Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - NFL Squad: AFC Has Best Chance At Super Bowl Win, Best Rival for Patrick Mahomes?

Episode Date: January 30, 2025

In this week's NFL Squad, the crew discusses whether or not the AFC or NFC has the best shot at winning Super Bowl 59 between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. Plus they discuss the potential impact of Sam Darnold's upcoming free agency and which QB has the best shot at becoming a true rival for Patrick Mahomes.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.Turbo TaxReady for stress-free taxes and the most money back, guaranteed? Head over to TurboTax.com today and get matched with your Expert. Only available with TurboTax Live Full Service. Real-time updates only in the iOS mobile app. See guarantee details at TurboTax.com/guarantees. PrizePicksDownload the app and use code lockedonnfl to win $50 instantly when you play $5. You don't even need to win to receive your $50 bonus, it's guaranteed! Prizepicks. Run Your Game.Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFLGametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelSuper Bowl 59 is here, And there’s no better way to make every play more exciting than with FanDuel Sportsbook. New customers can bet just FIVE DOLLARS, and if you win, you’ll score TWO HUNDRED BUCKS in Bonus Bets. Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started.  Bet with FanDuel—Official Partner of Super Bowl Fifty-Nine. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)

A magical rookie season comes to an end for Jaden Daniels and the Buffalo Bills find themselves in a familiar spot. Again, it's time for NFL squad. You are talking ball with the NFL squad sponsored by game time from the chiefs to the bills, Falcons to the 49ers and everyone else around the NFL. It's the local experts of the locked on podcast network,

bringing you scoops breakdowns and the most comprehensive preview of the Locked On Podcast Network, bringing you scoops, breakdowns, and the most comprehensive preview of the upcoming weekend for hard-hitting football with our harder-hitting takes. Buckle up. It's the NFL Squad. Then we have a seat for you. No hurt feelings allowed. Squad up.

You're part of the NFL Squad. And welcome in, everybody, to this week's NFL Squad. Sit back, grab your favorite drink or snack of choice and join us as we get you ready for not another wild week of NFL action because there's there's there's there's pro bowl stuff happening here. I don't know if people really still watch that, but we are going to talk about the NFL everything coming that went down this last weekend. And of course, we'll look a little bit ahead to the big game here in a couple of weeks.

We are part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. And this NFL squad episode is brought to you by GameTime. Download the GameTime app, create your account, use the promo code LockdownNFL, all one word for $20 off your first purchase. NFL squad a little bit smaller today than usual, but we've got Landon McCool, Lockdown Cowboys, one of our mainstays, Kevin Ostriker locked on Ravers, Ravens, not Raiders. I don't know why I was going to say that.

And Sarah Bettinger, I asked you before we went. All right. Sarah Bettinger locked on Broncos representing so that Cody doesn't get too much crap for not being here this week. But guys, we got to talk about the Super Bowl coming up. But we're not going to talk about the actual game just yet. We are going to talk a little bit about the teams competing, but we're not going to go crazy and make some way-too-early predictions.

We've still got a whole lot of podiums to go through, and the team's got to practice, and we've got injury reports and everything else. But I want to talk about the losers first. And, unfortunately for me, the Washington Commanders, among those losers, of course, I talk unfortunately for me the Washington Commanders among those losers of course I talk a lot about the Washington Commanders at Lockdown Commanders I'm gonna let you guys talk about this and the question that we want to start off with Sarah we're gonna start with you uh coming through here the Commanders or the Bills which team in your opinion is better

set up to get over the hump next year again B van sorry for you no joe but still a show um commanders or bills there who you got has the best chance of getting over the hump next year to get to the big game well i think the commanders have the best shot and it's because the bills have to go against their arch rivals the the kryptonite that is the kansas city chiefs i mean realistically they haven't beaten them in the playoffs anytime recently. And so I just don't, I don't know. I don't have any faith in the bills anymore. I'm sitting over here with all my Broncos gear, wondering when is somebody going to finally take these guys down? And we're over here like Josh Allen, he's Superman. He could finally do it. He can be,

I'm sick of putting my hope in Josh Allen. I'm done putting faith in Josh Allen. Uh, you know what? Uh, I'd rather see Bo Nix at this point, figure it out and make it happen. And I hope that does happen. But I think the commanders have a much better chance, even though they play arguably in a much tougher division with the team that's representing the NFC in the Super Bowl. Just feel like, man, the NFC is a little bit more open than the AFC at this point. I mean, what are you supposed to do about the Kansas City Chiefs? I have no idea, and the Bills obviously don't either.

Yeah, no, I agree with all your points. It's frustrating because the Buffalo Bills are a team. I know a lot of people thought they're going to take a step back this year with some of the talent they lost, trading Stephon Diggs, and then they kind of prove everybody wrong, right? But then it's the same old song again. At the end of the day, the final product is the same. It doesn't matter what the process is to get there. I want to flip it over to Landon real quick because Sarah says the commanders, again, you've

seen the commanders play multiple times this season. You've seen the Eagles play, the team that they would have to overtake to get to that Super Bowl, in theory, in this situation. But you also cover a team in that same division, Dallas Cowboys, who certainly are going to want to have something to say about that whole situation coming up next year. So do you think it's the Commanders? Do you agree that it's a division rival of the team that you cover? Or do you want to go the other direction and say, maybe the Bills can't get over the hump next year?

I mean, I hate to be like this, but I think it's truly a push at this point. If I'm going to do it, I'm going to say the Bills a little bit. But I think it's close because the truth of the matter is that I do think that Washington, obviously with a young quarterback, I think they're going to be hanging around the rim for a while. I think we talked about it before the show. I think that they maybe arrived a year too early, and then they kind of slipped in while Detroit sort of faltered in that other game. They ran out of gas. They got injured. And I think Washington was able to take advantage of that

and maybe get into the NFC championship game a year ahead of schedule, which is great. I just don't know that their team is quite developed to where they needed to be yet to be a Super Bowl caliber team quite yet. And I think the Bills are, you know, their problem is singularly, you know, Patrick Mahomes. So, and I'm actually going to have some, you know, some faith in the AFC West because it does seem like it's an improving conference. And all it takes really is that if somebody else can trip up Patrick Mahomes along the way,

the Bills may have the opportunity to kind of step in there and fill that void because it does feel like until whatever's going on with with Baltimore in in the playoffs as well because I I'm a huge believer in Baltimore Kevin let me just be but state that but there's something going on and I can't you know I wish it wasn't but until that gets taken care of and Lamar can properly take his crown, I think that the Bills are to the rest of the AFC what the Chiefs are to the Bills. So I think right now, I think the Bills are likely to kind of stay near the rim, try to tip that ball in.

And Washington, although I do think that they're back in the mix, obviously they are the mix obviously they are a team to watch one of the best teams in the NFC no doubt I still I wouldn't be surprised if they took a step back next year while getting ready to be you know perennial contenders uh in a year or two as they kind of get things in order on the defensive side yeah and then Kevin I want to ask you this man does the nfl have a dynasty problem because fans got really sick of the new england patriots right and then we had a few years in there where it wasn't the patriots although it was tom brady one of those years uh just with a different uniform on right uh but we got a little bit of break from the patriots and now here we are with the kansas city chiefs and patrick mahomes has never not been to an afc championship game

as a starting quarterback. And I think it feels like fans, even though the NFL is still the league with the most parity of all professional sports leagues, do they have a dynasty problem? Does the NFL need to find Patrick Mahomes a kryptonite because he's just too many other people's kryptonite? I think they have had one over these last, you know, however far you want to go back to New England.

And then obviously Kansas City, I know we talked about this last week, where it's just like we went directly from the Patriots into, and you mentioned it, Dave, with Brady and the Bucs. So it wasn't even that big of a change. And then the Chiefs have just been right after New England. And so we didn't even get like three years of, oh, this team from the AFC and this team from the NFC. And it just, it gets tiring. I don't think people would have as much hatred for Kansas City if we didn't watch this for a decade plus over there in New England. And now we're just seeing the same thing over again. I think that when you talk about hated dynasties,

New England and Kansas City, I think, are hated for different reasons. I know, obviously, New England had their fair, of cheating scandals back in the day. And then, you know, obviously with the chiefs, you have a bunch of, whether it be the refs or the flopping or whatever it is, but it's just like,

we're so sick of it now that I think the NFL has to find some level of like, yeah. And the NFC, you're having different teams represent, you're having this happen, but then it's just like, okay, well, Kansas city's back. yeah in the nfc you're having different teams represent you're having this happen but then it's just like okay well kansas city's back and in the afc i think landon you bring up an interesting point i don't disagree with you on any of what you said but in the afc it's just such a top heavy conference where it's like city buffalo baltimore

and obviously even like cincinnati with joe burrow next year what's that gonna look like obviously you look at los Angeles with Justin Herbert. We got Sarah in the corner there. Bo Nix is going to take, I think, a year or two leap. What's Denver going to look like with that defense? Wearing his Chicago Bulls hat, by the way. Yeah, who, by the way, beat my Denver Nuggets last night. So that's a whole different conversation.

Right before they trade everyone. Yeah, exactly. Maybe Levine comes to Denver. But, you know, I think at the end of the day, the NFL, they're in a kind of an interesting spot because we can't have this happen again like i'm even looking towards the future like what happens when kansas city dies out and we're gonna have another problem with this like is there gonna be another dynasty that takes over that that cannot happen if it stops after two then okay if it happens again after kansas city people are gonna be even more fed up than they

are now yeah no no absolutely i mean when you look at it there's there's one fan base that looks at says ah it's okay we've had all these super bowls memories to to live off of for a while until maybe drake may gets rolling and then you got one fan base that's just basking in the glory of being the new dynasty you got 30 other fan bases going, come on, dude. Like, what? You know what I mean? Like, maybe we need a lottery. Maybe we need to go the NBA route,

and maybe we need to just funnel a bunch of number one picks to the Dallas Cowboys so somebody can get this thing switched up. Nobody's going to ask for the Cowboys to be that team. I'm sorry. We've already been that team, buddy. We've already been that team. But during the 90s, though, even though there was a run, like the Dallas Cowboys, there was Washington for a little while. New York was really good.

San Francisco was really good. But there was still the opportunity. Even when the teams won back-to-back Super Bowls, you felt that there was the opportunity. Even the Buffalo Bills. I mean, look, four straight Super Bowls is impressive. No rings, but it's okay. We're going to get back to the topic at hand, though.

Eagles and Chiefs will be playing in the Superbowl. So I'm going to ask two of our hosts here on this NFL squad episode to do something that's a little bit hard sometimes and tell us why the team in the division they cover is the best team in this matchup. I think they know who they are. And then we're going to ask another host. You can do the math yourself. What Sam Darnold's impact is going to be on the free agency market this offseason.

That's all coming up next on this week's NFL Squad, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Today's NFL Squad episode is brought to you in part by TurboTax. This is a message from sponsor Intuit. TurboTax taxes was waiting and wondering and worrying if you were going to get any money back and then waiting, wondering and worrying some more. Now taxes is matching with a TurboTax expert who can do your taxes as soon as today. An expert who gives your taxes their undivided attention as they work on your return while you get real time updates on their progress.

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See guaranteed details at turbo tax.com slash guarantees continuing out today's uh this week's episode rather nfl squad we've got a good bunch of guys here and it's good timing because the last game of the season is going to be between the philadelphia eagles and the kansas city chiefs so one of the season is going to be between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. So one of those teams is going to win the Super Bowl and be dubbed the best team in the NFL in 2024. So now I got to do it, guys. You guys are the most the best equipped guys here to have this conversation, unfortunately. And we're going to start with Sarah. Why is it the Kansas City Chiefs? The Chiefs are the unstoppable force and there's no immovable object. That's the way that it is. We've come to find out the Kansas City Chiefs are just good at everything. They're

good at the little things. They're good at the hard things. They're good at closing out games. They're good at rushing the passer in clutch moments. They're good at gaining yards on the ground when they need to, to bleed out the clock when the team has, you know, one or two timeouts, they're good at everything. And it's just the way that it is. And so I, I, I'm one of those types of people that look, I grew up loving the Denver Broncos, hating the Kansas city chiefs. You can't, you can't just sit there and say, well, it's not this because of the officiating because of this, that, and the other, you watch this, this team since Patrick Mahomes he played his first game ever against the Denver Broncos his very first start he's been doing

this ever since he stepped foot on an NFL field making clutch plays in big moments and the Chiefs are just they're well coached they're just better than everybody and they're better than the Eagles I know you said we got to go through the podiums and the injury report they're gonna they're gonna beat the Eagles it's gonna be by one score it's through the podiums and the injury report. They're going to, they're going to beat the Eagles. It's going to be by one score. It's how it's going to go down. It's just how they chief play. They've won 17 straight one score games. I don't even know if that's real. Is that a real thing that this is what they do and it's who they are and it's who they've always been. Yeah. Landon. I mean, that would, I mean, Bravo. That was, that was a good content about the Kansas City Chiefs from a rival host.

Landon, your turn, buddy. Philadelphia Eagles. Am I allowed to just say ditto because I agree? No. Look, listen, the Philadelphia Eagles have one of the best offensive lines in football, if not the best offensive line in football. They have one of the best running backs, if not the best running back in football.

And then on top of that, they have an offensive system that includes a quarterback running the football as well. And so what they have developed in that kind of trio of entities is created probably the most, I mean, you have to think about it, especially since they're in the Super Bowl now, probably one of the most unstoppable rushing attacks in the history of the NFL, right? Like those three combinations all put together really are a kind of a brutal combination to stop. And frankly,

teams have had a really hard time when Saquon Barkley has been fully unleashed upon them stopping that. So there is a chance. And despite the fact that I, you know, again, agree a lot with what has been stated previously and will pick Kansas City to win this game. I think there is also a very good chance that if the Eagles running game gets going early and often, and they're able to possess the control of the ball and the game just continues to hang around and be close, that Kansas City gets beat up and eventually it wears out on them. And all it takes is one Jalen Hurts over the top completion to Brown or to Smith or to Goddard in the end zone, and they can put it over the top.

So I don't have much faith in them winning this game, but I think that one of the things that we could see that could finally break the curse is an unstoppable rushing attack that possesses the game, that plays keep away, efficient keep away from Patrick Mahomes. And that's the way that you beat him finally is to take all the oxygen out of the room and run out the clock. Yeah, I think that's incredibly fair. I'll tell you, man, those Eagles, this is a situation where having that extra week between playing the championship game and playing the Super Bowl is critical

because Jalen is going to have time to get even healthier than he was. That center position, I mean, Landon Dickerson goes in for Cam Juergens, gets hurt. Cam has to come in as the emergency center and play well, I think, overall. I was watching him before the game. I was like, there's no way this dude's about to play NFL football. So the fact that he went out there and did pretty good, actually, I think says a lot about his toughness. But, you know, the Eagles are certainly going to look to get healthy and hopefully make this thing an entertaining matchup. Kevin, I don't know if Sam Darnold is the quarterback to do this, but Sam Darnold is going to be a name that gets talked about in the offseason.

And whether he ends up back in Minnesota or goes somewhere else, it's going to be news when it happens. How big of a domino do you think Sam Darnold is going to be in this year's free agency picture? I think it's going to be a pretty big one, because when you look at the quarterback class, this is Sam Darnold's world, and we're all just kind of living in it here. Because right now, as it stands, and again,

there are going to be some quarterbacks that change teams and move around on the market, but it really is just Sam as it stands and again there are going to be some quarterbacks that change teams and move around on the market but it really is just sam donald and russell wilson and i know a lot of people are looking at maybe russell going to the raiders i think the people have been linking those two teams together but you kind of look at teams that could potentially be in the quarterback market at least those who don't have an immediate option right now at least that don't look like they do. Teams like the Giants and the Browns, the Titans, teams like the Raiders who maybe go a different direction.

But then you look at like the Steelers, who are they going to bring back? Justin Fields is wrestling the plans for them. You mentioned the Vikings. Do they bring back Donald? Do they go in a different direction? The Saints right now with Derek Carr, is that the long term? I mean, obviously not long term. Do they want to go with that for another year?

Is there a way to move off of him? Obviously, the Falcons have Michael Penix right now, but do you feel like they could trade Kirk Cousins? That's a really tough contract to trade. I don't really feel like there's a way to do it without them having to give up a pick attached potentially. And then, I mean, I don't know what else you'd look at. So those are a lot of teams, plus the quarterback class is going to be the most interesting part to me.

How much confidence do these teams have in the quarterbacks available? Obviously with guys like Cam Ward and Shader Sanders, I mean, outside of those two, is there enough confidence in a couple of those players that could either sneak their way into the first round, mid round quarterbacks, but you look at some of these rosters and like Pittsburgh's not going to be in the market for like a rebuild project at quarterback the Vikings aren't going to be in the in the market for that you also look at teams like the Jets with Aaron Rodgers is that going to be a

pairing that works out beyond this offseason or is he going to be somewhere else so the Seahawks want to upgrade over a Geno Smith maybe or the Colts out on Anthony Richardson like what does that look like on paper it just looks like it's Sam Darnold and no one else. But I feel like with Darnold, there are going to be maybe three or four teams fighting over him. And obviously that playoff performance is going to impact some of the money that he gets. But like, what else is out there?

It just feels super dry on the market right now. It feels like the draft is really going to drive up his market too. Because like you mentioned, the top of the draft and quarterback section is not great i think that you know it came out today that uh at the senior bowl that some folks are saying that teams only have you know eight to seven or eight uh first round picks so i'm not thinking that they're including both jadir sanders and cam ward and those seven or eight picks so i i i wouldn't be shocked if that even further drove up the market for sam and and started having a little

bidding war for teams that don't want to spend their top you know two or three picks uh on a quarterback that they're not 100 sure on yeah yeah I mean it's a perfect offseason if you're Sam Darnold it's a terrible offseason if you need a quarterback uh fortunately I don't think any of the four teams represented here on the network feel like they need a quarterback, at least not this year. Not yet. I don't know about next year. Like, well, 2026, 2027. We're good for a while here in Baltimore. We're set. Yeah, I don't know about that year.

But we want to have the conversation next about, again, finding that rival for Patrick Mahomes. Where is that rival going to come from in the coming years? We're going to talk about that next on this week's NFL Squad, part of the Locked On Podcast network, your team every day. Today's NFL squad episode is brought to you in part by game time. Attending NFL playoff games is an unforgettable experience that brings all fans together, no matter where you're coming from,

no matter what team you're cheering from. I remember the excitement and energy of the divisional round game between the Detroit Lions and the Washington Commanders. Obviously, by the end of that game, the Detroit fans a little bit quieter than the Washington fans. But the way that the Detroit Lions really put on the show was absolutely electric. I'm looking forward to doing even more of that in the coming years. Well, Game Time has a new feature called Game Time Picks that makes getting tickets for events even easier. It filters out the fluff to show you only incredible deals on great seats so you don't have to waste time searching through thousands of tickets. So take the guesswork out of buying tickets with GameTime. Download the GameTime app.

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talking a little bit about the Super Bowl, certainly about the Super Bowl teams. We've got a whole other NFL squad episode next week coming to dive deeper into this matchup specifically. So I kind of want to keep this thing in the vein of how do we stop this from happening again? Right. Because it kind of mentioned it already.

I think like the NFL, really the best thing that could have happened to the NFL from an overall picture would be Josh Allen, finally toppling the giant Mahomes or Patrick Mahomes going to the Superbowl against the young rookie, Jane Daniels, who's going to try to be make history and also topple Goliath. Because at the end of the day, man,

Saquon Barkley versus Patrick Mahomes just is not the sexiest storyline. And even if the Eagles win, it's going to be Saquon, you assume, not Jalen, and you still have Mahomes sitting atop the quarterback pile. So my question to you, gentlemen, and Landon, I want to start with you on the NFC side. If you look at the NFC picture where is the current NFC quarterback or if you want to project Sam Darnold to a team fit as a free agent and say that's where it's going to come by all means um where is the NFC quarterback

that can become that NF the NFL's rival to Patrick Mahomes here in the near future I I think rival is a tough thing to say because frankly, Tom Brady rose to the top at the same time that you had one of the

greatest quarterback candidates and draft picks and pros in Peyton Manning at the same time and those guys were rivals right and it was a very natural pairing there I don't know that anyone's gonna like catch up to Peyton's career to the point where it's like truly like you know Bird versus Johnson sort of you know rival but I do think you know you you teased it Jaden Daniels is certainly a guy that that needs to be thrown out there just because look how far he's gone already, right?

I think if, you know, like I said, Washington as a team has a long way to go. And I think that Jaden dragged a good team to very high heights, right? So I do think that there is some retooling. The things that we take for granted with Patrick is the incredible defense that he has and the you know defensive coordinator that and the whole they don't even have to think about that side of the ball anymore and frankly that defense dragged that team through most of the season when you know kansas city was very vanilla having an incredible great defense is what made them special enough to get the number one seed in the first place. So I think that that's an important part of this. But if we're talking strictly quarterbacks that

have the moxie, have the capability, have the talent, you got to look at guys that have the ability to create on their own that can operate outside of structure. And I think obviously Jaden Daniels legs are the kind of X factor there. If I was picking the AFC team, I would pick Kevin's team, and I think that Jaden Daniels is the closest thing you're going to get to Lamar Jackson, and I think his ability to kind of use his legs to create with on the throw and on the run is going to be the thing that can ultimately take a guy like Patrick Mahomes down.

Yeah, and look, if it is Lamar Jackson, I mean, Kevin, plenty of people in and around the DMV, because I know Baltimore says they're not DMV. I got it. In and around the DMV, plenty of people wanted that Beltway Bowl to head down to New Orleans and see Baltimore and Washington competing for Lombardi. And then, look, that may be on the horizon.

Who knows? So I'll flip it over to you for AFC because Landon kind of alluded to it, right? Like it's much easier if you're going to have an AFC or if you have a rival for Patrick Mahomes

that it comes from the AFC where there's a better chance of getting that matchup in a year to year basis. So is it Lamar in your eyes or is Josh Allen still at the top of that heap or is there another quarterback

that's creeping up that maybe can take that mantle? Yeah, see Landon, I knew I liked you. I knew it i knew it i knew it but yeah i mean i do think in no bias here it is lamar and it's nothing against josh it's just we've seen it not happen too many times where it's like sarah said at the beginning of the show it's like you say all right it's gonna be josh this year it's gonna be josh this year and then it's not lamar has also lost the mahomes in the playoffs i'm not saying that he is perfect in that regard either, but I just feel like with the way the Ravens have gotten close and it's just been the way that they've lost. And I mean, we say it every year here in Baltimore,

it's like this team just beats themselves over and over again. And it happened against the chiefs as well. And week one, it happened against the chiefs in the AFC championship game where they got away from who they were. I know that a lot of people like to look at Lamar's playoff record and say 3-5, 3-5. Of course, Lamar plays a factor in that. I'm not going to sit here and tell you guys Lamar's been the best playoff quarterback ever because he's not. But it feels like some other power that be in the playoffs. And as we've talked about here, it's like they have to get over that hump first before we can talk about them getting over the ultimate hump in Kansas City. But I think Allen does have a shot.

Joe Burrow has been the one that has done it. He didn't go all the way and win the Super Bowl, but that's another team that you've got to look out for. And then there are a bunch of these, because we're talking about right now, we could look five years down the line, but what are the Chiefs going to look like five years down the line? I don't think their dominance is going to be that prolonged. So I guess we said that about the Patriots and look where we got with that dynasty.

So I think that for me, it is Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. It just comes down to them not getting too big in that moment because the Chiefs have been there, done that. I mean, AFC championship games. I mean, they're sleepwalking through that. They've been there. They've done that. The pressure doesn't get to them. It just feels like with the Ravens, there's something else that does.

And it's not just Baltimore. It just feels like the Chiefs are not only the AFC's kryptonite, but the NFL's kryptonite. And someone has to stop it. Someone has to stop it. But I feel like if there was an AFC quarterback, it would be LeVar. Yeah. I mean, look, you kind of said there's just a vibe when you watch these games.

You watch the Bills, and, you know, look, even when the Bills have the lead, it's like they got the lead. It's like, yeah, but, you know, what's about to happen? Like something's going to happen, and it's going to go south. And if we're feeling it, the crowd's feeling it. You know the players. Like they're human beings. They're still feeling it.

And maybe, you know, it's potential that they're just trying too hard at this point to try to make this thing happen. Sarah, I want to flip it over to you, man, because I'll tell you what. Bo Nix, look, I might be being disrespectful towards Justin Herbert, but I feel like Bo Nix is the second-best quarterback in the NFC West already after one year. I don't think that anybody's going to put him in that conversation to topple Mahomes just yet.

Certainly he would love to open that door next year by beating the Chiefs a couple times. But I want to turn to theomes just yet. Certainly he would love to open that door next year by beating the Chiefs a couple times. But I want to turn to the draft with you. If the Mahomes challenger-to-be is not in the NFL, which quarterback do you think has the best chance of becoming that guy, starting his journey in 2025? Well, I think it's got to be Cam Ward. I mean, you look at this draft,

it feels like at this draft, it feels like that this class, the best quarterback is like what will Levis was a couple of years ago coming out, you know, like kind of exciting, interesting traits, a lot of popping plays at Kentucky and things like that. But at the same time, like there's a huge risk reward factor. I mean, with Shadur Sanders, he never saw a sack he didn't like. I know that's going to sound terrible, but I mean, the guy took way too many sacks at Colorado. There's no doubt about it. And that's that trait unfortunately translates to the NFL. Jalen Milrow, kind of a second coming of, of Anthony Richardson, where not a ton of time on

task, a lot of talent, physical abilities, but needs the right situation and coaching to probably grow over the next handful of years. No idea if he's going to be that guy. I see a lot of people like Jackson Dart. The first time I saw him was their final game of the year. And boy, it was not good. So I think he threw two or three interceptions when they were given mulligans to win the game there at the end.

So to me, it's Cam Ward. Yes, the recklessness early in games got Miami down a lot of times this past year. But look, that was the dude that brought the team back. And I just feel like he has that it factor. If anybody in this quarterback class has it, it's Cam Ward. I really like what he did at Miami this last year. I don't know that necessarily I would say, hey, stack him up against the 2024 class, and he's the second or third guy. I don't think that's the case. But I do think if he gets to the right team, like, I know you guys will hate to hear this, but I don't hate the Giants for him.

I don't. I don't like the Titans for him. I don't like the Browns for anybody. I like the Giants a little bit for him. I do. I think with Malik Neighbors and then Tyrone Tracy, they've built a little bit on defense already. They've got some guys there.

And Brian Dable, he's proven with Josh Allen in the past. I know that not everybody's Josh Allen, but Josh Allen at the 2018 Senior Bowl could not hit the broad side of a barn. I think he hit the crossbar more than he did the receivers and he struggled with accuracy at Wyoming. So Brian Dable was able to rein his skills in and utilize an offense that exploited defenses with his running ability early on. So how can somebody do that with Cam Ward?

Well, get him to Brian Dable who took Daniel Jones to the playoffs. I don't hate that situation. And I think that may be the only, I mean, you guys tell me if I'm wrong, because Shador, I don't know. I just don't see it with him. I like him. I love Dion. 90s kid here.

Always loved Dion or the bandanas. I don't know. I just, I don't see it with anybody but Cam Ward. Can I throw, can I throw a name out real quick? Absolutely. You said Jackson Dart. And look, I don't know that I believe in Jackson Dart necessarily, anybody but cam ward can i throw can i throw a name out real quick absolutely you said jackson dart and look i i don't know that i believe in jackson dart necessarily but i would say that patrick mahomes was the jackson dart of his draft class right where where it was kind of like a

reckless you know traitsy guy and we had had such a string of those guys that just like didn't work out and it was so crazy when mahomes kind of hit suddenly the way that he did so quickly so right away so i don't i i'm not necessarily advocating for jackson dart but it feels like every once in a while when you take one of those guys those truly like full traitsy guys that maybe does acts a little bit crazy on the field uh uh every once in a while you know you're gonna pair it with the right quarterback coach the right office coordinator and suddenly you've got magic yeah i mean you know at the end of the day i think fit has a lot to do with it you know what i mean uh if pat doesn't go to andy reed if lamar doesn't go to baltimore you know early in his career if deshaun doesn't go to houston like

you know what what happens to these guys and where do they end up um and all that stuff ultimately is gonna matter uh you're giving me give me jamames winston flashback so when you're talking about you know the guy that sets you into the hole being the guy that brought you out of it i spent so many years talking back and forth with bucks fans about that very thing um but look i think i think your point about dable is very good because you know i love bruce arians right one of the my favorite coaches i've ever gotten to cover uh the pleasure of covering but you know it was like Roethlisberger, you know, Manning, Kurt Warner in the Super Bowl, Luck. Like, I got it.

Tom Brady in the Super Bowl. You know what I mean? Like, I got it. Like, I'm not trying to diminish your record here, but I think getting Josh Allen in league to develop the way he did is a little bit more impressive than some of those projects, I would say, just by itself. So we'll see.

So we'll see what happens. We'll see if anybody can topple Mahomes. Maybe it's Saquon Barkley. Maybe the answer is there's no quarterback that needs to topple Patrick Mahomes. Just Saquon Barkley is going to be the guy. And that'll just, I don't know, the revitalization of the running back market. And then everybody's going to get really mad when none of them get paid this coming offseason. But that is a conversation for another time.

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