The Bill Simmons Podcast (Dec 19, 2025)

Episode: A Seahawks-Rams WTF Classic, an NBA Six-Pack, and Week 16 NFL Picks With Peter Schrager
Host: Bill Simmons
Guest: Peter Schrager

Overview

This episode features Bill Simmons and NFL Network’s Peter Schrager for a lively, post-midnight breakdown of a wild Seahawks-Rams Thursday Night Football game, a rapid-fire NBA “Six Pack,” and in-depth Week 16 NFL picks. The podcast runs with high energy, oscillating between disbelief at the NFL chaos, insider football observations, sports therapy, and sidewinding NBA trade pontification. If you love stories, stats, and unfiltered reactions, this episode is a must.

Seahawks–Rams: The Thursday Night Classic (00:57–24:41)

Immediate Reactions

• Historic Game: Bill and Peter call it, “the most dramatic, probably important Thursday night game of this decade” [01:07]. The Seahawks win in OT on a wild two-point play.
• Exhaustion & Shock: Schrager stays up late on the East Coast for this one:

  “I’m still in shock because it was so fun. Like, I love football games that are crazy. That was a crazy game.” [08:49 – Schrager]

Game Flow and Key Moments

• Early Rams Dominance: Rams rack up almost 600 yards, hold the ball for 44 mins—“It felt like the Rams were the best team in the NFC and maybe even the whole league” [11:57 – Simmons].
• Sam Darnold Rollercoaster:
  • Darnold’s “two of the worst” picks in the third quarter had Simmons ready to rage-quit—“This is who he is. I couldn’t handle it. And then he redeems himself in an hour.” [05:34 – Simmons].
  • Schrager: “Those are hall of Fame guys. Darnold’s not at that level… but this one, with the division on the line and everything and the way it started, that's a huge game, man.” [26:28]
• The Insane Two-point Play:

  “A backward pass that rolls into the end zone… why did Charbonnet even pick it up? Herb Street’s praising him, but—what was he supposed to do?” [07:51 – Simmons]

  • Review confusion, pure chaos, and a never-seen-before outcome.
  • Schrager: “Every classic game needs to have a bizarre play.” [06:53]
• Rams’ Collapse Down the Stretch:
  • Missed field goals, conservative play calls, and squandered opportunities.
  • “Fourth quarter, it seemed like they got a little tight.” [08:49 – Schrager]
• Puka Nakua’s Legendary Performance:
  • “He’s like Michael Myers... just when you think he’s done, he gets another one.” [09:40 – Simmons]
  • 225 receiving yards—crazy stat: “Second team in history to have a QB throw for 450 yards and no picks and a WR have 225 yards and still lose.” [10:49 – Schrager]
• Rams-Seahawks Historic Bad Beat:
  • The teams' long-standing rivalry, Rams as Seattle’s “kryptonite” until now.
  • “Big picture: Rams dominate that game for the first 50 minutes… and then it got weird.” [11:57 – Simmons]

Big-Picture Takes

• How Did This Happen?

  “If I’m the Rams… we blew that. But we know we’re better than them. Is this a flaw?” [12:25 – Simmons]

• Missed Opportunity for Rams:
  • “That's an all-time loss in a game they needed to win.” [13:50 – Schrager]
• Future Outlook:
  • On Rams’ playoff hopes: “I like the Rams plus 270 [to win the division]. I don’t think they lose again.” [15:20 – Simmons]
  • NFC West scenarios and division odds discussed in real time.

Quote Highlights

• “If your listeners are listening and it's already Friday or Saturday, you're like, wait, this happened, this happened? We are fresh off this thing.” [08:49 – Schrager]
• “Has there ever been a better Thursday night game than that?” [02:22 – Simmons]
• “It was the craziest game of the year.” [09:14 – Simmons]

Strategic Football Talk: Trust, Playcalling & Playoff Readiness (16:14–23:50)

• Rams Aren’t Just an Indoor Team: Nakua’s physicality makes them built for January:

  “No matter where they’re playing in January, I feel like they’re OK.” [16:26 – Simmons]

• Shrager on Seattle Under Mike McDonald:

  • “Seahawks are incredible on the road… I think they've lost, like, two games on the road under Mike McDonald in two years.” [17:01 – Schrager]

• Trust Issues with Darnold:

  • “I’m still not positive he trusts Darnold.” [17:49 – Simmons]
  • Emphasis on the Seahawks' conservative play-calling compared to Rams' early-game aggression.

• Use Shahid More!

  “It's weird to me that Shahid doesn't play more for them... every time they used him, he felt like he made an impact.” [18:38 – Simmons]

NFL "Fork in the Road" Narratives (25:01–27:05)

• Darnold’s Reputation Battle:
  • “We would do two hours on Sam Darnold not being able to win the big game.” [25:28 – Schrager]
• "Cousins" Comp – Proving the Narrative Wrong:
  • “Cousins could not win in primetime, year after year… then he hits Kyle Rudolph in OT in New Orleans. Maybe this was that for Darnold.” [26:05 – Schrager]
• Bill’s Sports Dad Moment:

  “My daughter was like, 'You’re a psycho. Why do you even watch football when it makes you this crazy?’” [05:34 – Simmons]

NFL Week 16 Picks & Handicapping (28:30–58:10)

Betting Anecdotes

• “Every time you think it’s going to zig, it zags. People are struggling.” [28:32 – Simmons]
• “This year has been just, just when you want to crown a team, they end up losing.” [29:07 – Schrager]
• Discussion of nightmare spreads, pick leagues, and the chaos of this NFL season.

Key Games Spotlighted

• Bears–Packers:

  • Chicago’s shot at No. 1 seed if they win.
  • “I like the Bears plus four and a half, under 53 and a half. I can’t imagine there are a lot of points.” [37:14 – Simmons]

• Titans–Chiefs:

  • “Chiefs haven’t played a meaningless game in 10 years… what do they care?” [38:10 – Simmons]

• Colts–49ers:

  • Sentimental pick for “old man Rivers”—Colts as lively home underdogs.

• Washington–Eagles:

  • Perennial trap game for Philly—“every year Washington wins it or comes close.” [45:33 – Simmons]

• Ravens–Patriots:

  • “Bad spot for the Pats… the weirdest thing is, they don’t 100% need it.” [47:08 – Simmons]

• Broncos–Jaguars:

  • Denver’s shot to lock down the No. 1 seed.
  • “I want to see how the Jags respond to that [physicality]. I don't know if I trust Lawrence. We’ll see.” [54:55 – Simmons]

• Notable Quotes:

  • “Have we ever had a better quarterback seem sadder? ... Even Stafford in Detroit didn’t seem this sad.” [31:28 – Simmons, on Joe Burrow]
  • “I don’t think the Panthers are good. I’m just going to throw that out there too.” [56:49 – Simmons]

• Final Five Picks for Ringer 107:

  1. Colts +5.5
  2. Ravens -2.5
  3. Broncos -3
  4. Bucs -3
  5. Bears +4.5/under 53.5 parlay

• “I think we ended in a good place. You talked me out of two possible stinkers.” [58:10 – Simmons]

The NBA Six Pack (Michelob Ultra Segment) (59:45 onward)

1. Clippers Disaster Checkmate

• “I don’t know how you fix the Clippers…They seem to blindly think this is going to turn around and yet they won’t fire the coach.” [01:00:50 – Simmons]
• Zubots, Harden, aging stars—no assets, little hope.

2. Christmas Games—Storylines

• “Spurs-Thunder… the game I want to see more than any other game at all times… Cleveland-New York: if you think your family’s dysfunctional, bring over the Cavs.” [01:02:10 – Simmons]

3. Did the Pacers Break the Cavs?

• “The Cavs have not recovered since… this team can’t trade. We can’t make trades. This is our team.” [01:04:01 – Simmons]
• Deep dive into Cavs' cap hell; jokes about team therapy.

4. Rockets, Sengun, and Old Guy Scoring

• Rant about Houston crunch time:

  “They go to Sengun a lot at the end of these games, to the point I’m starting to watch the Durant body language…” [01:07:10 – Simmons]

• Durant & Curry’s old-man brilliance: only a handful of players have averaged 20+ at 37 years old.

5. Where Should the NBA Cup Be Held?

• “Let's get Vegas the fuck out. You need it to be a place… Seattle and Vancouver. I vote for that.” [01:11:45 – Simmons]
• Pitches Pacific Northwest, one for Seattle, Grizzlies’ ghost-town Vancouver.

6. League Pass Watch: Hornets & Pelicans

• “The Hornets—one big guy away. The Pelicans, all of a sudden, shit’s going down… Pool’s coming off the bench, they have what looks to be an NBA team.” [01:13:20 – Simmons]
• Advice to Atlanta: trade the Pelicans pick now!

Memorable, Funny, and Human Moments

• Bill’s daughter:

  “You’re a psycho. Why do you even watch football when it makes you this crazy?” [05:34]

• Peter on media narratives:

  “He’s the kind of quarterback that we would just as a national media would just tomorrow on Get Up… we'd do two hours on Sam Darnold not being able to …” [25:28]

• Peter, on working with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo:

  “It's a dream. I thought it was interesting. There's a couple sacred cows in media and he's saying it on ESPN…” [39:09]

• Simmons’ “old guy” NBA lineup:

  “Do I really have to put Karl Malone in there? … Fine. Karl Malone … I hate it.” [01:08:55]

• NBA therapy for the Cavs:

  “Should we watch The Shawshank Redemption and see if hope is a good thing for us? We’re not making trades. This is our team.” [01:04:01]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Seahawks-Rams Reaction: 00:57 – 24:41
• Division/Playoff Outlook: 13:50 – 16:14
• Trust Issues & Player Talk: 16:14 – 23:50
• Darnold Narrative & “Fork in Road”: 25:01 – 27:05
• NFL Picks / Ringer 107: 28:30 – 58:10
• NBA Six Pack: 59:45 – 01:16:20

Tone and Style

• Loose, sharp, affectionate, and irreverent—full of football agony, “dad jokes,” good-natured ribbing, and classic Simmons trade machine speculation. Bill’s pop-culture analogies and Schrager’s storytelling make it as much sports talk as group therapy.

If You Listen to One Thing…

Don’t miss the Seahawks-Rams “WTF Classic” post-mortem (00:57–24:41) and the Ringer 107 NFL picks (28:30–58:10) for both insight and belly laughs.

End Summary.