NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Week 14 recap

Episode Date: December 14, 2015

A room filled with some heroes - Gregg Rosenthal, Marc Sessler, and Dan Hanzus – break down all the Week 14 action including the Patriots climbing to the top of the AFC with a win over the Texans, and the Panthers clinching a first-round bye after shutting out the Falcons. Plus, the heroes check in with Around the NFL correspondents Conor Orr and Kevin Patra to get their takes on who wins the NFC East, and the Panthers chances of winning outLearn 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. The Around the NFL podcast. Making America great again. Welcome back to another edition of the Around the NFL podcast. My name is Dan Hanses, and I am joined by everyone filled with some heroes, Mark Sessler, and Greg Rosenthal. What's up, boys? See?

You know what? You got to write for what's up, boys. I know Wes isn't here today. and you're sitting to my left, which is thrown off the whole chemistry and the balance here right now. I'm not one of those versatile players that can play any position.

I'm going to be terrible today because of this. It is odd. I'm so used to seeing Greg in the distance over in the corner, and now he's looking over my shoulder. Are you feeling some pressure? No, I'm like you. I'm not versatile, and you can't move me around, and when other people move around, I start to crumble.

Listen, that's what makes us so great, our lack of versatility. Yes, this is the Sunday Recap show, our flagship show of the regular season, the Around the NFL podcast, where we're going to break down 14 games that we watch today.

Right? Is that the right number? That is the right number. Nailed it. Big Sunday. Another home run. Mark, I want to, before we get into anything, touch base with you,

you know, we do the NFL game day blitz on NFL now every Sunday. You were bumped today. They rolled in Larry King and put him, propped him up on the couch, and he spoke, instead of you, was this a career low point? It was concerning, but if, you know, 50 years from now I bum someone to be on television, I would consider it revenge.

That would be five decades from now because that's how old he is. Well, but Larry King is a TV legend. You can't feel bad about getting bummed for Larry King. You know, he did the dab, which, you know, enough of the dab at this point. And they put that thing on NFL Network from Game Day Blitz. That wasn't happening if Sessler goes on there, How do you know? Mark could have come on and said something wild. Well, I never would have done the dab to start with, so I think that's fair.

Yes, there is a lot to get to today, and another day where, you know, now we're in the middle of this playoff push. A lot of things going on right now, a lot of big injuries to talk about coming up. Steelers, bangles, we're going to talk about, and the injury that could change the AFC. We're going to have two phoners to use little industry lingo. our old friends, Connor Orr, our New Jersey correspondent, and of course, Kevin Patrick coming at you. It's been a couple weeks since we had Kevin, so we've got to get him on, talk some games that they watched.

And finally, Sunday night football, we go live from the throne of ease in Houston where the Pats and Texans squared off. Greg, always upset when they flex the Pats to Sunday night so you don't get to give the game the attention you feel it deserves. Well, plus the shipping costs for the throne to get it down there to Houston. Not on your dime, though, so not a major concern of your...

Listen to Greg, by the way, everything, and we'll get to this, but everything that could break Throne of E's way, it did. Here we go again. It's just the same thing over and over again. For eight months, we've said what were the Patriots would do?

They go 12 and 4. Roll right into the playoffs and go to the Super Bowl. Oh, yeah, because the season's over now. If I've learned anything, we should make a long-term judgment based on one week's events. No, no, it's not one week, it's 15 years. And at this point, we know what's going to happen.

The season just plays out as a sad procession of known events, and we just sit by and watch and commentate on it. Oh, he's right. Save it for the Patriot. And, of course, before we get to the first game, this is our Sunday show, which means you could watch this on YouTube or NFL Now, but of course you could also listen to it.

You probably are right now, if you're hearing, that would make sense. You could comment on YouTube, maybe. Maybe some smarter comments on the old YouTube comments. Let's not ask too much. We get great comments on iTunes. Let's get some better ones than you. The YouTube comments section is basically a cesspool of humanity, I find. But if our listeners, who are all smart people, want to get involved, got to speed.

Let's get to the games. Let's start in the AFC North in what was a showdown, or what we thought was going to be a showdown. And I thought the football world, we got cheeses. in this one because a worst-case scenario played out for the Bengals who lost Andy Dalton to a potentially season-ending thumb injury, then got beaten their building by the Steelers 33 to 20. Greg, the Bengals are still 10 and 3, still have the inside track in the AFC North title, but this is a disaster for a Super Bowl contender. Imagine at the beginning of the season feeling like Andy Dalton is so good, he's so valuable,

that the team's Super Bowl chances are all going to go up and smoke just because, He's injured, but that's what it felt like today. What a costly play that he got injured on. He got injured on an interception. So he hurts his thumb. The Steelers pick it off, ends up being a big play in a game that was a little tighter than the score, and A.J. McCarran comes in. Now, I thought Agent McCarran showed some things.

He made four or five really good throws. He had a pick six that hurt him. He had another interception at a key point of the game, so that you've got to cut that down, obviously. But 32 passes, 280 yards. I watched that game, and I thought they can win games with AJ. McCarron against the bad teams. So if there's any chance that Andy Dalton could get back for the playoffs, I think McCarran can get him there with the division title.

Well, and they play the 49ers and Ravens, but in between that is a Broncos game that the Steelers also played Denver. And it's crazy to think after the way that the Bengals have performed this season at a peak level, far beyond what any of us possibly thought they could do, that Pittsburgh could still win this division. Well, but only because the quarterback just broke his thumb. I mean, it's the worst possible luck for the Bengals in a franchise that deserves better. They've had bad luck for years upon years.

And for this to happen, I don't know. It's just like, you know, West talks about how this season has been a real bummer with all these injuries. And this is just another one. Dalton was going to be one of the really fun subplots. And maybe he comes back. Who knows? But he was going to be one of the really fun subplots of January. Now is a good chance that that's just not going to happen.

I totally agree. I think this is the best Bengals team since the 80s without a doubt. Maybe even better than that second Bengals team that made the Super Bowl in terms of a complete game. And you saw it today because even though they were down early, they were down 7-0 when Dalton threw that interception, it ends up being 13-0. This didn't look like two uneven teams, even with McCarran on the field. The Bengals had more total yards than the Steelers in this game. They moved the ball up and down. The defense did a pretty good job against Pittsburgh, who only had 350 yards.

They've been lighting it up. DeAngelo Williams held for 70s. They kept plays in front of them, but the Steelers made all the big plays when they needed to. I'm not trying to say the Steelers were held in check. When they got a turnover, they converted it quickly. They had a comfortable lead, and I think they played it a little safer maybe because McCarran was in the game. Yeah, I mean, we see no evidence of Pittsburgh slowing down on offense at all, despite losing Levion Bell, D'Angelo Williams, has stepped right in. They're passing games insane.

With Sincere, did they have to change the scheme or the playbook with McCarran in there? Well, they were trailing by two scores most of it. really run the ball. They ran 16 times for 64 yards. They fell behind so quickly because Ben Rathlisberger was aggressive. I mean, to me, one of the key plays of the game is third and one on the first drive and he goes down the field 31 yards. That just sets the tone. He hits another third and 10 later that drive. The Steelers gave up some chunk plays to the Bengals. I don't think they changed what they did because McCarran was aggressive. I mean, he had a bomb to AJ Green. He had a couple nice 20, 25-yard throws up the seams. He didn't look that bad. I watched

that and thought, well, maybe they have a chance. He's certainly confident. He referenced himself potentially as stepping in the way that Tom Brady did back in that Super Bowl. I saw that's going to be a thing where he gets heat for that, but I don't think that's fair. No, he didn't mean it in a bragging way. That's how he's going to get buried

for that, though. No, I think what he was saying was, I'm better than Tom Brady. I'm going to win the Super Bowl. I'm A.J. McCarran. Have you seen my wife? I'd be confident, too. Have you seen my tattoos? My absurd chest tattoos. I'm looking forward this week to the hot takes like,

well, this guy's got the tattoos not like a franchise quarterback, you know, like Colin Kaepernick took back in the day. I mean, this guy is not a true friend of his quarterback. Better than Brock Osweiler's tattoo. Did the Steelers win the AFC norm? No, because the Bengals are still two games up, and that's only with three to play. The Steelers still have to go win in Denver,

or they got to win against Denver, rather, in Pittsburgh. So that's a tough game. The Bengals, all they have to do, is beat the Ravens and the Browns, as you say. And they might just have to win one of those games. And I think, like I said, what we saw today, there was talent up and down this team on defense. I think they can do it against the bad games.

I like that you're all in on A.J. McCarran. I'm not all in. Carrying in the water here. Well, he's all in on A.J. McCarran dealing, playing New England in the playoffs. I think he likes the idea of that. That sounds good. But Pittsburgh has a chance now to win the division.

And it's just getting harder and harder to imagine them not making a wild card. But that next game against the Broncos is. tough. Then they lost Tyler and Eifert to a concussion as well, so we don't know what's going on. A lot of bad news in Cincinnati. It's, it sucks. It's terrible. It's especially for a fan base that, uh, were they on the fan, pan, ring? Yes. Oh, absolutely. And, and this is another, if, if, if this plays out, and there are some reports that Dalton won't return, that's not been confirmed by our guys, and we think that's up in the air right now, if he doesn't play again this season, I mean, that goes down as one of the more painful things to happen. Remember, the last

time they had a great team was 2005 when Carson Palmer blew out his knee in the first drive of a playoff game against the Steelers. When these two teams played, remember last year, LaVian Bell and A.J. Green got injured the second time

that the Steelers and Bengals play, and neither one of them ended up playing in the playoffs because of that. There's just some bad voodoo. Moving on elsewhere in the AFC, Khalil Mack. Ladies and gentlemen, Khalil Mack had a superstar coming out party

in Denver. He piled up five sacks of Brock Osweiler, and the Raiders is upset 15-12 win over the Broncos. Mack put the clown suit on poor Michael Schofield, tying a team record for sacks in one game. Howie Long was the previous guy. The Broncos, meanwhile, they may have just kicked away home field advantage in the playoffs. Stunning turn of events in this game. And the thing that was the craziest about it, a lot of crazy things in this game. And Mac was a game wrecker. which was really interesting to see. He now leads the NFL in Sacks, or at least that game ended. He had 14, putting him ahead of Watt,

was that this was total yardage at halftime was 224 yards for the Broncos negative 12. What? For the Raiders at the half. That's got to be the only time all year that a team had negative yardage at the half. That's outrageous. And the difference was the Broncos kept kicking field goals

in the first half, got four field goals from Brandon McManus. So it was 12-0. The Raiders get back into the game with a touchdown on the first drive of the third quarter. And then it becomes kind of a rock fight. Eventually, the Raiders recover a fumble on a muffed punt by Emmanuel Sanders. They score the go-ahead touchdown and go up 1512.

They trade miss field goals. And that's it. That's all she wrote. Mack did the rest. Give it to Greg because Greg predicted this win last week. I don't think this is necessarily how. If only Greg was still in their prediction business. If only so.

But I don't know. Headlines from the future. That counts. Is this how you would have, I'm not sure this is how you would have said it would play out, though. No, I was going to say they'll get out gained by a couple hundred yards. It'll be the craziest game you oversee, and that's how they went. I mean, from what a little I saw of this Denver game, they could not, C.J. Anderson, not on the field. They could not run the ball. And if you're Brock Osweiler, I don't blame the game on Brock Osweiler when you were getting zero protection. But you can't put it all on him when you can't run the ball if you're Gary Kubiak in that offense.

No, but he missed. They all had a part. Demarius Thomas had one of the worst games by a superstar receiver all season. Since he had one two weeks ago. That's true too. He had a couple drops. He had a fumble in the game. He had a drop that killed a fourth quarter drive. He really struggled. Brock Osweiler also had a wide open touchdown at one point, I believe at the end of the first half, missed that throw. They had a lot of unforced errors. And then you think back to last week

against San Diego when they only scored 10 points on offense. And you really kind of think about this Brock Osweiler run and they've run the ball better but that's kind of stopped now that at least did today against the Raiders you know they didn't move the ball for three quarters against the Patriots he's really put together a couple good quarters here and there are not saying

they're a bad team or anything but the offense is better with Brock Osweller it's not been great well he misthrows in every game but I think that's to be expected of a guy who's just been thrust in the position I don't want to hear the nonsense about putting Peyton Manning back in there because What would Peyton Manning have done, Dan?

That's not going to happen. No, that's not going to happen. I mean, Osweiler wasn't perfect, especially in the second half, but that was really a function. The meltdown was a function of just their inability to run the ball. And Demarius Thomas, yeah, he had a terrible game. I mean, he had a bad drop. He lost a fumble. And then Vernon Davis, who has found a way to have a role in this offense, one of the key plays in this game in the fourth quarter,

he was wide open on fourth down probably would have been a 20-yard gain would have put them in Oakland territory down three with about four minutes to play he just drops it I mean this is the type of stuff that cannot happen especially when you got a young quarterback you can't you can't let him down like that so Ossala wasn't perfect but he was not to blame

Peyton Manning would not have done any better in this and they still you know they lose control of the potential number one seed in the AFC which is big but they still know they have Bengals you know coming into Denver you've got a big Pittsburgh game coming up. The problem is they had that schedule where they knew they had two really tough games.

You figured you would take care of business and the other two. Now it gets complicated. I mean, you have to play two good teams in a row in terms of the Steelers and the Bengals. You don't want to fall out of that buy spot. And for the Raiders, they stay in the mix at six and seven. No one thinks they're going to the playoffs.

But I just think that they're stacking up these feel-good moments. Cars had plenty of them. And now for Khalil Mack, who is number one on our making the leap list before the season. And we weren't exactly out on a limb with Cleomack. He was a great last year. But our point was he was going to go from great to a superstar to one of the best players in the league. And I think he's done that.

Yeah, I mean, from Premier Run Stuffer to someone that had another element to his game, and he's done more than that. But what about Marquette King? I, uh, Hunter. Marquette King, the punter, had the best game by a punter in the history of professional football. No, really, he punted 10 times in this game. He put five of those inside the 20. He hung one way up at the end of the game of 55-yarder that led to Emmanuel Sanders the muff

that set up the game-winning touchdown. He also put a punt inside the five-yard line that led to a Khalil Mack strip in the end zone for his safety. He put, listen, this was Khalil Mack's special day, but the punter. Marquet King, I mean, you've got to be special to get into this show as a punter. But we've got to think of something good to talk about

on the Raiders when it's amazing. They win a game where Latavius Murray has 1.7 yards per carry and their three leading receivers all under 50 yards, Michael Rivera, Clive Walford, and Seth Roberts. So they don't get anything out of their big names, and they still find a way to win endeavor. This Denver team's, I mean, this Oakland team's been a lot of fun.

Amari Cooper has hit a wall in the past three weeks now. I think he has 10 catches on 20 targets, no touchdowns. But as long as you got Cleal Mack, life is good. And a lot of drops. You know, Broncos fans are probably feeling pretty low, too, right now to have this type of game. And yet, I still think this is a team. I think this AFC as a whole is a lot closer top to bottom. And I'm including the Patriots in that than the NFC.

Like the three best teams in the league might be in the NFC right now. And you look at some of these good wildcard teams in the AFC. You look at the Broncos and Bengals have their troubles. Even the Patriots have injury troubles. And I think like anything can happen in this AFC playoff. Why not? Let's move on to Kansas City where the Chiefs, they didn't get a strong game from their offense on Sunday.

But the defense was good enough to carry the day. It was a 10-3 win over the Chargers. Linebacker D. Ford had seven tackles and three sacks. Monster Day. It's no Khalil Mack Day, though. Let's be honest. And the Chiefs made a goal line stand. In the final seconds, seven straight wins.

They're eight and five. And they hold one of the wild card spots. The Chiefs, listen, this is one I'm watching as a Jets fan. You were disappointed. Yeah, hoping the Chargers can steal at the end. They almost stand. And I get a feeling. Greg, you and I talked about this downstairs.

if they punch it in, and they nearly did on the last play of the game, I think they go for two there, just get out of there, get out of town to an 11 to 10 win, and all of a sudden the chiefs are in trouble in the AFC. Well, you've got to convert those two points, and there's not a lot of reason to believe that Melvin Gordon is going to run that ball, and he had 35 yards on 14 carries. And this is the third time now in four weeks that Philip Rivers and his team has only scored three points.

And that offensive line has killed them. But you guys pick on my QB index sometimes. It's time to start moving Philip Rivers down the list. Well, and it's not, whether it's his fault or not. I mean, he's throwing the ball to his two tight ends and Danny Woodhead at this point. There's not a lot of vertical elements to that offense. And there's just, I mean, if you're Philip Rivers, he played the game with the flu, he did the best he could.

But you thought that you brought in the next Ledany and Tomlinson or a real game-changing running back that's not been the case. Everything that this, it's weird to see what's happened with San Diego over the last two years. Mike McCoy looked like a guy. on the rise as coach. Now I got to wonder if he even keeps his job. Probably doesn't. I think this is a reminder. I think he keeps, well, we'll see. They kept the GM and they came in together. They have a close relationship. We'll see. But this is a game that should make Steelers and Jets fans feel like, okay, this Chiefs team's good, but they're not unbeatable good. They have to win 10 straight to win out, which is just such an impossible thing to do.

They do have easy matchups the next couple weeks with At Ravens, then home for the Browns and the Raiders. Raiders is certainly not a simple game for them. And I don't think this Chief's team is so good that they can just count on winning any game that they just show up for. Other than the last seven. By the way, Jeremy Macklin, not that it was all about Jeremy Macklin today,

but we made fun of that contract when they gave it to him, the Superstar Con, he has been worth that money. He was six for 68 today, but on a day when you're not really throwing the ball that much, just to have that competent of a number one receiver, he's had a really good season. And now joining us on the, the line. He is, you know, live from a haunted mansion in a rural New Jersey. He pays a mortgage. He

is. Connor, or welcome back to the Around the NFL podcast, Connor. What's happening, guys? What's up? Good to hear your voice. As always, a member of the family, the Around the NFL family. I'm just going to take one guest, Connor. You're playing Madden right now. Oh, you know it. I mean, you know, like you said, there's a lot of goings on. You know, a GM never, leaves. Yeah, we will. We're going to have to have you on maybe, whether it's this week or soon down the line to get an update on your franchise. Of course, you are in the process of uprooting within your Madden world. You're uprooting the Patriots and maybe relocating them to perhaps even a different country, building around Griff Whalen as your franchise player, all stuff that's going on right now. We'll get to that down the line. But right now, let's talk about the game you watched and covered for around the NFL on Sunday. it was the Carolina Panthers who are still perfect. Cam Newton and company clinched a first round buy in the playoffs. A 38 to zip wipe out of the DOA Atlanta Falcons.

What a joke the Falcons are, by the way. Get it together. The Panthers are now 13 and 0. Connor, was this as one side and as the final score indicates. Yeah, I mean, it was the most effortless win that I've ever seen, at least this season. I mean, Cam Newton was converting second and 20s with just a flick of a risk. There was no one within 10 yards of Greg Olson. I think that was on the first or second drive.

And, you know, the Falcons were just, they were done at halftime. And, I mean, they could have canceled the rest of the game. Forget about it, by the way. The Falcons pulled off the impossible. They started 5 and 0. And by Christmas Eve, we won't even think of them anymore. They've managed to become irrelevant in a shorter period of time than you could have ever thought possible when you win your first five

games. Yeah, and it was weird. I mean, you know, there was a moment and even kind of the analysts noted it during the game where, you know, they were down 21-0, and they're about to get the ball. And like, you know, Dan Quinn just called like a meeting, like almost an entire team meeting on the sidelines. Like,

guys, could we please just, you know, can we please just stop this for like one second, like four touchdown? I'm somewhat competent. I mean, there was like a level of panic, like, holy crap, this is way harder than I thought it was, you know? And I feel like, They're really in the thick of some ugliness right now. It's amazing that, you know, going into this season, there's a great debate.

Like, who's the best quarterback in this division? Is it Matt Ryan? Is it Cam Newton? Is it Drew Brees? And you look at where Matt Ryan is right now and where Cam Newton is right now. Kim Newton only had to throw 21 passes to have 265 yards and three touchdowns. That is efficient. I always see people use the word efficient when they're just lousy.

Oh, he was efficient, 15 for 25 or 155 yards, and they won 13 to 10. Now, that was efficient. Every other throw he has is deep down the field to Ted Ginn for a touchdown. And we're making excuses, by the way, for Matt Ryan at this point. I know he doesn't have the same players around him this year, but he's having a bad year. And Greg's QB index should reflect that. Please. I think that Matt Ryan right now is sort of at, like, 2013 pre-Kevind Gilbert firing, like, Eli Manning,

just desperation flailing at this point, you know? Like, he's just sort of like, whatever. I mean, this isn't working out this year. We're just going to go to the field. I love any Connor callbacks to his beat in his previous light. Before we let you go, Connor, I do want to mention and bring to light, you know, something that might be a little bit embarrassing, but it's important just in terms of us being open and with our listenership.

You have, we do our picks, obviously, every week, and Panthers have won all 13 of their games. You have picked against the Panthers 11 out of 13 weeks this season. And this is absolute madness. And when is it going to end? I don't know. I mean, next week you got the crafty giants coming to town. And, you know, just don't know. I mean, the Giants almost upended the undefeated Patriots

before they came down to the Super Bowl. I mean, I love it. This is a bonus baby pick this weekend. I'm taking it to vague. This was the worst possible pick you could have ever made is picking the Falcons in this game. And they lose 30. It's the worst pick.

our group is in battle with another editorial group in the building, and Conner's picks are attached to our group effort, and he is an anchor taking our ship under the sea at this point. I did some math, too, and if Connor would just pick like a normal human being, he would essentially be tied with Mark and I picking about 60% of the game's correct. Instead, he is. He is the anchor, or maybe the iceberg and wear the Titanic. Anyway. Well, all right.

You know, next week I'll just cut all the sandwiches off my bread. I'll live a boring life. Start picking him because they're going 16-0. They're not losing to the lousy giants or the falcons or the bucks. They're going 16-0. It's such a great story. All right, Connor. We'll let you go.

You've got a mortgage to pay and a house to defend from Goblins. So we'll catch up to you a little bit later and talk to some Madden, all right? All right. Good night, guys. Later. See, Connor. All right, Connor is out the door. Let's move on and talk another NFC battle here.

This between the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers at Lambeau. Of course, the Packers haven't been the Packers at home this season. I even, you know, some buzz. I saw it around the NFL post about it's not cold enough at Lambeau Field. Is that hurting their home field advantage? Anyway, forget all that. The Green Bay Packers are alone once again in first place in the NFC North following a 28 to 7 win over the Cowboys.

This is Mike McCarthy's first game back as the play caller. He took that gig back and the Packers leaned on. James Starks and Eddie Lacey, who both had very nice days in the win. Mark, are the Packers back? Well, you know, after the first half, I was ready to say yes. McCarthy, Mike McCarthy takes back the controls, calls the plays, and they looked outrageous early on. But it started to crumble a little bit for a large period of the second half where they punted four straight times. The Packers still really struggled to convert third and short. And it really was the ground game. I think it was the commitment to the ground game,

230 yards rushing their most in 11 seasons. That was the difference today. They were extremely balanced. I think McCarthy's goal was, hey, we can't fix this offense in one game, but we can be balanced. And there has been a lot of faith in Eddie Lacey the last week or two with McCarthy, and he let him go crazy. And it was Starks as well, complimenting them. And then on the flip side of the ball, you're dealing with Matt Castle, who has never looked worse. I mean, this was a Matt Castle. That's saying something. Basement game where when they needed him to throw, third and seven,

he throws it for five yards. Third and 11, he throws it for seven. He cannot find anyone beyond the sticks. And really, it was the defense shutting down Dallas in the second half that allowed Green Bay in the end to just heat up, use the ground game, and punish Dallas late. Packers get 81 plays in this game, which is a ton, and they wore the Cowboys down.

You're right, it was only 14 to 7 there in the fourth quarter. It looked like the Cowboys were in this game. And they got the ball a couple times where, you know, they could have driven and tried to score the game in the fourth quarter. And then there was one, you know, the touchdown drive where Eddie Lacey and Stark started to get it going. It really was their defense because they gave them so many chances. If Cowboys had been moving the ball at all throughout the day, we might be talking like, okay, this Packers team didn't really look that different on offense today, but they got the job done.

But the defense has been good this year in spurts. And so if you need a defense to win a game for you, it's not so bad. It was a terrible game for Des Bryant to go completely to sleep. and I blame that on Castle as well. At the same time, Sam Shields goes out, and Demarius Randall, Green Bay's number one, first round cornerback had to come in. And at that point, Des Bryant had one catch for nine yards.

He finished the game with one catch for nine yards. He had a drop or two. Three drops. Terrible drops. And it's not all, I don't like Des is out there. He's not fully healthy. We know that. But it is a Matt Castle issue.

I guess you're being too hard on Matt Castle, by the way. Did you watch this game? Oh, I'm saying you're taking a Cowboys offense that does not have a running. game has Jason Whitten who's running around like a mummy at this point. He can't move anymore. Des Bryant clearly isn't right. They don't really have a second receiver to lean on. This offense isn't that good. So asking Matt Castle to raise them beyond mediocrity is asking a lot. Well, hold on the way. Let me just finish. What were they doing when Tony Romo was playing?

Not much. Nothing when Brandon Wheaton was playing. It might not be beyond the quarter. I would say is they did get a running game today. I mean, it wasn't a lot. But Darren McFadden put them down at the goal line with a chance to score and Castle throws an end zone pick. They went off Dez's hands. That was the biggest play of the game. I know who Matt Castle is. It's not a shock that he's up and down each game. But this is a quarterback that looked as dysfunctional as Brandon Weed never did.

And that was the whole point. Oh, but he gives us a solid veteran presence. The same thing the Bill said. And he's just not that player. Yeah, he's not anymore. He's one third of Ryan Fitzpatrick. Well, he's also 35 or 36 years old. He has no arm power.

Maybe players like Tom Brady don't age that much, but it's like he's been in the league a long time. You're right. It's time to get rid of. Matt Castle. But Matt Castle was just supposed to get them to Tony Romo. The fact that he's had to come back in is just almost... It's asking a lot. It's just cruel. And at least... Well, I like, there's a lot. I like all the Castle's sympathy in here. I just think that he... It's sympathy because he's not good. I mean, so the very guy that's not good for not being good, we already knew this. Well, here's the thing. We don't have to talk about him anymore. I know he's on

NFL Network as a supporting actor against the Jets this week. But they're 4-9. So NFL Network producers. You can stop talking about the Cowboys. You can stop jamming them into every discussion. They're no longer in the NFC East. We got the Packers. They're a real team and they're in this game and they're looking like the most like, you know, they're looking like an NFC North type of champion. Do we jam

Dallas into NFL network shows? Oh yeah. Are you kidding me? He's like, oh, let's talk about them. Let's say a reporter's there. Single-handedly dooming his career one word at a time right now. All right, let's move on to Russell Wilson. Man, he is continuing a dominant run of play right now. He threw five touchdown passes against a decimated

Ravens team. Let's be honest. But still, end of the day, 35-7 win for the Seahawks. They're suddenly 8 and 5 looking very much like the Seahawks that have dominated football for the past two years. Mark, is there anyone on the planet playing football better than Russell Wilson? You know, you're beating up on Matt Castle. Now I'll let you talk about a good quarterback. Thank you. Well, it's much more enjoyable to talk about Russell Wilson. I mean, we just talked with Connor about the way that Kim Newton sort of effortlessly is at the top of his game. I feel the same way about Wilson, and it didn't just start this week. He's got a four-game run with 16 touchdown zero picks, and it really, it comes down to

what he's doing play-by-play. There was an early touchdown pass to Tyler Lockett that was just beautiful. A read, surveys the field, throws a beautiful pass, something that, you know, some people wonder if Russell Wilson a year ago, two years ago, is capable of that kind of development. We're seeing it. The one big thing for me, because, listen, they blew the. the Ravens out today. There was no question two quarters in he was going to win this thing.

But Thomas Rawls goes out with a season ending ankle injury. And, you know, even in one quarter, it was in the first drive for them that he had 44 yards, looked like he was on his way to another monster game on the ground. And now you're maybe waiting for Lynch to get back before the playoffs.

No guarantee of that. Duane Harris and Fred Jackson on the ground looked absolutely miserable. So you've got to reorganize that part of your offense, and that's a big loss for them, no matter how well Wilson's playing. It's amazing to me how well Tyler Lockett is playing.

Tyler Lockett looks great. It is now one of the only two players in NFL history as rookies to have five receiving touchdowns, a kick return TD, and a punt return TD, and his receiving skills are no joke. They have been coming up in the last four weeks,

and we've been waiting for them to develop a young, you know, vertical type of receiver, and they now have one. They have it. And Dan, like this. I won't go to town on Jimmy Claussen because he actually, this game is not on him. They did what they could. But they're so depleted that when they announced their offensive lineup,

which I don't know why they went with offense before the game. And, you know, the last guy, the fire's burning and all the flags are waving. It's supposed to be the guy that you center your entire organization. It's Marshall Yonda. And he proceeds to help block for the team that Rushford for two yards in the first quarter. They have nobody left. He's the only good player on the team. They've got no one left.

We saw a graphic, if you're watching on YouTube, Doug Baldwin and Tyler Lockett, two of the top fantasy scorers, which is amazing. They're going to have to be more of a pass-first team. I know Marshawn Lynch will come back at some point, but you can't count on him to just carry the load. And in the meantime, you've got to win some games. It's going to be all Russell Wilson.

Meanwhile, I'm looking, I was looking at the box score during the game here, and I feel like this is very fitting. If you look right now, Seattle, it's got all their stats on the website, and it just says no Baltimore passing, no Baltimore rushing. It doesn't matter. They're not humans. They're not, you know, Buck Allen. How about it is the NFL.com stats?

Well, it generates from the same place. Let's try. Okay. Keep it under the table. All right. I won't tell anyone. Anything else on this game, guys? Seattle's in that five seed now.

Yeah. So they don't really have to worry about other teams. You know, they still have to go to Arizona. But if they go to the NFC East winner, which is how it would set up now, I mean. Oh, I love it. Forget about it. What a great way to get rid of the NFC East from our lives. lives is for the Seahawks to go into the Meadowlands or the Link or Landover and just absolutely drop a bomb.

And whether it's Arizona or Carolina, that is the last team you want coming in on divisional on weekend with the head of steam. Especially if you do have that NFC's game and maybe you don't have Marshawn Lynch, but you give them another week to get healthy because that is the issue for me. They want to be a run first team and they can't right now. Moving on, the New York Jets. There you go, boys. He's taking care of business at the Meadowlands on Sunday. They jumped out to a 27-0-0-half-time lead and cruised to a 30-8 win over the listless Tennessee Titansto-Tunes.

You know, I'll tell you something about the titoons. You want to talk about a team that sucked this room in? We thought that they had turned the corner. They thought, oh, they got the quarterback and they have some frisky pieces around. This team stinks. And they didn't even look like they wanted to be there by the second quarter of this game.

guys making business decisions on tackles it seemed to be some loafing from my opinion from my advantage point and I think that listen is there any way to fire an interim coach no you don't do you just go through the season and you start over enjoy your jet's victory I'm getting there

but the jets they did what they needed to do and this is why I'm starting to get excited and this is why again Greg you were wrong with Ryan Fitzpatrick I hope to see this rectified in the QB index this week there's nothing wrong about it's playing what He has in the last three games, he's got nine touchdowns, no interceptions, pass a rating over 100. This was supposed to be the time of the season that Ryan Fitzpatrick came down to Earth in the past where he starts playing poor and sinks his team. But it's the actual opposite where he's been up and down this season with some highs and lows.

He's played really smart, good football. He's on pace of the throw for over 4,000 yards, more than 30 touchdowns. And in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, you have, and you can make the argument, obviously, that Pittsburgh probably has a better one-two punch. But there aren't many that are better than Decker and Marshall right now. They both had touchdowns again in this game, and they're both on pace for 1,000 yards. Well, Marshall's already over it. He's on pace for almost 1,500.

Double-digit touchdowns. That's a real 1-2 punch. When Chris Ivory's right, this offense is good. It's a top-10 offense. Let me ask you something, because I think we can look at the Jets now and say that they They've done enough to be, they'll be there in the final week in the contention for the playoffs. Hopefully. Right?

It's a tough situation. You got the Steelers and Chiefs. They'll get to the final week. You've got the Cowboys Patriots and Bills left on your schedule. They can win two of those because the bills feel like a lost team to me on some level. But do you see them as a team that can actually do some damage in the playoffs? I think they could hang with any team in the AFC. I really do.

Really? Yeah. I don't think there's any team, especially now the Bengals have been compromised. Denver, you know, isn't dominating anyone right now. The Jets always play the Patriots tight. The Steelers are going to be tough for anyone, but I think the Jets could definitely at least hang with them. I think the Jets would be a tough out in the playoffs.

So, yeah, I think they're dangerous if they get there, but the path is still hard. Chris Ivory's playing well. You mentioned thanks Patrick. I think, you guys talk about being too hard on someone. I don't think Chris Iver really ever looked that different this season. I really think it was a string of games where the offensive line wasn't playing as well and they played some better teams

and he's been running with a lot of juice. You're right. Fitzpatrick was coming off, I think, his best game of the year against the Giants. They really dominated that game and I think we're unlucky that they were down in it. And the Jets are a complete team. I mean, you mentioned Decker and Marshall they have more touchdowns than any Jets receiving tandem in Jets history.

I mean, it's a nice team and they're eight and five in most years, 10 or 11 wins that's going to get you right in. But you mentioned it with the Chiefs, and we'll talk about them coming. I mean, we talked about them already. And then the Steelers. They might have to win out to get in, which is very different. That's asking

a lot, especially when they're the Patriots on your schedule. And I think, even though you're right, Mark, about the bills being a team that's deeply inconsistent, knowing Rex, he'll have them pumped up in Orchard Park in Week 17 if it's a win and go home for the Jets scenario. So I think that could be a tough game, too.

So the Jets have a very tough road. It would have been really nice if the Chargers could have knocked off the Chiefs today. It did not happen. But listen, what else can ask for? three-game winning streak since 2011. They're 8 and 5. This is a team that was 4 and 12 last year. No one gave them a shot. You did. You said top 10 team. They're going to win 10 games. I thought they had the pieces and it's really, it's worked out. But not in the way I thought it was.

I never thought this was going to be a team with a good offense. This is a good offense. Chan Galey, they have that new coordinator of the year award. He's got to be in the mix. Well, and he's got to be. I think he has max. I mean, they have some talent, but he's doing a great job. Yeah. I mean, you look at, you know, Ivory and Marshall and Fitzpatrick, these guys hadn't played together last year at one point. So they're coming together at the right time. And the last six quarters for Fitzpatrick have been outrageous. The end of that Giants game, out of his mind. He deserves a lot of credit. Pay the man. I'm not talking about hands. Although you should pay hands as well. Pay me as well. Pay me. But pay Mohammed Wilkerson, too.

Big Moe, three sacks. He has 12 on the year. Just one half sack shy of an old jet whose name I'm blanking on her. Sean Ellis, who had 12 and a half in 2003. So he's starting to get into some hollow territory in Jets history. Pay him! Get it done. The Reba's contract could hurt them though with this stuff. As good as Sheldon Richardson and, you know, expected Leonard Williams, they were kind of

the new, exciting guys. I mean, he's the best player on the defensive line. He's a beast. He's a beast. His best player on the defense. But Ryan Fitzpatrick is the team MVP, Greg, and that's why... I give it to Marshall. A top 10 offense quarterback, you got to put him higher in your QB index. Let's just do. Let's go Jets rest of the podcast

be on 35 minutes. Just keep it. I like that. I like, don't worry, Mark. We'll get to your Browns. I'm not asking to get to the... You know what? Number one, we're happy for you, Dan. You don't have to have this streak of aggression about the Jets. We're actually feeling good for you.

We like the Jets. I don't think you are feeling good for me, Mark. You really don't? No, I don't. I actually texted Dan two days ago to say how great I thought they played against the Giants when I sat down and watch. I think the Browns and we'll get to the Browns. Them winning puts you in a better headspace when it comes to the Jets doing well. Winning means nothing for you.

I'm actually genuine. happy for my friend, but it's going to take weeks for the ice to melt around Dan on this one. All right, here we go. Moving on, the Jacksonville Jaguars have never scored 50 points in the regular season. Well, at least until Sunday. Blake Bortles threw three touchdowns, and the Jaguars scored a touchdown in every second half position, possession, a 51-16 win over the Colts. A 50 burger. The Colts get dropped on them. 40 Burger in the second half alone. Absolutely. Jacksonville actually trailed at halftime in this game, and they were getting booed by the home crowd at ever bank field, which is a weird place. Then they outscored the Colts 42-3 in the last two quarters.

The Jaguars alive, still with a pulse, the cults stink. They have a pulse. I mean, they're one game out right now. If they had just won that game against Indianapolis the first time around, which I covered, so I remember it well where they lost by three and a million

things went against them. And it was the first time we saw Matt Hasselbeck. They would be in first in this division. Instead, they're one game back. And if nothing else they have some identity and part of the identity is they're one of the worst defense in the league but the other part of the identity is they're fun to watch and Alan Robinson and Blake Bortles

and they can put up points in a hurry 39 points last week 51 this week yeah we've seen spurts of this with Jacksonville and it's not consistent and that's the issue but if you if you want an argument to keep the GM who found all these parts and David Caldwell and the coach goes Bradley there's no question I absolutely would because I don't think you blow the machine up at this point. There's too many signs of growth here, especially on offense. Well, they hit on the quarterback. They liked Blake Bortles last year. They went and they

got him, I believe, with the third overall pick. And now in year two, his regression, he's ahead. I know we've been, I don't know, maybe a little hard on Bortle's at times when he's had some lapses and play. But when you look at the numbers, 30 touchdowns, nine interceptions. He's going to throw for well over 4,000 yards. He is a guy in year two that is ahead of pace. And you think about what this team can be if he continues to progress. I mean, listen, things are looking up now in Jacksonville. This has been a lousy division for a while, but between Marriota, Bordles and Andrew Luck when he gets healthy

and I think returns to form, it's suddenly a fun division moving forward. The question is who's going to win this division this year? And now, you know, the Matt Hasselbeck thing has fallen apart and they're hoping Andrew Luck is back next week. They play the Texans. They play the Texans. You did.

And enough of this, the Matt Hasselbeck. Glory Boy train. It's about to fall off. Excellent call, Dan. Thank you. Area Man predicts 40-year-old undefeated quarterback. No, because you're all like, no, no, no, no, Hasselbeck will be fine. No, I was saying, I was just giving him credit for what he did. And no matter what happens, he has had a wildly successful season to go to manage to win these games, but you can't count on him to win games for you. Or any quarterback behind what this line is doing. It's a terrible offensive line. You know, Frank Gore's, he's beat up. This is one of the more depressing teams to watch right now. There's no way to imagine that they're going to go on a run.

And if I'm Jim Ursay, I'm like a little nervous about even putting Andrew Luck back in the lineup behind this line to take another beating. I think this is a team in a lot of trouble. The Jaguars, to me, are a way more compelling team right now. Oh, by far. Than the Colts are, which was not the way this was supposed to be. So everything is going well with the Jaguars. One thing, you know, this new extra point rule. Poor Jason Myers.

No one's, this flies under the radar since it's in Jacksonville. Their kickers missed seven extra points this season. It won't be their kicker for long. Yeah, get a new kicker. Well, on the CVS telecast, it was explained that Gus Bradley had not gotten rid of Myers because he felt it was too far into the season to get rid of a kicker, which makes no sense. So it's like instead of getting a new guy that can make extra kicker. You've got to integrate him into the locker and that takes months.

Yeah, exactly. I mean, no one's going to talk to him anyways. We all spent the offseason. I think we all agreed that the extra point rule didn't go far enough, but it certainly seems to have because even Sebastian Janakowski's missing extra points. I mean, we're coming off a week where a ton of guys missed it last week. But moving back and they'll miss even more. Yeah, but here's the problem.

Because they went half measure on it, we're seeing a ton of missed extra points. How exciting is that? But people aren't going for two. Got to put it on the one-yard line. Well, that's a cultural thing, too. And the better coaches teams like the Steelers are doing it. Have they?

The Steelers have gone for two a ton. I mean, a ton compared to other teams. No, they are. None by other teams. Practically no one else is. Who wins? Mark, who wins the AFC South? Well, who do I want to win it? No, who wins it?

Who wins it? Well, I go Texans because when I watch the Texans versus the Colts, even though the Texans are the most creative team on offense and they've got the most disruptive defense of the group, I don't know. I mean, barring an implosion, which is totally possible, Texans. Most likely the Texans and Colts winner from next week in Indianapolis wins the vision.

We like Jacksonville, but the winner of that Colts game gets to seven wins. And so Jacksonville is then at the very least two wins behind that team. It comes down to that Colts Texans game. And, man, Chuck Baganos not saving his job. It doesn't matter what happens. They have to win two playoff games for even for him to have a chance. So the Jets won, the Steelers won, the Chiefs won. So the bills, they needed to win to kind of stay afloat, but they did not.

The Eagles remain just good enough to hang around. to top the NFC East. San Bradford threw two touchdowns, a 23-20 win. And the bills who saw their playoff hopes now virtually evaporate with this loss. Greg, LaShawn McCoy's revenge game did not go to plan, did it? It did not. And it ended in such fitting fashion. LaShawn McCoy jogging off the field without shaking anyone's hands or anything with 12 seconds left,

runs back into the locker room, was seen by reporters, slamming his helmet against the wall. yelling the F word. Rex Ryan, meanwhile, after the game, immediately, you know, it just goes in full Rex Ryan mode. Let's take a listen. This one's tough because I thought we were the better team today, but obviously we got beat. We got ourselves to blame. You can't have that many penalties, obviously, and it's a no-brainer once jump off sides a zillion times. And we got them, I don't know how many holding calls, but it looked like it was a record out there. You know, how it affects us?

you know, we're going to be sick. I can tell you that much if this costs us, which it probably will. I almost thought of the Jets press conference where he said that they were out of it. Like he was almost trying to do that again. Well, if this hurts us, like it probably will. Like, he was almost trying to get that going again. And just for him to say that they're the better team after another one of these tough losses, it's just too much. I don't miss this, Rex, Ryan.

I mean, this is not, this is familiar ground. If you were a follower of Rex in New York, you know, the team getting outplaying their opponent, but losing narrowly, penalties, killing them. I mean, this is familiar. Well, and as was written in the post by Greg, that so many of the penalties are not coming because of great effort on defense during a play. It's happening pre-snap, which is the stuff that coaching should fix. And this has been the most consistent thing about an inconsistent team is hurting themselves

game after game. If you even had them as an average team when it came to flags, I think they have two more wins at this point. They have outgained their opponent in six of their seven losses, which is a totally ridiculous stat. And I know why Rex felt like they were the better team today because the running game was solid. LaShawn McCoy really was the best running back in this game by far.

He goes over 100 yards from scrimmage, despite having some plays taken back by penalty. His offensive line was not good. That's where Philadelphia did look good. Letcher Cox was great. But Tyrod Taylor, I think, played well for three quarters. They pretty much did what they wanted to offensively, but the Eagles give them credit. Sam Bradford is playing the best he's played all year, made some big plays down the field.

They were aggressive. And the bill's mistakes and their game management. And just at the end, for instance, there's one of those pre-snap penalties, changes it from a third and two, or a third and three, rather, to a third and eight. So they have to go deep the next play. And Tyrod Taylor throws an interception in the game. Yep. Oh, by the way, we did catch up to Lashon McCoy after the game. Actually, a lot of people, you know, we're not able to get him.

Really? We did catch up with him. Brandon, can we play that? No, it's not there. A howling coyote. Is that him? I don't want to hear about Lashon McCoy. Another bad week and a bad season.

He's playing well enough. He's still Lashon McCoy as a play. But, you know, I read a profile, I believe was Tyler Dunn for the Buffalo News this morning. Good reporter. That I believe was meant to give, you know, a more human face to LaShawn McCoy. I just came out of it thinking he's, you know, kind of like a selfish dude and not particularly a pleasant person to be around. And what he did today, it's just not a good look. It's like, come on, grow up, bro.

Yeah, not to pound on the point, but part of the problem is Rex Ryan, who players like him because he doesn't, you know, them from talking and creating bullet bullet and board material. But a perfect week when this is season on the line to not have your running back mouth off seven days in a row before the game. And maybe it has no matter on it. But the fact that this became about one guy versus the entire Buffalo Bills is not good. It's not a good look for Rex Ryan. I don't care what anyone says.

So there are two back in the wildcard of three teams, which means they are out of it. But the Eagles are right in it now at six and seven tied atop the NFC. East. We'll see if the Giants, you know, tie them on Monday night. But Sam Bradford, if nothing else, I think, played probably his best game of the year. I mean, it wasn't perfect, and there's an interception. They're splitting the carries now three ways between Sproles, Matthews, and DeMarco Murray, which is a good sign. Zach Ertz, who also had a costly drop, actually made a big play. They hit a couple plays down the field to Nelson Aguilar.

Nelson Aguilar sighting. Just, I don't think they're a good team, but they're at least looking a little more like an 8-and-8 type of team that might sneak away with this division. We'll see. All right. Next up, let's move on. Let's get another friend of ours on the phone. He's based out of Chicago. It's amazing that he's even time to watch games

because his body is a temple and he works to make it that way. He is Kevin Patcha, coming at you. Going on, fellas. What's up, buddy? How's everything going? Oh, it's going great. The one time I get to hear your voice, and it just makes my day.

Well, you know, we're doing you a favor here because we could have you on to talk about your lions, but instead we're gonna give you the game, Game of the Day. The Redskins... Okay, maybe it wasn't the game of the day, but there were a lot of ups and downs in this Redskins Bears game.

What was your big takeaways? Well, by the way, what is Greg doing the setup? I don't know. I just started talking and did it. You can't just do that? Because we got to know what the score was. We have a system here, Greg. People have a whole thing at home you can see.

You move to the left, and it doesn't mean it changes the show. I started talking, and then I was going to ask them a question. Mark, you decide. It's about me. Yeah, I think that. You know, Dan's role as the host typically lays these up, but Greg is my boss. So, you know, Greg, whatever you need to do to get your point across, I side with. Robbie Gold missed the potential game-tying field goal in the final minutes.

The difference in a 24-21 loss for the Bears to the Redskins who are back in the mix and the NFC right in the middle of things with everyone else losing at all times in NFC East. Go ahead. Sorry, Patro. No, no worries. I thought it was really a perfect ending to it, the Mitch Field goal, because it, Kind of what, like Greg said, it was back and forth. At one point, Washington was up 14-0.

They had two separate 14-point leads, and Chicago came back. And I just thought the main takeaway from me was that Jordan Reed was unstoppable. He was an absolute beef. No Bears linebackers could stick with him out of his cut team. Open all day, and when he got in the second year, running over defensive backs, it was really an impressive performance. He had 120 yards and a touchdown, and he should have had two touchdowns. He didn't drop a ball.

He had nine, nine touches on nine targets. It was just phenomenal. He's the reason they won that game. The rest of it was typical, typical Redskins, like 15-played drive to open the game. They had a bunch of three-outs in the middle of the game, and they had a long drive to start the second half when they scored a touchdown. But in the middle, it was just long drive, short passes from Kirk Cousins, and then they had bogged down.

This is... Jordan Reed was the only consistent factor in the game. This is the Jordan Reed, by the way, that was on our making the list. making the leap list last year, I think everyone saw his ability to be this guy. So for him to turn into this player, that's certainly somebody he could build around in Washington. And they have a road win. This is the first time they've done it all year. You know, I know there was some luck at the end that both went the Redskins way.

You have gold missing the kick for the second straight week. I mean, the Bears could have a winning record possibly if gold had hit these kicks. Instead, they're five and eight. And then you have another play that was deflected up in the air on a cousin's pass. And the Redskins catch. it for a big play, but sometimes he needs some breaks, and they just needed to win one or two

of these road games, and I really think now that Redskins-Eagles game is the one to watch to kind of decide that the vision. Kevin, do you like watching NFCE's football teams? Absolutely not. How about the Bears? You're like the Bears beat writer right now.

Yeah, the Bears, the Bears are kind of a really boring team to watch, frankly. The big plays mainly come on Alshon Jeffrey Heaves from Jay Cutler, which was today when and somehow the Rescans forgot to cover them for 50 yards. But for the Bears, their offense was pretty non-existent. Matt Forte and Langford couldn't really get going. The Redskins' D-front was dominant.

They dominated the offensive line of the Bears all game. Culler was under immense pressure. He had to scramble a lot, and he was just playing Sandlot ball and was just chucked it up and hope was pretty much their offense for most of it. Kirk Cousins led him back in the game with one of the worst picks ever early in the second half. and that's what got the bear right back in the game. If it wasn't for that pick at the like 20-yard line that he should never have thrown,

the Redskins should have walked away with it just because their front played better on both sides of the ball. Before we let you go, Mr. Patcher, and thank you for an accurate summation of that game. I just don't know where you were exactly when Aaron Rogers connected on that hell now. You know, not because I'm, you know, like, reveling in it, but I'm curious one of the more crushing losses in line's history,

where were you tell us i was sitting on my couch what was your reaction i had six a m i didn't work at six a mm the next day um my reaction was of course that happened of course it happened of course after the face mask you knew it was going to happen come on it's the line everybody knew i was actually not too upset about it because it means the end of jim qualdwell so i was worried about it they might stick with him if he had a huge hot streak so i'm actually it actually might work out for the best so you're telling me if i go into your apartment in Chicago and the couch, which is to the right of your entire home equipment workout center that overlooks the city,

there's not going to be a huge hole over the couch that you punch the wall. You're being honest with this here? If I'm going to punch a wall, it's not over a loss for a four-win team, that's for sure. I understand that thought process. Kevin Patcher, always good to hear from you. Your voice sounds great. I'm sure your body looks better. I'm working on it, Dan, just for you.

All right, there goes Kevin Patra The other member of the around the NFL team Family is how I like to look at him Maybe that's just me No, well that's fair He is a family He's not the only other one You got Colleen Wolf

Well, I don't So listen When I say family Talking about the writing Fraternity of around the NFL Let's move on To another game Listen, Mark, it's time

Now it's time the show begins for Mark Sessler because Johnny Manzell made the most of his belated starting opportunity. He threw a touchdown pass. Kept the sticks moving all afternoon. A 24-10 for the Browns over the Niners.

Mr. Sessler, this was a nice start to Manzell's Cleveland audition. But let me ask you a question. Are you a little unhappy if they won this game because you're thinking big picture in draft day? I'm not talking about the Costner film. No, because I think if you're a team

like Cleveland, you need to have something, one or two things to go into the offseason to plan around and have some hope. And Mansell, look, he again showed that he can play. I mean, it wasn't perfect. He had one terrible pick, but he also did a nice job with the rest of his 31 attempts. He moved the ball, found open receivers, and the first time all season, their run game was absolutely dominant. I mean, they blew up for 200 plus yards. And this, This is the team that was advertised to Browns fans all off-season. And I think it actually only puts more weight and pressure on Petten because finally, with Mansell back out there, you have to go back to his last win against the Titans in

week two, that they've gone through this, you know, parade with all these other quarterbacks. And the argument was, why not just put Mansell out there earlier? And you have to wonder if you've wasted two months of his development. Because he's still making mistakes and that he probably would have gotten over. if he had played all these games. But that's partly his fault. I mean, he's partly his fault. It's partly his fault, but it's just the way they went into the season,

and he burned their trust early in the offseason. I look at it like this is almost a lost year that maybe in this last month, you ask me, do I want to see this happening? If you're in Cleveland and you're rooting for this team to grow, yes, you want to see a quarterback develop no matter where you are, because forget the draft. You can, you know, they've been getting high first round picks for a decade plus, and it's changed nothing.

Well, he also had the benefit of the run. game and the defense that they haven't had all year and the benefit of playing the team that's ranked dead last in football outsiders metrics. It's Browns and 49ers were the two teams at the bottom. And the Browns were dominant in this game. But I agree. I don't think you lose the development necessarily. If he steps up and has a good month, that's going to make a big difference in how they look at the offseason. So it can't just be this one week. We'll see the next three weeks. Yeah. And I think it'll be telling to find out when Cleveland plays Seattle next week where they really They are because they punished Blaine Gabbard, nine sacks.

This is a team that only had 17 sacks coming into the year. So I don't want to say it was fluky, but it was just that they, Greg, is right. They were playing a terrible basement feeding team. And so Cleveland, yeah, you're better than the Niners potentially. I don't know where that leaves you ultimately. Oh, man, we're looking at the upcoming schedule. It might leave you with three tough games here. At Seahawks, at Chiefs versus Steelers.

It doesn't get any tougher than that for the Brown. So they have their work cut out. There's not a win there, I don't think. Blaine Gabbard, by the way, when you get sacked nine times, you wonder if he's going to get jittery in the pocket and maybe come and we'll start seeing that Jacksonville Jaguars Blaine because that's a tough beating to take in a game. You're right.

I mean, and the reports going in couldn't have been worse for the Browns because Ian Rappaport noted that, and listen, this has not been a secret for a long time, but the coaching staff and the front office are at odds. They don't like the players the front office pick. The front office doesn't think the players are being coached well. So it seems as though it changes and maybe deep cutting changes are imminent once again. I think we'll find out more about that this week.

All right. Anything else, Mark? Not really. Right. Well, then let's move on. Drew Breeze threw a pair of touchdown passes to Marquis Colston. Markis Colson. Welcome back to Relevance.

And the New Orleans Saints stopped a four-game losing streak, a 24-17 win over the bucks. Greg, just when we were starting to buy in on Tampa, there's a team that could be a sneaky playoff group here. They lay an egg against the Saints, probably blow up their season. Yeah, it's disappointing because they're going to be on Thursday night football this week against the Rams, and we were enjoying this Bucks team as a relevant squad and gave that game a little relevance. And in reality, the Vikings are now two games up on this Bucks team.

They're in the sixth spot, and it's hard to imagine anything but the current six combination of teams in the NFC but making the playoffs. I mean, you just have to figure the Vikings and the Packers are getting in and really the NFC East is the one thing up for grabs and you can't be too surprised. The Bucks haven't been dominant throughout this

streak that they end up splitting the season series with the division rival. Even the games that they're winning, these are games where they're just pulling them out. They're either like the best bad team or the worst good team. They're in that place. But that's fine. For this year, if they can win seven

the games and Winston makes progress, this is a good year for them. It's a great year just because of James Winston. Yeah, I mean, people had Tampa earmarked going right back for another number one pick and, you know, there was very little to hang your hat on and everyone thought maybe Lovie Smith could be, you know, out of there if not the end of the year before that even. And so I think it's, forget the playoffs. You're not going to go make a big run in the NFC even if you snuck in as the number 16 probably, but you've got a lot to build around. And what can a bad team ask for more than that. You know what's interesting, too, on the other side,

Drew Breeze is having kind of a weird season where there are weeks when he looks like old Drew Breeze and then there's weeks when he looks like old Drew Breeze. And I think that he's going to be somebody on a Saints team that's rebuilding and you think maybe something can happen or he ends up somewhere else. It's hard to, if you, let's say we'll use, I don't know, we use the Browns as an example.

If you're the Browns, are you going to make a hard play for Drew Breeze and think he's still going to be Drew Breeze, you know? Well, how about this? He's shown it at times, including today. It's a great question. How about a hard play for the combination of Sean Payton and Drew Breeze? Right.

Because Breeze is one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the league. And if Sean Payton's not going to be there next year, then you start to worry how good is Drew Breeze going to be. We're just raining down on the parade of a rare St. Twin. I mean, everything about this was weird. CJ Spiller is still in the NFL, and he had three carries in a game where Tim High Tower had 28.

and C.J. Spiller is not going to be on that team for much longer. But that's insane. Tim Highter was literally not in the NFL for four years. I don't want to hear, I don't want to see one more story come out in any of these beats or on the around the NFL page about how C.J. Spiller is about to finally step into a bigger role. Because I saw it popping, cropping up again this week when Pierre Thomas went to IR. It's not going to happen. Mark Engram, they do not like him in the scheme.

Obviously, maybe he's not healthy or he's not himself. It just not happening. Six touches, nine yards, and I couldn't agree more. He's going to have a bigger role and it's going to be in another city next season, maybe. And what does Marcus Colston have to do to get his name pronounced right by Dan Hansis? Marquise.

There's 25 players in the Hall of Fame at the wide receiver position. Marcus Colston has more receptions than 14 of them. That is a Peter King stat from this week that just shows how the NFL's changed. But this has been a great player, an all-time great saint. Well, has he done it? Unremarkable fashion, then, to the average non-S-Fa-S-Focus.

Yeah, you know, he's kind of a blocking thing. M-A-R-Q-U-E-S, Marquoise, Colston. I'll side with Dan on that one. By the way, this is probably his last season with the Saints' stuff. On the subject of names, Garibon, he's hearing no touchdown. Oh, we didn't even remember that. Quids in, mate. Quid's in. You got his wish.

It did, man. Scavenger Hunt coming up all over town. It's mega, man. It's mega. Oh, yeah, we'll go to the booze to celebrate. Johnny, come with... No, Joy, you stay home, bro. Stay home, mate.

Not good for you to come with. Gary Quidd's in, Barnage. He's going out, man. I mean, you leave us speechless with these Gary Barnage narratives. Gary's just got such a good feel of the lexicon. I'm quidz in, mate. I've got legless at the booze. Where are you getting these?

Johnny Mansell, you don't come. It's dangerous, Johnny. I get a lot of tweets. A lot of people like it in the U.K. Some people find it offensive, which I find interesting. I don't find that shocking. I apologize to those that find it offensive. I will never stop.

Keeping a real over here. Yes, you are. Yes, you are. Finally, Todd Gurley's slump is over. All right. The rookie ran for 140 yards, scored two touchdowns both in the second half. And the Rams snapped a long losing streak, five games, with a 21-7 win. over the Lions on Sunday.

Mark, I assume the Lions remain in a vegetative state after what happened last Thursday night. It's hard to win with limited brain activity, I would think. Yeah, I mean, that's a fair comment. And, you know, it's hard to comment on this game because it's two teams going nowhere this season. And if anything, maybe the most hopeful aspect was after Frank Signetti was, you know, as you said, turn in his badge and his gun,

the Rams offense a little bit more dynamic. I don't want to actually that's not the right word but maybe a little bit less DOA a little bit less of a corpse this week Well they went over 300 yards But it was in the Jeff Fisher dream fashion 203 on the ground 140 were from Todd Gurley

Who broke it open And this is just what Jeff Fisher's dream This is what he thought this team could be Which is take a lead with the run And kind of just stifle the other team But it's a dreadful 5 and 18 Frank Signetti Yes he turned in his badge and his gun

But as we hinted at last week doesn't mean he's no longer fighting crime I'll leave it at that well I think you're right we don't even say

another word about that or this game that's it why do we talk about a little Sunday night football action please the New England

patriots are going back to the playoffs Greg congratulations seventh straight playoff berth they move into the AFC's top spot the number one seed

because everyone else that they needed to lose lost and then they took care of business, 276, a largely forgettable Sunday night game for Chris and Al and the team over at NBC. But it doesn't matter to Bill Belchek because he got what he wanted and a little banged up, Greg. Pats were a little banged up, but Brady connected with Gronk on a touchdown. Gronk looked healthy. This team is all of a sudden after, you know, some hand wringing over the

last couple of weeks, exactly where they need to be. They are. And they have a defense that's playing exceptionally well. And you mentioned the injuries, which are a big concern. But I think the effect of play of the defense is really my takeaway. First of all, just seeing Gronk back out there and looking like Gronk, even though he didn't play every snap. He looked good. That's a major plus. But this is the best defense I think they've had since 2004. I might have made that same statement last year. I think they're both true. This is a better defense that you can take all these injuries. And Jabal Sheard steps up. And Dominic easily steps up. And then he gets her. And then Malcolm Brown, and Malcolm Butler, of course, is playing well.

And they just keep coming at you in waves in the front seven. And they're not going to shut down a great offense, like a Steelers, for instance. But when they play some of these bad teams, they can actually have a shutdown type of game. And that hasn't really been the case for the Patriots in a long time. And, of course, it must be said. In addition to both the Bengals and Steelers losing, J.J. Watt bust his hand three days before this game was not effective. He had three tackles, no sacks, so he wasn't the same guy. But I will give credit, like you said, with the defense of the Patriots, which is very good.

DeAndre Hopkins, no one's been able to stop him all year. Three catches for 52 yards, and 40 of those came in garbage time. So they were able to shut down the most explosive football, wide receiver in football this season, and let the offense do the rest, and they didn't have to do much. Well, this combination of Logan Ryan and Devin McCordy, or whoever they want to put with Logan Ryan, and Patrick Chung, they've been doing that each week, shutting down opposing number one receivers. That puts Logan Ryan in the pro football focus rankings.

He's the top five cornerback, which doesn't seem right to me. Part of the reason that is is because they put McCordy behind him. Now, McCordy got hurt in this game. Easley, who's been playing well got hurt in this game. Legerrett Blunt, who is the only decent running back they have left of what I think is probably their worst running game since about 2009, 2008. He got hurt in this game and left. So then you're just stuck with James White.

they could have scored more points in this game if they have a running game. Jonathan Freeney gets hurt in this game who's had to start lately. So it's a lot of injuries piling out. Let's look at what this game really was. It was New England's former offensive and defensive coordinator with Brian Hoyer, the backup quarterback

that's your team, going up against the master in Bill Belichick, Tom Brady. There's nothing that Houston could do here that isn't already completely known to the New England and it showed tonight. Anybody, unless you're a Texans homer, anybody that picked against the Patriots in this game,

needs to get their head checked. Unfortunately, speaking, getting your head check, Brian Hoyer suffered a possible concussion this game. T.J. Yates was back in the game near the end, so we'll see what that means for the Texans. And, you know, they're now six and seven,

which keeps them right. They're still in the mix. They get the Colts next week. So it could be T.J. Yates versus Hasselbeck for the AFC South title, if Andrew Luck doesn't come back and Hoyer is out. Can we just take all of the AFC South and all of the NSE East

and have them play in like a really low-stakes tournament of some kind? I love that. And then the rest of like the grown-up teams at the adult table can play real football. The NIT, give them their own little NIT tournament. Can we just, they have like other tournaments. They can relegate teams. I mean, the Texans had seven first downs in this game.

Seven first downs. That might be the least of any teams at all year. Yeah, and we're two weeks away from talking about the Texans as this, you know, dominant defense that's coming together. It goes to show you that there's only, a couple teams in the NFL that you can count on week to week. And the Texans are not one of those teams at this point. Instead, they are vying for the title of the worst division in football if you're not the NFC East. What a competition. A sexy competition with any levels. I think Josh McDaniels

had a really good game. I mean, this is a Patriots team that had been struggling a little bit on offense. It seemed like he just had the Texans number. Everything that he was calling was looking good. Now, we're getting into the Greg, you know, gushing. Here comes coming into the room floating a young cherub boy with angel wings oh here's the harp here's the harp in his left hand

a big long bushel of grapes that Greg will have one grape after the next put into his mouth to be nourished and it's grape season all the timing is perfectly Greg stuffing his face with grapes Sessler asked me like oh do you think you take you know too much

grief for being a Patriots fan and this whole little bit that you guys do it's all it's saying is like your team is so amazing, the only thing we can come up with is to make fun of how good they are. That's true. That sounds like a compliment. Greg, as likable as ever right now. I really enjoy

the way you're taking that. Yes, we we're jealous of what you have. I do get a lot of comments on the Jesselnik podcast Rosenthal and Jesselick Vanity Project which you can subscribe to. Speaking of likable. Squeeze that spot into the end of the show. I do get a lot of comments on Twitter, which is worrisome.

You're much more likable in this podcast. I didn't really like you on the ATL podcast. That worried me a little bit. I've gotten that many times. Oh, I like you way more now. Well, you guys aren't discussing football. That almost tempts me to check out that podcast. I haven't gotten around to it yet.

If they could pull that off, they must be doing it. I've listened to them, and I think that you guys, you enjoy each other's company, so maybe you find him more likable than the rest of the cast here. Oh, Anthony's my best friend. He's a superstar in the comedy world. We get along so well. I think it's because he knows about his college atmosphere

and then everyone learns about what Greg did in college. That's a fair point. So that might be why he's a little more likable. Brandon, stay out of this. This clearly was not a great Sunday night football game. It's better to keep it mysterious to the listeners, Brandon. Yeah, that is a podcast that exists. That's my plug.

That's all I need. It's on once a week, right? I don't need it from you. It's heavily edited. That's true. That's the way to prop up your book. ball stand. Yeah. How many stitchers, by the way? Well, the stitcher...

We don't have any either. We won one. We won one. Crystal Riches, you know, on our mantle in East Coast somewhere outside of Philadelphia. That's the last thing I'm... Blowing the lid off that one. Cessler. Yeah, where are you on the awful announcing top ten list? Your podcast. I'm glad that this podcast, the flagship program

of NFL.com and the podcast Empire was on the list. Answer. Real quick. Favorite podcast at NFL.com? This is my favorite podcast. Stop. That was a test. It was a test. A late night grilling, if you will.

Yes. All right. That is, yeah, that's a Sunday night game. And that is the recap of all the Sunday action. We will be back on Tuesday. I believe our good friend Connie Fox will be with us as well, Colleen Wolf. And we will recap the final game of week 14, which is, Greg? Giant dolphin.

Giant dolphin. Ooh, that's a good one. Poor Jay Gruden or John Gruden. And, yeah, we'll look ahead to week 15. Lucky's angered, because he's six and seven, and in first place, because he's with lousy teams like the Giants. Well, that's very fair. But until then, this is Dan Hansis, signing off.

For Quiet Storm, the boss. Branded behind the grass. Until Tuesday. Hey, what's up everybody, DJ Bucky here from Move the Sticks. Big Move the Six episode for you to check out this week. Bucky, what do they have? We're going to break down the positions and the way that you should rank them if you're building a franchise. We also take a look at some scouting notes and get some user feedback.

Yeah, lots of topics to cover. You can check that out. Move the Sticks podcast. And quick shout out to the boys from around the NFL. Congratulations on being on that list of top podcasts for the year. We give you guys a hard time, but we do love you. And congratulations to that award. Very cool.

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