The Fumblerooski Podcast - Calculated Risk -Ep 317 The Fumblerooski Podcast

Episode Date: December 6, 2024

The Lions clinch a playoff spot with a big division win, and Dan Campbell shows how psychotic he can get, going 4/5 on 4th down, including a 4th and 1 that sealed the win. Rooski Game of the Week: Chargers vs Chiefs, can LA get their revenge and get the win against KC? Chris Costich, Adam Wright, and CJ Medeiros give their takes and the rest of their Week 14 picks in this Friday edition of the Fumblerooski Podcast!

the lions clinch a playoff spot with a 34 to 31 win against the packers last night and dan campbell still continuously putting his balls on the field it's another friday here in the nfl season it's the ruski picks episode for week 14 this is the former ruski podcast it may not have always showed it in the stat sheet but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws. Back-to-back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's got to get that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides.

Welcome to the Fumble Rooski Podcast for another Friday edition, week 14 Friday game picks edition of the Fumble Rooski Podcast for another Friday edition, Week 14 Friday Game Picks edition of the Fumble Rooski Podcast by Powered18 Radio and Secret Weapon Consulting. I'm Chris Kostich. He's Adam Wright. He's CJ Medeiros. Got a good lineup for you today. Not a great week of football, unfortunately, but we start out with probably debatably the best Thursday night game of the season.

The Lions beating the Packers 34-31 last night on Thursday night football, clinching a playoff spot and moving themselves a little bit further ahead in that number one spot, just trying desperately to pull away from the Eagles. But the Eagles are playing the Panthers this week, so what are you going to do? But Packers, good God, Josh Jacobs, three touchdowns in this game. Ever since the bye week, he's been going ridiculous. Christian Watson, four catches, 114 yards, and that was really

the only good receiving performance. Jaden Reed, only one target for Jaden Reed. No catches, no yards. You get the picture. The Lions, six different receivers with five or more catches. Jameson Williams, five catches, 80 yards. Tim Patrick was the big story in this game and probably one of the more heartwarming stories or heartfelt stories this season, dealing with injuries and other bullshit the entirety of his career, his short career. Ended up with six catches, 43 yards, and two touchdowns on the eve of his late father's birthday. And after the game,

he said, you know, dad was watching over me. That, that was the long and the short of it. Really? There's not much else to really say about that. Jared Goff had a good game.

32 for 41, three touchdowns, one interception, two 83 on the day. Only sacked one time. There was only two sacks total in this game, one for each side. And it really came down to one play and one play only. And Dan Campbell going for it on fourth and one

with a little bit over 40 seconds to go. Tie game. Really? All you have to do is kick the field goal. It's over. But Dan Campbell's like, no, I don't want to give Jordan love and Matt Lafleur the ball back by any

means necessary. And this is also all ready after they had gone for it on fourth down and didn't convert on it earlier on in the game as well. Go for it on fourth and one. They get it. Kill the rest of the clock as well. Go for it on fourth and one. They get it. Kill the rest of the clock as the Packers were out of timeouts. They kill the rest of the clock down to two seconds,

and they kick the game-winning field goal. Look, I know that we always say that it's going to come back and bite Dan Campbell in the ass, but by God, I mean, if they don't convert on this fourth down, and they almost did it because Jared Goff amazingly somehow didn't fuck up the handoff, tripped over his own man, fell to a knee, still got the handoff off, and they convert on fourth down. But, you know, it's the old adage, if they don't convert on fourth down, then he's going to be looked at as a dumbass, convert on fourth down but you know it's the old adage if they don't convert on fourth down then he's going to be looked at as a dumbass which to my standard it's like well that's just dude

that's just dan campbell he's an aggressive motherfucker if nick sirianni were to do it we're just looking at him like he's a dumbass and he's an idiot but that's it's just the mo of dan campbell this is if you think that he couldn't get more psychotic this is as psychotic as dan campbell can get uh fellas what do you think if you were to guess if you were to ask me to guess like without me even watching the game to guess which head coach in the nfl you tell me that this this scenario which head coach in the NFL, you tell me that this, this scenario, which head coach in the NFL final seconds, fourth and inches. You're it's a third you're at the 20 yard line. It's a 39 yard field goal. And they went for it on fourth down. If you asked me, if you had asked me which coach

head coach did this out of all the coaches in the league, this, This is my first guess. And listen, it worked out this time as it has a few times in Dan Campbell's career, but it's also come back to bite him in the ass. And everyone likes to praise him for the times that it works out. That's great that it works. But the problem I have with that is that this enables him to do it in the future. This is a regular season game. If you end up losing this game, you still have a great chance at landing the number one seed. In fact, I'm pretty sure you still have it since you beat the Vikings who are hot on your heels. You'd still have it.

You'd still have the division. But if you do this, let's say, in the conference championship against the division, but if you do this, let's say in the conference championship against the Eagles, a matchup that we, that we've been hoping would happen for the past few weeks now, let's say that happens. Then I don't know if you're getting in. I don't know if you're getting out on the other end because you did it. You did it last year on multiple occasions. And with the amount of times that they went for, they, that they went for it on fourth down and didn't go for the field goal, if they just took the field goal on every single one of those, they would have won the game and they'd probably be in the Super Bowl. So the fact that he hasn't learned and you're

getting these issues here in games where it ends up actually working out. This enables you to do it more. And Campbell, I love his aggressiveness. I'm not saying I hate it. I just think he needs to tone it down a little bit because it is going to come back and bite him. You're going to face better teams than the Packers in the postseason when you get deeper in the playoffs. We know that they're a Super Bowl contender. We know that they're probably going to make a deep run. If they do this in the conference championship against, let's say,

the Eagles, let's say they make the Super Bowl, they do it against the Bills or the Chiefs, God forbid, you may screw yourself over at that point because those teams are better teams than the Packers and you may not come out on the other end. So they haven't learned. I brought this up a couple of weeks ago. Like I said, listen, I said, we haven't seen it this year because no games have been close. I woke up this morning. I saw the final score. I saw the highlights after I re-watched the game this morning. But I saw the final score.

I'm thinking, wow, they won a close game where Dan Campbell didn't do anything stupid. And then I opened Twitter. And trending was Dan Campbell because he went for it on fourth and inches on what would have been a 39-yard field goal so that he could hit a 35-yard field goal as time expired. I'm like, oh, okay. So he hasn't learned, and while it works sometimes, it can be looked at as a weakness,

and we still need to look at that for this. Clearly, this is still a problem for this Lions team going forward. Four for five on fourth down for the Lions last night, by the way. CJ, your take. I'm sorry. The fact that Dan Campbell just refuses to learn should terrify you as a Lions fan. We keep saying, oh, what if it comes back to bite them in the ass? Well, here's a take. It did.

It already did. Remember the FC Championship game? Look, all it takes in a football game is one play to completely shift the momentum. And that exactly happened against the Niners last year. And that play completely flipped momentum on its head, and the Lions completely sputtered out. Can I see that happening again? Yeah, I can.

It already happened once, and he shows no signs of stopping. And look, if you do make a deep run and you do beat Philly with that, or you beat the Bills or the Chiefs or the Ravens or whoever like that, then good for you. All right? Like, good for you. More power to you. But then you kind of become one-dimensional. When you're this aggressive, you can be one-dimensional because teams are going to know.

Like, okay, he's going to go for a fourth down. See, if I'm a head coach and I have the Lions on my schedule, I'm just going to be like, all right, all week we're putting extra special attention to fourth down drills because you know Campbell is a psychotic SOB, more akin to Randy Marsh from South Park when he put his balls in a wheelbarrow. And, yeah. And you're just going to be like, all right, more fourth down drills, more short yardage situations, because you know he's just going to do it.

I mean, how long until teams start planning for because it didn't look like the packers planned for it and you could tell because jared got fell down and they still got it and look i will be fair we gotta look beyond the game the packers could have won this game at one point i mean the Lions were literally up by two scores, and then the Packers came back, took the lead, and the Lions eventually, you know, came back and put them away. And, you know, you can call me a box score watcher, but I'm sorry. Team stats don't lie. One of the big reasons the Packers lost this game, because we always like to talk about Dan Campbell and his shenanigans, but I feel like that's letting Green Bay off the hook. The Packers got absolutely dominated as far as

time of possession. 23 minutes and 54 seconds for the Packers, 36 minutes and 6 seconds for the Lions. Now there is one thing i will say about dan campbell's coaching and jared goff as a quarterback for as aggressive as the lions can be we kind of underestimate their ability to just sit on the ball all right they can sit on the ball they can drain clock and obviously if we keep going from fourth down it helps but the packers got absolutely like i said dominated in time of possession and you look at like the total yards gained detroit out gained them by almost a hundred and and we also need to talk about jordan love look at him this man did absolutely nothing. And look, we're familiar with

how Jordan Love plays, right? Everybody on the show, us three, at least once has likened him to Brett Favre. Where was that? He was so neutered. If the Lions were hyper-ag the Packers were just on the opposite end completely neutered no no feistiness no spunk just dinks and dunks Jordan Love only attempted 20 passes for what it's worth Jared Goff had more completions than Jordan Love did attempts you know 12 for 20 206 yards a touchdown and look I know Josh Jacobs is having a good game but hey Adam always mentioned you know 12 for 20 206 yards a touchdown and look i know josh jacobs is having a good game but hey adam always mentioned you know like hey you know when you're playing from behind you know maybe running the balls not exactly the best idea but josh jacobs 18 carry 66 yards three touchdowns that does worry me for the lions because i'm not gonna protect i'm not gonna

you can't really blame detroit all right i'm not gonna attack them too hard on this because how many people was it like 14 or 15 defensive players for the lions are now on ir many of them huh 13 14 13 13 13 okay 13 do the math that's more than an entire starting 11 obviously it's not all their starters but they have had an alarming amount of people go down especially up front the front seven you know they've been brutalized and josh jacob was able to run all over him and look if jordan love plays a little more aggression maybe the packers do win but either way the lions have clinched a playoff berth there's no doubt whatsoever about that it's just so concerning for the lions to see josh jacob i mean the aggressiveness aside but i can't be the only one who sees josh jacobs

run all over him you know get three touchdowns on their head and be like oh yeah no you they might i mean this this really might be what comes back to bite them forget aggressiveness just the injuries what's going to happen god forbid in the playoffs you up against saquon and i'll leave you with that all in all for the lions though you did you know you kept the ball you're able to sit on it for a bit this questionable decision making aside you know you did win for the packers i don't know i mean sure jordan loves the guy supremely talented team so this is i mean john campbell's aggressiveness only scares me in tight games right it's if if you're questioning on

whether or not on good days that they're going to be be able to hang 50 on a team then they're still going to be able to blow out teams but it in games where the other team shows up and it's crunch time and you're leading a drive into field goal range and a field goal wins it and you're deep in field goal range, why are you going for it on fourth down? That's an extremely risky situation that you just don't need to take. 39 yards is perfectly fine. And, well, four yards makes it easier. What difference does that make?

That's less than 40 yards. It's a problem if you can't make a 39-yard field goal. So we're almost splitting hairs at this point when we talk about Dan Campbell's aggressiveness. But it's still a problem when you take this later into seasons where you're facing Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts. Those teams aren't just going to turtle and let you hang 40 on them. Like they, they're going to make it close and mistakes like that, that he made in the NFC championship last year,

those end up become, those end up becoming, they hurt you pretty bad. So that's all I'm worried about. I was looking at the play byplay just to give myself a rough idea because i don't know the cj's one-dimensional comment doesn't make sense to me it doesn't make sense to me like what makes it one-dimensional that he's going forward on fourth down what makes it are you saying it's he routinely throws caution into the wind it's going i mean when you're this aggressive it's

going to get to a point where your opponents are going to expect that at this point we would have been just kick the field goal then they got to stop it. Perhaps one dimensional is a poor choice of words. It's just becoming trite. People are going to expect it. Because when I hear one dimensional, I hear it in more of a play calling standpoint. And so it was a poor choice of words. I just meant that it's becoming predictable.

Okay. And that's fine. At that point, it's on the defense for making the stop. The Packers had five chances of stopping them on fourth down, and they only did it one time. And lo and behold, Dan Campbell went for it on fourth down from his own 31, and the Packers ended up scoring off of the fourth down stop. Other than that, they didn't stop them the other four times.

So that's really on the defense to make a stop at that point and i wanted to look back at some of these plays uh some of these drives of when they went forward on fourth down as well just to just to see what we're looking at here obviously i just mentioned they went forward on fourth and uh fourth and one from their own 35 31 the and they lost a yard, turned it into a Green Bay touchdown. Earlier in the game, towards the end of the first half, fourth down and two, or fourth and goal from the two-yard line, Jared Goff, touchdown pass. It's fourth and goal.

Later on in the game, fourth and goal from the Green Bay three, touchdown pass. Already went over that, fourth and goal from the green Bay three touchdown pass. I already went over that fourth down fourth and one end of game from the green Bay 21. And that ended up sealing the deal. And there was another fourth down that was in here that I'm just, I know that I'm missing. I just can't fucking find it.

Oh, there was another fourth down conversion that they had in the third quarter when they went to go up 24-21. Yeah, when they went up 24-21. And it was fourth and one from the Detroit 49. And when CJ made the one-dimensional comment, now knowing that it was a poor choice of words, I wanted to see what they're calling on third down,

what the down and distances, the down and distance on these third downs. Like when you expect a team to go for it on fourth down, or you're in four down territory, you, a lot of teams tend to pass it on third and short because you know, because they know that they're going to probably run it on fourth and short and a lot of these third down plays they're third and intermediate third and eight third and five third and nine and they're throwing it just short of the line

again and then running it on that fourth down so i mean obviously we just proved that cj didn't mean what he just said so i don't really need to go too much further with it, but I feel like it just depends on what you're, when you're doing it. I don't, I don't think it's bad that Dan Campbell is going for it on fourth and goal inside the five or fourth and short from the 25 or whatever. In fact,

I actually liked the idea of going for it on fourth down from the Packers 25 or whatever the hell the ball was because I don't want to take the chance of giving the ball back to Jordan Love and Matt LaFleur. Granted, the defense was doing a solid enough job, but they had also given up 31 points. I don't want to take a risk of sending this game to overtime. I know that my defense has 13 players on IR. I don't want to take a risk of sending this game to overtime. I know that my defense has 13

players on IR. I don't want to go to overtime and risk more injury. I don't want my defense back out on the field. I guess that's the way I see it. And yeah, you guys bring up the NFC Championship game and granted, one of the fourth down calls that didn't

work was a Jameson Williams drop pass. That would have been a first down. Granted, that's just one fourth down that I'm picking out of a cornfield. But I think that half of it is true or half of it is definitely Dan Campbell needs to chill out but half of it is like i like where he's calling the fourth down or going for it on fourth down i think he's doing it too often i just there's a lot of easy ones but the more easy ones you go for the more likely that you're going to fail on a bunch of them and you're also going to get to a point in the five on fourth down then i mean shit like well you have you have a thursday you have a thursday night football game

short rest against the packers defense that isn't all that good and on top of that this is a regular season game defenses tighten up when you get to into the postseason it worked out for them for the most part last year and it's worked out so far this year for the most part but you're going to get to a point where defenses they they tighten up the teams that you face get better and like do you expect do you expect to be able to pull this off against kansas city in that front seven i don't know if you'll be able to do that at that magnitude. And I don't know if Jared, I don't know if Jared Goff is for the season that Jared Goff has had this year. He's been very good, but for the season that he has had, we know what Jared Goff is. We know he's not an elite quarterback. He's more of a B to B plus level type of quarterback. Do you think he'll be able to make those kinds of plays and high pressure

situations in the most important game of the year? I'm not quite so sure. Then those do those two playoff wins from last year. Don't not matter. Those are arguably the two biggest games in Detroit history. Yeah it matters i'm just i'm just saying i he hasn't won the last one i'm so i'm my expectation is not divisional round not wild card round my expectation is nfc championship or super bowl in fact i'm i i picked them to win the super bowl this year. So if they're making rash decisions like this right now, where it gets overly risky to the point where this could cost you later on in the season,

then that's a little worrisome for me. I'm not saying aggression isn't good. It's good. I just think he overdoes it. And again, with the amount of times that he could have just taken the points in the NFC championship game, they would have won the game. At least they would have been highly likely to. Fair enough. I mean, I don't know. If I had the offense that the Lions have, then I'd probably be doing almost as much of the aggressiveness as Dan Campbell is, to be honest.

That's how good the Lions offense is. I'd be aggressive, too. I agree with you. I'd be aggressive, too. I think he overdoes it. And they're going to blow out a lot of teams because they're just that talented. But you're going to face a team at some point that's going to limit you in scoring, that's going to match you in how many points that they score.

So at that point, every decision matters. And it worked out for them this time, but we've seen times where it didn't. So it's something I'm a little concerned about. I guess we'll see what happens in how many weeks do we have left? Or it doesn't really matter. We'll see in a month once playoff time comes around, but CJ want to add anything else before we take a short break?

I don't know. Just, I was turning over in my head what you said about Jared Goff or what Adam said about Jared Goff about, you know, when the lights shine brightest, will he be able to do it? And you said, oh, well, were those two playoff games last year not enough for you?

You know, granted, this was years ago, but I can think of a different game Jared Goff was in with arguably a better offense around him where the lights were that much brighter and he didn't do it. We're talking about, that's a Jared Goff in his third season. This is Jared Goff in his- Okay, yeah, third season with a better team and a better coach. I'm just saying Jared Goff is a much different quarterback than what he was in 2018.

That's actually a fair, I like to use Super Bowl 53 as an argument for what separates good quarterbacks from great ones. The one on the opposite sideline also had a bad game, but he made the throws he needed to make when he absolutely had to. Box score watchers are going to say that was a terrible game, and they'd be right overall, but he helped them to win the game, which is something that won't show in the box score. But if you look at the actual game, you will see that he made a beautiful throw, arguably the best of his entire Super Bowl career, in triple coverage, dropped it right into Rob Gronkowski's arms to make the catch right before the goal line. Jared Goff never made plays like that.

And he still continues to not do it. And Sean McVay also got outcoached like a motherfucker by Bill Belichick. And he's still a better head coach than Dan Campbell. We can agree on that. I'm just... I mean, I'm just saying, mean golf has literally not risen to the occasion with a better coach and a better roster and sure anyone can point out that it's his third

year but like i mean i feel like the ceiling hasn't exactly moved maybe it got a little better just that the floor got higher that's that's that's that's just my point. Yeah. I don't know. I still think that 2024 golf is a lot different than 2018 golf, but like I said, time will tell in a month. See what's going to happen. All right.

Time to move away from the Lions. Still got a pretty good slate coming up here on week 14. When we come back, we're going to get into our Ruski game of the week. This is the Molden Ruski Podcast. It may not have always showed it in the stat sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws. Back-to-back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's got to get that six or seven spot.

He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides this is the fumble ruski podcast i'm chris kostich adam wright cj maderos it's time for the ruski game of the week the chargers versus the chiefs goodness you know The Chiefs. Goodness. You know, on paper, it really doesn't seem like that good of a game besides the records and the head coaches. Great head coach matchup. Great quarterback matchup. Justin Herbert also is one of three quarterbacks

who do not throw an interception in 10 straight weeks. 2010 Tom Brady. And I may give you guys $ dollars if you can guess who the other quarterback is can i get a season or no uh i think it was 2018 i'm already blanking on the season same division though oh wait who's the other one same division though same division as Herbert either Patrick Mahomes or Derek Carr Derek Carr I was going to say

Mahomes and then I was well I did say yeah Derek Carr just such a weird such a weird quarterback he was never the same after that injury feel bad. Big storyline, though.

Ladd-McConaughey. He's out. But second time around for these two teams where the Chiefs won. Oh, my goodness. The Chiefs just keep finding horseshit ways to win. And I'm sick of it. They should have lost to the Raiders last week and the chargers are smelling blood.

They are smelling blood. They know they should have beat the chiefs last time around. And I think they're going to come in with a different type of energy for this game. Mahomes still can't get it figured out with his receivers. Noah Gray is his freaking top receiver. Give me the Chargers. Jim Harbaugh, this is the lunch pail game.

Jim Harbaugh got all of his boys lunch pails. They're going to work. It's going to be a down and gritty game. Give me Los Angeles. This is a tough one. But weighing out the way that the Chiefs have looked so far this season, they've gotten better. So I think this is going to be an overall competitive game.

And the Chargers have been a very steady football team. Dare I say, probably the most stable team in their division, even with the chiefs, uh, just with their, they, their quarterback is being, is being kept on his feet by his offensive line. That's, that's a big difference from years past with Justin Herbert. Um, their coaching has been uncharacteristically, um, among the best in the league this year. We all know why, because they brought in Jim Harbaugh, which is the exact reason they did it because they needed that coaching to get better. And you can, we're clearly seeing now why I value targets. Um, but why I, why, excuse me, why I value offensive line and

coaching over targets. Skill position players are great. We love our Jamar chases. We love our Justin, Justin Jefferson's of the world. Um, in, in Justin Herbert's fall, uh, in Justin Herbert's case, it would be, uh, Keenan Allen and Mike Williams who we used to have. Those guys are gone. And now you have a good offensive line and a good coach, but the team production is better because Herbert's on his feet. He knows where to throw. And for that, I'm picking the Chargers. It's not to say that the Chiefs aren't overall, probably still a better team just because Patrick Mahomes is that great of a quarterback, but that doesn't mean that the Chargers, that doesn't mean the Chiefs are going to finish with one loss on the season. I think you're going to lose a few more as this season goes on. This is probably one of the shakier years that Patrick Mahomes has played in

and this Chiefs team as a whole ever since 2018. So yeah, give me the Chargers. And just a heads up as well, Ladd McConkie is still questionable. Not yet ruled out. He was limited in practice on Thursday. We're not sure of his status so far. I'm sorry for the misinformation.

I just wanted to preface that there is a good chance that McConkie probably won't play. You know what's also questionable is the patriots decision to pass on him to draft jalen polk but that'll be yes trading back too don't forget that yeah i said we like this guy polk let's just move back and then i love robert craft no so i gotta go to kansas city i'm gonna be honest because the bills show there's only one way to beat kc you gotta go out punch them in the mouth early and keep your foot on their neck that's basically it you have to get out the gate early and you're gonna need two scores in the

fourth quarter because let me tell you something either way whether the chief gate early, and you're going to need two scores in the fourth quarter. Because let me tell you something. Either way, whether the Chiefs are up or you're up, if it's the fourth quarter and it's a one-score game, Kansas City is going to win. They are undefeated in one-score games thus far. And we all know why. Look, see, here's the thing. When you stop them on fourth down, tough luck, the flag's coming out, right? When you get the game-winning touchdown, sorry, the flag's coming out. Like, this is something you've got to accept.

You have to be up. And this is something that we've said before. You can never afford to lead the game in the hands of the officials. You have to be up by multiple scores in the fourth quarter. And even with McConkie, if you do have him, he's going to be banged up. So at best, he's going to be like a decoy used to draw coverage. But even still, even if he's healthy, you don't have the explosiveness on offense to put points up on the Chiefs. Like, if you still, even if you still had old man Keenan Allen,

or heck, even Mike Williams, I'd probably be leaning toward the Chargers. It's just, I don't know. I feel like it's going to be another close game. But the Chiefs in the fourth quarter, they get bailed out, and they get bailed out repeatedly. And like I said, if it's a one-score game, they're going to win. You're going to need to be up by at least two, and I don't see it happening for the Chargers.

And I know it's stupid reasoning, but still. But if McConkie doesn't play, then it's stupid reasoning but still even if but if mcconkie doesn't play then it's almost certain for kansas city yeah i know jk dobbins either but i don't know it's there's there's just a certain will that i feel like the chargers need to have and will have especially if they're they think they're gonna win a playoff game maybe two i feel like if they think they're going to win a playoff game, maybe two. I feel like if they're going to have some sort of role or momentum going into the playoffs, I know that we still have a number of weeks until the playoffs, a month until playoffs.

But if you want the confidence to make a deep run, this is the game that you have to win to get that going for you. And I think they're going to do it. And if you do come out of this game with a win, then their schedule gets a hell of a lot easier. You got the Buccaneers right after that. The Broncos, that'll be a tough game and a potential game of the week for that slate of games for us.

You have the Patriots and then the Raiders. So if you win this one, then there's a good chance that you finish 12 and five, which is a great year by Chargers standards. I mean, last year you had the, uh, you had the number five overall pick.

And now we're sitting here and we're calling this team a 12-5 team. That's incredible. I'd say 12-5, maybe 11-6 because you never know. Tampa Bay is getting healthy again, so you never know what's going to happen with that. Especially with the Chiefs schedule coming up too. I would say Chiefs schedule is a bit tougher than what the Chargers are, so there's even a chance that the Chargers compete for the division at that point. It's a small chance, but there's a legitimate chance.

Don't get me wrong. It's just the Chiefs – look, I know it's cheesy to say, you know, when you make the game-winning stop on fourth down and you get the game-winning touchdown, the flag's coming out. Am I wrong? No, you's coming out. Am I wrong? No, you're not wrong. Am I wrong? You cannot lose a game.

It has to be a two-score game because there are forces beyond your control because you're not just playing Kansas City. You're playing a narrative. They make money. Oh, Christ. Subsequently, this is an agreement, CJ, not in disagreement. The sigh of relief. Subsequently, in the same way that the Chargers have an easy schedule

if they take this game, the Chiefs have a pretty tough one. So, yes, they have the Browns right after. That's probably a victory, but you never know any given Sunday. But you have the Texans after that. You have the Steelers after that. And you have the Broncos who just took you all the way to the end of the game. It took them to a blocked field goal. A missed chip shot field goal where it's like, how the hell did that happen?

So, I mean, I didn't put, I didn't have the Chargers in play for this division, and I wouldn't put money on them taking it, but the path is there. The Chiefs have a tough remaining schedule. The Chargers have it a little bit easier after this game. So if they win this one, who knows? I mean, it's possible, yeah.

However, I will say one thing for Kansas City. I fully expect the Chargers to make them sweat. And honestly, McConkie or not, if the Chargers even had Dobbins, I'd probably be leaning towards them. It's just if McConkie's out, then you just got dealt two blows that it's just going to make it that much tougher. Because let's not act like Kansas City's a bad team. They're a good system.

You know, Reid is a good coach. He's been able to elevate Mahomes through Mahomes' let's be real, not very good play. And Steve Spagnuolo, though his reputation as defensive mastermind can be a little overplayed because he's never been more than a defensive coordinator. I mean, we saw how he was as a coach. He wasn't very good.

But they're still – the Chiefs are a good role-playing team, and that's going to be what I think. However, if you're able to, like I said, come out, punch them in the mouth early, just keep your foot on the gas, it should be fine. Optimal word is should. Yeah. We're going to move on, take a quick break. When we come back, we're going to get into the rest of the week 14 slate.

This is the Fumble Rooski Podcast. It may not have always showed it in the staff sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws. Back-to-back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's got to get that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides. This is the Fallen Borowski Podcast by Parody 18 Radio and Secret Weapon Consulting.

Chris Kostic, CJ Medeiros, Adam Wright. Move on to the rest of Week 14. First, the 1 p.m. games. Here's a little nugget for you guys. Week 13, 12 of the 16 games played last week were one score games. Ooh-wee. Ooh-wee. Probably could have been 13 if James didn't throw that last pick six.

But, yeah, the slate for this week isn't great But it also is one of those weeks where A not so great slate might lead to a lot of chaos And with that, we start with the Jaguars and the Titans Talk about chaos Talk about chaos Mack Jones to start it for Jacksonville the rest of the season. Trevor Lawrence, he was going to be out for a couple weeks because of his concussion,

but just recently announced earlier this week that he's going to be out for the season due to AC joint surgery. If you're wondering what an AC joint is, Jimmy Garoppolo had it when he was on the paths. So in your shoulder area, kind of, kind of affects the way that you throw the ball. So Jaguars and Titans,

Titans are favored. We're in Nashville. Titans got spread at three and a half. Huh? I, I don't even know where to go with this at all. Feel like my gut is kind of tingling towards Jacksonville, though. Bartomey is thinking, well, Mac Jones is going up against a pretty solid Titans defense. But Mac Jones is also coming off of some pretty good momentum.

And almost coming back and beating the Texans last week. Let's ride on the momentum here. Give me Jacksonville. Why not? Why not? AFC South game. Fuck it. Why not? Why not? AFC South game. Fuck it. Who knows?

It's not like this game fucking matters anyways. Except for the draft. Yeah, it matters in draft purposes. And you guys, if you guys follow our, if you guys follow our podcast page on Instagram, then you see why every Jaguars game matters for the Patriots and for anybody else, um, in the top five of this draft who wants Travis Hunter, uh, the Titans need to win some games. If you're a T if you're a fan of the team, that isn't the Jaguars that needs a wide receiver or a, or a tackle. And I'm, I strongly believe that they're going to take, uh, Travis Hunter. If, if the Jaguars get that pick, however, I don't think the Jaguars are winning this game.

Although their, their schedule is very easy coming up. Jaguars aren't winning this game. I think they lose this one. The Titan we, we look at, we look at momentum for the Jaguars aren't winning this game. I think they lose this one. The Titan, we look at momentum for the Jaguars. Let's look at some for the Titans. And I'll give a tiny bit, just a tad bit of credit where it's due. Will Levis has played a little better since he's come back from injury. He's played much better. Whether it's just a flash in the pan or whatever is one thing, but the momentum is also on the Titans side. And Mac Jones is also not a very good quarterback. So you look at two not very good quarterbacks, two of them both having some good momentum. Will Levis, we haven't seen much of since the start of his career, since he's only in year two.

And he's gotten a little better. He has good targets. I think the Titans come out with this victory. I'm not saying it's in a good way, but I still think they win the suck fest. So give me the Titans. Regardless of who we're picking to win, I think we can all agree nobody's winning in the good way. Now this is going to be an ugly game

a suck fest as adam just truthfully put it you think i'm gonna fucking watch this game i'm not even gonna fucking watch this game well we can't because we're probably not even getting it in new england i don't even care i wouldn't watch it for the life of me anyways i don't know all right cj for cutting the only way i would even consider this is if it just happens to assault my eyes during Red Zone. But I can deal with that. It's for fantasy purposes. Y'all know the lore. But I got to go with Jacksonville because I think there's a hidden element to this that a lot of people forget about.

That's the mental aspect. You saw what happened. That monster, Aziz Alshair, literally woke up and said, the spirit of Fontes Perfect is telling me to kill Trevor Lawrence. And yeah.

So that's just what he tried to do. And if you're the Jags, you're angry. Sure, you're like, sure you got the worst record in the league. Sure, you're the Jags, you're angry. Sure, you're like, sure you got the worst record in the league. Sure, you're out of the playoffs. But I think there's a lot of anger with Jacksonville. You know, they're out for blood. They're out to, in the words of Dan Campbell, bite some kneecaps. And in a divisional game, they found the right team to wail against in the titans because sure will levis has been playing a little better but see i thought once they upset houston

oh hey you know maybe this is gonna be a thing nope nope just kidding the commanders absolutely violated them and that's really all it need be just Just the Titans are just so underwhelming. At least Mac Jones can be a game manager. Will Levis is just kind of a, I'm going to chuck it deep and see what happens. Will Levis, since returning from injury, seven touchdowns to two interceptions and has been sacked seven, 12, 22 times in four games.

That's pretty terrible. I just wanted to throw that stat out there for you guys. But not like it really matters, to be honest. Well, I mean, with the amount that they've invested on that offensive line. True. Jets-Dolphins in Miami. Give me the Dolphins. I don't know.

This is a typical Dolphins shit on a sub-500 team game. They're going to run all over the Jets. They're going to throw all over the Jets. I mean, will the Jets' offense might look like that they actually aren't going to die tomorrow? Sure, maybe. Miami doesn't have a great defense, but I think that Miami's offense is going to cook a little bit more against a terrible Jets defense. Also, injury update for the J as well and of course i pull the classic i should have had this pulled up prior to be bringing it up uh significant jets news for sunday breese hall and sauce gardner will both be

listed as doubtful in addition cj mosley placed on ir ending his season neck injury um honestly it's not like he really did anything anyways. No one on that defense has really done anything. Yeah. The Jets are winning this game. I'm kidding. Give me the Dolphins. It's not even worth the time of day for me to even explain. Tua's healthy. Offense is going to be high flying jets are the jets that's it i've said what i've said i've spoken

all right i mean it's got to be the dolphins right yeah that's literally what it is the jets are just a team that i feel like has given up. I say this every week about a number of teams. That's true. The wheels are coming off. Aaron Rodgers' future is in doubt. Joe Douglas is gone. Your head coach, Saul, has been gone.

They're just trying to make the games not hurt until they can limp their way into the offseason and lick their wounds. And on top of that, it's in Miami. And Miami, they just got their tail fins handed to them by the Packers. So they're just going to be looking at just an easy team they can just wallop. So give me Miami. If you finish that take with the Jets are just a team. Yeah, the Jets are.

Oh, Adam, they are just a team. They are certainly a team. They may not even be that at this point. I mean, they're a Juco team, but still a team. They're one of the teams of all time. Oh, certainly. Like this season for the jets has just been i think this has probably been the most heartbreaking for jets fans because of how

hopeful it was i don't know who said it before but somebody said i i think it was one of us who said it it was the jets are the jets with with Aaron Rodgers are everything that people thought Tom Brady, that Tom Brady with the Buccaneers was supposed to be. And I couldn't think of a better summary for that. Yeah, astute observation. Somehow Tom Brady just kicked it into another gear in his mid-40s. But this feels like it's normal for a 40-year-old quarterback. just kicked it into another gear in his mid forties. And, but this, this feels like it's normal for a 40 year old quarterback.

What we see from Aaron Rogers is what you're supposed to see from a four year old quarterback, which just makes what Tom Brady did look that much better. And even drew breeze, he played in his forties. He didn't look that good, but he looks better than Rogers does. So credit to them for being able to,

to last as long as they did. I think I, after I made that, I said that, I also said that Brady kind of ruins the quarterback game for everybody else, because now you're expected to play and not just Brady, of course,

like obviously Favre is going to have something to do with it. Breeze is going to have something to do with it. Peytonning a little bit uh and now aaron rogers of course they kind of ruined it for other quarterbacks because now it seems like you're expected to play into your 40 into your early 40s at this rate whereas like you have max kellerman in 2014 and 2015 saying that brady was going to fall off a cliff which i mean statistically speaking he wasn't wrong he like at the time he wasn't wrong but like i thought that was a good take honestly like that's usually what happens it's not his fault that how is he supposed to know brady was aborg, but like I'll add another, I'll add another narrative to, to what you said, Chris, is that a lot of we've seen recent in recent years, some success of older quarterbacks going to new teams and

having success. Have you noticed that a lot of teams have been doing that now, but it hasn't been working like, like it usually does. Russell Wilson got traded to the Broncos. He was terrible. Aaron Rogers with the jets. Now it's just, it's happening more often and it's not working in the way that we thought it would. Matt Ryan went to the Colts to a lesser extent, but like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, all quarterbacks who went to new teams late in their careers found newfound success

right away but we're now seeing that that's those quarterbacks are just that special they were able to do it they made it more easy speaking of colts philip rivers took the colts to the playoffs in his one year kind of yeah that he was so mid though that was more of a team thing. Yeah, I know, but still. It's good enough, yeah. Falcon, speaking of old-ass quarterbacks going to a new team, the Vikings and the Falcons. Oh, that's going to be a game. Kirk Cousins coming off of a four-interception game. The wheels are falling off in Atlanta.

I know that we are saying, ohanta it's i i can't like i know that we are saying oh it's this falcons team it's it's gonna be between them and tampa bay it still is but i'm sorry atlanta is not winning the nfc south they're just not you just don't worse you just don't know what the hell you're expecting. I mean, they still have fantastic players, but I mean, it's gotten to the point where now the play of Kirk Cousins has ultimately completely affected how Atlanta is playing this year. Kirk Cousins has not thrown a touchdown pass in his last three games. Guess how many interceptions he's thrown in the last three games? Six. Six. Six. Six interceptions he's thrown in the last three games? Six.

Six. Six. Six interceptions, no touchdowns. What the fuck? What the fuck? That's crazy. That's what not top 10 quarterbacks do, Chris. Hey, man, he was top 10 in Minnesota.

I don't give a fuck. He was top 10, but number 10. He's definitely where he is now't give a fuck. He was top 10, but number 10. Are you telling me he's definitely where he is now? How about this? He was top 10, but number 10. He's definitely not a top 10 quarterback right now. That's for certain, unfortunately. I mean, I love Kirk Cousins, but Jesus Christ,

he's played like a complete donkey. So who's winning? Vikings. I'm going to say Vikings, but I'm going to use my stage to say start Michael Penix. Bench Kirk Cousins. Your stupidity was strangely fortunate because you brought in two quarterbacks. One late in his career. Here's another one we talked about for the last

matchup so many quarterbacks were moving teams changing teams late in their careers they expect success like brady and manning did and we're getting kurt cousins which i mean i don't that's like preferring the taste of dog shit over filet mignon, but that's another thing. Start Michael Penix. That kid actually looked pretty good in preseason. He's a kid who had a lot of hype. There's a reason he went number eight overall in this draft. Rather, seventh, excuse me. But start Michael Penix.

You're in the playoff hunt, and you have good targets around you a good offensive line literally like everyone's saying well they're in the playoff hunt you don't want to mess it up the the guys who's starting right now is messing it up he michael pennix might actually fix it cj i brought this up on tuesday to you it was it was two the year was 2018 the baltimore ravens started the season with joe flacco and they benched lamar jackson who did they bench later in later in that season that saved their season joe flacco who started lamar jackson they didn't go anywhere but it was good development good it was it was good experience for lamar jackson to get his feet wet for an

eventual unanimous mvp in 2019 start going to the playoffs that year that's what i'm saying it saved their season honestly if you are the falcons really think critically about this okay where do you have to lose by putting in pennix see here's the thing i would actually argue it's worse for them to make the playoffs you know why worst draft pick and we remember remember uh when the nfc south was called the tank division that's why because somebody in that god awful dumpster fire division i want to say what was that like 2019 2018 something like that they like somebody who was either mid or worse was going to have to make the playoffs and if you're the falcons why do you want that like to what to

prove like oh i'm the man i'm gonna talk my crap and in the words of chris let my nuts trip but why would you do that i mean just start pedics if you make it great but it's better to make it with him than kurt cousins where you already know what you have and it's already not working so that being said give me the vikings because what the Falcons are just an enigma of a team. They went all in this offseason. You know what they did? They put it all on red at the table. They spun and it came up black.

No money for you. Trying to decipher this Vikings team is like giving me a piece of paper written in russian say to cipher this i look at you and say what the hell like i don't understand atlanta just the vikings all you have to do is just stand there throw the ball to justin jefferson and jordan addison and the winning should come easy i'm not thinking of draft positioning when I'm talking about the Atlanta Falcons. They have so much talent on offense. They have all the talent they need on defense. The only thing that besides quarterback that is a little suspect, I would say is coaching. Coaching seems off, but when you're looking at starting Michael Pennix, you also have to think

about a winning culture. With the Patriots, I was against starting Drake May because there was literally nothing they could do to restore a winning culture this season. All they would do is lose more games and you're just putting Drake May at risk. I already knew what they had in him. I did not need to see that more. But when it comes to the Falcons and Michael Penix, this team is somehow still in playoff contention. You have a lot of talent around you. There's nothing that extra draft spot is going to do to help you. But when you weigh it out, making the playoffs this year and establishing some sort of a winning culture with Michael Penix is a good stepping stone to next season where they could be a lot better.

I also think Minnesota is going to blitz the living fuck out of Kirk Cousins. That's just me. Speaking of NFC South stinkers, Saints-Giants. Good God. That's going to be a game. This is going to be one of the games of all time. I don't know.

I kind of like the Saints. I kind of like the Giants. Not really. I like the Saints a little bit more. The only thing I can really think of is maybe the Giants are going to sack Derek Carr maybe five times. Maybe Alvin Kamara has himself a game. I don't know. There's not really much to look forward to in this game, much like the Jacksonville-Tennessee game.

But give me New Orleans. Maybe Camara gets two tutties. Give me the Giants, but not in a good way. It's like, don't think I'm like, oh, Giants, they're doing real. They're on the up and up. The Saints are just as bad. And listen, the reason I'm picking the Giants is because I like Drew Locke. I think that he's probably the best quarterback in that room for the Giants.

And sitting here as a Patriots fan, again, I said for last slate of matchups, I said I wanted Drake May benched this season. I did not want Jacoby Brissett. The quarterback I actually wanted was Drew Locke. I thought he's a decent quarterback who in the right situation could win you a few games and you become an entertaining product, hold you over until next season when Drake May is ready to start and you have a better roster for him. And I think when you have him and you have Malik neighbors, I kind of like that combination. So I think the giants pull the upset again,

not in a good way, but give me the giants. The only thing to look forward to about the giant saints game is that eventually it will be over by the time four o'clock rolls around the game will be over unless of course knowing those goober teams there it's probably going to go to overtime because the football gods want us to suffer that being said i have to go with with the Saints because I don't know if you saw this for the Giants. A certain Dexter Lawrence

is done for the year. He was your defense. He was literally your defense. You got Kayvon Thibodeau and Brian Burns though. Kayvon Thibodeau, who has done jacking crap the entire year because he's been hurt he just came back and he wasn't doing literally anything before that even the beginning of the season you

can't do anything if the season didn't start um we're not arguing about this keep going we're arguing about the goddamn giants we're arguing about the goddamn giants smart enough came on tibido's my man dude i think they have a good front seven but like when they're healthy just like even like their other good players have been horrifically underperforming but that is neither here nor there chris is right we should not argue about the giants it's just i just think it's a better team you know with camara and the gang and i don't know like olave i guess i don't know throw a touchdown to juwan johnson maybe that'll make it better i just whether you put in tommy devito who's hurt or drew lock it's like i just

think the giants are done dable's done that's a team that's checked out. And it sucks because I don't think Dable deserved it. I think Joe Shane is the one that should be flung into the East River via Trebuchet. Not Dable. But we don't always get what we want, do we, kids? So, yeah, give me the Saints. Isn't Taysom Hill also out for the season? Oh, yeah, no, no. Taysom Hill's done. I know because I had him and Christian McCaffrey on the same team.

All right, moving on to the next game. This is going to be another quick one, or should be a quick one, unless we start going on tangents about fucking shitty-ass D-lines. Philly versus Carolina. Spread is the – this is the biggest spread of the weekend. Philly by 13.5. Gorn at the Vegas. Oh!

Oh, this is so awful. So awful. But I'm going to go with the Eagles, but I do want to say Bryce Young. Boy, has he shown up. What the hell are you looking at, Adam? What the hell are you looking at?

You're saying this is so awful you really can't tell who's going to win? Well, yeah, I know. It's going to be the Eagles. But there's just this lingering in the back of my mind. There's this lingering in the back of my mind of watching how good Bryce Young has been playing to say that Carolina is going to cover the spread. Why do I want to think that? Why do I want to think that, Adam? Why?

Well, we're talking about winners. I mean, covering the spread. Because Bryce Young, as he's come back. If they cover the spread, there's a chance they're going to win. I don't think they're winning, but there's no chance. The Eagles have been on a roll in the same way that Bryce Young has been playing well. He's playing well so that maybe next year the Carolina Panthers turn it around. And Bryce Young is actually playing like a number one overall pick. Yeah. The Eagles, they have a chance to finally have a running back represent as a league

MVP for the first time since 2012. And if Saquon Barkley continues to ball out, he's on pace, according to ESPN, he's on pace for over 2,100 yards and I believe 10 to 15 touchdowns. If he ends up with that number, he's taking it. Especially if the Eagles end up as a top two seed, then why would Josh Allen take it? They're the two seed right now over in the AFC too. So yeah, give me Saquon Barkley if that happens. But I mean, overall, that's a really good team over there.

They've turned things around. Nick Sirianni is actually playing like being a decent coach, like he always was before this last season. Good pass catchers. It's a good all-around team. And it's going to continue against a Carolina team with a Bryce Young guy who's, yeah, he's good. He's playing better.

But it's more of a precursor to next year when maybe they turn it around. Yeah, I do want to give Bryce Young his flowers because only a select few people have been talking about it. Since he came back, he has 1,078 yards, six touchdowns, three picks. That's pretty good. Unfortunately, pretty good and a nice little comeback is not going to beat Philly. Philly's defense is just monstrous. You know, you look at that front seven. You'll look at the young pups there with Mitchell and Djean. And I just think Philly outclasses Carolina in every way.

Not to mention it's in the link as well. You know, the stadium most known for having like a in-stadium jail. So yeah, you don't really have to think about it. Although, much like Chris, I do have a lingering feeling about Carolina that, I don't know, maybe for a quarter or two they make Philly sweat.

Maybe for a quarter or two they hang around. Maybe the. Maybe for a quarter or two, they hang around. Maybe the fourth quarter, they make it a game. Hey, it could be. We saw with KC. Exactly. Stranger things have happened. But overall, it's still going to be Philly. Whether they sweat or not, it's still going to be Philly.

You know what? Pause just in case. Did you guys see that parody song about Cooper Dujene to the tune of Billie Jean by Michael Jackson oh yeah I've seen that Cooper Dijon is not a safety he's locking up your receiver

or whatever the hell it is these white men are dangerous he and Reed Blankenship I love how he and Reed Blankenship literally have the shirt that says the exciting whites That is Messed up but so funny At the same time

Jesus Moving on to NFC North matchup in Pittsburgh The Steelers and the Browns Jameis May God take him away from these pick sixes That he's throwing But like Jesus Christ If he could like stop throwing picks Jameis may God take him away from these pick sixes that he's throwing,

but like, Jesus Christ, if he could like stop throwing picks, he would be like a top 10 quarterback in the league. That's how ridiculous it is. Like that's how good he's throwing the ball. Granted the last time against Pittsburgh, it was snowing and shit. He didn't have that creative game,

but, um, if seriously, if he's at least at the very least a top 15 quarterback if he stops throwing this many picks. And the stat line from last week as well. So if you take this stat line from last week, 497 yards, four touchdowns, three interceptions. And two pick sixes. He has done that three times in his career.

Everyone else in NFL history. Has done it three times. Total. Combined. Three times. That is as much of a Jameis Winston stat as I've ever seen in my life. And I love it. I love it.

But, however, this is actually going to come to a shock to you guys. But the Browns have not won a regular season game in Pittsburgh. I preface regular season because the Browns did beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh in the playoffs a couple of years ago. I remember that. No, that game was like a fever dream. But they have not beaten Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh since the Tim Couch Browns of 2003.

Jeez. So give me the Steelers. They need a revenge game. They're're gonna come out firing a little bit give me just give me the Steelers Chris W Kostich there's an old saying in Tennessee I know it's in Texas probably in Tennessee that says fool me once shame on shame on you but fool me can't be fooled again. That's a quote by George Bush. Yeah, fool me once. The Pittsburgh Steelers, they lost to the Cleveland Browns earlier on this season.

I don't think it's going to happen again. That was a game where it just felt like it wasn't real. And I know the Steelers have been weird this year. They're a team where we've preached all season long. They could beat anybody and we wouldn't be surprised. They could also lose to anybody. Wouldn't be surprised. Doesn't mean they lose to the same team twice. Don't think it's happening again. This Brown team sucks. Give me the steelers i love jamis i really do as a quarterback gabby the funniest guy puts out the most interesting stat lines you've ever seen

but i don't think it's gonna be enough to beat pittsburgh as chris mentioned in pittsburgh yeah our buddy w there you know he did mention it is in pittsburgh so i gotta go with the steelers you know and it probably won't be in weird weather but not not that i think that was an excuse to begin with looking at you pickens but once again you don't have to think too hard i it's gonna be pittsburgh i mean you saw i, granted the Bengals defense was terrible, but you saw they hung 40 on the Bengals. So, I mean, I don't know. You are riding some momentum into that game.

So do with that what you will. Yeah. You mentioned weather. It's going to be a lot nicer weather to say the least compared to that Thursday night or yeah that Thursday night game in Cleveland where the lake effects took over in the second half, whereas there won't be

much lake effects in this game. 48 degrees and mostly sunny. Last game of the 1 o'clock slate, the Raiders and the Bucs. The Bucs are right on the Falcon Seals. They're going to win the NFC South. And look, they're already on a massive,

they're already on the start of a massive run and they're going to run the rest of the table. They're going to run the table. That's as easy as it is. Maybe they beat the Chargers. You know what? Book it. They're being the Chargers.

They're being the Chargers. Okay. They're also going to beat the Raiders this week. Yeah, Buccaneers are taking this one. They finally got Mike Evans back, and they need that guy to get his yards for 1K for another season. What's he at right now? He's at not enough right now um off the top he's in the 500 but it doesn't matter you got it's this is the this is the longevity thing we got we got to see him do it um i don't know if he'll do it um he has a chance because he's the

only target in that pass catching core right now, at least the only elite one that they have. So by volume, he's going to see a lot of targets in the next few weeks. So he has a shot. Um, and against the Vegas defense, that's very so, so,

um, the, the Raiders, the Raiders obviously want to win games. You always want to try and win, but it's obviously, it's probably in the back of everyone's minds that if they end up losing, The Raiders obviously want to win games. You always want to try and win. But it's probably in the back of everyone's minds that if they end up losing, that's probably the best scenario for them because they get that top pick that they want for the quarterback.

The Buccaneers want to win games because they're right there in the hunt for the division crown to host a playoff game. I think that combination should say all you all you need i think that mike evans will get he's at 521 right now he's probably gonna get double digit touchdowns by the way as well um i think that mike evans can get 479 receiving yards in the next month. But anyways, CJ. Possibly, but it's Tampa.

It's not close. The Raiders, I know Adam says they want to win, but I think all of us would like to be multi-billionaires too. Doesn't mean it's going to happen. And the Raiders is just another driftless team that's just slipping and sliding around like you don't know what's going to do you're just gonna you know it's like a it's like watching a car race and you know one car's on fire and they're just trying to hold together just kind of like skid off the pavement that's that's the Raiders in a nutshell.

They're not really playing for a whole lot either outside of a draft pick. Because like I said, if you look at some of the other bottom teams, the Jags, they're angry. They got a chip on their shoulder after these E's. I'll show you a thing. New England wants to continue to develop Drake May. What are the Raiders exactly up to play for antonio pierce will be gone at the end of this season because the raiders are going to have to make a business decision so but if you're tampa there's a very real shot you run the table and i absolutely

believe that tampa is going to win because they want to pull the rug out from Atlanta and actually win the division themselves, and I think they will give me the bucks. Also, big storyline, Brock Bauer's rookie of the year. Fuck all these other quarterbacks. Give Brock Bauer's rookie of the year. I don't care. He's about to shower the receiving record, receiving yards and receptions record. Give Brock Bauer's offense rookie of the year. I don't care how He's about to shower the receiving record, receiving yards and receptions record,

give Brock Bowers offense rookie of the year. I don't care how Daniel's been doing. Brock Bowers has been the most consistent rookie out of every single rookie in this class. Problem is, I don't think they'll do it. And I honestly don't know. Maybe, but as a tight end, oh no, the league will not let that happen.

He's fourth and receiving like it's i know that it's going to be a quarterback i know i know it's going to be a quarterback that wins rookie of the year but he's literally fourth and receiving this year yeah but it's so you see more often pass catchers having great seasons in their rookie years than quarterbacks which is why it's more valuable when you see the quarterback and also the quarterback's the most valuable position on the field if the quarterback has a good season and makes the playoffs which you have two of them right now then they're going to be favored 10 times out of 10 no i know i know it's i know i know what it doesn't make it right.

It's like, yeah, I know. It was my position on the field, but it's like, that's whatever. That's CJ basically summed up my point. It's not right. You have a tight end that's having going to have a record-breaking season. Whatever. Whatever. That's that's for the end of the season.

We're going to take a quick break when we come back. We're going to get into our three for the end of the season. We're going to take a quick break. When we come back, we're going to get into our three late afternoon games and our Monday night football game. This is the Fumblebushka Podcast. It may not have always showed it in the staff sheet, but you can see him making throws when he needs to make the throws. Back-to-back games where he has three touchdowns. Someone's got to get

that six or seven spot. He's an elite wide receiver as a rookie. Truly a lose-lose scenario for both sides. Welcome back to the Fumble Ruski Podcast powered by PowerD18 Radio and Secret Weapon Consulting. Chris Kostich,

Adam Wright, CJ Medeiros. Four o'clock games. First one, Seahawks-Cardinals. Talk about needing NFC. The NFC West is the Wild West as Wild West can get. Just mid. Mid, mid, mid. And I think the Cardinals are going to get their get back here.

They're at home against Seattle. And I have a feeling this is going to be another hammer the under type of game in terms of this over-unders 44.5. I know we're not a betting podcast, but if I was a betting man, I'm hammering the under again. I feel like there's going to be another weird slugfest where the, neither offense can get anything going, but I don't know. Give me the Cardinals.

It just, it's just meant to be. The Seahawks are not meant to go eight and five. The Cardinals and the Seahawks are meant to both be seven and six at the same time. time you guys you like that logic adam i like that perfect perfectly mid as all things should be uh yeah i the the cardinals are they they've been very up and down this season and recently they've been down which leads me to believe that maybe they'll be up this week. And then the Seahawks will go down and then they'll be up.

Because again, this division has been, like you say, the Wild West. We don't even know who's going to win this division. It could be any of these teams right now. Every single one of them has a chance, which is insane. And also Seahawks are on a chance, which is insane. And also the same. What? Real quick. Seahawks are on a three game winning streak.

That's what I said. Oh, did you? I missed that. I heard you say that the Seahawks are doing pretty well. So they're due to. Yeah, the Seahawks are doing well. But I didn't I didn't say three game winning streak. I said they're going to be down.

I thought you were correcting me from when. No, no, no, no. I wanted I was trying to pat on to what you were saying. Yeah. So yeah, I, they're not good enough to be, to win four games in a row. I completely agree with you there. Um, and in some ways that's really good that this is a competitive vision and all other ways that's bad because we know none of these teams are winning a Superbowl and none of them are even in contention. Either way, they're both, like all four of them are in playoff contention. And this is just the week for the Cardinals to come out with a victory here. They have the tools to win this game. They lost to the Seahawks last time I think they're gonna turn it around

and win this one oh my god Chris is right if he west is just the the the weird spin-off show of the movie that is the nfc south you know that's literally what they are it's just just the NFC South's offshoot, the NFC West. I'm going with Seattle. I think they got all the momentum. You know, they're on that three-game win streak, like you guys mentioned. And the Cardinals are just a team that reeks of illegitimacy. At bare minimum, the Geno Smith Seahawks have been to the playoffs before. So the term act like you've been here, I think, definitely applies.

I just, I'm so unenthused with both teams. But for me, I'm not even going to think too hard. It's just, you ride the hot hand. Wait, what was your pick? Seahawks. Okay. I just missed it. That's all. Oh, no.

I wasn't going to start shitting on you. I generally zoned out when you actually said Seahawks. So good. Bill's Rams. One of the other NFC West teams playing because they're out West. Bill's Rams. I'm not going to think too hard. one of the other NFC West teams playing. Cause you know, they're, they're out West. So, uh, Bill's Rams that I'm not going to think too hard on. I don't think anyone should really think too hard on this one. Besides the fact that this could,

this has the potential to be a shootout just based off of what you have on the Rams offensive side alone and how good Josh Allen has been playing in this rebuilding year for the bills that has now seen him at a 10 and two record. I will say the bills, both of their losses, their two losses are on the road, something to note. But like I said,

I'm not thinking too hard on this. Give me the bills. Yeah, I feel like I said, I'm not thinking too hard on this. Give me the bills. Yeah. I feel like this could potentially be one. This has the potential to be one of the better games of the weekend, I feel like. Yeah, this could be one of the more underrated matchups of this slate because the Rams, they just got back all of their star talent a few weeks ago

in their pass catching court, Cooper Cup, Puka Nakua. You have Kyron Williams still. Their defense is very, very suspect, but they still have a very good offense. And the Rams are playing pretty good football. That being said, so are the Bills, and they're playing arguably the best football in the AFC right now, and I think that continues. Give me the Bills. Josh Allen's playing out of his mind. That's another one where just don't really waste too much mind power trying to decipher it

it should be buffalo i mean last week the rams barely beat the ain'ts of all teams let alone you know actually competing with buffalo once again nfc west is a joke buffalo's right in the hot hand even though it's in la i don't think that's gonna matter too much the rams are a team that even though they've got a good head't think that's going to matter too much the rams are a team that even though they've got a good head coach and sean mcveigh they're on the downswing only half of your defense is good you know you got a great pass rush all but that defensive backfield is god awful and that's pretty much i mean your mean, your offense is good. I mean, your line is weird, but Stafford's getting up there in age.

It's just trying to scrape out a few wins where you can, but overall, I don't see him beating Buffalo. Give me Buffalo. Here's a cute little trend to throw at you guys as well. In the last five games. Win. Loss. Win. Loss. Win.

Loss. Loss. Also, barely beat the Seahawks. Next week, lose to Miami. Next week, they barely beat the Patriots. The next week, they get the shit kicked out of them by Philly. Next week, obviously last week, they barely beat the Saints. So this could very much be a shit kicking from Buffalo. Final game in the late afternoon slate.

Pretty much the final game we're going to cover on the Sunday slate. Bears and the Niners. I wanted to talk about these two teams indefinitely on Tuesday, but I didn't have time to. I had to leave before top three, bottom three, because both teams were on the bottom three. The Niners, I think it's safe to say, and I've finally accepted the fact that

it is more than likely that the Niners are not making the playoffs this year. It's more than likely. I would say that any of the other three teams in the NFC West has a much better shot of making it than the Niners do. And it's not even that the Niners are a bad team. They're just beaten to shit. It's just 2020 all over again that's that's been the storyline and looking at the Bears they haven't won a game on the road yet this year have not first game without Matt Ibraflus first game with Thomas Brown as your head coach, the interim head coach. And that's why I'm going

with Chicago. Give me the Bears. The interim head coach bump is going to happen again, just like it does every year. Every time it happens, the interim head coach gets a lot of momentum. The team

starts playing that much harder. And look, Thomas Brown, ever since he came in, when he showed up as the office coordinator, office looked pretty decent. The office looked pretty good. I'll say it. I know I was wrong.

I'll be the first to say that I was wrong about Thomas Brown, especially from what he did in Carolina. I was a little bit wrong. Offense looks better with Thomas Brown as the head coach or was the office coordinator. Now head coach, now the offense coordinator. Now the head coach. Now the head coach, interim head coach. Well, I say that he's going to do great as the head coach now,

but give me the interim bump this week. Give me the Bears. Yeah, I like Thomas Brown as the offensive coordinator, and they may keep him there if things go mean, if they may keep him there, if things go well right now. And I don't, I don't think he'll end up being the full-time head coach next year. But as an offensive coordinator with what he's done with Caleb Williams over the past couple of weeks, I agree with you on the interim head coach bump. It always ends up working out, at least helps them elevate their play. The 49ers have

been playing very suspect ball. I think they have a very surprising game. An offensive explosion from Caleb Williams, who is starting to look more and more like himself earlier on this season, where he was actually having a pretty good year. I think that's going to continue. And I think we're going to get a good Bears game. And yeah, I'll take the Bears too. Alright CJ, you know what to do. You know what to do. Say it. Say it.

You're with us. No, I am not. Oh yeah, Thomas Brown on the offense. Now that's all well and good, Chris. But are we forgetting, perhaps, that there is another side of the ball, perhaps even a third if you count special teams like I do? I just, Eberflus was a defensive-minded head coach.

He was literally Matt Nagy with a defensive sheet. And I don't know how the Bears defense is going to react to this. I mean, sure, Jaquan Brisker might be happy, but being happy and playing well are obviously very different things, Lane Johnson. You know, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. If you know the lore, you know the lore. But I just, I know the Niners are injured, but the Bears' defense is just so suspect, and I feel like the Niners have enough scraped together on defense to at least, I won't say stifle the Bears, but at least keep them in check. It's going to be an ugly game. I wouldn't be shocked if it's like a 21-20 game, but I'm still going with the Niners

strictly because you still have Kittle, you still have Debo. I want to see what the rookie Isaac Garendo out of Louisville can do, and Purdy's back. And honestly, if this were like a second or third year Caleb Williams, I would be slamming the Bears button, but it is not. Bears, Bears, Bears. No, no, no. Riding out the week 14 slate, Monday Night Football, Bengals, Cowboys. And look, I like the reason this game never got flexed out is because of the

Simpsons telecast or simulcast, whatever the hell you want to call it. And you know what, whatever I'll live with it. I'll live with it. I get to see Joe burrow and Jamar chase and T against CD lamb on primetime, whatever. I will live and C.D. Lamb on primetime Whatever I will live with that I guess

The thing I don't get Is So the reasoning being Is that they had already made All the illustrations for The Simpsons What I don't get Is that The Simpsons Is a Fox show

This game is being Telecasted by a Disney is that The Simpsons is a Fox show. This game is being telecasted by a Disney-run organization. That doesn't make sense. The Simpsons are Disney affiliates. Their show is literally on Disney+. What you know. Is it? Oh, is it? I love The Simpsons.

I watch The Simpsons. I actually didn't know that. They're not Simpsons to me, buddy. I know they are. Okay. Hand up. Hand up. Hand up. I was misinformed.

No, no. They're literally on Disney Plus right now. If you have Disney Plus, go look up The Simpsons, and it's there. Okay. Fair enough. Ideology-wise, you'd think that Disney and Fox would be butting heads about that. No, they both love money. Come on. Everyone does. True. True No, they both love money. Come on.

Everyone does. True, true. This is a money grab. All right. Bengals. That's it. Two teams that had playoff expectations, and now we're seeing the opposite of what they were supposed to be.

But the Bengals on offense look awesome still. And we've talked this topic to death about Joe Burrow, but he is going to go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time to never win a Super Bowl. It's a bit early, but okay. Axe. He's at the point where he's rivaling dan marino for how for how good that he really has been the you were we are now on so because he threw for three touchdowns that put him at 30 touchdowns on this season that's three out of the last four

seasons where he's thrown for 30 or more touchdown passes. He's going to end up throwing 4,500 yards. So when you look at how he has done, it's almost impressive to see how this Bengals team has wasted him. In the same way that the Saints wasted Drew Brees, in the same way that the Dolphins wasted Dan Marino, we're going to be looking back at this Bengals team and saying, how the hell did you not win a Super Bowl with this guy? Now, maybe you turn it around, but the reason I'm so quick to write him off for the next five to ten years

is because look at how much of their talent is about to leave. They're not going to have T. Higgins next year. You might as well book it. He's not going to be there. Trey Hendrickson's probably gone. And the longer they go without signing Jamar chase to a long-term extension, the more I think maybe there's a chance he's out too. And at that point, you literally have nothing for your franchise quarterback. What the hell are you doing over there how did you not manage to sign any of your star talent in this time it's you've kicked the can so far down the road that you have to sign all of them at once which you won't be able to do you may not you may get none of them give me the bangles though chris adam rejoice for i am now completing the trifecta you can breathe this time

you can breathe trust me but full-on raider style yeah i'm not explaining that one, guys. If you know, you know. We're not getting into that. But let me explain. I know the Bengals' defense is bad. But come on, you have to beat Cooper Rush, right? He's okay.

Don't get me wrong. The Bengals' defense is bad, so Rush is going to get his. I mean, he looked decent against the giants. I don't know. Either way, it should be the Bengals. I think the Bengals defense is going to,

I mean, Bengals offense going to run laps about the cowboy around the Cowboys. That much I think is set in stone. However, it's going to be up to Cooper, Russia and the gang to catch up with, and to be honest, I don't think they can. So

let's say give me the Bengals. Nice. Nice. Oh, geez. Week 14. We're done with that. Well, not done yet, because we're going to end up talking about some of these games on Tuesday.

But all right. That's pretty much all the scheduled content we have, unless you guys wanted to throw anything out there real quick. I don't know if you guys saw the recent rule change that the NFL made, not towards the game but more towards drug testing so they hampered down on the marijuana shit right and they said they basically said you can have a little bit of weed in your system and we won't fuck you over for it but they're now going to find you fifteen thousand dollars every time you post that you're getting randomly drug tested on social media. You guys see that?

Yeah, I saw that. Yeah, that's freedom of speech taken away. Freedom of speech taken away. But that is all the scheduled content for us today. Do you two have anything else you want to add before we head out?

I'm good. I'm fine. We thank you for bearing with us for a long episode of the Fumble Ruski podcast, but this was, it was a good episode. A lot of topics that had to be discussed, especially with the lions.

I'll blame myself for that because we all, we almost talked to death about the lines of Packers and Dan Campbell for almost half an hour. I'll blame myself for that because we almost talked to death about the Lions and Packers and Dan Campbell for almost half an hour. I'll blame. I will take accountability for that, gentlemen. But we thank you for joining us for another Friday edition of the

Fumble Rooski podcast. New episode coming out Tuesday at 730 and of course Fridays at 5. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. We also have all our episodes available on Spotify, Spreaker, Apple Podcast, iHeartRadio, Google Podcast, and so much more. Be sure to follow our Instagram, FumbleRooski underscore podcast, and our TikTok, FumbleRooski pod to keep up with the pod

and the latest coverage on the NFL. Otherwise, from myself, Chris Kostic, Adam Wright, C.J. Medeiros, this has been a Friday edition of the Paul Maruski Podcast. We'll see you on Tuesday. Over and out.