November 27, 2024 • 10 mins
Brian Billick, Super Bowl-winning head coach and NFL commentator, joined "The Matt Thomas Show with Ross" to preview the Houston Texans traveling to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars in an AFC South matchup. The Texans are coming off a disappointing 32-27 loss to the Tennessee Titans but still hold a two-game lead in the division. "There's plenty of time to get that rhythm," Billick said. Billick also gave his Super Bowl predictions and discussed the possibility of Deion Sanders coaching in the NFL.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Is one of the most respected coaches and broadcasters you'll
find out there. We speak of Brian Billick, Super Bowl
thirty five champion head coach with us here on the
Matt Thomas Show with Ross Coach. It's Matt and Chris here.
Thanks for joining us, and I would like you to
be an amateur therapist for the Houston sports fans, because
they're wigging out right now. This Texan football team is,
(00:23):
needless to say, underperforming the last handful of weeks. As
you watch them occasionally and how much you are what
are you seeing right now that maybe you didn't see
it earlier in the season.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Well, they just got to hang tight because the AFC
in particulars clustered, clustered pretty tight.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
There's a lot of capable teams.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Certainly Kansas City is the lead at ten to one,
but they've shown some vulnerabilities as well. Or there's Kansas City, Buffalo, Pittsburgh.
I throw Houston into that mix, Baltimore and even the Chargers.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
They're all right there.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
I could give you three reasons why everyone h one
of them is going to the Super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
I give you three why reasons why they're not.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Yeah, clearly Houston and this is a game of momentum,
and right now they just don't have the momentum. That's
the biggest thing that would have to concern you. They've
shown signs of a CJ. Stroud has been spectacular at times,
the last little bit the interception, So the inconsistency is
a concern, but that doesn't mean that you can't get
it back, because they certainly have shown the signs of it,
(01:22):
particularly early in the season. And there's plenty of time
to get that rhythm to be that team that finishes strong,
particularly knowing that you have the capability and what is
a wide open conference to go to the super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
You can still make a run at this thing.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
So they have time to get them on that momentum back,
but they got to kick it in pretty quick.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Here. Brian Billick is with us.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
He is here courtesy of x Tech Pads, and we'll
be talking more with him about that coming up in
a couple of minutes. Coach, the offensive line has been
a season long issue between formation issues, holdings, past protection,
and my philosophy has been and you obviously know this
significantly better than anybody that's in our audience. I feel
like part of the regression for CJ this year is
(02:06):
his inability to step into throws. I think he's a
little more hesitant. I don't think he trusts his line.
Every quarterback, as you know, coach has to feel pressure.
But I feel like this has really become something that
has affected the timing and the fluidity of CJ's throws
were last year, even when there was a little bit
of pressure, he was able to dance a little bit,
get around it and still make some great throws. And
(02:27):
I just feel like some of those plays that were
those mind blowing wild plays aren't a part of this
year's offense.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
And there's no question that when you're struggling with the
offensive line for whatever reason, whether it's injuries, you have
different guys in and out of the lineup. As a quarterback,
even though you support those guys and you want to
feel good about it, when that's in the back of
your mind on every play you drop back to pass,
that's not good because it can it gnaws away at
(02:54):
your focus that you've got to have down the field.
And so that is a reason, a big part of
the reason why c J. Stroud may not be quite
as comfortable in the pocket or you realize, you know,
you talk about that perverbial clock that goes off in
your head as to how long I can be in
here before that speeds up, and it speeds up probably
more arbitrarily than it should, and he starts to get
(03:16):
more jittery in the pocket even when he is solid
in the pocket, and that affects everything about the timing.
So he's got to kind of get that back, or
they've got to get him outside the pocket a little
bit more by design, just to let him settle down
so that he can make, like you say, those hyge
popping plays.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
We were used to seeing sarking.
Speaker 4 (03:34):
With coach Brian Billick and coach THEOC Bobby Slowick. He's
getting a ton of criticism this year when it comes
to the Texans offense. They've been great scoring in the
first half, with the second half of games offense just
is bogged down. Six times this year they have failed
to score a second half touchdown. As a former play
call of yourself, what's the reason for that? Is it
getting too conservative because you got a lead? Is it
(03:55):
the other defense making halftime adjustments? What have you seen
what would cause the offense bog down the second half?
Like it has this year.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Well, it's the flow of the game as much as anything.
And if you are struggling in an area you go
over the course of an entire game, it's going to
show up. You can maybe hide it, or the flow
of the game allows you to hide it in the
first couple series, or even in the first half. If
you've got a couple of nice series, you've got a
nice rhythm, maybe your defense is playing well, and you know,
(04:26):
just the natural flow of the game. But when you've
got to go to the entire sixty minutes, then those flaws
are going to show.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Up at some point.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
It's just like the quarterback that you know, on a
twenty five throw game, he can be spectacular, but what
does he do on a forty five throw game when
he has to really put the game on his shoulders.
And that may be the case, but that by the
time you get into the second half, now some of
the inequities you have or some of the issues have
are definitely going to show up at some point. So yeah,
(04:54):
it is a challenge. I don't know that it's a
difference in play calling or the approach that you're taking,
or your lack of a US I don't know that
that's the case as much as it is. The true
personality of your team is going to come out via
the whole course of the game, particularly in the second half.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Tamiko has been pretty a loyal guy, right. He brought
Sloak with him over from San fran and he believes
in him and every you know, everything last year was awesome.
We were praying that Sloak wouldn't get a head coaching
job and we could keep him here and they weren't
able to keep him. But at what point does it
get bad enough you would consider making an in season change?
And I bring that up because some people really believe
in Gerad Johnson, who's the quarterbacks coach. They think he's
(05:31):
an up and comer as a play caller. Is that
something you ever had to do in your career fire
and assistant in season?
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
Yeah, And it's a tough it's a tough one, and
basically it comes down to what does your team think,
because the players know, and the players have a sense
of whether they believe in what they're doing. They're just
fighting through the tough ones, you know, do they take
on responsibility?
Speaker 3 (05:54):
You know?
Speaker 2 (05:54):
And at the end of the day, it's sess guys,
it's how we're playing or are there quite And you,
as the head coach, can recognize that it's really about
how the It's kind of like your starting quarterback. Did
the player the players really believe in it? Or do
you need to make a change there, Not that you
need to make a change for CJ. Stroud talking about
other situations, but that there are questioning, well do I
(06:15):
make the change at the quarterback? It's the same way,
how is the team responding to it? What do they
really see? And typically making that kind of change doesn't
make a difference because it really isn't that. It's not
necessarily the play calling, it's the players and how they're executing.
But if you feel like a.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Change would.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Energize the players and give them something to hang their
hat on, well, then that's something you have to consider
as the head coach.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Before we get to talking about X tech pads and
a second coach, a final question. We're very curious about
your perspective about how often you change your mind about
who's going to represent each of the conferences. I'm all
in Detroit over and over again, and then I watch
Philadelphia dominate Sakuon Barkley was great against the Rams this
past weekend. I think Detroit filled OFLFHI your headed for
(07:03):
a collision course. As you mentioned, you could see the
Texans being in that mix with Buffalo and Baltimore the
way they played against the Chargers on Monday night. Of course,
Kansas City, if I was to hold your feet to
the fire right now, who will be playing in New
Orleans on the final Sunday of the season at.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
This point, Well, in the NFC, you're right, it's those
top two teams and they're playing consistent, they're playing physical
death confidence. Now you have good teams like Minnesota and
that are close in record, but right now the cream
of the crop is Philadelphia and Detroit. In the AFC,
like I said, it's to me, it's a wide open deal.
(07:38):
They're all touching. Like I said, I can make a
case for each of them to go, and then also
talk about the inadequacies Kansas City because the pedigree, even
though they're winning on very tight margins, now they have
that sense of destiny, they have that sense of confidence
that they're net ever out of it. So clearly, if
you had to pick right now, I don't know how
you don't pick the pedigre of Kansas City, but by
(08:02):
the same Joken Baltimore at times has shown to be
an absolute dominant team. I think Buffalo is a team
that's a little under the radar, sitting there at nine
to two, it's hard to imagine that. But the way
they're playing, the way Josh Allen's playing right now, you
know they're a spectacular team. So those team three teams
right now, even though you'd have to, you have to
lean towards Kansas City because of the pedigree. I think
(08:23):
Kansas City, Buffalo, and Baltimore clearly are the ones that
are shown on a most consistent basis to be the
best team. Pittsburgh the defense is outstanding, but the offense
is a little questionable for me to think that they're
going to crack and go all the way through the
playoffs against and having played through a Josh Allen and
Patrick Mahomes and or Lamar Jackson to get to the
(08:44):
Super Bowl, all right.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
For let you run, coach. We've got a lot of
dads that are coaching youth football, involved in football and safety.
We're always trying to make it the sport as successful
and popular and as safe as it can be. And
I know you've got a product you want to tell
the folks about.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Yeah, it's Tech pat.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
It's the number one pad and all professional football, major college,
and the high school level. Next year we're going to
be doubted to the youth level, which I'm excited about.
But it's the best pad in football, mainly because it's
it's basically fitted. It's not just one size fits all.
It's a pad that takes into account your height, your weight,
your playing position, your injury history, the level you're playing at.
(09:22):
We've got our Black Friday sales going on right now,
twenty percent off between now and Monday. If you get
into x tech pads, go online to x techpads dot Com.
Well also with our online equipment manager help you fit
the right paths for the right player. That's really so key.
That's the key to this pad, beyond just the technology,
it is fitted for the players, dads and coaches need
(09:44):
to go on to xtechpads dot com check it out,
get the twenty percent discount between now and Monday, and
make sure we get these the players in the right paths.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Xtechpads dot COM's website. Last question, coach Dion Sanders best
for him if you were giving him advice, stay in
the college ranks or take a flyer on maybe becoming
an NFL head coach in the not too distant future.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Wow, well, Dion, he's doing a spectacular job.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
I knew he'd be a great coach.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
He's great for the college game, and I hope he
stays there.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
Because of that, because he's great for the players. He's
great for the energy the game.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
But if I'm him, I'm making a d line to
the NFL because the college game right now scares me.
The NIL the portal you can see, that's why so
many coaches are getting out. Although he loves working with
the players and I respect that. For him long term,
I'd head for the Hills.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Coach Bilic, it's always a pleasure to have you on
this radio station. Thank you very much for the time
and best of luck with X tech.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Pads sounds great. Thank you, you got it.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Brian Bilick with us here on Sports Talk seven.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
On you.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
I love perspective of guys that have been on the
field of doing it, and Brian has been a fantastic
broadcaster and always good to get his insights
Is one of the most respected coaches and broadcasters you'll
find out there. We speak of Brian Billick, Super Bowl
thirty five champion head coach with us here on the
Matt Thomas Show with Ross Coach. It's Matt and Chris here.
Thanks for joining us, and I would like you to
be an amateur therapist for the Houston sports fans, because
they're wigging out right now. This Texan football team is,
(00:23):
needless to say, underperforming the last handful of weeks. As
you watch them occasionally and how much you are what
are you seeing right now that maybe you didn't see
it earlier in the season.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Well, they just got to hang tight because the AFC
in particulars clustered, clustered pretty tight.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
There's a lot of capable teams.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Certainly Kansas City is the lead at ten to one,
but they've shown some vulnerabilities as well. Or there's Kansas City, Buffalo, Pittsburgh.
I throw Houston into that mix, Baltimore and even the Chargers.
Speaker 3 (00:52):
They're all right there.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
I could give you three reasons why everyone h one
of them is going to the Super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
I give you three why reasons why they're not.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Yeah, clearly Houston and this is a game of momentum,
and right now they just don't have the momentum. That's
the biggest thing that would have to concern you. They've
shown signs of a CJ. Stroud has been spectacular at times,
the last little bit the interception, So the inconsistency is
a concern, but that doesn't mean that you can't get
it back, because they certainly have shown the signs of it,
(01:22):
particularly early in the season. And there's plenty of time
to get that rhythm to be that team that finishes strong,
particularly knowing that you have the capability and what is
a wide open conference to go to the super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
You can still make a run at this thing.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
So they have time to get them on that momentum back,
but they got to kick it in pretty quick.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Here. Brian Billick is with us.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
He is here courtesy of x Tech Pads, and we'll
be talking more with him about that coming up in
a couple of minutes. Coach, the offensive line has been
a season long issue between formation issues, holdings, past protection,
and my philosophy has been and you obviously know this
significantly better than anybody that's in our audience. I feel
like part of the regression for CJ this year is
(02:06):
his inability to step into throws. I think he's a
little more hesitant. I don't think he trusts his line.
Every quarterback, as you know, coach has to feel pressure.
But I feel like this has really become something that
has affected the timing and the fluidity of CJ's throws
were last year, even when there was a little bit
of pressure, he was able to dance a little bit,
get around it and still make some great throws. And
(02:27):
I just feel like some of those plays that were
those mind blowing wild plays aren't a part of this
year's offense.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
And there's no question that when you're struggling with the
offensive line for whatever reason, whether it's injuries, you have
different guys in and out of the lineup. As a quarterback,
even though you support those guys and you want to
feel good about it, when that's in the back of
your mind on every play you drop back to pass,
that's not good because it can it gnaws away at
(02:54):
your focus that you've got to have down the field.
And so that is a reason, a big part of
the reason why c J. Stroud may not be quite
as comfortable in the pocket or you realize, you know,
you talk about that perverbial clock that goes off in
your head as to how long I can be in
here before that speeds up, and it speeds up probably
more arbitrarily than it should, and he starts to get
(03:16):
more jittery in the pocket even when he is solid
in the pocket, and that affects everything about the timing.
So he's got to kind of get that back, or
they've got to get him outside the pocket a little
bit more by design, just to let him settle down
so that he can make, like you say, those hyge
popping plays.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
We were used to seeing sarking.
Speaker 4 (03:34):
With coach Brian Billick and coach THEOC Bobby Slowick. He's
getting a ton of criticism this year when it comes
to the Texans offense. They've been great scoring in the
first half, with the second half of games offense just
is bogged down. Six times this year they have failed
to score a second half touchdown. As a former play
call of yourself, what's the reason for that? Is it
getting too conservative because you got a lead? Is it
(03:55):
the other defense making halftime adjustments? What have you seen
what would cause the offense bog down the second half?
Like it has this year.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Well, it's the flow of the game as much as anything.
And if you are struggling in an area you go
over the course of an entire game, it's going to
show up. You can maybe hide it, or the flow
of the game allows you to hide it in the
first couple series, or even in the first half. If
you've got a couple of nice series, you've got a
nice rhythm, maybe your defense is playing well, and you know,
(04:26):
just the natural flow of the game. But when you've
got to go to the entire sixty minutes, then those flaws
are going to show.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Up at some point.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
It's just like the quarterback that you know, on a
twenty five throw game, he can be spectacular, but what
does he do on a forty five throw game when
he has to really put the game on his shoulders.
And that may be the case, but that by the
time you get into the second half, now some of
the inequities you have or some of the issues have
are definitely going to show up at some point. So yeah,
(04:54):
it is a challenge. I don't know that it's a
difference in play calling or the approach that you're taking,
or your lack of a US I don't know that
that's the case as much as it is. The true
personality of your team is going to come out via
the whole course of the game, particularly in the second half.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Tamiko has been pretty a loyal guy, right. He brought
Sloak with him over from San fran and he believes
in him and every you know, everything last year was awesome.
We were praying that Sloak wouldn't get a head coaching
job and we could keep him here and they weren't
able to keep him. But at what point does it
get bad enough you would consider making an in season change?
And I bring that up because some people really believe
in Gerad Johnson, who's the quarterbacks coach. They think he's
(05:31):
an up and comer as a play caller. Is that
something you ever had to do in your career fire
and assistant in season?
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
Yeah, And it's a tough it's a tough one, and
basically it comes down to what does your team think,
because the players know, and the players have a sense
of whether they believe in what they're doing. They're just
fighting through the tough ones, you know, do they take
on responsibility?
Speaker 3 (05:54):
You know?
Speaker 2 (05:54):
And at the end of the day, it's sess guys,
it's how we're playing or are there quite And you,
as the head coach, can recognize that it's really about
how the It's kind of like your starting quarterback. Did
the player the players really believe in it? Or do
you need to make a change there, Not that you
need to make a change for CJ. Stroud talking about
other situations, but that there are questioning, well do I
(06:15):
make the change at the quarterback? It's the same way,
how is the team responding to it? What do they
really see? And typically making that kind of change doesn't
make a difference because it really isn't that. It's not
necessarily the play calling, it's the players and how they're executing.
But if you feel like a.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Change would.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Energize the players and give them something to hang their
hat on, well, then that's something you have to consider
as the head coach.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
Before we get to talking about X tech pads and
a second coach, a final question. We're very curious about
your perspective about how often you change your mind about
who's going to represent each of the conferences. I'm all
in Detroit over and over again, and then I watch
Philadelphia dominate Sakuon Barkley was great against the Rams this
past weekend. I think Detroit filled OFLFHI your headed for
(07:03):
a collision course. As you mentioned, you could see the
Texans being in that mix with Buffalo and Baltimore the
way they played against the Chargers on Monday night. Of course,
Kansas City, if I was to hold your feet to
the fire right now, who will be playing in New
Orleans on the final Sunday of the season at.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
This point, Well, in the NFC, you're right, it's those
top two teams and they're playing consistent, they're playing physical
death confidence. Now you have good teams like Minnesota and
that are close in record, but right now the cream
of the crop is Philadelphia and Detroit. In the AFC,
like I said, it's to me, it's a wide open deal.
(07:38):
They're all touching. Like I said, I can make a
case for each of them to go, and then also
talk about the inadequacies Kansas City because the pedigree, even
though they're winning on very tight margins, now they have
that sense of destiny, they have that sense of confidence
that they're net ever out of it. So clearly, if
you had to pick right now, I don't know how
you don't pick the pedigre of Kansas City, but by
(08:02):
the same Joken Baltimore at times has shown to be
an absolute dominant team. I think Buffalo is a team
that's a little under the radar, sitting there at nine
to two, it's hard to imagine that. But the way
they're playing, the way Josh Allen's playing right now, you
know they're a spectacular team. So those team three teams
right now, even though you'd have to, you have to
lean towards Kansas City because of the pedigree. I think
(08:23):
Kansas City, Buffalo, and Baltimore clearly are the ones that
are shown on a most consistent basis to be the
best team. Pittsburgh the defense is outstanding, but the offense
is a little questionable for me to think that they're
going to crack and go all the way through the
playoffs against and having played through a Josh Allen and
Patrick Mahomes and or Lamar Jackson to get to the
(08:44):
Super Bowl, all right.
Speaker 1 (08:46):
For let you run, coach. We've got a lot of
dads that are coaching youth football, involved in football and safety.
We're always trying to make it the sport as successful
and popular and as safe as it can be. And
I know you've got a product you want to tell
the folks about.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Yeah, it's Tech pat.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
It's the number one pad and all professional football, major college,
and the high school level. Next year we're going to
be doubted to the youth level, which I'm excited about.
But it's the best pad in football, mainly because it's
it's basically fitted. It's not just one size fits all.
It's a pad that takes into account your height, your weight,
your playing position, your injury history, the level you're playing at.
(09:22):
We've got our Black Friday sales going on right now,
twenty percent off between now and Monday. If you get
into x tech pads, go online to x techpads dot Com.
Well also with our online equipment manager help you fit
the right paths for the right player. That's really so key.
That's the key to this pad, beyond just the technology,
it is fitted for the players, dads and coaches need
(09:44):
to go on to xtechpads dot com check it out,
get the twenty percent discount between now and Monday, and
make sure we get these the players in the right paths.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Xtechpads dot COM's website. Last question, coach Dion Sanders best
for him if you were giving him advice, stay in
the college ranks or take a flyer on maybe becoming
an NFL head coach in the not too distant future.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Wow, well, Dion, he's doing a spectacular job.
Speaker 3 (10:11):
I knew he'd be a great coach.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
He's great for the college game, and I hope he
stays there.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
Because of that, because he's great for the players. He's
great for the energy the game.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
But if I'm him, I'm making a d line to
the NFL because the college game right now scares me.
The NIL the portal you can see, that's why so
many coaches are getting out. Although he loves working with
the players and I respect that. For him long term,
I'd head for the Hills.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Coach Bilic, it's always a pleasure to have you on
this radio station. Thank you very much for the time
and best of luck with X tech.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Pads sounds great. Thank you, you got it.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Brian Bilick with us here on Sports Talk seven.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
On you.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
I love perspective of guys that have been on the
field of doing it, and Brian has been a fantastic
broadcaster and always good to get his insights
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