The Best of The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon

Jason Smith and Mike Harmon react to the Buccaneers getting a comeback win over the Texans on Monday night and break down how Baker Mayfield has become one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the league. Audacy NFL Insider Jason La Canfora joins the guys to discuss the shaky state of the Chiefs. The guys break down the impact of Joe Burrow's injury. Plus, Jason and Mike react to the Chargers beating the Raiders on Monday night.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to the best of the Jason Smith
Show with Mike Carmon podcast. Be sure to catch us
live every weeknight from ten pm to two am Eastern
seven to eleven pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. Find
your local station for The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmon at Foxsports Radio dot com, or stream us live
every night on the iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
This is the best of the Jason Smith Show with
Mike Harmon on Fox Sports Radio.

Speaker 1 (00:30):
Greetings, Welcome inside, Happy Monday, the Jason Smith Show with
my bass.

Speaker 3 (00:37):
Friend Mike Harmon.

Speaker 4 (00:38):
Well dress too, hey.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
Be sure to check out our brand new YouTube channel
for the show. Just go to YouTube dot com slash
at Jason Smith Show. That's YouTube dot com slash at
Jason Smith Show, or if you're already within YouTube, just
search Jason Smith Show. Be sure to hit the subscribe button.
Don't stop there, hit that thumbs up bikon comment away.
Go check out our brand new channel on YouTube again,
just search Jason's Smith Show and subscribe. Mike and I

(01:02):
love putting out this content out for you every single night,
and it was a Happy Monday Night for the Texans
until about six minutes ago. Then it became a happy
Monday night for Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay buy Chicks.

Speaker 3 (01:15):
Check check.

Speaker 5 (01:15):
I felt like we should add rounders playing in the
background in John Malkovich losing his mind.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
Check eating an Oreo cookie eating a ro COOKI checked out,
there's Bucky again.

Speaker 3 (01:24):
Check cookie chickio good check Oreo cookie.

Speaker 4 (01:27):
Uh.

Speaker 1 (01:27):
This throws The end of this game shows you everything
you need to know about the Texans and Baker Mayfield. Right, so,
the Tampa Bay Buccaneers give up a big punt return late.
The Texans go in and get a touchdown. Nick Chubb
looking like Nick Chubb of.

Speaker 3 (01:44):
Three years ago, stumbling mumbling.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could do nothing offensively for the
entire second half. Baker Mayfield scrambles for fifteen yards on
a fourth down play and checking down gets the Bucks
down the field and then run by Bucky Irving with
six seconds left gives them the go ahead lead and
they win the game. The final kickoff was the final

(02:07):
play of the game. The Texans get tackled just outside
the thirty yard line and the Buccaneers walk away with
a win. Now this is look watching the second half
of this game. Right, First, we'll do the Texans and
we'll get to Mayfield the Bucks. This shows you the
two biggest strengths of the Texans, right when I told
you how much I liked them early this year, and
I say, this is a team that could wind up
with home field advantage all the way through the playoffs

(02:30):
because they have they played an easy division, and their
defensive line and their defensive backs are top three units. Right,
that is awesome. Now I left out the linebackers. Okay,
I left out the linebackers, but the defensive line, their
dbs are terrific. What did you see in the second
half to night? The defensive line controlled the entire game.
Baker Mayfield was running for his life there was He

(02:50):
couldn't go downfield at all. A few times he did
go downfield, his receivers were covered and bracketed. So what
did the Buccaneers do? Hey, we're checking down, We're throwing
in the flat. I think Bucky Irving broke the record
for receptions today in a game. I think he had
thirty eight receptions today. Every single play was Mayfield checked
down Irving one on one with a linebacker, and he's
able to get twelve fifteen yards. That was almost every

(03:13):
play and the only ones that worked for the Buccaneers
in the second half was checking down to Irving, checking
down to a tight end, Mayfield scrambling, and the the
Texans could not adjust that. Yes, they kept them down,
they kept the they kept the offense from going up
and down the field like they did in the first
half when Mayfield threw a couple of touchdowns. But this
this The defensive line in the secondary for the Texans

(03:34):
are top three units in the NFL. They are fantastic.
But wow, the Buccaneers just said, yeah, we're gonna We're
just gonna go underneath. We're gonna one on with your linebackers,
and we feel good about that. And they were able
to get down the field and get that touchdown. So
it's kind of good news Bat because the Texans you
can see how good they are defensively. But wow, man,
you just you just let a team just throw the
football no more than four air yards every single play

(03:55):
in the second half and get down there and score.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
Well, I just did check into space.

Speaker 5 (03:59):
Bucky Irving guys trying to do the shoulder tackle that
we watch him repeatedly. He's just bouncing off of guys
like that's not It's not a guy that's, you know,
one hundred and eight pounds soaking wet, that's gonna get
bounced to the ground. He's still running with authority and
making plays after the catch. And we watched that repeatedly,
that final drive masterclass, couple of scrambles for Baker Mayfield.

(04:21):
A couple of times where you didn't think he was
gonna get up. It's like, wow, his knee just like
his cleik got caught one time. The other time he
does the big summersaults and it's like, Okay, in a
week where we're gonna talk a lot about quarterbacks going
to the shelf for a couple of weeks, Baker Mayfield's like, wow, okay,
the year of living dangerously. But to your point, Downfield

(04:42):
took a couple of shots balls hitting guys in the hands.
But I mean they're covered up right, They're not clean
easy receptions. You've got the closing speed of the safeties
or blanketed on the outside, so you look for short passes.
On that final drive, a completion, Evan's completion to Oton
and a bunch of Bucky irvings. So enough to get
them over the top. And I know Rashad White, Uh

(05:04):
he got rewarded a little bit for saving Baker Mayfield's bacon.

Speaker 3 (05:08):
On a fumble.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
Oh yeah, so he ends up getting the goal line
gerry much of the sugar in of the Fantasy universe,
but uh finds pay dirt and they can't convert the
two point conversion.

Speaker 5 (05:20):
But where you look at it for Houston is it's
going to be a long slug slug for them offensively
right there. It's there's there's problems on that side of
the ball. As good as that defense.

Speaker 1 (05:31):
And as good as Nico Collins is, you can see.
Look when they went forward on fourth and goal early
in the fourth quarter when they could have had a
field goal cut at to thirteen. Uh, they they you know,
they rolled out C. J. Stroud and the Bucks have
it completely covered. And Nico Collins, as good as a
receiver as he is, he's not someone that one on
one you can throw him the football.

Speaker 3 (05:52):
That was also in the back of the end zone.
It was a bad player.

Speaker 1 (05:57):
But they know where they're you know where they're going,
and and Ando Collins isn't one of those. Hey, I'll
go win a battle one on one every single time, right,
Like he's in he's an open field receiver, he's you know,
I mean, he's obviously the number one guy there and
he's one of the top receivers in the NFL. But
it's different when you're you're looking at some of the Okay,
we know where you're gonna go with the football. As
much as you like your offer, we know where you're

(06:17):
gonna go with that at the end, and there was
nothing they can do and it was a it was
a huge stop by Tampa Bay. But really, I mean
the thing is, you look at Baker Mayfield right to
give him a lot of credit to start off with
the positivity, we have a been appreciation moment for Baker Mayfield.

Speaker 3 (06:36):
Okay, just that.

Speaker 1 (06:36):
We we talk a lot about guys and look, the
Chargers and Raiders are playing right now, and Geno Smith
is playing for the Raiders and yeah, there you go,
so yeah, a perfect rate. He's a Raider already.

Speaker 3 (06:48):
Uh. We we talk about guys.

Speaker 1 (06:50):
Like Geno Smith and Sam Darnold, who hey, these are
the examples of how you need the right system for
a quarterback and you see how they can succeed, right
because Darnold had great success last year, didn't even work
out for him at the end of the season, but
got a hundred million dollar contract to go to the Seahawks.

Speaker 3 (07:07):
Right, so far mixed results for him.

Speaker 1 (07:09):
Gino Smith backed, you know, bounced around as a backup
for a long time, finally found what was an okay
enough system and a guy that believed them at the
age of thirty. And Pete Carroll okay, great and then
here he is again, big contract now with the Raiders, right,
and we talk about that being, you know, getting Genode,
getting Darnold. It is that former early first round picks
who bounce around the league, and hey, eventually, if you're

(07:32):
lucky enough, doesn't happen to everybody, but if you're lucky enough,
you get in that right system that works for you. Now,
it's ridiculous because as much as we say Darnald did
and and Genode, it's really getting bakered because Baker Mayfield
went from he was one of the biggest busts in
the NFL draft where he comes out, has a good
rookie year, not a great second year, terrific third year,

(07:55):
and then by year five it was two new teams
for him. Didn't work out in Caroline, he went backed
up in Los Angeles and finally I'm going to take
over for Tom Brady and Tampa and it's like, wow, man,
what is going on here? And he went to a
bunch of different systems and stuff that didn't quite work
for him. Now, the time he filled in, when he
filled in for the Rams when Stafford got hurt, he

(08:17):
was pretty good, right, he was pretty good. But that's
a great offensive system for quarterbacks. But he goes to
Tampa and he throws twenty eight touchdowns and ten picks
his first year. It's wow, what that's getting g oded
or darnolded? And then last year forty one touchdowns right
five to the final week of the regular season, and
all of a sudden, Baker Mayfield is a franchise quarterback
who's going to be a star for the next four

(08:38):
or five years. Because it's not he's not yet thirty.
He's not someone that his skill set's going to suddenly
just deteriorate. Right, it's not somebody he's worried about his legs.
He's still mobile enough. But he has become a star.
He has become one of the top offensive offensive players
in fantasy. He's become one of the best, most dynamic
quarterbacks in the NFL. And you saw tonight that final drive,

(09:00):
Mayfield just taking exactly what the defense gave him because
he knew they had enough time. That final drive was
a masterstroke by him. How many quarterbacks would you see
that have a lot of talent that would say, you
know what, I gotta get downfield, right, we don't have
the time. You don't have time, Gotta get downfield, Gotta get downfield. No,
I'm checking down this is what they're giving me. And
he made right decision after right decision. No, even in

(09:21):
the second half when things aren't going that well, he's
not throwing forcing the ball in. He's not trying to
make plays that aren't there. He did fumble, but it
was his own fault. He just knocked it out of
his own hand. Luckily Rashad White fell on it. But
this is the evolution of Baker Mayfield. And just watching
that final drive, you realize, Okay, he's not just a
reclamation project that got to He got to a team
with the right system that believes in him. He's got

(09:43):
weapons around him, and he has become a force, not
a serviceable quarterback, not a top fifteen. He has become
an absolute force in the last two and a half
years in Tampa and that final drive you saw, I
mean watching him, I've liked that they're not gonna fall
short on this. When Mayfield scrambled for that first down,
I said, they're getting down there. He's getting them down
there at some point because now they're gonna have to

(10:03):
come up short a little bit. And then he was
able to throw a little bit downfield to Mike Evans,
like he has become a complete quarterback with the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers. And just to have a moment to talk
about that for him, because I didn't think that was
coming after he left Lee.

Speaker 3 (10:15):
Well, that's also the flip of the narrative on a hole.

Speaker 5 (10:19):
He's gotten two guys hired in back to back here
Allie and Liam Cohen.

Speaker 3 (10:23):
Yeah, right, he's got fired. You're getting guys early in
the career. It's like they said him, is it us?
Is it?

Speaker 1 (10:30):
You got Hugh Jackson fired? Okay, that's one of the
fired column. Okay, now in the hired Colum, let's get
to that. So he's back to even I mean, when
you get down to it now, we see if Grizzard,
even if Grizzard can get himself around, because the other
the scary thing is, right, they go and they steal
this game because Houston defensively, we're expecting the the clamp
down and as you said, very smart recognizing how much

(10:52):
time they have left on the clock because they still
had timeouts in the pocket.

Speaker 3 (10:55):
That's the other things left, Yeah.

Speaker 5 (10:58):
Letting the clock run, panicking, not rushing anything, taking what
they're giving him, getting back up to the line like
all right, looking back to the sideline and taking their
time to where where in the you basically have the
kickoff return and that's it, right, game's over. But the
other side is you look at this offense. They steal
this one from the contending Texans big road game, and

(11:20):
boy the Boo Birds were out for the Texans the
entire second half with some of the play calling and
lack of execution. But you look at what this Tampa
team is going to be. Right, you still have questions
about when McMillan's gonna be ready, but Godwin's on the comeback.

Speaker 3 (11:33):
We see Abuka.

Speaker 5 (11:34):
They took the shot to him down the field ball
that hit his hands, but he had a huge Week one.
There'll be better days there. Mike Evans didn't have the
monster game, but you know how good he is, had
Bucky Irving out of the backfield, and for Shad White's
gonna pick up more fumbles than he lets off in
years past. Sorry, have to bring the whole history in.
You got an offense that's gonna be really formidable throughout

(11:57):
the entire season, and that defense just good no to
make it hold up. So four years in a row
they won the division. Looking to put that big five
count like their King Kong Bundy out there.

Speaker 3 (12:06):
Yeah, it has been.

Speaker 1 (12:07):
I mean, this has been some sort of and you
see why people are are high on the Buccaneers right
because they're playing a division that's not that great. As
much as you like the Falcons, they clearly have some issues.
That looked good yesterday. The Saints good.

Speaker 3 (12:21):
They were good enough and that hey good enough. I'm
putting it right there.

Speaker 1 (12:26):
It's in inc There's gonna be nothing worse than that
Sunday night game.

Speaker 3 (12:30):
I don't know, man, I don't know that early I
could see you putting it in the two sixties ranking, but.

Speaker 5 (12:36):
All right, I'm telling you it's it's gonna be near
the bottoms. Okay, all right, your only touchdown was all
jear By then people had moved on to Masterpiece Theater
or something.

Speaker 1 (12:44):
But I could see, you can see why everybody is
up on the Bucks. Clearly their offense is incredibly dynamic
and the division is not great. So you know, yeah,
I get it. I get it for Tampa. But man,
the the amount of respet onsibility and how good Baker
Mayfield is is just it really is something to behold.

(13:05):
Because again you saw, okay, when the when the Browns draft,
and he's full of swagger. He was full of attitude
and energy, and the team saw with everybody. Yeah, and
the team, Sure, he fought with me and I turned
out to be right. But okay, that's fine. I'll take
that one. But now now in here in in in Tampa,
and now he's into into his third year and these
are now new receivers that he is making good. Right,

(13:28):
this is not hey, he showed up like like Darnold
did last year and just threw it up to Justin Jefferson. Right,
he gets to Tampa, they do have really good playmakers
and Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. What happens, Chris Godwin
gets hurt, Mike Evans getting older. Now Buka is here
and he looks like he's the number one guy. So
they they've been going through playmakers and when guys were
hurt last year, Mayfield still through for forty one touchdown.

(13:49):
So he's one of those guys where you have to say,
who is he?

Speaker 3 (13:52):
Really?

Speaker 1 (13:53):
Is he one of those few that makes everybody around
him better and that and and he's never been on
that list before.

Speaker 5 (13:59):
Now now it's it's a short lists. But I mean,
think about the quarterback rot history we've got going on here.
There's very few guys that you trust on a year
to year basis. Three years ago, this is not something
you would have expected to be talking about in week
two of Monday Night Football. Look at this comeback and
look at the picture of calm and serenity and how
he makes everybody better and he gets coaches hired.

Speaker 1 (14:22):
It's Baker Mayfield. Everybody exit albya Fresca exit swollen. Do
I mean he's becoming one of the best quarterbacks of
the NFL. I mean I always like the swagger, Yeah,
I mean it was on the edge and you always
wondered how much is Browns versus him? But I mean
we are fantasy darling last year obviously, but you see
him and you see him up close and what he's
able to accomplish. Uh, Like I said, that final drive

(14:44):
is like, Wow, I think you're selling him short when
you're when when you're breaking down who the best quarterbacks
in the game are, you got to put him on
that list? Now, man Baker Mayfield, how about that? Think
about that legend.

Speaker 2 (14:55):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon, he said ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 3 (15:06):
Hey it's me Rob Parker.

Speaker 6 (15:09):
Check out my weekly MLB podcast, Inside the Parker for
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(15:31):
Parker on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast.

Speaker 1 (15:36):
Fox Sports Radio, The Jason Smith Show with my best
friend Mike harmon.

Speaker 4 (15:40):
Well dressed hobo.

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Speaker 1 (15:57):
Raiders field goal is tied the game at three a
p eight and a half to go in the first quarter. Meanwhile,
three minutes ago, we watched the Texans get the lead late,
but Baker Mayfield takes the Tampa Bay Buccaneers down for
the game winning score with six seconds left, and they
improved a two and zero with a big win. Joining
us now in the hot line to break it all

(16:17):
down longtime NFL insider. He's on Odyssey, He's at the
Washington Post. He's on one oh five seven of the
Fan in Baltimore. He's on Twitter at Jason lock and
for it is Jason Locking for what's happening.

Speaker 4 (16:28):
Bud going on guys about waunching numbers, just crunching numbers,
making vets in the super discord, uh Barnhams with my
friends getting ready for Tomorrow's wanted that show. Happy about
be on there in the first game Okay, oh, hope
we get hope it gets a little loose here in
the second one.

Speaker 1 (16:47):
Did you bet the under for Baker Mayfield air yards
in the second half tonight? Because I think you would
have won that because everything was a checkedack.

Speaker 4 (16:54):
I did not. I was so busy handicap and other stuff,
champions leading everything else that I didn't. I felt, you know,
good about my where my positions already had and I didn't.
I did not lie that I live that that game
at all. You know, the thing is quite a struggle. Yeah,
there are two good defenses.

Speaker 1 (17:14):
Yeah, no, Hey, the Texas defensive line is great. They're
they're the They're defense. Their secondary is terrific. But you know,
watching Mayfield like, yeah, you know, he's someone that you
really I can't say a guy coming off a forty
one touchdown season is underrated.

Speaker 3 (17:28):
But I still think he doesn't get that hug.

Speaker 1 (17:31):
We know one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL,
and you watch him completely in control of that final drive.
There was no panic, there was no forcing the football.
There's a big fourth down scramble on fourth and ten.
I think we really undervalue how good a quarterback he's become.

Speaker 4 (17:43):
Yeah, he's a gamer. He's absolutely positively a gamer. Yeah.
I mean, look, they got a triage another offensive line
right now, and we've seen what that's looks like for
a lot of other teams with less less sort of
pulleys and less comfortable in their own skating quarterbacks. You know,

(18:04):
some people were freaking out about, you know, him losing
Liam Culling or whatever. I O. I think, you know,
I think William Crowinhut's a pretty good It was a
pretty good debt to Baker, not the other way around. Yeah. Look,
Tom Bowles isn't the sexiest head coach in the world,
but he wins and unlike a lot of guys in

(18:25):
this league, he knows how to win on the road.
I didn't like I didn't take him like a side
in that game. I wouldn't. I definitely wouldn't have bet
against Tennessee. I think there's a lot of questions to
be asked about how detections really improved their offensive line.
And you know what do we know, Like there's this

(18:45):
new play caller really any good? And what's going on
with c J. Strout Because whether it's all the things
around him now starting to bring him down, it just
doesn't have the same energy, the same look, the same feel.
I know the Dallas venders too, but still things seem
to have gotten really constricted around that.

Speaker 1 (19:05):
Certainly the fluidity of that offense bogged down. We saw
Denico Collins and a bunch of guys.

Speaker 3 (19:13):
Let's let's go league wide.

Speaker 5 (19:15):
The spate of injuries at the quarterback position, starting once
again with Joe Burrow on the shelf. Now it's the
Jake Browning Show gets a w yesterday. But going forward,
how soon before someone breaks glass for Captain Kirk?

Speaker 4 (19:30):
Yeah, you know that that's a good question. I don't
think it be those guys, you know, I think they're
pretty comfortable with Brownie. I think they like the fact
you can move around a little bit. You know. It's
the lack of mobility for cousins that you look at
some of these offenses and just I just don't know

(19:50):
that it makes sense. And also that owner is gonna
have to beat, you know, some money, probably more than
he's been comfortable eating to this point. Now you can
also say, well, wait a minute, he's paying him to
do nothing. Now, but that's a decent football team, and
if Tennan's got hurt, you could do a hell a
lot worse than Kirk Cousins. So yeah, I think it would.

(20:12):
I think you would have to really be the right
confluence of events. I don't think. I don't think Mike
Brown like I just that would really surprise me if
he went out and got and did something like that.
And again, I just don't I don't know that it's
the greatest system or scheme fit in the world either.

(20:35):
But he is probably somewhere else by the deadline.

Speaker 1 (20:39):
So now let's head to your neck of the woods.
Let's get to Jaden Daniels, who has the knees brain
and suddenly, boy does does he play? Is he out
a couple of weeks? What's going to happen here? Like,
I can't believe the commanders are going to rush him
back in. Maybe we don't see him for a couple
of weeks.

Speaker 4 (20:54):
Yeah, I don't think we will. They've got some recalibrating
to do there as well, and given the state of
their offensive line right now. I know there were some
people gushing about the rookie running back after week one,
but like you know, it was three yards and a
cloud of dust, and then he broke a late one.
You know, for forty some yards against a defense that

(21:14):
was pretty much at a gas. I just you know,
and now you know, I think actually were still going
to see a fair amount of the ball. Now he's hurt,
The defense isn't special. It was never going to be
a recreation of last year. But yeah, I think, look,
they could try to defend it all they want. They
play on a horse bleep field that a lot of

(21:36):
guys have gotten hurt on and are blamed for part
of the injury. So yeah, I think they need to
take the long view here and be really smart about this.
In the bottom line is this hasn't looked anything like
last year's offense.

Speaker 5 (21:47):
Anyway, So a lot of questions about the let's keep
with the injury theme. JJ McCarthy now two to four
weeks high ankle spraying. The diagnosis looked pretty spry on
the last couple of plays, so years he theory's abound,
but now it becomes the backup show and seeds of
malcontendedness showing up in Minnesota.

Speaker 4 (22:09):
Well, I mean, look, he's the intangible, you know, mister
intangible but like and he certainly has some athleticism, but
in terms of being the purest thrower of the football
and understanding how to arca ball and put air under
it and touch and all that stuff and decision making
like you know, we do always asked the pen in Michigan,

(22:31):
and this is a big This was always going to
be a big jump and all that developmental time, and
he missed last year even just on the you know,
from a practice standpoint, it's significant. So you know, and
I think the world of O'Connell, but this was never
going to be I think a super easy transition for him,
especially coming off an injury. Uh. I don't have any

(22:54):
reason to believe that they're in any way, you know,
creating something here or or or faking it like I don't.
I don't think he's healthy and he's gonna have to
miss some time and that's unfortunate for them. But this
coach is invested in that quarterback and I think, like

(23:15):
I think he can be a winning quarterback because of
all the things they have cooking there and primarily because
of O'Connell. But don't it was never going to be
overnight like Sam Donald going from the vagabond to MVP
candidate like you did last year. This kid hasn't done
all the things and seen all the things and been
all the brutal all the things that Sam Donald has.

Speaker 1 (23:38):
Jason locking for our guests, Jason Smith Mike Harmon, live
from the Fox Sports Radio studios. All right, let's head
to the Eagles and the Chiefs. Now, I thought going
into this game, the Eagles are going to prove they
would be too much of the same team that won
the Super Bowl.

Speaker 3 (23:49):
The Chiefs aren't as good. They have a couple of
weapons out injured.

Speaker 1 (23:53):
I know they're going to come back at some point, Jay,
but wow, man, that the chief I think the Chiefs
are in a lot of trouble.

Speaker 4 (23:58):
Now.

Speaker 1 (23:58):
Other team's got younger, more talent, did more athletic and
this might be I think this is the year where
the Chiefs go, oh wait a minute, Maybe that big
run we had we get passed by a lot of teams.

Speaker 4 (24:08):
Now, I mean, I think we tend to forget that
there was a lull, even for the Patriots, right, I mean,
if that's the camp, it was two dynasties and one
and one waned for a couple of years, never fell apart,
didn't fall off a cliff, you know, I know they
waited the playoffs for the year, you know, Brady towards
ACL but they weren't going to compete really for our
super Bowl. And then there was the second iteration. Then

(24:31):
I think in many ways there was even more mind
blowing in the first. I don't know if that's going
to happen for the Chiefs, but I do think we're
seeing the dip. And it's hard to come back from
the Super Bowl loss. And it's hard to come back
to the Super Bowl loss when one of the players
you're counting on most to comeback from injury and give
you an immediate shot in the arm contended to give
himself in legal trouble. And Xavier Worthy's a little guy

(24:53):
and there's always a high injury risk and the timing
of that couldn't be worse. And they're still trying to
reconfigure an offensive line. Run game has been getting systematically worse.
That's Rice got hurt early last season, you know, like
Kareem Hunt still being on the field that much for them.
I think they're really telling they've got a personnel issue

(25:13):
right about. At the Washington Post heading into this weekend,
thought they were in a bad spot against the Eagles,
begged people to just keep playing chiefs Onders, especially at home.
That's who they are and what they are right now.
They're still going to be a quality team. I think
they can still get into playoffs, but they might be
the third best team in that division, even with Denver

(25:36):
not looking like, you know, defensively, the team they were
a year ago. It's a brutal schedule and they're going
to be without those two playmakers for a while longer.
So yeah, I think everything is going to be a
struggle for them. I'll be fascinated to see what they
do by the trade deadline. I think their edge rush

(25:57):
group is looking pretty uh, pretty pedestrian at best. And
I think Chris Jones, you know this, this he might
be I think obviously his best just behind him, and
I think he might be fading. So yeah, Mahome some
only do so much. I mean, he want Mahomes a
run for a hundred yards a game now, Like, is

(26:18):
that where that's going?

Speaker 5 (26:19):
Yeah, he's gonna ask what are we gonna do? What
kind of odds can we get on him to lead
the team in rushing?

Speaker 4 (26:24):
Jeez, Well it's all hands on deck. I mean, the
guy who'd probably be leading him in rushing honestly, that
Javier Worthy, that's just one more area where you know,
not having him on a jet sweep or you know
what I mean under round or reverse like you know,
Andy loves that stuff. So yeah, they're in a bad way.
They lost more people there, a lot of a lot

(26:46):
of determined people there. But there was that Patriots damp.
I mean there was a dip between the two cycles.

Speaker 1 (26:55):
He's on Twitter at Jason Locke and four that is
at Jason Locke and or a Jay As always, buddy,
appreciate your time, enjoy the games, enjoy the betting. We'll
talk to you next week.

Speaker 4 (27:05):
Oh good, gentle, buddy, see it.

Speaker 1 (27:08):
Look we'll get to the Chiefs coming up later on. Look,
I'm I'm your Chiefs whisperer. I told you it was
gonna be tough. I told hi, I'm stock up on mahomes,
stock down on.

Speaker 4 (27:17):
No.

Speaker 3 (27:17):
I could I could get barbecues, No I could go.
I could go to Memphis and I come up, I
come up with a tryangle offense and total I would
have that. Look.

Speaker 1 (27:31):
It's just it's it's it's it's not anything against the Chiefs.
It's not something ah the Chiefs, but the Chiefs are older.
Other teams that are younger, more talented, more athletic, and
you see that the questions they have, they don't have
the weapons because if you're worthy is injured where she
Rice is still suspended. And Travis Kelcey does way too
much stuff during the week and not enough stuff on Sunday, right,

(27:53):
I mean.

Speaker 3 (27:53):
He's yelling, he's yelling at his team in the first
half and who drops the big pass?

Speaker 4 (27:58):
Uh?

Speaker 1 (27:59):
That turns into an innerse that helps kill the Chiefs.
Travis Kelcey, awful, awful optics for the Chiefs, awful optics
for Kelsey. That all the Yeah, I'm a star, a
star of a star. And look what's that.

Speaker 3 (28:08):
It's like in Rocky Right when Rocky was running around
he was chasing the pigeons to catch him. Mister t
is all just in the gym and he's like Balboa, Balboa,
Balboa and it.

Speaker 1 (28:18):
Was like okay because he went Hollywood's right, Yeah, Ravis Kelsey,
go on Hollywood and look what's that bad year? It's
not worked out, he's not had a great eas and
it's not started out well this year. His mistake contributed
to that loss yesterday. But it's an awful optic for
the Chiefs, But the fall of Kelsey really mirrors and
stands for what we've seen from the Chiefs. They were
great for a long time. Now eventually they hit a

(28:39):
point where they get passed by and you see all
these other teams. They're the third most talented team in
the AFC West, third most talent, Tyam I.

Speaker 5 (28:46):
Made a couple of things to it right. You don't
have anybody you trust in the run game. Pacheco is
clearly not the A list star.

Speaker 3 (28:53):
That keep waiting for.

Speaker 5 (28:54):
It's like Clyde Edwards Hilaire before in the same kind
of thing. Flashes but not consistency. With Mahomes, he's making
plays with his legs, but he's missing shots downfield. The
timing isn't there, And back to back week Kelsey inside
the ten yard line has had gaffs. This time it's
an interception. Back in week one, he had that one
where he did that little walkthrough scrape through the defense

(29:16):
and then didn't make a play on the ball, just
off his hands and falls incomplete. Should have been a
walk in touchdown. So the timing and consistency isn't there,
and you're not good enough to win in those margins
right now.

Speaker 2 (29:28):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 1 (29:38):
Hello, Welcome in side hour two The Jason Smith Show
with my best friend Mike Harmon. Be sure to check
out our brand new YouTube channel for the show. Go
to YouTube dot com slash at Jason Smith Show. That's
YouTube dot com slash at Jason Smith Show. Or if
you're already within YouTube, just search Jason Smith Show, hit
the subscribe button. Don't stop there, hit that thumbs up

(29:59):
icon com meant awagh, check out a brand new channel
on YouTube again, just searched Jason Smith Show and subscribe.

Speaker 3 (30:06):
Uh so we'll have.

Speaker 1 (30:07):
More on the Khalil Mack injury that looked really bad
a few moments ago. Potential dislocated elbow. Uh not for
the squeamish. If you don't like to see stuff like that,
do not watch the replay. Yeah, trust me, you don't
need to see it.

Speaker 3 (30:23):
It is.

Speaker 1 (30:23):
It's there if you want to, but you don't need
to see it again. We'll get an official update later on.
But wow, that certainly is what it looked like now
before you can do a big injury. I want to
say this because I got I got to give Steve
de Sager a lot of credit here because he found
this really really quickly.

Speaker 3 (30:38):
So I told you the story a few minutes ago.

Speaker 1 (30:39):
We talked about the big play in the NFL yesterday,
the recovered kickoff for a touchdown by the Seahawks.

Speaker 3 (30:45):
Kay John, Yeah, I'm not gonna recover.

Speaker 1 (30:48):
This well again, near and dear to my heart because uh,
freshman year of football, I recovered a fumble just like
that because the returner didn't know you had to grab it.
S thought it like a you could if it went
into the end zone, it would down it. Now this
is of you, No I wish now this is This
is back when the rule was until they changed it

(31:08):
a couple of years ago, where it was anything ten
yards down the team can get. Now obviously with the
way the.

Speaker 3 (31:14):
Rules of changing, he got the zone.

Speaker 4 (31:16):
The zone.

Speaker 3 (31:17):
That's why you have the you know, that's why ten
yards is the on side kick.

Speaker 1 (31:21):
And nobody knew the rule. And I knew it because
I said, because I had seen it not too long
before in the Giants game remember they played the Rams
and Film McConkie either grabbed it the one enrolled in
the end zone or recovered it in the end zone,
and so I knew the rule. So when I saw
that play yesterday, I.

Speaker 3 (31:36):
Was like, oh man, I'm thinking back my glory.

Speaker 1 (31:38):
Days Frenchman year, and I think, if only I had
let the ball roll into the end zone or push
it in the end zone recover, we had a touchdown, right,
never had a touchdown play. I played defense in high school,
so I remember there was such a big deal. Steve
Disager found the game on YouTube. It was the opening
kickoff of the game and it was Film McConkie who
knew the rule and ran down. Ball was landed at

(31:59):
the five, bounced over the returner's headed into the endzonew
the ball bounced the five yard line, that goes the
end zone. That's a live ball. Mcackie recovers it for
a touchdown. And here is the play by play.

Speaker 7 (32:12):
Giants at three and one and the Rams at two
and two, and we're underweigh and Anaheim coming down to
the fire side and fumbled into the end zone and
falling on by one of the Giants.

Speaker 2 (32:26):
And that is a touchdown.

Speaker 3 (32:27):
He touched the ball in the field of play, did aj.

Speaker 2 (32:30):
Jones let it go into the end zone and the
Giants fell on it for a touchdown.

Speaker 8 (32:35):
Bill mccaucky number.

Speaker 2 (32:37):
Eighty A little man from Maybe.

Speaker 7 (32:39):
I couldn't believe that mean either he must totally unaware,
Frank of what he did.

Speaker 2 (32:43):
He cannot need it.

Speaker 7 (32:44):
You cannot touch the ball then allow it going to
the endzone without down eating yourself.

Speaker 3 (32:49):
Steve, A way to go, said Vin Scully on the call,
an old slow roller down. Oh it gets by the returner.
Here comes Night in the Mets win.

Speaker 8 (33:01):
I think there was Frank Leeber and Dick Vermeil.

Speaker 1 (33:03):
Dick Vermeil on the call. It sounded like it sounded
like Vin in the beginning, like the first couple of
these ways. Wow, it's kind of sound because you get
that Vin's voice was a lot higher on on audio
videotape from the eighties.

Speaker 8 (33:15):
People don't remember. Around nineteen eighty, Vince Gully was the
voice of CBS before Pat summerl.

Speaker 3 (33:20):
He was doing NFA, he was doing Super Bowl, did.

Speaker 8 (33:22):
The NFC Championship game. When Vermeil's Eagles went to the
Super Bowl.

Speaker 1 (33:27):
Yeah, Yeah, that's right, that's right. I can't believe you
found that that fast. He's a wizard.

Speaker 8 (33:31):
I'm the Internet. It's an amazing wow.

Speaker 3 (33:33):
That's I mean. And the whole game is on there.

Speaker 8 (33:35):
I got that, So let me say to anyone who
has old games on vhs, please put them online. That
was awesome to hear and great to see. It was
fun and they had the full game on there for
just a random Sunday afternoon.

Speaker 5 (33:49):
Is Anaheim doesn't have all the commercials in it? Because
now I'm really going to go back, and.

Speaker 8 (33:53):
I just watched the opening kick and then they missed
the extra point right after that, the short extra point back.

Speaker 3 (33:58):
Every commercial was a Miller like commercial. That's people don't
know it. It's great. Two and a half minutes of
more light commercial in between the game.

Speaker 5 (34:04):
Man, that was a lot of extra checks for x
NFL players that didn't make a lot of money during
their playing careers.

Speaker 1 (34:09):
Come on, well, thank you Steve for let me let
me roll down that glory days there. Me and Phil McConkie,
now we had we had the whole time.

Speaker 5 (34:15):
You just keep replaying your play in your head and
then you're like I could see you scanning the virtual
world for were there any girls I knew when?

Speaker 4 (34:23):
No?

Speaker 1 (34:24):
Honestly, Okay, that's the second thought. But the first thought
is all when I think about that play of someone,
I go, I wish I just either and I forget
if it stopped rolled, because I could have just pushed
it and tapped it into the end zone and had
a touchdown. I really that's what I think about. More like,
you know, I made a great play, but I could
have been better.

Speaker 3 (34:40):
You could have had it so close.

Speaker 5 (34:42):
That's all right, you You gave them their only opportunity
to score all day.

Speaker 4 (34:47):
You know.

Speaker 1 (34:48):
I also I also made a play very similar to
Ya Tittle in nineteen fifty one, week four, Steve forget find.

Speaker 3 (34:55):
That one ken you Okay, no television back.

Speaker 5 (34:58):
I start drawing pictures a title over there, Steve, that's
what he's trying to do.

Speaker 3 (35:02):
I think it was against the Browns, the AI animators.
There you go.

Speaker 1 (35:06):
Uh so again, we'll have more from the Monday Night game.
The second Monday Night game. The Chargers lead at ten
to six, eight goals to go to the second quarter.
So big news today, Big injury news today. Joe Burrow
out for what could wind up being the rest of
the season after a turf toe injury requiring surgery. The

(35:27):
time frame for this is about three months. And this
is if everything goes perfect, Joe Burrow could come back
with maybe a couple of weeks left in the regular season.
Now this is maybe we watch Jake Brown and come
off the bench yesterday and win the game. Bengals go
to two and zero, and now this week they get
a Vikings team that's gonna have Carson Wentz at quarterback.
So that fortuitous scheduling. The Bengals keep rolling seven's on it.

(35:50):
But this is now the thing for Joe Burrow. This
is anfit and and it sucks because he's one of
the most exciting quarterbacks in the game. But quite honestly,
now if you're the Bengals you sign him that big contract,
you have to understand and this is the comparison. This
is who Joe Burrow is. Joe Burrow is the Anthony
Davis of the NFL. As talented as he is, as

(36:13):
good as he is, you know, at some point he's
going to get hurt during the season. This is now
going to be the third season where he has lost
the majority of it to an injury of his six
year career, right, and it's happens too many times now
to say, well, this is again. Every other year he
gets hurt and you have to have the same outlook
for Joe Burrow if you're the Bengals that the Lakers

(36:36):
and now the Mavericks do for Anthony Davis. You know
he's going to get hurt. You just have to hope
that the injury is gonna come at a time where
it's not fatal for your team, where it's not boy,
he's out for the rest of the season. You have
to hope it's a point where he is at where
maybe he only misses a couple of games, maybe he
misses a month, maybe it's an advantageous part of the schedule.
He has time enough to come back for the postseason.

(36:58):
But you know he's going to be hurt. It's what it's.
Some guys, their bodies just can't take the riggers in
the pounding of the NFL, and three multi season injuries later,
for Burrow, that's kind of who he is. It sucks
that he's injury prone, but it's happened too many times
now so and near the Bengals, this is about as
close to fatal as it gets for a football term

(37:20):
for the season, because he's gonna miss the rest of
the way. Right, you're at at the at best. And look,
and the Bengals are a decent team. They have again
advantageous schedule. They win next week, they're three and zero.
We watched brown and come off the bench a couple
of years ago and play okay enough where he kind
of kept the Bengals around five hundred. Right, Okay, but
that's that's the best you can hope for. Now.

Speaker 3 (37:39):
If you're the Bengals, we can have a five hundred
type season and maybe make a run at a wildcard
because you're not catching the Ravens, right, You're not gonna
You're not gonna be a team that runs away with
a division. This is now.

Speaker 1 (37:49):
Maybe we can stay alive for a wild card and
if everything goes right for Joe Burrow, he can come
back for the last three games of the season, a
couple of games, maybe he's healthy. Maybe that's what it is.
But that's really how you have to look at every year.
And the Bengals have a great backup in places, got
a great backup system in place. Hey Brownie coming in, Okay,
that's great. He can come in, he can play him,
and but you have to you have to build in

(38:11):
that you know he's likely going to miss time for injury,
and that's just the way it is. Again, he's he's
the Anthony Davis of the NFL.

Speaker 3 (38:17):
Yeah, I know it.

Speaker 5 (38:18):
Immediately begets the other conversation about being top heavy and
spending all money on wide receivers and having to run
for your life behind a bad offensive line, things we've
talked about for years ad nauseum. I like that he
advocated for his guys, but also recognize in roster construction
where where you have those issues. Now for those that
are unaware, because turf tow doesn't sound like much right now,

(38:41):
we're talking about levels and meeting and getting in for
a quick surgery means it's a lot of pain. I
know that's been discussed a lot with former players of
our right. Which of the seemingly bogus injuries that that
you had was the worst and and turf toe gets
cited often so spraying of this soft tissue around the

(39:02):
base of the big toe hyper extension, and then we
get into the degree severity and how much pressure you
could put on can you play through the pain whatever.
In this case, it requires surgery. So out he goes.
Browning leads them on a ninety two yard drive down
the stretch. So if you're in those Jacksonville meeting rooms,
you had this game backup quarterback. He got him three

(39:23):
times early and then he's able to or engineer a
ninety two yard drive to.

Speaker 3 (39:27):
Kinish stage out.

Speaker 4 (39:27):
Come on.

Speaker 1 (39:28):
It's not like Liam Cohene and Trevor Lawrence are yelling
at each other. Come on, man, Oh wait, sorry, sorry.

Speaker 5 (39:32):
A lot of young quarterbacks waving off their coaches this
week in the National Football League, and that one being
the most egregious, but a game that they had and
they gave away. So the Bengals steal one here, and
it'll be curious to watch as you go forward. I mean,
Yoshivash becomes a guy that you start looking at on
the waiver wire because he'd been working with Browning a
little bit. Jamar Chase clearly suffered no ill effects in

(39:56):
the high time caught twenty eight passes yesterday exactly well,
but just saying normally like this guy's gonna go out
there and keep winging. It is the point, right, It's
not suddenly there're gonna be a shrinking violet offense where
you don't have a guy that has the ability to
stretch and utilize your playmakers. It's not like you're gonna
play the Jaguars every game, but the fact that he

(40:17):
came in and immediately started firing at all cylinders. You're
gonna take your shots, the good and the bad, but
you're feeling like you're in a pretty good spot there offensively.
To keep it rolling to your point about the injuries,
you know, the old I hate to say, I told
you so, going back to those poor Bengals fans walking
out all happy and smiley after losing to the Rams
and the Super Bowl.

Speaker 3 (40:37):
We're gonna get back there, that's no problem. Football don't
work that way.

Speaker 1 (40:42):
And now you're you're looking at it year over year
of all right, you got to make sure you got
that room back up room in order. And now you've
got to go tighten up the the other parts of
the the operations because there is a decided drop off.

Speaker 3 (40:56):
I don't care what Browning did in one game, you're.

Speaker 5 (40:59):
Not getting the Burrow that we've seen as a wizard
on the field in these other seasons. So you're gonna
have to shore things up. And I think your GM,
your ownership, it's now become imperative of trying to make
sure you've got a more well rounded, deeper ball club.
And you know, and it's not like when Browning came

(41:19):
in all of a sudden he was tearing it up. No, no,
he struggled, but he was able to move the team
well enough. Look, Cincinnati is talented, and they're talented enough
with weapons, Hey, they can make a wild card like
this is not this doesn't end the season. Still brown
You're okay.

Speaker 1 (41:34):
This now makes you think, okay, can we stay afloat
and hope that he comes back?

Speaker 4 (41:38):
Right?

Speaker 1 (41:38):
And you're hoping hoping up kind of like a couple
of years ago when Rogers tore his achilles and the Jets,
I all stay in it. Maybe by December I'll come
back because he had that fusion surgery and oh well
he said he was coming back returned. Like that's kind
of where you're at. A few the Bengals R, Hey,
stay afloat. Maybe we still have a big season. We
still have a talented team. The division isn't that great.
The Steelers clearly aren't that good. The Browns are terrible.

(41:58):
So maybe maybe, maybe, but but it's not like Browning
is someone who's gonna come into a three four touchdowns
a week. That's not gonna happen.

Speaker 5 (42:05):
No, it's funny though, Like remember that Aaron Rodgers talk
though of whatever healing bros. Is, Like, I want that documentary?
What kind of mystics was he going to do that?
There was even that talk.

Speaker 1 (42:16):
You know what, when when a guy gets hurt the
first time, it's it's the old rule. And this is
this is one of the one of the NFL rules
that doesn't change regardless as to to how you subscribe
to things. Is guy gets hurt the first time, you
look forward to him coming back. Guy gets hurt a
second time, missing a lot of time, and you say, okay,
what's he gonna be like when he gets back. Guy
gets hurt a third time, it's okay, whatever he brings

(42:37):
us now the rest of his career as a bonus
because he can't say. But when it's a quarterback, it's different.
It's different because he's your he is your franchise, and
he is a guy you paid a lot of money too.
He's not someone he's not a defensive tackle. You can
move on from gonna go boy, the guy so talented,
but just every other year we wind up not having
him for the vast majority of the season. It's much
different for Joe Burrow, and that's why you have to

(42:58):
build in. Just like when you have when you have
a Hey, you got to build in. These guys are
gonna get hurt and you just have to figure out
away when it does.

Speaker 3 (43:05):
Joelle Embiid same thing. He's gonna get hurt.

Speaker 1 (43:07):
Just have to hope that it's not that bad the
time away, that they he can get back, stay healthy
the rest of the way and he avoids injury the
rest of the season.

Speaker 3 (43:14):
That's kind of where you're at for Joe Burrow, and
that's unfortunately going to be the rest of his career
how you think about it.

Speaker 5 (43:19):
With the Bengal number of leg injuries, go back to
twenty twenty three where he had that wrist injury that
impacted him. So certainly it becomes one of those great
medical charts or the wacky doctors game operation, depending on
which way you want to go as to which part
of his body is lighting up on the board right now.

Speaker 2 (43:36):
Be sure to catch live editions of the Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 1 (43:46):
Greetings, Welcome inside final Hour tonight the Jason Smith Show
with my best friend Mike Harmon.

Speaker 3 (43:52):
You selfish pastor Yeah, be sure.

Speaker 1 (43:54):
To check out our brand new YouTube channel for the show.
Just go to YouTube dot com slash at Jason Smith Show.
It's YouTube dot com slash at Jason Smith Show. Or
if you're already within YouTube, just search Jason Smith Show.
Be sure to hit the subscribe button. Then don't stop there.
Hit that thumbs up by con comment away. Go check
out a brand new channel on YouTube. Again, just search

(44:14):
Jason Smith Show and subscribe. Get that ampersand up at
Jason Smith Show.

Speaker 2 (44:21):
So it is over in Vegas.

Speaker 1 (44:25):
Finally, we have Monday Night Football to break down two games.
The Chargers hold on to beat the Raiders by the
final score of twenty to nine. It is a two
and oh start for the Chargers. And the first thing
I'm gonna say is this, You know, I think the
Chargers will go to the AFC Championship.

Speaker 4 (44:43):
Kip.

Speaker 1 (44:43):
Their defense looks fantastic, right, Yes, you lose Mac tonight
probably for the season. Looked like it was a dislocate
lose tonight, Uh TJ clearly. Uh you probably don't want
to see the video it's out there, but uh yeah,
I'd leave that probably dislocated elbow. But this Argers defense
is legit. Three interceptions for Gino Smith, and really, I

(45:04):
think the guy made a business decision on fourth and five,
with a couple of minutes left to throw the ball
fifteen yards out of bounds and said, hey, I gotta throw.

Speaker 3 (45:11):
It up in the middle of the field. I mean,
I gotta say.

Speaker 5 (45:13):
If he doesn't get asked that first or second question
in the post game, what do you do?

Speaker 3 (45:18):
Then then everybody in that media room should be fired.
What do you do it? That throw is fifteen yards
out of bounds? Did all you couldn't get was fifteen
yards ahead of your receiver? Fifteen yards?

Speaker 1 (45:29):
It was a.

Speaker 3 (45:29):
Disass throw it to the middle. Throw it to I mean,
do you been doing the whole game tow did Jacoby Myers?
Maybe we'll get a deflection in this one. Bounce back
to your receiver.

Speaker 1 (45:37):
Really, I think the guy made a business decision to
not throw his fourth interception the night.

Speaker 3 (45:42):
I'm not throwing four not doing it.

Speaker 5 (45:43):
Not throwing no way those fours up man, No, not
doing it.

Speaker 3 (45:47):
So this is this is how good the Chargers are.
They're still not running the football well. Right.

Speaker 1 (45:54):
They tried to give the ball to Murray and Hampton.
You think, okay, they're gonna put the the hammer down
and win this game, and he fumbles and the Raiders
take over again again. The one thing I can ding
the Chargers on we'll get to in a second. But
they're still not running the football well. And they look really,
really good. Justin Herbert looks fantastic. He's got these are

(46:14):
central casting number one, number two, number three wide receivers.
He's got Lad McConkie, who is a clear number one
that can get open on any play. You have Quenton Johnston,
who may never be the guy you drafted him to
be in the first round a couple of years ago,
but is he a really good number two? Yes, broke
past the defense for a sixty yard touchdown tonight. Quentin
Johnson is a terrific number two. And you have Keenan

(46:36):
Allen who looks like he never left right, not the
same guy, but still as the number three threat. Now
touchdown early on the security blanket for Herbert like he
was for Thirs. This is all you need. The Chargers
look terrific. The only thing I can tell you is,
and this is the one thing I can say. First
couple of weeks. Yeah, I'd like to see them be

(46:58):
able to finish an opponent when they get a chance to. Right,
that's the only thing I can say, Hey, finish, because
tonight they should have finished the Raiders. Sure, but they did.
The Raiders hung around for a long time. They're on
the two yard line. You gotta punch that ball in.
Go up twenty seven to six games over, No, couldn't
do it at twenty to nine. All right, we're gonna
get the ball back, We're gonna run clock, and we're

(47:18):
gonna win that. Nope, Amaron Hnton fumbles. You gotta have
another defensive stand. Luckily, your defense is that good and
you're able to have that defensive stand.

Speaker 3 (47:25):
But that's the only thing.

Speaker 1 (47:26):
And I'm kind of nitpicky through two games, but that's
the only thing I could say is that. Boy, I'd
like to see the Chargers finish more. If they could
run the football better, they will probably be able to
finish a little bit better, But I'll completely take where
the Chargers are right now because they look so good
through the first.

Speaker 5 (47:40):
Yeah, we'll see what happens for Jesse Minter's defense going forward.

Speaker 3 (47:43):
Khalil Mack will be gone.

Speaker 5 (47:45):
And you know we watched certainly through the first two weeks,
you played two of the top tight ends. Whatever you
think of Travis Kelsey's still in the upper echelons of
tight ends week one and then you go week two
and Brock Bowers, I know he was a little bit
dinged up coming into the game, but he played in
Derwin James erase his tight end. So there's your fantasy
advice going forward, so long as he's on the field,

(48:07):
and certainly their defense goes as he does. Right you
saw him drifting back and coming in with the tip
on that third interception when they were getting the ball.
Did Jacoby Myers look like he was open. Nope, there's
Derwin James to make the tip and create the turnover.
Once again, the run game will get there, right panic
buying slash selling in fantasy land coming off of here,

(48:30):
both for Hampton and Genty, Genty can't stay on the
field because he can't pass block. He wants no part
of it, which is interesting because he's a guy that
seems like he runs out of his way to create
contact as a runner coming up at you. But for Hampton,
it'll take time. You'll get there. Remember the offensive line
still a work in progress, having lost for Sean Slater

(48:51):
right before the season, so you're still adjusting a little
bit there the handoff that was botched, Give a little
bit to Herbert getting that a little too high up
in the bread basket and Hampton looking up and it's like,
you know, the scene is Crosby is standing right there.

Speaker 3 (49:06):
That's what I gotta say.

Speaker 5 (49:06):
It's like the scene in Jaws where Richard Dreyfus suddenly
is like turns around trying to figure out where the
shark is.

Speaker 3 (49:12):
Oh damn it. There it is, right at the cage. Yeah,
that was it.

Speaker 5 (49:14):
There's Max to Crosby ready to hammer you before you're
even able to put the ball away. So yeah, I
mean the timing and continuity on that'll be better. But
to your point about the receivers, you got three guys,
and now you add Trey. Harris has a little extra
thing to sprinkle in for a couple of targets downfield.
He had to catch a twenty four yards. You got
a lot that you're loving here because justin Herbert played

(49:37):
from a pretty clean pocket most of the night. So offensively,
it'll click. Defensively, we'll see how you account for the
loss of Mac. But these guys did a hell of
a job. I mean, Henley was fantastic, right. I mean,
he's showing up all over Las Vegas right now, he's
at the Sphere, and then he's making plays here at Allegiant.
I mean, come on, I.

Speaker 3 (49:55):
Mean, look, there's a reason why, because you know I
picked the Chargers go to the ANFC chan Yeah, I understand,
did that right?

Speaker 1 (50:00):
Yeah? I think Frostburg must have made some threats. He's
gonna be so mad as the season goes off. But look,
the defense is legit and Herbert reminding everyone this is
the player I was.

Speaker 4 (50:13):
Well.

Speaker 1 (50:13):
I remember Jim Harbaugh kept saying all off season, my
job is to get him to the Hall of Fame.
And that's a great thing to say, you know what
I mean, though, Like, but that's a guy where I generally,
I mean, unless he's talking about how his roster was
constructed and wins were garnered in Michigan, I believe him.

Speaker 3 (50:31):
I look, look all.

Speaker 5 (50:33):
Of that stuff. I mean, I take with a great assault.
But when he says he wants Justin Herbert to be great, yeah,
I believe him. Well, I really hope he also realized.

Speaker 1 (50:40):
You know, after coming in, and you could tell the
beginning when he got the job, it was I didn't
know Justin Herbert would still be the quarterback this year
because it seemed like I want to build the team
a certain way. I want to build it with a
sledgehammer running game, and didn't really feel like he was
all in on Herbert. Now, Herbert wasn't quite the same
quarterback when when Harbaugh came in as he was in
the very early in the earlier parts of his careers. Think, ah,

(51:03):
did Herbert kind of peak? Is He's still great and
now you're seeing he's getting back to being that player
that he was. They won the first two games this
year on Herbert's right arm. Had a rough start tonight
through most of the first quarter. Guess what didn't matter.
He was able to come back and he was I
think you go fourteen out of fifteen his.

Speaker 5 (51:19):
Next fifteen, Yes, he had all run where suddenly he
was fifteen to twenty for the game.

Speaker 1 (51:24):
I mean, he hasn't been this guy in a few years.
And now look at where Herbert is now. He may
not be ever back to throwing thirty eight touchdowns winning
passing championships, but last year twenty three touchdowns three picks.
I get you probably more this year on the touchdown perspective,
I se him close to thirty touchdowns. I can see that,
and and the wins are gonna come. But this clearly

(51:46):
this Charger team is terrific. I mean, I feel like
so many years we've fallen for the talent of the Chargers,
how good they are, and they fall short. But with
Hardbaugh and this team being now remade in his image,
how he wants to make this team. I mean it, man,
Like the Chargers and the Broncos are two teams that
are taking on the personality and the talent level of

(52:08):
their coaches.

Speaker 3 (52:11):
They are. They're taking huge steps over the course of
the past eighteen months.

Speaker 5 (52:14):
Doesn't mean I'm still not afraid, you know, to get
sucked in the old banana and the tailpipe kind of
thing to where they let me down down the stretch.
But as it stands, you've got good balance on this roster.

Speaker 3 (52:27):
The run game.

Speaker 1 (52:28):
As we said, it'll get better. Hampton's pretty good back,
and we saw a little more of Najie Harrison the
run game. Remember he had the fourth of July incident,
so his availability at all to start the season was
in question. So you'll get a little more semblance of
consistency there. Your teams meet up next week. It's the
odd schedule. You know how much I love this.

Speaker 5 (52:49):
Three division games right off the jump, and then it
goes away for a while.

Speaker 3 (52:54):
But they played.

Speaker 5 (52:55):
Denver, and I would think right now is a good
time to catch the Broncos because that defense is in
anything it's been advertised.

Speaker 1 (53:03):
They're still trying to figure things out offensively. Maybe Franklin
is jumping up as a number that's the.

Speaker 5 (53:08):
Right, but you're still trying to short between those guys
week to week. Bo Nicks has been inconsistent at the trigger.
The run game has been spotty as you're still trying
to parse that out between Dobbins and Harvey. But but
the defense is really the tale of the tape. We
I think we all stipulate that Sean Payton's offense will
find it stride. Yeah, Yeah, the Chargers get him in

(53:32):
week three. It's the perfect time after what you watched
him in nearly five hundred yards of offense for the
Colts this week.

Speaker 1 (53:39):
Exit out about a Fresca exit Swallen Dome, Jason Smith,
Mike Harmon.

Speaker 3 (53:43):
Now the early game tonight. We spent last the last
couple of hours talking a lot about Baker Mayfield and
the level that he is playing at that these I
can't believe he still is under rage one the top
seven quarterbacks in the game.

Speaker 1 (53:52):
That tattoo artist is halfway done with the one you're
putting on your thigh. But the flip side of it, right,
We've talked about this on Thirdday night Man. The Commanders
need to go get a running back, right, you know,
Bill Krossky Merritt's a great story, but clearly you need
another playmaker there, right, Jayden Daniels need someone to be
able to run the football, and they don't have that.
They got to go out and get a running back soon, right,

(54:13):
whether it's Breise Hall or somebody else. Look at you
tonight to sell off component parts in the Jets tonight.
I can say the same thing for the Texans, right,
they had the lead late, they give it up. This
is the second week in a row. The Texans offense
not great.

Speaker 3 (54:28):
Let's score ten points in the first quarter and that
was it.

Speaker 1 (54:31):
I mean, look, last look, the Rams defense is terrific,
so I get it. Last week that was a battle
of heavyweights. But the Texans offense, like, you're gonna just
fritter away what could be a great season because you
don't have another receiver.

Speaker 4 (54:45):
Right.

Speaker 1 (54:45):
Nico Collins is terrific, right, he shown he's with the
top level, number one wide receiver talent in the NFL.

Speaker 3 (54:52):
But over the last couple of seasons, CJ. Stroud's level
of play has gone down, and you can directly correlate
that to the injuries and lack of production you get
from the wide receiver position. Right when it was Collins
and Diggs and you had Tank Dell and suddenly, wow, CJ.
Stroud is really good. But you know Diggs didn't work out,
he's gone, and now Tank Dell, who knows when he

(55:14):
gets back on the field again. He was as uncoverable
as a guy. Gad be tough man.

Speaker 5 (55:18):
That was one of those guys that you watched and
with great anticipation of that deep shot, when were they
going to make it hit?

Speaker 1 (55:25):
Two injuries now for him, And now the Texans are
trying to make it work with Collins and a couple
of young guys. You're trying to make Justin Watson work.
They don't have the horses throwing the football to be
able to put points up the way they need to.

Speaker 3 (55:40):
CJ.

Speaker 1 (55:40):
Stroud's a good quarterback, but he's not elevating the guys
around me. He needs another couple of weapons because Dalton
Schultz has become an, okay, a threat at tight end.
And look, we had the nice touchdown run from Nick
Chubb tonight, a little bit of way back machine, but
is he still really the same running back? Like this
offense needs something, and they need another receiver. They need
a number two because it's not like Nico Collins to someone,

(56:02):
I'm gonna throw the ball up to him, He's gonna
come down with it. Right, He's not Justin Jefferson, Right,
He's not that guy.

Speaker 3 (56:06):
He's really good.

Speaker 4 (56:07):
Right.

Speaker 1 (56:07):
You saw the big fourth down play in the fourth
quarter where they decided to go for it and they
ran a roll out play and Nico Collins is covered
and that's it. There's nothing else you can do. They
need somebody. The big news in the good news is
that there's gonna be a plethora. Would you say there
is a preatha There will be a plethora of receivers
available before the deadline, whether it's Tyreek Hill or somebody else,

(56:29):
or even even a tight end whatever you want to do. Hey,
maybe Tray Colston Lovelin because he's not going.

Speaker 3 (56:33):
On the field two games. Yeah, they need.

Speaker 1 (56:37):
Another wide receiver and they need one soon because that's
what's gonna help make that offense go. Like we saw
the need that the commander's need for running back on
Thursday night, Texas need for another wide receiver or couple
of Nico Collins.

Speaker 3 (56:48):
You absolutely have to have that.

Speaker 5 (56:49):
I mean, you had the big jail break from Nick Chubb.
But other than that, I don't know that he averaged
falling forward.

Speaker 3 (56:54):
What is he about? Six feet tall? Two yards?

Speaker 5 (56:57):
No, that's about right. That's about where he was until
that big breakout run. But otherwise you're looking at a
very pedestrian offense. You know, we go team to team
and it's like all right, here's and this The critique
in Chicaga, right, is that back to back weeks after
last year not scoring at all on an opening possession
here on the script. In the early moments of games,

(57:20):
you're able to get on on pace, on targets, stay
on script, on down distance, and make place for the
Texans that worked early. But then adjustments. Tampa's d then
clamps down, and you're getting nothing in the secondary passing game.
Remember you also lost components, the key components of what
was already a bad offensive line left right, So now

(57:42):
you're also trying to fix and get your five dancing
bears together. And I know you laugh at me because
I bring this up all time, but it's like, if
I don't have continuity there, I'm sure as hell not
get in continuity in my running game. And my quarterback's
never getting comfortable like it's the it's the multi pronged
approach to this.

Speaker 3 (57:57):
And for CJ.

Speaker 5 (57:58):
Stroud, his com confidence looks a little shaken at times,
but then he laid out those throws to call it.

Speaker 3 (58:05):
But they have to be just so precise.

Speaker 5 (58:07):
There's no separation and there's nobody else to take away
any of that pressure, which means you're in for a long,
long season where the defense is going to have to
be superhuman