September 20, 2024 • 9 mins
Myron Medcalf joins Next Up to preview the Week 13 matchup between the Houston Texans and Minnesota Vikings, where he will be a sideline reporter for ESPN Radio. Both the Texans and Vikings are 2-0, with the Vikings coming off a 23-17 upset over the San Francisco 49ers. "I think it will be competitive," Medcalf said. Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold recorded 268 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception against the 49ers. "Minnesota found the right quarterback for what they have." Head coach Kevin O'Connell has dialed up an effective offense for Darnold after J.J. McCarthy endured a season-ending injury, and defensive coordinator Brian Flores has built a strong defense that "will take more gambles to try and get to C.J. Stroud."
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
As our Texans border playing on Saturday, head up to Minneapolis, Minnesota,
the Twin Cities downtown there in Minneapolis is where we
find us Bank Stadium and where we go now via
the guest line, you hear this gentleman's work on ESPN
Radio Game Day Sunday morning as well with a friend
of mine Matt Jones, the great Myron Metcalf.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Huge fan of the show.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Thank you for making your maiden voyage here on Next
Up Sports Talk seven nighty in Htown.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
Welcome, No, thank you for having me man. I really
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
All right, So now to here with the pleasantries.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
We're coming up there to whoop y'all ass and I
know you scared them my quarterback number seven because you
don't believe in Sam Bleep and Donald tell the truth?
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Nah unlessen. First off, I'm from Wisconsin, so you know
I don't know about you know, and you know I'm
fortunate enough to be on the broadcast ESPN Radio this Sunday,
so I'll be a sideline reporder for the game Texas
and Viking, so I'm looking forward to the seeing them.
I think it's been a surprise for a lot of people,
right because when you had Agen McCarthy and a lot
(01:01):
of people thought eventually he might become a starter. There
was this idea of, all right, you got a Richard quarterback,
everybody's gonna take it slow. You'll let him grow and evolve. Right,
But what ends up happening is you bringing a veteran
like Sam Donald and you're given weapons like Justin Jefferson
and this great defense, and all of a sudden you
have a two of those starts. So I think this
is another huge test for a team that just beat
(01:21):
the forty nine ers. A lot of people think that's
gonna be the best team in the NFC once they
get healthy. So I think it'll be competitive, you know,
between those two teams.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Ah, you still ain't answer my question Sam Donald versus
c J. Like in Minnesota, I.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Got a question though. That's not a question though, I mean,
that's not I mean, what are we talk about.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
You, Sam Donald?
Speaker 1 (01:45):
Top five QB, y'all passer writing, look standy beat the
forty nine ers.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Ooh, I've seen Sam.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Donnay minimize that though. Yeah, but you can't, man, you
can't just ignore that. I mean, at the end of
the day, two different quarterbacks, right, I mean, you see
this Stride is bying to be one of the best
quarterbacks in this league. I mean, it's certainly one of
the best young quarterbacks, is not the best young quarterback
in the NFL right now, So I mean everybody knows
that about Dish, which is why you go out and
get to find Diggs and Joe Mixon and all the
(02:13):
other pieces you add because you feel like, hey, maybe
you can make a run while he's stilling those rookie
deal because it's gonna cost three hundred million dollars maybe
more to keep him once it's time for him to
get paid. But I do think Minnesota found the right
quarterback for what it has. You want to spend too
much up Kirk Cousins. You didn't want to spend too
much at the Kirk Cousins. You didn't, And now you
(02:34):
have a guy who, with the pieces around him, is
actually leading a pretty good offense. I don't think you
can deny that in the first two weeks of the season. So,
I mean some of this is just fout. Do y'all
believe in facts? In Texas we wanted to do. We
want to just make stuff up. Guess what I'm six
(02:56):
foot eight and I can play in the NBA. Is
that what we want to do.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
They're called stantalytics, and that's why I keep selling a lot.
They're ready to go. Right here my roomat CAB is
being game day, joining us from Minnesota. And look before
I come to you, Gor there, Kevin O'Connor. In that
first year, thirteen and four, they win the NFC North,
they lose to the Giants in the wildcard game, Kirk
Cousin leaves he oh, he's gone now no more, Dalvin Cook.
(03:23):
That roster looks a lot different. Seven and ten last
year all to a two and oh start. When I
started talking about Demico Ryans and the coaching staffs from
the respective teams locking going up and getting the cracking
there on Sunday.
Speaker 2 (03:38):
Are you a big koc fan? Is he the real deal?
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Him and Florees versus our guys Slok and Demico Ryans.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I mean, you're probably looking at two of the best
tandems in the league right between the two. I say something,
I think one of the best, one of the best
defensive mines in the league and the Beacon Rys. What
he's done that's undeniable. And I think Kevin O'Connor has
been one of the best offensive mind Why what I
like about both is I think this younger generation of
coaches is not like the older generation. Remember the older generation,
(04:07):
they had to control everything. They have to be in
charge of every facet of the game, and they pay
for that right because you can't be great at everything.
Whereas I think a lot of these younger coaches coming up,
they're willing to say, you know what, this isn't my
straight let me go find someone who is better at
this than I am. And I think the Texans have
done that in the Viking tab them as well. I
think Kevin O'Connell's really proven themselves so far because you're
(04:30):
bringing a guy like Sam Donald who's only started seven
games since twenty twenty two, and you look at what
he's been able to do. Call him a system quarterback
if you want, and I think what he's true. But
here's the thing. This league is system quarterbacks. There aren't
that many quarterbacks who really separate themselves, and I think
(04:50):
if you put them in the right scheme, you protect them.
And now you have that Brian Flores defense, which has
really done a great job of pressure on quarterbacks. You
got a chance to be competitive maybe beyond people thought, Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
I'm kind of with you. That's what I'm trying to get.
Get Stand to kind of come over to here and
give the vikings a little.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Better, like the fan comes over to anything around that
head and Stand just kind of decides that, you know,
this is what we're doing, and then that's just it.
It feels like that. That's then he says that.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
The blue dress is green. You gotta go with the
blue dressing.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Grilla, I know, sand at the barbecue. At the barbecue,
nobody gets to touch the grill when Stand is there, right,
it might name be his house. He just gets on
the grill and nobody gets to come there. When he's
at your house and you watching the TV, he grabs
the remote and says, hold on a second, I want
to change the channel. Because that's just kind of how
he operates. I really feel like, based on a few
(05:47):
minutes I've known him, that that's kind of his approach
on this show.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
We bleep people, so bleep you go ahead, God it here.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
It is as good as the Miko is, and look,
he deserves all his roses. Reality is, the Texans were
four and four team on the road last season four
and five. If you include the playoff loss in Baltimore
and your point, they dominated time of possession Week one
in Indianapolis forty minutes to twenty minutes, they must have
dominated the game, right, No, they won by two, twenty
nine to twenty seven. I'm just saying, if we keep
(06:15):
dismissing Sam Darnold and we keep saying bar the Texans
defense better than their defense, you gotta give a hat
tip to what they've looked liked these first two weeks.
And I know Week one was against the Giants. We
two was against the forty nine ers, who, by the way,
were without their running back. How much does that hurt
the Texans this week? Without having Joe Mixon, without having
Damian Pierce cam Akers. We think he can get the
(06:37):
job done. But if they can't run the football, they're
in trouble.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Yeah, I mean, I mean, obviously he puts more pressure
on see this Stroud, But they're dealing with a lot
of injuries to I mean, Jusin Jeferson right now questionable.
Will he be one hundred percent? He says he's gonna
play Jordan Addison. What's his status? So there's a bunch
of injeris on both sides, But I do think I
think Brian Flores will be willing to take more gambles
to try to get to c J. Stroud because of
those challenges in the run game, but to put more
(07:02):
pressure on the receivers where you know, it feels like CJ.
Stroud with Spon Diggs in town, is still trying to
figure out who's my one, two, three. I mean that
may change from game to game, but like once you
get to week six with seven, you got to have
your lineup right, and I think right now they're still
trying to figure that out. But you also got to
get a guy who I think is a top five
quarterback in the NFL right now in CJ. Stroud, So
(07:24):
there won't be any excuses. You know, you have been
elevated to that degree because of how good you are.
My concern about CJ. Stroud is because he was so
good in year one. I hope people still give him
grace through some of the growing pains that will be there,
because it's inevitable for any quarterback that you still have
things to learn. In a moment like this, I think
is gonna be a learning experience because on the road
(07:47):
against this Brian Flord's defense that will come at you
no matter who you are, and a Vikings offensive attack
that's been really steady and consistent. I think this will
certainly be a test for the Texas.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
We'll get you out of here on this one. My
Romit caf for ESPN's Game Day as well as Sunday
Mornings on ESPN Radio, gracious enough to give us his
time as he'll be reporting now on the sidelines for
Houston at Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Keys to victory or what you will be looking for?
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Area your eyes gravitate to the first without take the
quarterbacks out of it.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
What are you looking for? A kind of keys the victory?
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I think it's gonna be. I'll see this shot operates
in third and long, you know. I think that's gonna
be an element because I think Brian Floores with that
run attack, they're really gonna gamble put a lot of
pressure on them. And on the road, you're gonna be
in a lot of situations. I think if you're CJ.
Stroud where it's third and eight, third and nine, potentially,
how do you respond in those situations when there's more
pressure on you? And I think on the Viking side.
It is Sam Donald real, you know, is this really
(08:44):
the guy that we've seen the first couple of weeks
or is he gonna go back to the more problematic
Sam Donald we witness in past year. So he's the
kind of guy who went as great. It's great, but
he can also really fall apart sometimes in these big moments.
And there's anybody I wouldn't want to face who has
two it's a game film in this offense on me,
it beat Demico Ryan, So I think those would be
the keys to victory. So I'm looking forward to seeing
(09:06):
what happened.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
All right.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
That is the voice of Myron Metcalf. You can follow
him at that Metcalf by ESPN on social.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Well, I'm going to the movies. I'm going to the
movies this weekend. Stand what movie do I have to see?
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Transformers?
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Okay? I gotta see that? All right? Okay?
Speaker 2 (09:22):
You know what.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
I was gonna take you to lunch next time you
come to a town, but you've been so flagrantly for me.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
I can't go to lunch. You would order for me,
you know what, I don't want the shrimp, but you
would order that from it. We can't do that.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Yeah, I'm gonna I'm gonna get you off my program
and bleep you while you're not listening.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Appreciate all right, bro, take care. How a great call
man appreciate
As our Texans border playing on Saturday, head up to Minneapolis, Minnesota,
the Twin Cities downtown there in Minneapolis is where we
find us Bank Stadium and where we go now via
the guest line, you hear this gentleman's work on ESPN
Radio Game Day Sunday morning as well with a friend
of mine Matt Jones, the great Myron Metcalf.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Huge fan of the show.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Thank you for making your maiden voyage here on Next
Up Sports Talk seven nighty in Htown.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
Welcome, No, thank you for having me man. I really
appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
All right, So now to here with the pleasantries.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
We're coming up there to whoop y'all ass and I
know you scared them my quarterback number seven because you
don't believe in Sam Bleep and Donald tell the truth?
Speaker 3 (00:41):
Nah unlessen. First off, I'm from Wisconsin, so you know
I don't know about you know, and you know I'm
fortunate enough to be on the broadcast ESPN Radio this Sunday,
so I'll be a sideline reporder for the game Texas
and Viking, so I'm looking forward to the seeing them.
I think it's been a surprise for a lot of people,
right because when you had Agen McCarthy and a lot
(01:01):
of people thought eventually he might become a starter. There
was this idea of, all right, you got a Richard quarterback,
everybody's gonna take it slow. You'll let him grow and evolve. Right,
But what ends up happening is you bringing a veteran
like Sam Donald and you're given weapons like Justin Jefferson
and this great defense, and all of a sudden you
have a two of those starts. So I think this
is another huge test for a team that just beat
(01:21):
the forty nine ers. A lot of people think that's
gonna be the best team in the NFC once they
get healthy. So I think it'll be competitive, you know,
between those two teams.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Ah, you still ain't answer my question Sam Donald versus
c J. Like in Minnesota, I.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Got a question though. That's not a question though, I mean,
that's not I mean, what are we talk about.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
You, Sam Donald?
Speaker 1 (01:45):
Top five QB, y'all passer writing, look standy beat the
forty nine ers.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Ooh, I've seen Sam.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Donnay minimize that though. Yeah, but you can't, man, you
can't just ignore that. I mean, at the end of
the day, two different quarterbacks, right, I mean, you see
this Stride is bying to be one of the best
quarterbacks in this league. I mean, it's certainly one of
the best young quarterbacks, is not the best young quarterback
in the NFL right now, So I mean everybody knows
that about Dish, which is why you go out and
get to find Diggs and Joe Mixon and all the
(02:13):
other pieces you add because you feel like, hey, maybe
you can make a run while he's stilling those rookie
deal because it's gonna cost three hundred million dollars maybe
more to keep him once it's time for him to
get paid. But I do think Minnesota found the right
quarterback for what it has. You want to spend too
much up Kirk Cousins. You didn't want to spend too
much at the Kirk Cousins. You didn't, And now you
(02:34):
have a guy who, with the pieces around him, is
actually leading a pretty good offense. I don't think you
can deny that in the first two weeks of the season. So,
I mean some of this is just fout. Do y'all
believe in facts? In Texas we wanted to do. We
want to just make stuff up. Guess what I'm six
(02:56):
foot eight and I can play in the NBA. Is
that what we want to do.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
They're called stantalytics, and that's why I keep selling a lot.
They're ready to go. Right here my roomat CAB is
being game day, joining us from Minnesota. And look before
I come to you, Gor there, Kevin O'Connor. In that
first year, thirteen and four, they win the NFC North,
they lose to the Giants in the wildcard game, Kirk
Cousin leaves he oh, he's gone now no more, Dalvin Cook.
(03:23):
That roster looks a lot different. Seven and ten last
year all to a two and oh start. When I
started talking about Demico Ryans and the coaching staffs from
the respective teams locking going up and getting the cracking
there on Sunday.
Speaker 2 (03:38):
Are you a big koc fan? Is he the real deal?
Speaker 1 (03:40):
Him and Florees versus our guys Slok and Demico Ryans.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I mean, you're probably looking at two of the best
tandems in the league right between the two. I say something,
I think one of the best, one of the best
defensive mines in the league and the Beacon Rys. What
he's done that's undeniable. And I think Kevin O'Connor has
been one of the best offensive mind Why what I
like about both is I think this younger generation of
coaches is not like the older generation. Remember the older generation,
(04:07):
they had to control everything. They have to be in
charge of every facet of the game, and they pay
for that right because you can't be great at everything.
Whereas I think a lot of these younger coaches coming up,
they're willing to say, you know what, this isn't my
straight let me go find someone who is better at
this than I am. And I think the Texans have
done that in the Viking tab them as well. I
think Kevin O'Connell's really proven themselves so far because you're
(04:30):
bringing a guy like Sam Donald who's only started seven
games since twenty twenty two, and you look at what
he's been able to do. Call him a system quarterback
if you want, and I think what he's true. But
here's the thing. This league is system quarterbacks. There aren't
that many quarterbacks who really separate themselves, and I think
(04:50):
if you put them in the right scheme, you protect them.
And now you have that Brian Flores defense, which has
really done a great job of pressure on quarterbacks. You
got a chance to be competitive maybe beyond people thought, Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
I'm kind of with you. That's what I'm trying to get.
Get Stand to kind of come over to here and
give the vikings a little.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Better, like the fan comes over to anything around that
head and Stand just kind of decides that, you know,
this is what we're doing, and then that's just it.
It feels like that. That's then he says that.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
The blue dress is green. You gotta go with the
blue dressing.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Grilla, I know, sand at the barbecue. At the barbecue,
nobody gets to touch the grill when Stand is there, right,
it might name be his house. He just gets on
the grill and nobody gets to come there. When he's
at your house and you watching the TV, he grabs
the remote and says, hold on a second, I want
to change the channel. Because that's just kind of how
he operates. I really feel like, based on a few
(05:47):
minutes I've known him, that that's kind of his approach
on this show.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
We bleep people, so bleep you go ahead, God it here.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
It is as good as the Miko is, and look,
he deserves all his roses. Reality is, the Texans were
four and four team on the road last season four
and five. If you include the playoff loss in Baltimore
and your point, they dominated time of possession Week one
in Indianapolis forty minutes to twenty minutes, they must have
dominated the game, right, No, they won by two, twenty
nine to twenty seven. I'm just saying, if we keep
(06:15):
dismissing Sam Darnold and we keep saying bar the Texans
defense better than their defense, you gotta give a hat
tip to what they've looked liked these first two weeks.
And I know Week one was against the Giants. We
two was against the forty nine ers, who, by the way,
were without their running back. How much does that hurt
the Texans this week? Without having Joe Mixon, without having
Damian Pierce cam Akers. We think he can get the
(06:37):
job done. But if they can't run the football, they're
in trouble.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Yeah, I mean, I mean, obviously he puts more pressure
on see this Stroud, But they're dealing with a lot
of injuries to I mean, Jusin Jeferson right now questionable.
Will he be one hundred percent? He says he's gonna
play Jordan Addison. What's his status? So there's a bunch
of injeris on both sides, But I do think I
think Brian Flores will be willing to take more gambles
to try to get to c J. Stroud because of
those challenges in the run game, but to put more
(07:02):
pressure on the receivers where you know, it feels like CJ.
Stroud with Spon Diggs in town, is still trying to
figure out who's my one, two, three. I mean that
may change from game to game, but like once you
get to week six with seven, you got to have
your lineup right, and I think right now they're still
trying to figure that out. But you also got to
get a guy who I think is a top five
quarterback in the NFL right now in CJ. Stroud, So
(07:24):
there won't be any excuses. You know, you have been
elevated to that degree because of how good you are.
My concern about CJ. Stroud is because he was so
good in year one. I hope people still give him
grace through some of the growing pains that will be there,
because it's inevitable for any quarterback that you still have
things to learn. In a moment like this, I think
is gonna be a learning experience because on the road
(07:47):
against this Brian Flord's defense that will come at you
no matter who you are, and a Vikings offensive attack
that's been really steady and consistent. I think this will
certainly be a test for the Texas.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
We'll get you out of here on this one. My
Romit caf for ESPN's Game Day as well as Sunday
Mornings on ESPN Radio, gracious enough to give us his
time as he'll be reporting now on the sidelines for
Houston at Minnesota.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Keys to victory or what you will be looking for?
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Area your eyes gravitate to the first without take the
quarterbacks out of it.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
What are you looking for? A kind of keys the victory?
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I think it's gonna be. I'll see this shot operates
in third and long, you know. I think that's gonna
be an element because I think Brian Floores with that
run attack, they're really gonna gamble put a lot of
pressure on them. And on the road, you're gonna be
in a lot of situations. I think if you're CJ.
Stroud where it's third and eight, third and nine, potentially,
how do you respond in those situations when there's more
pressure on you? And I think on the Viking side.
It is Sam Donald real, you know, is this really
(08:44):
the guy that we've seen the first couple of weeks
or is he gonna go back to the more problematic
Sam Donald we witness in past year. So he's the
kind of guy who went as great. It's great, but
he can also really fall apart sometimes in these big moments.
And there's anybody I wouldn't want to face who has
two it's a game film in this offense on me,
it beat Demico Ryan, So I think those would be
the keys to victory. So I'm looking forward to seeing
(09:06):
what happened.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
All right.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
That is the voice of Myron Metcalf. You can follow
him at that Metcalf by ESPN on social.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Well, I'm going to the movies. I'm going to the
movies this weekend. Stand what movie do I have to see?
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Transformers?
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Okay? I gotta see that? All right? Okay?
Speaker 2 (09:22):
You know what.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
I was gonna take you to lunch next time you
come to a town, but you've been so flagrantly for me.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
I can't go to lunch. You would order for me,
you know what, I don't want the shrimp, but you
would order that from it. We can't do that.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
Yeah, I'm gonna I'm gonna get you off my program
and bleep you while you're not listening.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
Appreciate all right, bro, take care. How a great call
man appreciate
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