Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Locked On Patriots December 8, 2017 - Friday Roundup

Episode Date: December 8, 2017

Mark Schofield has a roundup of various topics, including the Odell Beckham IG post, Week 14 playoff scenarios, Week 14 fantasy recommendations, Josh Allen and yes, Steak Umms.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Yeah, I know you heard things, know you- I'm not new to this Come in front of my- Six side I'm not new to this Wouldn't make it on this side I'm not new to this I'm not new

I'm not new Yeah, I know you heard things Nobody really likes us except for us Yeah All I ever needed was a squad, so that's what's up. Yeah. My sound got the whole city away right now. Yeah.

So I don't give a f*** about what anybody's saying right now. If it's Friday, it's... Oh, wait. Mark Schofield here for your Friday, December 8th edition of Locked On Patriots. Different intro music. We're going to get to that in a second. Obviously, you can't really do a full-on game day show because the Patriots don't play until Monday night. Going to do a couple of different things here.

I know the show is coming out a little bit later than usual. Had some things come up last night. Gonna do a couple of different things here. I know the show is coming out a little bit later than usual. Had some things come up last night. Couldn't get the show out on time, but better late than never, right? We're gonna do a couple of things. We're gonna get to that intro music and why I used that in a second. Also, we're gonna talk a little bit about the upcoming action this weekend. Preview some games. Talk about how the Patriots could get some help. Not that they need a lot of help. They control their destiny, obviously, for the number one overall seed.

But they can clinch the AFC East. We'll talk about how that can go down. Might even get into a couple of draft quarterback talk just for a minute. Also, we're going to do some fantasy talk near the end. Look, it's getting down to playoff time in some fantasy leagues. If you play daily fantasy sports, there's some big tournaments going on. If you want to hop in and turn in with me over at draft.com, I'll have a link going up later today as well. Before diving into anything though, I want to give a shout out

to friends of the show. Stake'em. That's right. Stake'em, my friends. Big friends of the Locked On Patriots podcast. And they want to remind you something. And you want to talk about great copy. Well, here you go. Here's what our friends at Stake And they want to remind you something. And you want to talk

about great copy. Well, here you go. Here's what our friends at Stakeham want to remind you. They want to say to you this. Wake up and stake them up, you filthy animals. It's Friday, so you got to get out there and remind that beefless bunch of boneheads trying to keep you down

that this is your time and nothing's going to stop you from taking back what's yours. That's from our friends over at Stakeham. Please follow them on Twitter at stake, S-T-E-A-K underscore U-M-M. When you do follow them, tag me

with a tweet at them. Let them know you're coming from Locked On Patriots. Let's show them some love. And seriously, all kidding aside, look, I got Stakehams in the freezer. Every once show them some love. And seriously, all kidding aside, look, I got Steakums in the freezer. Every once in a while, pull them out, make a cheese steak extravaganza

for the family. It's great stuff. Shout out to our friends over at Steakum at Steak underscore UMM. Please give them a follow tweet at them. Tag me in the tweets. Let's show them some love. But I want to start

and just touch on this briefly. That music you heard, it's from an Instagram post from Odell Beckham Jr. that caused a little bit of a stir this week. It was a cut up of Odell on the sidelines, on the field, showing emotion, juxtaposed with Tom Brady on the sidelines, on the field, showing emotion. And it served as sort of a Rorschach test for a lot of people in the media, for a lot of people who interpreted a lot of different ways. But his underlying premise was this.

This is the point he was trying to make. We are both emotional football players that show emotion, that have outbursts at times. And he was trying to make the point that perhaps Odell and Tom Brady get treated differently. And I think that is, to extent a valid point you know some people particularly those in the New York City media market took it oh he's trying to compare himself to Tom Brady but you know one guys won five Super Bowls and Odell has only been in the

league for three years and you know I think that's a little bit of a misread of the situation here all Odell was trying to say is look we're both very emotional guys at times. Other people looked at it and said, look, Tom Brady's been in the league for 17 years. Yeah, they'll probably see some outbursts over that period of time. You've only been in the league for three. Like, come on.

But I want to talk about the underlying point just for a second and it's simply this. I think of a piece by the great Matt Waldman, first guest of the Locked On Patriots podcast. And the piece was titled something like this. If you deny emotion, you deny a part of the game. Football is an emotional game.

It's a brutally physical game. It's a collision sport, but emotion is part of it. And part of playing the sport is learning how to most channel that emotion in a positive way, whether it's, you know, using that rage, using that fire to be physical, whether it's using that rage, using that fire to be physical, whether it's using that rage, using that fire to be aggressive at the quarterback position, or there are ways you can channel it in a more negative way, whether that emotion involved in the game makes you risk averse, particularly at the quarterback position. But emotion is part of the game, and outbursts like this are part of the game. I just don't have a problem with a guy like Odell Beckham going nuts on the sidelines.

I don't have a problem with Tom Brady doing it. You cross some lines, I think, when you either show up teammates or show up coaches, but if you're just sort of either trying to get the crowd excited as some of these clips showed if you're mad at yourself as a lot of these clips showed

if you're perhaps arguing with officials that crosses a little bit of a line in the sense that, look, you don't want to be getting flagged. But football is an emotional game, and emotion is part of playing the sport. And so I think you can't deny that. Now, the underlying Instagram,

again, I don't really have a problem with it. Maybe that's just me. But football is an emotional game. Just wanted to dive into that. Up next, we're going to talk about the Week 14 Slated Games. Look at what we might want to see happen from a Patriots point of view.

That's ahead with me, Mark Schofield in Locked On Patriots. Okay, let's talk playoff scenarios here in Week 14. The Patriots are among a group of teams that have win-and-win situations here in Week 14. The Patriots, the Steelers, the Eagles, and the Vikings can all lock down respective division titles with victories this week. Jacksonville, they can get in this week, but that will have to come with a little bit of help. You know, let's sort of take this in reverse order so we can end up with the Pats here.

We can look at Jacksonville. Jacksonville can clinch a playoff spot. I can't believe I'm saying that. But Jacksonville can clinch a playoff spot with a win against Seattle and some help. I can't believe I'm saying that but Jacksonville can clinch a playoff spot with a win against Seattle and some help and that help is a Buffalo lost to Indianapolis a

Co a Dolphins lost to the Patriots and a Chargers loss or tie to Washington and a Jets loss to the Broncos. That's a lot. Not quite sure all of that will happen. But the fact that we're talking about the Jacksonville Jaguars locking down a playoff spot here in Week 14 is amazing. And kudos to that organization for having a plan. What was that plan? That's lock down the defensive side of the ball, which they've done.

That is a tremendously talented defense. Let's get Leonard Fournette here, run an offense that requires Blake Bortles to throw it maybe 20 times a game, and that's how we're going to play. Let's look now at the Pittsburgh Steelers. Here's some playoff scenarios for them. They win the division with a win against Baltimore. Simple. They win. They win the division with a win against Baltimore. Simple. They win, they win the division. They can still get into the playoffs if they lose to Baltimore if Buffalo loses or ties the

Colts. But Pittsburgh win and they win the division. They lose and they get a Bills loss. They at least clinch a playoff spot. And that Baltimore game, that will be a tough one. Those games, usually one-score type games. So it is possible that the Steelers don't clinch a playoff spot this week. You know, because if they lose to Baltimore, they could still clinch a playoff spot if the Bills lose. But I don't really see the Bills losing to the Colts.

Talk NFC now. Minnesota Vikings. They could win the NFC North with a win against the Panthers or a Detroit loss or tie to Tampa Bay and a Packers loss or tie to the Browns. Vikings are playing really good football right now. I think they beat Carolina. If they don't, I don't see them clinching the North this week because Detroit could lose to Tampa Bay, sure, but I don't see the Packers losing to the Browns.

Packers, by the way, they still have a path to get into the dance. And they get AR-12, Lumen, on the sidelines ready to come back so don't count the Packers out just yet Philadelphia Eagles they win the division with a win or a tie against the Rams or a Cowboys loss or tie to the Giants

two ways that the Eagles can lock down that NFC East and I think they do lock down that NFC East. And I think they do lock down the NFC East this week. I do think they beat the Rams. I think Doug Peterson was smart keeping that team out west, a la Bill Belichick. Yeah, they lost to Seattle. They have had a week out in the L.A. area.

Like we've seen with the Patriots a couple times, sometimes those trips help the team sort of bond, help them come back from that loss because they're 3,000 miles away from Philadelphia in a completely different time zone. So they're not... They're removed from the panic that ensued in Philadelphia when the Eagles lost on Sunday night to Seattle.

So I think the Eagles get it done this week. And now the Patriots. Hat and t-shirt game, baby. You win the game, you get a nice hat, you get a nice t-shirt. That's what the Patriots are looking at against the Dolphins on Monday night. They win or tie against Miami. They win the AFC East. They could have a clinch, though, when they go to bed Sunday night

because if the Bills do lose or tie to the Colts, the division is theirs. But it's a hat and T-shirt game, my friends. It's a hat and T-shirt game. So that's sort of a look at how week 14 can play out from a playoff perspective. Up next, I'm going to close out the show with two fantasy recommendations. I don't talk fantasy a lot here in locked on Patriots,

but since it's a special different Friday edition, I'm going to give you two recommendations for lineups this week. That's ahead right here with me, Mark Schofield, and Locked On Patriots. All right, let's talk fantasy here for a quick minute. We're in week 14. We're in playoff season from a fantasy standpoint.

Sites like FanDuel, they're having the big money tournaments now. Dreams can be realized over the next 72 hours or so. So I'm going to do what I can to help. And just by means of reference, every week, I should have been mentioning this more. I don't know why I haven't. I should be plugging myself more. I've got a podcast. I should be promoting my own stuff more. But every week over at Roto Grinders, I do a video with the guys over there called Inside the Matchup. I break down two fantasy recommendations

from a scheme standpoint. It's the first year we've been doing it. Bit of an up and down season, I'd say. We've hit on some big ones. One week we really hit on Deion Lewis. So it's a bit of an up and down season

so far. But we're going to look to close strong. And I had two recommendations that I want to talk about briefly here before we end this show. Alex Smith and Cameron Brait. For Smith, Chiefs are struggling in the win-loss column right now but last week against the Jets Andy Reid turned over the call sheet to Matt Nagy

the offensive coordinator I loved sort of the schematic stuff they did that open and drive against the Jets was I think called to perfection open and play you get one of those drive starters quick hitch route against off coverage. Easy gain of five yards, but it's turned into about a gain of 13

thanks to a yardage after the catch play by the wide receiver. Then on the next play, they run one of those wide throwback type plays. Travis Kelsey sort of leaks down the line of scrimmage, gets hidden amongst the blockers, then releases to the backside. He's wide open. Smith hits him for a big gain. Then the next pass and play, they isolate Tyreek Hill on the left side. You're worried about getting beaten deep.

You give him a ton of cushion pre-snap. They take the easy access out route, just a five-yard out. Again, he turns it into a big gain thanks to yardage after the catch. Then they run a little flood concept to theage after the catch and then they run a little flood concept to the left side of the field receiver deep running back in the flat and Travis Kelsey in the middle on an intermediate out route he's the guy that's wide open easy throw for Alex Smith touchdown I love the way they did some things schematically to attack that Jets defense now they get to go up against the Oakland Raiders. A

bottom barrel defense right now. Dead last in the league overall in terms of DVOA. Dead last in the league against the past in terms of DVOA. I think Smith has another big day. Now can the Chiefs win the game? That

I don't know. Obviously playing without Marcus Peters. But I think Alex Smith has a big day. And now Cameron Brait, he's back in the lineup with Jameis Smith. Jameis Winston back. Winston loves throwing to Brait, particularly in the red zone. Had two touchdowns against the Green Bay Packers. Attack in the middle of the field. They go up against a Detroit Lions defense.

In terms of DVOA, they are 31st in the league against the tight ends this year. They're giving up over 10 points per game, two tight ends on FanDuel. Winston is going to look to Brate, particularly in the red zone. I think Cameron Brate has a big day. So those are some quick fantasy recommendations for you. Trying to do a little bit of everything. And hey, since we've got a few minutes left, Josh Allen.

Talked on the timeline today about Josh Allen. There was a New York Daily News article about how the Giants and the Jets might address the quarterback position. They had four quarterbacks on the back cover. Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Baker Mayfield, and Josh Allen as potential answers at the quarterback spot, which, as you might expect, spurred some discussion. Where's Lamar Jackson? I'm not going to go down that road right now.

My blood pressure is running nice this morning. I don't want to get worked up. But the inclusion of Josh Allen sparked, again, some discussion on the timeline. And I tweeted it out this morning. I'd recommend people check out a breakdown I did. It's on YouTube of Josh Allen's game against Hawaii. Because I've said this before. I'll say it again.

I will keep saying it. You watch that breakdown of his game against Hawaii, there's something for everybody in that. If you're a believer in Josh Allen, there are throws in there that are highlight real throws. He has the arm, no denying that. But for me, the concerns that I had with Josh Allen coming into the season, they linger. They remain. Staring down routes, forcing throws, trying to do too much, trying to make that perfect throw all the time, relying too much on the fastball, and a seeming reluctance to use touch, to use feel, to use anticipation. Those concerns remain. Now, I believe with all of my heart that Josh Allen gets drafted in the first round.

It couldn't be me. And I know that there are going to be GMs out there that see the raw talent, the arm, the athleticism, the size, and think, I can make that work in the NFL. But we see this every so often with quarterbacks where we have that sort of discussion. Somebody's going to look at that and think, I can make that work. But how often do we really see that transformation happen? And for me, the concerns that linger, the concerns that remain right now, for me, they outweigh the possibility

of what Josh Allen could become. So where I am with him is this. He's going to go in the first round, but I don't think he should. Now, if you're a team like the Philadelphia, I mean, a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Los Angeles Chargers, and yes, the New England Patriots, if he's there, say, in the second round, and you don't need a quarterback right now, then maybe that makes sense.

Then maybe I could get on board with a Josh Allen type selection. I don't think he'll be there in the second round, but there you go. And of course, that would bring us into sort of the scheme fit.

I think he would fit the other two teams, Pittsburgh and the Chargers, more from a schematic standpoint. Although the Patriots have gotten more vertical this year, so maybe there's a potential fit there. But in all likelihood, and we've seen it happen before, he will get overdrafted by a team that needs more immediate help

with the quarterback spot. And then will he get the chance to develop and refine the things he needs to develop and refine? So that's the risk. Covered a lot of ground today on Locked On Patriots. Hope you enjoyed it. Kind of a brain dump, so to speak. Again, follow Stakehams on Twitter,

at stake underscore U-M-M. Tweet at them. Tag me in the tweets. Show them some love from the Locked On Patriots listener army. This is a call to action. I'll be back with a game day edition for Monday. We'll break down some of what happened in week 14. We'll dive into what I expect to see Monday night between Miami and New England. Until then, have a great weekend, everybody.

Hey, it's going to snow. D.C. area starting to gin up the panic. This area doesn't do snow well. But it's going to snow. Take the kids outside. Go sled and have some fun with it. Like I said, I will be back Monday. Until the kids outside. Go sledding. Have some fun with it. Like I said, I will be back Monday. Until then, keep it locked right here to me, Mark Schofield,

and Locked on Patriots.