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January 10, 2025 • 35 mins
The Athletic's Alec Lewis is at BWWs Savage with PA & Charch for most of the final hour!
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Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Time for two more What good stuff?

Speaker 2 (00:16):
A gentleman a weekly guest for a second consecutive season,
nine to noon at the Friday Football Feast, representing the
Athletic and the Athletic dot Com. Can we get a
witness in a raucous round of applause for one of
our favorites, Alex Lewis. Ladies and gentlemen here to dissect
vikings and rams.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
I think it's a third season.

Speaker 2 (00:37):
Like I said, for your hair looks good today, so
to your glasses, A third season. Wow, I think it's
all that's right twenty twenty two. Yeah, and then the
Dobbs experienced them this year. Now alid Dobbs experience. Ali,
our whole season is now called that entire season is
called the Dobbs, the big part of it. Just asked
Justin Jefferson. He got sent to the hospital due to

(00:58):
the Dobbs experience.

Speaker 1 (01:00):
You saw you started a game last week.

Speaker 3 (01:02):
Oh, Joshua Bobs did right, two hundred and seventy passing yards.

Speaker 1 (01:06):
I'm like, where was that for the Vikings?

Speaker 2 (01:08):
Yeah, well you know where it is. It's in the
off season with no playoff games like it was last
year for the forty nine ers. That's true, all right,
three two Alec Alec just surprised me that one of
my and I think our favorite Minnesota Vikings just made
All Pro, was named All Pro. Andrew Van Ginkole second

(01:29):
team All Pro.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
That gang, that gang, the gank is on fire. That
guy's been unbelievable.

Speaker 4 (01:35):
Well, it was pretty obvious, like from the get go,
from the time they prioritized him in free agency, that
he was just.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
Gonna be a perfect fit.

Speaker 4 (01:43):
I mean, you have a defensive coordinator who knew exactly
what this guy's about. But what's so funny about him,
and you know this well because you've talked to him.

Speaker 1 (01:50):
Is when you when you like stand next.

Speaker 4 (01:52):
To him in the locker room or have a conversation
with them, it's like you're talking like a really nice, humble,
second grade like teacher. And then on the field, he's
just like ricking shop every capacity.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
He's one of the best.

Speaker 4 (02:08):
Like this may be hyperbole, but I feel okay saying it.
Probably one of the best coverage edge rushers in the
history of the game. Like for his ability to drop
into coverage off the line of scrimmage, it is, it
is unbelievable, Like how much he can strict space and
allows him they do.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
So Yeah, I like.

Speaker 2 (02:26):
That statement, now, you know. I mean it's we're not
going to go through every edge in the history of
the game.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
That would be why if we did.

Speaker 2 (02:32):
But what I like about that statement is because edge rushers,
so think Andrew van Ginkel, Jonathan Grenard, hybrid floaters, hybrid
floaters out of a three four, I love the hybrid floater.

Speaker 1 (02:45):
Rashawn Gary is.

Speaker 2 (02:46):
Technically an edge even though he puts his hand in
the grass a little, the one standing to the outside
because the inside linebackers like for my taste, I mean,
if you're gonna say linebacker and coverage and bat ever,
well it I don't know if it starts and stops
for me with Bobby Wagner or Luke Keikley. Zach Thomas

(03:08):
was really good like that. But those are inside guys.
So when it comes to edge guys, you may be
onto something with the gang.

Speaker 1 (03:15):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (03:15):
Just ask Brian Flores out at practice today and he'll probably.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Tell you that. I mean, you might say the same thing.

Speaker 3 (03:21):
Mm hmm.

Speaker 1 (03:22):
He would have a better perspective than I would. Well.

Speaker 2 (03:24):
With Ben Ginkole, you know, he's just he's very quiet.
I mean, but that's authentically who he is. It's not
like he's quiet because he's trying to keep things from people,
or he doesn't care about the media or fans or anything.
He's just a really, really humble, quiet guy from Rock Valley, Iowa.
And the thing with Andrew and I bet you you've

(03:47):
experienced this too when you're talking to him or interviewing him.
I mean, he looks you intently in the eyes. I
mean he does everything you know from like an interviewing standpoint,
nodding the head, and then you wait for the answer,
and and he's just quiet.

Speaker 1 (04:03):
You know. Maybe like a few weeks ago, I was
doing a story where.

Speaker 4 (04:05):
I asked, like, all of the newcomers, what about Justin Jefferson.
They they've seen in person that they didn't know from Afar,
And I asked him a question goes oh man, and
I'm thinking, like, oh, here comes a great answer.

Speaker 1 (04:17):
Yes, He's like he's just everything right.

Speaker 4 (04:20):
And I'm like, that's it, that's all, that's all it
is best.

Speaker 1 (04:23):
But no, I mean this guy he fast.

Speaker 2 (04:26):
Times at Ridgemont High fans, He's Specoli without the pot.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
The only way to put it, I.

Speaker 4 (04:32):
Will tell you if he had caught that pass against Detroit,
if he had caught that, I almost fell out of
my chain. I mean it was it was gonna be
a very big problem on press row. I don't really
you're not supposed to cheer, you know, you can't do it.
I was having a hard time if he caught a duel.

Speaker 3 (04:48):
Let me let me, let me tell you about my
situation with that pass. I bet I have I have
him at preseason bet at like seventy five one to
win defensive MVP.

Speaker 1 (04:59):
Wow. And uh.

Speaker 3 (05:01):
And so you know he's been in the running usually,
he said, as odds are like, you know, third or
fourth or fifth best, you know. And he had that
early return for the touchdown against the in Week one
against the Giants. Back when I placed the bat was
right after that game. Yeah, and then and so I've
been waiting for other splash moments. This was gonna be
the splash moment for Andrew van Gingkle to bring home

(05:23):
defensive MVP and for me to cash at seventy five
to one.

Speaker 1 (05:27):
That's not gonna happen. The other thing I'll say about
win it, Patrick, sir, Tam, He's probably gonna win.

Speaker 4 (05:32):
The other thing I'll say about Van Ginkle and then
we can. I mean, there's a lot of Van Gingle talk,
and I love it because I could talk about him
for a while.

Speaker 1 (05:38):
But like he rarely, rarely ever.

Speaker 4 (05:42):
Misses a tackle like on the edge, if it's like
a quick screen, if it's I mean, the way he
plays the run like that stuff is just hidden yardage
that he eliminates over and over again. And it's part
of the reason why this defense has has given them
the opportunities that they've had.

Speaker 1 (05:57):
All right, let's stick with the defense.

Speaker 3 (05:59):
Okay, we spent a lot of these shows together, you
and I Alec talking about a run defense that at
the beginning of the year was very, very good, smothering.
Then we lost Pace, we've lost Cashman, and it was
a little more inconsistent. But we've had Pace and Cashman
back now for a couple of weeks together, and this
run defense is still getting gouged. Let me give you
some data behind it. I think just one week, right,

(06:22):
I think two green back since week thirteen. Here's the
Vikings defensive run ranks. So back to week thirteen, yards
per carry, twentieth rush defense EPA, seventeenth yards after contact,
twenty first and run defense success rate thirty first in.

Speaker 1 (06:41):
The league since Week thirteen.

Speaker 3 (06:43):
That's a pretty long sample size now, you know, six games.
So I'm nervous about the de evolution of this running defense.

Speaker 1 (06:51):
I gotta be honest, I'm not. And here's why.

Speaker 4 (06:54):
I mean, I feel like the last two weeks you
played two of the best running backs in the league.

Speaker 1 (07:00):
There's no question Kyrin Williams is very good.

Speaker 4 (07:02):
Josh Jacobs is an electric back and that run scheme
is very good. And then Jamiir Gibbs. I mean, you
talk to people in that locker room, you talk to players,
and they will admit to you like he is one
of the three hardest guys to tackle in the NFL.
So just in terms of the types of guys they face,
that contributes to the numbers. I also just think like
a lot of those Jamiir Gibbs numbers happened. Well, Hey,

(07:24):
there was one explosive play early the twenty seven yard
touchdown run, right, but other than that early in that game,
he had like eleven other carries for seventeen yards, so
they were shutting him down for the most part other
than the explosive and then towards the back end of
that game, he got loose a bunch of times where
you can say the defense has to be better, but
I mean with the amount that the offense did not

(07:45):
give them in that game, like at some point they
were just gonna fall a parts, I'm just not crazy
worried about the run defense up among the worries.

Speaker 1 (07:52):
That's not high up there.

Speaker 2 (07:53):
How about job How about Grenard on Taylor Decker early
in that game. I mean, he was doing to him
should be felonious in forty eight states. And that played
into the run defense, and it also plays into this
season long, which would be age old as twenty twenty
four goes. You know, like Grenard would have some sacks
and then you know, O'Connell would start pointing out I

(08:16):
just you know, like like x's and o's on Tuesday
or or with the Wednesday interviews stuff like that, with
the press conferences, he would start pointing out, this guy's
doing so many things that are hard to pick up
on unless you watch it back five times. And how
excited he was about Grenard against the run and we
saw it early off what you said, where he got

(08:37):
like eleven carries Gibbs and didn't get much out of it.

Speaker 1 (08:40):
Well, Grenard was blowing things up left or right.

Speaker 4 (08:42):
Yeah, there's a statistic and I don't know the exact
stat but it's next gen stats and it's like the
only two players in the NFL to have x amount
of sacks run stops or Miles Garrett and Jonathan Gernard.

Speaker 1 (08:52):
Wow, Like he has been company.

Speaker 4 (08:54):
He has been exceptional from an all around type of
player at edge, he's been He's been huge. And I'm
glad we're talking about it because these edges are very
important against this Rams rushing attack. If you go back
and rewatch the Week eight game, the Rams did a
lot of like motion to kick out the edge rushers
on the side of the line of scrimmage, and it's
gonna be incumbent upon those guys to play the run

(09:16):
really well to stop Kyen Williams. And it's worth talking
about because kyn Williams, to me is a very underrated
back across the league.

Speaker 1 (09:23):
YEP, and their running game is very.

Speaker 4 (09:25):
Dynamic because they have two receivers in Cooper Cup and
Poka Nakua who can block very effectively in the run game.

Speaker 1 (09:33):
So so stopping this one.

Speaker 4 (09:36):
Stopping this RAMS rushing game this weekend is gonna be huge.
And I felt like in the first matchup going back
and rewatching it, they did an okay job at times,
but like you're gonna have to have Matthew Stafford in
third and long situations to win this game, which is
gonna be a very tough game.

Speaker 3 (09:52):
I'm gonna get one other thing on the on the
edge and the running game. Matthew Stafford's a very good
play action quarterback, and they will play action to a
play that looks like it's going to be a lateral
running play, and Stafford will motion that way running backs
going that way, and then he'll pull back. And for
those edge rushers, you got to respect Kyrod Williams' ability

(10:16):
to get to the edge and if it takes you,
if he gives you just that moment a pause as
an edge rusher about well, is this a run versus pass?
That's an advantage and it's one of the things Stafford
does really well.

Speaker 2 (10:28):
Cooper Couple bust that button and I'm glad, I'm glad,
I'm glad Alec brought it up. He's one of the
best run blocking wide receivers in the NFL, and that
week he got off because McVeigh knows he put discretion
as the better part of battler. It's like, yeah, I
know I might get the Vikings or I might get
the Lions. Well, I beat one and I know I
can beat the other. I don't care where it is,

(10:51):
but resting cup and getting juice in those legs in
the run blocking force, when you attach him to a
tackle or you attach him to a tight end and
then he cracks back and then he just bust you up.

Speaker 1 (11:03):
Man, when he's healthy and happy.

Speaker 2 (11:05):
Now, Nikuwa, you mentioned that too, is I guess I
haven't asked anybody.

Speaker 1 (11:09):
Or followed it.

Speaker 2 (11:09):
Hohoka Nakua is a tough customer in the run blocking game.

Speaker 1 (11:13):
Oh, this guy's gritty, really good.

Speaker 4 (11:14):
He's also I'll tell you this, from the time he
came back in week eight, he on forty percent of
his routes. He's being targeted, which is the most in
the NFL. Like they are throwing him a ton of
passes and I understand why because he is extremely dynamic
and it's it's very interesting. This offense, the RAMS offense,
is very much like quick drops, three step drops, quick

(11:38):
passing games. Yes, the Vikings is so much more vertical shots, yep,
deep over routes.

Speaker 1 (11:44):
They're very different in that regard. And that's why I remember.

Speaker 4 (11:47):
In that first matchup coming out of it, a lot
of the question was like why did the Vikings not
get any pressure? And there were times where I did
feel like they could have gotten more pressure. But also
the Rams offense is designed to get the all out quick,
to eliminate pressure from being able to get there, and
so that that poses a challenge because of the receiver's

(12:08):
ability to set up in zones.

Speaker 1 (12:10):
It's a it's a tough offensive stop in that way.

Speaker 2 (12:12):
All right, can you guys help me with this then,
because like if you look back at the schedules these
teams played, Okay, the the Vikings won games against two
teams that are in the playoffs. Yeah, they beat Green
Bay twice and they beat Houston. And when you and
the only reason Houston is in the postseason is because

(12:32):
each division is required to have a right I mean,
we're talking about a win against Houston's Like bragging is
like bragging about getting straight as a junior college. So
if it you know with Houston, all right, whatever, you know,
you gotta play who's in front of you and if
you can kill them, kill them, which they did. So
if you look at the rest of it, you know
it's wins against teams that are not in the postseason,

(12:55):
a lot of low rated races in there. But the
Vikings found a way to get to the finish line.

Speaker 1 (12:59):
First.

Speaker 2 (12:59):
I think the Rams have beaten two teams maybe that
are in the playoffs, two or three.

Speaker 1 (13:04):
But they beat Buffalo.

Speaker 2 (13:05):
That's a big win, the signature win because it was
late in the season.

Speaker 1 (13:07):
In Buffalo too, if I recall correctly.

Speaker 2 (13:09):
So here's where I need you to help me, and
we'll start with you charge after everything we've just talked about,
and after the Rams resting their best guys, getting their
preferred left guard of Vila back.

Speaker 1 (13:21):
Yeah, that's great point. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (13:22):
The other guy, the guy they used when we went there,
was a complete ol Bolimmer. Yeah, and he got better
as the season went on. Their rookie center was a
complete l when we got there, with penalties and stuff.

Speaker 1 (13:33):
He's gotten himself better.

Speaker 2 (13:35):
I understand Higbee's backed, Okay, Hawkinson's back.

Speaker 1 (13:38):
We know all the factors.

Speaker 2 (13:40):
We also know the Rams beat the Vikings in Week
eight yep. Why did the Vikings open to and a
half point favorites and why are they favored in this game?

Speaker 1 (13:49):
And they'll start with you.

Speaker 3 (13:51):
Because of the totality of the regular season. That the
totality that included a loss to the Rams, the Rams,
but not many other losses.

Speaker 1 (13:59):
Right, you got you.

Speaker 3 (14:00):
It's a three it's a three loss season, which in
most years puts you on the number one seed. And
I think I think it's the totality of a very
good season and a belief from at least the betting public, Wow,
that Sam Darnold is going to bounce back in his second.

Speaker 2 (14:15):
Game, and and and and bet shops Vegas will just
save the seven oh two. They don't set lines making opinions. Okay,
they're power rankings exactly the the the home field, well,
the home team gets three points. That that's that's as
antiquated as a rotary phone. Uh so, you know it
doesn't that that doesn't play into it. Home field plays

(14:36):
into it, but it ain't the standard three points, but
it you know, they they're in the business of setting
lines that create equal action. So there can be a
million bet on one side, a million bet on the
other side, and they're guaranteed to scoop two hundred thousand
dollars and run their business right. They don't care who wins.
They just don't want to get beat. But they set
that thing at two and a half, and the Squares

(14:58):
or whomever might be the show, they came in and
bet the Rams down to one, and now we have
a venue switch, and now it's back up to two
and a half. So people are crushing the bikes again.
This thing is just perplexed.

Speaker 4 (15:12):
Well, I'll tell you this, like going back and rewatching
that game. I mean the Rams benefited very early in
that game from like three really brutal penalties. I thought
there were like third down penalties where the Vikings are
playing man coverage and Byron Murphy gets flagged for like
having his finger on Pooka Nakula and his third and.

Speaker 1 (15:30):
Seven he's flagged. Yeah, did the drive contain point?

Speaker 4 (15:33):
Then you also you'll remember the Matthew Stafford play. He
scrambles out of the pocket, Jonathan Gernard grabs him on
the shoulder. Somehow he ducks under Harrison Phillips and the
Vikings secondary just like stopped running and he found Cooper
Cup In the end, zone, if that play doesn't happen,
if some of those flags don't happen, if Jalen Naylor
catches a pass in the red zone that raises his

(15:55):
hands and falls on the ground, then the Vikings, I mean,
the Vikings were very much in that game. They beat
themselves in the second half with with with a ton
of self inflicted penalties and sopenalties that weren't called. I
wish people could see your face. I mean you you're
you're good, You're freaking out. I'm good. But but so
I mean you you go back and look at that game.

(16:16):
The Vikings were very much in the thick of it.
They could have very easily won that game. So I
think that's why the spread is was what it was,
is what it is.

Speaker 3 (16:26):
Rams don't hurt ourselves very often, right, you know we
talked about the turnovers. It just just you know, Stafford's
not somebody's gonna give you three picks in a game.
That's not gonna happen. You know, Stafford is is just
so careful with the ball. They don't fumble.

Speaker 1 (16:40):
This is a team.

Speaker 3 (16:41):
Now they don't create a ton of turnovers either, but
this is They're not going to hand the game to
Minnesota that way.

Speaker 4 (16:47):
Well, the thing we haven't talked about and I've been
on for however long is the Rams defensive front, and
to me, that like this is gonna be the game.

Speaker 1 (16:55):
Can the Vikings pass.

Speaker 4 (16:56):
Protection unit hold up against Jared Verse, Byron Young, Coke
Turner and Braden Fist. They are young guys, they are energetic,
they are physical, they are fast. If this pass protection
unit cannot hold up and they are getting the Sam
Donald early, it is going to be a hard night.
I do think the Viking staff is good enough and
smart enough to scheme that they they to create their

(17:20):
scheme around holding up against that unit, which to me
gives me faith that they will be able to find
guys across the field against this secondary. That I don't
think is they don't play as aggressively as Detroit. They
don't play as much man coverage as Detroit. It's it's
a different deal. They can try to do it. Like
that's been a whole thing this week. Oh well, teams
just copy what the like Detroit's play style is. The

(17:41):
way they played the Rams operating in that same play
style is that's not their style, That's not what they do.

Speaker 1 (17:48):
They could try it. I don't know if i'd recommend them.

Speaker 2 (17:50):
So Tuesday with O'Connell, during that time that I get
with him at the facility, I kind of, you know,
asked him about that is Detroit, you know, plays this
defense no matter what the name is on the the jersey,
because if you're Kendallvildor and you've had.

Speaker 1 (18:03):
Problems, we're not going to change the defense.

Speaker 2 (18:05):
So you can play fifty plays, You're gonna play it
the way it's supposed to be played, and if it doesn't.

Speaker 1 (18:09):
Work, we're gonna replace you. I got a lot of
respect for that.

Speaker 2 (18:12):
And then and when I brought it up a different way,
but talking about copycat what you said, O'Connell was like, well,
not everybody can do it that way, and he just
pretty much.

Speaker 1 (18:22):
Ended it like that.

Speaker 2 (18:23):
Now for the Rams, Okay, some intel I've gotten, you
know that that I don't know if if it's public
or not. It's not that big or whatever. Just some
people with whom I'm chatting Omar Spates, okay, forty eight
for the for the La Rams.

Speaker 1 (18:35):
I haven't gotten to him in my pregame shot.

Speaker 2 (18:37):
Okay, well just remember this because there are some people
within the local covenant who are like he made his
starting debut. I think that's what I was told against
the Vikings week eight and had some problems. He ain't
the same guy, and they, I mean, he stole the
show in the preseason, was one of those, and they
waited and they waited.

Speaker 1 (18:57):
Then they had to use him.

Speaker 2 (18:58):
But then they're like, wow, I mean this is cool,
you know, and then it kept getting better. Forty eight,
I think is his number. And supposedly he is a
problem to go along with Versts and Fisk and Young
and Hoyt who West Phillip shouted out the other day
because of his size and his strength.

Speaker 1 (19:13):
You're and Turner, who's the bomb? You're absolutely right.

Speaker 2 (19:16):
And secondly, with the short game and Stafford and everything.
You know, the in that week eight game, see if
you remember this, it's they were beating the vit a
long day on shallow crosses, short stuff, quick hitters, get
a block, try to you know, take six, make it
twelve yards. Well, in the second half, some point in

(19:39):
the second half, I think it was third quarter, maybe
early fourth, the Vikings defense solved some things and it
started to get a little difficult for Stafford and he
started to get second and third and longer. Do you
remember where it would be heading to. Where's the press
box behind the Rams bench? Okay, it was going away
from Burstich and Ies. He called the game behind the

(20:01):
Rams bencher to the right of us. Stafford just went
on a seven step drop threw the ball as far
as he could to the left.

Speaker 1 (20:09):
Yeah, and there was nobody close.

Speaker 2 (20:11):
So somebody like Demart left sideline, left sideline near the
end zone and nobody was ever.

Speaker 1 (20:16):
Going to catch it. But he missed it. Well, no,
he didn't miss it.

Speaker 2 (20:19):
He's like, back off, Okay, if you don't back off that,
you're gonna have to back off. And he just threw
one away to show we will go deep and they
backed off and then he started to get what he wants.
That's how fast Matthew Stafford plays in games like that.

Speaker 1 (20:35):
He sees the field very well. And so for Brian
Floor is like.

Speaker 4 (20:38):
It is a it is a tough challenge in that game,
Like they were doing a lot of drop eight stuff,
which for the people listening it's I mean, you only
rush three, you drop eight and coverage and then Matthew
Stafford has to look through all those bodies and try
to find guys they were doing they were doing stuff
on third down where they were showing man coverage and
then dropping it as they were trying to give him
as much as they could give him. But there's no

(21:00):
quite I mean the other aspect of like the verse
turner all that is, the Vikings now have Cam Robinson
and I know, like we've given him Kredy Stepdick came in,
but like he has not been exceptional. I believe he's
given up the most pressures of.

Speaker 1 (21:14):
Any offensive lineman, but he's not questioned.

Speaker 4 (21:16):
Barry No and then ed Ingram is no longer playing
and he was in that game and now it's Dalton Risers.
So like to me, there's there's a lot of interesting
matchups that are different than the first time around.

Speaker 1 (21:28):
But I like, I do think and I.

Speaker 4 (21:32):
Just feel like I should say this, Like for as
as tough as this team is, like this Vikings team,
if they put together the correct plans, if they can
block up the front, I think they're gonna have a good,
very good chance to win the game.

Speaker 1 (21:45):
Well they have the correct plan.

Speaker 2 (21:46):
At Ford Field, I mean there were five touchdowns left
on the field right and Van Gink I heard I
heard one of your calls you that's we're a Buffalo
wild wing Savage for the Friday football Feast and to
collectively gonna play We're gonna play that Uh, We're gonna
play that game where it's like you hope this happens,
and this happens, then this has to happen where yes,

(22:09):
we are hoping the Vikings win on Monday Night against
the Arizona Card against the l A Rams. Right, we
want the Vikings to win, right, we want the Commanders
to win at Raymond James. Right, We of course want
to get a game at US Bank Stadium. We of
course want the Packers to beat the Eagles. Right, all right,
Nordo three two.

Speaker 1 (22:30):
Church with you. We'll be right back, shall we begin?

Speaker 2 (23:00):
You know, I don't know why the minutia of this
moves me the way it does. I think it's because
I just maybe I've seen it before with what the
Rams scoring against the Vikings on that Thursday night game,
but I've never seen it in succession like this, where
you know, I'm putting some things together for the game
calling depth chart, and I'm looking back at that game
and all the touchdowns are seventy yards every touchdown drive

(23:22):
is seventy yards because they were thirty three and change
on the time of possession, and I wanted to figure
out how they got there. And some of their drives
were three minutes, some were eight miss seven minutes or whatever,
but all the touchdowns were seventy yards. So then that
indicates you got your guy the Alabama gig banging it
out of the end zone. Touchback, start at the thirty,

(23:43):
score a touchdown from seventy yards. It just fascinates me
that Josh Oliver will have a touchdown. They'll come back.
Next drive, seventy yard touchdown. Trent Sherfield Senior scores, Cool
seventy yard touchdown, next possession field goal, cool seventy yard touchdown.
All of their touchdowns not only were seventy yards after

(24:05):
Viking scores, but they were right after they were the
possession after the score.

Speaker 1 (24:10):
It was good to go.

Speaker 4 (24:11):
Back and rewatch that game because you got to see
what it looked like to score in the red zone.
I kind of forgot what that looked like. It was
really good to see some of those crossing crowds.

Speaker 1 (24:21):
A front runner. Wow.

Speaker 2 (24:23):
They scored eleven touchdowns, fourteen trips inside.

Speaker 1 (24:28):
The twenty right, it's it's it's a joke. You're a
front runner.

Speaker 4 (24:31):
No, it's a joke, No, Todd, No, the reality is
I mean, I like, yeah, I think it was. It
was both defense. I mean, that was unbelievable. I know,
so are you. No, it was both defenses making the
offense matriculate its way down the field.

Speaker 1 (24:47):
That was kind of the game. And I expected to
be pretty similar. Like neither of these.

Speaker 4 (24:51):
Defenses once to give up explosive plays. They don't want
to give up to Marcus Robinson over the tops. They
don't want to get I mean that type of stuff.
Both teams are gonna want to eliminate in the red zone.
The red zone thing, like, for me, it's a joke
because I think, like so much of what we saw.
I looked this up in Kevin O'Connell's time here. When
they've reached the red zone four times in a game,

(25:13):
they have scored a touchdown in every game but two. Yeah,
the Jaguars game earlier this year, which was a just
just like slog and then this past weekend. So if
they get to the red zone four times, the odds
are overwhelming that they're gonna score touchdowns.

Speaker 1 (25:28):
If this happens on Monday.

Speaker 2 (25:31):
I mentioned this in passing to the week eight game,
just kind of not not with you, but nine to noon,
just putting together a bunch of different things and then spitballing.

Speaker 1 (25:40):
Is DeMarcus Robinson?

Speaker 2 (25:42):
All right, we can go ahead and be like, he's
not Cooper Cup, he's not Pooking Nakula. You can go
ahead and take Cup and Nakula's playoff games and maybe
triple them or certainly double them. And that's how many
DeMarcus has played him Chiefs. Robinson is a dog. He's
in tough top scrappy guy who's had to work super

(26:03):
hard for everything he has. He's won a Super Bowl,
He's caught touchdowns in the postseason, and he got two
targets two receptions against the Vikings week eight. They both
were touchdowns. Because you get so wrapped up over the
other guys, you forget about you, forget about him. And
if they do that again, if they forget about him, man,
he will scorch you again.

Speaker 3 (26:23):
Well it's you know, with Cooper Cup not getting all
these targets, I had assumed that Robinson's usage it got up. Nope,
not at all. Three of the last four game he
has not caught a pass. He is a trick I
think they just they He's on the field constantly. His
snap percentage is like eighty percent, But I think it's

(26:44):
just they they run specific spots to him. If he
happens to be open, they send it his way. But yeah,
he's very binary. Zero or big game two touchdowns against
the Vikings. Yep, but three of the last four games
no catches for DeMarcus Robinson, even with Cooper Cup languishing,
which is a little bit odd.

Speaker 4 (27:00):
I'm very interested to see, like what the Puka Nakoua
plan is gonna be. I'm sure you heard her earlier
this week and you talked to Kevin O'Connor about it,
but it was so weird I'll never forget, like being
in my hotel room getting no notification that that morning
on Thursday, like Pooka Nakula might actually play.

Speaker 1 (27:17):
Him, Like what like it kind of it just came
out of nowhere, did.

Speaker 4 (27:20):
And the way that Brian Flores talked about earlier this
week is like we were kind of scrambling at the
last second to figure out a way right to kind
of stop him. I don't know if he said that
as gamesmanship, I don't, I I don't. You never know,
because these guys are very sharp, and they're always it's
always a chess match, and Brian Flores is as as
sharp as they come. And I find it very hard
to believe a coordinator who thinks as sharply as he

(27:41):
does would have just not had anything planned for Pooka
Nakoua that day. But I mean he is the focal
point of what they do offensively, like Cooper cup Is,
so has been so productive over time that I think
we're a conditioned to think he is the guy, and
he is one of their guys, no question. But what
Pooka like the target share that he's getting, the way
their offense is built around him right now, to me,

(28:03):
like stopping this offense beyond the running game starts there.

Speaker 3 (28:06):
All right, let me, I'm gonna hit you with this line.
I'll tell me if you want the over under, Pooka
Nakua targets ten and a half.

Speaker 2 (28:14):
M Oh, that's a good number. It seems high. He's
trying to suck us into the under on that. Ooh,
that's a good number. I may take over. Yeah, I'm
gonna take under. Thinking I'm gonna play a tricky game
thinking it's nine or ten.

Speaker 1 (28:27):
Is that the Vegas odds fight?

Speaker 3 (28:28):
I don't know what it is, but I see a
scenario here where he's at twelve, thirteen, fourteen targets in
this game, because if the Rams are going down, they're
they're going down with Pooka Nakua getting plenty of opportunities
to change the tide to that game because he is
he is yea. Last last week, we said, show me

(28:48):
Jamir Gibbs box score and I'll tell you who won,
and that ended up being accurate. Yep, this one, Show
me Pooka Nakua's box score and I will tell you
who wins this game.

Speaker 4 (28:56):
And to me, it's also where the score of this
game early is very important. I think, you know, if
you can force the Rams to be like just pass
only and they can't like create five yards on the
ground or early downs with Kyn Williams like, that's been
a formula that the Vikings have succeeded all year with,
but I really think in this game it could be beneficial.

Speaker 3 (29:16):
I want to talk about Aaron Jones. We haven't talked
about the Vikings running game here at all.

Speaker 1 (29:19):
Yet all day.

Speaker 3 (29:21):
First, Aaron Jones played seventeen games. You know, we were
told by Packer fans that he would break down. You know,
when we needed him most, Aaron Jones would not be there.
Aaron Jones have played every game.

Speaker 2 (29:34):
Yeah, but he's breaking down during games, which all that
has happened, that has happened, It happened last week. But nevertheless,
he has suited up for seventeen games, and I think
that's a win by itself.

Speaker 3 (29:44):
Rams run defense has improved a lot over the last
five weeks. No back his top seventy yards. They're giving
up four point one yards per carry and they are
third best in yards after contact. This was a leaky
run defense early with a lot of young players and rookies.
You've already discussed that run defense is getting cohesive. I

(30:05):
just believe, especially with the version of Sam that we
saw last week. Yeah, have to have balance in this offense,
and Aaron Jones can be a huge part of the
reason the Vikings win.

Speaker 4 (30:14):
Yeah, and early in the game, to me, it's gonna
I'm just so fascinating to see the way that Kevin
O'Connell calls the game early. Does he try to get
Sam like the basketball version of is like see the ball.

Speaker 1 (30:25):
Go through the hoop.

Speaker 4 (30:26):
That way you feel confident as the game progresses, Like
for me, it felt like and I understood why Kevin
O'Connell last week was so confident and convicted that Sam
would find it because he has found.

Speaker 1 (30:38):
It over and over again.

Speaker 4 (30:39):
So Kevin O'Connell to just all of a sudden shift
because he looks a little off.

Speaker 1 (30:43):
I mean, it's a hard in real time.

Speaker 4 (30:45):
It's a hard one, even though I know fans thought
it was such an obvious thing, and that's it. That's
how I felt, yes, and a lot of fans felt
like that, And it's not for me to say that
fans shouldn't have felt that way. But when a guy
has responded from struggles as much as he has, right,
I can understand the conviction from the coach and to
change the way you're calling plays with signal to the
quarterback that you don't have that condition.

Speaker 1 (31:07):
So that's the balance that that you play.

Speaker 4 (31:09):
And I'm not again, I'm not saying that Kevin O'Connell
did the right thing, but but I just think there
are layers to it that are that are that are important,
and like I say, I'm fascinated in the beginning of
this game because to me, running the ball early, running
the ball successfully early, finding completions quick completions early, that
that will only help the course of this game. That

(31:29):
I expect Sam Darno to bounce back in because that's
what he's done his own career.

Speaker 3 (31:33):
I just want to pivot for just a second to
one thing from last week's game. The the who's the
Lions cornerback that got knocked out.

Speaker 1 (31:39):
Of the game, Terry and Arnold?

Speaker 3 (31:40):
Terry and Arnold gets knocked out of the game, pretty
serious injury. It looked like incomes our guy Kendall Vildor.
How about throwing We never threw a Kendall Vildor. I
mean in mind mind like the moment that guy puts
a cleat on the field. He is a magnet. Mammy,
I'll see you at the game Monday. Thanks for shopping by,
of course, always fun Alex Lewis.

Speaker 2 (32:00):
Ladies and gentlemen, the Athleticviathletic dot Com become a subscriber
as all of nine to noon does final segment from
Buffalo Wildling Savage efy cut cut All right, let's close
with a common thread. We went through the AFC and
NFC with points, spreads and fantasy players. We're now down

(32:21):
to Vikings at Rams Minnesota favored by two and a half.
Which way would you bet it? And from a fantasy standpoint,
which one or two do you like best?

Speaker 1 (32:30):
And why?

Speaker 3 (32:31):
Well, let's for each of these games we've talked about
how they got here. Vikings got here by virtue of
winning fourteen regular season games, which is a remarkable and
they did it with the prowess of Sam Donald and
the reclamation project that all of our listeners are very
familiar with. Justin Jefferson stayed true to the talent that
he has in Jordan Addison. I think maybe the most

(32:52):
under discussed development of this season was Jordan Addison turning
into an extremely reliable second receiver Paul When we came
out of last year, we didn't know for sure if
he was going to build on his ten touchdown season,
but he did beautifully. And the Rams got here by uh,
really just virtue of getting past that Cooper Nicoo, Pooka

(33:16):
Nkoua Cooper Cup injuries that they have at the beginning
of the year would be and what a hybrid and
think of the beard prowess that that that they would
have as a as a hybrid right there, and Matthew
Stafford doing what he always does. The defense that got
better over the course of the season, but it's been
an inconsistent, a shockingly inconsistent offense. I think it's I

(33:37):
like mont in this game, you do for TJ Oliver, TJ.

Speaker 1 (33:42):
Mount anyway, continue olds out of time. Sorry, that's all right.

Speaker 3 (33:47):
I my obviously my heart, my heart is with the Vikings.
I'm a little bit of a I think, like many
Viking fans, I'm emotionally damaged by this team over the
past several years. I've been waiting for the other shoe
to drop. But I really want to believe that the
Sam Donald we saw for the sixteen games leading up
to Week seventeen is the real Sam Donald. And I

(34:09):
don't want to just be captured by recency and that
one bad game. I think Sam Donald's battles back here.
I think the Vikings win.

Speaker 1 (34:18):
Yeah, I think I just died. I'm scared to say it,
but I think the Vikings win.

Speaker 2 (34:25):
He's Paul Charchy and I'm Paul Allen. Jared Wells, the
engineer round of applause for the master mixer, Kara and
Grace with Nick Madden's street team. Thank you, and most importantly,
thank everybody here at Buffalo Wild Wing Savage and those
of you listening to KFA and as much as you do.
We next will chat with you Monday vikings and Arizon

(34:46):
three two vikings on La Rams. There you go from Arizona.
God bless all of you. Have a great week and
enjoy the playoffs.

Speaker 1 (34:53):
Bye bye. Thank you for time to

Speaker 3 (35:00):
No The Money podcast, Today's Paul Allen Show, or listen
back to previous show and interviews like going to the
iHeartRadio app or kfa n dot com.
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