NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - MNF Doubleheader Finale Recap: Defenses Dominate in Lions-Bucs and Seahawks-Texans

Episode Date: October 21, 2025

Jaxon Smith-Njigba is a one-man army, the Texans offense is toast and Jahmyr Gibbs might be the best running back in the league. Those are but a few takeaways that Gregg Rosenthal and Nick Shook had on what might be the final Monday Night Football doubleheader in NFL history — Week 7 of the 2025 NFL regular season. In short, the Detroit Lions bounced back in a big way over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Seattle Seahawks proved to be leaps and bounds better than the Houston Texans — a team that seems to have lost its identity on offense. All of that and more on the latest from NFL Daily!NFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Lions and all black, blue helmets moving from right to left. After the 20, shotgun, snap, handoff to Gibbs up the middle of the 25 to 30, a foot race to the 40, and the numbers of 50. Far side, 40, foot race with Winfield, Farside, 30, 20, 10, sideline five. Touchdown! The Lions have scored on a touchdown run by Javier Gibbs, streaking for 78 yards.

Oh, I love to hear Kevin Harlan on a Monday night recap doubleheader, the last one of the year. And yes, I'd love to hear a little offense on this night. Jemir Gibbs from 78 yards out, part of a 24 to 9 Lions victory over the bucks. Yes, on a Monday night that was full of defense. We're not going to start with the Texans and the C-Octas, frankly. Houston Texans do not deserve it. I want better for everyone who has stayed up late and is watching us live. I want better for Nick Shook.

It's 1.30 in the morning on the East Coast and we are going to do this thing. And yes, we're going to get to Jemir Gibbs and his incredible day over 200 scrimmage yards. But I want to hear from you first, Shook, because I thought that was an impressive, defining defensive performance from the Detroit Lions, a team that goes into their byweek at 5 and 2, and I think has told us early this year, this defense, even if they got no names we recognize in the secondary, is something to be reckoned with.

Yeah, at this point, the doubleheader, it might feel as if that was ages ago, but I can tell you that as the countdown ran down and we're playing all that hype music and I'm dancing around, I had to be filled with energy for how late this show is, right? That's what the energy that the Lions, brought to the field tonight. They're missing guys all over the place.

Terran Arnold, not out there. Brian Branch, not out there. A number of other guys, not out there. Doesn't matter. We're going to see contributions from guys we've probably never even heard of and some key plays from a well-traveled veteran like Arthur Mallett who makes an incredible interception. I mean, what an inspired performance.

Shutting down one of the most explosive offenses in the league. Absolutely putting the Buccaneers, a team that had made their reputation through the first six weeks on winning games in the final minute with crazy finishes powered by their offense, they put them in the boa constrictor squeeze. They squeeze the life out of them defensively and they come away with a huge

bounce back win in the very friendly confines of Ford Field to them and very hostile environment to the Buccaneers. A massive, massive bounce back for the lions. Love the early comments. Keep them coming. Someone saying that the Lions secondary tonight should be called

the Legion of Hume, which I like, but I've heard it before over the years. It's sort of been a thing over the years of these no-name defenses. And yes, I'm going to go through some of the names because Brian Branch suspended. Kirby Joseph was out with an injury. And then they're losing, they're starting three cornerbacks. So it just wasn't the ones we knew that we're going to be out, DJ Reed, of course, and Terry Arnold. But also, their slot cornerback, Avanti Maddox is out for this game.

So here's who played. Amique Robinson. Who's T. Harper? Is it Thomas Harper? We got the Arthur Millett you're talking about. We got Whiteside making plays all over the place. They're number one cornerback, and he's been good this year, and has had an underrated career, I think.

Rock Yassin actually got hurt in this game. So he left at one point. You got Hallett out there. I don't know who Eric Hallett is, but he's making plays. You got Lauren Strickland out there. And yes, they're going up against a banged-up Bucks wide receiver group that lost Mike Evans. to a collarbone injury in this game.

We'll talk more on that later. But they were just up in the faces of the bucks all day. And I think you give credit to the game plan from Kelvin Shepard by the Lions. You give credit to the linebackers for the Lions who have been fantastic all year. We've been talking about them, Jack Campbell and Derek Barnes and Anzolone. And then especially to that pass rush. and Aiden Hutchinson, who puts up 11 pressures according to PFF, I think, starting to put together a case just with my eyeball test for a defensive player of the year type of consideration,

at least midseason All-Pro. Those are more of the teams I'm thinking about now that were about six, seven games in. Just an awesome night where the Bucks couldn't get anything going. Eight first half drives shook for the Bucks, and it took until 25 seconds left for them to have a little mini drive to put some points on the Bucs. board. Yeah, and it was the results of the collective effort. You get 20 pressures from your front. That's a 37% pressure rate. That's how you knock Baker Mayfield out of his comfort zone. He's somebody who usually deals well when operating within chaos. But tonight, he looked sped up the

entire game. Once he lost Mike Evans, things got that much more difficult. And the lion's secondary was able to capitalize on that. They played cohesively as a defense. All the credit in the world to Kelvin Shepard, who clearly coached these guys up and had them prepared. When you lose that amount of defensive backs, typically, your defense takes a massive step two or three backward and you end up getting, you know, shredded by an opposing offense, especially one of the caliber of the buccaneers. Instead, you got plays being made by guys like Hallett. The only Hallett I know is Mike Hallett, the offensive line coach in Toledo who recruited me when he was a head coach at D3 Heidelberg University way back in the day. I never heard of this guy before, but he's out here making

plays tonight. And again, it's a testament to the resiliency of these Detroit Lions. And they were and able to step into this game in which they should have struggled defensively on a night when Jared Gough did not look comfortable and on a night in which 14 points at halftime didn't feel like enough like they'd wasted their opportunity to maybe bury the Buccaneers,

but no, the defense said, we're not dealing with that tonight. We're not letting that happen. Nine points is all the bucks, all the points you're going to get Buccaneers and those 14 points we scored in the first half, they would have been enough to win because that's how well we're playing football right now. Yeah, like you mentioned the missed opportunities

in the first half. So you have a Jake Bates misfield goal during the first half. You have a Jared Goff fumble during the first half that killed the drive. And then you had a fourth down fail during the first half where they went for it and they didn't get a call on a throw to Tisla, which Goff maybe overheated a little bit, but I think it was a penalty. And they didn't call it on the rookie. And so you're thinking, man, they should be up at least. You know, 17 nothing, maybe more than that. And then the Bucks get three points at the very end of the half on a short drive. And it did feel like, oh, man, here come the Bucks again.

They've done this again and again. And I don't want to move the goalposts and just point out how, yeah, like they're picking on the right tackle a little bit for the Bucks, who is a replacement, Charlie Heck. But this Buccaneers offense with those replacements put up 38 points in Seattle on one of the best defenses in the league. And for the most part, have found a way to get it done. You mentioned Baker struggling, and he absolutely did. Pressure was a huge part of that.

Let's actually listen to one of the key stops in the first half. I love a little Derek Barnes. Three receivers, right, one to the left. Mayfield's got it back and looking. Mayfield, side steps, rolling left, pumps once. Now he's going to get hit. Going to go down. Stack back inside the 35-yard line.

That defense converged on him. Derek Barnes wrapped him up and took him down. Love that call. We always got to get our guy, Dan Miller, from WXYT, on the call each and every week. And so, yeah, they were, they were just smothering. And we'll get to the, the Jemir Gibbs and what you were talking about with Gough. But I just kind of want to stay on this side of the ball while we're here. It was a bad game for Baker from the jump.

Mm-hmm. One of the many reasons I hate the MVP conversation, everything like that. It's like, it's going to change a million times. And Baker specifically is a guy who is streaky. And you've seen a couple times this year where he did not start off the game well. I'm thinking of week one specifically. But the Eagles game, too, was like up and down. And then he finds it in the end, right?

But tonight, he never really found it. His eyes always seemed to be down, kind of seeing that pass rush. He was just a little skittish, kind of jumping out of the pocket early. Reminded me a little bit of the Browns, Baker. Mayfield. I give more credit to the lions than really getting on Baker, but it was just a bad night. It happens. Great quarterbacks have bad nights. And I just thought he missed a lot of throws. Even when he had a chance to make him, he wasn't getting his feet set and he just missed a lot of throws tonight. Yeah, I actually texted my buddy, diehard Buccaneers fan. I said,

I don't think I've seen Baker this sped up like this since probably the 2020 divisional round game against the Chiefs. They lost an arrowhead, which was a long time ago. But it just felt like that. It felt like the moment suddenly was massive and as if he was struggling with the pressure of it, which was interesting. But I also don't want to excuse that because I know that he's had a great year up to this point. He had a rough night tonight. People are going to have rough nights. He's also playing without Chris Cobb and he loses Mike Evans in the first half, which then proves crucial on those fourth down attempts in the fourth quarter when they have nowhere to go because that's usually just a situation where he drops back and chucks it up to Mike Evans and

he makes a play. That's just what they do. And he's also without Bucky Irving. We talked about the offensive line, missing players. They've been missing guys up there and they've been shuffling guys around for most of the season. So it all would make sense that they struggled. It's just that on the prime time stage

against the Detroit Lions defense that we expect to have taken a step or two back because they're missing guys too. They flopped. Like they flat out offensively flopped all night. I'm not saying it's a concerning sign for them long term, but it is kind of, I don't know,

it gives you a little bit of perspective, makes you reset, you know, a little bit of humbling on a night like tonight where, you know, maybe you're not invincible. Maybe this quarterback who operates outside of the pocket so well, suddenly can't find those opportunities to get outside of the pocket, create with his legs. And it just reminds us that this is a long season and that these hot starts can kind of level out over time when you encounter this sort of resistance that the Lions presented tonight. They've had such a tough schedule on top of the injuries that I really do think you have to think big picture that they've managed it really well, still ahead in their division over. you know, the Panthers and Falcons.

I feel great about them winning the division still. Definitely. The schedule is tough after the buy relatively. It's like the Patriots, Bills, and Rams. So that's actually the toughest probably stretch in the remaining part of their schedule. But actually, compared to the teams they face, it's not even as tough. And then it softens up down the stretch. So the Lions and Bucks both talked in this game, hey, this could be a game for seating.

We'll see. The NFC, there's a lot of good NFC teams. But I think overall big picture that they have to feel good. Unfortunately, you know, the Mike Evans injury puts a cloud over the whole night. Amika Abuka ends up playing in this game and just didn't look 100%. I think powered through what was not 100% in terms of his hamstring. And he ends up with four catches on 12 targets tonight. I think most of that was Baker missing throws, but also maybe it's a Buka not being as explosive, fighting for things.

And long term, Todd Bowles confirmed after the game that Evans is expected to miss most of the year is what he said. Broken collarbone, it depends how the fracture, how big of a fracture it is when you can come back. There might be a chance that he's back for the playoffs or something like that. We'll have to find out. But obviously, a killer moment in the game, like it was on what could have been like a 50-yard catch and then he leaves. And I think the air got let out of them there. And it does lower the ceiling, I think, a little bit on this Buccaneers offense because you just, you can't replace Mike Evans.

And it's the end of that 1,000 yard streak. So pour one out. So one of the cooler streaks and obviously one of, you know, my favorite players to watch over the last decade. Yeah. And a streak that was extended last year with a really cool moment, you know, on the final play of the regular season, we'll always have that as well. But football is weird in that guys.

that you think will play forever or maybe guys that are approaching the end of their career and you think we get one more season with them, suddenly it can just vanish and that is the last you hear from them. I'm not saying that's the case with Mike Evans because I expect this to be a playoff team and I think that he will be ready, probably, hopefully, to come back and contribute to them. But it is going to make the road a little bit more difficult for them. They've proven that they are good at overcoming these types of adversity so far. But I do wonder, like at what Where's your breaking point? Where is your critical mass with this?

Having a Bucca on the field was important, but he obviously wasn't 100%. You hope that Chris Godwin's able to come back soon. You hope that Jalen McMillan is able to come back from the neck issue that he's been dealing with since before the start of the season. They are a very resilient bunch. It's just that tonight it felt like it was too much to overcome

combined with the performance of Detroit's defense. But, Greg, we cannot leave this as a footnote. We cannot bury the lead. Jamir Gibbs. I mean, my God. What a night for the running back, huh? he is so good that I think it's time for Who Delivered, presented by Uber Eats. And it's Jemir Gibbs.

You go over 200 yards from scrimmage, 136 and two touchdowns on the ground, and 82 yards through the air on three catches. And a few plays stand out to me. Of course, you know, the 82 yard touchdown, which was, I think, the fastest running back has run something like that this year in a, in a, few years on that touchdown. But also, there was an insane stop and start early in the game in the first quarter where Servassie A Dennis just flew by him. And like any mortal would have flown by him. I was just like, everyone's got their own style. And Bajon Robinson has some crazy stop and starts. But Jemir Gibbs has a certain sort of stop and start explosion. That's just next level to me. So there was that play. There was the fourth down play where he just powers through

three or four defenders. And I'm thinking, if David Montgomery has the ball in this play, I'll respect to him. There's no freaking chance he's going to get that play. And so you saw Jemir Gibbs on the goal line. I think he's tougher than people think. He really can do everything. And this game felt like it was coming for a while. They weren't consistent all night, but he hit some really big wow plays.

Yeah, you were talking about the fourth and one where the Buccaneers successfully string out the run. It was a perimeter run. And Gibbs just gets the first down, off, sheer will, like just, there's no reason he should be able to clear the line to gain. And yet he does as he approaches the sideline, which kind of just illustrates the type of night he had. And the other, the goal line run, you talked about, you know, he's, he's a violent runner, more violent than he would think based on his build. But what really sets him apart in those situations is his vision, because there's like a little crease that opens up there

that he hits. And then he would, most running backs would get stonewalled there because there's two defenders waiting for him at the end of that little alley. And he spins right around him and falls in the end zone. That's what makes him. special. Not only the fact that he's explosive and has incredible burst and top flight speed. It was the fastest speed reached by a ball carrier this season. That's the stat you were looking for according to next gen. But he also has phenomenal balance and vision. And when you combine all of that, as well as his ability to make a difference in the passing game, second play from scrimmage, he catches a 30-yard pass, which is like he's their opening

scoring drive. He can do it all. And I know that this is the best backfield in the NFL, but he is one of the best backs in the NFL too. And both things can be true. And it's a big reason why the Lions have had so much success offensively, even on a night, again, but their quarterback didn't look good. Yeah, I think they are trying to manage David Montgomery's situation carefully. He's a guy they love. But the offense is just so clearly not as dynamic with Montgomery on the field. I also think it really is great long term for Gibbs to not put too much pounding on. Like, even tonight where it felt like he was on the sideline too much, you know, he ends up with 20 touches. So you're going to have Jamir Gibbs

as fresh as possible. Like 20 touches is more than enough. So if you can pull that off, that's great. But ultimately, they're just a different team with him on the field. Hell, let's listen to another Jamir Gibbs touchdown. This was in the third quarter. And to me, really help put the game away. From the five of the Buccaneers, Detroit has it first and goal. Golf under center. Gibbs the back, The snap, this spin, handoff Gibbs, making his way, spins him, break the tackle. Touchdown, Detroit. Five-yard touchdown run by Jemir Gibbs. His second touchdown run tonight.

And he vaults the Lions on top of the Buccaneers, 20 to 9, four and a half to play in the third. Great blocking there. And I would say that the lion's offensive line is not what it once was. Yes. it's more inconsistent. When they look good, they look really good. But I don't think there is consistent play after play. But Jemir Gibbs to me is better than he's ever been.

And yes, that was who's delivered presented by Uber Eats. When football makes you hungry, get game day deals on Uber Eats, the official on-demand delivery partner of the NFL order now. And so I bring up the offensive line to just kind of wrap it up here in this game. to get to what you were saying about Jared Goff and the offense. I think the offensive line is starting to affect him. And, you know, he had he had a couple turnovers tonight, a very low PFF score, which did not surprise me like 45 in this game.

Baker was also very low. And I think, I think that was warranted. But most of Goff's yardage came out of, you know, really wide open Amon Ross St. Brown on the first drive. And it dried up after. that. They didn't do a lot. That touchdown drive was huge because it answered the one buck's touchdown drive of the day and then the defense took over. But it does feel like if you wanted to be critical, shook, big picture. We're seven games into this season. I think

Gough's best season in the NFL was 2023, right? You know, when they got that close. That was the best their offense ever looked. I think that was the best Gough ever looked. Gough was still really good last year, but he was not as good as the year before. There were more down moments. You know, he was still a top 10 quarterback. Excellent, but not as excellent. And then I would say so far this year on balance, I think he's taken another, you know, little step down. And I'm trying to be careful how I say it, because I still, if you're ranking him, I don't know where you have him in the QB index. He's still somewhere in the top 10 to 12. But I just, I just think they're passing game production and Gough in particular, it's just like a slow decline. Can I, can I say that

Lions fans? Is that a lot louder? You're going to just get crazy on me. No, you're fine with that. And we have three examples that would justify that. It would be week one against Green Bay, last week against Kansas City and today. And they all have similar themes in that three defenses that know how to get after the passer in a variety of different fashions. You know, Jeff Halfley, Steve Spagnolo, and then Todd Bulls dialing up tonight. Like, the reason that he was uncomfortable for a lot of the night is Todd Bowles did a great job of scheming up blitzers at the right time. Like, he's sending, you know, safeties and defensive backs from sides where golf never sees it coming, that sort of thing. And it's working. And that's something that they're

going to have to adjust to. And I think with this offensive line, having two new guys at starting positions, including a rookie and Tate Ratledge, like, you're going to get better at that over time, but it's not going to happen overnight. You're going to need the reps and experience. And also the examples to show on tape to your guys, hey, this is what this is possible. against this team or what we've faced already. How can we correct that and improve and adjust to that? So they can get better over the course of the season. And I think that will help Goff.

Goff is one of those quarterbacks, though. Then we know this, that you have to block well for him to really succeed and use his arm talent and everything else. If you don't do that, and really you've got to build out of the running game, which tonight it worked, but it didn't really carry over to the passing game. In most cases, against most opponents, if you build out of the running game, it will work because you'll balance out the offense enough, keep the defense on their toes. They're not going to be able to anticipate and dial up blitzes and just pin their ears

back and come after you. But in games like this, especially early in the season, they're just going to struggle. They're going to struggle with adapting. So I think you're going to see this unit get better in the back half of the season, and golf will probably play better. But he is a guy that very much needs an ideal situation that starts with the offensive line in order to reach his maximum potential. And we can just admit now, I mean, you lost your starting center who was like a pillar

of your franchise in Frank Ragnow. You're not going to be as good. And that's fine. And they might improve throughout the course of the season. And shout out to Jonesy, who says, y'all dedicated respect. I mean, it's late here, but it's 152 for shook. I love the energy that he is bringing. And the golf thing makes me think sometimes the team that actually does get over the hump,

this happens sometimes with Patriots teams, what happened with Colts team. It's happened with, you know, like the Aaron Rogers team that broke through and won the Super Bowl. Like, sometimes it's the teams that you don't see coming the whole time. And to me, my biggest takeaway from tonight, and that's, That's why I started the show. And really from the beginning of this season in the NFC, especially the NFC North is, I think the line's upgraded at defensive coordinator.

I'm test driving this day. I agree. And I think this defense really has a chance because when they get healthier, they got Alim McNeil back. We should have mentioned that. 45 snaps tonight. He was walking back those Tampa guards on some plays. He had a pass deflection.

He made a real impact. Al-Qadim Mohammed had eight pressures in this game. Continues to play well. I just think they might have something there if they can just get healthier on the back end and they should that there'll be a more complete team than the one that made it to the NFC championship game two years ago and then certainly the one that just got decimated by injuries and they they're just I love this Lions theme and I love that they're in the center of the NFL there's a question of you know from one of the viewers right now who's better right

now Packers or Lions I'll let you answer sure I don't think the Packers have put together one complete game this year. And Matt LaFleur kind of alluded to that today when being asked about Aaron Rogers of all things and their upcoming game against the Steelers. And I think he was accurate in that. They've had flashes. I think Jordan Love hasn't put together a complete game yet. Even the 40 to 40 tie, their defense, you know, was a problem in that game.

Their potential is maybe higher. We have less evidence to justify that. But the Lions, if I had to trust either team right now, I'm trusting the Lions for the reasons that Greg just laid out. Like, Helvin Shepard's doing a fantastic job as a first year defensive coordinator. I wanted a joke. Like, so are you saying he's like the 2026 head coach

to the Tennessee Titans at this rate? Maybe. Often that they lose their coordinators. So if I trust either of these teams, the Lions right now, Packers may have the higher ceiling, but they haven't proven it yet. Shepard does give a little Robert Sala vibes

in just in terms of, I think you're fired up on the sideline, getting in there with his guys, mixing it up. You can just see owners seeing him on the sidelines, and he's jacked and he's fired up. So that reminds me of Salon just being like, I want that guy.

That's a football guy. But better phrasing, no all gas, no breaks thing whenever he takes a job, please. Right. And he's, and he really is awesome. I definitely trust the lines more at this point.

I mean, the Packers could be great, but overall, there's another team we're just about to talk about in Seattle that's, I think, been as good or better

than both. of those teams and the difference that the lions have over the Packers is, man, you've got the culture. Tonight, tonight was a culture. You're able to coach up and bring in guys. Some of them have been on the practice squad. Some of them are off the street and you're able to put them out there. And I love what they said to Troy and Joe that like they told their players like, this isn't just for us tonight. This is for you to show the rest of the NFL and make a career. Like no one's ever heard of you and they went out and did that that's badass like packers put together wins like that for a few years and and i would trust you more and i just close the the circle here on this

lion's team second half of their schedule you know they got Minnesota at Washington and then they have a game against the eagles they have a game against the packers again they have an at rams there's just going to be so many days that the packers i mean in the lions but a especially the Lions, are just right there in the center of the NFL. And I know they didn't look great last week and they got to get through their game next week before they get to their buy. But I think they've managed their schedule really well, too, after that first loss to get here at 5 and 2. And they're set up really well. 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 philosophy's coaching, and how front offices construct winning rosters. Every week, we study the tape, talk to decision makers, and share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots,

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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 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 IHeart 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. All right. Let's talk about another team that is set up. extraordinarily well that I think has played about as well as any team in the NFL this year, although they just play with their food like a little too much and strung out our Monday night

to that we're going to be honking late into the night. Let's go to Seattle. First and 10, inside the 15, looks, throws, fired to the end zone. Ball is caught. Touchdown. Seahawks. Dunking it over the bar is Jackson Smith and Jigba. And flags go down because you can't do that as he grabbed the bar and that can make the whole goalpost wiggle and get out of alignment. But the touchdown stands. The fourth touchdown of the year for JSN from 11 yards out.

It was a journey that that call. And yes, it's been a journey for Jackson Smith and Jigba to go from the supposedly safe, solid, wide, receiver draft pick taken in the middle of the first round to a guy on Monday night football that I think said to America, I have been the best wide receiver in the NFL this year. That got them to a 14-0 lead shook and they should have won by so much more than 27 to 19. But you've got to give the Texans defense a lot of credit. I think we saw four really good defenses tonight.

The Bucks defense played great too. ultimately the Seahawks offense did enough to win 27 to 19 and yeah what the heck let's start with jackson smith in jigba because he finishes uh tonight not only with that touchdown but with eight catches 123 yards and uh no one's played better than him this year and he's playing the best secondary in the league and he is getting wide open and making just terrific hands catch every type of catch you would want to see what do you love when you're watching j ESN do work. Well, I actually just went and checked the stats real quick because I don't routinely check the leaders week by week. So those of you who think I just scan the stats

for QB index, you're wrong. I wasn't even aware that Jackson Smith and Jigel was leading the league in receiving, but I'm aware now. And I'm aware after the performance that he had tonight, it's no surprise to me. He has been Sam Donald's favorite target. They have produced touchdown connections like that one multiple times. That Buccaneers shoot out a few weeks ago. You saw that happen. It happened again. A big stone's throw from Sam Donald's fitting it down the scene there to find Jackson Smith & Jigba. He can trust him because Smith and Jigba came to the NFL with a complete route tree with plenty of experience gained and plenty of opportunity playing alongside the likes of Garrett Wilson

and Chris Alave and Marvin Harrison Jr. at Ohio State. He was ready. And yes, he didn't get going right away when he was sharing the receiving room with D.K. Metcalf. But guess what? You know why the Seahawks traded D.K. Metcalfe because they knew what they had in J.S.N. And now he's proven it in his first year without him. And Sam Darnold loves him. I, you know, I could sit here talk about them for days. But what I really love about this team more than anything is the courage that they had to deviate from the roadmap that most people thought was laid for them with Gino Smith, with the old regime that they had. They get Mike McDonald in there in the first year. He makes an offensive coordinator change. He goes to Clint Kubiak and they decide, you know

what, blow it up. Let's get the quarterback that fits our offense best. Let's take the swing and the big risk on Sam Journal. It is paying off. He is a perfect fit for how they want to run their offense, not just JSN, but also how they like to build out of the run, how they like to have the quarterback with his back to the line of scrimmage. Donald's owning it. And yes, they only won by eight points tonight, but the offense's potential and their production continues to be visible on a week-by-week basis. It's just that they ran into a defense that managed to keep the Texans in the game when they didn't deserve to be in the game. And they get another win that they deserve. Seahawks are one of my favorite teams watching the NFL right now, and it's for reasons

like that. I totally agree. And these teams that are surprisingly dominant so far this year. Seattle entered this game number one in DVOA. I don't know if the Colts, you know, pass them after this week, potentially, but they're the number one offense. The thing I love about surprise teams like this is, okay, you get to this point in the season, you're like, these teams are going to be around. They're going to be a big part of this season, and they're now elevated to if the Seahawks are in prime time, if the Colts are in prime him, although they're not much, but they'll be in some big 425 spots because they're playing so well. Now that feels like a big game and can they start passing these new tests? And

the Texans are not a complete team. They're a mess on offense. But this was a test for the Seahawks offense. And I think they, you know, I'd give them a B minus C plus in terms of their offense. But they turn the ball over four times. Like we can't go too crazy about them in this game. But they also were facing an incredible Texan defense. And it's a reminder, like, all these teams that are built around defenses, like, you better have at the very least, like an explosive offense to, to complement it. The Broncos, I know they're five and two, but they really don't. The Vikings certainly don't. The Browns obviously don't. The Texans obviously don't. The Texans obviously don't. a lot of these defense first teams don't have the type of playmaker that JSN and yes,

Sam Darnold is, and you're right, I'll wear it. I can't remember being more wrong about a take I was, you know, very confident in than the move from Gino to Darnold being a downgrade. And I'm glad you brought up the scheme because he does fit this scheme really well. and he's taken everything that Kevin O'Connell taught him in Minnesota and everything that he learned there. And I think you have to give him more of the credit because he's taking it to another level that some of the throws he made tonight early in the game. I know he made a couple mistakes late were awesome. You don't need him to be perfect.

Kind of like Daniel Jones doesn't need to be perfect. You just need him to make enough difference making plays. And these are not easy completions that Donald's pulling off. Yeah, but what really warms my heart watching Darnold succeed with the Seahawks this year is you go all the way back to his days at USC. And I think about that Rose Bowl performance against Penn State. And that was like his breakout game in college. And he made some spectacular throws in that game. I mean, it's a memorable one for USC fans, whether you're a Sam Donald fan or not.

And we didn't really get to see that in his NFL career until moments last year. But he was throwing to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. He was playing behind a rock solid offensive line. They had a good running game. you could, you know, blame it on all those other things and not give him the credit. He's earning the credit now. Like, he, that touchdown pass to JSM was one, but he also dropped one perfectly in the bucket to him down the sideline later.

He makes these throws routinely. From week to week, he's making throws like this. This is the talent that always existed in Sam Darnold that he needed the right situation for it to fully show. And it makes them such an enjoyable watch, like I said. And it also just makes me happy that somebody who has been around, the NFL for a while now, was at some very low points in New York and Carolina, was a backup in San Francisco, only got the job in Minnesota because J.J. McCarthy got hurt, is now finally

getting a real opportunity, the real faith from an organization and coming through. And yes, I know he made some mistakes. He fumbled in the end zone. He threw a pick down the middle. There was a great play by Derek Stingley. They turned the ball over four times. I don't care because he's still making the plays and propelling this team forward and combined with the defense that Mike McDonald's overseeing, they lack consistency in the run game. They're still one of the most consistent in one of the teams that I believe in the most through seven weeks now. And I've been on this train for about a month now because I don't think they're going away anytime soon. And a lot of it's because of Sam Darnold. A lot of it. It's Sam Darnold

supported. It's Darnold. It's the system. It's Jackson Smith and Jigba, who I think is just so subtle, such a good route runner just is so complete and it's more talented than people realize. it's a really good tackle combination in the running game and in the passing game, helping them out, although, you know, the running game's been a little inconsistent. And more than anything, it's the defense supporting it all. Like, this is a top five defense I expected it to be. And it absolutely is. And we saw it tonight before we get to that, though, you know, you mentioned that great throw,

the whole shot to JSN over Camari Lasseter in this game. And he also had a throw to Cooper Cup in the first half. half where what I loved was what he's done really well this year, just the subtle pocket movement to like move to his left because the Texans pass rushers did win quite a bit tonight and they pressure him almost right away and he shuffles up and to his left. It's not an easy throw to make and he just does it very naturally before hitting cup down the field for a throw. There was a throw in the red zone early where he gets it to Elijah Arroyo and Aikman pointed this out. I was thinking the same thing too where he gets to like his third read so fast.

And that's what he's doing. He's generally processing really quickly. Now, there were exceptions on this day. And one of the exceptions was the sack he took in the end zone. Yeah, let's give some love to the Texans defense. And Will Anderson. Let's take a listen. Darnold in the gun.

Calling for the ball. Here's the snap. Darnold at the go line pumping. Darnold in trouble. And Will Anderson has him down. The ball is out. And Will Anderson has it for a touchdown. Houston scores the Terminator.

That was midway through the third quarter. It was 176 at the time. That was Mark Vandermere on K-I-L-T. And this game just felt like it should have been over. So to go over it there, okay, the Texans defense scores a touchdown, way before the Texans offense scores a touchdown. The Seahawks are going in for points in the first half and they let Cooper Cup throw a pass.

Cooper Cup is now 0 for five as a quarterback, Shooky, in his career with one interception. I don't think they should continue that. And, you know, then they played pretty well for the most part on offense otherwise in the game. But then in the fourth quarter, yeah, had another interception with about like five or, five, you know, eight minutes to go, rather, that Stingley play that you mentioned. And so they just kept, like, giving the ball away. another fumble in there mixed in that I'm forgetting off the top of my head. But it was just like they kept, you know, just shooting themselves in the foot on a night where they almost had like a safety in the first half that should have been called. And they almost had a defensive

touchdown until they fumbled the ball. That was the other one that I was thinking of like where they fumbled the ball going in for a defensive touchdown. So like this game could have been like 41 to nine in another world. Yeah, it was a catch follow by Elijah Arroyo that was recovered by Aziz Al Shire. But yeah, that's what made the fourth quarter so painful. And maybe this is the natural transition point talking about the Texans and how disgusted I am with them. Because, oh, my God, you forced four turnovers.

You gave your offense so many opportunities. An offense, mind you, that puts you behind the eight ball multiple times in the first half by turning the ball over on downs in plus territory for the Seahawks. Like, you're asking your defense to carry the entire organization on its back. on the road in Seattle, and they're doing it. They're largely doing it throughout this game. And you get down to the one-yard line, and you can't punch it in. And I would not be shocked.

I'm not a fan of people losing their jobs, but I would not be shocked if they made a change at offensive coordinator because the way that they handled the goal-to-go situation in the fourth quarter, the way that they needed a heroic throw from C.J. Stroud to Woody Marks to even get in the end zone in the fourth quarter later, which at that point, you're like, God, I wish they would have converted the first and goal from the one situation, but they didn't and the way that they handled fourth and short earlier in the game by going away from CJ Stroud and when Nico Collins was out in the field at that time before he left the game by pounding it into a brick wall twice with an offensive line that we've known is bad that you've had

it proven to you multiple times over last year and the first part of this season is bad it is indefensible it is disgusting it is criminal to allow a team with a defense this good that is that opportunistic to not cash in basically at all in a game that is very winnable solely because of your defense. It drives me insane. The thing that kills me is they're coming off the buy week, and I know it's a tough matchup coming off a buy to go to Seattle. But your offensive coordinator had two weeks to prepare for this, Nick Cayley.

They were trying to build off some positivity they had in the last five quarters before the buy, and they got their pants pulled down. Like right away, there's just free rushers all over the place. right away they're throwing screen passes to Nick Chubb and it's going nowhere. Like right away, even when C.J. Stroud would make a nice play in the pocket. Nico Collins, of all people, is dropping a good pass that could have gone for a long play. Nick Chubb dropped a pass. Nico Collins, unfortunately, left late in the game to have a concussion check.

So that's concerning for them. But the coaching was so brutal. And you mentioned this short yardage situation late in the game. They only scored a touchdown in this game because they got 14 drives, Nick. I mean, that is a preposterous number of drives, including, what, eight in the second half. So it just took their defense getting the ball back to them over and over and over again. And finally, they barely got one in in what wasn't quite garbage time, but it was two minutes left when they scored in. It was basically over then.

And that wasn't even the beginning of the short yard of struggles. They had a drive stop in the first half because they couldn't get a third in one. And then earlier in the, I think it was the third quarter, they go back to back trying to pick up one yard. And the broadcast booth is just praying. And they're telling them, don't just run it. Don't just run the same running play again. They're loading up the left side. They got seven blockers for eight defenders.

and what do they do, Shucky? Let's take a listen. Fourth down and a yard. Hand off Woody, left side, and he's not going to make it. He's going to lose yardage inside the 40-yard line. It blows up, and the Texans on third and fourth and short can't get there and move the sticks. So they turn it over on down. You're the emphasis in that call?

The can't get there, it's like almost guttural. That's frustration coming out because they've watched this offense week by week. and they know that they just can't. And it boggles the mind that you would think that, oh, just because it's a short yard situation, we're in a default to handing it off. They did this in the goal line later too, where you're like, you're a yard away.

Cubie sneak. I don't care how much you value your quarterback's health. And I understand he is absolutely essential to your hopes of being a competitive offense, but you're obviously not supporting him in any other situation. You have one yard to get short in the distance between you and the line to gain. Please just make it simple because right now it was miserable.

I tweeted during the fourth quarter, I was like, the misery I'm feeling, I have no dog in this fight. I can't imagine how Texans feel, Texans fans feel watching this offense. It's terrible. They had a 20% success rate, by the way, on design run. So as bad as the passing game is, like, I get why they go so pass heavy because the running game just feels stillborn. It's brutal. The offensive line strategy, which I was trying to give them. the benefit of the doubt of the in the off season in arante erisory the rookie is really struggling it

it's tough but when you watch those plays one one thing that you see shook and you saw this on the near safety of cj stroud on what was that their first drive of the game actually where he's running backwards but there's four seahawks converging on him yeah there's like no texans blockers in in the field and that's my takeaway If you haven't watched the Seahawks defense enough, look, the, the Bucks got him. That'll happen to great defenses sometimes. They had a bad day. But what really gets me is just the depth.

There's just so many different types of players. DeMarcus Lawrence had a big game. He's great. Boy, Maffa, is a terror off the edge. Byron Murphy, like, blowing up screens is a very athletic defensive tackle. You know, they're still missing guys. Devin Witherspoon wasn't out there tonight. Julian Love in the back end wasn't out there tonight.

Like, they just have different levels to Ernest Jones has been great at linebacker. Like, I haven't mentioned who Chenna Nuwosu, who's one of their. They just, on any given play, two guys, three guys can win. And what a great way to play team defense. Yeah, plus there's the potential of rookie safety, Nick Eman Worry, who's starting to come around and is starting to make some plays. He looked a little lost in the first month this season, but I think he's starting to get his feet underneath him. He made some plays tonight as well. And like, there was a play where Leonard Williams drops in coverage and they throw a checkdown.

to, I think it was Braxton Barrios they had lined up back there, and he chases him down in the flat. Look, I know Leonard Williams is a freak athlete. He has been since his days at USC, but to watch a guy of that size move with that quickness and he was so light on his feet laterally and make a play like that, it was still blew my mind. And I know he's got that potential and has had it for years. That's the strength of their defense. And it's not, when I complain about the Texans offense, it has nothing to do with how I feel about the Seahawks defense. Because again, both things can be true. You can have a terrible offensive strategy and also be playing against a good defense.

This defense is just getting better by the week. And they're another big reason why I think, again, this Seahawks team is not going anywhere. They're going to be hanging around. They're going to be a player in the NFC all year long. Yep. They had six different Seahawks with run stuffs in this game, so that's like stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage.

Like I was trying to say, it's just, it's a spread the wealth type of defense. It's impressive. They're number one in DVOA. you know, I don't know what power rankings is supposed to judge, you know, are they the most likely team to make the Super Bowl? No, because the NFC is so deep. I think on balance, if I had to choose a team that's played the best, most complete brand of ball through seven weeks in the NFC, my choice would be the Seahawks. Now, they're in a really tough division. They're tied,

three-way tie with the 49ers and the Rams at five and two. It's obviously a, a really good conference with other contenders, two of whom played tonight and you have the defending champs. It's wide open, but they're in that mix. And hopefully that can be some solace to Seahawks fans on a night that we'll go down in Seattle Sports infamy, really. And it'll always be this footnote that the Seahawks played last night. If you were watching the Monday night football broadcast, it was crazy to see the crowd shots of all the Mariners fans that were at the Seahawks game and just the heartbreak kind of wash over them as they realized what happened in the ALCS.

If you're no overseas listeners and have no idea what we're talking about, the Seahawks, you know, played tonight at the same time as the Seattle Mariners who lost game seven trying to make the World Series. for the first time in their franchise history and they gave up a three-run homer in the seventh and ended up losing a great baseball game. Yeah, four to three. And look, as somebody who grew up in Northeast Ohio

and lives in Cleveland, I understand the torture of watching your team lose on the doorstep of the World Series. I understand the torture of watching your team blow a three-one lead in the World Series. But, Diox fans, Mariners fans, you're a loyal bunch. You got a big win on the NFL field and I know it doesn't matter as much as game seven of the ALCS did,

but you're good, group you'll be back next year hopefully for the mariners i i you do feel for like real deal fans because just one of those things i think it's great i watched they've i've watched they've been around for a while they've never got there i know and i get it's like if the lions lost which they did in the nfc championship it it it's a lot like that loss you had a big lead you're so close he and they have the idea that if they can just make it once even that might be enough that would be one great thing to celebrate and you can't even have that. I watched the Cleveland Guardians get eliminated at home

in the playoffs in person each of the last two years. And I also have one triumph in my life as a sports fan. It was when the Cavaliers came back from 3-1 in 2016. I understand your pain, guys. I do. You have to watch Troy O'Leary bash like eight RBIs in a game five Cleveland Red Sox in like 2002. Why would you do that to me when I was a kid? Why would you do that to me?

Sorry. Sorry. That was at the time one of my favorite memories pour one out for a big dumper in the Great Mariner's season. Okay, I want to bring up something crazy which is that our great producer Chris Babona put a poll up of everyone crazy enough

to be watching. If you're on the East Coast, it's 218. Good job by you, Shucky. And we'll let you go to sleep. We're digging deep. We put a poll up. Who would you start your team with that wide receiver? Now, I said that JSN has been the best wide receiver in the league so far this season.

The fact that more people voted for him over Jamar Chase and Justin Jefferson to start a team with is absolutely outrageous. And the biggest example of recency bias I've ever seen, or maybe, you know, it's just Seahawks fans. Time's on bias. Yeah, because what is it? 11, 1118. Pacific time zone. So we get more Seahawks fans in here. That's what's going on.

You guys are nuts. I would definitely play Jamar Chase over him. But he's having a great year. You got your game recognizes game. I think if I was starting a franchise, he is definitely in the top five now among receivers. The thing is to be a great like Chase in Jefferson is, and they're having great seasons, by the way, too.

You have to do it year after year. Those guys are first ballot Hall of Famers in the middle of their primes. And so you just got to see it more for JSN. But if he stays at this level for two more years, sure. Yeah, he's going to be right there. We will be right back on this show sooner than you can even imagine. Colleen Wolf and I will be in the studio. Really looking forward to that on Tuesday.

And in the meantime, we appreciate everyone who stayed up with us. And everyone just can say goodbye to double-headers, Nick Shook, maybe forever. It could be, this could be it. How will you celebrate the end of double-headers in the NFL? By watching one more game from this week and going to bed. And I actually understand why they're going away. Tonight, I think, is the perfect example of why they're going away. Yeah, that was a tough game to end on if it is over.

And they say it's going to be over if that NFL network, ESPN deal, goes through. All right, that's too much. We'll go into the night and we will see you on Tuesday.