finished drives,
get the touchdowns that you should get against this defense
on the other side of the ball. And I know,
and maybe you're going to talk about it. You have
a story up on our website about it in terms
of the turnovers and stuff with the defense, and I
understand the defense wants to get going in that area.
(13:38):
To me, that's not necessarily a key in this particular game.
To me, this game defensively is about tackling because I
think Joe Flacco is going to try to just three
step drop and get the ball to t Higgins and
Jamar Chase on short routes, on just quick stop routes,
or they might throw bubble screens, whatever the case might be.
Joe Flacco is going to get the ball of his
(14:00):
hands in this game, get it to his weapons, and
the Packers have to be on their p's and q's
with the tackling, which I thought for the most part
in the first three games of the season, there were
a couple of plays against Cleveland, where the Packers missed
some tackles that hurt them. The tackling was definitely not
up to the standard against Dallas, and Matt Lafleurd even
(14:20):
talked about it that there were plays where you're looking like, okay,
you're in position to make the tackle and make it
second and eight, but all of a sudden, it's second
and three because that tackle was missed. Instead of being
in third and six, it was third and one because
a tackle was missed. And this happens. This happens to
even the best defenses all the time. There will be lapses.
(14:41):
They'll be a game, there will be a game where
the tackling just isn't sound, the tackling isn't on point.
The Packers have to get back to defensively being the
tackling team that they were in the three weeks of
the season in this game against the Bengals, and I
think they'll have and maintain the upper hand against these guys.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Excellent point. And much like you took away my thunder
because I was gonna mention, hey, thirteen giveaways or excuse me,
eleven giveaways so far this season for the Cincinnati Bengals,
Packers looking to take the ball away more than two times,
and they have the first two games. Sure, I'm now
going to take away your thunder. Okay, because there's a
lot of conversation inside the halls of the Packers didital department.
(15:17):
But what Mike's one Last Look column might be this week? Okay? Now,
I don't want to give away all the secrets, but
I'm just gonna allude to a couple of things here.
And obviously I say that with my tongue firmly placed
in my cheek. But the Packers are right now the
number one ranked third down offense in the National Football League.
Do you know, Michael maybe already looked into it where
the Cincanti Bengals rank and third down defense?
Speaker 1 (15:40):
I did, actually did not look down. They're twenty ninth,
twenty nine.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
The Packers conversion rate is almost higher on third downs
as opposed to where the Bengals are trying to stop
teams on third downs. This is something you very rarely see.
Packers are over fifty percent right now, fifty three percent
on the season. So being able to sustain drives and
the football are the two biggest keys to me to that.
However you do it you do it, there's gonna be
(16:04):
things on people talking about, Hey, you gotta get the
run game going. Hey, you got to be able to
incorporate Matthew Golden. You have to find ways to put
points on the board inside the Reds. So there's gonna
be all these things you talk about. But let's be
honest here, Mike, how many times did you and I
cover high school football games back in the day where
you would have one team go in where you felt
like they had a significant advantage over the other team,
(16:24):
and it really just came down to, Hey, don't have
a fumble to get return for ninety five yards. The
Cleveland Browns, don't throw an interception back inside your own
forty yard line at a pivotal point in the game.
If green Bay controls the controllables, if they play clean football,
they win this football game. Yep, it is the more
talented team. They are the more successful team right now.
And honestly, as difficult as it was going for the
(16:44):
Packers into the by how bad they felt about that
loss in Cleveland and the tie in Dallas, it pales
into comparison of what the Cincinnati Bengals have been going
through basically since Joe Burrow went down. These last three
weeks have been an absolute slog for them. And the
other point I will make, Michael, have you looked at
the Cincinnati Bengals record.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Two and three?
Speaker 2 (17:04):
Two and three, okay, thank you? Uh? Two of those
losses Minnesota Vikings forty eight to ten, the Detroit Lines
thirty seven to twenty four, both NFC North opponents. Yea,
The Packers ended up being the one that let one
get away against the Browns, where the rest of the
division took care of it. One big reason the Packers
made the playoffs last year and were as successful as
(17:25):
they were is because they took care of business in
the non conference slate. This is a home game. You
want to defend your turf, but it's also going to
be very important to hold serve against the division in
these matchups against the corresponding division from the other conference
in the crossover games. If you don't do that, that's
an easy way to fall behind.
Speaker 1 (17:43):
Yeah, no question about it. Well, I want to take
a glance at everything else around the league in Week six,
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slash Wonders. Welcome back to Packers Unscripted West. Packers will
(18:46):
play the Bengals at three twenty five Central Sunday at
Lambeau Field. Some other interesting games around the league. I'll
I'll throw these out there at you and let you
comment as you see fit. Seattle is at Jacksonville. That's
a three and two team against a four and one
Jaguars team coming off of a huge Monday night home
win against the Kansas City Chiefs. San Francisco is at
(19:08):
Tampa Bay. That's a pair of four and one squads
going head to head there, and then the one that
Packers fans will have their eye on, the Detroit Lions
are at the Kansas City Chiefs. Kansas City is two
and three. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs are up against
it here at home against one of the best teams
in the league in Detroit coming into Arrowhead Stadium. All
(19:31):
three of those games very interesting and we'll have, you know,
implications in terms of the standings and the things Packers
fans will be watching moving forward. Your thoughts on any
of those.
Speaker 2 (19:43):
Kansas City has spring the lumber in this one, truly.
I mean when you look at Detroit and what the
streak they've been on here the last month. Now. The
other thing about the Chiefs, man, they're always going to
be in primetime. They're always gonna have everybody watching them.
It might have been easier to watch the Chiefs this
season just on television that it has been trying to
watch the Green Bay Packers covering these teams live. It
(20:04):
just seems like wherever I turn the Chiefs are on
television and they've had some really difficult matchups, and this
is going to be another one here When you look
at Detroit and where they're going in Kansas City is
sort of at this crossroads and it can't all be
Patrick Mahomes. In a lot of ways, it kind of
the Chiefs this season to me feel a lot like
where the Packers are at in like twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen,
(20:26):
where they very clearly have the best quarterback in the game.
I mean, this is the Max Verstappen of the National
Football League in Patrick Mahomes, But where's the rest of
the roster around him? Now? They're hoping they're going to
get some reserves throughout the course of the season. They
hope they're gonna have some of these guys coming back
and incorporating themselves. But there is not that inepenetrability anymore
(20:50):
that there once was around Kansas City. So seeing how
they match up to Detroit and that deluge of offense
that they're going to be thrown up against, it is
gonna be interesting. But for me, honestly, the game I'm
most excited to see is actually Monday Night Football. And
maybe you're gonna get there eventually too.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
But I was, yeah, you're talking. You're talking about the
Bears returning to the scene of the Hail Mary crime
right out and out in Washington, d C. Against the Commanders.
That's been the storyline out of Chicago all week, that
that was the game that completely turned the Bears season
in the wrong direction. And then, you know whatever, two
months later, Matt Eberflus gets fired the whole the whole thing,
(21:27):
losing on that Hail Mary to Jade and Daniels. Now
the Bears are going back into that stadium in primetime
now as part of that Monday night double header.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
And and Daniels an Williams will forever be tied to
each other the same way that Alex Smith and Aaron
Rodgers were, the same way that I think Carson Wentz
and Jared Goff. I mean, this list goes on and on.
Of those one two picks, their destinies are always going
to somewhat feel a line. So for them to see
each other two times in their first two seasons I
think is really telling as well. And Daniels appears to
(21:57):
be fine here came through last week, I think all right.
For initially that hiccup that I think came out of
the Green Bay game. Was it the knee or whatnot?
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Yeah, he's a knee.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
He got the thing back on. Washington is such a
different team when he's out there. Oh yeah, and you
just see how everything is really built around him. So
scine how they hold up against CHICAGO'SNN be really fascinating
to watching. Meanwhile, Chicago, who started the season about as
badly as you could start it in the Ben Johnson era.
It just shows you how quickly tides can change, how
different momentum can feel when you go into the buy
(22:27):
at two and two, but at the same time you
had two wins that made you feel really good about yourself.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
Yeah. Well, it's an it's an interesting slate of games.
I want to ask you, so, barring an overtime tie,
which as we saw between the Packers and the Cowboys,
San Francisco and Tampa Bay, one of those teams is
going to be five and one, you got a prediction
on which one gets to five and one Between those two.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
I think I think Tampa Bay's scrappy.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
Man, it's hard to bet against Baker and it just
it really is.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
And if you're you're telling me Tampa's at home San
Francisco was making the cross country flight. I just, dude,
I said it. I think on the show two weeks ago,
with what has happened there, I really did not think
the transition from Bruce arians was going to go very
well for Tampa. I thought that to me, in my mind,
(23:22):
I thought that was going to be the end of
the Peyton Manning von Miller era on Denver. And then
you know, Gary Kubiak's gone everything, and everything's just sort
of slips away, and they've refortified themselves, and they did
it in a very unconventional way. Yes, they've drafted well,
but they also signed players and acquired players that in
(23:43):
ways that typically you don't see in the NFL anymore,
particularly again with the Baker Mayfield situation. A guy that
was signing and playing with the La Rams at the
end of the year, trying to get his career back
on track, and now I mean, he's the talk of
the town, the toast of the town, and I love
I don't know if you saw Mayfield's comments a week
but oh my goodness, I loved it when they were
asking him about Seattle and him John with the fan
(24:05):
as he was coming on the field, and he mentioned how,
you know, early in his career, people would have probably
painted that as him being immature or brady or something
like that. Now he's a dog. Now it's you know,
he's got moxie.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah, he's the competitor.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
It all just depends on the way media frames things.
But if you just focus on what you're doing, and
he said that's what he didn't do earlier in his career,
it's allowed him to be a Pro Bowl quarterback in
this league. And as I said on Tuesday, show some
of that. I think that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are
going to be able to hitch their wagons too for
a very long time. It's it's an exciting slide of
games for sure, and seeing exactly if the felk or
(24:38):
excuse me, the Buccaneers can really pull away within that division.
This is a great opportunity to do.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
So that's the thing is I'm wondering if anybody in
the NFC South is really going to challenge Tampa Bay.
And as much as we've seen we've seen Tampa Bay's
defense struggle, but with the combination of kind of Baker
Mayfield's last at heroics and the fact that as much
as that defense has struggled at times, it's a defense
(25:05):
that seems to make a play at a big in
a big moment, which goes a long way in this league.
I've said that. I've said this for a long time.
If you're not going to be the two thousand Baltimore
Ravens defense of the nineteen eighty five Chicago Bears defense,
be a defense that can make a big play in
a big moment. And that kind of seems like what
Todd Bowles is building defensively in Tampa, and it could
(25:27):
it could continue to carry them. So I think that's
a squad that definitely Bears watch.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
And they take on his identity too, don't they. Like
That's what was fun about the Aarons and Bulls relationship
is that his Bulls is just such a He's such
a dichotomy from Aarons and how he you know, he's
more introverted, he always more cerebral. He's got sort of
the stoic almost like Bill Belichick, kind of like demeanor
when he speaks to the media. But he's so consistent. Yeah,
(25:55):
and you can see again why arians was so high
on him as not only coordinator, but as a head
coach and a guy that should get a second chance
at that opportunity of the National Football League, and he's
really ran with it. Meanwhile, I mean San Francisco, I mean,
if we'll see what the week shuffles out at. I
don't think brock Perty's practicing yet. I know Mac Jones
is banged up now too.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
Yeah, we'll see if the mini bye did them some
help out. You know, after playing on Thursday last week,
they get a little bit of extra extra time. But yeah,
San Francisco is still kind of seems like a banged
up team. But but on a short week last Thursday,
they still were able to chalk up a big division
win against the Los Angeles Rams at SOFI. So you
can't You definitely can't count Kyle Shanahan out either, no
(26:36):
matter what the matchup.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Five teams the NFC right now with one loss. Yeah,
I mean, as much as it stinks for Green Bay
to only have two wins, but it's still five teams
with one loss. At what Mike Spotford used to refer
to as the quarterpole.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
The QUI used to I don't get to say that anymore,
But what would it be.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Because four out of seventeen or.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Five four in a quarter would be literally four in
a quarter pole. Yeah, so who is that?
Speaker 2 (27:00):
From now on does that work right?
Speaker 1 (27:03):
I think with that we need to call it a rap.
On this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow
all of our coverage of the team and of Sunday's
game against the Bengals at Lambeufield. We will have it
all for you on Packers dot com for West, I'm Mike.
Thank you for tuning in everybody. We will see you
next time.
Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from
Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined by my
partner at All Things Packers, Wes Hodko. It's coming to
you hear from our studios at Lambeofield to preview Sundays
matchup at Lambeoufield. It will be between the Packers and
the Bengals. Is a three to twenty five pm Central
Time kickoff. The Bengals come in to Green Bay at
(00:29):
two and three and west. On our last show, we
talked about all these different possibilities at quarterback for the
Cincinnati Bengals. One possibility we didn't consider, however, was that
the Bengals would trade with their in state in Division
rival Cleveland Browns for Joe Flacco. Just so people understand. So,
(00:50):
we recorded our last show on Tuesday morning, and a
couple of hours later, as our wonderful producer Hannah was
putting the finishing touches on it getting the episode posted,
was when the news broke that the Cincinnati Bengals had
traded for Joe Flacco, whom the Packers of course faced
as the quarterback of the Browns just a few weeks ago.
(01:11):
Then on Wednesday, Zach Taylor, the head coach of the Bengals,
said they are starting Joe Flacco against the Packers short week.
You know, cramp preparation, all that, but the Packers are
going to see the same quarterback for a different team
within the span of a month. As I like to say,
just when you think you've seen it all in this league,
(01:33):
they play another game.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
It's crazy, Mike. The fact that nothing like this has
happened in the last thirty years is just mind boggling.
So in terms of a player being traded within the
division in the division season, yeah, it's not happened since
at least nineteen fifty five. The NFL in nineteen ninety five.
The NFL has unbelievable resources. Not even they could find
(01:57):
anything in the last thirty years, but then even had
to hedge it because it's just so rare that you
see anything like this happen. And I believe it was
a statistic from ESPN's stats and info that said, this
is the third time a team has even traded a
quarterback within a division, a starting quarterback within a division
in the twenty first century, the last twenty five years,
(02:18):
and I think it was Donovan McNabb was the one.
If you go back to ninety nine, it was Rodney
Pete going from Philly to Washington. And then there was
one other example that's escaping my mind or oh, Drew Bloodsoe,
the Brady and Bledsoe trade back in two thousand and one,
when they set the table for the Tom Brady era.
This stuff doesn't happen, is the point that I'm trying
to raise here. Now. I think Matt Lafleur had a
(02:39):
really good headspace on this when he was talking about
this with the media because a lot of people were
asking and it's obviously a big topic, and it was
in our Insider Inbox column and everything else. How does
this change things? In a lot of ways, it really doesn't,
because from the Packers' perspective, it's still Zach Taylor's offense.
There's still the same weapons that they had before. It's
a different conductor behind all of this. And realistically, as
(03:01):
Evan Williams in a humble way but also factual way said,
Packers had some success against Flacco in that game against Cleveland.
They didn't lose that game against Cleveland because of Joe Flacco.
So you reset the board, but at the end of
the day, it's still a very similar game plan.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
Yeah, and for those who are interested in the history lesson. So,
the last time the Packers faced the same quarterback for
two different teams in the same season was twenty eleven
when Kyle Orton early in the year was with the
Denver Broncos and came into lambeau Field. The Packers won
that game, and then late in the season he was
with the Kansas City Chiefs, and then he was actually
(03:38):
the quarterback of that Kansas City team that ruined Green
Bay's undefeated record late in twenty eleven. And what we've heard,
it's been reported in several areas, the only quarterback anybody
could find in league history basically, or at least I
should say, in I guess you'd say the somewhat modern
(04:00):
era of the NFL to beat the same team twice
in the same season as a quarterback of two different
teams was Jack Kemp. Back in the old AFL in
nineteen sixty two, he beat the New York Titans as
a as the quarterback of both the Chargers and the
Bills nineteen sixty two AFL action. So Jack Kemp, who
(04:20):
then went on to become a member of cabinet in
Washington and member of Congress and all that kind of stuff.
Led quite a life anyway.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
A lot of superlatives for that man.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Yes, But getting back to the here and now with
the Cincinnati Bengals, Joe Flacco will be the quarterback. As
you said, the weapons the Bengals have don't change. And
the two that of course jump off the page is
that one two punch out wide receiver Jamar Chase and
t Higgins. They have combined for five touchdown catches. Despite
(04:54):
Cincinnati struggles on offense with Jake Browning, the Bengals have
eight touchdown passes as an offense and those two guys
have five of them. And they're a handful for any
secondary to deal with. And certainly Zach Taylor is counting
on Joe Flacco to number one protect the football better
than Jake Browning did, but then number two come up
(05:17):
with ways to get his weapons the football more often
to see if they can make some plays and jump
start this Cincinnati team.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Yeah, I was saying in our Insider Inbox column, second
time I've dropped that in six minutes, that this seems
to me like this move to a choir Flacco is
a pretty good indication of they just want to get
the ball in Higgins in Chase's hands, yep, and just
see what happens.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
Because that's exactly how I feel about it too.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Yeah, Because, like we were talking about Evan Williams, and
Evan Williams was fantastic. David McKinney talked on this as well.
But you know, Evan Williams was saying, he's like, you know,
Browning was averaging two picks a game during his tenure there.
It's not like Flacco has been protecting the ball great.
He has six picks. Those are two of the top
three most intercepted quarterbacks through the first month of the season.
But I think what Cincinnati's looking for is someone that
(06:06):
is going to take chances with the ball, but also
give receivers a little bit better of a chance.
Speaker 1 (06:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Well, I mean, if you look at the clips from Browning,
particularly in that Detroit game, it wasn't great. There were
some of those five hundred scramble balls that were thrown
up there, not even fifty to fifty, more like twenty
five to seventy five. It seemed like tilting towards the
favor of the defense. So with Flacco coming in, it
really seems to me like, Okay, can we get Chase going,
can we get Higgins going? And then maybe that's what
(06:30):
breathed some life into the restless thing, Mike, because right
now it ain't looking good for the Cincinnati Bengals. You
are talking presently about the last ranked total offense in
the National Football League two hundred twenty eight yards per game,
the thirty second ranked also last ranked rushing offense in
the game. Michael, the Cincinnti Bengals right now are averaging
fifty seven yards per game rushing the ball. Pittsburgh is
(06:53):
second to last with eighty yards rushing per game. Chase
brown has had no room with which to work. Ryan
has had a little bit more success, but they don't
have a carry over thirteen yards this season, and it
was Jake Browning was the one that did it. This
really comes back to Jamar Chase still finding ways to
make an impact with the ball. And as Evan Williams said,
(07:14):
his a yack monster. He gets the pass, but it's
what he does with the ball after the catch, his
ability to run up field. It almost is like he
turns into a running back in some regards. T Higgins
has had kind of a hard time getting going here
since the extension, but also still a guy you have
to be wary of. If the Cincinnati Bengals are going
to accomplish anything during this interim basis here or however
(07:35):
long this goes without Joe Burrow, if they're going to
keep this ship afloat, it has to be through those
two running backs.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Yeah, they've just been severer sorry, Yeah, they've just been lacking.
They've been lacking the big plays, and not just on
the ground. Chase Brown only averaging two point five yards
per carry on the season. It has been a really
tough slog. But even you look at Chase and Higgins,
that wide receiver, Chase is averaging eleven point seven yards
per catch, Higgins twelve point two. That is not what
they are used to. And that eleven point seven for
(08:02):
Chase includes a sixty four yard touchdown last week against
the Lions when he got behind the defense in the
fourth quarter and was able to make one of those
big plays.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So the game was completely out of hand too at
that point. Yeah, Like it's like it's just i mean,
not called a garbage time touchdown, but like, yeah, it
was a lapse for Detroit and which didn't really truly matter.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
But even then, he has a sixty four yard touchdown.
Yet for the season, he's averaging only eleven yards per catch,
which is not which is not typical Jamar Chase numbers.
So they've been lacking the explosive plays. They've been lacking
the you know, the the typical threat to the defense
that those guys have been because Joe Burrow is not
the quarterback. On the defensive side of the ball, it's
(08:43):
been a struggling unit there as well. The last three games,
the Cincinnati Bengals have surrendered forty eight, twenty eight, and
thirty seven points. The star on that defensive side is
edge rusher Trey Hendrickson. He's got four sacks on the season.
He is still a handful for anybody to deal with,
can make a play at any time. But the Bengals.
(09:06):
The Bengals failed to make the playoffs last year because
of their defense, and this is not a defense that
has improved at all. They Hemden had all off season
about whether to pay Trey Hendrickson when he's holding out
and he's their best defensive player on a bad defense,
and they still weren't sure if they wanted to pay
the guy. So their defense, their defense isn't any better.
(09:28):
So and we'll get to our we'll get to our
keys to victory in a minute here. But my whole
thing all week long that I've I've said it in
multiple forms here, multiple platforms, WES, is that this this
game isn't even about the Cincinnati Bengals. This game is
all about the Green Bay Packers. This is about This
is about the Packers coming back home, playing their game,
(09:50):
doing their thing. I don't care if it's Joe Flacco
at quarterback. Yes, you you have to concern yourself with
Jamar Chase and T Higgins and Trey Hendrickson. Those are
the stars of the Cincinnati Bengals, so you can't just
ignore them. But this is about the Packers getting back
to who the Packers are, who they believe they can be.
The Packers team that we saw for the most part
(10:11):
in that five day span to open the regular season
against two really good football teams, when they posted wins
over the Lions and the Commanders. If the Packers get
back to that squad, they shouldn't have any trouble with
the Cincinnati Bengals. That's the bottom line.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
I agree, Mike, that is the number one thing that
I look at with this game. It's for the Packers.
Everything is set up, it's on the table for you here.
Particularly when you look at the fact that Zach Tom
and Aaron Banks have both been back at practice this
week on a limited basis. It you know, signs are
looking promising, particularly with Banks. As far as what Sunday
looks like right now, you have a lot of positive vibes.
(10:50):
I think around this team understanding, okay, we let these
two opportunities go. But I don't think the confidence has
diminished at all. I think the Packers very much feel
like they could be four and zero right now. And
and honestly, the way that the Cowboys played against the
Jets probably reinforces that. You know, they probably played a
pretty good team and didn't do enough to solve Dak Prescott.
But it's not like they went in there and just completely,
(11:11):
you know, made an embarrassment of themselves. But when I
was looking at the Cincinnati defense, in addition to the
fact that I think they're thirtieth right now in total
defense this season, Trey Hendrickson four sacks, eight quarterback hits.
Do you know who's second right now for the Cincinni
Bengals and quarterback hits? No, TJ Slayton, And I love TJ.
(11:32):
He's the man.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
He was.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
He was a good run stuffer in Green Bay. They
did not sign TJ. Slayton in the offseason pressuring.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Not to rush the passer. No, that was not his
was not his forte in Green Bay and was not
what he got that contract for.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
I don't know. When you're in the next thing, I'm
gonna look and see how many quarterback hits TJ had
in his time in Green Bay. Think he had a
sack or two, but he.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
Was hardly on the field on third down. That his defense.
But but you know, the Packers used him for a
specific role.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
So it is good to see TJ doing that. But
if you're the Cincinny, that's not a positive sign, mostly
a reflection your defense. And Shamar Stewart's been hurt. So
then in addition to the fact that Stuart had all
these you're talking about the contract negotiations with Trey Hendrickson,
Shamar Stewart's contract talks as a first round pick, and
how tedious that got for Cincinnati. Well, then he ends
(12:17):
up having the ankle injury. Has barely played this year,
as two tackles on the season, so he did return
to practice on Wednesday. We'll see what his availability looks
like for Sunday. I liked Stewart a lot coming out
in the draft, but.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Sure a lot of people did.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
The point is, though, Mike, again, this is not Cleveland,
and and one of the points that I raised in
some of our commentary and our columns this week is
that yes they have a game wrecker and Trey Hendrickson,
they cannot allow him to wreck the game. Tucker Craft said,
I mean this is a guy that is slippery with
his hands, He is smooth. I mean, this is a
guy that can get after the quarterback if you give
him that opportunity. The Packers have to neutralize him. But
(12:50):
the pieces around him. Unlike the matchup with Cleveland where
you had Miles Garrett, it is not nearly as deep
and is not as nearly as dangerous.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Yeah, well, let's dive right into our keys victory for
this game, and I'll start because to me, to me,
this is very simple, one key thing on each side
of the ball, on offense, this game is about finishing
drives because the Packers are going to move the football
against the Cincinnati defense. They are going to move it,
(13:18):
but you can't be settling for field goals. Finished drives,
get the touchdowns that you should get against this defense
on the other side of the ball. And I know,
and maybe you're going to talk about it. You have
a story up on our website about it in terms
of the turnovers and stuff with the defense, and I
understand the defense wants to get going in that area.
(13:38):
To me, that's not necessarily a key in this particular game.
To me, this game defensively is about tackling because I
think Joe Flacco is going to try to just three
step drop and get the ball to t Higgins and
Jamar Chase on short routes, on just quick stop routes,
or they might throw bubble screens, whatever the case might be.
Joe Flacco is going to get the ball of his
(14:00):
hands in this game, get it to his weapons, and
the Packers have to be on their p's and q's
with the tackling, which I thought for the most part
in the first three games of the season, there were
a couple of plays against Cleveland, where the Packers missed
some tackles that hurt them. The tackling was definitely not
up to the standard against Dallas, and Matt Lafleurd even
(14:20):
talked about it that there were plays where you're looking like, okay,
you're in position to make the tackle and make it
second and eight, but all of a sudden, it's second
and three because that tackle was missed. Instead of being
in third and six, it was third and one because
a tackle was missed. And this happens. This happens to
even the best defenses all the time. There will be lapses.
(14:41):
They'll be a game, there will be a game where
the tackling just isn't sound, the tackling isn't on point.
The Packers have to get back to defensively being the
tackling team that they were in the three weeks of
the season in this game against the Bengals, and I
think they'll have and maintain the upper hand against these guys.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Excellent point. And much like you took away my thunder
because I was gonna mention, hey, thirteen giveaways or excuse me,
eleven giveaways so far this season for the Cincinnati Bengals,
Packers looking to take the ball away more than two times,
and they have the first two games. Sure, I'm now
going to take away your thunder. Okay, because there's a
lot of conversation inside the halls of the Packers didital department.
(15:17):
But what Mike's one Last Look column might be this week? Okay? Now,
I don't want to give away all the secrets, but
I'm just gonna allude to a couple of things here.
And obviously I say that with my tongue firmly placed
in my cheek. But the Packers are right now the
number one ranked third down offense in the National Football League.
Do you know, Michael maybe already looked into it where
the Cincanti Bengals rank and third down defense?
Speaker 1 (15:40):
I did, actually did not look down. They're twenty ninth,
twenty nine.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
The Packers conversion rate is almost higher on third downs
as opposed to where the Bengals are trying to stop
teams on third downs. This is something you very rarely see.
Packers are over fifty percent right now, fifty three percent
on the season. So being able to sustain drives and
the football are the two biggest keys to me to that.
However you do it you do it, there's gonna be
(16:04):
things on people talking about, Hey, you gotta get the
run game going. Hey, you got to be able to
incorporate Matthew Golden. You have to find ways to put
points on the board inside the Reds. So there's gonna
be all these things you talk about. But let's be
honest here, Mike, how many times did you and I
cover high school football games back in the day where
you would have one team go in where you felt
like they had a significant advantage over the other team,
(16:24):
and it really just came down to, Hey, don't have
a fumble to get return for ninety five yards. The
Cleveland Browns, don't throw an interception back inside your own
forty yard line at a pivotal point in the game.
If green Bay controls the controllables, if they play clean football,
they win this football game. Yep, it is the more
talented team. They are the more successful team right now.
And honestly, as difficult as it was going for the
(16:44):
Packers into the by how bad they felt about that
loss in Cleveland and the tie in Dallas, it pales
into comparison of what the Cincinnati Bengals have been going
through basically since Joe Burrow went down. These last three
weeks have been an absolute slog for them. And the
other point I will make, Michael, have you looked at
the Cincinnati Bengals record.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Two and three?
Speaker 2 (17:04):
Two and three, okay, thank you? Uh? Two of those
losses Minnesota Vikings forty eight to ten, the Detroit Lines
thirty seven to twenty four, both NFC North opponents. Yea,
The Packers ended up being the one that let one
get away against the Browns, where the rest of the
division took care of it. One big reason the Packers
made the playoffs last year and were as successful as
(17:25):
they were is because they took care of business in
the non conference slate. This is a home game. You
want to defend your turf, but it's also going to
be very important to hold serve against the division in
these matchups against the corresponding division from the other conference
in the crossover games. If you don't do that, that's
an easy way to fall behind.
Speaker 1 (17:43):
Yeah, no question about it. Well, I want to take
a glance at everything else around the league in Week six,
but we'll pay some bills first and hear a word
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slash Wonders. Welcome back to Packers Unscripted West. Packers will
(18:46):
play the Bengals at three twenty five Central Sunday at
Lambeau Field. Some other interesting games around the league. I'll
I'll throw these out there at you and let you
comment as you see fit. Seattle is at Jacksonville. That's
a three and two team against a four and one
Jaguars team coming off of a huge Monday night home
win against the Kansas City Chiefs. San Francisco is at
(19:08):
Tampa Bay. That's a pair of four and one squads
going head to head there, and then the one that
Packers fans will have their eye on, the Detroit Lions
are at the Kansas City Chiefs. Kansas City is two
and three. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs are up against
it here at home against one of the best teams
in the league in Detroit coming into Arrowhead Stadium. All
(19:31):
three of those games very interesting and we'll have, you know,
implications in terms of the standings and the things Packers
fans will be watching moving forward. Your thoughts on any
of those.
Speaker 2 (19:43):
Kansas City has spring the lumber in this one, truly.
I mean when you look at Detroit and what the
streak they've been on here the last month. Now. The
other thing about the Chiefs, man, they're always going to
be in primetime. They're always gonna have everybody watching them.
It might have been easier to watch the Chiefs this
season just on television that it has been trying to
watch the Green Bay Packers covering these teams live. It
(20:04):
just seems like wherever I turn the Chiefs are on
television and they've had some really difficult matchups, and this
is going to be another one here When you look
at Detroit and where they're going in Kansas City is
sort of at this crossroads and it can't all be
Patrick Mahomes. In a lot of ways, it kind of
the Chiefs this season to me feel a lot like
where the Packers are at in like twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen,
(20:26):
where they very clearly have the best quarterback in the game.
I mean, this is the Max Verstappen of the National
Football League in Patrick Mahomes, But where's the rest of
the roster around him? Now? They're hoping they're going to
get some reserves throughout the course of the season. They
hope they're gonna have some of these guys coming back
and incorporating themselves. But there is not that inepenetrability anymore
(20:50):
that there once was around Kansas City. So seeing how
they match up to Detroit and that deluge of offense
that they're going to be thrown up against, it is
gonna be interesting. But for me, honestly, the game I'm
most excited to see is actually Monday Night Football. And
maybe you're gonna get there eventually too.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
But I was, yeah, you're talking. You're talking about the
Bears returning to the scene of the Hail Mary crime
right out and out in Washington, d C. Against the Commanders.
That's been the storyline out of Chicago all week, that
that was the game that completely turned the Bears season
in the wrong direction. And then, you know whatever, two
months later, Matt Eberflus gets fired the whole the whole thing,
(21:27):
losing on that Hail Mary to Jade and Daniels. Now
the Bears are going back into that stadium in primetime
now as part of that Monday night double header.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
And and Daniels an Williams will forever be tied to
each other the same way that Alex Smith and Aaron
Rodgers were, the same way that I think Carson Wentz
and Jared Goff. I mean, this list goes on and on.
Of those one two picks, their destinies are always going
to somewhat feel a line. So for them to see
each other two times in their first two seasons I
think is really telling as well. And Daniels appears to
(21:57):
be fine here came through last week, I think all right.
For initially that hiccup that I think came out of
the Green Bay game. Was it the knee or whatnot?
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Yeah, he's a knee.
Speaker 2 (22:06):
He got the thing back on. Washington is such a
different team when he's out there. Oh yeah, and you
just see how everything is really built around him. So
scine how they hold up against CHICAGO'SNN be really fascinating
to watching. Meanwhile, Chicago, who started the season about as
badly as you could start it in the Ben Johnson era.
It just shows you how quickly tides can change, how
different momentum can feel when you go into the buy
(22:27):
at two and two, but at the same time you
had two wins that made you feel really good about yourself.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
Yeah. Well, it's an it's an interesting slate of games.
I want to ask you, so, barring an overtime tie,
which as we saw between the Packers and the Cowboys,
San Francisco and Tampa Bay, one of those teams is
going to be five and one, you got a prediction
on which one gets to five and one Between those two.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
I think I think Tampa Bay's scrappy.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
Man, it's hard to bet against Baker and it just
it really is.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
And if you're you're telling me Tampa's at home San
Francisco was making the cross country flight. I just, dude,
I said it. I think on the show two weeks ago,
with what has happened there, I really did not think
the transition from Bruce arians was going to go very
well for Tampa. I thought that to me, in my mind,
(23:22):
I thought that was going to be the end of
the Peyton Manning von Miller era on Denver. And then
you know, Gary Kubiak's gone everything, and everything's just sort
of slips away, and they've refortified themselves, and they did
it in a very unconventional way. Yes, they've drafted well,
but they also signed players and acquired players that in
(23:43):
ways that typically you don't see in the NFL anymore,
particularly again with the Baker Mayfield situation. A guy that
was signing and playing with the La Rams at the
end of the year, trying to get his career back
on track, and now I mean, he's the talk of
the town, the toast of the town, and I love
I don't know if you saw Mayfield's comments a week
but oh my goodness, I loved it when they were
asking him about Seattle and him John with the fan
(24:05):
as he was coming on the field, and he mentioned how,
you know, early in his career, people would have probably
painted that as him being immature or brady or something
like that. Now he's a dog. Now it's you know,
he's got moxie.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah, he's the competitor.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
It all just depends on the way media frames things.
But if you just focus on what you're doing, and
he said that's what he didn't do earlier in his career,
it's allowed him to be a Pro Bowl quarterback in
this league. And as I said on Tuesday, show some
of that. I think that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are
going to be able to hitch their wagons too for
a very long time. It's it's an exciting slide of
games for sure, and seeing exactly if the felk or
(24:38):
excuse me, the Buccaneers can really pull away within that division.
This is a great opportunity to do.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
So that's the thing is I'm wondering if anybody in
the NFC South is really going to challenge Tampa Bay.
And as much as we've seen we've seen Tampa Bay's
defense struggle, but with the combination of kind of Baker
Mayfield's last at heroics and the fact that as much
as that defense has struggled at times, it's a defense
(25:05):
that seems to make a play at a big in
a big moment, which goes a long way in this league.
I've said that. I've said this for a long time.
If you're not going to be the two thousand Baltimore
Ravens defense of the nineteen eighty five Chicago Bears defense,
be a defense that can make a big play in
a big moment. And that kind of seems like what
Todd Bowles is building defensively in Tampa, and it could
(25:27):
it could continue to carry them. So I think that's
a squad that definitely Bears watch.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
And they take on his identity too, don't they. Like
That's what was fun about the Aarons and Bulls relationship
is that his Bulls is just such a He's such
a dichotomy from Aarons and how he you know, he's
more introverted, he always more cerebral. He's got sort of
the stoic almost like Bill Belichick, kind of like demeanor
when he speaks to the media. But he's so consistent. Yeah,
(25:55):
and you can see again why arians was so high
on him as not only coordinator, but as a head
coach and a guy that should get a second chance
at that opportunity of the National Football League, and he's
really ran with it. Meanwhile, I mean San Francisco, I mean,
if we'll see what the week shuffles out at. I
don't think brock Perty's practicing yet. I know Mac Jones
is banged up now too.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
Yeah, we'll see if the mini bye did them some
help out. You know, after playing on Thursday last week,
they get a little bit of extra extra time. But yeah,
San Francisco is still kind of seems like a banged
up team. But but on a short week last Thursday,
they still were able to chalk up a big division
win against the Los Angeles Rams at SOFI. So you
can't You definitely can't count Kyle Shanahan out either, no
(26:36):
matter what the matchup.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Five teams the NFC right now with one loss. Yeah,
I mean, as much as it stinks for Green Bay
to only have two wins, but it's still five teams
with one loss. At what Mike Spotford used to refer
to as the quarterpole.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
The QUI used to I don't get to say that anymore,
But what would it be.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Because four out of seventeen or.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Five four in a quarter would be literally four in
a quarter pole. Yeah, so who is that?
Speaker 2 (27:00):
From now on does that work right?
Speaker 1 (27:03):
I think with that we need to call it a rap.
On this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow
all of our coverage of the team and of Sunday's
game against the Bengals at Lambeufield. We will have it
all for you on Packers dot com for West, I'm Mike.
Thank you for tuning in everybody. We will see you
next time.
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