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- [00:00]
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John Machada
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James Palmer
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- [01:30]
James Boyd
First time at Arrowhead for me, so I'm excited for the environment.
- [01:32]
James Palmer
Okay, what do you want to hear? I practically live there. I had a second family there. My wife and son were always like, why are you always at Arrowhead? Get there early, man. Get there early. It's the best smelling lot in the NFL. There's no parking lot that smells as good as Arrowhead. Oh, welcome into Scoop City on a Thursday. I'm James Palmer. Thank you for joining us. Please like and subscribe. Hit that smash button right there or smash that like button. Strike that Willy Wonka. Reverse it. We have a monster show for you before we get to these Week 12 games. To prepare you for everything you need to know, we have a trip around the NFL. Like we do it every single Thursday. Our road trip will include stops with the Indianapolis Colts who have a monster showdown going to Arrowhead and facing the Chiefs, a team that is desperate. How often have we said that in seasons past? Also, the Cowboys will check in on America's team as they square off against the Eagles at home. They've been a team of two different teams, really home versus the road. What we see now down the push and a monster 12 days coming up for the Dallas Cowboys. And lastly, we look at the Bears, take a deep look at the team leading the NFC north at 7 and 3. Can they hang on a really tough back end of the season? We'll talk to Kevin Fishbank. So let's get started on that road trip around the NFL. Oh, and we get moving with the Indianapolis Colts in the Kansas City Chiefs. James Boyd, a regular on the show, joining me once again. Way to support the team, by the way, with the athletic hoodie. Like this sport, you know, company man. Like it looks good. This is a monster one. We were just chatting a little bit of what, you know, what India is like right now, what's going on in the streets. And they gotta be stoked about going to Arrowhead and playing this Chiefs team who's kind of the more desperate team out of the two. But James, I have to ask you this because it almost feels like the Chiefs backs are against the wall, but is there more pressure on the Colts considering everybody is just so curious, is this team what we maybe hope, maybe think they are?
- [03:45]
James Boyd
I don't think there's more pressure on the Colts versus the Chiefs because the Chiefs are basically playing for their playoff lives. Certainly they can't continue to drop games. They never lost three in a row in Patrick Mahomes era. The sky is falling over there in Kansas City.
- [03:57]
Jake Seeley
Right.
- [03:57]
James Boyd
But I do think there is a lot of pressure from the psychological standpoint of the Colts haven't won many of these games since the days of Andrew Luck, since the days of Peyton Manning. They had a pretty good year with Philip rivers in 2020. But this is a chance to say our new regime, we're believing in Daniel Jones, we've invested with Sauce Gardner. This is what you do it for to beat teams like this. And so although they're five and five, the Chiefs are still very formidable. You look at a lot of different Catego are top 10 all over the place, offense and defense. And still you got Patrick Mahomes. And I think him alone gives you a little bit of a psychological anxiety because you know what he does typically when his back is against the wall.
- [04:39]
James Palmer
You certainly do. And the guy who knows it better than anyone in that building and you know who he is, the man who runs that defense in Lou Annarimo and the battles that him and Patrick have had. I've been on the sideline for most of those battles, honestly, watching them in person. And I'VE always loved the buildup of the chess match. When you hear people in Kansas City talk about what Lou brings and you hear lo talk about what Patrick can do, do you feel like in the bye week and in this week, when you talk to people in that locker room, are they leaning on the experience of their defensive coordinator in any sense?
- [05:09]
James Boyd
They certainly are. I don't think you can put 100% stock into everything that happened in Cincinnati translating over here, certainly Indianapolis. But to your point, James, you can't dismiss it either. He's had success against Patrick Mahomes. And I think the key with keeping Mahomes kind of off kilter is when do you blitz? How do you blitz? And trying to make sure that you're playing a lot of man versus zone. You look at the man versus zone numbers this year. Patrick Mahomes is typical Patrick Mahomes against the zone. He carves it up against man. He's been for his standards pretty bad. And so if you look at this Colts back end when they were giving issues to Mahomes when they were in Cincinnati with Luana Rumo, he had a lot of really high IQ defensive backs. So final overplace making plays, vets. And then now you've had some of the vets in place. You have Kenny Moore II in the slot. You have Cam Bynum, Nick Cross is coming into his own, a strong safety. And then you supercharge that cornerback room with trading for Sauce Gardner and the potential return of Javarius Ward.
- [06:10]
James Palmer
Is he. Is he coming back? Are we going to see? Because what I think about it is this defense that you're mentioning, when can you pick those spots to bring extra pressure and bring extra bodies on Patrick Mahomes? If you have two top flight corners that you have the ability to do a lot of different things, and I think Kenny Moore is one of the better slots in all of football. Is Travers coming back? Because to me, that makes it go okay. Lou can do a lot more pre snap, post snap and how he wants to do coverage when he has both those corners.
- [06:36]
James Boyd
Yeah. So he is on track to return. They haven't officially announced anything just yet. He was in concussion protocol. We all know what happened in week six. Pregame warmups. A freak accident. Probably the weirdest, one of the weirdest injuries I've covered. And I say that because in that same week, Anthony Richardson had an orbital fracture in pregame warmup. So before I get ahead of myself, that might be a little bit crazier. But all of that in mind, they reopened his 21 day return to play window. He's been a full participant in practice so far this week. And talking to Jerome Henderson, the Colts DBs coach, earlier this week, he said the hope is for him to be out there and to give you kind of a visual. James When I was over in Berlin a couple weeks ago, Traverus Ward made that trip. And in my mind I'm thinking you're not going to fly across seas and, you know, be on a plane for that long and have elevation if, yeah, if your brain and your head isn't in a good spot. And then even if you knew nothing, nothing about the Colts, where I was standing in Berlin, where they were coming out of the tunnel, Jerus Ward came running out during warmups looking as if he was going to play. Had the cleats on, you know, had the gloves, had a little lather on him from sweating. And I'm like, wait a minute, you can't play this today. So I think that that all points to him getting back out on the field and facing his former team, whom he had a lot of success with back in the day and won a Super bowl with, I believe during the 2019 season.
- [07:53]
James Palmer
Yeah, I remember him well. And that pressure, the corners and then the pressure up front. And we know Patrick and what he can do. But third this year, it's the worst in his career in terms of pass rating, completion percentage. He's been a completely different player when he's been pressured more than 25% of his drop backs. This year it's been night and day almost. But you have no DeForest Buckner. So how do you change things up front? What is that loss? Am I exaggerating it? I don't think I am. With him not being on the field.
- [08:24]
James Boyd
No. DeForest Buckner is easily the Colts best defensive lineman and he is currently on IR with a neck injury. The man flew to Panama during the bye week to get stem cell treatment, presumably on his neck. So that does not sound great for his foreseeable future. But he can't even play until week 15 at the earliest. So in his absence, you're gonna have to rely on some backups there. Neville Gallimore, a veteran. Adi Tamo Adebare, a Colts pick from a few years ago. He's coming into his own. But neither of those guys are the level of DeForest Buckner. So to offset that, James, I think the that's where the return of Javeris Mooney Ward is big. If you have Mooney in there, you can Be more aggressive with some of your blitz packages because you trust your back end more. You're saying, okay, we got two lockdown cornerbacks. We got a big time corner in the slot as well. So if we bring more pressure because we're lacking the presence of DeForest Buckner, maybe we can just offset that a little bit to keep, again, Patrick Mahomes off kilter. Because we know if you give him time, he will carve you up. And you cannot let him create outside the pocket either.
- [09:25]
James Palmer
No, you can't. And let's flip it over before we go. And obviously, this, this Colts offense, we've loved watching it. We've loved, I don't want to call it bounce. It's almost like they do whatever the opposite of what they're seeing is to. To. To expose a defense. And it's been really, really impressive. But what Steve Spagnolo does is he likes to show you one thing and then something else happens. And that's a big way. The way his pressures work. It's kind of interesting almost. You saw last week going, usually a rusher comes free, right, James. And in a time where you didn't expect it to happen and a huge play is made by that, you actually saw that happen with the Broncos against the Chiefs where Jay Macken comes off the corner. But I digress, essentially, how do you see Daniel Jones dissecting all of this? He's been very good and given a lot of liberty at the line of scrimmage. How do you see him handling what Spags is bringing and being able to pick it apart before that football snapped?
- [10:18]
James Boyd
That will be the key, James, because for the first eight games of the year, Daniel Jones only had three turnovers. The last two games, he had seven. He had five in a crazy anomaly game, I would say, against Pittsburgh, but then two more against Atlanta over in Berlin. So the question around here, and some of the trepidation I think that's seeping in, is not necessarily, is Daniel Jones becoming the quarterback we saw with the Giants where it all fell apart? It's more. So can you still be like a top 10 quarterback? And I think a lot of that has to do with one not holding onto the ball too long? He's had some fumble issues. And then on top of that, you know, can you just get to some of your quicker looks? You know, they've had a lot of success pushing the ball down the field, but at the same time, if you have Josh Downs underneath, take the check down. If you have Tyler Warren underneath, take the check Down. So I think having that extra bye week to prepare for the Chiefs bodes well for Daniel Jones and Shane Stocking to kind of combine their brains and figure out, okay, how do we offset some of the pressure we've been seeing, some of the issues we've had up front. And even then, the only issue the Colts offense has had this year, James, seriously, is when they've had turnovers. Even in the games, they've turned it over a lot. They've moved the ball a ton. Now it's okay. We're facing a team where, you know how it is with the Chiefs, if you blink and make a mistake, they typically make you pay. But can you kind of stare them down a little bit better than they can stare you down?
- [11:37]
James Palmer
Yeah, I love it. It's one of the most talked about things this entire season is the work that Daniel Jones has put in, the study habits, living at the facility, the conversation, the dialogue between him and Shane Steichen & Co. Has been really kind of what they hung their hat on on this offense. And he's had two weeks to go through that with Shane Steichen. We're excited for this one, man. Hopefully.
- [11:56]
Jake Seeley
I don't know.
- [11:56]
James Palmer
I don't make the calls on who's on the show, but I hope we can have you on. Maybe after this. Maybe after a Colts victory. We'll see game of the week. James Boyd will be there. Good chatting with you, man.
- [12:05]
James Boyd
Thanks for having me. First time at Arrowhead for me, so I'm excited for the environment.
- [12:08]
James Palmer
Okay. What do you want to hear? I practically live there. I had a second family there. My wife and son were always like, why are you always at Arrowhead? Get there early, man. Get there early. It's the best smelling parking lot in the NFL. There's no parking lot that smells as good as. As. As Arrowhead. And the noise is real. I would say that. So it's going to be interesting to see how Daniel Jones and company do handle that aspect of it, because they just don't build stadiums like that anymore. So it's almost like a cheat code and the way that that noise is amplified in that building. Have fun.
- [12:40]
Matt Schneidman
I will.
- [12:41]
James Boyd
Thank you.
- [12:42]
Kevin Fishbane
All right.
- [12:43]
James Palmer
Our Thursday road trip continues as we head down to Texas and we check in on the Cowboys with John Machada. And John, I have to start before we get into football, what the organization has been dealing with over the last several weeks with Marshawn Nealon and the tragic passing that he had. I wanted to get your opinion and what you've seen in that locker room, in that building, from maybe a leadership standpoint, maybe from something from Shadi or Dak or somewhere where you've just seen maybe this group kind of come together and there's a couple of people that jump out at you in a really, really difficult time.
- [13:20]
John Machada
Yeah, I don't think that. I don't know that there's a way you could handle it any better than the Cowboys have. And I think Brian Schottenheimer is a big part of that. You know, in his press conference when he was announced as head coach in January, the thing that will always stand out to me is that he. The biggest thing, he says he wanted to create what would be arguably the greatest culture in the history of sports. And so that the whole people side and building good relationships beyond just on the field is so big with him.
- [13:48]
Jake Seeley
And.
- [13:48]
John Machada
And so in this situation, I don't think you can handle any better than he has. And then, you know, in the locker room, I don't know that you can have somebody better in this situation than Dak Prescott or Solomon Thomas because of what they have gone through, you know, losing family members to suicide. And I don't know that there is a person, I mean, beyond the NFL and all of sports that's, you know, a bigger advocate for suicide prevention than Dak Prescott. I mean, his. It's often written on his tape, on his wrist, asked for help, you know, and so I don't. I don't know that you can find a better group now. They didn't. We did not have inside locker room access last week. They brought players out to the Star or out onto the practice field inside the Ford center, and it was. You could tell it was the five or six players each day that felt comfortable. They were going to be, obviously, asked questions about Marshawn Nealon. And, yeah, I just. Dak and Solomon Thomas were great, but so were several other players that were close to Marshawn. So. And then with the way that they played Monday night and the way they honored him before that game, and then even in talking about him after, you know, like. Like Schottheimer said, it's definitely one of those things where they're not gonna be forgetting him. But you can tell that, especially with it happening during the bye week, they wanted to get back out on the field. They wanted to be around each other. You know, when that happens on the bye. You know how it is. Most of these players aren't even together. And so I think playing that game Monday night, huge in their healing process.
- [15:18]
James Palmer
Yeah. It was really special to watch, honestly. I wanted to get that in there because, honestly, we oftentimes forget, John, that these are human beings that are playing this game that we all enjoy and love and watch. And sometimes I think in situations like this, there's no better place to be than within a team, within that environment to try to cope and go through a situation like all of these players are going through. So I appreciate you. You kind of gleaning a little light on that to the football field. I have a crazy take here, and you tell me if I'm out of my mind. Did Jerry get all of this right?
- [15:52]
James Boyd
Possibly.
- [15:54]
James Palmer
Like what we saw, and we know it's the Raiders, but from Quinn and Williams and that interior up front, why does a good interior work so well with the way Eberfluss runs a defense? And is this something we're going to see continuously grow? I know they're healthier as a group, but when I look at down the middle, so many people talk about that, right? The pipeline of your defense down the middle of the field, you make two additions there, and you see a very different group. Did Jerry maybe play this right? Like, I'm just curious.
- [16:23]
John Machada
I'm pretty cynical about this.
- [16:24]
James Palmer
So I gotta wait to see how he spends the extra money.
- [16:27]
Kevin Fishbane
Right?
- [16:28]
James Palmer
Like it's there. And. Yeah, exactly.
- [16:30]
Matt Schneidman
That he says, sure.
- [16:31]
John Machada
But for me personally, it's just the middle of the defense part that you hit on, because this is my 15th season covering the Cowboys, and they have never come close to spending a defensive tackle like they have now. And you just constantly are looking around every year at all the teams that are really good, that are making deep playoff runs, that are going and winning the Super Bowl. I'm not saying every year, but more often than not, they're good at defensive tackle. And so you're kind of sitting here looking around, like, when are they going to put in bigger resources? There was times, not. Not too far back, where you can make the argument that there was not a team that had less resources at defensive tackle than the Cowboys. And so how they've come back and. And. And now they're at this point. So I guess the cynical part of me is when you asked that question, I thought of the. I thought about this in my head of the. If I covered the Cowboys and they won the super bowl, let's say it's in the next five years, is Jerry going to be gloating? Because there's also a part of, like, okay, you did it your way, but it's been 35 years, like in a league of great parody, shouldn't that eventually happen one year? So I do think that they've done a great job in the middle with Kenny Clark. Obviously they paid OSA to keep to keep him here. And then making the move for Quinn and Williams, they liked Quinn and you know, when they were shopping Micah and I think a key piece in here, if this all continues to work out with Quinn and Williams will be their defensive line coach, Aaron Whitecotton, because he was in the room, he was the one that was around. He was around Solomon Thomas, but he was also around Quinton Williams in New York when Quinton was having a lot of success. And so to have his behind the scenes, you know, info to kind of help that process, I think is huge in it. And so I don't think the Cowboys are making the playoffs this season. Let me be clear about that. But I do see some things Monday night that tell me this could be a good defense next year. You know, you got two first round picks. You could turn that defense around. And that to me is kind of amazing, but also speaks to the league of parody because this is arguably the first half of the season, the worst Cowboys defense in franchise history. But it shows you how quick you can flip it with draft picks, with making trades and things like that. And so no, Jerry deserves credit, don't get me wrong. But I think there is a little bit more of a wait and see.
- [18:42]
James Palmer
Yeah, you're right. And part of what my question really was, I mean, you got about 23 million a year over the next three years and the difference in salary between Quinn and Tamika. What do you do with that money? What do you do with these picks? TBD on a lot of it. Jerry and how he properly spends the money is always a. Hmm, we'll see. But it is interesting to see this thing kind of go in a certain direction. You poured a little cold water on my next question and I'm a little upset by it because I'm fascinated by what these next 11 days are going to be. The Dallas Cowboys, when you have Philly and obviously it's at home, but that's a monster game with a really, really good team. The team atop the nfc. And then you will have a short week for Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, just four days and then, oh, don't worry, we'll get a mini buy because we're playing on Thursday on Thanksgiving. No, you don't. You play the following Thursday and then you go against a really, really difficult. What is that? The Lions, I believe at Detroit point. What do you expect to happen over that 11 day span?
- [19:41]
John Machada
Yeah, I think they win one of the three. I think the Kansas City game is probably their, their best shot. I just, I don't like them against Philadelphia right now. I know the line is only like three and that is a little surprising to me. And don't get me wrong, the Cowboys are super confident when they play the Eagles because they play them twice a year. But there's just things that the Eagles have done. They're going to have Jalen Carter this time. They just traded for Jalen Phillips and it looks like he's just hit the ground running and so it's hard to sit there and compare that to week one. Say oh well this is now on the other side. The Cowboys now have Quinn and Williams, they have DeMarvian over shown back. The defense is coming off of their best performance. So I'm not saying that they're going to get blown out. They could hang in there and possibly to get a win there. But this stretch being three games in 12 days is just to play those. That's three. Whatever Vegas odds you look at, those are three of the top six Super bowl favorites. They get to play them 12 days. And that's why it was so important for this Cowboys team to get off to a fast start because this back end of their schedule is so difficult. And so they are much more equipped now with Quinn and Williams having DeMarviano overshone. Obviously the way CD and Pickens are playing, Dak is playing well. But it's, it is going to be a tall task. The one thing I will say, you beat Philadelphia, there's not going to be much practice time in between. Possibly you get on a roll and you're just playing with a lot of confidence. And man, that would be one of biggest stories in the NFL if they were able to rattle off three wins in a row against that murderer's row. I, I doubt it happens but man, that would say a lot. But it also, it's not just the wins though for me it's, it's how they play in those games because again I don't think they're making the playoffs. But you can do some things in those games and for the rest of the season that catapult you in the off season where you're like no, this team can build off of what they did. There was a lot of errors early in the season. They corrected them and so it's not like it's all negative. There's definitely Some positive and get from it. But. But three, whoever you think is the best team in the NFL. Playing those three teams in 12 days, that's a real tough ass.
- [21:38]
James Palmer
It really is. And I shortchanged them. Even today I said 11, they do get 12, so maybe that'll help them out. And you're right. I talked to somebody in the building the other day who said if we beat Philly, I'm curious what happens to our locker room in terms of what that does leading into these other two. So we'll see how this three games go.
- [21:52]
James Boyd
Real quick.
- [21:52]
James Palmer
Before you go. You mentioned them real quick. George Pickens. CD Lamb. We haven't seen a combination in terms of yards per game with two receivers out of Dallas like this ever in the way that they've been producing. What is George Pickens future? What do you see happening this off season as he's a free agent and he's second in the NFL in receiving?
- [22:15]
John Machada
These used to be such easy questions before Jerry did the Micah Parsons thing because it was so easy to say, well, he's a star player. Jerry's not gonna let this star player go, especially at wide receiver. And I do believe that even if it comes down to an ugly franchise tag and, you know, whatever holdouts and whatever, I just don't see a world that George Pickens is and still with the Cowboys next season. I mean, I just don't see Jerry allowing that to happen. But with that being said, obviously George Pickens has the same agent as Micah Parsons. And so there's that layer. So that's why you can't 100% say anything 1 way or the other. But I find it very hard to believe that George Pickens won't still be with the Dallas Cowboys next year, you know, and so I think that they got a good chance to keep this whole crew together, including a possibility of keeping Kenny Clark and tying up basically $60 million in the three defensive tackles. I would not completely rule that out. So especially if this season ends strong, I Jerry, at his age, I just don't think he's going to let this go to, oh, all of a sudden we're just going to let a couple guys go and we're going to build through the draft. I think he. I think he knows that this might be the best time. And then, let's be honest, their window is the Dak Prescott window. And that window is right now.
- [23:23]
James Palmer
Awesome, awesome stuff, John. Appreciate it. Enjoy Sunday against Philly. It's always. Something always happens between these two. Something always happens between these two teams en on Sunday man.
- [23:35]
John Machada
Absolutely good talking to you.
- [23:36]
James Palmer
Love talking with John. It's always outstanding each and every time we do it. I love talking to these next two guys do Coming up on Scoop City, we're going to talk to Kevin Fishbane and break down the Bears. He has an unbelievable article that we will talk about about Ben Johnson, also Matt Schneidman and the Packers. Ooh, it's a little bit of a banged up offense. What can we see from Jordan Love and company in week 12? All that coming up next on Scoop City.
- [24:01]
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- [26:05]
James Boyd
Come on.
- [26:06]
Kevin Fishbane
Come on.
- [26:06]
James Palmer
Good, better back.
- [26:07]
Jake Seeley
Good, better back.
- [26:08]
James Palmer
Never let it rest.
- [26:09]
Kevin Fishbane
Never let it rest.
- [26:09]
James Palmer
Good. Get better. You better get better. You better get better. Bears on three. One, two, three. Bear run through a brick wall. Welcome back to Scoop City. James. James Palmer here with you with Kevin Fishbane, who covers the Bears brilliantly for us and wrote an article about that, saying that Ben Johnson brought to the Chicago Bears that he took from high school. I'm not going to give anything else away. I want everybody to go to the athletic, read it, the stories, the twists, the turns, who was involved. Kevin did great work doing this, so please go read that article. But that ties in Kevin, welcome to my first question, which is at 7:3, we're looking at a pretty good Bears team right now. We'll get into that. But with Ben Johnson and the, that vein in his neck and screaming, good, better, best. Now that we're 11 weeks in, what have you seen from him as a head coach that maybe you didn't think he was going to bring to the table or were unaware of and now you've seen him kind of utilize or bring and kind of maybe has surprised you or taking you aback about him as a first time head coach?
- [27:14]
Kevin Fishbane
Yeah, when Ben first got hired, he really wanted to dispel this notion that he's this offensive whiz kid, right? Like he wanted to, he, he was not Sean McVay. He was not Kyle Shanahan. He was not, you know, name your 30 something offensive guru. Right? I remember like, you know, like don't ask him about his computer science degree, right? Like this was this. He's not a nerd, you know, he's not. And so I kind of got that vibe from him. But just to see it, like just in that locker room video, you see the intensity and like you kind of realize he's almost, he's more like Dan Campbell, I think, than people maybe gave credit for. They kind of thought, here's this silent genius drawing up these crazy plays for Dan Campbell. No, Ben's intense. And the other thing too, off that James, which has been really interesting about this Bears team and I thought about it after their win in Minnesota. Ben loves to run the ball. Like he's not. He loves smash mouth physical football. He loves the offensive line. They poured resources into it and like he was. I have seen coaches, and you've seen it too, where these coaches, like we're a passing league now. It's the 21st century pass, pass, pass. And if they run into a wall, they're like, well, great, I have an excuse now to stop calling run plays. He doesn't like. It was tough studying in Minnesota, but he kept at it. And I think that's something that's been really interesting to see that he, he, he kind of is really marrying old school football principles with kind of the new age stuff that just comes with the game, where the game has evolved.
- [28:52]
James Palmer
Yeah, I'm not seeing any team in 2025, which is rare than compared to the previous seasons, Kevin, where, like teams that are running the ball, or at least if they don't run it successfully, are at least running the ball. And those are the offenses I'm seeing actually have success here. And we've seen it with the bigger packages and things like that. So I love that you brought up the run game because I wanted to touch on that specifically. I was going through it and just looking at it. I remember you and I having a conversation.
- [29:14]
Jake Seeley
Conversation.
- [29:14]
James Palmer
I think around their week five bye week where it was like he wanted to have this added emphasis on the run game. And I'm looking at the numbers since that, like 145, 222, 96. That's the only loss in this stretch where they had that against the Ravens. 283, 171 and 140. Are these the same concepts that he used in Detroit, or are you seeing them run the football maybe a little bit differently? What aspect of the run game is allowing this to have this success over the last several weeks?
- [29:44]
Kevin Fishbane
Well, one thing Ben really emphasized with the run game is he's getting to marry a bunch of different things. You got Eric B. Enemies running back coach who comes from being with Andy Reid. You've got the offensive corner, Declan Doyle, and the offensive line coach, Dan Roshar come from Sean Payton, who also worked with Dan Campbell. So you have that tree. So you have two kind of different offensive trees working together. You go to press Taylor and kind of the offenses that he's been around too. And that was an important thing for Ben to get different guys from different trees. And I think maybe I remember Olin Kreutz actually brought this up on local radio here. The former Bears center that sometimes when you're trying to bring in a couple different schemes, it's a little hard to get it all in sync and, you know, without being a run game guru. James, like my. It seems like they have figured that out, right? They have found a way to figure out, okay, this is what we're Best at, let's keep doing this. The other thing too, they put Theo Benedict at left tackle in week four and I think that's made a difference. All these guys just playing more together, getting more reps, getting comfortable in the scheme. That's all, that's all worked too. So yeah, it's been a, it's been a big part of this, this stretch run.
- [30:54]
James Palmer
It's been fun to watch. They're under center, they're running the ball under center, which is something that doesn't happen a whole bunch of the NFL. I look at the end of that game last week, in that win like it's, it's third down, you're like, we're going to run the ball. You know, I mean I'm just like, they have confidence in how they're running the football there to their second to last play before the game winning field goal. The guy who runs this offense, we talk about him so frequently and you're around him more than anybody. So I'd love to pick your brain on Caleb Williams. It seems like when I talk to people around the league, five plays a game, Holy moly. This is, this is a play that you don't see very often. The athletic ability, the arm talent, the improvisation, off schedule stuff. And then there's probably meetings during the season where Ben Johnson and him are sitting there during the week going, man, these 10, 15, 20 plays, Caleb, we need this. But the flashes you've seen 11 weeks in, we're seeing Drake May at this almost MVP type level. Do you feel like you're seeing a sense as this builds together with him and Ben Johnson that there is that elite ceiling he can reach? Is that attainable? More so maybe in your mind than it was after the rookie year that he can get to be part of that group, that it's a possibility?
- [31:59]
Kevin Fishbane
Yeah. One of the reasons I think so is because of something you hit on James is the under center play action stuff. Because that was what Caleb hadn't done really in his career. And here comes Ben Johnson, he's asking him, you know, change your foot now. Do this under center stuff. Do his play action stuff. Stuff he just hadn't done. And he's been pretty successful. So you gotta imagine that's gonna continue to get better. And you know, one of the things that Caleb has struggled with and he's been open to us, open with us about it is throwing on the run. That was his, like that was his thing. That's, that's uscp.
- [32:28]
James Palmer
That was.
- [32:28]
Kevin Fishbane
Yeah. And he's just hasn't been as accurate on those plays. And there have been times he hasn't run when he should have run. So, like that part of the game, we know it could be better. His accuracy has been way lower than they want. And again, coming out of usc, he was pinpoint precision guy. So I think all those like, those things, it's like, okay, if those could get back to what he's capable of. You see where this is going. I talked about this week, earlier this week, James, that, you know, we've joked about this. I've covered a few first round quarterbacks here in Chicago.
- [32:59]
James Palmer
You've had a lot of franchise quarterbacks.
- [33:01]
Kevin Fishbane
And I just felt like early in the second season with the new coach was a real, like, moment for Mitch Trubisky and Matt Nagy. When, like early in 2019, you just kind of sat there being like, just not. It's not working. Like, they've got to, you know, Justin Fields, you look at early in 2023, it's just like, okay, something's just not right here. And so I'm kind of using that. And obviously the disclaimer. Every quarterback's different. Everyone has their own trajectory. But I'm really like, want Bears fans too, to kind of be patient with this. Let's see what happens. Because it has not been as good as it can be. It is not, as you said. Drake may love level of performance, but it doesn't mean he can't get there at some point. But, you know, I think for Bears fans, they'd love to know in January, we're good. We're good for the next 10, 15 years. And they might be. I just don't know what that ceiling is yet. And, you know, but the thing is, the one thing he can do that you can't teach, he's clutch. And it's just like, it's working. So, you know, it's like when I used to coach, like youth baseball, if a kid was doing something, you know, like if he was, if he was throwing strikes and it had a kind of funky motion, I wouldn't touch it. I'm like, you know what? You're throwing strikes. Just keep rolling. When you're older, we can deal with that. So there's nothing about Caleb's mechanics. I just bring that up too, because sometimes it's like, man, there's something that's really working here. So you just think like, okay, this is good. Let's keep rolling with this. But we know we can kind of make these corrections. Like that kid. I'm like, I'll work on the mechanics eventually, and we'll get you to even better level. But right now, now, just keep rolling.
- [34:41]
James Palmer
That's a great way to put it. Honestly, living here in Denver and being there and seeing the scrutiny between year two of Sean Payton and Bo Nicks together, it has not been linear. A lot of it's been down and up. And because you're in the second year of the system, you had a little bit of success. And I'm kind of thinking about 2026 with Caleb and Ben together, where we can't rely on the things that you're just good at. We need to evolve this. We need to expand it. We're going to have some growing pains about some of the things that we need to get better with to get you to be a more complete quarterback. In that sense, I completely get it. This Bears team, it's been super fun to watch. I'm assuming the city is electric. You mentioned in your piece, by the way, people might be getting tattoos of that battle cry around the city. What would a reason be that this team doesn't make the playoffs and you cannot use this, the schedule, as your reason, because, man, does it get brutal with Steelers, Eagles, packers, browns, packers, 49ers, lions. So outside of how difficult the schedule is, is there a part of this team that you're looking at going that could hold them back this second half, even though they're playing well and in first place in the division?
- [35:51]
Kevin Fishbane
Yeah, they give up too many yards per play. They can't rush the passer efficiently. They rely too much on takeaways on defense. Their special teams has been inconsistent.
- [36:01]
James Palmer
I said one. Kevin. Geez, Louise.
- [36:03]
John Machada
I mean, just.
- [36:03]
James Palmer
No, I'm just gonna.
- [36:05]
Kevin Fishbane
Offensive side of the ball. We talked about Caleb's accuracy, and, you know, if an opponent stops the run, you know, just, like, they haven't hit on some of these big plays. So I think that, like, I was just talking about this with my colleague, our colleague Dan Weider, as we were walking into House Hall. Like, I don't know if anybody has these delusions of grandeur about this Bears team. Like, I think everyone kind of knows what it is. And they almost lost the Giants. They almost lost the Bengals. Like, they almost lost to the Vikings, who are really struggling. So. So I think, to me, though, it's that defense where, like, the takeaways have been incredible, but how can you sustain that and allow it to make up for what's going on in the front where you just, like, if you want to go back and watch that Vikings game, James. They were getting five, six, seven yards every carry and then it'd be third and three. They'd call a pass and you're kind of like, okay. You know, I think that if they face some of these good offenses, if they're able to score it well and protect the football, if the Bears can't match that, as this offense is still trying to get its footing and get consistent and get those big plays, that's what ultimately is going to hurt them.
- [37:19]
James Palmer
Okay, real quick, give me a positive, like, what do you like about this Bears team, Kevin? What are we building off of here? What is this foundation in 2025 that bears fans could be excited about over these next several games? Games going, that might be what we hang our hat on and that even can get better as, as we go. Give me, give me something before we go, real quick of a positive.
- [37:39]
Kevin Fishbane
They haven't played their first seven and three.
- [37:42]
James Palmer
I want to enjoy this team a little bit.
- [37:44]
Kevin Fishbane
They're seven and three without having played a great game, like a complete game. You know, the offense has had a, like, you know, the passing game has had one or two great games. The run game has had, like you mentioned earlier, two or three great games. The defense had maybe two, two great complete games. Right. But they have not all come together for one. Like they just like they're so. They haven't hit their potential and they're seven and three. And I think about the fact, James, that when like if they're in Green Bay and they're down 6 with a minute to go in the game, like those guys have this belief now.
- [38:18]
James Palmer
Yeah.
- [38:19]
Kevin Fishbane
You know, there's this proof of concept and former Bears teams didn't have that. So like, I just don't like, you can't take away the belief and confidence these guys have built by winning these crazy games that when they're playing, you know, if they're in a one score game in Philadelphia, if they're in a one score game in San Francisco, like they believe that they can win those games and I think that matters. And to the good, better, best, like they haven't gotten to the best. And so I just think that, like, if you're a Bears fan right now, you're so excited about where they're at and I think you can have confidence like, like, man, where would they be if the pass rush starts to click, if the run defense starts to get better? Oh, I didn't even mention. Jalen Johnson, Kyler Gordon, TJ Edwards, all expect to be back this season, that's major reinforcements to your defense. And you know you're going to. They haven't really had, like, the game where Caleb Williams just throws for 300, 400 yards and four touchdowns. I still think that could happen. So I think that. That you're in a good spot where you're good, you can still get better, and your best is yet to come.
- [39:23]
James Boyd
Man.
- [39:23]
James Palmer
Unbelievable. Way to finish strong. Way to finish strong, Kev.
- [39:28]
Matt Schneidman
I love it.
- [39:28]
James Palmer
And also, I think some of these young guys you like, Colson Loveland, kind of coming on a little bit. Like, what's Luther Burden's role? Roma Dunes, obviously, year two has been all these young pieces around. Around Caleb seem to be starting to get on the better side of things. Appreciate it. He's good. He's. He's better than me and he is the best. Kevin Fishbank. Appreciate it, man.
- [39:48]
Kevin Fishbane
Thanks, James.
- [39:49]
James Palmer
All right, Road trip across the NFL continues. We'll stay in the division. We'll go to Matt Schneidman talking with the Packers. He's got the mustache, he's got the hat. It's looking good. Is this a Movember thing or is this going to stick? Is this a.
- [40:01]
Matt Schneidman
This is kind of a. I like it a lot.
- [40:03]
James Palmer
It's going to go forward.
- [40:05]
Matt Schneidman
Yeah. This is just kind of my look right now, November thing, but it's just kind of what we're rolling with.
- [40:12]
James Palmer
I like it. For anybody listening, you are missing out.
- [40:15]
Jake Seeley
Listen.
- [40:16]
James Palmer
Six, three and one. This packers team right now, second in the division, just a hair behind those Bears. I look at these next three games. I mean, three straight divisional games. You got the Thanksgiving game in there with. With a back as. As important as Josh Jacobs is, and these. This stretch here, I know he's going to always push to play. We're taping this on Thursday. But what type of person is this Matt that we've seen him throwing up on sidelines. We've seen him pushing to play. Like, can you tell everybody what it's like when you interact with him in the locker room or the. Or the facility of just kind of the player that is trying to go through all these things and always finds a way somehow to get on the field.
- [40:55]
Matt Schneidman
That's really what it is, James. And first of all, we're talking about Jacobs because, you know, he bangs his knee on the MetLife turf on Sunday, misses the final three quarters of that game, doesn't practice yesterday. As we record this at 12:43pm Central Time on Thursday. My hands are still purple because we just came off the Practice field. Josh Jacobs is out there. He's practicing.
- [41:15]
James Boyd
Wow.
- [41:16]
Matt Schneidman
So he might play Sunday against the Vikings. And to your point, he has not missed a game yet for the packers in his now second year with them. He came in in free agency before last season as a guy who I think he had only played one full season in his first four or five in the NFL. Dealt with some nagging injuries, nothing major, but he has a C on his chest for a reason. Teammates voted him Jordan Love and Tucker Kraft as the three offensive captains before this season started for a reason. I've written these exact words this year. He's the heart and soul of this packers team this year. Like you mentioned, you know, he woke up with a violent sickness before. I think it was the Bengals game in Week 6. It might have been throwing up before, during and maybe probably even after that game too against the Cardinals the following week. He had a calf injury and you know, members of the team, coaches wise, higher ups wise, did not want him to play, but he pushed to play and played in that game. I believe he's second in the NFL in rushing touchdowns behind Jonathan Taylor. Doesn't have the gaudy rushing numbers, but he's top 10 in all purpose yards for running backs in terms of total yards from scrimmage. He's just a workhorse, a true feature back who can put it all on his shoulders and a guy who's going to try and grit through anything to play as he's seemingly doing this week as well.
- [42:39]
James Palmer
Yeah, and that's why I had my eye on him over these next three games. I mean, just vital to this offense. You mentioned Tucker Kraft. They lose him. How has the offense been different since you've seen Kraft off the field? I mean he really was before the injury, you know this like he, he kind of was their best friend weapon as an offensive weapon. What has changed? What do we look for moving forward now that they are in life without Tucker Crab?
- [43:03]
Matt Schneidman
I don't think there's any kind of about it. He was their best offensive weapon, number one in the NFL among tight ends in yards after catch per reception. I think he was third overall among all players in yards after catch per reception. And that's where I think they miss him most. The packers have been seeing a lot of too high safety looks because they live off explosive plays on offense. So teams are trying to take those away and force a quarterback in. Jordan Love who likes being aggressive and pushing the envelope to just check it down all game and hopefully they say he gets impatient and throws a mistake when he gets impatient. And that has happened before this season. For example, against the Panthers in a three point loss, they're, you know, frustrating him all game by making him take everything underneath. Then he throws it, throws a deep shot finally and it gets picked off. So I think where they miss Tucker Craft is there because in order to really move the ball downfield when you're having to take all those underneath stuff because of how the defenses are playing you, you need guys who can get yards after catch, and that's Tucker Craft. And there's not really anybody else on the packers, save for Jaden Reed, who hasn't practiced since week two but will soon hear but still isn't who can really generate yards after the catch. They have Christian Watson, who's great downfield, Romeo Dobbs, sometimes Matthew golden can be. Even though it really hasn't showed. Josh Jacobs is good after the catch, but in terms of actual like tight ends or wide receivers who can really generate yards after catch, that's where Tucker Kraft comes in. So since he's been out and it hasn't been too long, but the packers have struggled against those kinds of defenses, really kind of generating offense. And I would have to think not having Tucker Craft is a big reason why.
- [44:46]
James Palmer
Yeah, that's great. That's brilliantly put. Thank you for painting that picture for me as and for all packers fans where they're going. Yeah, I kind of see it too. And the guy who runs all this, and you mentioned Jordan Love and maybe forcing him into a mistake and that's what defenses are trying to do. When you look at him, he's kind of one of these more polarizing signal callers in the NFL. Everybody seems to have an opinion on Jordan Love. However, it may be on all ends of the, of the spectrum, but I think when I ask people around the league, man, it's just like the arm talent is there, the, the ability to play on the move and, and, and, and, and win games are there. You can you, you said in your mailbag as I was reading it this morning, you can definitely win a Super bowl with Jordan Love.
- [45:27]
Matt Schneidman
Yeah.
- [45:28]
James Palmer
My question is though, with what you mentioned about Tucker Kraft and, and Josh Jacobs is maybe banged up a little bit, like, can he carry you to a Super bowl if that's what ends up having to happen the second half.
- [45:41]
Matt Schneidman
Of the year, that's a great question. I think that's, that's what we're about to find out and I'll give my answer. That's not just a cop out. Thank you I think even without Jacobs and Kraft I think he could. But the packers biggest weakness right now is their offensive line. And you know this better than anybody. A quarterback can only do so much if he's under fire all game long. And the reason I say that about Jordan Love is because from watching pretty much every step of his career and yes, he is a polarizing player. This, this misconception. I think that there is and Dan Orlovsky has touched on this a bunch that Jordan Love is some turnover prone guy who's just going to be reckless with the ball. I don't think that's accurate. I think he has three interceptions this year. Sure the touchdown numbers aren't gaudy, but just watch him on a down in and down out basis and some of the throws he makes on and off platform are ridiculous that only a select few guys can make in the NFL. He doesn't really use his legs a lot but just like you said, that arm talent and his ability to make those throws from any platform, off schedule, on schedule, outside the pocket, inside the pocket, his little small sudden movements inside the pocket to navigate pressure and avoid sacks. He is undoubtedly I think when healthy a top 10 quarterback in the NFL. Can he overcome everything around him? That's the question. If it's Kraft, if it's Jacob, sure. But this packers offensive line is not your father's packers offensive line that's going to keep Aaron Rodgers jersey spotless throughout a whole game. And Jordan Love, if he does carry them on a run is going to have to do so I think still plenty of time to change in spite of an offensive line that is leaky and is now without their starting center in Elton Jenkins for probably the rest of the season. Season.
- [47:26]
James Palmer
How did you know? Not my father's Green Bay Packers. Unbelievable. Did you know my father born in Whitefish Bay? His prized possession is a autographed football of the entire team from Super Bowl A1.
- [47:42]
Matt Schneidman
It is his prize possession in Wisconsin.
- [47:45]
Kevin Fishbane
Yes.
- [47:46]
James Palmer
So it's not my father's Green Bay Packers. Was very fitting for this conversation before we go go.
- [47:51]
James Boyd
You.
- [47:52]
James Palmer
You caused a bit of a stir. I like to call it a stir. I use that phrase a lot with your. With your piece and your question with Matt LaFleur. And is he on the hot seat? What would have to go wrong the rest of the way out Matt, for that seat to. To legitimately be in your opinion pretty toasty after the regular season.
- [48:13]
Matt Schneidman
So I'll preface my answer by saying this. That column was not just my opinion. I would say it was a really good column.
- [48:22]
James Palmer
I read it. It was great.
- [48:23]
Matt Schneidman
I appreciate that. Thank you. That question and the premise of that column was not based strictly on my opinion. There have been things that I've heard that lead me to believe that Matt LaFleur could very well be coaching for his job. What has to happen if they miss the playoffs, which I don't think they will, if they miss the playoffs, I think there's a very good chance he's fired. If they go one and done. It's a possibility. It was my understanding that when the season started, I don't know about right now, when the season started, that Ed Policy, first year team president, was not totally sold on extending Matt LaFleur. And let me say that was not because he was disappointed in LaFleur's performance. Of course, Ed Policy served on the hiring committee for Matt LaFleur. He has a good relationship with him. He thinks he does a great job. And quite frankly, I think Matt Lafleur is a very good, good football coach too. But this is Green Bay, Wisconsin. There's something to be said for one and done is not good enough every year. Sure, of course Matt Lafleur would be the hottest name on the head coaching market if he gets let go. But Green Bay is different. They, you know, Matt Floor might be great for 15 teams in this league, probably more. But if, if he isn't the guy to get the packers over the top and if this offense maybe stalls out, then all I'm saying is it's a consideration. I'm not saying he should be fired. I'm not saying he will be. All I was saying was the offense wasn't looking great. They were better against the Giants, but after that Eagles game I wrote that because they look kind of like the same team they were the last two years. Good, but not great. And if the team becomes stagnant and the offense becomes stagnant, it's at least a consideration. And by not extending Matt Lafleur or Brian Gudekuntz to be four this season with two years left on each of their contracts, you leave open the possibility and the discussion for this. So I'm not saying he's going to get fired. I personally don't think he will. But I would urge people who think that it's a done deal that he's going to get a long term extension this off season because Ed Policy doesn't want them going into contract years next year. Of course, I would urge people to think that that's not quite a done deal either. And there's still probably a little bit for him to prove here in these next seven games that they have and hopefully for their sake, more.
- [50:39]
James Palmer
Oh, tremendous insight. That's, that's outstanding. I thought the exact same thing when I was reading your piece. And to me, Matt, it always jumps out at me when a team breaks precedent from what they're usually used to doing and the results are the same. When you reach out and you make a move like a Michael Parsons or you do something like Matthew golden in the first round, these are things where you thought you were close and these will put us over the top and they don't end up, you know, transpiring into that type of, type of progress. That's when I always feel like teams question things even further. So unbelievable insight. Thank you. Appreciate it. I'm glad the hands, are the hands still purple or. No, we're back to normal.
- [51:15]
Kevin Fishbane
We're good.
- [51:15]
Matt Schneidman
We're good now.
- [51:16]
James Palmer
We're good. Okay, we'll keep you indoors for a little bit. Appreciate it, man. We'll touch base. Touch base soon. Appreciate it.
- [51:22]
Matt Schneidman
All right. Thanks, James.
- [51:23]
James Palmer
Awesome. Coming up, Jake Seeley's going to talk about his 15 favorite roller coasters. Apparently he's got a list. He's also going to talk about the backfield that Matt was talking about and of his fantasy advice. Coming up next on Scoop 6.
- [51:36]
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- [53:06]
James Palmer
Oh. Welcome back to Scoop City on a Thursday. And that means Jake Seeley joins us for all our fantasy expertise in all our list making. So all the moms across the. Across the Midwest love this segment as we love to make lists. And this list, Jake, is about the best roller coasters in the country. First off, if I'm ever looking for a good laugh, I go to my Instagram, I pull back up because I have it saved the time. Fabio got hit in the face with a dove riding a roller coaster. It is never not funny to me. He wanted to bring awareness to people because he doesn't want to happen anywhere else. I don't think it's ever happened to anybody else.
- [53:41]
James Boyd
It just.
- [53:41]
James Palmer
It's just a video that I just can't not laugh at. I'm sorry if I'm.
- [53:46]
Jake Seeley
It's the Randy Johnson hitting the birds. Like, it's never going to happen again.
- [53:50]
James Palmer
It's number one.
- [53:51]
Kevin Fishbane
Let's.
- [53:52]
James Palmer
This list is outstanding. I can't believe you've written all of these. You seem to have something against Disney. Because there's no Guardians of the Galaxy on here.
- [53:59]
Jake Seeley
Since I was 13. I do want to go back.
- [54:02]
James Palmer
Yeah, that one is pretty sick because when you bank on a turn, your cart is individualized to spin inward as. As it's going in. Everybody turns in and you go, and then it turns you back out like you're in a little bit. Not like it won't spin you, but it'll.
- [54:17]
Jake Seeley
Yeah.
- [54:17]
James Palmer
Turn with the turns. Yeah.
- [54:19]
Jake Seeley
That's why the Jersey Devil coaster is really cool, because of that single cart, like, which is. You almost kind of feel like you're half falling out the entire time.
- [54:27]
James Palmer
I dig it. I dig it. I see a couple of these a lot at Cedar Point up there. I haven't gone since I went to Ohio State, obviously, so I went a lot in college. All my roommates worked at Sea Cedar Point when they were in high school and college.
- [54:37]
Jake Seeley
Well, there you go.
- [54:37]
James Palmer
So I went along.
- [54:38]
Jake Seeley
You need to go to Cedar Point. I need to go to Disney.
- [54:41]
James Palmer
Yes.
- [54:41]
Jake Seeley
We'll swap and then we'll redo this next year.
- [54:43]
James Palmer
We'll redo it next year. I like it. I like that. Nitro brings me back to my High school days. Growing up in Philly, I was in Jersey, I believe. Right. And what a speedy one. Little tiny lap bar. I like this list. I do like it. But wasn't there a Superman ride in. In California where you go and it lays you flat?
- [55:04]
Jake Seeley
I would love to ride that there. I've actually ridden one. I forget where it was. There's a. I think it was Superman and it was. Because it was next to a Green Lantern one and it was one of the Six Flags. But I. They were all kind of eh. Like that entire theme park. I don't remember which one that is. Is that the Six Flags that they're closing in Maryland? Maybe? Because they're closing one.
- [55:22]
James Palmer
Oh, okay. Well, they're closing, I think several Six.
- [55:25]
Jake Seeley
Flags they now own. So Kings Dominion and Cedar Point were owned by the same company. Now Six Flags, they Disney them. They now own all of them. They bought them all out.
- [55:35]
James Palmer
Got it. See, I could tell you have a beef with Disney. Okay, moving on to fantasy football, what you're an expert at Roma Dunes. I've loved what's happened to Rome in year two and the growth that he's had as a receiver. I was fascinated to see what would happen to him moving forward. There were certain things that we were curious about this offseason. When I asked the people around the league what was going on with Rome, would it be better in the slot. Some people thought he was getting blocked last year by Keenan Allen maybe. But no, that wasn't the case. He's actually playing outside. He's actually playing variety of spots, but he has been really, really good. What do you like about his matchup?
- [56:10]
Jake Seeley
I love the fact that he dominates man coverage and this is one of the more man heavier teams. And I know that the Steelers played a little better recently, but if you're looking at a team that has been more vulnerable against the past, the concerning thing is you bring it up like a D started off hot and then since there's been a lot and some of it's been. Caleb Williams is like some of the targets are now. He's been throwing more short than deep to Dunes A which all this coincides with just the play and teams adjusting. I mean this is what happens. You say, oh, Dunes is breaking out. We need to pay more attention. But he still is one of the best wide receivers against man actually in football this year, so. And no team really runs more than 35% man at this point of what the NFL is, but it's still enough to say this is a matchup. Where he can bounce back, hopefully kill Williams sees that, take some shots deep, which are still vulnerable against the Steelers. But I will say, and this is why I thought it was good that we're talking about Roman Dunes if your trade deadline hasn't passed and he does have a good game, sell because there is no worse schedule in the league than the Bears coming. The Bears might not make the playoffs if they like. I mean, if you're looking at their schedule like that, there's a legitimate threat. With the fact that the Lions only have four losses behind them and are in the eight seed right now, like out of the playoffs, the Bears might not make it. It is a brutal schedule.
- [57:26]
James Palmer
It really is. We broke it down with Kevin Fishbane earlier in the in the show. I believe they have the least odds of all of the first division leaders in the NFL right now to make the postseason. So you are spot on. Their odds are the worst in the least probability of making the postseason. Of all the divisional leaders, the team they're going against, the Pittsburgh Steelers. And Aaron Rodgers, is he going to play? We don't know. This is Thursday. He's working on that fracture in the left wrist. See what can happen there. Or Mason Rudolph, how does this whoever plays quarterback, and we'll know by Sunday before everybody starts. But if you could break it down for everybody, how that impacts DK Metcalf specifically.
- [58:04]
Jake Seeley
So it gives him more upside but more risk. Like DK Metcalf with Aaron Rodgers has basically been turned into like a Khalil Shakir because he just throws everything short to intermediate targets in plenty. But Aaron Rodgers, partly because what his arm is at this point of his career, there's zero shots to DK Metcalf. And part of it is the offense as well because they're doing what they can to make it work with Rodgers. But if Mason Rudolph's under center, it's not an upgrade and it's not a downgrade. It just means there's a bigger chance that Metcalf could hit one of those games we used to remember with the Seahawks where It's like, oh, 100 touchdowns on four catches and a touchdown.
- [58:37]
James Palmer
100 touchdowns. Yeah, I mean, 100 touchdowns, touchdowns, that killer.
- [58:43]
Jake Seeley
I don't know how you lose that matchup if that happens, but I don't think you do. So 100 yards and a touchdown. But the obvious risk is it's Mason Rudolph. And I will say that, you know, you have the floor. Mason Rudolph going out there and only completing 13 passes the entire game. So that's the Risk, higher ceiling, lower floor. But if Rogers is out there, you can get Matt Calf and you know you're basically going to get your wide receiver three performance.
- [59:07]
James Palmer
Oh, you know, you want Aaron Rodgers out there. You need me on that wall. You want me on that wall. He's in Chicago. Can we put him on that wall.
- [59:14]
Jake Seeley
Behind the bench and move on?
- [59:15]
James Palmer
Oh, you don't want. Yeah, okay. You could do that too. I was quoting A Few Good Men, but I know I do.
- [59:20]
Jake Seeley
But I want him on the wall.
- [59:21]
James Palmer
That's true.
- [59:22]
John Machada
Good point.
- [59:24]
James Palmer
How about a couple of Wilsons? We're going to talk about Russell. We got a couple of Wilsons. One of them. I'm very curious what your take is and I want to see what you have to say about these guys.
- [59:35]
Kevin Fishbane
Yeah.
- [59:35]
Jake Seeley
So Michael Wilson being one of them. A lot of excitement there. This is somebody I like coming out of college and like, I would say like one of the highest. As in, I'm not saying to be like haha, because I didn't see last week coming, but like as somebody who I thought like has some Joshua Palmer similarities, which when healthy, we've seen with Joshu Palmer can do throughout his career. But Michael Wilson needs some development time in the NFL. Like I didn't think he was going to be a first year hit, but he's had inconsistencies at the same time. And I'm saying all to say is like whether you're positive or negative about Michael Wilson, the positive we can take is that quarterback Jacoby Brissette, who knows how to run the pets of offense better than Kyler Murray, he has something in his head that clicks. Unlike Murray, which says, hey, maybe Target that Trey McBride guy a ton and let that feed the offense elsewhere. And you saw what happened with Michael Wilson. Do I think two touchdowns and a huge day is coming?
- [60:24]
Kevin Fishbane
No.
- [60:24]
Jake Seeley
Do I think he's attempting 57 passes? No. But even if you take out the 57 from last week, Brissette's averaging about 38 to 40 pass attempts per game now that he's taken over from Murray. So Michael Wilson, can we expect potentially an off game when he gets more attention this week? Sure. But I still have him as a wide receiver too. It's interesting because Emmanuel Wilson, the other Wilson, the running back. Yeah, a running back too, because here's why. Imagine Chris Rodriguez on the Packers. That's the perfect comparison for him. Chris Rodriguez not going to do much in the passing game, kind of that thumper. He's going to get you the tough yards. He's going to run between the tackles. But Chris Brooks is a threat. Just if somehow if. I don't think anybody expects it with the way that McCarthy has been playing. But if the packers fall behind or passing more than we expect, I think you could see Chris Brooks eat in about 40% of the time because that was the original plan to start the year. I'm not saying don't start Emmanuel Wilson, just like Michael Wilson has him as a 2, I have him as an RB2 in the 20 range. Right around RB20, 22 range. But I do, I just want to acknowledge the fact that he's not a set it and forget it. There is some risk with the Chris. Chris Brooks factor. Okay.
- [61:34]
James Boyd
Okay.
- [61:35]
James Palmer
Interesting. So we're just, we're just not. Okay. I got it. I mean, do you think Josh Jacobs is gonna play? Oh, no.
- [61:44]
Jake Seeley
As you can tell, like, I just think he's.
- [61:45]
Kevin Fishbane
No.
- [61:46]
James Palmer
You're willing to.
- [61:48]
Jake Seeley
I mean, I will say at this point in Josh Jacobs career, from what we've seen from previous, like go back to the Raiders and everything, like do we just understand, like get the guy healthy? Like just give him a week or two.
- [62:00]
James Palmer
He doesn't let you. He says, I'm getting on that field. That's what he's gonna do.
- [62:04]
Matt Schneidman
It doesn't.
- [62:04]
James Palmer
No matter he's throwing up during games.
- [62:06]
Jake Seeley
He's a top 10 running back. You know that's true.
- [62:09]
James Palmer
I know, I know. It was awesome. Okay, Jake, appreciate it. Also for. I'm gonna go down the list here because John Machado, Kevin Fishbane, James Boyd, Matt Schneidman. We had a full boat today, Jake, and you pulled up the rear. I loved it brilliantly. And now I kind of feel like going on a roller coaster. I'm not gonna lie. Like, I'm. I kind of want that vibe. I'm ready for summer and here we go into winter. So. So go to Disney and go to an indoor roller coaster, I guess.
- [62:32]
Jake Seeley
All right. You could come out my way. Hit up Busch Gardens and Kings Dominion in the same trip.
- [62:37]
James Palmer
Oh, wow. Jake just invited me over his house. Awesome. Everybody enjoy your week 12 of football. I'm gonna look at flights. Take it easy.
- [62:45]
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- [64:01]
James Palmer
Ready to order? Yes.
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- [64:09]
Kevin Fishbane
Everything. Fire everything.
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James Boyd
The Capital One Saver card is at.
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Kevin Fishbane
Table 27, and they're earning unlimited 3% cash back.
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James Palmer
Yes, Chef.
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John Machada
This is so nice.
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Kevin Fishbane
Had a feeling you'd want 3% cash back on dessert.
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Kevin Fishbane
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James Boyd
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