Richard Sherman Podcast - NFL Week 8 Reaction

Richard Sherman reacts to Week 8 of the 2024 NFL season, including Brock Purdy leading the San Francisco 49ers come-from-behind victory over Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, Geno Smith and the Seattle Seahawks taking a frustrating loss to Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, Jayden Daniels connecting on an UNREAL Hail Mary to steal a win for the Washington Commanders against Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears, Jameis Winston taking over for Deshaun Watson and helping the Cleveland Browns beat Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in a shocking upset, Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions lighting up the Tennessee Titans, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs moving to 7-0 with a win over the Las Vegas Raiders, Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets getting upset by the New England Patriots, and Joe Burrow’s Cincinnati Bengals continuing their disappointing year with a loss to Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
The volume.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Delto championships. That should always be the expectation. All right,
man at you go ahead. Welcome back to the Richard
Sherman Podcast. And Mitchell a forty nine Ers win over
the Dallas Cowboys it seems like a annual occurrence nowadays.
The Dallas Cowboys started off really fast, physical, They seemed

(00:33):
like they were like the week off helped them. They
got healthier, But at the same time it all wore off. Mitchell.
It was like makeup. It was pretendo. They all the
energy they brought in the first half, the intensity they
were running the ball well, San Francisco hadn't been stopping
a run well, the Dallas Cowboys hadn't been running well
all season. But Ezekiel Elliott had his best half. They

(00:58):
were physical, they were talking like they were getting stops
on the defensive side. It looked like a team that
was determined to get a win. And then in the
second half it was like the San Francisco forty nine
Ers woke up, both offensively and defensively. They kept getting
penalties and shooting themselves in the foot throughout the game.
Deebo Samuel touchdown got called back because of a holding call.

(01:21):
Another big run got called back that Grindo had a
George kittle Holden call. But for the most part in
the second half, the defense made play Diamador and Lenor's
interception against Ceedee Lamb was fantastic play. Obviously friend of
the program. He's been having a tremendous career. His payday
is only increasing. I thought the San Francisco forty nine

(01:41):
ers would have been better off just paying him this
year this offseason, trying to get him one like a short,
cheap deal. But now as he continues to make plays
second game in a row, his last game was against
the Kansas City Chiefs, picked off Mahomes. Now you pick
off Dak the two all pro quarterbacks from last season. Oh,
I guess. I guess Lamar was all Pro. But I

(02:02):
mean you talk about you picking off anytime you pick
off Pat Mahomes is gonna be a big deal. But
you pick off Dak his second or third multi interception game.
The second half was just filled with big plays, but
there were a few hiccups that I could a few
head scratchers. They were in mand the man covered JayR. Brown,

(02:22):
who had a fantastic game and a fantastic interception early
in the game, was running with the motion, running with
the receiver or running with Ferguson, and then comes downhill
trying to cover Ferguson man. The man is trying to
get closer to him at the snap of the ball
and he runs into Rinaldo Green and picks him off

(02:43):
and leaves Ceedee Lamb wide open. Now we know that
anytime there's a situation where the guy's in motion, you
give the corner the right away. He got the harder drive.
Your guy's probably running a flat, something low, something slow.
You know what I mean. This is a tighty end.
It's not that hard of a It's not that athletic
of a guy. You got a corner who's guarding their

(03:03):
best player and you pick him off. You know, corner
always has the right away in that situation. I'm sure
that Nick is gonna coach that up and they're gonna
get that corrected. But I thought it was a fantastic
game from Diamador Nicholas. John Bosa made numerous plays throughout
the game put pressure on him. He calls the first interception,

(03:23):
putting pressure on Dak Prescott. The rest of the defensive
line made life hell for Dak Prescott throughout this game,
and offensively, Grindo looked really good. There were times that
he was gashing the Dallas Cowboys. They were fined the lanes.
And he's that speed back that Kyle Shanahan usually has.
You talk about what he had Matt Brida or Raheem Moster,

(03:46):
he always had a guy that could get the edge,
and if he got the edge, it's usually big games
twenty thirty yards and Grindo looked looked like one of
those in that mode. Special team special teams look decent today.
You know, no big crazy plays, field goals got made,
pats were made, kickoff returns were tackled. That that was
the one kickoff out of bounds, but that's just you know,

(04:09):
that's a kicker. You can't blame teams for that kicker.
Just got to keep it in bounds. But I thought, overall,
this is a really good bounce back game for the
San Francisco forty nine ers. They're getting a lot of
good news. You hear that Christian McCaffrey potentially coming back
after the bye week to play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
That will be an incredible boost for this team. Both

(04:30):
I mean in terms of just the morale of the
team and then all everything that Christian brings to this
offense in terms of his third down prowess. Just I mean,
he's one of the best players in National Football League.

Speaker 1 (04:42):
It's huge. I mean, but this is a huge loss
for Dallas as well. I mean, this team, you could
tell they came out of the gates. They were They
looked scrappy, they looked like the better team early, rich
I'll tell you that much. And I think it goes
back to their home stopping against the Detroit Lions. They
needed this game badly and to come out with an l.
And I know it was a tough opponent. The forty

(05:03):
nine ers have had their way against the Dallas Cowboys
for the last several years. But I mean, if you're
Jerry Jones right now, Richard, what are you thinking in Dallas?
I gotta imagine that hot seat is starting to heat
up a little bit with Mike McCarthy there as the
head coach. Richard, where's your head at with Jerry Jones
and the Dallas Cowboys being three and four?

Speaker 2 (05:24):
Now? Well, I think all those crazy rumors about Dion
in the offseason, if McCarthy stumbles are gonna get hotter
and hotter come off season. I don't think anybody's gonna
take Jerry's word. Whatever he says at the end of
the season, he'll say, Hey, we're gonna we're gonna start
all over and start anew or whatever he's gonna say.
This offseason is going to have a lot of weight
because what you didn't do this season. This offseason is

(05:48):
going to rain loudly throughout this season because you did
not do enough. You drafted a tackle doesn't seem like
they answered. Offensive line is the worst it's been in years.
Aging superstars on the offensive line, CD, Lamb and Dak
just don't look like they have the same reports and
connection they did this game thirteen catches for one hundred

(06:09):
and forty nine yards for CD. But but it's just
throughout this season it hasn't looked the same as it
did last season. CD was dominating. I mean, he and
Dak just looked like they had an incredible connection. Every
time they needed a third down, you knew where he
was going and Ceedee Lamb was getting open, making huge plays,
huge games, And it just hasn't been that way. Dak
is turning the ball over. He's amongst the league leaders

(06:32):
and interceptions this year. I mean, right next to Patrick
Mahomes and Jordan Love, and I mean it doesn't sound
like a bad list to be a part of, but
they're leading the league in an interception. So you know,
those teams are still winning. But on top of that,
the NFC East has turned into a much different race
than they thought it would be. Than I thought it
would be, and I think a lot of other people

(06:53):
thought it would be. I mean, it's led right now
by the Washington Commanders, who the Dallas Cowboys have in
a few weeks, and then the Philadelphia Eagles, So they
have a few division games coming up, and then they
got to play the Atlanta Falcons, who actually match up
pretty well against the Dallas Cowboys, and so they have
a slate, a really tough slate coming up that may
put them out of playoff contention, because again, that seventh

(07:15):
wildcard spot is going to be difficult to come by
this this year. A lot of teams playing a lot
of good football, especially in that NFC North, as you
very well know. You know your Detroit Lions, the Green
Bay Packers are playing good in Minnesota, Vikings have been
playing good, albeit they lost the last few games. I

(07:36):
don't know, but but congratulations to George Kettle on National
tight End Day, one hundred and twenty eight yards and
a TV. I thought they would call PI on that.
They called it. They they talked about it. They waved
the flag off, saying the defender's hand was on. You know,
as a defender anytime it's offensive PI, you know, even
if it's against the team, you know, something in my

(07:57):
heart says that was the right deal. And and you know,
this is the one time I'm just gonna let that
one slide because because I wanted George to get his
touchdown on nationale tight Ends Day. Brock Party had another
had another really good game, a bounce back game. He
was eighteen to twenty six hundred and sixty yards one TV,
no interceptions after his three interception performance against the Kansas

(08:17):
City Chiefs. He also ran the ball eight times for
fifty six yards and the QB sneak touchdown. As they
continue to get healthy and they're gonna get healthier and
and feel better and more continuity. There was a cool
play Ricky Purcell gotta reverse got thirty nine yards on it.
You know, the crowd went wild just to see his
story and what he's had to overcome. Obviously, the gunshot

(08:39):
wound and that scary situation was something that I think
really shocked the team and took everybody by surprise. And
everybody's grateful and thankful that he's out there. But it
was cool to see him get get his hands on
the football, catch a few passes, run a few passes,
I mean, run a few balls, and really just be
involved in the game. I think this team is ready

(09:01):
to bounce back. In the NFC West is just it's tied.
I mean, I think everybody's fouring four except the Rams,
and that's because the Rams haven't played eight games yet.
They're three and four, but everybody's tied at the top
of the NFC West. It's gonna come down to stretch
and that's why they That's what the NFL loves. There's
a lot of division games down the stretch. They make
sure it's that way. I'm sure San Francisco and Seattle

(09:21):
is gonna end the season in Seattle. I mean in
San Francisco, they've already played in Seattle. The Arizona cardin
who's got a big win today against the Miami Dolphins.
Marvin Harrison had a really good game. They just battled
to a tongue of by lower return. He was pushing
the ball down the field. Tyreek Hill looked good, the
offense looks solid, but they just couldn't overcome Kyler Murray

(09:44):
and that defense. And I'm excited to see how this happens.
I mean, this NFC West hasn't been this crazy and
this chaotic and this tied up this late in the
season in a while.

Speaker 1 (09:55):
It is it is gonna be a tight conference or division.
There's no question about that. Richard. You're gonna have to
switch your hats here. We're gonna talk about something that
you probably don't like just as much as your forty
nine ers victory. And that's the Seattle Seahawks loss. The
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Speaker 2 (11:46):
Another week, Mitchell, another set up really unpredictable games. The
Baltimore Ravens lose to the one in six Browns. Jamis
Winston at the Helm, what's going on there? The Seattle
Seahawks are blown out at home. I just the one win.
New England Patriots beat the Jets. Oh my god, the

(12:08):
culture that Woody Johnson was trying to set by firing
Robert Sally. It just did exactly what you expected it
to do. Mitchell. It was terrible. It was a terrible decision.
Then it's a terrible decision now it looks even worse
right now.

Speaker 1 (12:24):
You called it, man, I mean you called it. Let's start.
I mean, let's start in Seattle, though, Richard, because I
know this one is close to home for you, and
this is a game that Seattle needed. I mean, frankly,
I mean they were four and three heading into this game.
This was a true home test for him against an
AFC Super Bowl contender in the Buffalo Bills and they

(12:46):
get it taken to them on their home turf in
front of the twelves. Richard, did you see this coming?
Are you surprised by this outcome at all?

Speaker 2 (12:53):
I'm really surprised by Mitchell. You couldn't. I couldn't have
saw this coming, especially after an Atlanta game. It looked
like they got some things figuring out, figured out stopping
the run game, some turnovers, some sacks from the d line. Offensively,
they were moving the ball down the field. Gino Smith
looked really good at times. The dolphensive line was protecting
him a little better, so you thought, hey, when I'm

(13:14):
starting to turn the corner. But of course you lose
DK Metcalf in that game and going into this game,
you see the different things that happen when you don't
have him in the lineup. Uh, you don't. You don't.
The defense isn't it's willing to play man to man
coverage a lot of the game. They put a lot
of pressure on Gino. But when they did have success,

(13:37):
when the Seattle Seahawks did move the ball down the field,
just too many mistakes to and moved the ball down
the field, then Connor Williams snatch the ball over. Gino
Smith said, and that play I just totally didn't understand.
It's the pros. This isn't Pop Warner, this isn't college
football where you're like, hey, you know, this is your
job and for it it's to be such a terrible

(13:59):
snap in that situation, I mean, it just doomed that drive.
Kenneth Walker picks it up, tries to get a few yards,
tries to get you know whatever he could, but he
could have took points off the board. There's three points there.
Then they get a huge interception. It was the first
interception for Josh Allen this season. You think, oh my god,
here come the Seattle to Seahawks. Here comes that defense.

(14:20):
Make him plays they they you know, Mike McDonald whatever,
he's bringing these guys. Josh Joby makes a huge play,
the first interception of his career, and the Seahawks are
in striking range and gets stopped at the goal line
a fourth down stop. Geno Smith takes the snap again.
Connor Williams steps on his foot, he goes down, just

(14:43):
just bonehage. Plays that you just can't have in that situation,
and and it devastates your momentum and everything. Buffalo turns around,
drives the ball down the field, scores a touchdown, scores
a touchdown right before the half. A terrible penalty by
by Derek all who's been having a really good season

(15:03):
on what would have ended up being a third and
long situation. He hits Josh Allen maybe two seconds after
he throws the ball well second and a half, just unnecessary.
Then him and Jaron Reed get into it on the sideline.
And I've been in heated situations on the sideline, Mitchell,
but we were a much better team and it was
a much different situation. You get heated like that, they

(15:25):
can have things like that can't happen, But when you're
the guy who had the penalty, Obviously Derek Hall is embarrassed.
Jared Reed is one of the leaders on that team.
He's trying to say, hey, bro, come on, that's an
unnecessary play. But when you're triggered in that moment, you
know both people are are are really charged up. They're
hot and heavy, and coolers have to prevail in that situation.

(15:48):
They didn't, but it was just a microcosm of the
dysfunction that was shown in that game, and it was
really unfortunate because they played such a great game in
Atlanta on the road. Early game, they showed all the
things they could be, you know, Gino, how good he
could be, that defense, how disruptive they could be, you know,

(16:12):
DK Metcalf obviously, Kenneth Walker the third he had nine
carries for twelve yards. Mitchell, I don't think I've ever
seen him put out such an anemic performance on the ground.
That's just it.

Speaker 1 (16:24):
And I was gonna say that it's Is it just
me or does this Seattle Seahawks team go as Kenneth
Walker goes? It seems like when he's in a game
like today, there's no run game. This team's borderline unwatchable.
I mean, Buffalo walked it up and down on them
all day to day. Josh Allen, you know these Bills,
I mean, this team looks like a team that can

(16:45):
truly compete in the AFC. I know they're kryptonite is
Patty Mahomes and and the Chiefs. But when you go
on the road against Seattle, who was leading the NFC
West in a very tight division race right now, Richard,
this this division is wide open. It's for the picking
and next week they're gonna have to go and play
the Rams, who are are now getting healthy. I mean,
that's not a win guaranteed for them, this team, Richard.

(17:08):
They need to get back on track quick and they
need to they need to lean on the rung game.
I know, without DK Metcalf, it's tough. But they just
looked like a shelve of themselves out there today, rich
I was ultimately surprised by this because I thought Seattle
would give this Bills team a true challenge today and
I thought, frankly they were going to come away with
a win. But clearly I was wrong. Yeah, but go ahead, Yeah.

Speaker 2 (17:31):
I mean I thought they would come away with a
win or at least beat a lot more competitive than this,
you know, maybe lose at the end last second, you know,
make it a really competitive game. It's just disappointing. But
that Buffalo defense showed up in a big way, like
I said, putting pressure on Geno all day. And of
course they're this week's They hailed the Seattle Seahawks offense

(17:52):
to ten points at home. It honestly wasn't wasn't as
close as the score, you know, it's thirty one to ten,
but it looked worse than watching the game. And that's
why there this week's Uber Eats almost almost perfect Defense,
the segment brought to you by Uber Eats where we
highlight the NFL defense that put on the most week's
most dominating performance. And they really dominated this game. Even

(18:15):
every time you thought the Seattle Seahawks had a chance
in this game to score points, that defense stood tall.
They stood strong. Four downs, the Seattle Seahawks had the
ball in at the ten yard line, trying to get
it in, trying to get it in, dude, Buffalo Bills
found a way. Whenever they got a little bit of momentum,

(18:35):
they threw. They intercepted a screen pass that you know
was trying to set up for Kenneth Walker to third.
It was just again, even the special teams there must
punt at the end of the game where it was
just like insult to injury. Give that defense a ton
of credit, the special teams and even the offense because
they ran the ball really well. It was it was

(18:57):
James Cook might have been as one of his best games.
Seventeen carries for one hundred and eleven yards. That's a
great game for a running back, and we thought they
had got the run game. Issues on defense solidified and
fixed last week in the second half of the Atlanta
Falcons game. Clearly the Seattle Seahawks haven't gotten it fixed.
And that's why the Buffalo Bills are this week's almost

(19:21):
almost perfect defense. And remember, you can order almost almost
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Speaker 1 (19:30):
Order Now, well, Richard, if Uber Eats wants to sponsor
the almost almost perfect team of the Week, I think
that would go to my Detroit Lione. Let's go to Detroit,
because Richard, this Vegas did not expect a close game.
I think the closing line finished at the Detroit you know,
minus twelve and a half points. No one expected this

(19:51):
be a game, but it was in the beginning in
the first quarter fourteen to fourteen. You saw Mason Rudolph
slinging the ball all over. Calvin Ridley had over a
hundnderd yards in the first quarter of this game, and
I'm like, Okay, maybe this is a trap game for Detroit,
and no, not so much. That Detroit rattles off thirty
eight consecutive points in this win they were getting everyone

(20:13):
involved and Ben Johnson was creative. We saw a throw
from David Montgomery on a half back toss. He pulls
up and heaves the ball to Samuel Porter on a
National tight end day, Richard, What's gonna stop this Detroit
Lion team? I know I'm biased, but objectively speaking, when
I look at this team, I see Kansas City. They've

(20:36):
got the X factor in Patrick Mahomes. I mean, they
doesn't matter how much you prepare for that team. They
have Patrick Mahomes. But this Detroit Lions team, top to bottom,
looks like the best team in the NFL to me
right now, at least offensively. Am I off base there?

Speaker 2 (20:52):
Like?

Speaker 1 (20:52):
What are your thoughts about this team? What's it gonna
take the break them?

Speaker 2 (20:55):
Well, it's just that defense, you know, and that defense
has been playing well, but they there have been games
where they have been shootouts because that defense gives up
some points. It gets leaky. If you're talking about losing
Aiden Hutchinson and everything that he brought, the sacks, the pressures,
the a tension, the double teams and things like that.
That's that's where we're gonna have to figure it out.

(21:18):
Especially when they played more competitive teams. Obviously, the Tennessee
Titans are one and six, but they're still an NFL team,
and one in six teams can still win ball games,
as the New England Patriots and the Cleveland Brown showed
us this week. But give Jared Golf a ton of credit,
give Ben Johnson a ton of credit, and obviously Dan
Campbell for the culture he's created. We talk about it

(21:40):
a lot, but Jamier Gibbs is starting to develop as
a home run hitter consistently, game after game. Another one
hundred yard game for him with a touchdown. You know,
you look at Sam Laporta getting involved on National tight
End Day, you talked about the touchdown. Jared Golf threw
for eighty five yards. He's still a fishing twelve fifteen

(22:02):
three touchdown passes, and they just did not need a
lot from him today. They made plays on defense, they
had multiple interceptions. Kirby Joseph had an interception. And when
they play like this, it's gonna be really tough. They're
gonna be a tough team to beat. But they've had
five straight wins. They play another tough divisional game, and
if we know anything about the NFL divisional games are

(22:25):
totally different than anything else. People don't understand it, but
then you gotta watch games like the Patriots versus the
Jets today. Divisional games are different. You look at the
Cleveland Browns versus the Baltimore Ravens. Baltimore looked like world
beaters five and two, just running shop over everybody. They
lost to Jameis Winston and the Cleveland Browns. And the

(22:47):
Cleveland Browns looked really good. Their defense looked good, Jamis
pushing the ball down the field. They trade away a
Mariy Cooper and somehow looked better than they did with
the Maury Cooper. They lose their fifty million dollars quarterback
in somehow look start to be more productive on offense.
And so that's how unpredictable the NFL is this year.
But the Detroit Lions have been consistent as any team,

(23:11):
and like you said, they look really good on both
sides of the ball. Well, coach, they got they they
got great players in the place you need great players,
good receiver, good run game, solid defense on the verge
of being a really good defense. So we'll we'll see
with Green Bay game will be a good litmus test.

(23:31):
But they passed the test against Minnesota, so we'll see this.

Speaker 1 (23:34):
Is gonna be a huge game on the road in Lambeau.
But the game today was a very unique one in
the sense, you know, my brother's flying home from LA
ten year anniversary. Him and his wife are out there.
He texted me that he's not watching the game. He's like,
what in the world is going on with Detroit. I'm
watching them on game cast, and I got no explanation
for how they're scoring so many points in the third quarter, Richard,

(23:55):
Jared Goff had twenty eight passing yards total throughout the
entire game. In the third quarter, the Detroit Lions have
forty two points on the board. I don't know how
in the world that's happened, But I mean Detroit was
starting in Tennessee's twenty five thirty yard line every time
they hit over two hundred return yards. This was a
special team game. Khalif Raymond going off. But Jered Goff,

(24:18):
I mean, this guy is firmly in the MVP conversation.
He has the highest completion percentage in passing rating in
a five game span in NFL history. Richard, I mean
the Detroit Lions. I know it was the Titans, but lookout.
I love this team right now. The momentum is great.
Lambo is going to be a great test for him.

(24:41):
We saw a thriller in Washington, and this is Jaden
Daniels confirming who exactly he is. I think he's the
leader in the clubhouse when it comes for that Rookie
of the Year recip reward, and he beat out the
number one pick Caleb Williams Richard Mary. I know you

(25:02):
saw one in Seattle with the blind ref that gave
Golden Tate that Hail Mary touchdown, but you don't see
it very often. What was going through your head when
you saw Jaydon Daniels hit Noah Brown as time expired
in that thriller against the Bears.

Speaker 2 (25:20):
Mitchell, it's chaos, it's chaos, but sometimes it's just your time.
The Bears played well defensively, but offensively they were stagnant.
DeAndre Swift had a great game. They ran the ball well,
so give them credit there. But Caleb Williams dropped back
twenty four times, completed ten passes for one hundred and

(25:40):
thirty one yards. He ran the ball for forty one yards.
But they did not look great when they dropped back
to pass. He lost to fumble in the game. But
when Jaydon Daniels looked really good throughout this game, I mean,
coming off the injury. It's just sometimes your time, Mitchell.
When you're feeling good things, the ball bounces your way.

(26:01):
Hell Mary's go your way, and that's what happens today.
They were leading this entire game. They were winning from
almost start to finish until the absolute last second Chicago
takes the lead and you think, oh my god, what
a comeback, what a last second. They're gonna sneak out
of here with the win. They're gonna steal this game
from the Washington Commanders. When the Washington Commanders were about

(26:25):
to make an entrance into my power rankings, just as
I was about to give them the respect that they
are desiring, they were gonna lose this game. Then the fates,
the football gods, whatever you want to believe, were with
them today and allowed them to come out of this
game when they were only Let me check the clock, Mitchell,

(26:47):
because I think there were teenage seconds left in this
ball game when they got it. They had twenty five
seconds to go, Mitchell. They four play seventy six yards
in twenty five seconds. That game seemed like it was over.
And for most teams that would have been over, but
it clearly it wasn't for Jaden Daniel in this Washington Commanders,

(27:10):
and this is only going to further validate what they've
been doing this season. That Chicago Bears defense is legitimate.
Haley Williams had been playing better over the last few games.
They had been finding a rhythm. They went for two.
They looked good on that touchdown scoring drive. But again,

(27:30):
this team believes, and it's Dan Quinn and this staff,
Kenny Norton over there on the defensive side of the
ball coaching the backers. He got leaders like Zach Ertz
and our guy friend of the program, friend of mine,
you know, one of my better one of them, my
best friends. If Bobby Wagner holding this defense down, holding

(27:50):
the Chicago Bears to fifteen points, sometimes you got to
lean on your defense, and they were able to get
this win. They're definitely making an entry intanto my power rankings.
They're six and two, got a favorable schedule down the stretch.
I cannot wait for that Thursday night football game against
the Philadelphia Eagles because I want to I want them

(28:11):
to establish themselves in a division, because they can do
all this damage everywhere else, but you gotta beat the
guys in your division to really catapult yourself into that
contender conversation. And so when they played the Dallas Cowboys,
the Philadelphia Eagles, they played the New York Giants. They
beat the New York Giants, which is obviously very realistic.

(28:32):
They're seven and two. You're telling me you had them
seven and two to start the season. Mitchell, I cannot
lie to you and say I did well.

Speaker 1 (28:39):
We we did. We did highlight them a little bit
in our pre season preview. If you don't recall, we
said if Jade and Daniels was gonna be this year's
rookie of the year, Washington could be a dark horse.
But you're right, I did not see this when I
says is dark mission, No, there bright, very bright, and
they deserve all the hype throunding this team. You know

(29:02):
who looks like a genius right now, Richard, a flat
out genius is the friend of the program, Like you said,
one of your best friends, Bobby Wagner, because and you know,
whould really love to have Bobby Wagner on their team.
I'm guessing the Seattle Seahawks in the twelve because you
take a veteran leader, future, you know, Hall of Famer
and Bobby Wagner and put him on this team. Richard,

(29:25):
I don't want to put the cart before this, this
dark horse, right but they're gonna win next week. They're
gonna be seven to two, and they're gonna keep climbing
your power ranks. I love the Washington Commanders right now.
This team proved to me today that they can truly
compete in this division and in this conference. I think

(29:46):
they might be a super Bowl challenger. I don't want
to call them a ender yet, just yet, but they
are entering that conversation piece on the other side of
the football. Chicago fans, I know you took the l today.
It's tough loss.

Speaker 2 (30:00):
This team.

Speaker 1 (30:00):
They're gonna be tough for years. They got a lot
of weapons on that team. I am thankful that they
lost because this NFC North is way too tight right
now that the Lions need a little little freedom here
when you're playing as good a football as they are.

Speaker 2 (30:15):
Well, Richard, let's and Mitchell, but you talk about the
NFC North, the NFC West is crazy too. Because you
sit there and say, Seattle, you got a chance to
pull away a little bit, and of course they lose,
and now they're at five hundred. Then the Arizona Cardinals
beat the Miami Dolphins into a tongue of Biloa's return
and now they're five hundred. The Rams are sitting at
three and four, who they were about to trade away

(30:37):
the farm and now they're three and four with a
chance to be tied for the division lead if they
can win next week. And that's chaotic. I mean, in
San Francisco, forty nine ers got the game against the
Dallas Cowboys to take them for five hundred for a
share of the lead as well. So this NFC West
race is getting pretty crazy. But like you said, it's Seattle. Seahawks.

(30:58):
Look like they need leadership on defense, look like they
need look like they need a veteran presence to stabilize
this defense. Maybe a Pro bowler, maybe an All Pro
linebacker who's just playing a lot of football. Just somebody
that's that's been there, that knows the team, that knows
the city that knows that. Don't get me started on
the idiocracy that it is to watch Bobby Wagner walk

(31:21):
away for the second time, not the first time, second time, Mitchell.
And that is one of the more frustrating things in
the off season because then you trade for a linebacker,
You trade for Ernest Jones. Wait, you trade away the linebacker.
You paid the money. But they were better than Bobby
I thought. But no they're not. They're not. They were
never because there are things you cannot measure. There are

(31:43):
things that he brings that you cannot that you don't see,
and day in and day out, there's a standard set.
But people are so quick to move on. They're quick
to say, oh, the new things the better thing. It's not.
And that's why people need to appreciate what they have
instead of always looking for the future, always looking towards.
Oh the grass may be greener over there. How about

(32:04):
you water yo grass. How about you appreciate what's on
your loan. You know what I mean, the grass that's
been growing from a seed. You're watching one of the
all time greats and you say, oh, well, we need
to do something different. You got a new head coach
coming in, new system about to be installed. You want
everything new, but you could have somebody to help bring
this this thing in smoother, but no, you don't. So

(32:27):
you know who one of them dan Quinn. Dan Quinn said, oh,
I'm gonna be a new head coach. Adam Peters, who
came from the San Francisco forty nine ers got hired,
and he said, you know who's a really quality player,
Bobby Wagner, and he's on the market. Kenny Norton said,
y'all know who, y'all better call Bobby Wagner. And they

(32:48):
called him, and he's helping to elevate this Washington Commander's
team and help bring this new regime in and establish
a coulchre over there instead of in Seattle, where he
would have loved to do that. We have to be
doing the same thing he's doing in Washington in Seattle,
but they did not want him. And that's a whole
story for a different day. But that's my rent and
my pit talk foot today. Mitchell.

Speaker 1 (33:10):
I love it. I mean, your spot on and I
could go down a rabbit hole with you here, Richard.
I don't know how far we want to take this,
but I just feel like John Schneider watched the snap
with this transition from the Legion of Boom and your
core defense and obviously you guys all moving on people retiring,

(33:32):
you know, and the last guy of that defense was
Bobby Wagner. I think you keep him him around is
long as humanly possible to help this team in this transition,
especially with the new coach, and they just did not
do that. So we shall see. The season is still
they are still firmly in the mix of this division.

(33:53):
Sales just got to get better. Speaking of a team
that is kind of confusing me at the moment, that
sorts that needs to get a little bit better as well.
This is Baltimore Ravens team because entering this week this
is a win. They're playing the Cleveland Browns one and six,
the Shaun Watson's out for the season, They're going against

(34:15):
famous Jamis Winston. What is it with Baltimore rich because
this team looks so darn dominant, yet they have two
losses to the Raiders and now the Browns. I don't
know what I'm watching. Did they just not show up?
Do they not practice well? Do they not get up
for these lousy games? Because you can put them against

(34:38):
the Niners, you could put again against the Lions last year.
You put them against all these top teams and they dominate,
but when it comes to these lousy teams, they just
can't seem to get it done. What's the deal with Baltimore.

Speaker 2 (34:51):
I don't know, Mitchell, I don't know. What I do
know is that they don't play well always against the
AFC the NFC. For some reason, Lamar Jackson dominates. I
think he's only lost twice or something against the NFC teams,
it's an insane record. But against AFC teams, he's pretty
pretty normal. And specifically in his division, against the Cleveland Browns,

(35:14):
he has a hard time. Regardless of who's that quarterback
for the Cleveland Browns, regardless of what they're doing offensively,
Lamar Jackson has a much harder time versus them than
any other team just about. I mean, I've just seen
him struggle a lot against the Cleveland Browns, and and

(35:34):
Dereck Henry has been so dominant, but he did not
look as dominant as he has. The lanes didn't look
as big as they had been. And that's again divisional games.
When you're in your division, throw the records away, throw
all that away. I don't know why. Maybe it's the
familiar familiarity between the players, the schemes, et cetera, et cetera.

(35:55):
But when you're in a divisional game, it's tough. It's
gonna be a dogfight. Now, Baltimore still had chances to win.
Bateman drops a wide open pass and it uppeared he
lost the ball in the sun. He's pointing up to
the sky late in this game. That really could have
could have gave Baltimore a chance to win this game
and walk away with the nice win, you know, at

(36:18):
you know, in a struggle struggling environment there in Cleveland.
But Lamar Jackson played pretty good. You know, he looked good.
He twenty three or thirty eight, two eighty nine. He
ran the ball eight times. You know, he still had
forty six yards. Derrick Henry did what he did. Zay
Flowers had seven catches for one p fifteen. Uh. Cal

(36:39):
Hamilton had a sack and should have had an interception
that probably would have sealed this game for him. He
had his hands on it. Jamis threw it right to him.
He overthrew his receiver and threw it right to cal Hamilton,
and he dropped it maybe two or three times. Mitchell,
he caught it, dropped it, caught it dropped it, caught it,
and then finally just dropped it to the ground. That
would have changed the game. That would have been the

(37:01):
game Baltimore Ravens win. That's how much of a game
of inches this game is. He could have stealed that
game right then and there, but he didn't. And sometimes
again it's your jay. Jameis Winston had a day and
he was moving the ball three hundred and thirty four yards,
three touchdowns. Deshaun Watson hadn't thrown for a three hundred

(37:21):
yard game. I don't think he threw for a three
hundred yard game any of his starts. I know Joe
Flacco threw a couple times last year in last season,
and this offense looked similar similar to what it did
today when Joe Flacco was at the helm. And this
is without Amari Cooper, who they just traded to the
Buffalo Bills. They offense looked good. Nick Chubb was back,

(37:41):
obviously still getting his legs under him, but that was
a big boost. But I'm sure Cedric Tillman, who had
seven catches for ninety nine yards and two touchdowns, felt
really good about what Jamis is doing. And sometimes when
your on scout team, or you're working with the twos,
you work with the fourth and fifth and six receivers, Mitchell,

(38:03):
you're not always working with the one, two and three receivers.
So you get a chance like this where you lose
Amari Cooper and guys go down with injuries and you're
you're throwing to the guys that you're used to throwing to.
And this is what happened in this game. Jamis was
going to the guy he knew and that was Cedric Tillman.
David and Joeku had five catches for sixty one yards
another touchdown. But it was great for Jamis, great to

(38:24):
see him. He's a good human being, a good spirit.
And again we talked about the quality of quarterbacks. Jamis
is a starting caliber quarterback in the National Football League.
You cannot say there's twenty quarterbacks better than Jameis Winston
right now. You know, you can argue there's you know,
you can argue there's teen, maybe twelve. But like at

(38:45):
the end of the day, when he's playing, got a
high level and a good system that he can that
you know, plays to his talents. He can play at
a high level. He just beat Lamar Jackson, the reigning MVP,
and he played well doing it. It wasn't just like
a low scoring game. They scored almost thirty points. And
this is without a true number one receiver. No, there's

(39:06):
there's not a receiver on this on this Cleveland roster
that you would say would be a undisputed number one
on the other thirty two teams or other thirty one teams.
So you have to give them a lot of credit.
And you got to give Jamis a lot of credit.
And that's why he's our brightling player in prime time
Player of the Game this week. Obviously, obviously we heard

(39:29):
his speech last week when Deshaun Watson got hurt. You
hear you hear about all these quotes and funny videos
from Jameis. Whether you're not sure if he's serious or not.
But one thing he was doing today, he was seriously
dishing and pushing the ball down the field when they
needed to have it. Then you had to have a touchdown.
Late in that game, he pushed the ball down the

(39:51):
field through a dime for the game ceiling touchdown. Give
Jameis Winston a round of applayoffs mental because he is
our brightling player in prime time player in the game.
It's brought to you by our friends and partners over
at Brightling got us shining this year. We appreciate you,

(40:11):
and I just I love it and I love it.

Speaker 1 (40:13):
You know what else I love well, Richard. I love
Jamis Winston. He's probably one of the most unique athletes
I would say over the last ten years in terms
of you know, you never know what the guy's saying.
You never know if he's being serious. He's over there
eating w's. But I mean, like you said, he's a
very capable starter in this league. The only knock on
him is he'll just throw the ball into triple coverage randomly,

(40:36):
and it's just like but if he's frankly, and I
hate to see it with the Shan Watson, but frankly,
I think he's an upgrade at quarterback for this Browns team,
and we saw it today. But with this Baltimore Ravens
team and their three losses, they've only given the ball
to Derek Henry fourteen times on average, and they're five wins.

(40:56):
They're handed it to him over twenty times a game
on average. How he only gets eleven carries today is
beyond me. In a tight game against Cleveland, but maybe
that's why they lost Richard another close game down in Jacksonville.
I did not like the outcome of this game because
I was hoping the Green Bay Packers would lose, but

(41:17):
they came back late. Jordan's Love goes down, gets injured,
and Malik Willis comes in and delivers a great ball
to Jayden Reid and brings the Packers back to a win.
I don't get what it is. I mean, who knows
what's going on with Jordan Love this injury, But the
fact that Elik Willis now has kept Green Bay afloat

(41:42):
for several games through the season. It was a huge
contributor in this game. It's just wild to see where's
your stance, where's your head at with this Green Bay
Packers team as they go on the road. I know
you don't like the Jags. I know you're not partial
to Trevor Lawrence, but a win on the road in
the NFL is never easy. Where where's your head at
with this Packers team?

Speaker 2 (42:02):
Well, again, like you said, when you lose your quarterback
mid game like they did to Jordan Love, Jordan Love
was having a pretty productive game fourteen. At twenty two
one hundred and ninety six yards. With the interception, you
usually lose that game, and they were winning the head
of lead when he went out. Josh Jacobs had his
probably his best game as Green Bay Packer twenty five
carries for one hundred and twenty seven yards and two touchdowns.

(42:25):
But they started the Jacksonville Jaguars are very capable team.
They have good players. They they're starting to lean on
tank bagsby you know, with Travis etn you know, spelling
him at times. Trevor Lawrence twenty one thirty two, three
to eight, two touchdowns, an interception in a fumble that

(42:45):
he lost. This was this is a solid game from him,
but the interception devastating play in the lost fumble. Again,
devastating for a team. They win this game if he
doesn't throw that interception, if he doesn't fumble that ball.
And again, his sixty five turnovers since twenty twenty one
are the most in an NFL. And everybody, you know,

(43:05):
I see fans on our comments on Instagram talking about, oh,
we're wrong about Trevor Lawrence. It's his team's fault. They're
dropping passes. It's not him, it's somebody else. It's the coach,
it's this, it's that I hear you. But if any
other player, any other quarterback, was two and thirteen over
their last fifteen games, I don't know if they'd get

(43:28):
the same pass. If it was Jameis Winston and I
told you he led the NFL and turnovers since he
was drafted, you'd say, why is he starting an NFL
If I told you he had two turnovers in this game,
but he threw two touchdowns. But those turnovers were so
detrimental to the win. I mean to his team winning
the ball game, and that they just cannot. They have

(43:49):
not won with him, and his defense isn't even when
his defense does cause a turnover. They caused a turnover
this this game, they picked off Jordan Love. They're still
not to win those games. But I think you give
a lot of credit to Lafloor and the staff of
the Green Bay Packers. Obviously they got my guy Robert
Sala over there, so they got a friend. They already

(44:12):
had my guy, Jeff Hafley calling the defense over there.
They continue to do well. That defense costs two turnovers
for from it took the ball away from h Trevor
Lawrence twice in this game critical. They continue to lead
the league and uh turnovers, they're they're very opportunistic, and
that's what you got to worry about, Mitchell, when when
facing this Green Bay Packers team and your Detroit Lions,

(44:34):
UH play them next week in Lambeau. That's what they've
been doing at a really high level this year is
turning the ball over just like the Dallas Cowboys had
the last couple of years. They're forcing turnovers, they're opportunistic.
Our guy Xavier McKinney gets him another one, already leading
a league in interceptions, gets his sixth interception of the season,

(44:55):
uh and takes it from Trevor Lawrence. But it's Green
Bay Packers team looks good, Mitchell. They look they look
really solid, they look really complete. Obviously, there are some
weaknesses we saw, you know, exposed versus Minnesota Vikings. We've
seen them. But when your backup quarterback comes in and

(45:15):
plays as well as Malik Willis did, that goes to coaching,
That goes to development, and they're doing a great job
developing these players and even their receiving corps. You really
never know who's gonna show up and have a great
game because they're doing a great job spread no love.
You know, whether it's Jaden Reid, whether it's Romeo Dobbs,

(45:36):
whether it's Christian Watson, it's it's gonna be somebody and
they're gonna go off and nobody's gonna be upset, nobody's
gonna be frustrated. Obviously, Romeo Dobbs had that moment where
I think he missed practice. There's some frustration growing. He
turns around and has a two touchdown game. As soon
as he gets back, everybody hugs him and you can
see the culture that they built over there that really
embraces one another. There's love, and there's respect, and there's

(45:58):
there's trust and and and and belief in one another
and belief in what they're doing. So they deserve a
lot of credit and they're gonna be a tough team
down to stretch. They're gonna be a playoff team this season,
for sure, no question.

Speaker 1 (46:08):
And they look like an ego list football team. I mean,
there's they have so many options offensively, you never really
even know who the number one receiver is and who
the number one offensive weapon is. They just have so
many guys. Tucker Kraft has elevated himself in his second
year this year, he's looking like he's gonna be a
great pro going forward.

Speaker 2 (46:27):
As a tight end.

Speaker 1 (46:29):
But Richard, I want to talk to you a little
bit about the Jets. They you touched on it briefly earlier.
They go out, they fire Robert Sala. They think that's
going to be the solved. Now they're zero to three
without him, you know, then they say, hey, all right,
you know we're still losing. We got to go get
Aaron Rodgers guy. Because he can't hit Mike Williams over
the middle. So we're gonna trade for Devonte Adams. That

(46:52):
doesn't work either. Now they're two and six, they lose
to the Patriots. What's the latest excuse with this team?
This just doesn't look like it's gonna end well with
the Jets this season.

Speaker 2 (47:03):
No, it's not gonna end well. You know it's not
gonna end well because you took out their leader five
games into the season. It doesn't always start how you
wanted to. And then we talked about all the teams
that don't start well. You know, the Cincinnati Bengals have
not started well historically. I mean it's almost like what
you expect from you expect to run mid season from

(47:23):
a uh. The San Francisco forty nine ers have had
seasons where they started off three and four and two
and four and then going on to the NFC championship
games and lost or run or made it Super bowls,
et cetera, et cetera. But whatay Johnson made a knee
jerk decision which injected chaos into a team. And again,

(47:50):
I cannot stress and I cannot emphasize enough how how
dysfunctional it is. And an environment becomes when you take
the head coach out of the equation, you all of
a sudden change, the roles changed the responsibilities of so
many people in the building without enough time for them
to fully digest and fully embrace or brace themselves for

(48:13):
those positions. Brick is a is a good DC. His
defense has been really good. But that's what he was
prepared to do this year. He's prepared to call the defense.
He had a routine, a regiment. He knows when he's
getting his film, he's breaking it down. He knows the
things he has to worry about, the things he's responsible for,
the things he doesn't need to think about and worry

(48:33):
about on game day. And then five games into the season,
you turn his world upside down. Now you put more
on his plate, You put more decisions, more things to
think about, more conversations. And it's tough. It's tough on anybody,
and he didn't deserve to be put in such a
tough position where a team and a defense it is

(48:57):
already kind of really and you're almost can want it down.
You're almost poisoning your own drink, You're poisoning your own
well water, You're poisoning your own citizens in a in
a in a way metro when you're when you start
to to do things like Woody Johnson did. If he
would have left Robert Salim, maybe maybe they still lose
three games, but but they they would have a better

(49:20):
chance to win. They would have more stability, they would
have more consistency. Like you, you make it harder for
a defensive coordinator to prepare each week when he has
head coaching duties. But I put this on Woody Johnson. Obviously,
Aaron hasn't played as well as he would want to play.
The defense has been playing a lot worse over the

(49:42):
last few games. You expect them to win this game
against the New England Patriots, but there's no guarantees in
this league, and again this is the divisional game that
it's always gonna be a dogfight. They just couldn't get
it done defensively and and offensively. They just can't find themselves.
They can't find their identity. A rod can't find his rhythm,

(50:04):
and and they're there. They're rumors out there that he's
gonna be done after this season, and maybe he will,
because it's it's it's not looking like there's so many
uncharacteristic things happen in these games where you've watched him
play for such a long time that he's never done.
He's stilling multiple interceptions in multiple games, missing wide, uping guys.
You know, you see flashes of the things that you're

(50:26):
used to seeing, which is very very quick arm, great release,
you know, pinpoint passes, but then you're seeing it off.
He's not moving like he used to. This offensive line
isn't playing as well as they have in the past.
And we have him next week on Thursday Night football
against the Houston Texans, who are playing as good as anybody,
and I'm just not sure. Maybe they can pull that

(50:49):
one off, you know, maybe they find my magic and
they can capture lightning in a bottle. Uh. They have
the playmakers on offense to be able to strike quick
and really get on on get up to speak quickly.
But it just seems like maybe the decision Whatdy Johnson
made was the straw that broke the camel's back in
terms of this culture, and it's toxic.

Speaker 1 (51:12):
It certainly looks that way. But like you said, we'll
see on Thursday Night Football. That's a huge game for them.
They need to write this ship quick. Another loss, it's
going to be very tough to turn this season around.

Speaker 2 (51:24):
Richard.

Speaker 1 (51:24):
Let's go to the Bengals Cincinnati. The Bengals three and
four entering this week, an opportunity to get back to
five hundred. You have the Eagles coming into town. The
Eagles are finally getting healthy. Vegas liked the Bengals in
this game. They were favored going in and early on
it looked like the Bengals had a really good opportunity

(51:44):
to win this game. And then the Eagles just take
over and never look back. What's the deal with the
Cincinnati Bengals at three and five? Are they done?

Speaker 2 (51:54):
I don't know if they're done, because they're always in
this position and every time you ride them off. They
win some games and they and they find a way,
but they don't look good. They don't look good defensively. Obviously,
Jamar Chase and Justin I mean and T Higgins and
Joe Burrow are gonna look good. They're good players, they're
high level players. But it's just not enough right now.

(52:15):
And it's not enough in a really competitive division where
Pittsburgh Steelers right now have only lost two games and
they looked really good. They're at the top of the
division now, especially with Baltimore losing this week. They're now
five and three. I just don't see a world where
they're gonna be able to come back. And if the
Browns look as good as they did today with Jamis

(52:37):
Winston at the Helm, they might steal a few wins
and give the Cincinnati Bengals a much tougher game later
in the season. I don't know. I don't know. I
don't The Eagles looked good today, but it's such an
unpredictable league. I don't count the Bangals out just because
of their history and what they've been able to do
down the stretch, but it's not looking great for them.

(52:57):
The Eagles look pretty good. Sakuan has been a godsend
for this organization and really steadied the ship a lot
of these games. I think he's gonna, you know, make
an All Pro team this year, Pro Bowl team, especially
with Christian McCaffrey down and him shining the way he
has for the Eagles. But I don't know. I don't

(53:17):
know if I have the Eagles beating the Commanders in
this division quite yet. I need more consistency from them.
But like you said, they're getting healthier and that's good
for them.

Speaker 1 (53:25):
I'm with you as well. I like the Commanders in
this division, but the Eagles, you know, with only two
losses on the season and getting healthy right now, anything
could happen. The Chiefs go to seven and zero, they
beat the Raiders, no one's surprised by that. But Holmes
finally throws his first two tds in October, Kareem Hunt
his four touchdowns since being backed with the team. I mean,

(53:48):
the Chiefs are seven in ah. I know, we talked
about it last week. The likelihood of them running the
table and going undefeated is slim, And you said you
probably want a loss on the record so that you
don't have to go in to the playoffs undefeated. But
what is it really gonna take to knock this Chiefs
team off track? Because it just doesn't seem like it

(54:10):
matters who they play, they always rise to the occasion.
How are you approaching this Chiefs team, Richard.

Speaker 2 (54:20):
You're gonna have to find a way to score points
on this defense. Their offensive struggled at times. They've been
able to take the ball away from Patrick Mahons at times.
The Kareem Hunt looks really good. That run game is
really strong. The interior of their offensive line is as
good as there is in National Football League, So you're
gonna have to be able to match that. You're gonna

(54:41):
have to be able to put some d linemen down
there who can really compete with them the interior offensive line.
You're gonna have to be able to cover their receivers.
They just got DeAndre Hopkins and still working them into
the fold. Travis Kelcey looked a lot better in this game.
Ten catches for ninety yards and a touchdown. That should
be alone for a lot of people, because if he

(55:01):
gets in rhythm and they get get hot again with him,
especially with all the injuries they've had and the guys out,
they're gonna be hard to beat again. And as long
as he's in there and Patrick Mahomes is in there,
they're gonna be a tough out. But defensively, again, they're
a defensive team now with a great quarterback at all
time quarterback. But Spags is called an unbelievable games given

(55:24):
a lot of people a lot of tough, tough outs.
You saw how they played against San Francisco forty nine
ers force three turnovers, three interceptions from Rock Party, and
they just continue to impact these games in a huge way.
Chris Jones in that defensive line, George Carl Loftis Bolton
and those boys and on the second level continue to

(55:46):
impact them. But you're gonna have to score points. They're
gonna have to score points in bunches, and you're gonna
have to turn the ball over and you're gonna have
to stop the run in order to beat this team,
and nobody has done that. That's what they're selling to zero.

Speaker 1 (55:56):
Now, they're gonna be a tough out. And then finally
we look at the Texans. They take out the Colts.
This game was a lot closer than a lot of
folks thought it would be. You know, you talked about
Sakuon Barkley and how important he was to the Eagles.
I think an argument can be made that Joe Mixon
is having that same effect with the Houston Texans team.
I mean, he's having an amazing year. It's one hundred

(56:19):
plus yards and four of the last five games for him.
But I think the story of this game is Anthony Richardson.
You were talking about it, we were texting during the game,
and you said, he's a flat out liability. At what
point are the Colts going to make the change that
quarterback and go with our guy, Joe Flacco because it
certainly looks like if they want to win, they got

(56:39):
to put Flaco in Your thoughts on that, rich.

Speaker 2 (56:43):
Well, At first off, I want to give Joe Mixon
a lot of love because obviously a for end of
the program again. But I don't think we're we're talking
enough about how much the Bengals miss him and what
he's been, what he's brought to the Texans. When he
was hurt, their run game looked totally different. He comes
back one hundred yards in four of the last five games,

(57:03):
and he's getting tough yards, he's punishing, he's running behind
his shoulder pads. He looks really good in the past
game as well, and he really just stabilizes this offense.
Give CJ. Stroud a safety blanket comfort and even when
he's struggling a little bit or he's off a little bit,
he can just turn around hand it off the Joe
Mixon twenty five plus times. There are very few backs

(57:25):
in the National Football League that can still consistently carry
the ball twenty five times twenty plus times over any
amount of games. And so you got to give Joe
Mixon a tip of the cap because he's been able
to do that. But Anthony Richardson just not has not
been good. And you can really, you can really see
the difference if you just side by side compare heat

(57:47):
and and Joe Flacco, who's obviously a veteran, has played
at a high level in this game. But they're not
going to give up on Anthony Richardson. They're gonna let him,
let him work his way through that. He made some
good passes in this game. But I know if they
had Joe Flacco in there, the Houston Texans would feel
a lot more unsure and uncertain about their ability to

(58:08):
beat the Indianapolis Colts. But this is the league we're in.
They're not going to play the best guy. They're not
going to play a guy that can win them games
just because they're going to play him. You know, they're
they're working for the future, and they think Anthony Richardson
is the future. And just because he's not playing well
now doesn't mean he won't play well later. But if
you're looking to win now, Joe Flacco showed you that

(58:28):
he can be really effective with these same guys. He
can throw for three hundred plus yards, really be productive
with this offense with the same exact guys. And then
you watch Anthony Richardson complete thirty five percent of his
passes over the last two games since returning from injury.
It's just not good enough to win games. And the

(58:48):
Colts are still in a lot of these games. They're
still one score games. Are they won? They won. They
beat the Miami Dolphins with him not playing really good
on offense, and they had a chance to beat the
Houston Tech with him struggling as much as he did.
I think he was five of nineteen at one point
in this game. So you would think, hey, if you
just made a little bit of a change. But these

(59:09):
are some of the decisions they make. I remember watching
Ryan Fitzpatrick play really good football with the Miami Dolphins.
Maybe this was Flores's second year, this was to a
tongue v Lois first year, and then all of a
sudden they made a change at quarterback and to what
was not ready was clear was that either he wasn't
ready or this offense just didn't fit his skill set.

(59:32):
And then they let him struggle all game for you know,
under one hundred yards throwing under one hundred yards and
then bring fits in like the last two drives of
the game and say try to win us a game.
And it's just like like, at some point or another,
like somebody has to look at these gms and decision
makers and say, hey, maybe they need to switch these
guys out, Maybe we need to put some other people

(59:53):
in these positions, because it really just doesn't make sense.
You know, I understand you trying to say, hey, we're
going to develop, and you can only develop through live reps,
but if you're a player in that locker room, you
have to be looking like, man, we just saw what
Joe Flacco could do. You saw Josh Downs with Joe
Flacco and how incredibly effective he was. You know, you
saw Pittman with Joe Flacco and how effective he was.

(01:00:16):
You just saw the offense putting up points. Just the
scheme works, everything works, and then then you put Anthony
Richardson in there and you still in games. But it's
just because you got a really good team. You got
a defense that makes plays that it puts enough pressure
that a special teams that's discipline doesn't give up big plays.
But you're not getting enough offensively. You're not getting as

(01:00:37):
much offensively as you could with Joe Flacco, and that
has to be frustrating for the players that have watched
been there for both.

Speaker 1 (01:00:42):
Quarterback There's no question and unlike tu a tongue of Iloa.
You know, Anthony Richardson, I think a lot of folks
and I'm no NFL scout Richard but he had completion
percentage issues at Florida. The volume was just not there.
I mean this ten and third two that that was
something that I think Florida Gator fans were used to

(01:01:04):
seeing uh In when he was at Florida, so I
think a lot of folks were surprised to see him
go as high as he did in the draft in
the first place. So maybe this isn't his fault, rich
Maybe this is folks that are, you know, over analyzing
his game because he's an incredible athlete and throw the
ball eighty yards, but he's not accurate. He's not like Tua.
Tua was a gunslinger and in Alabama led the team

(01:01:27):
to national championships. So like, yeah, I know you were
upset back then, but I would put Joe Flacco in,
give this cold steam an opportunity to win weekend week out,
and develop Anthony Richardson a little bit more behind a
proven veteran.

Speaker 2 (01:01:41):
But we'll see that that's part of development. Like watch
how Joe Flacco does it, Watch how he prepares, watch
how he throws it. I ask some questions. See how
he's getting through games, how he talks, how he watched
his film on the sideline during games. But you're you're, you're,
you're wasting away a really solid, really talented team for
no reason. And it's not Anthony Richardson's fault, but it

(01:02:02):
is the people who keep putting them out there when
there is a better option on your.

Speaker 1 (01:02:05):
Team, no question. Well, Richard, this concludes our Sunday Night
recap of a week eight I will let you sign
us off.

Speaker 2 (01:02:14):
Well, thank you guys so much for joining us. We
really appreciate it. I know you know, whether your team
won or they lost, there's always hope next week. We're
seeing that two one in five teams got wins this week.
Our one and six teams got wins this week, and
your season can turn around in an instant. Thank you
guys for supporting the podcast, for being here. We appreciate

(01:02:35):
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