January 22, 2026 • 19 mins
Scott Kaplan, radio host on ESPN Los Angeles, joins Dave Softy Mahler and Dick Fain for some smack talk and analysis around the NFC Championship on Sunday between his Rams and our Seahawks including why he thinks L.A. will beat Seattle for the NFC.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
I feel confident the Rams are going to beat Seattle
in Seattle. I'm confident that they're going to win. I'm
confident that they are the better team. I'm confident that
they should have won both games already.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
There's no doubt.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
There is no doubt they should have won both games.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
I think you want to force Donald to have to
throw the ball. I sell out on the run and say,
all right, Sam Donald, try to beat us.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Listen, Sam Donald's had an amazing couple of years, but
he's never been in this kind of a big game
and the Rams have.
Speaker 4 (00:28):
All Right, well, let's welcome in one half of that
crazy group. My buddy, my longtime pal ESPN seven to
ten in La Scott.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Kaplan with us right now on the radio show how
are you, Scottie?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
What's up?
Speaker 5 (00:42):
Saying?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
How are we doing? Guys?
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Good? Now, good good good good.
Speaker 4 (00:45):
So let's before we kind of get into this little
thing where we go back and forth and tell each
other how stupid they are and you're wrong and I'm right.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Uh, give us a vibe from La.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
I mean we had noted sports La Petros Papadacus on
our radio show yesterday. He hates everything, obviously, so it's
not a surprise that he doesn't give a damn about Sunday.
But give me your thoughts on kind of the vibe
in La. Man, how fired up were people for this?
How big a deal is this.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
In La on Sunday?
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Oh, I think it's a really big deal, and I
think it's for the first time, it's a really big deal.
As a matter of fact, I was saying earlier this
week on the air that the Rams have done such
a great job of coming back into LA, but it's
taken a really long time for the sports fans of
LA to really really get in tune with what they're
doing because it's a Dodger town and obviously, the Dodgers
(01:39):
won the last two World Series, and the Lakers have
all the drama all the time with Lebron. And even
when the Rams won the Super Bowl, going back just
a couple of years ago and they had their parade,
it was not like a giant parade. People will still
were not back into the NFL the way they are
in cities like Seattle or other great NFL cities. And
so this year, though, you know, you finally have this
(02:01):
relationship now with this coach and this community and you've
got a real, top level Hall of Fame caliber quarterback,
Houka Nakua is a homegrown guy, and you know, DeVante
replacing Cooper. People felt like they got an upgrade there.
So I guess my point ultimately is is that the city,
for the first time since the Rams are back, it
(02:23):
finally starting to feel now like a real NFL city
and like a real NFL Super Bowl run.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
You know, Scott I brought up something earlier on the
show that just alluding to the cut that you just
we just played, and it was said that no doubt
they should have won both games. Talking about the Rams,
I'm wondering why so much is made of the Rams
dominating the Seahawks statistically in Seattle and losing by a fluke,
And nothing's made of the Hawks statistically dominating the Rams
(02:51):
in the first game, like twenty six to twelve first downs,
thirty eight to twenty two, time possession four fourteen to
two forty nine yards and Sam hands the ball to
the four times, and yet they lose on a missed
field goal. Why is nothing made of that game and
so much is made of the.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Other game because mostly because people forget, you know, and
then they just remember. They just think back and they go,
what happened in that game?
Speaker 6 (03:15):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Yeah, that was a game that Sam Darnold threw four
interceptions and the Rams rather than burying the Seahawks like
a team should when a quarterback throws them for interceptions,
all people seem to remember is you know what, huh,
that's right. The Seahawks are still in that game. And
Jason Myers, who is one of the best kickers in
the NFL, a sixty one yard field goal in a
(03:37):
facility like Sofi Stadium is a makeable field goal probably
fifty percent of the time. For a guy like Jason Myers,
He's capable of making that kick. And who knew that
the Seahawks would actually find themselves in position to potentially
win that game, because remember it was a nineteen seventeen game.
And so when I said in that clip that you
played that they should have won both games, really it's
(04:00):
because they went to Seattle and they had a two
score lead, and then there was the punt return that
shifted the momentum, and then there is kind of that
bizarre statistical thing that happened where there were three two
point conversions in the same game. When the league average
is like thirty three percent. So, by the way, I
suppose if you were listening to that, Cliff and you
were a Seahawks fan, you'd probably be thinking the exact opposite,
(04:22):
which is the Seahawks would have and maybe should have
won that game in LA and then they did snatch
that game from the Rams in Seattle.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Well, I mean, it might take as simple.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
The Hawks had no business winning the first game because
Sam threw four picks, and the Rams had no business
listening to the second game because they're up by sixteen
points in the fourth quarter. Right, So in the end,
we kind of have an impass here because you think,
and Scott, if I'm wrong, you tell me you think
this Rams football team is presently constructed right now, is
a better football team than the Seahawks.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
I'm I right about that, You're right. Why do you
feel that way.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Prime, Because when I look at the Rams offense, I
know that this is a closing window here on Matthew Stafford,
and there's real desperation. You know, when when Sean McVay
made it to the Super Bowl with Jared Goff and
they lost to the to the Patriots in Atlanta, that
was an up and coming coaching staff with a young quarterback,
(05:22):
and they obviously determined that he wasn't for them, and
they found a way to get out from underneath that contract.
And Stafford has delivered a Super Bowl. But Stafford's thirty seven,
and Stafford had back problems going into the season. He's
got a finger issue happening right now, and you cannot
have a mindset of, well, there's plenty of time, and
we're on our way. The Seahawks are on their way
(05:42):
now with Sam Donald, who's still a young guy and
who's obviously been getting better as the years have been
going on, and he's faithful lot of adversity in his
career in Carolina and prior to that New York. And
Sam Donald is now on his way. He's a franchise quarterback.
And you guys have a great young defensive coach who
again is also a guy whose name is now becoming familiar.
(06:03):
But Sean McVay is a guy who's got ten postseason
wins before he's even forty years old. And Stafford's thirty seven.
And when I look at this Rams offense, it's two
running backs deep, it's four tight ends deep, it's four
wide receivers deep. Their offensive line is healthier than it's
been in years past for me, at least from a
Rams offensive side, and that's really decided. It's going to
have to win this game, I believe, against a very
(06:25):
tough Seattle defense. This is the window on the Matthew
Stafford thing is closing, and it's pretty it's closing quickly.
So for me, it's a desperation thing. Is when I
look at Chicago and I look at teams like you know,
New England, Denver. These are teams that have young quarterbacks.
The Rams time is now or this window on Stafford
is closing.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Talk about what this team's look like the last month
compared to the rest of the year. I mean the
last two games of the regular season. They lose to Atlanta.
I kind of chalked it up at they didn't have
the division anyway. They look terrible against Arizona. I'm like, ah,
they got you know, no big deal. I figured they
kill Carolina and they're behind by three points with you know,
a few minutes left to go, and then they go
to overtime against Chicago. Why have they not looked the same?
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Well, I think the first part of it is they
had major special teams problems throughout this year, and you know,
I kept thinking that they were the most complete team
in football, and I rattled off all the reasons why.
On offense, on defense, you know, they're very young upfront,
but they're really athletic, and they're really aggressive, and they're
not really that great in the secondary. But what made
them not the most complete team in the NFL was
their kicking game. And so whether it was a punt
(07:33):
return for a touchdown that you guys saw in the
game later in the season in you know, that was
I think December eighteenth was that game. Other than that,
it was miss field goals, it was blackfield goals, and
everything was going wrong in the kicking game, and it
really all played itself out in Seattle. And after that
Seattle game, you might remember, Sean McVeigh fired his special
(07:53):
teams coaching guy by the name of Chase Blackburn, who
was a former NFL linebacker, had a really great career
and had been the special teams coordinator job for the
last couple of seasons. He fired him in seasons first
time he's ever done it. So they fired a long staffer,
they fired a kicker, they fired a special teams coach
in an effort to clean this mess up, and it's
still hasn't necessarily gone so great. So I would say
(08:16):
that that special teams is a big part of the problem,
especially down the stretch. And when you really look at it,
you know, after the Rams beat Detroit, they beat him.
You know, it wasn't like they blew him out, but
they beat him by a score. Then they lost that
game to Seattle, and they had a lot of time
because remember that was a Thursday night game, and then
they had a lot of time because they were playing
Atlanta on a Monday night. And I don't know what
happened in between there, because I would have thought that
(08:38):
they would have come back and blown Atlanta out and
it didn't happen. And you're right, they didn't look so
great against Arizona, So something definitely happened in the last
four weeks. I really chalk it up to the firing
of the special teams coach because it's something that they'd
never seen before, and also dealing with the reality if
they were the first team in and had, you know,
the grasp on home field advantage and they lost it,
(08:59):
they blew it. So but I will say this. I
also thought, you know, it's a ten and a half
point favorite of Carolina. I expected them blow Carolina out.
They didn't, and Carolina was terrible down the stretch, and
I would have loved to have seen them beat Chicago
more handily. But they had a seven point lead until
Caleb threw that crazy, you know, backward back pedaling pass
that I thought he was just throwing the ball out
of bounds, and it landed in the end zone and
(09:20):
in the tight ends hands. So they had that game
by seven. It would have looked a lot better. But
I think going on the road and winning in Chicago
and winning in weather was a great thing, regardless of
the score, because I've promised you guys this. It was
eighty degrees when they left, and it was like minus
eight when they got to Chicago.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Yeah, that game, to me is just about grid.
Speaker 4 (09:38):
I kind of throw out the final score, just just
survival in Chicago. For you guys, the Carolina game would
concern me way more than the Bear game. But Scott
Kaplan ESPN seven to ten, LA is with us and
Scott Dick was asking about how this.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Team is different.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
I'm looking at your defense man in the last six games,
going back to Week fifteen, you guys are allowing sixty
eight percent in the red zone and that's ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Thirteen for nineteen.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
These guys getting the red zone against the Rams on
Sunday and they got to be smelling blood. The hell's
going on with their red zone defense, dude, because that's terrible.
Speaker 3 (10:10):
It's a good question because think about this. You know,
when you hear about all these coaching moves around the league,
one name you hear consistently now is Chris Shula, who's
the defensive coordinator of the Rams. And you know, look,
he's he was Sean mcvay's college roommate. He's Don Shula's grandson.
He's got the name, the pedigree, the relationships, et cetera.
But over the last few weeks, this defense, which had
(10:33):
been so good, so aggressive, they've been all over quarterbacks.
You know, they've got some guys that they drafted over
the years to replace Aaron Donald. They didn't try and
do that one for one. They did that by drafting
for about two seasons and it turned into about four guys,
and then it turned into a free agent signing with
Kuna Ford upfront, who's you know, a very good solid
(10:54):
defensive tackle, run stopper, but he can also get to
the quarterback. They have just for whatever reason in the
last few weeks, not performed well. You mentioned the red
zone statistics, but you know, for me, the real weakness
of this team is the secondary. That is the one
place where they thought getting Quinton Lake back off of
injured reserve is going to help. And it did for sure,
(11:15):
and then last week you saw what happened against Caleb.
They did get three interceptions, but for whatever reason, that
secondary is exposed when that front seven does not put
a lot of pressure on the quarterback, and the statistics
obviously bear that out.
Speaker 5 (11:30):
Three consecutive road games for the Rams in the playoffs,
including one that went to overtime. How much is fatigue
a factor in your mind against a very fresh Hawks
team who had a week off and then like a
quarter and a half off against the Niners.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
It's absolutely everything that concerns me about this game. Last week,
I was concerned about the weather in Chicago. People said, no,
they're pros. You know, Matthew Stafford had played in the
cold weather. I'm like, look, Matthew Stafford played in mcold weather.
A couple times a year, but he played in a
dome in Detroit, in a dome when he was on
the road in Minnesota. So I don't think anybody can
really prepare themselves for the cold weather. And I think
(12:06):
the Bears had their fair share of issues as well.
Everything about last week's game, what you guys just said
concerns me about this week's game. Seattle had the week off,
they got themselves healthy, and San Francisco ran out of
gas like a baseball team that just ran out of arms.
They ran out of body. And George Kittle was the
last part of that. And so Seattle is fresh, Seattle's rested,
Seattle's healthy. Obviously, the Zach Sharboney think hurts this week,
(12:28):
and Darnold's oblique is of concern, But Seattle should be
healthy and there at home. And Softie, you know that
I've been up to Seattle for many, many games, and
I know what that home field advantage is all about.
But on the other hand, you know, I look at
the Rams and they are believe it or not, they're
the healthiest team of the four remaining just top to bottom.
(12:49):
They are actually the healthiest of all four teams. And
I think that they're more battle tested right now, because
what you said, you know, listen, they are superior to Carolina.
Carolina is in that game, and they are more experienced
in Chicago, and Chicago made a miraculous play, and so uh,
this again is a desperation moment. The only thing I
can tell you is this is that the one thing
(13:11):
about this Rams team, even with their offensive coordinator, their
defensive coordinator, their passing game coordinator all being hot candidates
for head coaching jobs, the one thing McVeigh has this
team and this coaching staff is just completely utterly laser
focused on winning this game. So all for all the
reasons that you guys should feel confident about the Seahawks
(13:31):
are all the opposite reasons of why I feel confident
about the Rams.
Speaker 4 (13:34):
Well, Scott Kaplan's with us, and I'll be honest with you, Scottie.
You know don't sound as cocky now as you did
on your show, that's for sure. Well you're measured here,
your reason, your logical. I thought we'd have way more
fireworks that we've had so far, Scott.
Speaker 3 (13:51):
Well, let me tell you something funny. So so my
partner on the radio, George Sodado, he started talking about
that on Monday, about how confident he is, and I
was like, really, like, I think they're gonna win, and
I've convinced myself they're gonna win, but I'm not one
hundred percent so confident because of the things we're talking about,
in particular, you know, Seattle being rested and healthy and
(14:11):
not tested at all by San Francisco. These are the
things that have me worried. And George, my partner, was like, oh, man,
I'm super confident. Well, here's what happened. The Seahawks fans.
Somehow this got into the algorithm on Instagram and Twitter,
and do the Seahawks fans have been kicking my ass
for a whole week long, telling me about how they're
going to break out the receipts on Sunday, right, And
(14:33):
so I said to our social media team, I said, hey,
this is on Tuesday. I'm like, these Seahawks fans are nuts, man.
They're killing me. Okay, they're beating me up. They're calling
me all kinds of names. And so I said, I'm
going to double down on it today. So the next
day I went back in for more and then they
cut it up and they spread it out and every
day I wake up and my Instagram feed and my
Twitter feed is filled with Seahawks fans telling me what
(14:55):
a jerk I am. So yes, I guess something in
Vain I get in some ways. I've got to torn
it down a little bit. The Seahawks fans are coming
for me.
Speaker 4 (15:04):
Yeah, Man, Seahawks fans are noted for a lot of things.
But what you don't know about us as we're animals. Man,
we are absolutely anthrow falls up here in Seattle.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
So you better look out, Scottie.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
All right, I thought it was I thought it was
said some of these Seahawks fans. I go, my god,
you guys are defending Sam Donald like he's been your
quarterback for the last fifteen years. Man. So confident. Yeah,
so the confidence and Sam Donald. I'm like, guys, he
won a couple of nice games this year. Let's see
what happens on the big stage.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Well he's twenty nine and seven, Scott in his last
thirty six starts. Well more do you want him to do?
Speaker 4 (15:37):
I mean, honestly, it's like nobody keeps you. Like I
was on with Matt Thomas and Houston in History. He
was like, you know, Sam Donald's never won a big game.
He's never played in one up, and this is the
biggest game he's ever played this life. He's got two
playoff games, and the second one he didn't even need
to show up for crying.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
He played pretty big in the Rams game. That was
pretty That was a pretty big game.
Speaker 4 (15:56):
So look, man, I don't know that. To me, it's
a toss up. Uh, but we're gonna win, and you suck.
How's that sound?
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Listen? We will we will determine what happens on Sunday.
Actually we won't have anything.
Speaker 5 (16:09):
To do with it.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
During it, they'll have a whole lot and then we'll
and then we'll pick it up after that. Good luck, guys, all.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
Right man Scott Kaplan ESPN seven ten LA.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
I like the fact that he was convinced the Hawks
are gonna win or or excuse me, started talking about
the Rams winning because Hawk fans were busting his balls
too much on social media.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
I do wonder, by the way, what it's like.
Speaker 4 (16:28):
And I don't know, Jackson, if you've noticed this, or
Dick you've noticed this, what's it like to be on
the other side of the twelfth Man?
Speaker 2 (16:34):
Because I know what it's like to be on this
side of.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
The Niner fans, Oregon fans, Blue Jay fans, Astro fans.
I have no idea what it's like to be on
the other side of the twelfth Man. But you heard
what he said right there. He said, we're nasty. We're
nasty people.
Speaker 6 (16:48):
So the only thing I have to go off of
is when I deal with Portland Timbers fans in Portland
outside of and inside of their stadium. Yes, and it
is as nasty as I have, nastier than I even imagine,
because the first time I went in twenty eighteen, everybody's
kind of like, you're you're not ready for how how
nasty these people are. And I still watch the concourse
(17:11):
and all I had on, Guys, all I had on
was a sounder pin on my suit jacket, and I
still got f u's and you know, lots of bad
words that I can't say on the raid, like like
it is too a little extent. You're just walking through
the concourse and they do that.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
But how are we? I mean, I forget a lot
of Jackson.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
A lot of those people are Seahawks fans, right, A
lot of Timbers fans and Duck fans are the same people.
So the same jackasses that are tweeting about the Ducks
and the Timbers are the same people getting after Scott
Kaplan about the Seahawks.
Speaker 4 (17:44):
I think there's I think there's a good chance that
the twelfth Man comes across that same way. By the way,
absolutely fans. So I think there's a lot of our
fans that are just crazy, which I love. I mean,
I love the fact we're hard at text.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I mean, I would say that the Seahawks fan base
is very hardcore compared to most. Now I'm not sure
they're not Eagle fans, but I don't really want to
be Eagle fans.
Speaker 2 (18:04):
I mean, there's a there's a point where you get
too far.
Speaker 4 (18:07):
I think for me, the worst fan by fan base
excuse me, that I've encountered so far is Toronto Blue
Jay fans. And it's not even close worse than Oregon,
worse than San Francisco. Man, because I just go online
and I'll say, hey, have a great day, and boom,
I'm getting it from all sides. People that don't even
follow that are just looking for a fight. They're seeking
you out. Man. I hear from Oregon fans a lot
(18:30):
like when the Indiana game went down and I said, hey,
Indiana wins a tunnel before Oregon. They'll get after me
about that for sure. But I'm talking about them. I'm
not even talking about Blue Jay fans like I could retweet,
Hugh Millon joins us five o'clock suck my whatever.
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Wow. I mean that they'll just lose their mind. They
just randomly show up.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
Man, it's gonna have your head on a swivel looking
for these people. It's unbelievable. All right, I'm sorry, you're
trying to have a nice dinner. I apologize these gals
over here trying to have a nice dinner.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Tell you what to you drink? Three margaritas for you,
two for us. All Right, we're gonna break
I feel confident the Rams are going to beat Seattle
in Seattle. I'm confident that they're going to win. I'm
confident that they are the better team. I'm confident that
they should have won both games already.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
There's no doubt.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
There is no doubt they should have won both games.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
I think you want to force Donald to have to
throw the ball. I sell out on the run and say,
all right, Sam Donald, try to beat us.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Listen, Sam Donald's had an amazing couple of years, but
he's never been in this kind of a big game
and the Rams have.
Speaker 4 (00:28):
All Right, well, let's welcome in one half of that
crazy group. My buddy, my longtime pal ESPN seven to
ten in La Scott.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Kaplan with us right now on the radio show how
are you, Scottie?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
What's up?
Speaker 5 (00:42):
Saying?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
How are we doing? Guys?
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Good? Now, good good good good.
Speaker 4 (00:45):
So let's before we kind of get into this little
thing where we go back and forth and tell each
other how stupid they are and you're wrong and I'm right.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Uh, give us a vibe from La.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
I mean we had noted sports La Petros Papadacus on
our radio show yesterday. He hates everything, obviously, so it's
not a surprise that he doesn't give a damn about Sunday.
But give me your thoughts on kind of the vibe
in La. Man, how fired up were people for this?
How big a deal is this.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
In La on Sunday?
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Oh, I think it's a really big deal, and I
think it's for the first time, it's a really big deal.
As a matter of fact, I was saying earlier this
week on the air that the Rams have done such
a great job of coming back into LA, but it's
taken a really long time for the sports fans of
LA to really really get in tune with what they're
doing because it's a Dodger town and obviously, the Dodgers
(01:39):
won the last two World Series, and the Lakers have
all the drama all the time with Lebron. And even
when the Rams won the Super Bowl, going back just
a couple of years ago and they had their parade,
it was not like a giant parade. People will still
were not back into the NFL the way they are
in cities like Seattle or other great NFL cities. And
so this year, though, you know, you finally have this
(02:01):
relationship now with this coach and this community and you've
got a real, top level Hall of Fame caliber quarterback,
Houka Nakua is a homegrown guy, and you know, DeVante
replacing Cooper. People felt like they got an upgrade there.
So I guess my point ultimately is is that the city,
for the first time since the Rams are back, it
(02:23):
finally starting to feel now like a real NFL city
and like a real NFL Super Bowl run.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
You know, Scott I brought up something earlier on the
show that just alluding to the cut that you just
we just played, and it was said that no doubt
they should have won both games. Talking about the Rams,
I'm wondering why so much is made of the Rams
dominating the Seahawks statistically in Seattle and losing by a fluke,
And nothing's made of the Hawks statistically dominating the Rams
(02:51):
in the first game, like twenty six to twelve first downs,
thirty eight to twenty two, time possession four fourteen to
two forty nine yards and Sam hands the ball to
the four times, and yet they lose on a missed
field goal. Why is nothing made of that game and
so much is made of the.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Other game because mostly because people forget, you know, and
then they just remember. They just think back and they go,
what happened in that game?
Speaker 6 (03:15):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Yeah, that was a game that Sam Darnold threw four
interceptions and the Rams rather than burying the Seahawks like
a team should when a quarterback throws them for interceptions,
all people seem to remember is you know what, huh,
that's right. The Seahawks are still in that game. And
Jason Myers, who is one of the best kickers in
the NFL, a sixty one yard field goal in a
(03:37):
facility like Sofi Stadium is a makeable field goal probably
fifty percent of the time. For a guy like Jason Myers,
He's capable of making that kick. And who knew that
the Seahawks would actually find themselves in position to potentially
win that game, because remember it was a nineteen seventeen game.
And so when I said in that clip that you
played that they should have won both games, really it's
(04:00):
because they went to Seattle and they had a two
score lead, and then there was the punt return that
shifted the momentum, and then there is kind of that
bizarre statistical thing that happened where there were three two
point conversions in the same game. When the league average
is like thirty three percent. So, by the way, I
suppose if you were listening to that, Cliff and you
were a Seahawks fan, you'd probably be thinking the exact opposite,
(04:22):
which is the Seahawks would have and maybe should have
won that game in LA and then they did snatch
that game from the Rams in Seattle.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Well, I mean, it might take as simple.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
The Hawks had no business winning the first game because
Sam threw four picks, and the Rams had no business
listening to the second game because they're up by sixteen
points in the fourth quarter. Right, So in the end,
we kind of have an impass here because you think,
and Scott, if I'm wrong, you tell me you think
this Rams football team is presently constructed right now, is
a better football team than the Seahawks.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
I'm I right about that, You're right. Why do you
feel that way.
Speaker 3 (04:59):
Prime, Because when I look at the Rams offense, I
know that this is a closing window here on Matthew Stafford,
and there's real desperation. You know, when when Sean McVay
made it to the Super Bowl with Jared Goff and
they lost to the to the Patriots in Atlanta, that
was an up and coming coaching staff with a young quarterback,
(05:22):
and they obviously determined that he wasn't for them, and
they found a way to get out from underneath that contract.
And Stafford has delivered a Super Bowl. But Stafford's thirty seven,
and Stafford had back problems going into the season. He's
got a finger issue happening right now, and you cannot
have a mindset of, well, there's plenty of time, and
we're on our way. The Seahawks are on their way
(05:42):
now with Sam Donald, who's still a young guy and
who's obviously been getting better as the years have been
going on, and he's faithful lot of adversity in his
career in Carolina and prior to that New York. And
Sam Donald is now on his way. He's a franchise quarterback.
And you guys have a great young defensive coach who
again is also a guy whose name is now becoming familiar.
(06:03):
But Sean McVay is a guy who's got ten postseason
wins before he's even forty years old. And Stafford's thirty seven.
And when I look at this Rams offense, it's two
running backs deep, it's four tight ends deep, it's four
wide receivers deep. Their offensive line is healthier than it's
been in years past for me, at least from a
Rams offensive side, and that's really decided. It's going to
have to win this game, I believe, against a very
(06:25):
tough Seattle defense. This is the window on the Matthew
Stafford thing is closing, and it's pretty it's closing quickly.
So for me, it's a desperation thing. Is when I
look at Chicago and I look at teams like you know,
New England, Denver. These are teams that have young quarterbacks.
The Rams time is now or this window on Stafford
is closing.
Speaker 5 (06:46):
Talk about what this team's look like the last month
compared to the rest of the year. I mean the
last two games of the regular season. They lose to Atlanta.
I kind of chalked it up at they didn't have
the division anyway. They look terrible against Arizona. I'm like, ah,
they got you know, no big deal. I figured they
kill Carolina and they're behind by three points with you know,
a few minutes left to go, and then they go
to overtime against Chicago. Why have they not looked the same?
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Well, I think the first part of it is they
had major special teams problems throughout this year, and you know,
I kept thinking that they were the most complete team
in football, and I rattled off all the reasons why.
On offense, on defense, you know, they're very young upfront,
but they're really athletic, and they're really aggressive, and they're
not really that great in the secondary. But what made
them not the most complete team in the NFL was
their kicking game. And so whether it was a punt
(07:33):
return for a touchdown that you guys saw in the
game later in the season in you know, that was
I think December eighteenth was that game. Other than that,
it was miss field goals, it was blackfield goals, and
everything was going wrong in the kicking game, and it
really all played itself out in Seattle. And after that
Seattle game, you might remember, Sean McVeigh fired his special
(07:53):
teams coaching guy by the name of Chase Blackburn, who
was a former NFL linebacker, had a really great career
and had been the special teams coordinator job for the
last couple of seasons. He fired him in seasons first
time he's ever done it. So they fired a long staffer,
they fired a kicker, they fired a special teams coach
in an effort to clean this mess up, and it's
still hasn't necessarily gone so great. So I would say
(08:16):
that that special teams is a big part of the problem,
especially down the stretch. And when you really look at it,
you know, after the Rams beat Detroit, they beat him.
You know, it wasn't like they blew him out, but
they beat him by a score. Then they lost that
game to Seattle, and they had a lot of time
because remember that was a Thursday night game, and then
they had a lot of time because they were playing
Atlanta on a Monday night. And I don't know what
happened in between there, because I would have thought that
(08:38):
they would have come back and blown Atlanta out and
it didn't happen. And you're right, they didn't look so
great against Arizona, So something definitely happened in the last
four weeks. I really chalk it up to the firing
of the special teams coach because it's something that they'd
never seen before, and also dealing with the reality if
they were the first team in and had, you know,
the grasp on home field advantage and they lost it,
(08:59):
they blew it. So but I will say this. I
also thought, you know, it's a ten and a half
point favorite of Carolina. I expected them blow Carolina out.
They didn't, and Carolina was terrible down the stretch, and
I would have loved to have seen them beat Chicago
more handily. But they had a seven point lead until
Caleb threw that crazy, you know, backward back pedaling pass
that I thought he was just throwing the ball out
of bounds, and it landed in the end zone and
(09:20):
in the tight ends hands. So they had that game
by seven. It would have looked a lot better. But
I think going on the road and winning in Chicago
and winning in weather was a great thing, regardless of
the score, because I've promised you guys this. It was
eighty degrees when they left, and it was like minus
eight when they got to Chicago.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Yeah, that game, to me is just about grid.
Speaker 4 (09:38):
I kind of throw out the final score, just just
survival in Chicago. For you guys, the Carolina game would
concern me way more than the Bear game. But Scott
Kaplan ESPN seven to ten, LA is with us and
Scott Dick was asking about how this.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Team is different.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
I'm looking at your defense man in the last six games,
going back to Week fifteen, you guys are allowing sixty
eight percent in the red zone and that's ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Thirteen for nineteen.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
These guys getting the red zone against the Rams on
Sunday and they got to be smelling blood. The hell's
going on with their red zone defense, dude, because that's terrible.
Speaker 3 (10:10):
It's a good question because think about this. You know,
when you hear about all these coaching moves around the league,
one name you hear consistently now is Chris Shula, who's
the defensive coordinator of the Rams. And you know, look,
he's he was Sean mcvay's college roommate. He's Don Shula's grandson.
He's got the name, the pedigree, the relationships, et cetera.
But over the last few weeks, this defense, which had
(10:33):
been so good, so aggressive, they've been all over quarterbacks.
You know, they've got some guys that they drafted over
the years to replace Aaron Donald. They didn't try and
do that one for one. They did that by drafting
for about two seasons and it turned into about four guys,
and then it turned into a free agent signing with
Kuna Ford upfront, who's you know, a very good solid
(10:54):
defensive tackle, run stopper, but he can also get to
the quarterback. They have just for whatever reason in the
last few weeks, not performed well. You mentioned the red
zone statistics, but you know, for me, the real weakness
of this team is the secondary. That is the one
place where they thought getting Quinton Lake back off of
injured reserve is going to help. And it did for sure,
(11:15):
and then last week you saw what happened against Caleb.
They did get three interceptions, but for whatever reason, that
secondary is exposed when that front seven does not put
a lot of pressure on the quarterback, and the statistics
obviously bear that out.
Speaker 5 (11:30):
Three consecutive road games for the Rams in the playoffs,
including one that went to overtime. How much is fatigue
a factor in your mind against a very fresh Hawks
team who had a week off and then like a
quarter and a half off against the Niners.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
It's absolutely everything that concerns me about this game. Last week,
I was concerned about the weather in Chicago. People said, no,
they're pros. You know, Matthew Stafford had played in the
cold weather. I'm like, look, Matthew Stafford played in mcold weather.
A couple times a year, but he played in a
dome in Detroit, in a dome when he was on
the road in Minnesota. So I don't think anybody can
really prepare themselves for the cold weather. And I think
(12:06):
the Bears had their fair share of issues as well.
Everything about last week's game, what you guys just said
concerns me about this week's game. Seattle had the week off,
they got themselves healthy, and San Francisco ran out of
gas like a baseball team that just ran out of arms.
They ran out of body. And George Kittle was the
last part of that. And so Seattle is fresh, Seattle's rested,
Seattle's healthy. Obviously, the Zach Sharboney think hurts this week,
(12:28):
and Darnold's oblique is of concern, But Seattle should be
healthy and there at home. And Softie, you know that
I've been up to Seattle for many, many games, and
I know what that home field advantage is all about.
But on the other hand, you know, I look at
the Rams and they are believe it or not, they're
the healthiest team of the four remaining just top to bottom.
(12:49):
They are actually the healthiest of all four teams. And
I think that they're more battle tested right now, because
what you said, you know, listen, they are superior to Carolina.
Carolina is in that game, and they are more experienced
in Chicago, and Chicago made a miraculous play, and so uh,
this again is a desperation moment. The only thing I
can tell you is this is that the one thing
(13:11):
about this Rams team, even with their offensive coordinator, their
defensive coordinator, their passing game coordinator all being hot candidates
for head coaching jobs, the one thing McVeigh has this
team and this coaching staff is just completely utterly laser
focused on winning this game. So all for all the
reasons that you guys should feel confident about the Seahawks
(13:31):
are all the opposite reasons of why I feel confident
about the Rams.
Speaker 4 (13:34):
Well, Scott Kaplan's with us, and I'll be honest with you, Scottie.
You know don't sound as cocky now as you did
on your show, that's for sure. Well you're measured here,
your reason, your logical. I thought we'd have way more
fireworks that we've had so far, Scott.
Speaker 3 (13:51):
Well, let me tell you something funny. So so my
partner on the radio, George Sodado, he started talking about
that on Monday, about how confident he is, and I
was like, really, like, I think they're gonna win, and
I've convinced myself they're gonna win, but I'm not one
hundred percent so confident because of the things we're talking about,
in particular, you know, Seattle being rested and healthy and
(14:11):
not tested at all by San Francisco. These are the
things that have me worried. And George, my partner, was like, oh, man,
I'm super confident. Well, here's what happened. The Seahawks fans.
Somehow this got into the algorithm on Instagram and Twitter,
and do the Seahawks fans have been kicking my ass
for a whole week long, telling me about how they're
going to break out the receipts on Sunday, right, And
(14:33):
so I said to our social media team, I said, hey,
this is on Tuesday. I'm like, these Seahawks fans are nuts, man.
They're killing me. Okay, they're beating me up. They're calling
me all kinds of names. And so I said, I'm
going to double down on it today. So the next
day I went back in for more and then they
cut it up and they spread it out and every
day I wake up and my Instagram feed and my
Twitter feed is filled with Seahawks fans telling me what
(14:55):
a jerk I am. So yes, I guess something in
Vain I get in some ways. I've got to torn
it down a little bit. The Seahawks fans are coming
for me.
Speaker 4 (15:04):
Yeah, Man, Seahawks fans are noted for a lot of things.
But what you don't know about us as we're animals. Man,
we are absolutely anthrow falls up here in Seattle.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
So you better look out, Scottie.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
All right, I thought it was I thought it was
said some of these Seahawks fans. I go, my god,
you guys are defending Sam Donald like he's been your
quarterback for the last fifteen years. Man. So confident. Yeah,
so the confidence and Sam Donald. I'm like, guys, he
won a couple of nice games this year. Let's see
what happens on the big stage.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Well he's twenty nine and seven, Scott in his last
thirty six starts. Well more do you want him to do?
Speaker 4 (15:37):
I mean, honestly, it's like nobody keeps you. Like I
was on with Matt Thomas and Houston in History. He
was like, you know, Sam Donald's never won a big game.
He's never played in one up, and this is the
biggest game he's ever played this life. He's got two
playoff games, and the second one he didn't even need
to show up for crying.
Speaker 2 (15:53):
He played pretty big in the Rams game. That was
pretty That was a pretty big game.
Speaker 4 (15:56):
So look, man, I don't know that. To me, it's
a toss up. Uh, but we're gonna win, and you suck.
How's that sound?
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Listen? We will we will determine what happens on Sunday.
Actually we won't have anything.
Speaker 5 (16:09):
To do with it.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
During it, they'll have a whole lot and then we'll
and then we'll pick it up after that. Good luck, guys, all.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
Right man Scott Kaplan ESPN seven ten LA.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
I like the fact that he was convinced the Hawks
are gonna win or or excuse me, started talking about
the Rams winning because Hawk fans were busting his balls
too much on social media.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
I do wonder, by the way, what it's like.
Speaker 4 (16:28):
And I don't know, Jackson, if you've noticed this, or
Dick you've noticed this, what's it like to be on
the other side of the twelfth Man?
Speaker 2 (16:34):
Because I know what it's like to be on this
side of.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
The Niner fans, Oregon fans, Blue Jay fans, Astro fans.
I have no idea what it's like to be on
the other side of the twelfth Man. But you heard
what he said right there. He said, we're nasty. We're
nasty people.
Speaker 6 (16:48):
So the only thing I have to go off of
is when I deal with Portland Timbers fans in Portland
outside of and inside of their stadium. Yes, and it
is as nasty as I have, nastier than I even imagine,
because the first time I went in twenty eighteen, everybody's
kind of like, you're you're not ready for how how
nasty these people are. And I still watch the concourse
(17:11):
and all I had on, Guys, all I had on
was a sounder pin on my suit jacket, and I
still got f u's and you know, lots of bad
words that I can't say on the raid, like like
it is too a little extent. You're just walking through
the concourse and they do that.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
But how are we? I mean, I forget a lot
of Jackson.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
A lot of those people are Seahawks fans, right, A
lot of Timbers fans and Duck fans are the same people.
So the same jackasses that are tweeting about the Ducks
and the Timbers are the same people getting after Scott
Kaplan about the Seahawks.
Speaker 4 (17:44):
I think there's I think there's a good chance that
the twelfth Man comes across that same way. By the way,
absolutely fans. So I think there's a lot of our
fans that are just crazy, which I love. I mean,
I love the fact we're hard at text.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I mean, I would say that the Seahawks fan base
is very hardcore compared to most. Now I'm not sure
they're not Eagle fans, but I don't really want to
be Eagle fans.
Speaker 2 (18:04):
I mean, there's a there's a point where you get
too far.
Speaker 4 (18:07):
I think for me, the worst fan by fan base
excuse me, that I've encountered so far is Toronto Blue
Jay fans. And it's not even close worse than Oregon,
worse than San Francisco. Man, because I just go online
and I'll say, hey, have a great day, and boom,
I'm getting it from all sides. People that don't even
follow that are just looking for a fight. They're seeking
you out. Man. I hear from Oregon fans a lot
(18:30):
like when the Indiana game went down and I said, hey,
Indiana wins a tunnel before Oregon. They'll get after me
about that for sure. But I'm talking about them. I'm
not even talking about Blue Jay fans like I could retweet,
Hugh Millon joins us five o'clock suck my whatever.
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Wow. I mean that they'll just lose their mind. They
just randomly show up.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
Man, it's gonna have your head on a swivel looking
for these people. It's unbelievable. All right, I'm sorry, you're
trying to have a nice dinner. I apologize these gals
over here trying to have a nice dinner.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
Tell you what to you drink? Three margaritas for you,
two for us. All Right, we're gonna break
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