NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Conference Championship Recap: Chiefs Excellence, Bills heartbreak and an Eagles Fiftyburger

Episode Date: January 27, 2025

Gregg Rosenthal is joined by Patrick Claybon and Nick Shook to recap how the Chiefs and Eagles both punched their ticket to Super Bowl LIX. First, a look at how the Chiefs beat the Bills to win the AFC (01:30) followed by a breakdown of how the Eagles beat the Commanders to win the NFC (36:30). Note: time codes approximate. NFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Listen to the NFL Fantasy Football podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. Welcome to NFL Daily, where we're partying like it's 20, 2020. I'm Greg Rosenthal in the Chris Wesleying podcast studio with my friend Patrick Claibon, Nick Shook in Cleveland, and yes, Super Bowl 59 is set, and it looks a whole lot like Super Bowl 57.

Chiefs, Eagles. I guess we were always leading to this point, Patrick Claibon. Patrick Holmes, he's inevitable, and the Eagles are too good to be stopped. It's a rematch. It's a rematch. And of course, it's Jalen Hertz, lock screen, all these things that we're going to talk about from the Eagles having that disappointment there in Super Bowl 57. It's all coming back. The Eagles got there in a fashion that didn't leave a lot to, you know, we'll talk about that.

But this game between the Bills and the Chiefs, a classic delivered once again, Shook. Yeah, definitely delivered. It's very fitting of this Bills and Chief's rivalry. And I think we have to wait to find out just a moment to see how it ended. Yes. We know how it ended. We know how they all end. And what I'm not going to do is let any little minor rooting interest, because we're all professionals here. We're not rooting for our picks. We're not rooting for something to just change. We're not rooting for our producer, Eric Roberts. Okay, maybe we are a little bit. But what we are seeing, especially in these Bill's Chiefs' playoffs games, and especially tonight in the Championship at Arrowhead was excellent and everything that you could want in a conference championship. Let's go to Kansas City. A minute 35 to go in the game. Sheets lead 32 to 29. Long count. Shees are going to throw it. They throw it in the left flat cut. It's Samanji P. Run at the 30. First down and I'm up the

left sideline. I love you Saman J.P. Run. I remember when Brad Veach told me they picked him up. It's a game of 18 yards. I poured water on my head. I don't even know what that means, but I like it. It's the Samajai P-Rine revenge game. What is he getting revenge for? I don't know, being stuffed in a major spot in the Super Bowl and then getting the ball for a different team years later.

That's the revenge. Yeah, it comes back, and that's why Mitch Holtes' head was apparently on fire and he had to extinguish it. Not sure about that. We're going to have to deal with that call, just like all of them, I guess. But it was coming down to that moment. where you wondered if the Kansas City Chiefs were going to throw the ball. I felt like we're sitting there watching the game, Greg,

that the ball was going to be in Mahomes' hands. If it was not absolutely lock solid an opportunity to throw the ball for the first down, he was probably going to run it. So my J.P. Ryan came across the field wide open, like backs in the flat, wide open a lot late in that game for, and that was a problem for the Kansas City Chief's defense continually over the course of these 60 minutes. Yeah, it sounds crazy, Shook, but it's the little things in the last few, minutes. It's the game management. And I think when you look at the two sides and how these

fourth quarter drives ended on offense for each team and the decision making for Andy Reed to throw the ball there like he did before they got the previous first down where Pacheco ends up going out of bounds. It's total faith. It's total confidence in exactly what you're going to do and everyone executing what you're going to do. And I can't say the bills really had that. There were times in this game, I was like, are they hiding Josh Allen? And of course, Josh Allen had his ups, he had his downs, and he did a lot of great things late in this game. And yet the Chiefs, just the whole playbook, everything is open to them when it matters the most. And especially in clutch situations, that is the Chief's MO is going to the flats. I think back to the corn dog play in the Super Bowl last

year. I think about the two plays that they ran where they actually ran the wrong direction one time two Super Bowls ago to beat the Eagles. One of those touchdown catches was Sky Moore. I think about the quick out to Tyreek Hill. Chad Hennie throws it on fourth down to beat the Browns and the divisional round back in 2020. This is who the Chiefs are. So once again, it was fitting that this time it was Samadj P. Ryan in the flat for a huge first down to ice it for them.

But it's all about what led up to that. It's about the bills and their fourth down and five decision. It's about the fact that the Chiefs got down the field and we're able to take the lead. It's the back and fourth affair that was the second half that made this such a great game that we're going to get into. Yeah. And you bringing up all those old plays, I think it's so natural when you're watching this Chiefs team to think about their long run, that it's not all in a vacuum.

And we will talk about this game shortly in a vacuum and kind of back up all those fourth down and fourth quarter decisions. But just from a big picture standpoint, I am struck by back-to-back weeks, them beating Lamar Jackson. and Josh Allen, the two best quarterbacks in the NFL this year, and thinking about this stretch that these two teams specifically have had and how they've been shaped by the Chiefs. It's so unique that the Ravens have the most wins over a seven-year stretch not to make a Super Bowl. I mentioned all week how the bills have made at least a divisional round

five straight years, average of 12 wins a year, top five in point differential, five straight years. And yet no Super Bowl appearance out of that. We actually have not really seen sustained excellence at this high level be pushed back over and over and over again. I know the Patriots did it somewhat, but not at this level. And that, to me, more than anything, because every year is different, every game is different, but more than anything, Mahomes, Reed, Spagnolo, Chris Jones. those four guys coming together, finding a way to beat these truly great teams every single

year. It's just remarkable. And the similarities, there's parallels for all these guys, right? You have Patrick Mahomes. He's at Texas Tech. They're throwing the ball a whole lot. You know, he goes up against these teams where, you know, we have the benefit of the hindsight. Looking back, it's like, ah, Texas Tech. You know, they gave Baker and Oklahoma a run, but he didn't really, he didn't really show up in the big moments and Andy Reid is over there in Philadelphia and ah you know they they were good but in the big moments they didn't really spags had the run with the Rams and I don't know I don't know if he could get it done but but together right it tells the story of how those narratives collectively don't make any sense and you've got spags in position to have players like Chris Jones players

that have come through Trent McDuffie like all of these guys that just make these plays because they have that talent and they have the ability and the wherewithal as well as the the cachet to send five to to send a corner blitz on fourth and five right to to make these calls to throw the ball on third and none because that's Andy Reid like okay like if if if I mess up if the play doesn't work out what are y'all don't do to me now like I'm Andy Reid right so they can do it and it all starts of course though with Mahomes and I think these last two weeks have been really excellent Mahomes games his first five scrambles I believe leave tonight, all hit for first down. His success rate was through the roof. And it's the

decision making, but it's also some great throws down the field to Worthy, to Marquise Brown. He didn't catch them all. But I, it's funny, Shook, because if you, if you look at like the last six weeks of the season, for instance, actually Patrick Mahomes has been outplaying Josh Allen and has been outplaying basically everyone. He's gotten back to the, Patrick Mahomes that you want to see right when it matters. Of course, of course he has. Yeah, nobody knows that better than me when I have to hear from people up, you know, in my mentions the whole season about Mahomes doesn't even deserve to be in the top 10.

You're not watching the game. Well, now, guess what? You've been forced to watch the game because there was two games on and one of them included him and you all watched it. And you saw exactly what he's been doing over the last seven weeks, which is finding ways to lead his team to victory. That is a mark of excellence. It's not 500 passing yards, but it's a mark of excellence.

and in key moments like that, he goes on a bootleg and he's got a guy to dump it off to. He's got a running back to dump it off to. He's got worthy crossing the field that he throws it to, to set him up for the field goal. He's got all these situations where he could make a mistake. He could throw an errant pass. He could take a sack, which he did take a sack a couple times today.

And yet it doesn't matter because he delivers, because he's been there before and he's one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL and he's the leader of a team that is having so much success that we are now not only comparing them to the Patriots. Some are even considering them to have a better run than the Patriots. I mean, let's think about it. There's two teams that have stood in their way over since 2019.

It's been the Cincinnati Bengals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Super Bowl. That's it. Otherwise, they've been here and I don't care if you're tired of it. You have to appreciate excellence. Yeah, and I think of like specifically in this game, for instance, that worthy catch that he made

that was so insane where he pulls the ball away. That was a crazy throw by Mahomes. As he's in the throw, didn't end up getting that much attention. But as he's getting hit, there was another play where he was. he just stayed very composed in the pocket before hitting on what was ultimately like a good blitz call by the bill. So I thought he played really well. Now, Patrick, you mentioned the fourth down stop. Let's go back and talk about that. The bills have the ball down three

late in the game. They get the ball back with what? Three minutes and 30 seconds to go down three. at that point in the game, I thought it was a minor miracle that the bills had the ball in this position, only down three. They forced the field goal after a big first down sack on Mahomes to get the field goal.

And for all the mistakes that the bills I thought made today, they'd fumbled a bunch of times. They missed two two-point conversions. They had a fourth down stop earlier in the fourth quarter. Here they were with a chance to win the game. They get a quick first down.

Then they're almost at midfield, the 47-yard line. they get five yards on a third and ten to Amari Cooper. They decide to go for it on fourth and five. Let's listen to the call. Now he brings Khalil Shakir in motion, orbit motion, now peels back to the left. She's for chasing Josh Allen.

He throws it up for grabs, and the pass is incomplete, incomplete, off the arm of the would-beam receiver, Dalton Kincaid. Canso's City has the second fourth down stop in this half. And it was a great call by Spags. It was a tough one for Osir's Torrance, who ultimately wound up blocking nobody.

Trent McDuffie blitzed from the corner. The only people that got blocked on the play were George Carl Loftus and Chris Jones because both Trit McDuffie and Justin Reed came right through on Josh Allen. And the bills on Bill Barlow pointed it out on Blue Sky. Shout out the Blue Sky earlier tonight. The bills had that fourth and two in week 11 where they ran, mesh, Josh Allen had a 26-yard touchdown run. So they're

essentially running a similar mesh here but there's two guys directly on Josh Allen seconds after the ball is snapped. Brian Cook, though, for the Chiefs, runs to cover grass instead of Dalton Kincaid setting up a great opportunity and incredible that Josh Allen even saw

him, but Kincaid picks up the ball late and it hits the turf. It's just a tough one. I have issues of this play. I have issues from an offensive perspective. Because look, it blows my mind, and I watch this with the Chiefs a lot. In key situations, Steve Spagnolo is going to have his defense show blitz. And nine times out of ten, that blitz is coming.

It might not be coming from the guys you expect, but there is going to be a blitz coming. So why on earth are you leaving Josh Allen in an empty backfield? As soon as I saw him go in orbit motion, I was like, they're cooked because that blitz is coming. And they don't have enough guys to pick that up and they're not going to pass it off in time. So as soon as he gets the snap and the blitz is in his face and he panics, you know the whole play is blown up. why and mesh is run correctly there are guys open but he has no time to find them because you didn't prepare

for what everybody on earth who's ever watched the Chiefs play football knows is coming which is going to be a blitz it's going to be exotic it's going to be an overload give him some help leave a running back back there to at least pick somebody up but that's I hear you and that's all true

and yet so much goes into that it's two defensive backs that are blitzing on that side so they only send five It felt when Patrick showed me the dots and the coaches film angle, which he has on his next-gen stats, like, pro, what's going on? Shout off to NGS. Yeah.

You know, I thought seven guys were blitzed on that. They sent zero. Like, they did actually on third down. Tony Romo did a great job. They sent the house on third down. They got it out at Allen's hands. Amari Cooper almost broke that tackle, I think, to pick up more yards. Didn't happen.

So they only sent five, but two of them are defensive backs. Bolton's dropping out. I think a defensive lineman was dropping out. out there. And it's also in the context of a game where they actually didn't blitz much. They only blitzed 18% of the time about the same as the bills. And they got so much more pressure on Sunday night. 46% pressure rate by the Chiefs almost double what the bills got. The exact opposite of what happened the first time where they blitzed like crazy didn't get much pressure and that the bills won with four. There were so many games within a game that I thought the Chiefs

won tonight, which is why if I was a Bill's fan, this one kills you. But I actually do think the better team won tonight. I felt like the bills almost stole one at the very end. And the last thing I wanted to say about that play, it's why it's so much can go into one football play. For all of that that we just said, Nick, like Josh Allen got the ball there.

Like he saw an open guy. Yeah. And it hits Kincaid right in the hands. And in another world where Kincaid just makes that, It's not an easy catch because it thinks like coming down a little differently than most passes would be. Well, it was a prayer. In another world, that's the NFL film's moment. They go to the Super Bowl because of that because it was a great play by Josh Allen.

It really was an incredible play. But it's tough to build the whole plane out of making those plays because there was another empty backfield play on the on the, in the red zone earlier tonight where they empty the backfield again. and it's like, well, it's got to be Josh. Like this is, and he runs it, and he ultimately gets it. But it's asking a lot for a dude that is carrying the team. He's taking a lot of punishment. These collective third and one, fourth and ones, he's just getting blasted. And I know he's big and he can take it.

But it just seems like you could make things a little bit easier on him, not to say that he can't do it because he can clearly do it. He had the ball in Dalton Kincaid's hands, but it feels like it's asking a whole lot. lot from a guy who can do a whole lot, but it's still, it's 22 guys out there. Yeah, and I don't want to take, you know, I don't want to criticize Joe Brady for this too much. I think that the moment at times made him coach tight, but I also love the speed option call on the goal line that produced the James Cook touchdown. I thought it was executed flawlessly.

And, you know, the effort by Cook to get across the goal line when he's getting hit by two guys was fantastic. It was a great call in that situation. I just felt like in some spots, now granted, they got bailed out when Alan finds that Curtis, Curtis Samuel opened in the back of the end zone for a touchdown, but the third down play call before that, which is just a fade to the corner of the end zone to Keon Coleman against Trent McDuffie. It's like, what are you doing here? Like, lean on your strengths here. It was an up and down game. I understand high pressure situation. But Josh Allen doesn't have to throw that ball either. Patrick, you're putting your head on your your hands there. Well, it just felt like a wasted down. It did. It's exactly what it was. Why are you reducing?

I knew with the fourth quarter at times was the bills had a stirring drive to come out of the time 12 plays 80 yards only one pass the whole time and that was a little dump off to who was it knocks on the goal line or whatever to set up uh the eventual touchdown it's all james cook all the time and i just thought he was having an incredible game 13 for 85 and two touchdowns and then 49 yards through the air it doesn't show how good he was it was only on 16 touches he was their best player and there wasn't there wasn't enough james cook to me on the last couple drives of the game, including even when they got down close, I'm just like, hey, I know you want to do the tush push all these times. Why not just hand the ball

off to James Cook? He's popping seven every time you give him the ball. Steve Magnullo is over there pleading with his defense. We have to stop the run. So much that sideline reports are relaying this to us. We have to stop the run. We don't have an answer. 16 touches in total is not enough. That's just poor game script. It's poor decision making within the flow of the game. And I think that that's going to be one of the reasons why when the bills get back on that plane back to Buffalo,

they're going to be thinking, man, we left something out there. It's not just that fourth downplay. We left something out there. We should have rode the hot hand a little bit more. So they failed twice on two point conversions. One was on a tush push, which I mentioned. One was on a pass by Josh Allen.

And they actually got stuffed three different times on tush pushes, including the fourth down in the fourth quarter. Sean McDermott spoke after the game about all those unsuccessful plays. Well, it's been our best play all year, you know, at one or inside of one yard, and, you know, we won some of those, but to your point, they were doing a good job. I thought overall, you know, maybe, you know, maybe we could have disguised it, maybe not, but at the end of the day, we have confidence in Josh and in our offensive line to get those, and they've been getting them all year.

But they had part of the broadcast. I really thought this was a case where someone listening to the broadcast should have helped out the bills coaches. The fact that Jim and Tony were talking about that the bills always run it to the left, that the chiefs were very prepared for it, that they practiced that all week,

and then they stuffed it twice. At that point, going for a third time, which is the time that was on fourth and short, the bills are driving, in the fourth quarter. Like, it's not working today. Was your most successful play all season? And that is something I think maybe McDermott over the years

has been criticized about maybe not being as flexible and changing what your game playing. I know that's maybe more Joe Brady making that decision. But in that moment, it was maybe a bad spot. Bill's fans, if they have one thing to complain about, it did look like Allen probably got it, but I wasn't surprised they didn't overturn it. In the event that when we can't see the football

and somehow Josh Allen has decided to cover it in an organ that's inside of his body and behind it. I would say he didn't get it. But looking at the camera that was down the line, which is our, I mean, normally in the situation, it's like, oh, we don't have the camera. It's tough to look down the line and say he didn't get the first down there. But, you know, Kansas City was prepared. And I understand going to the well when it's been successful because them going left wasn't something that just popped out like in week 13. Like this is something that's been consistent there. the entire season.

It's worked the entire season. But Kansas City made the place tonight, especially the one where Chris Jones has Josh Allen low and I'm not sure if it was Bolton diving over the top. Like, they just, they got in there and got those stops. They forced a fumble on that one, right? And Josh Allen recovered the fumble. A crazy stat in this game.

There were six fumble. in this game. Guess how many the bills recovered? All six. All six. Counting the one that didn't count because of the penalty,

like my homes got stripped. Every time the ball hit the ground tonight, the Buffalo bills got on top of it. And that's what I was saying. Maybe that was why I was feeling like they were a little lucky to be in this game because I don't think Josh Allen played his best game. He made enough big plays that you can't say

like he had a bad game, but he was not under control. and making clear-headed decisions, I think, like he had for most of the season. He could have easily had three turnovers in this game or more. Like, if you were just add up all the turnover-worthy plays, like it could have been four or five total. So he got very lucky not to have them.

And then we'd be talking differently. I'm glad we're not having those conversations. But that's part of the reason why I feel like ultimately the chiefs were better in this game. Another reason why is they took advantage when they did get the stop. So they get the fourth down. stop on Josh Allen in the fourth quarter. That's with 1255 left in the fourth quarter. Five plays, 59 yards later.

They are in the end zone. Let's listen to the go-ahead score by Patrick Mahomes. Now they go to a flip-bom set. First down play. Mahomes keeps it on an RPO at the five. It's a lead block. He goes into the end zone this time. Touchdown.

Kansas City. Patrick Mahomes. a 16-yard run his second rushing touchdown of the game. Such a good play call. Nick Wright on Twitter

believes that the only designed runs that they've called since Mahomes injured himself earlier in his career and they vowed to never call quarterback sneaks again were in the Super Bowl against the 49ers

and two plays tonight. One on a previous fourth down and then that touchdown. He also scrambled to start that drive. Juju gets involved and then Kareem Hunt pounds it down their throat. And so the marriage between the play calling, he also hits the two point conversion. That was the other play I was trying to think about earlier where I thought he was very patient in the pocket. That was not an easy play to make to wait with the pressure coming. Like it's just the marriage of the play calling and the running at the perfect moment for the chiefs to take advantage and get

that score with Mahomes. They only break it out when they absolutely need to, Shuck. Yeah, I think it's a product of continuity and familiarity with the Chiefs. Because what I saw between these two teams, I thought you're absolutely right that the Chiefs were the better team and deserved this win more than the Bills did. But the difference between these two teams in terms of body language, performance, execution, everything else was one team that's been there before is comfortable being there and knows how to win it has done the job. And the other team that is so desperate to win it that they play tight. Wow.

And in situations like that, you call a design run for Mahomes that you never really do, because you know he picks up yards on scrambles when he improvises and everything else, but you trust him enough because he's proven it to you enough over the years. You all know each other so well that you trust him to do that, get that job done. And he gets it done. And that's the true mark of a champion. This is why the Chiefs have been here and why they're so hard to beat is because of plays in situations like that. And it's just a skill set that he unveils when he needs it. Like tonight was the second highest scramble rate in Mahomes's career. Wow. Like of all the times, I mean, this dude has played 62 games since January

of 2022 because they have all these playoff games. This is the highest mark since that spam but the second highest scramble rate in his entire career, 17.4 percent of the dropbacks where even if there wasn't necessarily a play to make

because you have to cover the whole field with him there's so much trouble all over even if Hollywood's dropping the ball. But he's you know, when he needs to he can do it. Like however you want it. He can do it. Right. Remember that stat? Everyone was trying out.

Again, yeah, Nick, Nick mentioned it on the preview show with me that everyone just kept hammering that stat. There's only three teams that didn't score more than 30 points this year. The Raiders, the Patriots, and the Chiefs. Well, they scored more than 30 tonight in the AFC championship. They got it to 32. And the first half of this game, to me, was so telling. And maybe that's, maybe I'm just a sucker for first impressions because the bills did a great job coming back. But the first half of this game, for Josh Allen's first.

few plays to be design run. Okay. Cool. Statement of intent gets it six or seven yards. Then near interception should have been intercepted. And then the very next play probably should have been intercepted to the flip side. Mahomes gets the ball. And suddenly

it's 2017. And they're running the Alex Smith offense. It was four RPO's, a play action, and a bootleg. He wasn't even dropping back. And then Kareem Hunt, who by the way took so much advantage of those 25 days off.

More than any other chief, this is the cream hunt that they had in weeks four and five or whenever he joined and had a lot of juice. Suddenly he's totally back. He's way better than Pacheco. He is easily their best running back

and he gave them a big spark tonight and I was just thinking that game plan early was so creative and so surprising, I think, for the bills and they end up scoring three touchdowns in four possession. Now granted, the one possession

in the first half, they didn't score, was a fumble, because Mahomes maybe isn't quite as good as Lamar and Josh Allen at those RPO's and he fumbles the ball. But otherwise, it was pretty darn brilliant. And I think that offensive explosion put Buffalo in position where the ball was getting put

into dangerous spots. And the fumbles happened to you know, Buffalo recovers those. But like your big offensive play was a seeing eyeball that Mack Hollins makes like a career level play and beats Trent McDuffey on what leads.

Shout out to Mac Collins. Yeah. I love Mac Holland. Great Mac Holland season, but those are the type of plays that the bills didn't need back in the win at home in Buffalo that they needed tonight. And so like it, things had to be a little bit more risky for Buffalo tonight. We've given some love to Jared Cook, uh, James Cook, uh, James Cook, uh, never want to confuse your cooks. I learned tonight by the way. Too many cooks. James Cook's middle name is Dalvin. I learned tonight. And Dalvin's middle name. is James. So shout out to the Cooks because you are two of the smoothest running backs I've ever seen and your brothers. And that's pretty cool. Let's listen to the touchdown call because that was an incredible play. Splitbacks with Gilliam and Cook on his left and right. Knocks out on the right side. Other receiver on the other side. It's a pitch play to Cook. Dives reaches for the end zone and he's got it. He is in for the touchdown. What an amazing effort by Cook who is back in the Kitchen for his second touchdown of the game.

Nice. He went airborne and stretched his arm as far as it would go to reach the goal line. Shout out to James Cook. That was a ridiculous effort. If they didn't get that one, another failed fourth down on the goal line, it just felt like, man, are they ever going to get it done? And shout out to this Bill's team, because we've talked a lot of about the negatives tonight. They did fall down big arrowhead.

Josh Allen did have the drive. in under two minutes for a touchdown going into halftime to make the score way better. He did have the fourth quarter drive after they were stopped on fourth down. The chiefs get that lead that we just talked about with Mahomes

and he answered right away. This Bill's team had a ton of heart and there really was, I think, more than the sum of their parts. And I think even though they lost this game and they weren't totally clean, And they showed that tonight. Like, they still were right there and had every reason to fall out of this game.

And they kept coming back on offense. So just a little Bill's appreciation. I'm going to go to Eric at this point. We've waited long enough. Are you trying to, are you trying to hear me spin anything positive at this point? I mean, this is how it always goes, man. It's, uh, I mean, my heart hurts for you, my friend. I did think we were going to pull it out.

You did. We got the ball back down by a field goal. And I thought, and that's how it goes. It happens to me plenty of times with this team. 13 seconds. It's not the first time I've gotten texts from friends. Like a family member has died in my family. It's, it just happens.

It's, Mahomes is the dragon. And he's ruining my life and the life of many Bill's fans around the world. It feels that way, Eric. Like, it feels that way. I mean, but you can't. Like, it's not real. I know, I know. It's not real.

They're not magic. Like, there were so many, there were chances and it's just. Yeah, that's the thing. That's the thing is like, they get the ball down three. And a friend of mine who's a diehard Bill's fan, I texted her. And I was like, if your king's going to go take his throne, he's got to go do it right now. And they, and they didn't. Like, and that's football.

It's, like, the moment was there. And it, you come up short. And I honestly, it comes back to things like, would you rather get blown out? Would you rather get your heart ripped out last second? I don't know which would be worse at this point. Like, do I want to be involved for four quarters and have that chance? And, like, it's there for me or just not even be involved? Yes.

I mean, I don't know. No, you do. Yes, you do. But it's happened to me multiple times now. I know, but he's turning 29 years old in May. And I'm not going to say it doesn't, it is brutal to lose late in the playoffs over and over. It's a unique, maybe it, there's no better or worse in terms of pain. but you still got that guy and you still got that team.

So that part's good. In no way do I think that this is the end where we're done. Like Josh Allen is a badass quarterback and he will will the bills to something at some point, I hope. And it just may not happen while Mahomes is standing upright on the other sideline. Well, there's an opportunity to surround. We were just talking about the talent level on this roster as a whole. And you look at some of these other postseason contenders and the spots

where they are successful where they don't necessarily have Josh Allen, right? Like you talk about pieces of that Texans team in a pass rush in the secondary or the Ravens in the defense, the way that they got better and like the plays that like Isaiah likely was making or like Mark Andrews doing spots of the game.

So much of this Bill's team just comes down like 17. Even when James Cook is having this generational type game and there's just there's got to be more for the team around him. And that's why I think it feels like this team overachieved, like based on the total roster level of the team. Like they overachieved. It was an incredible success to be where they were with this opportunity. And so much of that goes on 17.

And I think like the whole rings conversation kind of clouds people and makes it makes it tough for people to enjoy this because it's like, oh, well, we need we need Josh to win one or we need Justin Herbert or Lamar to win one so they can be good and we can appreciate it. Yeah, but it's also for them, you know, even if you take all that out of that, if you root for him as a human, you want him to have that feeling. You want him because that's what he is playing for, is to finish it off. He's playing for other stuff too, but he is playing for that. And the thing that I think is going to be difficult for him is I don't think he'll think he played his best tonight. I really don't.

I think you go back to that first drive that he was saying. a little skittish on. There was a few times tonight where he misses wide open receivers, one with Curtis Samuel crossing over the middle. There was another one early in the game where he just misses an open guy. He dirts one a little bit. And I just thought like it wasn't his cleanest game. So you always want your best players to play the best in the biggest of spots. He talked after the game. It's a little sad to listen to, but let's listen to it. Um It's not fun

Um About to beat the champs To beat the champs You gotta beat the champs And we didn't do it tonight He's right They're the bully on the block And this isn't the movie Friday

At least not yet But the way we remember things is Is funny, right? Because Mahomes had A screen to Worthy That was going to be six And he threw him an absolutely bounce pass.

Yep. And it just kind of gets wiped away because the Chiefs went like these guys are incredible and sometimes the results don't, don't reveal the greatness of the players that we're watching. And I just hope like for Eric's sake, for everybody that's watching

the Buffalo Bills and they have their blue on tonight and they're sad. Like there was so much to enjoy about this football team that like the journey was fun. I hope I hope you had fun with the journey. And yes, the journey for the This Chiefs team will continue.

We'll have a couple weeks to talk about it. Jordan Rodrigue of the athletic coming down with me to New Orleans. Nick Shook coming down to New Orleans. He's going to be busy writing and covering. Hell yeah. Like an old noir film is like Shook in his hotel room. Just like. Lit cigarette.

Yeah. Dimly lit. Shout out to Chris Jones. Nate Tice had a stat in the first half of this game. he was not double-teamed on 11 snaps of the first half and he got seven pressures out of those 11 snaps. Pretty good football player. I mean, he's literally one of the best defensive players

in the history of NFL postseason football. Maybe I don't even need to put postseason there. But postseason, it's next level. If you just stack up the moments, the games that he has changed to affect should have a Super Bowl MVP. winning. I personally don't think there's anyone who's stacked up as many plays as him in the last 20 years. So I threw this out there and I got a lot of like Aaron Donald back or Thai law.

And I'm like, yeah, they had a season or they had runs. And Donald was pretty dominant whenever he got the chance. But just because Jones is there every time, he gets so many chances. Danta Hightowers made a lot of really game changing plays. But man, he is incredible. I also wanted to give just before we go. like a shout out to Xavier Worthy. That rookie that they traded up for

with the bills in the first round where everyone was like, oh, wow, the whole league, you're just going to let Xavier Worthy go to the Chiefs, aren't you? I mean, it kind of came true. Yeah, it took all season, but it came true today. Yeah, he was like putting his foot in the ground and getting in the end zone on that last like crosser

away from having, I think, a perfect game. Yeah, like his suddenness to like, he looks like Michael Jackson in the smooth criminal video he's just like stopping and going backwards and going forwards he's unreal he's a contested catch god

he didn't have one all season and now he's doing it every single week that was a hell of a trade bodes well for their next matchup they stopped using them as a go merchant and started having to play football wait you mean you can run other routes sweet

uh man uh if there's anything else we think of we want to say we still have a whole other half of the show to go. Eric has been begging me to take a break for a while. Just I could see it in his eyes. He's telling me the time this has been a painful

stretch. So let's move on from the AFC. We'll be back talking NFC after the break. In the heat of battle, your squad relies on you. Don't let them down. Unlock elite gaming tech at Lenovo.com. Dominate every match with next level speed, seamless streaming, and performance that won't quit. So you can push your gameplay beyond performance with Intel Core Ultra processors for the next era of gaming.

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Hello Fresh, Canada's number one meal kit delivery service. Hey, this is Matt Jones. I'm Drew Franklin. And this is NFL Cover Zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different. Did you see the Colts Pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game. What was that?

Oh, my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week, that is exactly what you're going to get. Listen to NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. What's up, everybody? Daniel Jeremiah here.

And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Sticks, we take you inside the game from scouting reports and player development to team building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters. Every week, we study the tape, talk to decision makers, and share. share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots from college football prospects to the NFL stars of tomorrow.

We break down the draft, analyze matchups, and evaluate how teams put it all together on game day. Plus, we dig in the coaching strategies, roster construction, and the trends that shape the league year after year. Whether you're a diehard fan or just love understanding the game on a deeper level, we give you the full picture. If you want insight that goes beyond the box score, this podcast is. for you. Don't miss it. Listen to the

Move the Six podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. He's got Barclay to his left. Handoff, Barkley, Stutterset, running to the right. Barkley will take it in. Tutsdown, Philadelphia.

They are lighting up the link. And the Eagles running away from the commanders. Saquan Barclay, third touchdown of the day. That Philadelphia can taste it. Oh yeah, we're going back to Ion Eagle, the bird. On the NFC championship recap, that was on Westwood one,

and yes, that was Saquan Barclay's third touchdown of the day. That got it to 48 points. The Eagles got wild, and they dropped a 50 burger on the commanders in the NFC Championship final score, 55 to 23. I love a consistent storyline, Shook. And you can set your... You can set your watch to this running game with Saquan Barkley. The very first carry of the game was a touchdown.

And yeah, by the end, they were just pouring it on. This running game has been the eighth wonder of the world, this whole season, and they're going to be playing in Super Bowl 59 against the Chiefs. What do you think? Yeah, you can sit your watch to him hitting a big play early. You can set your watch to him closing the game with the big play. He was one yard short of finishing off with a touchdown sets up Jalen Hertz. But what you couldn't set your watch for was the Eagles putting 55 points on the board.

This is a team that we've just hemmed and hawed over the last two weeks about they can't put points on the board. Their offense isn't explosive outside of Sequin. What do they do? Can they beat the commanders? Can they keep up with Jane Daniels? Oh, double nickel later. Looks like they can. And it was because of the collective team effort.

It wasn't just Sequin, even though he was fantastic average, almost eight yards per carry on the ground. It was Jalen Hertz and his bad knee with two tush push touchdowns and another one with Sequin leading the way. It was Shipley, Will Shipley, getting involved late in the game

when it really didn't matter anymore. It was A.J. Brown catching a touchdown pass. They were firing on all cylinders. This is the Eagles, I think, at their peak offensively, where Hertz doesn't have to throw for 300 yards. but they can still rack up 450 yards of offense

and cruise to a victory against a very familiar opponent who had a great season, but learned that when you don't win in the turnover margin, you usually lose in the playoffs as they did today. Yeah, those five turnovers that they lost in the game where they come back and win. Jaden Daniels throws a touchdown with six seconds on the clock to be the Kenny Pickett-led Eagles at that point late.

They turned the ball over here and the Eagles made them pay for it. but every time literally i think because coming into the game right there's the concerns we go back a few weeks it's like what are we into work on past game that the eagles struggle in the past game the run rate is high i i never thought that jalen hurts forgot how to throw the ball like when when the offense is operating and this is rotating two centers by the way neither one of them was healthy uh throughout this game as dickerson is snapping the ball then jurgens is out Jurgensen comes back in because Dickinson can't move.

He actually had a holding call. The callback a touchdown because he just couldn't get to the guy who got across his face there. Third down, Jalen Hertz, third and five goes to Sequin first down. Third and four, A.J. Brown, four-yard touchdown. There was the fourth and five money to A.J. Brown, 31 yards on Marshawn Latimore. Like consistently, when they needed plays in the. passing game, they were explosive there, and they showed that they've had this in the bag the whole time. They go up against a defense that's frankly overmatched, no day around pain in this

game, which I think had a huge impact, especially in their ability to stop the run. But when they needed to, the talent disparity was just too glaring on offense for the Eagles. Yeah, I'm glad. I'm glad you shouted that out with Hertz. So he ends up with a 94% um, success rate, or no, he was in the 94th percentile in terms of EPA per play in this game, according to Shield Capadier. He goes 20 for 28, 246, and four total touchdowns, three of them on the ground. And I thought AJ Brown's sequence in the middle of this game was as important as just about anything. There was the touchdown. That's a, that's a one-on-one play against San Ristill, and it's a great ball by Jalen Hertz, but also A.J. Brown just

totally beats him. He's an underrated route runner, gets the touchdown. That was after the San Ristill dumb penalty, which was part of a succession of dumb plays by the commanders, ultimately, dumb penalties, turnovers. There was also right in the middle of that quarter, a fourth down where the, at midfield, where the Eagles decide to go for it, and they throw a go ball to A.J. Brown. And that's just like, that's what they did against the Giants earlier in the season, I remember, in a very similar situation, late in the first half and like a one-score game. And that was just trusting their best players.

And that includes Jalen Hertz to do what he does best, which is throw a go-ball. Like, in theory, a low percentage play on fourth down. And they trusted him. He trusted the look after passing on it earlier. Learn from that mistake. A.J. Brown goes and gets it, goes six for 96. So as good as Saquan was, and he was awesome as always. And yeah, as good as Will Shipley was late.

Like, the passing game was a huge factor. And them scored eight touchdowns, Nick. That's the most touchdowns in a playoff game this entire century. Eight touchdowns. I mean, they would eight touchdowns in 11 drives. That is extremely difficult to do in the NFL. And seven rushing touchdowns. That ties for the most rushing touchdowns

in a postseason game in NFL history. If you can tell me the final score of the game in which that happened. I already know it. That wasn't today. Go ahead, Greg. Well, because I saw it. I saw it, but I think I could have guessed it.

It was 73 to nothing against the same Washington crew. Biggest blowout. And can you imagine making the championship game and losing 73 to nothing? Because that was so personal. That was what happened to the lowly Chicago Bears. It was also 1940. Yeah.

It did spend a long time since this is a lot. People were out at war, like a lot was going on there, yeah. Yeah, a lot was going on. But you know what else is going on? Is A.J. Brown proving himself to be one of the most trustworthy go-ball guys and one of the most trustworthy go-to guys in key spots on that play that you just described. As soon as Hurts drops back and he throws it up, as soon as I watch the ball arc in the air and I look down, I go, oh, that's A.J. Brown, that's going to be caught. Like, yeah, he had a step on Lattimore.

Didn't matter. Lattimore could have been draped all over him. He's still going to catch the ball. He's one of the most trustworthy guys in those situations. And that's what makes this Eagles offense so scary. They have a great offensive line. They have a dynamite running back in Saquan and Barclay. They have two awesome receivers in Brown and Devonta Smith.

They have a great tight-in in Dallas got it. And at one point, I think it was when Hertz rushed for a touchdown, they had a sequence where they're going to Smith. They're going to Goddard. They're going to Brown. They're going all over the field. And then it's Hertz on the keeper and Barclay throw in the block to get him to the edge for the touchdown. Where I think Tom Brady said, they have so many different guys.

Who's going to beat us? Well, you can't beat us. Don't let Goder beat us. Don't let Brown beat us. Oh, wait, there's Jaylen Hertz to beat us. Like, when their offense is humming, they're extremely scary. and the commanders learned that today. Yeah, let's listen to Sequin beating them as a blocker.

From the nine, Philly looking for more. Hurts design run. Left side, hurts to the five, touch it to the outside. Touched out. The Eagles are piling it on. Philadelphia doing the gritty, and they open up a 33-15 lead.

Yeah, that was the moment where it felt over. That wasn't the only highlight block Sequin had. I mean, that was him getting leverage on Frankie Louvre and totally, you know, walling him out of the play on it, where he literally is like the fullback on that play. He also planted Bobby Wagner into the ground on a blitz pickup. What can't this man do? And it's when we say blitz pickup, you kind of imagine like the running back stepping up and pick. This was, this was a Sequin attacking Bobby Wagner. It felt almost excessively violent.

Yeah. You could hear the pop on the on the broadcast. and it gave Jalen the time that he needed to make plays where like DeVante Smith had six yards of average separation in this game. Like normally you're seeing backs and tight ends with that level of separation. Wow.

But it's... And he only had four targets. But he goes four for 45. Crazy efficient. Got her. Seven out of eight targets for 85. AJ Brown, six for eight targets for 96.

Just so efficient. And let's actually listen to Nick Siriani talking about his guy, Jalen Hertz, after the game. It's amazing how much doubt there is sometimes. I can't quite comprehend it because, you know, it doesn't look like people think it should look like, but the guy has been clutch. He's won a ton of football games. But you ran for this many yards.

We don't care how we win. We don't care. If we rush for 300 and pass for one and we win, great. If we rush for one and pass for 300, great. Who cares? We've just continued to win. He's just continued to win. And I think the criticism is, yeah, whatever.

He just wins. I'm trying to figure out who is 82. Because he's on the current roster, Aenea Smith. And if you're watching on YouTube, you'll see that Siriani had a Kelly Green Eagles jersey on of 82. I don't, Mike Quick has to be the answer. A little love to. It's Mike Quick.

I got a former bachelor's franchise star Clay Harbor. It's got to be Mike Quick. You know where he fits in? My late night comfort viewing lately has been the Bernie Mac show on Netflix. Nick Siriani looks like he belongs in Bernie Max Den with his friends playing card for smoking cigars. It could be L.J. Smith. Ooh, good for the. I'm cheating.

I looked it up. It could be Tori Smith. Yeah, I'm looking at the same list. Tom Scott. It was definitely not L.J. Smith. The like Joe Reisdick. The number 14th tight end getting drafted in fantasy leagues in 2005 when I was doing rankings back then. I thought Hertz was really ready for the moment.

He was 100% healthy by my eyes. I'm sure he didn't feel that way. But what I mean to say is that when he caught and ran forward, it was good. When he ran and when he made a couple throws on the run, it looked quite good. And there were some people saying like, oh, he didn't look great when he was running laterally. That's like what he looks like normally. So I thought he looked great. It's always been a story how Jalen Hertz kind of processes the game.

And I think it's fair in terms of him holding the ball. There was a play early in this game where he has a hard count. He sees them coming on the blitz. He sees the coverage. He points it out. I don't know if he changes it, but he knows exactly what he's going to do. And he hits Goddard for a big game right afterwards.

So he used that hard count to kind of outsmart, see what was going on, make it happen. He used to be criticized for his struggles against the Blitz. That's been mostly good this year, but a little up and down lately. 7 for 13 for 116 yards today against Blitz, whereas Jaden Daniels struggled against the Blitz. In an otherwise good game, 2 for 6, 29 yards. Patrick, your thoughts on Jaden Daniels in his first championship game appearance. I don't think it'll be his last.

I don't want to put too much pressure on it, but I have a feeling we'll see him at some point again here. No, especially because I don't know if the commanders are going to, especially under Dan Quinn, have a defense that is as overmatched as they were, especially today, giving up eight touchdowns on 11 drives, that's saying we've already talked about that.

But Jaden just puts so much pressure on so many different parts of your team, where the Eagles had a great, great plan and spectacular execution, and even that was still very close to 30 points. I mean, they get behind. They're pressing. the Eagles were sustaining drives looking back

30 points feels easy you know he did have the turnover but he's changed the expectations so much by just how

spectacular he's been where there was clearly the the Diami Brown fumble right loses you an opportunity

the McNichols fumble loses an opportunity could he have played better yes but But, I mean, it's nitpicking at this point. I think so, because even that interception was with five minutes left in the game.

And that actually kind of reminds me of how I say that he has good misses. Like, that's a good interception. At that point in the game, it's a long down and distant situation. You're giving your guy a chance to make a play. And the game's over at that point anyways. To lose three fumbles, Diami Brown, Jeremy McNichols, and Austin Echler were just, those were just absolutely killer.

to me, I'm losing track of which one was which, but the Zach Bonn one was the first one, right? Him coming over as they're holding up. So many force fumbles, it's hard to keep track. The Bonn one was on Echler when he got up afterward. I think it was Bonn who knocked it out. That was the third one. That was the third one, yeah.

Yeah, but I want to go back to Daniels real quick because I think that those who scan the stat sheet and look at the final score and, you know, oversimplified topics, for daytime talk shows are going to try to pin this on the quarterback because it's the easiest way to disseminate information

to the viewership, right? Jane Daniels is the only reason they were in this game. Yes. They don't have a running game. They haven't had a running game for a long time. He dropped back 55 times

and threw the ball 48 times. And on that first drive alone that they only get a field goal out of, they have to convert fourth down like three times and he's doing it every time. He's putting defenses in conflict. He's making it hard to where they have to guard the whole, cover the whole field

because he's able to scramble. He's throwing accurate passes. In the middle of the first quarter, They're losing the game and I'm like, I don't know if they can come back because the momentum's already in the Eagles favor. But Jane Daniels is definitely built for this moment. He's handling this really well. It's just that he can't also account for his defense, you know, and them being leaky and his teammates turning the ball over. So I don't have any negative things to say about him coming away from this game. I thought he was the best part of their entire performance and he's got a bright future.

It's just a bummer in a good season that ends short of the ultimate goal. I mean, that place was in full throat. Everything is going out. They're ready to party on Broad Street. and he put the fear of God in the entire building. What was it? 18 plays?

18 plays? It's constant. And I thought they were going to go for another fourth down. I'm honestly surprised that they didn't. I thought, I think he blinked a little bit.

They kicked a 34-yarder on a fourth and two after an 18-play opening drive. And I thought that moment actually was Dan Quinn blinking a little. I was like, I don't want to push our luck here. When in reality,

if in some world, where they were going to win this game, which would have not included three lost fumbles. I think they got to go for that and keep getting sevens, you know? I think they regretted that quickly too because then they run the fake punt. They were down 14.3 like eight minutes later.

Fake pun. Literally five minutes later, they were down 143. I'm wondering at what point. So how many plays are you scripting at the start of the game? Supposedly like 10 to 15. I think it's like 10 to 15. So I'm wondering if you're getting down

to that fourth down. And it's like, all right. Well, you got some short yard. Cliff, well, we got a whole four from two. He's turning the sheet upside down. There were a couple plays where I thought Cliff got a little too cute. And I think that's to the Eagles defensive credit that as Tom Brady kept pointing out, like everything's hard against this defense.

And I know what he meant was they are, it is kind of the prototypical Vic Fangio defense that they're going to make you earn it. There wasn't a ton of separation. You're getting first downs like. three downs at a time and having to go down the field like that. And that is difficult to just continue doing. But I did think they blinked. And then you fumble what it was the kickoff and you give up the quick touchdown to Sequin Barclay. And suddenly after another six-play drive by the Eagles where your defense has no resistance, you're down 14.3. It was a great job, though,

by the Eagles, I mean, by the commanders, to respond with the own another long field goal drive. They do get a stop, rare in this game. It was actually a missed field goal by Jake Elliott, a long field goal, but they did, you know, make him kick that long field goal. He missed it. And it was the one moment of the game

where you thought, okay, maybe it's going to be back and forth. Let's go to the second quarter, Jaden Daniels. Here's Daniel. See, this week forward, throws up in the middle. Terry McClure at the 30, still at the speed at the 20, cuts away from a defender. 10, 5, to the end down.

Touchdown Washington 17 with another legacy moment in the playoffs Listen, three things three guarantees in life death, Texas and Terry McCorn winning on the slap round

Oh, that is so good for I guess the last time at least after a game this season we still have our calls of the year to come and I'm sure Bram and London will be featured there but it was great to hear them one last time And to Brian Weinstein's credit, I mean, he was so strong on the show that I was commander's pilled after that.

I was just like, I think he's right. I think they will win. And then look at this score. I mean, why would why would they think anything else? And all credit to an offense and a spectacular season, you know, from the best rookie quarterback season I've ever seen. Yeah, me too. It's now past RG3. would have been my answer and it's past it no question he was asked jaden was asked to do more

he kept it going into the playoffs and his rate of improvement throughout the courses he was just outstanding he also led them in in rushing today by the way six for 48 that play though that mccloren made was rare 36 yarder he had only 15 the rest of the day i have some crazy Quinyon Mitchell's stats. Facing Terry McLaurin, which was, I believe, most of his snaps, 36 out of the 48 snaps, he only gave up one reception on four targets for seven yards in an interception. So Cliff not beating the accusations here of leaving his guy on one side of the field, because if you saw that touchdown, he's on the right side there with the slay, and they don't

really travel in terms of Mitchell and Slay. But that was the matchup. And you don't blame him for thinking that's a good matchup against anyone, Terry McLaurin, but that's twice now that Quinyan, what a season. And he gets a trademark interception there at the end. All right, we got more to talk about with this game. We'll be back after the break. unlock elite gaming tech at Lenovo.com. Dominate every match with next-level speed, seamless streaming, and performance that won't quit. So you can push your gameplay beyond performance

with Intel Core Ultra processors. For the next era of gaming, upgrade to smooth high-quality streaming with Intel Wi-Fi 6E and maximize game performance with enhanced overclocking. Win the tech search. Power up at Lenovo.com. It's 5.23 p.m.

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And this is NFL Cover Zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different. Did you see the Colts Pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game. What was that? Oh, my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week, that is exactly what you're going to get.

Listen to NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. What's up, everybody? Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Sticks, we take you inside the game from scouting reports and player development to team building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning

rosters. Every week, we study the tape, talk to decision makers, and share. share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots from college football prospects to the NFL stars of tomorrow. We break down the draft, analyze matchups, and evaluate how teams put it all together on game day. Plus, we dig in the coaching strategies, roster construction, and the trends that shape

the league year after year. Whether you're a diehard fan or just love understanding the game on a deeper level, we give you the full picture. If you want insight that goes beyond the box score, this podcast is. for you. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Six podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Nick, I thought their defensive stars all showed up. Josh Sweat had a nice day. Three quick pressures. Zach Bond with that forced fumble, a fumble recovery. 12 tackles. Mitchell with a really good game. I mean, this group, they have stars, but they also play really

well together. I thought they flew to the ball to the point where the fumbles almost didn't feel like luck, really. It just felt like they were almost inevitable because every time someone was getting tackled hard and they were swarming. Yeah, even Jordan Davis had a sack. And he's often overshadowed by his former Georgia teammate, Jalen Carter. And yet they both made a difference today. I think that today was an example of what the Eagles can be at their peak on both sides

of the ball, you know, with takeaways being opportunistic defensively. But just like you said, flying to the football, it felt like every time there was a loose ball. There were a crowd of eagles around it ready to jump on it. And you can say like, oh, that's just the way the game's going. The football gods are against the commanders. Now, this is a good defense. This is guys that are playing well within the scheme that is directed by Vic Vanjo, who's got decades of experience, and they're all peaking at the perfect time. And then you compliment that with the offense, the dominance on the ground with Saquan Barkley, the ability to move the football through the air. And that's how you get a blow out like this. And that's what

makes them scary for anybody left in their way, which of course is the chiefs. But on a day like today, you take a moment to celebrate that because it's rare that teams execute this well in all phases, and they did. It's the same formula as 2017. And 2020 season and then the 23, you know, it happened in the playoffs for the egos. I don't think they were quite as strong on the defensive line that season. So I don't think the formula was quite there for me. But it's all about drafting, developing, and then signing offensive linemen, and defensive linemen. And yes, they're extremely talented roster. What were we doing before

the game? Before we started, we were comparing the bills and the Eagles. Yeah, we were trying to figure out how many non-Josh Allen bills we would take and put on this Eagles team. In terms of starting positions. Right. In a trade. That's crazy because the bills are one of the best teams in the league. And yet, I rolled through them all. And there's some positions that are even. There's certainly positions where the bills have a great player like James Cook. He's just not as great

as the Eagles great player. But I had to go down to like, well, back up tight end, Dawson Knox, I'd take over Grant Calcuttaire. Like, that's how loaded this team is. But to finish, my point I started with was the lines. And

that's what they've always been about in this Howey era. And their lines right now, They're four down linemen that started all had at least three pressures. And quick, I mean, sweat and Jalen Carter had three quick pressures, I believe, eats. And then the offensive line is so freaking good that they can have their center not even be available for the start of the game because he's not healthy. So they have Lennon Dickerson move over, step in, but he gets hurt.

And then Juergens, who is hurt, you know, comes in after halftime. and they all make it look seamless and protect Jalen Hertz great and run the ball great. And they're still running brotherly shoves with centers that can barely move, which I was concerned about, but they make it work. Mackay Beckton comes over

and, you know, the story out of New York was, you know, this is an abject failure. And he was consistent all season long. Like one had a huge block on the Seekwon run to the right side on that touchdown. where they've just got so many dudes that can make plays in the benefit of getting two guys

to come in as rookies and it's like, oh yeah, I hope they contribute. Quinnion split it an all pro level, like not just late in the season, like middle and late. It's, they took the-

Britishine with a nice pass breakup had six tackles in this game. He was good. So the places like they needed to improve, they improved in free agency and in the draft. like they got hits where they needed to and I think that's why they're going to win.

I would agree with you on that and I'm sure we'll get to that in the next week, two weeks ahead. But ever since the Chip Kelly exile of Howie Roseman ended and he moved back over to his rightful side of the building, he's been the best general manager in football. He has consistently constructed a winner. He has overseen a Super Bowl champion,

a team that got to the Super Bowl, a change in head coaching regime, a quick rebuild, a fluid rebuild, a quick turnaround. He has taken big swings in the draft that nobody saw coming, and they've pretty much all paid off. And, you know, I like how you brought up the difference between their most recent Super Bowl team in this one, the depth and defensive line. He knew that was a weakness.

They were a veteran-laden group that year. They're going to get in Lindval-Joseph, you know, the year after, and they're relying on guys like Javon Hargrave and everything else. They go and resupply. They go to Georgia where they've got the best defensive players in college football. Get them all. They don't care. Bring them all here because they're good.

Blue Chip players and they're all playing well and they're all succeeding as a result. You got to give them all the credit in the world for doing that and then being aggressive in free agency and saying, you know what, we will top the Giants offer just enough to get you out of New York and over to Philly, Sequin and add another piece and maybe the final piece of this puzzle. We'll see if it

ends up being a Super Bowl winning puzzle. You mentioned the Georgia Bulldogs. Let's listen to one of them, Nolan Smith, after the game, talking with our friend Stacey Dales for NFL Network on complimentary football. just offense and defense working together man one hand washes the other and then special teams is the soap in between man that's what i love about it

and man those guys we all play our hearts out every game and man that's what i just want to see you know guys smiling and happy after this let's listen to nolan again just because i like the vibe that he's bringing and i like it when guys swear man just grit man we talk about man if they don't score they don't win and you know they put up some points but man we go out there and play defense with pride man and that's what I love about Philly and it's just like the city that we live in, man. We play defense tough and hard for the nose. That's right. I hope they had that.

HFN. Yeah, I guess I wasn't live on NFL network so they didn't have to bleep it. Good job. Nolan Smith. And that entire defense, which could get a big addition in the Super Bowl,

Brandon Graham asked after the game in the locker room by some reporters about whether he could possibly return. This has been bubbling up in Philadelphia leading up to this week. I know, for instance, Zach Berman has mentioned it on his podcast. And Brandon Graham said he had a meeting on Monday morning with the medical staff, the Eagles, and we're going to see what happens. We're going to see what happens after some tests.

And so there's a chance that they could get an extra pass rusher who would be a great bonus to a team and has a nice history in Super Bowls which Tom Brady's in attendance for this time Tom won't be on the field

but Tom will be there in the booth Yeah maybe he'll make some mentions of that particular We got a Nick Folls shout out Tom referencing his drop Fight the ball! Fight the ball!

He handled that well at first Kevin Burkart brought up that Nick Foles was there and there was like protracted awkward silence which happens pretty often in Tom Brady broadcast

and I was like oh man you're not going to just take this poorly are you and then he made a good joke of it so it was a human moment where he said he's just jealous that Nick caught his pass and Tom Brady did not catch it

it's all because he was trained in the crucible of the most discussed celebrity roast of all time for some reason that was the most points by the way shook in a conference championship game ever.

Not by the Eagles, but combined the total of 78 points. Look at that NFC East teamwork. Working together to accomplish a goal. NFC Beast. So you say

you're already leaning one way. I do like that the Eagles are an extremely credible opponent. I guess that's obvious. But the Chiefs feel so inevitable

that, and I know it didn't happen this way last year, but even the 49ers felt a little inevitable to me. And of course, it wasn't inevitable. Sports are never inevitable. It went to overtime, and they were a really good 49ers team. And yet, this Eagles seemed the way they're coming in with all this talent. The opening line out in the desert was one and a half for the Chiefs. That sounds just about right, that the Chiefs would be slight favorites,

but not heavy favorites. And maybe it's not. the one that America was rooting for. I feel like people wanted the bills certainly today. And if the Ravens had made this game, they would have wanted the Ravens. But it's a hell of a Super Bowl. And I do think

the Eagles are a much better representative from the NFC than the Lions would have been or any of the other teams that could have possibly made it. I think the Eagles' highest ceiling is so much higher than the others. And their base we've seen this year is pretty darn good.

I don't know. Marty Spitting the head. It's a clash of the Titans. I think that the only weakness in this matchup is Kellynne Moore. That's the only thing that concerns me about the Eagles. You know, what is this thing? Interesting. Calling decisions are going to be like in this game. I mean, Vic Fangio just did a great job defensively with a team that's extremely talented. They're going against an offense that's methodical, but can also catch you by surprise sometimes. And you know what Spags brings on that defensive side against this Eagles offense? It's going to be a hell of a battle.

We're going to have the next two weeks to talk about it. I'm fired up about it. And I think that it's the Super Bowl that we deserve, even if people are tired of the Chiefs because look, let's face it. I know we're tired, we were tired of the Patriots when they were winning, right? But you have to acknowledge and appreciate greatness when it's in front of you. And this is an incredible run. And maybe the Eagles will be the team that dethrones the Chiefs and everybody will be happy. But we'll find out.

And oh, by the way, that's one of the best Super Bowls I've ever seen. I don't need to go through the whole like Andy Reid against the Eagles thing all over again. Although it is kind of a thing. It's a thing. It's hard to ignore. It's a different Andy Reid now. Shout out to Andy Reid, going for fourth down, by the way. on his own 40-yard line,

having a sense of where they were in the game. I know, like, we were not talking about that game anymore, but I thought that was the most Andy Reid has found fourth-down religion than any moment of his entire career. It was a subtle moment in that game. It was on his own 40. I was actually stunned Andy Reid was going to go for.

And you mentioned Howie and all the great jobs, I mean, that he's done. How about that analytics department? They've invested more in analytics, and that's what tells you to invest in those big offense, defensive lineman and defensive lineman. That's part of the strategy and the head of their analytics department, Alec Hallaby getting it done, didn't get a job in this GM cycle,

but they're building up that team. I mean, he'd be a great candidate one of these years because this team just, they keep getting it done to the point where everyone's copping them now. Yeah, shout out to Hannaby, like out there in the lab, cooking up the algorithms for fourth downs and everything, all the machinations and the beakers are bubbling. And then the paper spits out to Andy Reid. okay, we're going to run the play, we always run.

Yeah, exactly. And you don't need numbers. I can tell you right now without all the numbers, and I very much appreciate analytics. It always starts and ends in the trenches. You could have came to me for that. We're going to have 15 roll to his right. He's going to have an option in the flat,

and he could run it, you can pass it. Just give him one hot. That's all I ask, Joe Brady, one hot. And I'm thinking Vic Fangio is going to have a plan for that. Love it. It's a great matchup. Yes, and sports is not inevitable. when Madison Keyes won one of the most stirring sporting championships I've ever seen

at the Australian Open over the weekend. I thought of the very rant that Patrick Claibon made last week about how the people who say you couldn't do it, that they never could do it, that they don't have the championship medal inside of them, that they never pay for their sins in the end. And I know people listening don't follow tennis close enough. This was the ultimate version of that. person who had been dismissed so many times as a choker that at this point, they were completely ignored as even a real candidate to do something, not only one, but one with one of the

greatest runs of excellent play against the best possible field ever. So if that's possible, we could absolutely get Kellynne Moore in a one and a half point underdog Eagles team to dethrone these chiefs. Yeah, on his way to become the new head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Let's get on the plane to New Orleans, damn it. Yes. Shout out to... Just that Kellen Moore stay. Shout out to Kellen Moore. Shout out to the Saints.

We're going to talk a lot about all the coaching machinations. Oh, yeah, we have a new Cowboys coach. Oh, yeah. Pete Carroll's in back in the NFL, and he's a Raiders coach. What? We're going to do all that on Monday's show. I just felt like that deserves its own conversations. And we will be doing a show on Monday with the great Nate Tice of Yahoo Sports.

But, wow, it has been. so fun doing these shows. We've got one more from the Super Bowl, but this is the last one in the Chris Wesleyan podcast studio for the year. Thank you, Patrick, for your service. Thank you, Shook, from Cleveland. And yes, when Super Bowl 59 is set, I think we finally did it.

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