← The Herd with Colin Cowherd
The Herd with Colin Cowherd
3 & Out - Reaction to Brock Purdy & 49ers DOMINATING Philip Rivers & Colts on MNF
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What is going on everybody? John Middelkoff three and out podcast brought to you by my friends at Zone Pouches. How is everybody doing? Probably not as well as Brock Purdy, who led the 49ers to five touchdowns. Any blowout would be strong, but a commanding victory over the I almost just said the San Diego Chargers, the Indianapolis Colts 48 to 27. The Niners are 11 and 4 and the Colts, I would say, are unofficially done for the season, especially with that defense. Good luck against the Jags, but we'll dive into that game off the top Obviously Christian McCaffrey dominated. George Kittle dominated but got injured. Philip Rivers, I think we got to give him his flowers. I thought he was really good. It definitely was not his fault that they lost by a couple touchdowns, that's for damn sure. I mean the Colts defense was just atrocious. DK Metcalf has been suspended for the next two games without pay. Also brings in the light that the Steelers could like void a bunch of money in his contract, essentially get out at the end of the year. And Bill Belichick has hired Bobby Petrino. Think Arkansas, think Harley Davidson, think a ditch and think another dude's wife that Bobby Petrino. So we will dive into that as well as a long mailbag at John Middlekopf is the Instagram fire in those dms. Get your questions answered here on the show. Again at John Middelkoff is the Instagram fire in the DMs. Get your questions answered on the show. And if you listen on Collins feed, make sure you subscribe to the podcast. Appreciate everyone that does YouTube as well. We go live after all the games. Probably not this Christmas. I think I've gone like five straight Christmases, but they've usually been good games. This Christmas is just terrible. So unless there's like a catastrophic injury to like, I don't even want to say the name, but like a player that's going to impact the playoffs, which would probably just be the Broncos. We'll have a podcast tomorrow and then we're probably off till Saturday night when there's a couple NFL games. So other than that, let's dive into some football. To me, the headline of the night was obviously the offense, but specifically the quarterback. And there is never going to be a conversation with Brock Purdy where he just becomes everyone universally agrees he's going to be a polarizing quarterback whether he one day wins a Super bowl, when he has games where he throws a couple interceptions, when he has games when he throws a bunch of touchdowns. But he became the first 49er tonight to throw five touchdowns in a game since Steve Young did it back in 1995 against the San Diego Chargers where I think Jerry had three, Ricky Waters had three. I just think this. I was born in 1984. My dad was a die hard 49er fan. I don't remember Joe Montana in his prime, but I love football. I've seen enough highlights and YouTube clips. You know I grew up on Steve Young who looked a lot different than Purdy given that he was a left handed quarterback. But that's had to. Like tonight, I'm not talking about his career. I'm talking about tonight, what peak Joe Montana looked like. I mean, that was, that was a marvelous performance. There was nothing he wasn't doing. I mean, he was in complete control of the football game. And here's the thing. In years past, the one kind of. I don't. It wasn't a knock for me because most good players play with other good players. Last time I checked, Peyton Manning was thrown to Marvin Harrison. Pretty sure Marvin Harrison's in the hall of Fame. You know, Tom was throwing to Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman, who was a Super bowl mvp, and Randy Moss and Wes Welker. Joe Montana threw it to Jerry Rice. I don't know. Just the greatest wide receiver of all time. Usually play with good players, but everyone's like, oh, he's playing with Debo, he's playing with Brandon Iuk. It's like doesn't get any easier. Well, tonight I looked. It's like demarcus Robinson. It's Kendrick Bourne, who didn't even have a home when the season started, is Jawan Jennings, which most of his careers is considered like a third wide receiver now, George Kittle, and we'll dive into him in a second, is a Hall of Fame level guy. But the other wide receivers are, you know, again, a lot of Kendrick Bourne, a lot of demarcus Robinson, this guy named Sky Moore and Brock was brilliant and they're going to need him to be because, you know, defense is going to be a challenge with Fred Warner and Nick Bosa at home, you know, in a leg cast and a knee sleeve. So he has. Now, ideally you don't have to do that, throw five touchdowns, but that's as good of a game, you know, trying to remember as he's ever played. I mean, seriously. Now I understand because you'll be like, well, who's he playing? Yeah, he wasn't playing the 85 Bears. Sauce Gardner's on the sideline. Charvarius Ward, his former teammate, is on the sideline. But he made them look like a JV team. And you would think a team that's still fighting for their playoff lives. It was stealing candy from a baby. And some of the past this guys were wide open and some of them, I mean, there was a drive where he threw two touchdowns. On the same drive, the touchdown he threw in the back of the end zone to Tanj's where he did get both feet in. Kyle Shanahan has a lot of strengths. I mean, he is a brilliant Offensive play caller. He's been a fantastic head coach. He's resurrected the 49ers. He's done an excellent job. He could drive some of us nuts at times, but overall, he is a fantastic coach. He is horrendous with challenges. I mean, I haven't watched every single coach challenge every single player of their career, but. And I'm not even basing it on the numbers, he just has no, whatever their communication. The guy upstairs, I mean, the challenge he made, I think the Pittman's drop, which was a clear catch, and then he doesn't challenge the touchdown, which even Troy's like, that's, that's in now, again, we're sitting on our couch, but they should have a guy who essentially is doing what we're doing, sitting on a couch up in the booth. Be like, kyle, challenge that. Or Kyle, don't challenge that. Whoever that guy is, Kyle needs to fire him because that guy is doing a terrible job and it cost Purdy. I mean, one of the great plays of his career, rolling to his right, hitting the guy, you know, rolling out, especially Jake Tonjas. That's gonna be the greatest catch he's ever had. Doesn't even count. But you know, KD was dominant tonight. Christian McCaffrey was dominant tonight catching the ball. And, and that, that saves the 49ers offense because he turns into a wide receiver out of the backfield. Unless you have, you know, Ray Lewis or Patrick Willis in their prime, you're just not going to cover him. And he's so good. His rapport with Brock is excellent. But what a performance. And you know, you paid a lot of money for this guy. He'd been, he got the turf toe situation the last couple weeks and I, I get it was the Tennessee Titans. But to go from Tennessee and to roll it right into this game on Monday Night Football on the road with, you know, technically, once you're in the playoffs, none of these games are technically must win anymore, though, which I still think is an uphill battle. They do control their own destiny. If they win these next two games, they are the number one overall seed, which would honestly be the craziest football thing I'd ever seen in my life if they were able to accomplish it. Now, I, I think before we dive into something else from this game, they were getting royally this week. I mean, they played and listen, I understand, I. They had the last bye week of the season for any NFL teams. They had the latest bye week possible, but the NFL put them on Monday Night Football, which Indianapolis is in the eastern time zone. I'm pretty sure it's give or take a four hour flight from where they fly from San Jose. So by the time that they get home tonight, I don't know, would be three, four in the morning, it's going to be Tuesday. The Chicago Bears played on Saturday, so they get. It's. It's what sometimes Thursday Night Football during the season, it happens. But to happen on Christmas week, a time advantage is pretty nuts. Like it is. It is what it is, but it is a massive rest prep, just freshness advantage for the Bears. Also on Saturday they played at home, so there was no travel. I mean the 49er coaches, they're going to land. They're just going to have to go to work. Now I would imagine they were able to do some prep work today. But you can't go all in because eventually you kind of got a lock back in on this game. And you can't be thinking about the Bears when you want to be fresh about the Colts and you know, get your thoughts all convoluted, not even knowing what's going on. So there's a very, I've talked to coaches about this. There's kind of a fine balance when you're in that situation, but you got no choice, especially what's, you know, on the line moving forward that you could potentially get another buy. Right? You've already beat Seattle. You know them pretty well. You know Sam Darnold pretty well. I'm not saying it's going to be easy, but this Bears is an uncommon opponent. It is a massive advantage for Ben Johnson, his coaching staff. I mean everyone on the 49ers probably gonna have to pop like 75 milligrams of Adderall tomorrow to even function because I mean how much you actually sleeping on the plane, your adrenaline after a game, you probably fall asleep the last couple hours once you touch down. Even for the players, I mean they'll probably treat this week from a practice standpoint much more like a Thursday night week. And Chris McCaffrey is going to need it. I mean there were so many times tonight, you know, Purdy's probably be pretty fresh and he looks. And again, I was dubious just because of the extent and the way people talk about these injuries, how they just don't go away. I would say whatever him and Joe Burrow did in terms of the rest, the relaxation, avoiding surgery, Burrow just looked really good. I get it was the Dolphins, but you know, Purdy looked, like I said, best game of his career. And McCaffrey looks like he's really coming on, but again, he takes a pounding. And Aikman mentioned it tonight and 49er fans have been saying this forever. It's like, listen, Kyle, we understand this guy's a Hall of Fame level player, but he plays a position that is so physically taxing. And he's a guy that's had injuries. You got to be careful about just leaving him. There was a point in time in the game. They're up two touchdowns, he's getting carries. My eight month pregnant wife looks at me, she's like, why is he still in the game? I'm like, well, Kyle, just Brian Robinson's got a beg to get a touch. And they mentioned it tonight that Jonathan Taylor leads the league in getting 83% of the snaps for running back. Number two is Christian McCaffrey at 82%. Now, I'm not saying it should be 50 50, but God, I mean, there are times when it's like, okay, we're up two touchdowns, we'll get the ball back. He's not coming back in the game. He's not going to take some meaningless hit. When halfway through most games he comes to the sideline, you can tell he's just, he's just getting obliterated, you know, and it's not like they're running these tosses on every play where he's getting out of bounds. I mean, he's going between the tackles nonstop. And you know, when it works, when it is effective, when Kyle Shanahan's offense can dominate the line of scrimmage, which did tonight, you know, Christian McCaffrey had 21 for 117. They ran 31 carries for 145 yards and almost, you know, average 4.8 yards of carry. You're not going to stop their offense because their passing game is predicated on the run game. This is not Sean McVeigh, this is not Andy Reid. This is not Kevin O' Connell that has wet dreams about throwing 50 times a game. And I got no issue with that. Listen, I like passing the ball as much as the next guy, but Kyle wants to dominate on the ground to then pass and his passing game. Jay Gruden came on the show, I think, I don't know, within the last year and said, you know, the 49ers like studying the Shanahan family over the years, but specifically Kyle, like his drop back passing game is not what people go to study. It's the run game to the play action. And then because of Purdy's athleticism. Like he can really, really ad lib. And there were a couple times a night, even Troy said, when he scrambling to his right, he's got a little gunslinger in him. Like he kind of is tempted to throw back across his body over the middle of the field, especially in the red zone. And I think like Kyle's in the back of his head making sure that he doesn't do it because he just threw it away tonight. You can't throw any interceptions on a game when your defense is just giving up first down after first down to Philip Rivers. But you know, when you're. They're going to run it like this, they're going to be really, really tough to beat. And you know, McCaffrey, Brian Robinson, but really just McCaffrey when he's going to play like that. And then what he gives you out of the back or the, in the receiving game, he's just an unstoppable force. And George Kittle, who got hurt I think early in the fourth quarter, might have been late in the third quarter. I really believe this. He is, hopefully he's fine. I know he rolled his ankle. I'm doing this right after, so I don't get to hear the press conference or anything. But it's not like he had to go to the blue tent or went to the, to the locker room. I think they, the 49ers are very cautious when they play on artificial turf because over the course, I mean, they've had a million injuries on. They'd have injuries, you know, sleep on a sleep number bed, you know, so it doesn't matter where they are. 49er player can get hurt doing anything at any moment, anytime. But on turf, they've had devastating injuries and I think they're very, very reluctant in situations. It was still, you know, the game was in the balance, but he never went back in the game. And I, I just think that when he's been healthy this season and he. The first game started, he dominated. Then he pulled his hamstring and he came back within a couple games. Up until now, he's as dominant as any player in the league. When you factor in how good he is as a run blocker. I mean, he's, he's kicking out defensive ends, he is leveling linebackers, and in the passing game he feels as fast and he had the one. I don't even want to call it a drop. It would have been a tough play for like, you know, Randy Moss in the corner of the end zone, but it's a Play, I bet he would say, you know, I should make. And other than that, I mean high pointing balls, catching balls, on the run, running over guys. He's a really special player. And when I think of, you know, the best 49er players of all time, at least you know, since of the Eddie DeBartolo, Bill Walsh era on are clearly Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott and Steve Young. And then there's a group of a bunch of other guys, right? You know, Joe Staley, Frank Gore, Patrick Willis, Navarro. Bowman would have been that he got injured. I would say Trent Williams. Clearly the moment he got there, he's going to go down as a Hall of Famer and has been a dominant, dominant player. But for 49ers, I think George Kittle's right there on that list. He is, he might be the defining player because he's been here the entire time for Kyle. Him or Fred, Fred too. I forgot about him because he's, he's injured. But like he is just such a, he's just such a unique player. You just don't see that often. Like he, you could tell after the game he went up to Warren. I'm sure he talked to him at Tight end University. You know, listen, Warren tries as a blocker. He's not bad. But he's. If he's gonna have a great career, he's going to be dominant catching the football because of his height, because of his ball skills. I mean he's a really, really talented player. I just. There aren't as many guys anymore and there used to be more in the NFL because it used to be more of a run heavy league. So many teams in college ran quote unquote pro style offenses. It's why Iowa produces so many physical tight ends because you got to put your hand in the dirt and you got to block. If you're going to get on the field, you can't just be. And there's nothing wrong with it the way the game is played now. But a lot of these guys are essentially slot receivers and you could argue they're unstoppable slot receivers because they're 6:3 to 6:5. They all run 4 fives and they have ball skills like a wide receiver who's. The 49ers have a really good young slot corner, Upton Stout. I think he weighs like 160 pounds, you know, so like what's, what's. You can't put Upton Stout on Tyler Warren. It's not even the math. Doesn't math. It's like, you know, in basketball, when a, when all of a sudden you look and Chris Paul's guard, Kevin Garnett or Anthony Davis, it's like, well, this is not going to work. And I think George is so special that way just because he does it all. And it's a breed of player that just doesn't really do that anymore. You know, you look at the Bears drafting Loveland again, freak talent, elite ball skills, excellent athlete like he's never, he wouldn't have a chance on God's green earth to even hold Miles Garrett for now, you know, a millisecond, it just wouldn't even be possible, you know, and that's where George really separates himself. So I just think the 49ers are very, very dependent on him being healthy with this team because they're an offensive team. I mean, we'll get into Philip Rivers here in a second, but their defense is just, I think the sad part is, is if Fred and Nick would not have had season ending injuries and been on this team the entire time, I think they would have been the super bowl favorites in the nfc. Now they still would have had some flaws on defense, but I think those guys would have made up for so much. You could argue if just Fred was on this team, I would be like, yeah, they can win the nfc, but it is really difficult when it's just backups everywhere and a pass rush that really struggles to get home against a team tonight that was running out a bunch of backup offensive linemen. They play really hard and Sal has done an excellent job, but there is just no replacing those two players and specifically Fred, because you know, I, I, I think it's sad because this offense, the way they're playing right now, especially assuming Ricky Pierce hall will come back, I, I do think is as good as any in the nfc. Ate a little too many Shake Shack fries here tonight, but just a fantastic win for the 49ers. A fantastic season. And it is, it is absolutely insane. Honestly. It's a, it's a testament to both these teams. The Bears a little different. But like if I would have told you two months ago that going to this game that both these teams, especially after the Niners lost Fred and Nick Bosa, that they would already clinched and both these teams would have a chance to potentially be the number one overall seed, you would be like, you're, you're, are you on crack cocaine? What are you, what are you talking about? So Sunday night football, Bears 49ers, just a fantastic matchup. Now like I said, the rest advantage is huge. I I do think that the 49ers just not really going to be able to practice much this week. You know going to be big for them is just Pierce all come back and even makes our offense more explosive. What is George status And the other thing with the 49ers they are unlike any other team. You just come out of a game and all of a sudden it's like so and so pulled Hammy. So and so is just he's going to be day to day or week to week. You're like what? He just played 60 snaps. He he just made the D winners. You know had a great interception against Philip Rivers. It's like yeah, he tweaked his hamstring when I don't know maybe walking back to the locker room. It happens all the time. So you just because you cut them out of a game on the 49ers excelling playing making plays does not mean that you will be on the practice field in two days for them on a Wednesday. Don't ever that no team can all of a sudden add guys to an injury report. I mean they add guys to their injury report during the weeks of practice. So you just got to keep your fingers crossed if you're them because they don't have many guys to lose. And the D winners interception was a pretty cool moment for a split second watching that 53 run, it reminded me of Navarro Bowman, which made me a little nostalgic because God I love Navarro Bowman, who's actually coaching with with Jim Harbaugh down with the Chargers. I think he's like the system linebacker coach. So that's cool. But fantastic win. Want to know where I bet on football during the holiday season? It's Hard Rock Bet. Not just because they're the presenting sponsor of this podcast, but because they make it easy to bet both before kickoff and between snaps. In a few simple taps, I open the app, find a bet I like and bam, my bed is placed. Sign up today and put a $5 bet on any game. If it wins, you also score 150 in bonus bets. A winning bet plus an extra 150 to bet with. Now that's spreading some holiday cheers. Download the Hard Rock Bet today and make your first deposit payable and bonus bets. Not a cash offer. Offered by Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. 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The Indianapolis Colts. I mean, it's really a tale of the two sides of the ball. I think what Philip Rivers did tonight was was exceptional. I mean I was blown away. I I thought he was. If you said John, what grade would you give him? Like a maybe just because the pick six. A minus. But at that point in time you're down A couple scores, you kind of have to force it. It's why he's throwing a lot of interceptions over the course of his career with the Chargers. But 23 at 35 for 277 yards. I mean the first couple drives of the game, his first drive of the game he threw for 70 yards. I said this all week and I get it. Like the Colts have really good wide receivers, right? Pierce a stud downs is good. I've liked Pittman since he was a college at usc. You know, Warren is probably one of the best young, you know, skill guys, tight end wide receivers in the NFL. Obviously Jonathan Taylor the show the statistics during the game. Running the ball has been a challenge since their quarterback position is kind of falling apart. But he still had what he had three catch for 33 yards. Like he's, he's such an all around player. I just don't think you can ask much more. And I get the 49ers defense isn't great but the understanding of the offense, the audio they had in the Monday Night Football game with I don't know if the Mike's close. Maybe it has to do with the, the dome setting in Indianapolis, how clear you could hear him audibleing at the line which I would imagine they're gonna have to change all their calls next week for the Jags because you can't tell me that the Jags defensive coaches, every time the TV copy you're going to go through that, write down what he said and then match it up with the play. So they're going to have to change the calls. But his control understanding of the offense, the one play at the end of the first half that he, that he misses to warn because he kind of, he doesn't step up. I thought he was brilliant tonight. I mean when you factor in that he's 44, 45 years old, he hasn't played in five years. I mean I, I feel at minimum he's better than. I'm not talking about the injured guys, I'm talking about the starters at the beginning like he's. Tua makes $50 million. Philip Rivers in a different universe than Tua as a player is even close. I mean that's, I'm dead serious and I'm not picking on Tua here, but I'm just thinking of quarterbacks throughout the NFL that is like he's better than that guy. Like he's just a better player than starters in the NFL at 44, 45 years old. And the other thing that brings me joy is I just Imagine Brady and Peyton with kind of a huge smile slash jealousy watching him play. Like, I want to do that. Like, could I still do that? I mean, I can't even imagine how many quarterbacks around the NFL that are, I would say 40 early 40s to 50 years old that maybe go out in the backyard during Christmas and throw a little with their son and go, I think. I think I could still do it. I think I could still, you know, warm this thing up. I think I still got a few more bullets in the gun because he can't move. And even the night he threw the one completion when he scrambled to his left. But his anticipation and part of it is unique situation that he's been calling this offense. So as the play caller of the offense, which he's already been in before as a player, his understanding of the routes are just no different than it would have been if he'd been playing in it his whole time. But it's another thing to just go out there. Even my wife looks at me. She's like, has he been, like, training for this? I'm like, how could he? He's been coaching high school. Like, I'm sure he's going on the elliptical. I'm sure he's getting some pumps in throughout the week, but. And probably throwing a practice a little bit. But is he putting in the work that he would have done seven, eight years ago, preparing for training camp? There's zero chance. I mean, none. And obviously he's put on a little weight. Maybe you could argue his arms a little fresher because of that. I truly thought that that's these two weeks, but specifically tonight on Monday Night Football with his family, there was that visual after the game of John lynch. And they showed that video that lynch, who I guess knocked Drew Brees and hurt his shoulder back in 2005, which was the reason that Philip Rivers came in and obviously never relinquished that spot until he went to the Colts in 2020. So think about John lynch knocked out Drew Brees in that game playing for Denver, who Mike Shanahan was his coach. Philip Rivers comes into that game. Drew Brees career with the Chargers ends obviously the domino effect of him getting denied in Miami by Danny Canal's dad, who says his shoulders fucked up. Nick Saban doesn't sign him. He goes to the Saints with Sean Payton. I mean, some crazy butterfly effects there, but you could tell with John lynch standing there, who is just. I mean, talk about a guy that just loves football. Like, Loves the grit and the mud of it. Like the. The Just the shit that most people like just want to play the games. John lynch likes all the other stuff, and you could tell the reverence and just the admiration he had for the competitor in this old, grizzled gunslinger that just comes out of nowhere, gets his family five more years of health insurance on the NFL's dime, and just throws for almost 300 yards against Robert Sala, who everyone's tweeting, everyone's writing is like a lock to become a head coach. And I get it, he's got some random guys out there, but River's like, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. It's like, this is awesome. Look, I'm rooting for the Niners. I bet on him. I root for him, naturally. And I was just like, hell, yeah, I was, honestly. And I got a text from a Niner buddy that was like, Rivers deserved better when he threw that pick six. And I was like, I agree. Like, I wish that wouldn't have happened because it kind of puts a stain on a night that was. Was really good and 100% not his fault. I mean, the defense, Purdy literally looked like Joe Montana tonight. And demarcus Robinson and Juwan Jennings look like Jerry Rice and John Taylor. They embarrassed that unit. Lou Amaruno, who I've always liked last year, rough year in Cincinnati, it's kind of happening again. And they got shredded. So what's he supposed to do? I mean, at one point in time, I look up, it's like they got 20 points midway through the third quarter. You could not have asked for more than that. I mean, part of the reason I took the 49ers was because I was like, I think they're going to get to like 25, 26 points. Like, I don't think rivers got more than 17 in them. And then you look up, it's 31 to 20 midway through the third quarter. You just can't. It's 34 to 27 from a 44 year old, technically off the sideline in Hoover, Alabama or Tuscaloo, wherever he's coaching down there. Fairhope, Alabama, I think, actually home of Phil Savage, former Cleveland Browns gm. That, that was really fun. The Chargers downfall, clearly. Whole thing's kind of falling apart, which is sad. You know, you got Carly or say on the sideline taking notes, not really sure what she's writing. You know, everyone was, you know, it was. Went pretty viral. Like, everyone should follow Hurley. Like, her taking notes, her not taking. None of that means anything. He either can tackle, either can score touchdowns, either can get off the field on third down or you can't. It's all on the coach on game day. What are we talking about? And I'm not trying to take shots at her, but it's like the reason the Colts fell apart is their quarterback position fell apart until river showed up and then their defense fell apart. So this is a team that is just your classic like complete free fall. But like we've been saying forever, they do have really good players now defensively. I mean, you could argue their best defensive players on the sideline. And I think this also speaks to. They thought they were really close. And you could make the argument that at the time they made it. Okay, I understand. But as any Giants fan knows, and as my producer Shane, who's a big Giants fan told me, at the end of the day, they went all in with Daniel Jones as their quarterback. Like, I know he was having a good first half of the year, but he has a long resume. Like, he's been doing this for a while. And you trusted that. Like, that's what you were trusting, right? It's one thing if like, hey, you know, Amazon stocks down. It's like, yeah, it's feel pretty confident about it. I had about seven boxes come to my house just today. Like, if it's down a little bit, I promise you it ain't going away. Invested in Daniel Jones, like, it's like, okay, Patrick Mullen's had a bad year. I feel pretty confident he'll bounce back, right? Lamar Jackson, rough year. Like, I'd feel pretty confident next year. Okay, Totally Daniel Jones. So you put all your chips in the middle of the table. Listen, guys get hurt, there's nothing you can do about it, right? The packers weren't wrong for investing in Micah Parsons. That's just an unlucky break. But I think as we saw, they were truly a player away. Were the Colts a player away? And I'm not playing Monday morning quarterback. You can go back. And I'm not always right. I say some dumb shit. Some of my takes are just wrong, right? But at the time I said, this seems crazy to me, right? If you are a player away, it's like you get Miles Garrett, you have Max Cross. No, you got a corner who like, you know, it's been a little hit or miss lately, but. But even that, who's under a huge contract. But you gave up two first round picks. Like, was that really his value? You couldn't have got him for like a one and like a three. Like, that was the player you going all in on based on your team, like you felt good enough with your team. And Daniel Jones, who it's not like you'd had for three years, he just got there. You're going all in on a quarterback that you gave a one year $14 million contract to. It was for a guy whose career was defined, I would say by being pretty conservative. Like when the Rams do stuff, they haven't lately because they've been drafting well, but you go, yeah, they, they can be kind of gunslingers with the F them picks. They're not afraid to play that game, right? But when Chris Ballard, who historically kind of slow and steady wins the race now it didn't work. And then all of a sudden he takes Anthony Richardson, it blows up in his face. Which was a pretty crazy move at the time given that Anthony Richardson started 13 games in college and a lot of them didn't even go that well. But they were betting on the talent or whatever and it blew up in their face. And then they found the, you know, the fill in guy and it was going well, but the fill in guy's resume was not exactly like, well, you know, two time Pro Bowler, really good player, just kind of fell on hard times. That was not the case. Like his best season he Andrew I think 50, was it 15 or 20 touchdowns the year they went nine and eight for the Giants. So it's not like, well, he has two 40 touchdown seasons now. He's a likable guy, he's smart, he says the right things, he looks the part, he's athletic, pretty good arm but man, that was risky. And then clearly the worst case scenario happens. He breaks his leg, tears Achilles sauce, gets injured. You don't have any choice but to call a 44 year old guy who then actually plays well and your defense just crumbles right in front of your face. Makes Brock Purdy, who is a really good player, I mean, look like Joe Montana. I mean if Brock Purdy played like that most games, I mean he would be the best player in the league. And you're at home, right? You're at home places loud, you score on the first drive and then you just get eviscerated. They show the punter for the 49ers who hasn't even, I think Troy said hasn't punted so far. In part of it's they had a buy but has not punted in December. It's like it's one thing when you're playing the Titans who up until they played the Chiefs four string quarterback, you know, was competing to have the number one pick again in the draft. So it's, it's rough if you're the Colts. Plus then you look and you go, well what's it like big picture? Well, the Jags look like they got a star coach and the Jags have Trevor Lawrence now playing like Clemson Trevor Lawrence that made Dabo Sweeney a guy worth $10 million a year. And they have a bunch of other good players on the team because they've been drafting high for years. So they have a good nucleus of high end players and they also have a guy they made a big trade for that's not even playing right now and they're competing to be like the one or two seed. So if Travis Hunter comes back, big picture like they should be better especially if they just pick a position. Right. Well what about the Texans? Well they just, you know, Belichick missed on a lot of different coaches and executives over the years. One guy didn't was Nick Casario. Nick serious pretty damn good. Oh yeah. And he finally after three tries got it right with d' Ameco Ryan's. So they got a really good GM and coach combo with CJ Stroud Will like they got a nucleus of guys. Derek Stingley like they're really good. They're not going anywhere. Nico Collins under contract. They have the Washington commander second round pick. I mean that's. I would say it's a pretty big problem. Yeah. Titans suck. They got problems. As someone, let's just say that might know a thing or two said it's. It's hard to even describe how big of an idiot their owner is. He's comparing to another owner might give it away. So I can't even say say it because someone in the league. But the Titans got problems, right. Even though they just had a nice win and Cam Ward actually had a beautiful scramble pass that was pretty sweet actually. But man, I, I just think if you're a Colts fan, you go what happened? How did this happen? We were just felt so close. So close. And then we felt like we skipped a step. It's like are we the best team in the league? And then it felt like someone took dynamite and wrapped it around our entire franchise and blew it up and now we're just royally screwed. Which, which sucks. So grass the 49ers who are a couple wins away now from being the number one seed which I again I, I let me state on the record I think is unlikely. And the Colts who are probably going to lose out and be they'd be an 8 and 19. What's their record right now? 8 and 7. So yeah, they're 8 and 7. My prediction right now would be they go 8, 9, which the Jags game. That's a problem. And at the Texans, especially if the Texans are playing for something in that game is going to be a major issue.
- [41:16]
A
Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first. There the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.
- [41:47]
D
Did you know Microsoft has officially ended Support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop, voted PCMag's Reader's Choice top laptop brand for 2025. Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere, and Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades. Visit lgusa.com iheart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PCMag reader's choice used with permission. All rights reserved.
- [42:17]
C
The world's best ski and snowboard athletes are chasing medals. Now you can follow their every move. Join Insider, the official US Ski and Snowboard fan loyalty program and get premium viewing at World cup ski events, exclusive athlete meetups, discounts from brands you love, and a custom welcome gift mailed direct to your doorstep. This winter, show your support as they race for the podium. Head to insider, us usski and snowboard.org and join.
- [42:45]
B
Today.
- [42:47]
A
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000. This is where mindset comes in. Someone will be eliminated. Pressure is coming down.
- [43:12]
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Trainer Games on Prime Video, January 8th.
- [43:14]
C
Watch the trailer on trainergames.com A new.
- [43:17]
A
Year is on the horizon, and your 2026 savings start here. Right now. You can access the Washington post for just $2 every four weeks. Head into the new year with six months of savings at this special intro rate. After that, it'll cost $12 every four weeks. Cancel anytime. You'll get unlimited access to trusted journalism that helps you understand the year ahead and the world around you. Now's the perfect time to subscribe because great habits and great savings start together. Go to washingtonpost.com iheart that's washingtonpost.com iheart and start your year informed with the Post.
- [43:59]
B
Okay, a couple quick things before we get out here. DK Metcalf, uh, obviously the, the. The video where he grabs the dude's hair, you know, swings, misses doesn't connect. Goes viral last night. Ochocinko says the guy called him an N bomb, which you're like, damn, no blood should blast him. The video goes viral of the fan calling him by, as he said, his government name. And no racial slurs there. The guy lawyers up, you know, defending himself. It's like, okay, there's a lot going on here. No one knows beside those two what was actually said. But the moment you saw that video, my first take was, he's gonna get in trouble. And every former player that's on TV is like, that can't happen. You can't do it. And then today he gets suspended for two games without pay. And I think it's Jonathan Jones of CBS tweeted out that there was a clause in his contract that he misses any time for suspension. It voids guarantees and up to $40 million in guarantees. You went, holy shit, that is one expensive missed punch. Now there were. There was a story that again, like his. His agent clearly is putting stuff out that he had gone to Seattle last year when they had gone to Detroit and pointed this fan, I don't know this some season ticket holder that's just heckling everybody. But I googled then his contract situation. You know, when they traded for him, they gave him like $130 million and they guaranteed like 60 plus million dollars. It was essentially the way it was written, a two year deal. I think you have to ask yourself, is DK Metcalf on the Pittsburgh Steelers next year? And he's had some moments this year and he's also been in mia and I thought at the time the trade was nuts. You're not a wide receiver away. I get you have some wide receiver needs, but to trade for this guy who Seattle, like I. How about Seattle's got a little Billy Bean quality to him. If Sam Presti, if they call you and go, hey, are you interested in DK for like your second round pick? Pick 50? I say no. Right? Say no. Yeah, we like them, but we're not interested. Oh yeah, no, we actually are interested. We'll make them one of the higher paid guys in the league. It was pretty nuts. It really was. And they got very lucky winning that Lions game, which they deserve to win. And I said last night, the play that was made at the goal line was the re the overreaction by people with the Lions about the past interference. Like, give me a break. He did not score a touchdown. The is clearly they were pulling up. He had been pushed back like five or six yards before. They both let go and he throws it to golf. Game's over. But if they would have lost or they were in a position where Week 18 against the Ravens would have mattered and still could. If they blow it to the, you know, blow the game coming up to Cleveland, which you never really know. I do think losing the Judkins, the Ohio State, I think Ole Miss would be like he was our guy first. He was, he was the SEC rookie of the year like three years ago. Absolute monster. You know, who knows? Maybe if Lane has him last year as their running back and he never goes to Ohio State, Instead of going 9 3, maybe they're 102 or 111 and they're in the playoffs, but I guess we'll never know. And maybe Lane's still the coach of Ole Miss as a back to back playoff coach. Maybe not, I don't know. But I just think this is the type stuff that the end of the day people get injured, right? We saw it tonight. Daniel Jones, Fred Warner. I'm not comparing those two players, but I'm just saying neither are available. Nick. But nothing you can do. You pay a guy a lot of money is what it is. Guys break legs, tear achilles, right? Tear ACLs. It sucks, but it's part of the business. There's another thing when stuff like that happens and you fuck everyone on your team and we'll see. I, I think this amps up the pressure. And again Lamar Jackson is injured. Harbaugh says he has like a bad back contusion day to day. The problem is for them, they're playing the packers and they gotta win. If you assume that the Steelers are gonna win, you know, against the Browns, but. Or they don't have a choice. I mean they just have to win to kind of hold serve for the game. Week 18 to matter. This is a situation that my first reaction goes, I can see DK not on the team next year. I, I really could. And this is one of those situations. It'll be interesting what Tomlin says on Wednesday, but you know, put this team who's whose battle back is really playing well, right? They put themselves in a position to be like an 11 win team and honestly for the first time in years have a little positive momentum going into the playoffs. The last couple years we were all out on them, right? Especially last year, the way they lost the Bengals at the end of the season. Like they don't have a snowball's chance in hell against the Ravens in the first round. And they didn't. They lose by 14 points. Just like the previous year against the Bills, lose by double digits. And this year, like, okay, and I'm even coming around. So I could see them beating the Chargers. I could see them competing in the first round. Like, I don't think it's. I thought it was inconceivable the last couple years of them winning a first round game. I don't think that this year. But this situation with dk, it's like, man, there's just. There's just always something with this team. It's not, I'm not putting this on, on Tomlin necessarily, but like, you got rid of George Pickens because he was driving you nuts. Which, listen, only a coach, a front office, a coordinator, like, they know their players so much better than us fans. Even us people that like, text with people on the team, like, finding out, like, you're living with him every day. He was clearly driving them nuts. George needed a fresh start and it worked out best for both parties. But then to turn around and get straight into business with DK was pretty risky, right? He had been kind of a roller coaster the last couple years for Seattle, and John Schneider has punted on a couple roller coasters and worked out pretty well. Russell, I'm not comparing Russell Wilson to DK of being a roller coaster, but just it was a lot for them, right? The ego, the. All about Rust. Clearly behind the scenes, it was like, we want out of this business. And John Schneider said that about dk. We want out of this business. Coward talked about this last night. Like, yeah, I talked to people around the Rams. They're like, puka better get his shit together. We don't want to be fucking talking about streamers and a bunch of bullshit, right? Just like, don't be a problem. Now. The problem with Puka is he's so productive that it's like, we don't really have a choice. He's kind of got us by the balls if he wants to be a pain. Antonio Brown was like that for a long time with the Steelers. He's like, hey, homie, I'm catching 120 balls and 1800 yards and 17 touchdowns a year. What are you going to do to me? And for the most part, their answer is going to be nothing, right? But DK is not good enough to do that, right? And that's why Seattle's like, we're out. We don't even. We don't even have, like, we got JSN who's on the team, but like, we don't really have like a Fill in to be a dominant outside guy. So they signed Cooper cup, and they've kind of piece mailed it together. Let's face it, they feel like a wide receiver away, but they're like, we're not giving that guy a third contract because again, we talk a lot about the people, and it is a people business. It's also a business where you invest a lot into individuals, right? The 49ers have paid George Kittle a lot of money, and guess what? They have never regretted a penny they sent his way. They've never regretted a penny they sent Trent Williams or Fred Warner or Brock Purdy this year. You invest in people. You know, listen, T.J. watt, you would say at points over the last couple years, like to be a little more productive, but the Steelers never regret paying them. They've never repetitive regretted a penny they've given Cam Hayward, right? They've never regretted a penny that they've given Friarmouth. So it's like you want to invest in people that you can trust, that you can go to war with, that are reliable. That's what this business is. And, you know, DK's kind of proven like he's not always the most reliable guy. And now we'll see. I mean, if that. If. Who knows, if somehow they screw up and. Listen, weird things happen in the NFL. Weird things do. I wouldn't just. This definitely isn't going to be one of my locks of the week. Cleveland against the Sealers, but very, very expensive suspension. And last but not least, Bill Belichick hired Bobby Petrino as his offensive coordinator. That might be the funniest shit to ever happen. I mean, I can't forever think about, like, the last 10 years of Belichick's career. He would only hire guys that started as, like, interns. That started at the lowest end of the totem pole form. I mean, by the end, once Josh McDaniels left, it was like Matt Patricia and Joe Judge running his offense. It's like, Matt Patricia is a defensive coordinator. What do you do? But he didn't trust anybody. Then he goes to college, and let's face it, he doesn't really know anybody. Like Urban Myers retired. Chip Kelly, that was his buddy. But, you know, maybe they're. They weren't going to pay him enough. You know, chip's getting paid $12 million to not work. Does he want to get involved with something that's not going to look very good? I mean, on a serious note, if North Carolina football was a stock, I think everyone with a brain Would short the living hell out of it. This thing feels as likely to work as like the jets and their quarterback situation year in, year out. You're like, that ain't gonna work. No. Nope. Right. We all know those couples that are like, this thing is destined to blow up. And that's what this thing feels like. I mean, belichick with his 25 year old girlfriend. You got Petrino, who had one of the most historic pictures in the history of the Internet when he fell off that motorcycle, sleeping with the strength coach's wife, who was also the volleyball coach. And you put these two guys together and listen, Belichick's kind of dependent on him, right? We talk about leverage and people have over you, right? Like Bobby Belichick needs Bobby Petrino. Belichick can't coach the offense. Belichick's clearly not great at evaluating the quarterback. Belichick's not picking great wide receivers. I mean, look at the little quarterback they signed this year from South Alabama. He's terrible. And my guy Jackson told me right before we hopped on that, I guess they announced the last couple of days he's returning. So I just think that this situation, it's more likely that there is some crazy article in the Athletic. When people are fired at the end of the year, then all of a sudden they're competing for the ACC championship at the end of October. Now the memes today of the motorcycles and Belichick riding in the little side seat. I can't tell you how many people in the NFL forwarded me those pictures. The likelihood that I would have told somebody five years ago that Bill Belichick is going to be coaching in college at, I mean, a cool school, but not a football school, and Bobby Petrino is going to be his offensive coordinator. There wouldn't have been a soul on this planet who would have believed you. But that's where we're at. And this gets back to the Pete Carroll thing. I get loving to work. I've always hated the word retirement. It kind of gives me the heebie jeebies. And I love sitting around watching games. But, like, I like doing stuff. I like having some purpose in my life. So I get these guys who feel like they've mastered their profession and want to keep working. But I also can't imagine being in my mid-70s, accomplished what they've accomplished financially, right. And being just so dead set on refusing to kind of wave the white flag, right? Hell, I could be a consultant. I could still be around. I belt. You could do tv. Pete could have Done any Fox studio TV wanted. Belichick had a media career, but they just refused to not want to coach. And both of them are great examples of, like, listen, this is going to be a tiny, tiny little footnote on their career resumes. But it's pretty embarrassing. I mean, it really is. Pete against the Texans wasn't especially someone that had the Texas minus 14 and a half, but the aggregate of a season. And what is happening at North Carolina with Bobby Petrido? You hired Bobby Petrino. I mean, what. What are we. How did that happen? Even last year, it's like he just kept Freddy Kitchens it. The crazy part about Belichick, it feels like he doesn't. For this guy that's like this coaching guru, like, loves the coaching profession. Does he not have that many friends? Like, seriously, like, for a guy that has coached since 1975, it doesn't feel like he's got this crazy Rolodex. You know, Nick Saban coached with Bill in the early 90s. And once, once Nick got to college, right? He clearly created like Mus champ and Kirby Smart. But then, like, as offensive coordinators left and he lost coaches. I don't know if it was Jimmy Sexton helping him out, whether he's a great, like, scout evaluator of like scouring the Internet. I don't know what he's doing. But he was always just Sark Lane, Mario Tosh. I mean, just fucking finding guys all over the place. Have like quality control. Guys like Dan Lanning, like, what Belichick's like Bobby Petrino. It's like, what? How? What? I'm just, I'm. Seriously, it's. It's so funny, but at the same time, it's extremely sad. It really is. And I think both those guys are great examples of like, there comes a time in all of our professional lives and I'm sure it will happen to me one day. It'll happen to you too. Whatever industry you work in. Even if you are one of, if not the most successful guy in your field, where it's just like, it's time. And they say, and I've been a king of this at parties my entire life. I've never been a late night guy, not a drug guy. Like, I, I'm. I'm king of the Irish. Goodbye. You'll look around and I will just be gone. I will never, ever be the last guy at the party. Hell, I'm never the last, like 50 of the guys at the party. I'm out. And you know, Bill Walsh made a career of this as an executive. And then Belichick copied him. Get rid of a guy a year too early instead of a year too late. Yet he's treating his career completely different. He stayed like, four years too late. Like Bill, what are you doing this for? To try to show off to Jordan Hudson? Now you bring Bobby Petrino in your office? Who are you going to hire next? Sharon Moore? Like, is Hudson safe? I mean, you better keep tabs on her because Bobby's going to be all over Jordan.
- [59:41]
A
Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first, There the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.
- [60:11]
D
Did you know Microsoft has officially ended Support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop, voted PCMag's Reader's Choice top laptop brand for 2025. Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere, and Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades. Visit LGUSA.com iHeart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PCMag reader's choice used with permission. All rights reserved.
- [60:41]
C
The world's best ski and snowboard athletes are chasing medals. Now you can follow their every move. Join Insider, the official US Ski and snowboard fan loyalty program, and get premium viewing at World cup ski events, exclusive athlete meetups, discounts from brands you love, and a custom welcome gift mailed direct to your doorstep. This winter, show your support as they race for the podium. Head to insider, us usski and snowboard.org and join.
- [61:09]
B
Today.
- [61:11]
A
10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000. This is where mindset comes in. Someone will be eliminated. Pressure is coming down.
- [61:36]
B
Trainer Games on Prime Video January 8th.
- [61:39]
C
Watch the trailer on trainergames.com A new.
- [61:41]
A
Year is on the horizon, and your 2026 savings start here. Right now, you can access the Washington post for just $2 every four weeks. Head into the new year with six months of savings at this special intro rate. After that, it'll cost $12 every four weeks. Cancel anytime. You'll get unlimited access to trusted journalism that helps you understand the year ahead and the world around you. Now's the perfect time to subscribe because great habits and great savings start together. Go to washingtonpost.com iheart that's washingtonpost.com iheart and start your Year informed with the post.
- [62:23]
B
Onmiddelkoff johnmiddelkoff Is the Instagram fire in those DMs? Get your questions answered here on the show. Again, Instagram DMS wide open. It's just my name. Two Fs. Congrats on the upcoming child we're the same age but I started having kids at 22 and I have six. My man's like Philip Rivers. They change you for the better. Well trust me, I need some positive changing in my life always so I'm not looking forward to the no sleep but or getting pissed on but I definitely am get excited for changing to becoming a better human being. It seems like a foregone conclusion. The Dolphins are going to fire Mike McDaniel. Will he not be the hottest offensive coordinator going into the next season? If I'm the Lions, I'm calling him within minutes of walking out of Stephen Ross's office and offering him a job to replace the hole that Ben Johnson left. I think he'd be awesome with the Lions. I don't know. I could be wrong on this. He was just asked about this after the Bengal game. All reports you know Albert Breer I saw talking about this are that he's going to return. I don't know if it was the winning streak before the Steeler game. Breer had mentioned I was watching a YouTube video of his that one thing people close to Steven Ross when he was doing like the audit of his organization after he shit canned the GM who was pretty terrible. I think gets a lot of people around Mike where you better be very careful because this is the type guy that gets his second opportunity and is really good. Right. I think a lot of people are looking at I'm recording this probably an hour before the Monday night game. But like Robert Sala as a guy who was going to be way better a second time around and I'd probably agree with that. But I think Mike, you know we've talked about this before. It's crazy the amount of hate he got. And listen, I guess I was guilty of. I guess questioning. I mean people showing up to your meetings late is kind of an indictment of guys and how they respect you even if you're kind of a turd. You know most guys it's one thing listen, everyone's been late. But last year was a problem. He even talked about the end of the season like guys weren't showing up on time. I don't know the fine system what can do. You could also argue these guys are so rich now who Even cares. But I just think that I guess I'm operating under the IDEA that Mike McDaniel is going to be the coach for the. For the Miami Dolphins next year. Obviously they're going to hire a gm. Maybe it's one of those things where the guy gets like a year to evaluate him. It almost slows down your clock because it doesn't put pressure on you. He's not your hire. So if it does work, you just keep rolling. If it doesn't, you can make your own hire. So that's what I don't expect, him to get fired. As a Bills fan, this from Amy. As a Bills fan, it bothers me that this narrative of Josh going in the playoffs, Mahomes, Burrow and Lamar aren't in it. It's now or never. I would agree. All four teams have been at the worst this season. Each one is dealing with their own issues. But Josh, the only quarterback out of the Big Four to have pulled his team to the playoffs while the other three have not. While is the flip side of the narrative not being discussed. This is the worst roster the Bills have had since their. Since their run. But Josh is willing his team to the dance. Make it make sense. It will not matter if you win games in the playoffs. The narratives about these guys being around, these guys not being around. If he gets the Bills, the Super bowl, it would be a crowning achievement for Josh and his run with the Bills. If he were to win the super bowl, it would validate his career. Let's be real. I mean, Aaron Rodgers, one of the greatest players of all time, he's been to one super bowl, right? He won it, which is really important. But it's not like Aaron's like, you know, I only won one, but I went to four other ones. You know, you can be an absolute legend and just win the one, right? And it doesn't matter who you went through. He's already like, they lost the games. The Chiefs for the last five years, whatever. But he's played well in those games. So I think the pressure. We'll have to see how the seating kind of plays out. I mean, by all accounts, you just look at the schedule, the Paul Said, the Pates, the Patriots, the Pats, you know, they're probably going to win the last two games, right? They get the jets, who are just horrendous, and then the Dolphins, who are just who I think are going to. Quiet, quiet tanking. What do they call it? Quiet quitting. Are quietly tanking. And even if they did try, they Are not good in the cold. And New England in early January is not a warm place. So I would imagine the Patriots win the division. You guys, depending on what happens to the Chargers this week, they play the Texas. That's a really good game. You guys could be the five seed draw the Steelers. Then all of a sudden, depending on what happens, you know, the Charger, the Texans could easily win a game. So you might not even have to play the Broncos. Right. So your path could be the Steelers potentially. Who? The Steelers, the Jags. Right. To get in. I mean that's, that's a realistic path to the AFC championship game. And then play who's ever sitting there. The Texans, the Chargers, the Broncos, the Pates. Might start calling them the Pates. Love the pod. I like this guy already. As a Packer fan, I respect the fact that I've been blessed with amazing quarterbacks in my life. As you talked about Mac Jones playing into a starter in the coming years, do you think teams should consider going after Malik Willis as he's bald out in his time playing for us? I was actually thinking about this when I screenshotted your post. Not post. DM is Justin Fields. I'd have to look at the numbers. Obviously Justin's got a ton of time to play, but I've watched Malik Willis now definitely in that game alone, I would rather have Malik Willis than Justin Fields. And this is where we discriminate. Guys that aren't top picks like Justin Fields got $40 million this offseason. He got benched immediately. Right. He was atrocious. Not. Listen, I'm not putting all the blame on him. The jets are a joke. But he was bad player on other teams. Like he's just a run around guy, can't pass. Right. He's got a big arm. But he like Malik Willis in that game pocket throws to me just like if you said, John, you have to have one of these two guys as your starter next year. Malik Willis or Justin Fields. I wouldn't even hesitate for Malik Willis. So clearly in the infrastructure of the. Of the packers last couple years, he's dramatically improved. And obviously like Justin Fields, he brings the physical running element too. But the deep ball that he threw for the touchdown, some of those drive throws over the middle of the field, even a couple touch passes, 1,000%. You know, if I would. 100 if you can get Malik Willis, can you get it for like one year, $10 million or something? I would, wouldn't even hesitate to do that. I. That was really, really impressive on Saturday night. To come in out of the bullpen where you get no practice reps. The game plan is do love, whose skill set is just a little different. I mean, love is to me, much more of a true pocket quarterback where Malik Willis is much more of a hybrid. He's like, honestly, what they were hoping Justin Fields would be. So. But this gets back to when you're drafted really high, you just get more shots. Fair or not, you just do. And people are willing to give you money that are like, wait, they give who money? They gave him. How much? Happens all the time. John, question for the chat. Why are the Jags the Rodney Dangerfield of the NFL? I know it's a small market, but also Buffalo and New Orleans. But never hear Andy Reid, the week he plays the bill say they're in a small market but a good team. Reed would never disrespect the Bills. And yes, the Jags play second or third fiddle in their own state, but guess what? That happens elsewhere too. In popularity contests, the Georgia Bulldogs top the Atlanta Falcons and Ohio State tops the popularity of the Bengals and the Browns. Time we stop holding the Jags to different standards. Well, here's the thing, man, we don't talk that much about the Atlanta Falcons. We, I mean, we talk about the Browns because they're always polarizing and controversial, not because they're good at football. Like, the Bengals are driven by one of the best quarterbacks in the league or else we wouldn't be talking about them. So the market size and using like the Chiefs are a small market? Well, yeah, they've been now a dominant team for almost 15 years and since Mahomes, they've been the best team in the league. So if the Jags were a dominant team even in a small market, we would talk about them a lot. But for most of my life, they have sucked. And for the last like 10, 15 years, beside the one year with Marone and Bortles, they have not been good. So. And they have drafted constantly really, really high. So I think when people disrespect them and I get it, I mean, I made some comments about the the non power four that gets people up in arms. There's a chip on your shoulder when you are the little guy. There just is. Now football is a little different because even if you're quote unquote, the little guy, your owner's still a billionaire. You still have a huge payroll. So it's not like apples to app. It's not like the difference with the Yankees in the Tampa Bay race. But The Jags will never get treated like the Tampa Bay race. It's just not possible now. They could get treated much better, better with performances like that against Denver. If they come into the playoffs playing well. They do have a famous quarterback that we have talked about since college, but it takes, like, the Bills. I mean, when I was a kid, they went to four straight Super Bowls. They had, like, five hall of Famers on that team. And over the course of the last, what, seven, eight years, they've had one of the best players in the NFL. They have the reigning mvp. When I put the Bills on television, if I'm the league, which impacts who I talk about in the big games, it does. 30, 40 million people this week. They've built the television product around Eagles vs. Bills. Why? Because that's treated like a heavyweight matchup. You guys just haven't got that treatment because you've been so crappy. So I think Sean Payton, who came from New Orleans, like, we don't talk about the Saints. Tyler Schuck is pretty impressive right now, making some plays. Like they've been pretty good for, like, the last month. If the season started right now and you just played 17 games, you might bet on them to win that division. Right? So I think part of it. But the reason we used to talk about the Saints more is they had Drew Brees, one of the greatest players at his position and a polarizing big, you know, personality coach. Those guys left and we stopped talking about them. Now it doesn't matter who coaches the Cowboys or the packers or the Steelers or the Niners, like, their. Their brands are so big nationally, they get treated differently. I say this all the time. This is a numbers game. Like, I. I'm pretty numb to this all. You know, it's like, I. I got no problem. I. I don't watch that much Jags football because I haven't had to, you know, like, I'm not breaking down every play of the Jets. You almost treat, you know, teams that don't win, especially as the season goes on, a little bit like you would a baseball team during the baseball season. If you're doing local radio, you're not breaking down every inning of every game like you do in football. That's not the way you cover the sport unless you're in, like, New York. So I think the Jags can build on this. If they can become a consistent contender, they can get talked about more. But also, the two southern divisions, I would say, are the two least important divisions of the discourse and consistently the television product. It Broke through a little bit. When, you know, Peyton Manning with the Colts, that changed the game. But use the Houston Texans for, as a good example, when they were good under Kubiak and Bill o' Brien and making wild card games, they were usually put on in the wild card round. The worst spot, which is Saturday afternoon, which Bill Simmons calls the shaky game. That's where they went, right? Who usually went at night. It was like, you know, Niners, Packers, Right. I mean, it was the Eagles versus the Cowboy, whatever. It was big brands. So brands matter. Like, this is all a business. This isn't. There's no emotion involved. And I think people get very emotional. Now, Sean Payton, like, Sean Payton's kind of a shit talker. It's who he is. But like, what he said was factually not incorrect. The Denver Broncos, whether Sean Payton and Liam Cohen exist or not, are way more important to the NFL than the Jacks. I mean, it's just a fact. And he's worked in a small market. The Denver Broncos are way more important to the league in terms of over the course of the last 30 plus years with the television explosion than the Saints. Not everything is like a shot. Some things are just reality. Part of my take has more listeners than me. I mean, it was like, what am I supposed to do? Well, it's like I'm just a. That's just a fact. It's okay. You always keep bringing up the Rams DBs as the weak link of the team. And while I agree it's the worst part of the defense, it's not the weak part of the team. Everyone keeps saying the Seahawks defense because that is the special teams. I think, you know, Sean, I almost said Sean Payton. Sean McVeigh last week fired Chase Blackburn, who used to play for the Giants when I worked for the Eagles. I think he won a couple Super Bowls, has become a special teams coach. Fired him last year or last week and I saw like rap sheet or Schefter is the first time he's ever fired a coach in. In season. That's pretty crazy. I guess you coach long enough, it's almost inevitable. So basically the fact is that most teams right now don't have DBs. They can put up with the receivers these days, except maybe the Broncos and the Texans. We lost four games a season. Eagles, Niners and Seahawks were all because of missed field goals and a punt return. It wasn't because our DBs got burned in those games. One game you can say the DBs gave up crucial catches was the Panther game. And even that game we could have won if Stafford didn't have three turnovers. Your thoughts? I've said forever. You'd have to look at. In the modern era of the salary cap, there aren't many teams with like three or four sweet DBs. It's not usually the way it works. I'm trying to think. I mean, Richard Sherman would argue they had the best secondary throughout his career, especially in their heyday. You know, I think their second corner was like, okay, it's not like they had multiple Richard Sherman's. They had awesome safeties in Earl Thomas and Cam Chancellor and you know, Great linebacker play K.J. wright and Bobby Wagner that could cover. So that helped. But like I think Denver with Peyton Manning secondary, I mean they had three really good corners keep Talib, Chris Harris Jr. And Bradley Roby. So I would say that was more of a coverage better cover unit. But most teams I'm with, you aren't going to have like Darrell Rivas on one side and Deion Sanders on the other. You can get by with average DB play, but your D line has to dominate and your offense has to dominate. And special teams, like, they have always been a bugaboo of Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan, those guys. Listen, I totally understand not taking kickers and punters seriously if you're those guys, like, I get it, like these guys, but you're the head coach and you need these guys and those units. Like, I've never been to a Rams practice, but like, there's a reason Kyle's around, talking to the quarterbacks or doing something else when the special team's going on. Maybe that's changed a little bit this year, but historically, like, he doesn't care. And I think it's fair to say Sean's kind of the same way. Like the offense is their baby. Physicality on defense, talking with the defensive coordinator because they view that as football. Then they get super pissed when I mean that punt returned by Shahid. I remember talking about this the next day or maybe we talked about it two days later when we were recording before we hit record. So I was like thinking about that. Did he even get touched? Was he even running full speed? I'd have to. I need to go back and watch that play. Was there even a defender within like five feet of him at all? Because you could argue that a punt return touchdown is the most electric play in football because typically it has like a broken tackle where a guy's running full speed or like an incredible juke move. I feel like he just ran straight in and no one even touched him. So it's just an embarrassment. But they would never allow that on their unit. It would never be tolerated, ever. But I think it's like, oh, special teams, which I kind of understand. But it's like you're the head coach.
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Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first. There, the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.
- [80:41]
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Did you know Microsoft has officially ended Support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop, voted PCMag's Reader's Choice top laptop brand for 2025. Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere, and Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades. Visit LGUSA.com iHeart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PCMag reader's choice used with permission. All rights reserved.
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The world's best ski and snowboard athletes are chasing medals. Now you can follow their every move. Join Insider, the official US Ski and Snowboard fan loyalty program, and get premium viewing at World cup ski events. Except exclusive athlete meetups, discounts from brands you love, and a custom welcome gift mailed direct to your doorstep. This winter, show your support as they race for the podium. Head to insider.usski and snowboard.org and join.
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Today.
- [81:42]
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10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000. This is where mindset comes in. Someone will be eliminated. Pressure is coming down.
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Trainer Games on Prime Video January 8th.
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Watch the trailer on trainergames.com A new.
- [82:12]
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Year is on the horizon and your 2026 savings start here. Right now. You can access the Washington post for just $2 every four weeks. Head into the new year with six months of savings at this special intro rate. After that, it'll cost $12 every four weeks. Cancel anytime. You'll get unlimited access to trusted journalism that helps you understand the year ahead and the world around you. Now's the perfect time to subscribe because great habits and great savings start together. Go to washingtonpost.com iheart that's washingtonpost.com iheart and start your year informed with the Post.
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How can a team tank but not be super obvious Raiders fan here? We need to lose the Chiefs and the Giants. Being around the NFL, we can lose those without flat out giving up Pete probably Wants to show up so we can win while the rest of us don't want to win. Well, at this point in time, it, it. Listen, if it was a month ago and you're two and eight, like, keep playing hard, but you got two games left, you got two wins, I'd be a little nervous because I had a buddy on the Texans shoot me a video of a Max Crosby play where he ran down the running back. They played really hard yesterday. Ashton Genti, I think Will Anderson gave him a compliment. Like, they look good. If they play like they played against the Texans, against the Giants, they easily can win that. If they play that same game they played against Texans, they will beat not just the Giant, they'll be the Chiefs too. And here's what I would be scared of, because there's no way you can really do it. If you truly want to tank, you fire Pete Carroll right now and you just have like the. Some interim guy and you just let it be a complete show. But if Pete Carroll's there, which I would imagine he's going to coach the last two games, they're going to win one of these last two games. Because if I'm Andy Reid and now all my quarterbacks are injured, Minshew, I guess, avoided the acl, but he's still out for the year, which is two games I'm losing to you on purpose. I'm literally going to try to screw you because is Fernando Mendoza going to be great or not? No one knows. I mean, it's the draft. You just never know. But I'm not giving you the opportunity to get the guy. And if you end up getting the guy because someone else, you know, trades with you, so be it. You have to get rid of your. But I'm not just giving you the number one overall pick. So I, I think easily you could beat the Giants. If you play as hard as you just did against Texas, you'll win that game. And two, I. I just think the Chiefs are going to let you beat them. I mean, I really. And they might not even have to try. I mean, they're. They're rolling out practice squad quarterbacks. It's not like they were scoring that many points when they had Mahomes in there, so. And if I, if Andy should, you know, on purpose let you win because it screws you and you're in his division. Question for the bag. An interesting hypothetical came up. Say the packers are up five with three seconds left in the game. They kick the ball off and the Bear return. Bears returner breaks away and is about to score a touchdown but a fan jumps out of the stands and makes the tackle. Where's this hypothetical coming up. Where's this happening? What would happen? Time expired and the returner never crossed the goal line. Re kick untimed down. Curious your thoughts? My first thought slash reaction would be there. Unless the fan is like a former NFL db they are not touching the return man. If the return man is an open space and the guy comes out of the stands, I do not think he touches a finger on the guy. I I I Unless the guy's completely gassed, if he has any juice left in the tank which you know the guy's going to be like a DB or wide receiver. So he's not going to be, he's gonna be in great shape. I would highly bet against if you allowed just no, no defenders. Right? Let's just kick it off to return to Rex. You know I don't even know trying to think Debo Samuel, right? Some guy like that and you just let him run and you have a random fan. Let's just pick a guy like 27 years old, a dude, maybe a high school football player, right? Just working in finance, pull him out and just start him at the goal line and say when Debo's gets To like the 30 yard line you can start running at him. I would bet my bottom dollar that you could not touch one finger on his body. I'd be pretty confident on that. If he did accomplish tackling him, I'm no I have no clue what the rule would be. You probably would have to give him the touchdown. That guy would get the kicked out of him. I saw the video of where James Harrison slam the fan back in the day. So awesome. Grew up watching Elway seats at Mile High. Longtime Bronco fan. Since free agency 1992 only the Broncos and the Ravens have won Super Bowls with objectively poor quarterback play. The 15 Broncos average low 80s for the season between Manning and Osweiler, an all time football team. Why are folks so tuned in on how Knicks plays when it's clear the Broncos have a unique winning formula where the quarterback while critical to success is not the only variable to success protect the football and our defense and intangibles makes us favors. This was yesterday morning so before you got your ass kicked. Now listen you can we're never going to see the 2000 ravens the even the year Broncos team the in the 20141516 range the lob teams any of the teams in the 80s like those days playing defense are over so you're going to have your days where you just get smoked. I did watch yesterday thinking like this is a little too easy, you know, now you're definitely going to look better against the Chiefs and whatever the kid's name is. You're going to kill him probably. But I. You do need Bo Nix to play well because the rules and the officials, the way that the game is called, you know, I mean you can really protect the quarterback. It is a very quarterback friendly sport now and you can just play a guy if your D line's not getting home. And I think they sacked Trevor Lawrence, what, three times yesterday, but he was getting rid of the ball. Guys were open in the, in the end zone. Most of these good teams now, even like the Chargers, me and Colin were talking about yesterday, Trey Harris, what's he, a four star from Ole Miss that they paid a bunch of money to in the transfer portal. Quinn Johnson, tcu. He was on the team that went to the national championship. He was a first round pick. Keenan Allen, you know, one of the great players of his generation. One of the most consistent players of his generation. Hampton's a first round running back, like lad McConkey is a high second round slot receiver. I mean they got dudes, right? So most of these teams that you're going to play in big games have a bunch of wide receivers. So I do think that your quarterback play does matter. You guys look a lot better when he's throwing four touchdowns. He threw a beautiful touchdown pass on the first. I think you guys were down seven nothing. And it was, I think it tied the game early. 77, kind of off his back foot. Sutton in the back corner of the right, right part of the end zone. I mean it was gorgeous. It was one of the nicer passes of the day. Any quarterback now bar is pretty low yesterday, but the Drake may pass to Kyle Williams, that passed a sudden. Trevor threw a couple beautiful passes in the red zone. He threw one back shoulder pass. I saw the highlight today at the gym. I was like, that was nice. I mean, Trevor Lawrence, here's the thing. In the playoffs, if you're playing another quarterback that's playing really well and Trevor Lawrence, if he's playing like this in the playoffs, they're going to be a major problem. Justin Herbert is playing really, really well, right? Josh Allen, his resume speaks for itself. C.J. stroud wasn't good yesterday, but he's had really good games. Number two overall pick, Drake maybe number three overall pick. There's just a lot of talent, you know, Aaron Rodgers is in a one game scenario. Who knows. So the AFC's down a little bit this year, but the quarterback play can still be really, really good. What are your thoughts on the Jake Paul fight? Do you think influencer boxers can bring back boxing to a more mainstream sport and edge out stuff like soccer and hockey? Lastly, who are you fighting if you get $300,000 to show and 1 mil to win? Love everything you do. Congrats on the Netflix deal. I saw so much negativity including my three and out text chain. Everyone, it feels like hates what this stands for, which is like a mockery of it all. I feel like everyone online despised it all personally. That is the type entertainment that is right up my alley. I live for this stuff and honestly this was much more. I felt like serious kind of. You could argue that Joshua could have knocked him out earlier. The, the Tyson thing is like that's just. That is true. My true. Like I love this. It's just, it's just so dirty, so corrupt. But also like it's kind of business in America did. I don't know if this is true or not, but I saw, I googled it, I looked at multiple articles. They're saying the payout for these guys is give or take 90 plus million dollars each. So you know, did Jake Paul have any business fighting that guy? He had as much business fighting that guy as I do. Like playing Tiger woods in his prime one on one in golf, of course he's going to get his ass kicked. That, that looked like Miles Garrett fighting a slot receiver. And Jake's pretty big. But I commend him for two things. One incredible businessman speaks for itself. He just did something on Netflix which I would guess got millions upon millions of people to watch live and got a payout. He's already super rich because he's been doing these. But for the other guy, when they said on the broadcast that this was going to be the second or third biggest payout of Joshua's career, you're telling me Joshua's had a, had a payout bigger. $90 million. I don't pretend to be a boxing guy, but I'd be shocked if that's true. If he actually is going to get $90 million for the Netflix deal, that's going to be easily the biggest payout he's ever. I mean Floyd Mayweather, who's by far the richest fighter used to do like 100 plus million dollar payouts and that was pay per view. So the business Jake Paul has built and here's the Other thing, like, you asked me, what would you need to get in the ring? 300 grand. Well, I mean, 300 grand. Again, I'm not turning down $300,000, but I'm also not just getting in the ring for $300,000 to get my fucking jaw shattered. I would not take $300,000 to get my jaw shattered. I would say, no, it's just not enough money. To me, it's not changing my life. Like, to me, jaw shattering would have to be in the millions. So it takes some balls. Like, I see so many people talk shit that wouldn't have the balls to, like, do anything in their life. Jake Paul one has created this business from nothing. I mean, from him and his brother at least. You know, back in the early days of YouTube, right? Became big, and he's created this. It takes fucking some stones to get in that ring and fight that guy. I even saw Shady McCoy, who is a big fight guy, was like, I can't believe he's actually at the start of the fight, like, getting in the ring and going through with this. And listen, I, I didn't know that much about Joshua beside obviously talented fighter, big hitter. When he got there, I was like, this guy is huge. I mean, he looked like, he looked like Mr. Olympia going up against Schwarzenegger back in the day. And it's like, well, he kind of threw the fight. He could have knocked him out. I don't care. You want the fight to end in 10 seconds, that sucks. So I, I just feel there's so much negativity when people do stuff that no one else could do, but everyone's like, Damn, you got $90 million. That's crazy. It's crazy. Isn't that crazy? He has generated what? Let's just take a guess. 20 million people watching live. Sure as hell looks sold out to me. I actually have a lot of respect for the guy for doing this and building the business behind it, and everyone and their mother's talking shit, you know, well, this guy's getting in the ring, getting his fucking jaw broken, getting $90 million. So I thoroughly enjoyed it. You know, again, I like that type stuff. I remember being in college, like, Floyd's fighting De La Hoya, Floyd's fighting Pacquiao, and these fights sucked. I would much rather like, come to this and be like, okay, this is sweet. Boxing is also, like, the most corrupt sport by a mile in the history of this country. Not even close. I mean, basketball is in the rear view mirror. It's, it's, it's by itself. So, yes, Shady business. You couldn't do this in other sports, right? So it's. It's ripe for this type thing, and he's taking advantage of it. He just made that dude $90 million. He didn't even break a sweat. It looked like Jake Paul probably two minutes in, you could tell. Listen, I don't pretend to be some fight guru here, but he was just dancing around, soaked in sweat. Looked like he had just come out of the sauna. It's like, listen, I'm sure he trained pretty hard. There's no way he can maintain this. Floyd Mayweather dancing around for eight rounds and just avoiding hits. He's in. He's going to get gassed. That's why he kept hitting the ground. He was exhausted. The other guy. I'm not the biggest tennis guy either, but listen, I used to watch Federer, you know, play Djokovic or Nadal. Federer didn't sweat. Like, as someone that sweats a lot, I was always just, how is Federer not sweating? I swear to God, whenever they would kind of zoom in on Joshua, it's like, I don't think he's breaking a sweat. Jake Paul was soaked a minute into the fight. I'm like, this thing, because I think he realized, like, I got to be pretty careful here. And he took that shot and that jaw got shattered. I like to see how many people that were tweeting and just think, it's a complete clown show would hop in a ring, get their jaw shattered. Like, I'd do it for 90 million. You would. Let's see you put some gloves on and hop in the ring with that guy. I mean, I. I guess I would get in the ring for $92 million, but it'd be. I might have a heart attack, you know, dancing around before he even hit me.
- [97:25]
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Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first. There, the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.
- [97:55]
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Did you know Microsoft has officially ended Support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop. Voted PCMag's Reader's Choice. Top laptop brand for 2025. Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere. And Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades. Visit lgusa.com iheart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PCMag reader's choice. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
- [98:25]
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The world's best ski and snowboard athletes are chasing medals now. You can follow their every move. Join Insider, the official US Ski and Snowboard fan loyalty program and get premium viewing at World cup ski event except exclusive athlete meetups, discounts from brands you love and a custom welcome gift mailed direct to your doorstep. This winter, show your support as they race for the podium. Head to insider.usskiandsnowboard.org and join today.
- [98:55]
A
Ten athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points. You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000. This is where mindset comes in. Someone will be eliminated. Pressure is coming down.
- [99:21]
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Trainer Games on Prime Video January 8th.
- [99:23]
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Watch the trailer on trainergames.com ever wish.
- [99:26]
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You could try the Washington Post and see what all the talk is about? Right now you can with a one week pass for just $7. No commitment, no strings attached. Just $7 for one week of unlimited access to the Post. It's the perfect way to explore our award winning journalism and experience what subscribers already know. There's nothing else quite like it, so why not give us a try? Go to washingtonpost.com week and start your $7 one week pass today. That's washingtonpost.com week.
- [100:02]
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I recently saw a clip of Collins saying if the Giants end up with the first overall pick, they should trade Dart and take Mendoza. Do you think it would be the right move to roll the dice on another rookie when you have a guy who showed some real upside his first year? Also, what type of compensation could you get for Dart? Would the Rams trade the first for him, given it would probably be at the end of the first round? As a Giants fan, I'd rather see them trade the first overall pick for a larger hole. I would be pretty stunned, especially because the GM is staying right and I think the gap. Mendoza is a really good player and he's had a great season, but I don't think he's viewed as like hey, this is the next Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck and Dart, you know, before the organization. This is what I said when he asked me last night. I do think it's really, really hard to judge the Giant situation. They're firing coaches left and right place is just a disaster. It's kind of become for like a highbrow, like upper class kind of feel. They've always had the Giants like they've always kind of felt like the country club and the jets have felt like the Muni in golf terms. Right. You know, the Giants have always felt like a Mercedes and the jets felt kind of more like a beater, a little rough around the edges, you know, you know a lot of dents in the car and the Giants kind of lost their way. Man, I would, I would not do that now. I also don't get that caught up in like two weeks to go. Jackson like I can't even judge what's going on so I would have no problem rolling the dice. Here's the other thing. If you trade with a team like the Raiders or something, Jackson darkets next year, if it doesn't go well then you just use one of their picks to trade up and get a quarterback. Right. So I think it would give you options. I would try to trade where you get multiple first round picks and second round picks and kind of get to restock a roster that needs to, needs to improve. He will end on this one. Question for the next mailbag. This was before the game. Do you think the Pats loss to the Bills is getting overblown? I feel like going into the season if you said we split with the Bills that would be a big win. Obviously you don't like blowing a fourth quarter lead but May he's still a young quarterback and a first year with a coach, offensive coordinator and the team is a work in progress especially with the defense and another number one wide receiver. I think it was a big deal because you were up 21 to nothing at home. I think if you just told me you lost 30 to 20 and the bills were up the whole time it wouldn't have been that big a deal. And as we saw with the Ravens game like you guys are a good team. Your quarterback is extremely talented. Kyle Williams is just gives you an explosive deep threat with a great deep ball player thrower. And Diggs is just listen some people are pain in the ass but if they're a winning player then like I'm in the NFL. They do not discriminate. Do you know what the bad teams do? They take guys that are pain in the asses that aren't winning players. Google digs his resume from the Bills to the Vikings to now with the Pats to the Texas. Like that guy's a part of winners. Like he, he doesn't play, he contributes to winning and it doesn't even feel like he's, you know, I don't know what happened with him and Josh and Clear at the end of Minnesota got a little weird. Like you can be a lot but he's a winning player. He's clearly a smart player. He's going to play like that. You know, if Henderson's healthy to go with Ramon Dre, you know, you guys, your offense is okay. It's just defensively isn't quite good enough. You know, your offensive line's got to get healthy. I saw they asked for Abel. You know, Will Campbell, was he at the Celtics game and they showed him on the big screen and he slammed a beer and Vrabel said he's got to fire the strength coach after seeing his chubby ass. It was funny. I mean, Vrabel's a beauty. Is it kind of crazy that, you know, Vrabel gets fired and the Titans have just unraveled as a franchise and he's out a year and he immediately goes to the Pats and they're competing to be the one seed year one now. I get their schedules a little easy, but still, I mean, that's, that's pretty incredible. So I, I, the AFC is wide open, man. The NFC is wide open. I said it last night. I think it's fair to say of the 14 teams going into the dance, 10 plus could win it. I mean, honestly, in the NFC, if we just assume the line, they're not officially done, but they're done. So it's the packers, the Niners, Seattle, the Rams, the Eagles and the Bears. Like the Panthers or the Bucks, they're not winning it. But like, the Eagles couldn't beat the Rams. The Bears or I mean, they could win these games just like the Bears. We saw them beat the Eagles, saw the Rams or the Bears beat the Packers. I think the packers could beat the Niners or the Rant. The Niners clearly beat Seattle and the Rams. Like all. No one would shock me if they beat each other. And I would say the same for the afc. We saw the Jags kill the Broncos. I think if they played 10 times, the Broncos are going to win some games. Chargers could beat anyone on a given game, right? Texans, if their defense just obliterates, people could beat anybody. The Bills have Josh Allen. They could easily win all three games and represent the afc. Or they could get bounced in the first round. I don't think the Steelers can win the afc, but they definitely can win a game. Who am I missing? I mean, the Jags clearly can win games, so I 10 might be too low. Maybe it's more like 12. I have a hard time seeing the Steelers win three games. You could say the Texans offense still a little unpredictable. Clearly the Panthers are the Bucks, but I think the other six teams could all win the NFC. So maybe the numbers like 10 or 11 could win the super bowl or could represent their conference in the Super Bowl. And you're definitely one of those. I don't remember it being this open. I truly don't. Which is fun, which makes it kind of unpredictable, which makes it like, what's going to happen. Better buckle up and watch. That's why I keep telling Maria he better come on a Wednesday or Thursday or Tuesday, not even Monday of Wild card weekend, because I got Monday Night Football. If you're listening to me, little buddy, I think the sweet spot would be like Wednesday during the day. So we get night sleep, we kind of go into labor, come out quick, and then we're home by Friday and we're rocking and rolling. Keep our fingers crossed. Probably come like Saturday afternoon. But what are you going to do? I'll have a kid. Adios.
- [107:08]
A
The volume did you know Tide has been upgraded to provide an even better clean in cold water? Tide is specifically designed to fight any stain you throw at it, even in cold butter. Yep. Chocolate ice cream. Sure thing. Barbecue sauce. Tide's got you covered. You don't need to use warm water. Additionally, Tide pods let you confidently fight tough stains with new coldzyme technology. Just remember, if it's gotta be clean, it's gotta be Tide. This is Eva Longoria from Hungry for History with Eva Longoria and Maite Gomez Rejon.
- [107:46]
B
Like the song says, it's the most wonderful time of the year and also.
- [107:50]
A
A wonderfully busy one. All that merriment can weigh down even Santa's sleigh. So keep it wonderful by keeping yourself wonderful with a crisp, cold Coca Cola. Ah, pause for fizzy joy. Look out for yourself and then look out for everyone else. And together we'll make this season as wonderful as it's meant to be. Enjoy a Coca Cola refresh your holidays.
- [108:14]
D
Did you know Microsoft has officially ended Support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop, voted PCMag's reader's choice to top laptop brand for 2025. Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere, and Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades. Visit lgusa.com iheart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PCMag reader's choice. Used with permission.
- [108:43]
A
All rights reserved at CVS it matters that we're not just in your community, but that we're part of it. It matters that we're here for you when you need us, day or night. And we want everyone to feel welcomed and rewarded. It matters that CVS is here to fill your prescriptions and here to fill your craving for a tasty and, yeah, healthy snack. At cvs, we're proud to serve your community because we believe where you get your medicine matters. So Visit us@cvs.com or just come by our store. We can't wait to meet you. Store hours vary by location.
- [109:20]
C
The world's best ski and snowboard athletes are chasing medals. Now you can follow their every move. Join Insider, the official US Ski and Snowboard fan loyalty program, and get premium viewing at World cup ski events, exclusive athlete meetups, discounts from brands you love, and a custom welcome gift mailed direct to your doorstep. This winter, show your support as they race for the podium. Head to Insider, usski and snowboard.org and join today.
- [109:49]
A
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.