NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Thanksgiving Recap

Episode Date: November 29, 2019

Dan Hanzus & Marc Sessler recap the Thanksgiving Day games, including the Bills big win over the Cowboys (4:25) and Jerry Jones’ postgame comments (10:55). The Heroes also break down the Lions loss to the Bears (14:55) and the Saints clinching the NFC South after their win over the Falcons (24:20).Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comNFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Hey, everybody. Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the 6th, we take you inside the game from breaking down college prospects and NFL rookies to evaluating team building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters. We study the tape, talk to decision makers, and give you a perspective you won't find anywhere else.

It's everything you need to understand the why behind what happens on Sunday. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Sticks podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Around the NFL podcast knows what a turkey hole is. Welcome to another edition of the Around the NFL podcast. My name is Dan Hansis and I'm joined in a garage that has just one hero. Mark Sessler. What's up, boy? How you doing? Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. Yes, it is the Friday morning. after Thanksgiving, and we have gathered here in the rented garage, usually the spot of the

throwback podcast that I do with my buddy Bob Cashone, my bosom buddy. But once again, on Thursday night games, we keep the tradition of doing it here in the garage. A little chilly, I got the space heater on. If you hear a minor hum in the background, that's because it dipped into the 30s in L.A. last night, and it feels good, actually. I like that. It reminded me being back in the Northeast. We're East Coast guys, and it's, I love anything that veers toward autumnal winter seasons. And I know we don't have a lot to complain about with the weather here, but this was a chilly evening into morning. No quid pro quo. No. No global warming. Okay. Let's go down that red. Save it for the political podcast. All right. So, yes, three games on Thanksgiving and what we're going to do.

It's essentially a, it's like a supersized minipot. So we're just going to talk about the three games that were played. The first game went basically the way we expected with little hiccups along the way for the winning team. The second game kind of rearranged some feelings about two different teams. And then the last game, a little bit of a blur. I wasn't drinking very much. I'd agree with you. I tied it on a little bit at the NFL media Wednesday night gathering.

You're in the Howard Hughes phase of your life now or we can't get you to go out anywhere, so you missed it. But it was a nice gathering, and I definitely hit the Tito's a little harder than I should have. And that affected you not for the first two games the next day, but the final game, that's interesting. I mean, no, what I was saying was that it was a little blurry, the third game, not because of drinking on Thanksgiving,

but because just ate too much food. It's also, you know, it's a long day of football if you're tracking those games. And I wouldn't say it. I'm in the Howard Hughes phase. Your fingernails right now, by the way, for the listeners, are each 17 inches long. I am, I'm not going out as much as I used to, which I miss. What I'm really trying to do is get you just to feel my absence

and have that effect your relationship with me. I don't know what I'm talking about at this point. This is what you've got to be careful with, though, in this new phase of your life. Yeah. That people get used to your absence. And then you just drift away. Yep, then I'm gone.

And then you're just wandering the streets. I think what you need to do is make the surprise appearance, which I will do. I didn't know. Had you gone to cozy, I would have done what I normally do from the house as play. You can actually manipulate the cozy jukebox from my house over an app, and I believe I once played it's raining men 20 times in a row. I could have pulled that move. Would that have been your choice again, had we been at the cozy? It's always the choice.

There was a listener that spotted us. We had the whole gang there, Colleen, Gonzo, Brassy in the house, Ricky Hollywood. Cynthia Freeland, I believe, showed up. Cynthia Freeland, I gilted her into coming. Eddie Spaghetti and his wonderful girlfriend. The whole gang was there. Who else was there? Thomas Warren, our buddy,

Lakeisha, of course, and Wes. And Lakeisha did get her hamburger at Hananos at the end of the night. As she will. She deserves. So it was a great gathering. And then a lot of football and a lot of Thanksgiving. We got ten people in the house. I fried a turkey.

in this garage, I believe you did. And I was concerned that I would be smelling fried meat products, and I don't, there's no trace of that. Yeah, we kept the garage door cracked open yesterday while that was going on. But there's also a little burn mark in my rug that will forever memorialize yesterday's activities. But anyway, enough about that. Great holiday, but now we spin forward. The season doesn't begin until after Thanksgiving.

So these games, I guess, didn't account, but let's get into them. Anyway, and let's not go in order. Let's start with the game that most people are talking about. It is the middle game in Big D. The Buffalo Bill's looking to make a statement, and I think they did. Five wide, empty at the Dallas 15, four-man front, shotgun snap. Allen, locked left side, checks down. He runs, sprints, pumps.

15, 10, 5 to the end zone line. He's in. Touchdown. Josh Allen. His eighth rushing score of the year. And with 3.37 a go in the third quarter, the bill's a dominant 22 to 7 edge on the Cowboys. Josh Allen.

Wow, buddy. Two touchdowns on Thanksgiving Day, including that rushing touchdown where he just, you know, that was a man. As you put it on Twitter, I believe, Mark. Yes, he is a man. So he scores twice, doesn't throw an interception. plays clean football more than can be said for the Dallas Cowboys who lay an egg at home in a really

important game for them. Final score 2615. Bills get the win. And yes, an important game for the Cowboys and we're going to get to the Cowboys. But I think it's almost, it's, it's unfair because even when the Bills have this quote-unquote statement win that everyone's been saying, oh, the bills need to be the team that matters after the game. And today, I'm sure everyone's just talking about the meltdown of the Cowboys anyway. So let's start. worth the bills and give them the respect they deserve because, Mark, they fall behind seven nothing in this game. Dallas makes it look easy. And, you know, it was playing right into you and I's lock selection. In fact, if I could pull up the tweet that you sent

me, Mark, as we locked up the Cowboys foolishly going into this game, your tweet after the first score was, our lock is going to fly today. And I replied, when Jason witness scoring, it's looking good. Wow, little pompous asses. And then what happens? The bills score, what, 23 unanswered points? And they just cruise. So what was your thought, Mark, watching this game unfold and seeing it spin away and the bills pull away, which nobody predicted? I thought the defense for Buffalo made a big difference. They forced a couple turnovers in Dallas territory of Dak Prescott. And that, you know, the bills have had a tough time. I thought all year closing drives with touchdowns and they got it done this time and they just simply seemed to and

we talked about it Josh Allen operating as a total raging man that that's how it was in this game that he used his brute power on the ground 10 rushes for 43 yards in an awesome touchdown run too and they just kind of squeezed the life out of Dallas and you know I understand that the cowboys are a talent team both on offense and defense where you want to look at these metrics. They kind of rise up to the top of the crop in both categories. But by the end of the game, it was West texting us saying, you know what? I'm kind of done with the Cowboys because they don't close games. And that's why we're talking about them afterwards, because of the way that Jason Garrett, and we talked about this on our preview pod, I thought was totally outcoached

by Sean McDermott. And the Bills, this is a signature win. And they're nine and three. And I feel like they are hidden away, couched away in Western New York, and no one talks about them. They played every single game in a row at 10 a.m. Western, West Coast time, over and over, you don't see them on prime time. This was the kind of win where suddenly they are on the radar because they dropped a massive death bomb on the Cowboys. It was. It's close to a death bomb for Dallas, but somehow they're still in first place at 6 and 6 in the NFC East. Yeah, this was the story around the bills that they had all these wins against teams that weren't any good. and seven of their eight wins entering Thursday were against teams with losing records.

But we talked about it on Thursday, V, this was it. This was the stage for the bills after years and years of 1 p.m. games that no one was paying attention to. Everyone was going to be watching this game. And now they're nine and three. And not only are they now a near lock for the postseason

barring a complete collapse, you also don't forget about the end. AFC East because they keep winning and they keep the pressure on the Pats who have a lot of issues. And this is a big thing to watch. I don't think anybody really is, but they have the Texans this week, New England. They look like a team with their issues on offense that potentially go into a slump. And then that leaves the door wide open for the bills. Do they play each other in the final four weeks? They play each other in week 16. And after that

Texans game for New England, New England has to play the Chiefs the week after. Now, then you get the Bengals and the Dolphins in there. So it's a tall order to suggest that the bills could win the division. It's not absurd. It's not absurd. The fact that it's possible here in December is, in early December, is fantastic. And the bills are one of the least reported on teams in the NFL. And this has to be the feel good operation in the entire league right now.

And they now get basically a half by, 10 days off, and they have the Ravens in week 14. I imagine there are people that will be out there and be like, well, yes, they did win, and this was a nice win, but the Cowboys, it turns out, aren't very good. Well, no one will be questioning anything about the bills if they go and play the Ravens and somehow win that game. But we'll get to that down the road. As far as the Cowboys go, the reason I lock them up, and the reason I'm sure you did, too, is just this felt like the game where because they are, or this is, I'm going through my mind

entering Thursday. They are a good team. Maybe they're not a great team, but they're a good team. And at home, after the owner sounds off and kind of puts everybody on blast, with the talent that they have on offense, that they would find a way to get this a win that they needed and move forward and move past, because that's kind of been a part of the story of the Jason Garrett era that just when it feels like the walls are falling in, they get that big win to get back on their feet. And in this case, they did not. And, uh, After the game, it's telling. So, you've got, of course, one of the best parts of Cowboys games is the Jerobox sweet shots,

and it was getting darker and darker and darker. And then by the end of the game, when reporters catch up with him outside the Cowboys locker room, he has tears in his eyes talking about what's going on with the Cowboys. Let's listen to that. This is not the time. For me, I'm looking ahead at another ball game, and I'm looking ahead. It went in four or five straight, five straight. and helping write a story that they'll talk about how it looked like you were down and out and got it done.

And I mean that. I mean that. That's the way that I'm operating. Every decision that I make over the next month will be with an eye and mind to get us in the Super Bowl now. Well, I think it's very clear that a coaching change is coming, and you predicted that as one of your post- Thanksgiving now that the league, now that the season matters predictions. And I suggested even after that that I thought it could happen before.

week 17 because of the way this team operates in the fact that you're going to get comments from Jerry Jones after every single game in all week long. And I honestly kind of felt for Jason Garrett watching him on the sideline. And just the, you know, he's one of these guys where you can kind of read what's happening inside on his face. And I just seem to be like a man in pain.

And they are lucky Dallas. And, you know, I tweeted this out that the NFC East is doubling right now as a a youth hostel for small clowns. And it's a mess. So you could still win that division. You want to talk about the bills winning the East and the AFC. The Cowboys could still win that division because the Eagles are punchless and have their own issues too.

But the overall direction and the inability to play up to the roster's talent is ominous. And I think we're looking at the final few games of Jason Garrett, who's been there for so long. And the problem is the B-line with Jason Garrett,

the in-game coaching decisions. the late game crumblings. That's been consistent with him throughout. And there was, you know, they were, they were, I think what they were trying to do if you're Jason Garrett was be more aggressive and show I'm not going to be this hyper conservative coach. They went for it on fourth down inside the 10-yard line against Buffalo and it was an incomplete pass by Deck Prescott was a killer play for them. And they, you know, they tried to do certain things that you would expect maybe like a John Harba of, a John Harba of 2019 to do. And it didn't work out because, and that's on the players. That's not all on Jason Garrett.

But the Cowboys, to me, are a one-and-done. If they get into the playoffs, they're just, they're not living up to their talent. And I thought they did a better job of that last year than this year. Yeah, it won't be good enough just to make the playoffs and go one-and-done. Now that we're getting down to the nitty-gritty, as it were, don't know what that means, really, but I use the expression. I think that's from a time when men were doing a little bit more man-work than we do. Man-work.

You mean podcasting in a rented garage as a man-war? I don't think that nitty-gritty-gritty. is something that we deal with on a day-to-day basis. Yes. Now that we have, it's a smaller picture. We're not above the treetops anymore to use some corpo jargon. There you go. They need to essentially, they're six and six. They got to go three and one down the stretch. They got to win the division.

And then I think for Jason Guard to keep his job, they have to then win a wild card game. And all of that, by the way, all that still feels plausible because this team when it's in its top gear can hang with a lot of teams. But also, maybe it's just not going to happen with this team. And maybe with this coach, and it's just time. we'll see. They get the bears who are now six and six at Soldier Field. I think it's a Sunday night game? That could go either way, too. And I mean, I'm with you. I just, I also, you win a wildcard game and get waxed in the next playoff operation. Is that really a pro-Jason Garrett moment? I just,

I think it's just more of the same. It's a Thursday night game, actually. I should clarify that. So let's say we'll be covering that game next week. And maybe that will be the game when we'll be tolling the funeral bells for the Jason Garrett-Dard. Because they lose that game. Well, they'll still probably win the division. I don't trust the Eagles to do anything. I don't either. The Redskins and Giants are already dead and buried.

It's a messy division. All right. Let us now move to the first game we watched. So take it away. Fourth down play. Blow surveys the defense. Play clock running down to seven. Now at five.

Blau gets the snap. He's back to throw. Blow is looking. Heaves it up off his back foot. down the left side for Gaudelaide, intercepted by Eddie Jackson. He'll go down at the 14-yard line, and Matt should seal it. Eddie Jackson, who had a pick six on Thanksgiving a year ago, picks that one off.

It should end the game. Bears will take over with 29 seconds left on top by four. Eddie Jackson seals the deal with an interception of David Blow. Did we get with this blouse? David Blow. Not only do I know his last name at this point, I would say that I'm one of the biggest David Blow fans out there. after what I'm a Blauhead. Actually, there is a Kendall Freer from Yahoo, our friend who used

to work at the NFL. She and I have anointed ourselves as co-presidents of the Blauards, a fan club that will be releasing newsletters monthly until 2046, no matter what happens to David Blow's career. Would this be happening if you didn't still have Gardner Minchu to root for on Sundays? She was a huge Minchuvian, and as was I, and with him out of the picture, we've quickly moved on to David Blow. You've got to wonder what the Minchu maniacs think about all. this. I think there's a similar energy with David Blow. I would have loved how to, you know, sealed the deal versus throwing that interception. All right. So Mark has another subpar quarterback to pump up. And we have a Bears 2420 win over the Lions. For all the Blauards out there,

a very nice job. The first pass on the NFL is a 75-yard touchdown. He got them, he had another scoring pass. So he played a really nice game, all things considered. He is a third string quarterback, though, and that started to show as the game progressed. And the Lions, a team that just has never found a way to win this year. Well, I guess you weren't saying that when they were three one and one or whatever, but it's just been kind of a nightmare since. They've lost eight of nine, and we'll see what that means from Matt Patricia. Mitch Trubisky was the better quarterback on Thursday at Ford Field. He had his best game in the season. In fact, this was the type of game, although imperfect, that the Bears kind of thought.

thought they would get on a semi-regular basis. He threw for over 300 yards. He threw three touchdowns. He made some mistakes, an interception. He also had that puzzling third-down scramble at the end of the first half, where he veered left instead of going for the first down. But maybe his hip and his shoulder and all those injuries play into effect. I don't think we should be judging the toughness of any man running towards 275 linebackers

trying to end his life. But anyway, nice job by Trubisky. Really, in general, I'll say this for Trubisky, and I think maybe the toothpaste is out of the old tube, Mark. Okay. You know, I've been using that one lately. I just like it. That works.

I don't know if the bears can talk themselves into Trubisky after this year, but he is doing himself a favor regardless by trending upward in the last few weeks, and maybe he could end in December hot as well, because 29 of 38, 3338, almost 9 yards and 10th, three touchdowns. The lions are a bad, bad defense, and a quarterback, and even an average quarterback should be able to have his way. So this is progress, and the Bears, I'll have to check out where we're at with the playoff picture, and I'll do that when I throw it to you, Mark,

but they're 6 and 6, and at least they, if you're a Bears fan, you're not going to go into December with a dream. Well, you mentioned they play the Cowboys, and they also have the Packers, Chiefs, and Vikings. So the road is rough. The road is rough. Well, I hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving. Yeah, I mean, it's just like that's the thing for me is the overall arc of some of these teams.

It's nice when you get this win on the big stage and everyone sees it. And Chubisky, you know, I tweeted out like mid third quarter that Mitchell Chubisky is a thing of the past. And I was proven wrong yesterday. Now, I don't know what that means overall because... Mark's getting choked up because he thought he had Chubisky dead and buried and now he's talking about him playing a good game. He showed up a lot of people yesterday, and there were moments where I thought Matt Nagy looked very steamed at Mitchell Trebisky at the end of the first half, and that was a talking point in the broadcast, too. This is a team with the highest percentage of three-and-outs in the NFL, and they've looked that way. But you got a big game from Anthony Miller at wide receiver, Alan Robinson.

They haven't really had their wide receivers show up consistently week after week. That has a lot to do with the guy throwing the passes. But they took care of Detroit, who tested them more than you would want. And if I'm a Bears fan, like, I don't necessarily know if this changes the environment and what I think about Mitchell Chubisky. Do you really go into next – do you want to be confirmed that this is your guy and you go into next season with the same problems? Is he growing?

Is he changing? It was a nice game against what has been a pretty bad defense. He also had a terrible interception. Darius Slay picked him off on a – what I thought was one of the – just a typical Mitchell Chibisky turnover type scenario. Yeah, it wasn't a perfect game, but it was progress. Yeah, that's kind of what I'm getting at. I wonder if there's, if Trubisky, no matter what happens,

if the Bears decide they have to bring somebody in. At the very least, at the very least, you imagine they'll look to upgrade over Chase Daniel. Because one of the big mistakes of this Bears season has been, they put themselves in a position where if Trubisky didn't work out, Chase Daniel is never really an option because Chase Daniel is a substandard backup quarterback, with limited upside, if any upside at all. So they kind of had no choice but to ride with Trubisky. But, yeah.

So, I mean, Trubisky is going to be the main storyline. You give credit to the Bears defense for tightening up. That's his first 300-yard passing game all year. And in 2019, that's an outlier. Like, these quarterbacks are throwing for 300 yards, you know, in mediocre games. And so, like, you're just not getting, I just don't, I don't really care sometimes about, like, You need the game-to-game production, and he's not reliably doing that for the Bears. And that's a nice performance yesterday, but come on, let's look at the overall body of work.

It's very concerning for a number two overall pick. I would be stunned if he's there starting quarterback next September. Could you see Cam Newton in a Bears uniform? I just can, and I feel like he'd fit that team. Someone that comes in and is a veteran that can give you a little bit of a different operation than. I mean, remember the carnival atmosphere about finding a kicker. Imagine what it's going to be like with the Bears and Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy finding a quarterback. That's going to be a major storyline.

Well, and I think because Ryan Pace picked Mitch Trabisky and probably wants to see this to the very bitter end, like you may not get a different quarterback. And he's under contract. He's under that rookie contract. And his trade value probably isn't high. Maybe he's a guy that gets floated in trade talks. And you can get a mid to late. I don't know. We'll see what happens with the future of him.

But the Bears defense, which has shown signs of the last two weeks, not that they were ever bad this season, but they needed to be dominant like they were at their best last year to help float this bad offense. And they haven't been up to the task, but they held the lines to just two field goals in the last three quarters of this game. I did have to ask you about what happened at halftime of this game because that early Detroit Chicago or Detroit matchups in general on Thanksgiving give you that halftime performance that gets floated out there as a big deal.

with typically performers that you've never heard of or you wouldn't go out of your way to watch. This was the Brothers Osborne. I felt for them because, yeah, I'm not sure exactly what happened, but there was like an electricity shortage or a blackout right before they started to play. And the Brothers Osborne, one of them, a typical lead singer-looking guy, the other, a bearded fellow who plays guitar and sings also.

So the guys should be cooking a turkey somewhere in Arkansas. They were stuck on stage and the cameras did not veer away from them. They just stuck on them. And they had to stand there and, like, deal with this a minute plus of energy shortage. And the fake crowd that they put out around the bands when they do these things, started just taking selfies. Make clear they're real people, but they're very much a fake crowd. It's a very fake orchestrated crowd.

But just the awkwardness level of that was, I want it initially enjoyable and then, to me, damaging. Yeah, the power outage at halftime. I put that in terms of NFL lore just a bit ahead of Super Bowl 47. I just thought in terms of, yeah. Yes. In terms of the reach, how people will remember it, how it will just stick in people's minds is like one of those unforgettable NFL moments, the Brothers Osborne Power Outage at the 2019 Detroit Lions 3, 8 and 1 versus Chicago Bears 6 and 6. I'll never forget it.

They battled through it. I give them that because they did perform the song eventually. Where was the power outage during the nickel back performance of 2011? That's when we needed less electricity. All right. Anything else on this game? No, I come out of here just very excited about the whole concept of David Blow, and I hope that he gets more starts.

And Matthew Stafford, look out. And I did mention the Bears defense. Roquan Smith, he was the absolute star. 15 tackles, 10 solo, two sacks, two tackles for lost, two QB hits. Oh, my goodness, that's one of the best defensive games. We'll see this season. All right. Finally, Thursday night football, Thanksgiving night, in Atlanta.

Three receivers left, one to the right. Ryan drops. Saints breaking five. Pressure and down goes Matt Ryan. The ninth second of the game for New Orleans. And what a way for them to clinch this victory. Cameron Jordan gets yet another. His fourth of the game.

His 85th of his career and the Saints are 38 seconds away from winning the NFC South. Well, he's working against the rookie, Cal McGarry, a hand swipe he knocks the hands away but gary has no shot cam jordan gets on his edge and matt Ryan is a sitting duck in the pocket he'd have he didn't have any time to find anyone down the field and the offensive line of the falcons another tough week Cameron jordan have a day the Pro Bowl defensive end finished with four sacks. One of I believe nine in the game

for the New Orleans Saints who had some issues with special teams down the stretch. Yeah, they're not recovering an outside kick. My goodness, someone's going to get fired. But because of that incredible pass rush or that horrible Atlanta offensive line or both, the Saints do hold on

26 to 18, the final score. And with the win, and this is one of those things, a benchmark you with any team would set when you could clinch a division on Thanksgiving, you are doing a nice job. And that's what the Saints did. They're the NFC South champions

at 10 and 2 in Atlanta playing without Julio Jones, who has a bum shoulder, who knows they might shut him down, go to AJ Green route at this point. They're 3 and 9. Mark, this is a nice moment, nice night for your boy, Tassam Hill as well.

Two touchdowns. And, you know, that lock I had where I said he'd get to 7 is very much in play. Where are we at right now? Five? I believe it's five. And he absolutely there's a shot because I think we're seeing that Sean Payton loves his versatility. And he also had a blocked punt.

I mean, this guy kind of does it all. He's sort of a Bill Belichickian dream. Like someone that can just-Hansom-in. Handsome in. I see what you're doing here, Taysam Hill. America's going to fall for you. When you want to drop a big sandwich proposition on someone, you do it on a handsome guy like Tassum Hill who's a bit of a wild card.

does it all. Very nice performance by him. Do you know there's also a fan group. I'm surprised because you're your wager that you wouldn't already be there, but I founded it with a handful of other women in the New Orleans area on Taysom Hill. I like that. That's the name of our group. I like that. Last night what I tweeted out was Tasty Hill because that's how I feel about this player at this point.

You were tweeting a lot last night. Well, it's like, you know, I had no family families up north. So I'm home and like I'm watching three straight. games. My fingernails are extremely long. My only way to communicate with humanity is your Twitter. There's Mason jars filled with a yellow liquid that's not gay-or-aid. You know, I'm really wishing I'd popped into that Wednesday night get together

because this narrative is unfavorable for me. So I should have done it. But you were tweeting a lot and Tasty Hills, another gem from the Sessler account. Tasty Hill, because he does it all. And this, I thought the game kind of just sort of played. You said it was a bit formless, I think. you mentioned or... No, I didn't. I didn't say it.

Well, no, at the top of the show, you mentioned that there wasn't a lot to take out of it. I just was like in a haze by the end of a long holiday. It was the perfect late game because, you know, outside of the Greg Rosenthal Falcons fetish group, like there's just a kind of played to script, I thought. The way that you'd expect in the Saints are very much alive still for not just a buy, but potentially the first overall seat in the NFC. If a couple things go wrong for the 49ers, New Orleans is right there. Can I just say this, though, and I like the Saints a lot, but I'm not like in love with how

they're playing the last three or four weeks now. They're a little bit, I don't know, a little messy, a little, not as sharp as you like. They're winning. They obviously had that hiccup the last time they played the Falcons, and they've won every game since. But I'm not seeing a team. When you look at a team like the Ravens or the 49ers, they're not doing that type of damage. And I guess it makes you think it plants a seed as.

of, all right, well, we got the San Francisco 49ers next week. Let's see if they can hang in that game. I mean, I think the Saints can hang with anybody. Yeah. But I think they just need to be a lot sharper than they've been in recent weeks. I think what I give them is, and it kind of reminds me a little bit of the Patriots who are not dominating people with blowouts and dropping 40 burgers on people, is they've got Sean Payton, who is a top two, top three coach in the league.

And, you know, whether Drew Brees has been in the lineup or not, they've been in every game. But you're right. They don't strike you as some sort of ruffian absolute juggernaut that's going to just take out anyone. The Falcons hung around in this game and the onside kick stuff was bizarre.

I mean, I... Young Wai, Koo, for the win. But he also, he killed them with Miss BAT's, I'm not sure I'm not mentioning. I mean, the glory is in the onside kick. In this era where they changed the rules to make an onside kick impossible to recover. and I think was the first on-side kick

that got called back on penalty? Was that a bad call, too? They ruled off sides, I thought so, but... He and credit to the rest of the special teams group. I don't want to just highlight one guy, but Koo put it in the exact spot. It was like a pinball wizard, like shooting it right in between, like,

the upback that's supposed to be the blocker, but putting in a place where it was before Alvin Kamara or anybody else from the hands team could get to it, that's a real skill. I feel like that should earn you a roster spot for the rest of your life. I'm with you, and I am sad to feel that this game that was not as much on your radar as you would think, because you had the glorious Mike Tariko announcing along with Tony Dungey and Rodney Harrison.

And Tariko, one thing I – these guys are not all created equal. I mean, Toriko is just a creative guy where the way he was describing some of that action late in the game in general. What a pleasure, and I feel like we've been robbed to not have him in our life as a play-by-playman week after week. There's a lot of, we've talked about it, off mic a lot, maybe on mic, but there's definitely a Joe Montana, Steve Young vibe with Al Michaels in the Montana role. And you have this guy, Tariko, who's an absolute all-pro, maybe even a Hall of Famer, waiting for his opportunity, and he's 25 years old, he's 26, he's 27, he's 28, he's 29. When is he going to get his chance to get behind the mic or get on the field to extend that?

analogy. I believe that Tariko will be able to make his mark, but he's waiting for Al's Al to step away. He's Tayson Hill. He's Tasum Hill. I'm on Taysom Hill. You are. You're on Tastey Hill. You're riding that hill. I think that maybe there's a little difference there. But I, you know, nice game for the Saints. And I have to say on the Falcon side, Matt Ryan shouldn't be playing if you can't protect him. That was an atrocity, what was happening at the end of that game. Even as you're trying to get, if you're in the, if you're in favor of the chaos theory, and you're just like, oh, this is going to be crazy. Let them go down the field after these onside kicks and get the two-point conversion. All of a sudden, you're in overtime and everybody's like freaking out on the Saints Island. But it was never felt even in danger because they could not protect Ryan, who maybe held the ball a little longer than he should on some of those sacks too. So it's not all in the line, but they just had no chance. And Cam Jordan was just running free. It was a turnstile down the stretch. It was wild, and that shy tunnel interception was insane. I mean, Ryan, you know, he, when you look at some of the mistakes you made.

Oh, in the stiff arm of Matt Ryan, get this guy out of here. I know. Protect this, man. And it's a holiday. I mean, we should be treating people better on a holiday. C.J. Gardner Johnson had an interception as well. So a sloppy game by the Falcons and a three and nine, it's funny in the NFL when, like, when the dolphins won those two straight and we're showering them with praise and then they get killed twice.

The Falcons are the same situation now. All that talk about, ooh, Dan Quinn's going to get his job saved. I don't know. Three and nine, you just imagine that there's going to be a change there. And the Saints played without left tackle, Toronto Armstead, who was inactive,

suffered an ankle injury. So they're going to need him back to be at full strength when these games matter the most. But just keep stacking wins. That's what the Saints are doing. And maybe they hit their stride. I think so. And, like, you know, again, Jared Cook,

who just looks like he's a tight end, but he's like a big bodied wide receiver that is fast in making plays week after week. That's a big deal to have suddenly back in the world of Drew Breeze a tight end that can make plays. Yes, and that was something we kind of expected to happen in August and it wasn't happening. And Michael Thomas, good job, buddy.

Held to 6 for 48. He's still ahead of pace for the all-time catch record, but now it's becoming possible. He finishes just a tick below. Which would be good for him. I just think that's the right thing to do. Right. There's things that are bigger than football, and so it is smart.

All right. And I have one other note unrelated to these three games. Okay. The Patriots released Nick Folk. Tough business in the kicker game. We're on Kicker Corner right now. He killed them last week. I mean, they won.

But he got an appendectomy. Oh, well, so there's... And instead of just saying, all right, get well, buddy. Egon. Maybe they're going to bring him back. Who knows? In that situation, I always wonder. is there a team doctor housed inside of the New England complex

that somehow had some sort of formula to create an appendectomy situation because then you don't look like the bad guys when you release them. Do you know who they signed to replace? I believe it was a former Browns kicker. It is a gentleman who like him or hate him. The guy's a pro, and he's finally back in the league.

Kai four bad. Oh, it's Kai. So now this is what you've been asking. That's what you've been asking for. It's a little bittersweet because I don't want any New England Patriots kicker to excel. So I'm kind of in an impossible situation here. But I'm just happy that this era of Kai balling is over and he deserved to be back in the league. Yes.

Nick Folk was like, you know, on a retirement cruise ship somewhere and they brought him out of two years of retirement. Kai should have been on this team already. So I wish him well. Again, I'm definitely torn because I hate the Patriots with every fabric. strange place, no doubt. But I do want to see Kai do well. So, you know, it's just with the Patriots, it's never, it's never simple. Well, it's, you know, you have to ask about the Kai locker room dynamic there because

that's something that's sort of been, you know, wherever he's gone, that's been an issue. So we'll find out. In fairness, the Kai, that's actually not true. That's just what I've been hearing. I had my reporting years ago that Kai's Kai. Yeah. But we've never actually heard it reported in NFL circles that Kai's Kai. I mean, if you're reporting it, to me, it is rock-solid information.

My report is, like, in life, guys, Kai. In a locker room, maybe because he's a kicker, he keeps his head down, and he's not quite Kai's-Kai, if you get what I'm saying. Well, I mean, 32 teams have decided that not until, you know, deep into the season, is he worth employing until now, you know, so. Well, maybe it all changes now. Four kickers for the pads. All right, that's it for the Thanksgiving recap.

We will be back as a foursome on Sunday night, recapping the rest of the week 13 games, so make sure you return for that. And everyone, as we turn to the Christmas season and the holidays, Hanukkah, your Kwanza, if there's any other category, I hit them all, happy holidays. As we prepare for that, I'm going to go get a Christmas tree. My in-laws are here, so we're going to make a whole, in other words, there's no break. There's no rest for the weary here. There's no rest.

There's no rest. And I hope that it's a nice tree. And how about you, just go back into the cave? Picking up the family from the airport in a few hours. So this narrative that I am, like, hidden away at home, as you mentioned, Howard Hughes for your is fault. We did try to get you out of the house three consecutive days. We couldn't do it.

We couldn't do it. I, you know, I was in a, sometimes you just severe a little antisocial. That's where I went. You went in deep cover. And now you get overwhelmed because the kids are going to be on fire to be home. They're going to be on fire. It's going to be, I miss them, though. It's good.

to be on fire. I don't know about that. We'll see. I mean, hopefully she will be of mellow attitude. We'll find out. All right.

Well, there's a lot hanging in the balance here. So thank you, everybody. And as per tradition for Thursday slash Friday recaps, take it away,

Dick Banks. Hands due to Mr. fancy pants. The flames need NFL news and here's their chance. It's ATL. Around the league, light of flame boys, pigskins hot tonight.

Burn, baby, burn. Hey, everybody, burn. Hey, everybody, Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Six, we take you inside the game from Breaking down college prospects and NFL rookies to evaluating team building philosophies coaching trends and how front offices construct winning rosters we study the tape talk to decision makers and give you a perspective you won't find anywhere else it's everything you need to understand

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