The Fumblerooski Podcast - Pulling Away- Ep 52 The Fumblerooski Podcast

Episode Date: December 2, 2021

In this episode, we talk about the new No.1 seed Ravens in the AFC and the Patriots who continue their hot streak. We also intensely debate the league MVP and the struggling Cowboys.

Good evening, you are listening to the Fumble Rooski podcast by Power 88 Dean Radio. I am Adam Wright along with Justin Tucker and CJ Medeiros. We apologize that our episode is going to be released a little bit later than usual. We are college students, so we are actually getting close to our finals weeks. So we've been very busy and the stress is just unbelievable at this point. But without further ado, we do have a lot planned for you guys tonight. We're going to talk about the Dallas Cowboys' recent slump, the Baltimore Ravens jumping to the number one seed in the AFC, the game of the week, and Fanbox, as always. But we will start off with perhaps the hottest team in football, which is the New England Patriots.

So the Patriots won their sixth straight game over the Titans, 36-13, knocking off Tennessee from their perch on the one seed in the AFC. And so the teams they've beaten during their win streak include the Jets, Panthers, Chargers, Browns, Falcons, and now the Titans. So do these wins validate the Patriots as contenders in the AFC and possibly in the Super Bowl? So, CJ, I believe you had some thoughts on the team and on their coach, in fact. Yeah, I wouldn't say it makes them Super Bowl contenders, but I would say it definitely makes them contenders to go to the AFC championship game. They beat Buffalo.

They shut down Indy. Then, yes, I would say they're Super Bowl contenders. But I'm at that stage where I believe, but i just need to see a little bit more you beat buffalo in buffalo you're then yeah then you're definitely a sewer bowl contender so i mean and i just want to debunk this argument real quick everyone's like oh the patriots didn't play anyone the jets yes i'll admit the jets are terrible the panthers you're talking like the panthers don't have a top 10 defense and a lot of weapons. Chargers, same thing. The Chargers are extremely dangerous. The Browns, I don't know what

to make of them. We just kind of routed the Browns. And the Falcons, I don't care what you say, a shutout is incredibly hard to do in the NFL, so don't discredit that. And everyone's like, oh yeah, but the Titans were hurt. And the Titans have a top five defense. So, and we still drop 36 points on them with a rookie quarterback that only throws checkdowns. So, first of all, these valid, I wouldn't say they validate us for the Super Bowl, but they certainly validate us to be a contender within the AFC.

Like I said, you beat Buffalo and Indy, then yeah, we're going to talk about you in the Super Bowl. Like I said, I just need to see a little bit more. And as Adam said with coaching, I don't care what anyone says. We need to start talking about Bill Belichick for coach of the year. No. Yes. Hear me out. A six-game win streak, 8-4, with a rookie quarterback who's a game manager. And after going 7-9, he rallies back. Started 2-4, too. Yeah, thank you, Matt.

Yeah, started 2-4. They turn it around, and he's coaching this team to victory. Because, look, i'll be frank on roster we're not i mean on paper the roster isn't really that much it's nothing to sneeze at i will grant you but it's nothing like super special but i do think bill is coaching them to a lot of wins and look maybe he shouldn't win it but he should definitely deserve some love because coaching a team from two and four to eight and four while beating you know teams like the browns and the panthers and the titans that's not easy and i just think if we can give it i mean i if we can give it, I mean, if we can give it to Jason Garrett before,

like, so why not Bill Belichick? And I'm pretty sure, didn't Matt Nagy win it his first year or something like that? Yeah, he did win Coach of the Year. Yeah, yeah. So Bill Belichick, that is all. Coach of the Year. I hear your argument for that, and i'll get to it in one moment

the original question of whether or not they are super bowl contenders we need to calm it down a bit i believe they are contenders in the afc because of the way the afc is playing out this year and the fact that they're on a six game winning streak and sure you might complain about the quality of competition but they did beat the chargers and the chargers are a playoff team regardless of what people may think about them they have some good quality wins on their on their record including the chiefs and i think that means something and so i think the patriots going up against the chargers and the chargers were supposed to win and the patriots manhandling them the way that they did shows me that they are very serious in the AFC. But until I see them in the playoffs,

I cannot call them Super Bowl contenders or major contenders. The problem with the Colts is they're shaky sometimes when they have to rely on Carson Wentz. Outside of that, they are solid as hell. If they rely on Jonathan Taylor, they'll never lose a game the rest of the way. I predict if Jonathan Taylor balls out the rest of the season, they're not going to lose another game. And so that is the only true competition I believe they have left. I could be wrong, but outside of the Bills, again, play up and down at times, they play great against the Saints, but against the Colts, not so much.

And to your point about Bill Belichick being coach of the year, it definitely warrants some merits. But my only problem is I can't put him over a guy. I can't put him over John Harbaugh at this point in time because John Harbaugh is the number one seed in the AFC with half his team on IR. That should not be happening, but somehow, someway, he keeps his team motivated. He keeps his team in these games, and somehow, someway, he continues to pull off these miracle games where everybody thinks the Ravens are going to lose it, and then the last second, they pull it off in a victory. So I hear why you're saying Bill Belichick. It warrants its merits, but until John Harbaugh loses some more games, I think he is head and shoulders above everybody else. And I might be forgetting another name at this point in time.

So here's the thing with whether or not these wins validate the Patriots as possible contenders. A six-game winning streak is impressive in any context. The only issue is you can look at all of these wins and kind of nitpick a little bit. And the Jets are the Jets. You don't need to nitpick there. But the Panthers, I mean, they were a sinking, and they still are a sinking ship. And they're just falling apart. Bill Belichick has Sam Darnold's number.

Then you look at the Chargers. Yeah, they beat them, but they're going through a major slump right now. They just lost to the Broncos. And I believe, what are they, 7-5? 6-5? I think they're 6-5. and I believe, what are they? Seven and five? Six and five? I think they're six and five. But they're underachieving big time. And don't get me started with the Browns.

That team is imploding. They're falling apart at the seams. Falcons? Sure. A shutout is very impressive. But who does Matt Ryan have to throw to? Cordero Patterson. Who was out?

Russell Gage is decent, I guess. Cordero Patterson. Cordero Patterson was out for that game. And Kyle Pitts has had a great start to his career, but he's just a rookie. Russell Gage is underrated. And you stick Kyle Duggar on Kyle Pitts and you'll shut him down. I'm pretty sure they did, actually. Yep, that is correct.

Now let's move on to the Titans, who they beat. How many of their skill players did they have on offense? Their star players they had. All they had was Ryan Tannahill to throw the ball and who did he have to throw the ball to basically nobody they had to pick up golden tate off waivers and i don't even think he even got a target they didn't even play aj brown yep aj brown didn't couldn't play julio jones is on IR. Actually, A.J. Brown's on IR as well. And Derrick Henry's out perhaps for possibly the rest of the season. So it's great that they won all these games. I'm happy that they're 8-4 and on top of the AFC East, the number two seed in the AFC,

the number one seed is in play. But in order for them to be a Super Bowl contender, they honestly need to win both games against the Bills. Not just one, because we believe that they should beat – the expectation is they should win one of these two games against the Bills. But if they beat them twice and also beat the Colts, oh boy, they should be favorites in the AFC at that point. But that's what it's going to take. At this point, I'm not sold. I'm still pretty much on the fence. What? Adam being realistic about his Patriots? I've always been realistic about my Patriots.

You used to be so hard on them for no reason other than I told you your team will make the playoffs and you didn't believe me when I told you that. And now all of a sudden they have a chance and now you're like, we'll see. Come on now. I'm still we'll see. Have you seen a lot of these Patriots fans lately? A lot of people are already buying their tickets to the Super Bowl and saying, we're going to the Super Bowl. This is the 2001 Patriots all over again. Let me ask you this. Let me ask you this.

And I think I asked this a couple episodes ago. On this Patriots team, comparing it to the 2001 Patriots team, who is Willie McGinnis on that Patriots defense? Judon. Judon. But is Matt Judon anything like Willie McGinnis? I mean, he's a Hall of Famer. How about Teddy Bruschi? Who's Teddy Bruschi?

Hightower. I guess Hightower would have to be. When he was in his prime, maybe. Hightower is not the same guy he once was. Okay. Okay, then Van Noy. I guess you'd have to tell me Ty Law is J.C. Jackson. Sure.

Yeah, Ty Law is J.C. Yeah, but Ty Law is nothing. J.C. Jackson is nothing like Ty Law. Again. Ty Law is one of the best corners in Patriots history. In league history, too. Obviously. Obviously, he's in the Hall of Fame.

J.C. Jackson's nothing like that. He's a young'un. He's just getting started. Give him a break. I'm not saying he's going to be like that, but he's off to a pretty good start. He's having a good year. I think he's a very good number two who has been playing like a number one recently. But he's nothing like Tyler.

You know what you call a number two who plays like a number one? You want to take a wild stab? That's a number one. If you play like a number one, you're a number one you you want to take a wild stab that's a number one if you play like a number one you're number one jc jackson okay but if you're asking us to compare this team to the o1 team we're trying to find players comparable we're not saying where they're exactly like them or they're going to end up like them hall of famers because that's not exactly the easiest thing to do. What we're telling you is it could happen. This is a similar team to that 0-1 team. I'm not saying Mac Jones is Brady, but in the way he's managing the game, it's very Brady-esque.

He's not asked to win you the game. You're asking him to basically not lose you the game, like Brady was when they won the Super Bowl the first time. He's taking the smart decisions, taking what the defense is giving him, like Brady did against the Rams. So give him some time, be patient with this team, and maybe we'll see them in the AFC Championship game, and then go from there. That's progress in my eyes because a year ago,

we weren't even thinking of this team in the AFC championship game. So to say that the team is built the same way as the 2001 Patriots, yeah, I agree. They are built the same way. The offense is more just take advantage of the other team's mistakes and let the defense create more opportunities and capitalize on those opportunities. But I'm just saying those 2001 – some of those players on defense in 2001 were far better. Not even in the – it's not – this team is not even in the same stratosphere on defense as those 2001 players. Okay. Okay. Okay.

Let's calm down. It's been a good defense, but I just don't – I'm not sold yet. All right. You're entitled to your opinion. I'm just saying it's not out of the normal possibility. We're not saying they're going to be like that. We're saying it's very possible, not trying to exaggerate it. I don't think they're going to be like that, but I think they can be Super Bowl contenders in their own way.

Do you think this offense is – here's what I'll ask you, and this is what I'm thinking. Do you think this offense is better than in 2001? Absolutely I do. because i think it kind of is it kind of yeah it is no no no we have a better running back we have a first round quarterback we have a pair of decent tight ends and our pass catchers are way and our wide outs are way better and our lines better too too. But we'll definitely have more. I mean, like we said, this will be very telling these next few weeks

of just how good this Patriots team is. But anyways, we talked about one team who's in the two seed, which was the Patriots and because of that victory for the patriots there's another benefactor of that which is the baltimore ravens who are able to take who are able to uh who are able to take over that number one seed from the titans we'll talk about the ravens next justin's Ravens. You're listening to the Fumble Ruski podcast. And we're back and we are listening to the Fumble Ruski podcast. I'm Adam Wright with Justin Tucker, CJ Medeiros. We're talking about the AFC again and the Baltimore Ravens not only were able to take the number were not only able to beat the

Cleveland Browns 16 to 10 in a divisional matchup but they were also able to benefit from the Patriots knocking off the Titans from their perch of the number one seed and take over as the number in at the number one spot however uh Lamar Jackson's thrown a few interceptions in recent weeks. He threw four picks last game. So do we see their Ravens sustaining their current spot on top of the AFC? All right, everybody step aside, step aside. This is my team. That means this is my moment, and I'm going to take it.

All right, listen up and listen good. This team has the potential to be the number one seed and run through this AFC. Will they? That is the question at hand. I don't think they'll run through it. I think they'll struggle through some games more specifically. I believe the Packers game and maybe Cleveland or one of the other divisional rivals. I'm not sure which one, but I believe they'll struggle through one through two games this season because, of course, that always happens. I'm worried about the Packers game because Aaron Rodgers is going to pick apart my secondary. It's just going to happen. I've resigned myself to that fate. And I'm basically asking myself, can Lamar Jackson score 30 plus points? And yes, he can, because I believe my offense is somewhat healthy. If I can keep Marquise Brown, and if I can keep Mark Andrews, and if I can keep what's left of

this O-line intact, and if Lamar Jackson can just say F it and run through the hole and get me a first down. Yeah, I'm fine. But if I'm asking my defense to noticeably keep Aaron Rodgers out in the pocket and pressure him and continually stop him from destroying my secondary, I'm not going to be happy about that. That's number one. Number two, I'm glad my defense stepped up Sunday night against the Browns. That's that made me very more confident in my defense. More specifically, Patrick Queen, who's been coming along well these past couple of weeks. I'm liking what I'm seeing, charging through the hole, getting a tackle for loss, making Nick Chubb look average. That's what I like to see. But we got the Steelers next. I believe that's going to

be a win, but rivalry games, we always play close because for some reason, Pittsburgh wakes up for us. They don't wake up for Cincinnati, but they'll wake up for us. So I'm not taking that. That's a potential trap game. Other than that, I do see my team potentially finishing with the number one seed. And I'm taking nothing else as an answer. I'm scared. I'm very scared. Keep Justin away from me. No, no, I'm kidding. I mean, I won't confirm anything as it sits now, especially because the Ravens schedule is pretty hard. He touched on it, Justin did did but they'll be in pittsburgh in cleveland because like he said rivalry games they're different uh then you know they host green bay then they're in cincy then they host the rams then they host the steelers like it's a

rivalry game you play close the bangles like rivalry game but the bangles have been good as of late packers have been good as of late. Packers have been good as of late. And Rams, they've been struggling, but they're still not a team to sneeze at. So will the Ravens win? Like I said, I won't, I mean, win the one seed. I won't confirm or deny anything, but it's possible. It's very possible. But we're going to need Lamar to step up, not throw four picks a game.

But that was just a lapse, all right? To say Lamar is just a bum running back, throws four picks a game, that's not accurate. Lamar can win you games. He's got a nice arm, some decent accuracy, and he can move. That being said, can he win a shootout? I would argue yes. And it's very possible the ravens well and it's very possible the ravens do this personally i guess i won't confirm it and i think but i will hint that they probably have despite the hard remaining schedule they definitely have

the best chance i mean the patriots are a bit young you know they have mac the chiefs i don't know what to make of them the bills i also don't know what to make of them there's another team that i'm missing uh the colts i mean jonathan taylor you take him away what do they have absolutely nothing i mean except for defense but but i mean they are probably my favorites to know no probably about it they they are my favorites to – no, probably not. They are my favorites to actually win the one seed. Now, Adam, why were you shaking your head about Lamar Jackson in the shootout? He absolutely can. As a matter of fact, he's come back to win shootouts.

Here's the thing with Lamar Jackson. I'm listening he's especially with the the baltimore ravens they have always been during lamar jackson's tenure a run first team yeah and when you are a run first team you win mo you win most of your games when it's not a shootout, when you get up early and you control the clock and you run the score up. But God forbid it's a close game where the other team's scoring as well, you can't keep up with that if you're primarily a running guy and I've seen that time time after time where he's able to where he's not able to play from behind I know he's been able to pull out some victories lately that's been nice but it's just not his play style that's typically the way run first offenses work which is why you typically don't see those teams winning Super Bowls.

I understand what you mean, but if I may, this isn't any run-first offense. I mean, to say it's a run-first offense is true, but when your quarterback also adds another dynamic, there's always got to be taken into consideration. I mean, Lamar is absolutely electric too. And can he throw? I honestly think he can. I mean, he did that against the Vikings. He did that against the Colts. I mean, he's, he's done it a bit. And to say he can't, to say that I don't trust him throwing, I just can't say that. I mean, I've, I genuinely like what I've seen, and he's up there in the MVP race, and it's just,

Lamar can definitely win you games. He's just too electric. I mean, you would need to have, for him to have a really bad off night or a lights-out defense to contain him. Yes. Okay, so let me get this out the way. Number one, Lamar Jackson absolutely can win in a shootout. He did that last year against the Browns when we won 47-42. That absolutely happened. It's the Browns. Who are also a run-first offense. Who also made the playoffs last season, I might add.

And beat the Steelers. Everybody thought the Steelers would beat the Browns, and everybody forgot who the Browns were. But anyway, in a shootout, they can absolutely do it. If you're asking him to beat you from the pocket, he absolutely can do that. Just ask the Colts what happened to him when he was asked to beat them from the pocket. He dismantled them. And don't the Colts have like a top 10 defense? Absolutely.

First time memory. And they ended the Ravens streak of running for 100 plus yards per game. And Lamar Jackson just beat them through the air and passed for four touchdowns, zero interceptions. Kansas City, Lamar Jackson struggled in the first quarter. The rest of the game, he let it come back to beat them. I don't understand why this comeback thing is still a narrative we like to push. But Lamar Jackson has proven time and time again, if you give him the weapons and if you give him options, he is more than capable of winning games for you.

He proved it in the playoffs and he's been proving it this season to the point where it's like, it's kind of lazy to say that he can't win you games from the pocket. And then if you try to stop the run, he can't beat you with his arm. He had a bad game against the Browns, four interceptions. We also forget that he had eight flu-like symptoms and didn't play against the Bears. And then he played against the Cleveland Browns, who played like a top-ten defense last night. How many playoff wins does Lamar Jackson have? One. So, how many does Matthew Stafford have?

None. But Matthew Stafford is a special case. Okay, so let's compare him to another style of his, Kyler Murray. He hasn't even been in the playoffs. He's a dual threat guy, too. How many wins does Deshaun Watson have in the playoffs? In the playoffs? One.

Yeah. So let's not act like Lamar's the only one who has his woes in the playoffs. He's been there three times, and he's won once. The first time, I don't blame on him. The second time, he does have responsibility in that. The third time, he won the playoffs. And the second time, he had a concussion, and the line was god-awful. But these players, their woes are all for other reasons than whether or not they're running and throwing.

Deshaun Watson was on the Texans for all of his career. So he had his issues there. They were an 11-5 team and were up 24-0 against the Chiefs in the playoffs. for all of his career. So, yeah, he had his issues there. They were an 11-5 team and were up 24-0 against the Chiefs in the playoffs. Yeah, a lot of them. A league like that is inexcusable. Like, we can excuse that, but in the end, they still lost that game. They lost to an otherworldly quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, who was making a joke of the league late in the season that year.

It didn't even feel like they broke a sweat coming back down 24-0. They came back in the Super Bowl that year against the San Francisco 49ers, which was one of the best defenses in the league last year. It was nothing. What I'm telling you is that it can happen. Like, you're making it seem like, oh my god, the playoffs are like this was nothing. What I'm telling you is that it can happen. You're making it seem like, oh my God, the playoffs are this easy thing. No, everybody else gets paid like Lamar Jackson does. He's been in the league for three years. He's 24 years old. We act like he's 28, 29 years old. That's because for the last three years, Lamar Jackson has been straight up embarrassing the league in the regular season to the point where we can't even compare what he's doing to anything else. And anything else we compare him to, we can only hold him to playoff standards.

And for where he was drafted and for the criticisms that were coming out about him, that says a lot about his work ethic and his hard work he's been putting in. I'm not saying Lamar Jackson's not a good in. I'm not saying he's, Lamar Jackson's not a good quarterback. I'm not saying that at all. All I'm merely saying is that it's typically hard for offenses who rely more on the rushing game to, it's harder for those offenses to win in shootouts. because if you force the team that team to throw the ball that's not what they're built to do that's all i'm trying to say i understand that but we've had to throw the ball because my damn running core is terrible

i know and they've come out with a couple and lamar jackson is capable of throwing i just think it's not his strong suit. And we all know that. And there's nothing wrong with that. He is what he is. I disagree. I think his arm has come a lot better as of late. It certainly has.

It's been a good arm. He has a decent arm. Like I said, it's not his strong suit. But we do have to go on and move on move on to our game of the week so we will get on to that it is a bit bit we had a uh an intercom an inter-conference matchup that's coming up next you are listening to the fumble ruski podcast this is the fumble ruski podcast by Power 88 Dean Radio. I'm Adam Wright with Justin Tucker and CJ Medeiros. We're on to our week 11, sorry, week 12, Sunday's best, and we have the Colts versus the Buccaneers. And so in this game, the Colts were ahead for most of the first half

and held a 24-14 lead as late as halfway through the third quarter. But then at that point, Tampa answered with two touchdowns off turnovers produced by the defense and a field goal to go along with it and take a 31-24 lead. Ten minutes left in the fourth. Indianapolis answered with a touchdown of their own, with three minutes left to tie it at 31. And Tampa immediately answered with a drive

that ended with a 28-yard Leonard Fournette touchdown to retake the lead at 38-31 would hold on to win by that score. I think he scored that touchdown with about 20 seconds left on the clock, so Indianapolis didn't have enough of a chance to tie it. But, guys, what are your thoughts on this game? CJ, you want to go first? Yeah, I do.

Tom Brady, as it sits right now, is my favorite for MVP. This hurts me because Leonard Fournette carried him. And I am starting to see shades of 2017 Leonard Fournette. He's living up to the name Playoff Lenny. I mean, and he's going to up to the name playoff lenny i mean and he's gonna be a beast come playoff time and it's just it's just the bucks aren't this one-dimensional team they're kind of like the reverse of what adam said whereas the ravens are run first the bucks are passed first brady's got weapons galore and yet they can still get in the game with the running attack

and honestly their defense despite a slow start to the season isn't even that terrible either they literally got two touchdowns off of turnovers which is just clutched by the you know for their defense and and it's just tampa can get turnovers when they need it and they can use the running attack when they need it they're one of the most well-rounded teams in this league and it's you know brady running it it's just not fair i mean everyone's gonna have their bad games but the rest of the cast of characters is so strong it really doesn't matter you're gonna need to have a lot of people to have an off day if you want to beat tampa That's plain and simple.

And Indy, I don't fault them too much, but their run defense got exposed by Leonard Fournette. And if you're Indy, that's definitely something you've got to work on. Just work on defense in general. You let the Bucs come back. And still, just for Indy, the biggest issue is a ginger one i'll call him carson wentz carson wentz will not win you a playoff game carson wentz will not win you no he won't he will not win you a super bowl i thank god they have jonathan taylor because lord knows i don't trust carson wentz to do anything. So do with that what you will.

But I generally think just looking ahead, Indy should probably reevaluate their quarterback decision. I think Wentz is done. I think Carson Wentz is a pretty good quarterback. I don't know about you, but I think he's pretty good. I think he's solid for that team. But anyway. It's just he's not going to win you anything. He's not.

He won't. This is not about the Colts. This is about the Buccaneers. And we're talking about another quarterback. Oh, this is about the game. I'm talking about Tom Brady first and foremost. Then I'll get to the Colts. He did get bailed out by playoff winning.

Playoff winning had four touchdowns, including the game the game ceiling touchdown at the end of the game. And what a block by Donovan Smith to people forget about. That was a nice block that eventually sprung him for the touchdown. And Tom Brady, I'm not going to lie. He's he's not having the best of weeks. I mean, solid three weeks right now. He's thrown three picks against the Saints. He threw two. That could have been three against the Washington football team. Coming off the bye, I thought he'd establish himself. I thought he'd be assertive and dominant and say, I'm the leader of this team.

This team is going nowhere, and we will be a pain to deal with come playoffs on. And I'm not going to lie. It didn't seem that way when it came to the Colts. It did not seem like. They seemed disputable. They seemed like if the Colts didn't make any mistakes, they were very beatable. But of course, they'll make mistakes

because Carson Wentz is the quarterback for that team. They are prone to make mistakes from time to time. But Carson Wentz, as far as I'm concerned, he is the right guy for that team because when he's on game, and more often than not, is on game he scares me sometimes because he'll make a pass that i'll just say wow but by that same token by that same token he'll have one of these plays where it says

why did he throw that ball the receiver was 20 yards downfield and he threw a 20 yards short he's one of those players. So I believe if he can just keep his head on straight and rely on the run game, thankfully they have Jonathan Taylor, then you'll take a lot of pressure off him to make these Herculean like type throws. And he's allowed to just sit there and think about the things. And now that he has a good O-line, he doesn't have to try to do too much, which is why I think the Colts was a perfect destination for him. And he's not playing too bad. I think he's been revving up his play as of late. I think he just, I wouldn't say a bad game. I think he had an okay game. But at the end of the

day, I expected, watching at halftime, I expected the Colts to win. And I was surprised that the Bucs pulled it off at the end. All right. So as for the Carson Wentz slander because I I have been a good a big fan of Carson Wentz to be honest not a I mean not a big fan but you know I like Carson Wentz you want to know what his statistics are what he said his so his statistics are so his touchdown to interception ratio 21 to 5 and one of, and one of those interceptions in that game the other day was a garbage time pick where he kind of just had to chuck it up there because he had to. And nearly 3,000 yards, which is pretty good, especially since he doesn't really need to win them games. It's all a team effort. This team is good all around. Good offensive line, good defense, good pass catchers, good, great rushing game.

And Carson Wentz is just along for the ride. And he's the perfect guy to do it. This was the perfect, the perfect destination for him. All right, now on to the Buccaneers. Now the Buccaneers, I thought this was a very encouraging game for this team. Number one, because I thought this was a trap game for the Buccaneers, that they would have a tough time winning, and they did. And this was a good test for them to sort of test out their strength and they passed. This also showed that Tampa Bay could win in more ways than just passing the ball 40 to 50 times a game.

You know, Tom Brady, as much as we like to think he's not human, he is human. And when he is, and when he has his games that are a little off, it's nice to know that he has a rushing game to pick him up. And that he has a defense to help pick him up. And Tom Brady, I'm really not worried about him. He's still my pick for league MVP. We're going to talk about league MVP on the fan box in a little bit.

But, honestly, this Buccaneers team, this was a very encouraging sign for them. And the schedule for them really gets, it only gets easier. I mean, look at all the tests that they have. I think that Bill, I think Tom Brady is going to have the opportunities of his life to pad his stats and solidify his MVP case. He's going to run away with it in a couple of weeks. This game against Atlanta, this game against the Bills, they just lost Tredavious White. It's going to look great. As for the Colts, it's kind of more like a moral victory for them. They really hung in there and kind of gave the Buccaneers a scare. And I think this is a team that nobody in the AFC wants to face. As a Patriots fan, I do not want – I think I can wait for the Colts to come in and face the Patriots.

I don't think they're going to beat them, to be honest. I'm a little skeptical. You're skeptical of the Colts beating the Patriots? I think the Colts have a very good shot at doing it, yeah. All right. The way they gave the Buccaneers a scare and the job that they did to limit their strength, that's another narrative for this game, was that each team did a great job of limiting each other's strengths. Jonathan Taylor did not have that good of a game,

and he was the one who was going to win them the game. They stopped the run. As for the Colts, they stopped the passing game, and it was just incredible to watch. I agree, but I enjoyed watching the game. I liked the matchup between Villavilla and Quentin Nelson. Something I enjoyed watching, and hopefully I see for years to come. But overall, nice matchup.

Playoff line, he bailed out the GOAT, which I find weird. Because, you know, he's the MVP, right? Who's your GOAT? And I can name a time where he was bailed out. If you say Lamar Jackson, I'm hanging up this call and kicking you off the podcast. Okay, I wasn't going to say him. Tom Brady. What are you going to say, Aaron Rodgers?

You know he was bailed out in the conference championship game by his defense during his Super Bowl run? No, I said Tom Brady. I said it. There you go. There you go. There you go. See, it wasn't that hard. Unlike Brady beating Eli Manning in a Super Bowl.

All right. Anyways, I think we've had enough of talking about the AFC for these last two episodes, which is really heavily focused on that. So we're going to transition over to an NFC team For these last two episodes. Which is really heavily focused on that. So we're going to transition over to an NFC team. Who's starting to struggle a little bit in the Dallas Cowboys. We're going to get to them next. And what's going on with them.

This is the Fumble Rooski Podcast. Stay tuned. You're listening to the Fumble Rooski Podcast by Power 88. Dean Radio. Adam Wright. Justin Tucker, CJ Medeiros. Guys, the Cowboys lost to the Raiders on Thanksgiving for their third loss in four games, falling to seven and four and the four seed in the AFC, sorry, the NFC playoff picture. I'm getting so used to talking about the AFC, but what is going on with this Cowboys team? How about them boys, huh?

How many times do I have to tell you about the Cowboys? They will do Cowboys things. I keep telling you all this. I told Adam during preseason, they were going to be a – you said they were going to be a playoff team. I said it depends on them because they will do Cowboys things to mess it up for them. Late November, December, we will

see what type of team this Cowboys team is. And what are they doing? They lost three of their last four, including a game against the Raiders. They had no business losing. They should not have lost to the Raiders. They should have won that game. But instead, that defense got torn to shreds by Derek Carr and Deshaun Jackson. I don't know who that cornerback is, Anthony whatever. He should have been cut after the game the way he was giving up pass interference calls. He had four of them. Oh, Anthony Brown? Anthony Brown, yes.

He had four of them. And one in overtime, that cost him the game. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Zeke not getting the ball getting enough touches uh dac prescott playing okay but not good enough to win you the game oh and that third down that third down in overtime where he threw it behind noah brown that's his fault that is exactly his fault you can't blame anybody else for that. He was wide open. All you had to do was throw it to him. But instead, you throw it behind him. For what reason? I don't know. But it's low. It's fast and it's low. And he has to reach back to get it and he can't get it and Thanksgiving, happy because the Cowboys once again lost, all I have to say is, how about them Cowboys? CJ, you can take it from here.

Oh, thank you. So, the Dallas Cowboys suffer from a little problem I like to call bad coaching. Yes. And this bad coach's name is a little thing I like to call bad coaching. Yes. And this bad coach's name is a little thing I like to call Mike McCarthy. After he was fired from the Green Bay Packers, Mike McCarthy should never have gotten another job in American sports. Aaron Rodgers carried Mike McCarthy throughout his entire career, and any Packers fan will tell you that Mike McCarthy is a god-awful coach.

Why the Cowboys hired him, I wouldn't know. And now it's coming back to bite them. I genuinely believe the Cowboys would be top two in the NFC because they have the potential. They've got the star power. They've got a lot of elite players, but they would be top two in the NFCc if it wasn't for their piss poor coaching that's what it is it's like i can't point anything else dac is fine they've got a nice two-headed running back of pollard and zeke you know dalton schultz is emerging as a legitimate tight end you've got their cv core of amari and c CD and don't they have Michael Gallup too? Yes, they do.

And Noah Brown, who's also very decent. Dalton Schultz too. Yeah, I mentioned him. And on the D line. Yep. Of course. Let's get to the practice squad too while we're at it. Let's just mention who we've seen.

Yeah, I mean, on defense, you know, I mean, not as impressive. But, you know, they still have guys like Michael Parsons, Leighton Vanderesh, and Trayvon Diggs. I mean, this is not a bad team. But they're doomed by bad coaching. And that is my issue. I will die on this hill. Mike McCarthy is the reason for their underachieving they just can't get a good coach they got one headache in the clapping man jason gare and then

they replaced with another headache and big mike mccarthy just i am not a cowboys fan i find that most of their fan base annoying i don't like j Jerry Jones, but I can't help but feel bad for them being robbed of their potential by god-awful coaching. Because, you know, Jerry Jones very much handpicks the guys anyway, but that's neither here nor there. So, yeah, long story short, I genuinely believe that this team and their struggles are a product of bad coaching. And if they have any sense whatsoever, I don't care where they finish, they need to fire Mike McCarthy. So we can talk about how bad the coaching is,

and you would be justified in saying that. Because their coaching, as bad as it has been, is not the reason they've lost three of their last four games. The reason they've lost three of four games is because they lost CeeDee Lamb and Amari Cooper for the last two games. Those are their top two targets. How many teams, how many quarterbacks can perform well, how many teams in general can perform well with barely any targets to throw to. Not really very many. Some of the best quarterbacks of all time have struggled without their – have been able to win regardless, but have struggled without their top targets,

their top one target, let alone two. And you look at that, and then you look at the way they performed against the against the oh sorry oakland the the vegas raiders i i was actually a little more encouraged by that because if you're able to win with michael gallup as your number one guy and not much past that, then – well, not win, but they came close to it. And for Dak Prescott to put up the statistics he did with that, I was a little bit encouraged. I think when they get back, they're going to start winning games again

and they're going to be fine. Don't do this. Are you going to double down on this again? What am I doubling down on? On the Cowboys being in the NFC or being a playoff contender? I think they're a playoff contender, yeah. I think they're going to go to the playoffs. I can see them getting bounced out in the first or second round.

Because, say with me, boys and girls, bad coaching. I genuinely believe Mike McCarthy is just holding this team back. And you know what? He was like, oh, yeah, Anthony Brown got four penalties. Yeah, well-coached players aren't penalty machines. I don't know how I feel. I've noticed something. You know how in the Broncos game, they were down 30, just like 20-something to nothing.

And Dak Prescott was playing awful. Then all of a sudden, in garbage time, he throws for over 200 yards, two touchdowns, and we're supposed to be okay with this. No. I'm not okay with that. He was a bum. He played awful against the Broncos. I'm not going to lie.

Their defense is actually pretty good, and Patrick Sertan should get more votes for defensive rookie of the year. Not over Adafi or Micah Parsons, but he's up there too. The Broncos ain't all that. You're letting Teddy Bridgewater dot you up like that? Tim Patrick catching balls over Trayvon Diggs, this supposed shut down corner? Uh-uh. He's a good corner, don't get me wrong. He's turned out better than expected based upon

his rookie season, but I'm going to need you to calm down on that. That was a bad loss, I'll grant you. That Broncos game, you can talk about it all you want. I agree. I agree. You don't have to talk. I saw the game too. It was a bad loss. However, if they did not lose Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb for two weeks in a row, they'd be – what's their record right now? Seven and four? Yeah. They'd be nine and two right now. Or is my math off? No, nine and two.

You would think they'd be nine and two, but they always lose on Thanksgiving. That's the only reason I enjoy Thanksgiving. They always lose there. This is a different Cowboys team. This is a different Cowboys team. We always say that, and then around this time, they start to lose. We do not always say that. We do not always say that.

We always say, like, oh, this is the team. They should make the playoffs. And then all of a sudden, yeah, they lose and don't make the playoffs. Name a year where that happened. 2020. They should not have lost the NFC East that year. That was a very mediocre Patriots team in 2020. Sorry, Patriots.

Cowboys. That was a very mediocre Cowboys team in 2020. They were without Dak Prescott that year, and their defense was horrible. Okay, then. I'll be fair. 2019. 2019? Yes.

I thought that was a very mediocre Cowboys team that year. Who they had. What's that? They had Dak. They had Michael Gallup. They had Amari Cooper. They had Zeke. They had Tony Pollard.

Their defense wasn't very. Again, the whole East, the NFC East wasn't that good. They just didn't have a good year. But you're telling me the East is on the line against the Eagles. They give you 17 points. And all you can tell me is Dak Prescott, your franchise guy who you've invested long term in, can only give me nine points in crunch time. But we're going to blame coaching for some players not performing up to their contract. Well, I mean, I'm sorry.

You like what they're scheming? Do you like what they're running? You're blind if the answer is yes. I would like it if Zeke got more than nine touches. I would really like that. They were playing from behind. They were playing from behind. were playing from behind do you understand game script just because you're down by one score does not mean you stop just avoid

running the ball if you go down by one score that doesn't mean you throw away running it was a high scoring shootout you cannot run the ball that much especially when you have your franchise quarterback if it's a game you know what you can? You can run the ball because you know you can come back into it. You can't just avoid passing. I mean, you can't just avoid running. Like, no. You can't just avoid Zeke and Tony just because, oh, they only had nine carries for 30-something yards.

Zeke is averaging 4.5 yards per carry, and you're just going to avoid that? No offense, that's kind of idiotic, which points to CJ's claim of bad coaching give them more touches they are 0-4 when Dak has to throw the ball over like what 55 times they're like 7-0 when they have a more balanced attack so what I'm telling you is give Zeke more touches or give Tony Pollard more touches. You do realize that any team that has forced a throw that many times, typically those are the teams that are playing from behind. Nobody wins when they're, unless you're built like the Buccaneers where you have to pass in order to win. Very few teams win when they play like that. It's balanced. It's not like they were behind by like 10 to 14 points or like down 21 where it's all but certain you have to pass.

They were down by one score. So you're telling me if you're down, it's for sure you have to pass the ball. Like there's no other option here. That's what I'm talking about. They continually make mistakes like that. And Dak Prescott, your $75 million man, when you need him the most, failed to show up. I like Dak. I think he's a top 10 quarterback. But sometimes he'll have games like he did against the Raiders, like he did against the Broncos, where he won't show up for three quarters. And when the game is

over, basically towards the end of the fourth quarter, he'll then have stats that makes it seem like the game was close, but in actuality it wasn't really close to begin with. Yes, but it's not the reason why they're 7-4. The reason why they're 7-4 is because they lost their top two targets. No. Tell me that if they're not without Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb in a game that ended in one score that they would have crushed that Raiders team. So you're telling me, you're telling me, if I just put CeeDee Lamb and Amari back in the lineup, that's going to solve their defensive woes against the Raiders? No. But they win that game. They outscore them. I disagree. I vehemently disagree. I, but they win that game. They outscore them. I disagree.

I vehemently disagree. I think they beat them, yes. No, I don't. I mean, that still played like garbage. And I mean, have you seen some of the throws he was making? Don't mind who he was throwing to. Look at some of the actual throws he was making. It was bad.

It was just painful to watch. Yeah, some of them were bad throws. But he would have had wide receivers to bail him out on some of those plays. He could have if he actually threw good balls, because Noah Brown's not a bad receiver. Michael Gallup's a good receiver. That one he caught on the sidelines was a damn good catch, and yet we like to say that he doesn't have anybody to throw to. I think that's just a narrative we like to portray for Dak that isn't really true. He still had Dolts and Schultz. He still had Tony Pollard and Zeke, who are good pass catchers coming out of the backfield.

Michael Gallup is a solid number two and a serviceable number one. It's not like he had nothing. We just like to believe that because C.D. and Amari weren't on the field. That's all. All right. We're not going to agree on this. So let's go on to the fan box. So we're going to approach the end of our show,

and we'll hear from you on who your MVP is. So that's next. Stay tuned. Welcome back to the Fumble Rooski podcast. I'm Adam Wright with justin tucker cj medeiros so we are approaching the end of our show and you know what that means that means we are on to the fumble ruski fan box so we post a question box every monday and you can respond with hot takes questions and more and we will discuss it and give you a shout out on our podcast respond to

next week's fan box question to be featured on our show so the fumble ruski fan box question of the week was who is the mvp three quarters of the way through the season so i've asked this during basically every quarter of the season i asked a quarter of the way through. I asked halfway through. And I'm asking now, which is three quarters of the way, just to kind of get a feel on who we think the MVP is going to be. So throwback to the beginning of the year when everybody was saying Kyler Murray. And I've got to say, none of these answers included Kyler Murray. and kyler murray has dipped in the mvp race and this is why i like to post it throughout the year to kind of figure out who we have and we will start with tyson tate who started off with saying even with the loss kirk cousins shut up t Tyson Tate. No, man, with all due respect, you can't have that record and be MVP.

It's just not allowed. His stats are there, but the record isn't there. And you have to lead the team to wins as well. And statistically, he's having maybe his best season yet. Yeah, he's not doing jack for him. 23 touchdowns to, what is it, three interceptions? Yeah. That's his best season yet.

That's solid. And, I mean, Kirk Cousins' stats are there, but you just, not with that record. That's not going to happen. I'm sorry. All right. Now, moving on, Brian Mucker, our former co-host, said Aaron Rodgers has been remarkable playing through injuries and getting some clutch wins. OK, the first thing is, I'm not sure if he's being sarcastic or not about the injury thing. I just want to make that clear. But if he is serious, yeah. Aaron Rodgers is, as of late, has been making the case for MVP, especially since when he was out.

That offense had nothing going for him when Jordan Love took over the helm. So, yeah, I think he is – I think he's top five, if not top three. Yeah, I think he's up there. He's not my pick, but I can understand the case for him. And if he really turns it on, or if some guys who are ahead of him in my book start to struggle, I could start to see him in there. I mean, I see it. He's not my pick.

He's my third pick. But, yeah, I can see it. All right. Now, Patrick Willever said NFL MVP is Tom Brady. And he said my MVP is Joe Mixon. I've got to say. Joe Mixon is playing good. He's playing well.

He's one of the most underrated backs in the league, honestly. He's playing well, but I would take Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase on that Bengals team over Joe Mixon. There's a joke here, but I can't say it. Yeah, Joe Mixon has been playing good, but yeah, Tom Brady is the MVP at this moment in time. Probably. Grayson Mortimer said Brady, speaking of who's MVP. I think we all agree that it's Brady right now. And then speaking of CJ's opinions on Tom Brady being MVP, he said, it's Brady and he's pulling away from the competition.

I mean, just look at the numbers. Just look at the numbers and look at the record. I'm looking at those numbers and no, he's not. Statistics are there. The record is there. He's doing it. These last three games, you're telling me he's pulling away. After what you saw these last three games,

you think he's just by far pulling away. Yeah, I would take him over anyone else in this league. Literally, look at the statistics. Rodgers isn't there. Lamar's not there. No one's near him. He's going to solidify it. Lamar's top 10 and rushing.

If he continues this up, i could see him winning mvp just because he had one bad game we cannot kill him for it tom brady had two and we're just going to let it pass uh yeah but i mean two uh not up to snuff games versus one really really really awful performance. Tom Brady threw three interceptions. And Lamar threw four. And still won the game because of him. There's no other answer. I'm not saying he played perfect. No, he played awful.

Two of those picks were by far his fault. But I'm not going to sit here and be like, Brady was playing perfect and he's pulling away from it. No, he is culpable. He played awful against the Saints. He awful against the washington football team and he escaped because playoff lenny bailed him out against indy he still didn't play terrible in that game though yeah he's not the reason for that win is what i'm saying he played a part though okay he was not the most valuable player on that team that day is what yeah that game over the entirety just a microcosm of just a few games this is the entire season and i still have the entire season and it's and lamar's right there we're doing the entire

season if we're just looking at one game sure but if we're doing the entire season. If we're just looking at one game, sure. But if we're doing the entire season, Lamar is up there too. And we're not just about to say he's pulling away from competition. Absolutely not. He might not be pulling away now, but I think he's going to pull away in these coming weeks. That's all I'm going to say. Okay, that's fair. So going on, our next pick, Brian DeLongchamp said Tommy, which implies Tom Brady. I'm assuming Tom Brady. Nick Norman said there isn't really a dominant MVP, but I might go with Jonathan Taylor.

I'm not going to lie. He does have a case. He has a case. Probably the most MVP-worthy non-quarterback. It's sad it's such a QB award, but I mean, he deserves it. Eric Henry would have been up there with Jonathan Taylor. Oh, yeah, definitely, but poor man got that injury. All right. Robert Shelley said,

whoever said, Kirk Cousins, you are a national treasure. But the real answer is David Blau. And I'm assuming that's the quarterback for the Detroit Lions. He's the third string, yeah. Yep. And – Oh, no. The Thanksgiving legend. Do you remember that 2018 Bears defense?

He tore them apart. Or was it 2019? It was one of those two teams. I think it was 2018. He tore them apart. No, 2019. Oh, my God. I'm not going to answer that one.

I can't let that one go. No. David Blau. It's a joke. It's obviously a joke. I know it's a joke, but jeez. Get him off my screen. Somebody's offended.

All right. Cam Alden, who we have had on our show earlier on, known as an avid Baker Mayfield fan. He's going to go down with his ship he's he's pointing at Baker Mayfield for MVP how the hell can he go with Baker he's obviously just saying it out of he's out of pride yeah out of pride I I'm looking Baker's not even the best quarterback in his division he's the probably the third best in the division yeah Yeah, he's better than Ben. Even injured, I'd still take Baker over Big Ben right now. Because Big Ben is really – he should retire after this season, but he's probably not.

I've got to say, though, if you get rid of – if the Browns get rid of Baker Mayfield, it'll probably send the Browns back to the Dark Ages. Because he's at the very least a game manager, which helps them. Yeah, and at the best, he's a game changer. It's sad for Lamar. All right, so now that we've gotten through all of these, all of the fans here, let's all go around the table and give our MVP picks. And don't explain it. We need to end this show. It's dragged out a long time, so just give up.

No arguments. Brady. Tom Brady. And I think you know what my pick is. Nathan Peterman. The legend himself, Tom Brady. Shut up, Justin. All right.

Any more thoughts before we end the show? We do need to call it quits for the night. Did you hear what I said by any chance for your poll? No, I wasn't. I said Nathan Peterman. Ooh. That's a good one. That's all.

Yeah. All right. All right. That's it. That's it. That's it. Before another argument breaks out, that'll do it for us tonight. Thank you for listening to us. Make sure you subscribe to our YouTube channel. Check us out on Spotify, Spreaker and Google podcast. Also be sure to follow our Instagram at Fumble Ruski underscore podcast to keep up with our podcasts and the latest coverage on the NFL. Otherwise, we will see you next week. Over and out.