The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Change is coming in NE, Tomlin's future, the NFL is growing internationally

Episode Date: December 14, 2023

John dives into the report that the decision has already been made that Bill Belichick will be let go by the Patriots at the end of the season, should the Steelers move on from Mike Tomlin after the season, is the NFL making the right decision to play more games internationally, and how important is the Practice Squad to help improve your team. Lastly, John is joined by Stuckey from the Action Network to give the best bets for the weekend Belichick and Tomlin's future - 5:18 NFL is heading to brazil - 16:37 Pressure on the Lions - 33:13 Bold Take - 36:21 Stuckey - 42:37 Bills-Cowboys - 49:51 Lions-Broncos - 59:01 Bears - 1:04:52 Jets-Dolphins - 1:09:49 Follow John on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the latest. Check out Gametime - the fastest growing ticketing app in the US, and the official ticketing app of 3 & Out and GoLow -  for tickets to all of your favorite NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA teams. Concert and comedy show tickets, too. Go to Gametime now to create an account, download the app and use code JOHN for $20 off your first purchase. #Volume #HerdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Terms at sportsbook.draftkings.com slash football terms. What is going on, everybody, John Middlecop, three and out podcast. How are we doing, my people? There will be no podcast after the Raider Charger game. I will be in Vegas, but I will not be attending that slop fest of backup quarterbacks and Brandon Staley against D. who can't score a touchdown, but we will be talking football today. Some thoughts on coaching moves, Belichick, he out for sure.

Tomlin, should he be? Some thoughts on the NFL owners meetings and them going internationally. Is it the right move? And some other stuff just around the NFL. If you listen on Collins' feed, I would appreciate everyone subscribing to the three-and-out feed. You guys are awesome, everyone that has done that. We obviously have a new YouTube page. All of our content is up.

there as well and the volume.com we have merch I got a hat I'm rocking right now so go get yourself one like I said we've had podcast all week check out the feed non-stop shows as well as we will have a special show after this Saturday because there's three games and the final game is Detroit Denver we will be all over that one as well so looking forward to talking a little football Saturday night because it's what we do we grind here I'm actually going to a tomorrow in Vegas to see Toby Keith, who's been sick for a while. My girlfriend's a huge fan, and I looked at the schedule and I saw it was the Raiders backup quarterback, and then Herbert went out.

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I've been to concerts. I've been to baseball games, hockey games, football games, all because of my friends at game time. Okay, yesterday, if you're watching this depending on the day, I think on Tuesday of this week, Tom Kern, who has covered the Patriots forever, reported that Belichick is going to be out at the end of the season, and really it was decided when they lost to Shane Stiking and Gardner-Minchu in Germany.

And listen, whether that's true or not, Bill Belichick, if he was in control for 25 years, would 100% fire him himself. I mean, that's the way he would have worked. Like, this thing's been over for a while. You could argue it was really kind of over last year when he made some of his coaching hires, and this year's an all-time embarrassment. And listen, I'm a big believer. I've been fired a couple times.

I've made career changes. I've started over. And every single time, it was the healthiest thing that ever happened to me. The one guy I worked for in the NFL, who's now considered, I don't know, the best coach in the league, was fired. And I think it's fair to say, Andy Reid going from Philadelphia to Kansas City is the best thing that's ever happened to him. Look around the league right now. Sean Payton wasn't fired. He took a step back, reset, went to Denver.

kind of got a fresh start. Now his team, you know, I would say precipice of making the playoffs this year. Mike McCarthy ran out of town in Green Bay. Leaves takes a deep breath, goes to the Cowboys. This is going to be their third straight year in the playoffs. And I think they got a chance if things go right to make some serious noise. I think we'd all agree on that. Pete Carroll fired multiple times.

Being fired is not that crazy. Bill Belichick has been fired before. And I think ultimately this will lead him to another place. he can reunite with Josh McDaniels, and everything is happy. I think it is 100% the right decision for the crafts. It's over. Like, some things in life never end. Like, your parents are your parents.

If you have kids, your kids are your kids. You can't just get rid of them. I mean, they're kind of with you, right? Even as they age, you just got to deal with them. Even if you don't, you know, wish they were a little nicer, a little more successful or whatever, it is what it is. Right. But professionally, sometimes you got to break up,

and a lot of times there's a reason for it. And a lot of times, if you're a successful, high achieving, ambitious person, like all these people in the NFLR, it's a very, very positive outcome for everyone involved. There's a reason that we're even talking about this. But what I don't understand, and someone hit me in the DMs a while back, was like, we talked so much about Bill Belichick. The guys won six rings. He's been to three other Super Bowls with the Patriots.

He's 10 and 3 against Mike Tomlin. He's kicked the livid shit out of him. And when you look at Tomlin's stretch of the last two games, losing to Arizona in that game with torrential downpour, crazy weather, and then the Patriots, I don't even think it's close to what the worst loss is. Because ultimately, if you're playing Kyler Murray and there are multiple delays in the game, things can get weird. That is understandable to lose a game, even if it is a quote unquote awful loss. to lose to the Patriots and Bailey Zappy when they're the first team since like 1938 to lose three games

withholding the opponent to 10 points or under and losing all those games because they can't score and then you look up and I was at a bar last Thursday and it's like 213 before you even blink. I mean, what are we doing? And listen, I think Mike Tomlin's good. I've defended him over the years as a lot of people on the forefront of this argument

that he's overrated or the hype's too strong. But I went and just wrote down his record since 2018. He went 9 and 6. Then he went 8 and 8. Then in the Rhone a year, he went 12 and 4 and got his ass kick. The score ended up coming back a little late, but let's face it, it wasn't that close to the Baker Mayfield Cleveland Browns. Last three years, 9 and 7, 9 and 8,

and he's currently 7 and 6. this thing is going nowhere. Now, he's not going to bottom out like Belichick is doing this year or like Andy Reid did his last year in Philadelphia. That's clearly not going to happen. Because even if they were to lose out, they would still be 7 and 10.

And more than likely, he's going to be 8 and 9 and 8. History would say he's going to be 9 and 8. But where are we going? What is the future? And if you're Mike Tomlin, and I understand the power of the brand, the Pittsburgh Steelers are easily one of the bigger brands in all of American sport.

Their fan base is fucking enormous. Their organization is first class. They're obviously very loyal. But part of being a coach is you want to be with the best. And right now, and listen, people have argued, and I don't know, whether Tomlin, his impact in the draft, how much of a hand he has, how strong he was behind Kenny Pickett.

He definitely wasn't anti-Kennie Pickett. It's just not working out. And I think he would have been, just like obviously Bill Belichick would benefit, just like Andy and Mike McCarthy benefited from starting over. It is very healthy. Like this is not going anywhere. There's not just in two years, all of a sudden we're going to look up, and they're just rattling

off 12 win seasons. The other thing is, as a coach, when you start losing your fastball, what usually happens? You make very, very poor coordinator decisions. I saw it with Andy Reed in Philadelphia. one Castillo because he didn't want to lose them to another team, made him as defensive coordinator. It obviously completely unraveled, right? You saw it with Mike McCarthy's inability to hire a defensive coordinator and get it right

when he was in Green Bay, right? And now I think you're seeing it with Mike Tomlin. You saw it last year with Belichick when he hired all his cronies that didn't even coach those positions to be his offensive coordinator and his quarterback coach. Like, what are we doing? And you saw it this year with Mike Tomlin on the offensive side of the ball. and I think sometimes you can lose your confidence when you're not winning like you're used to. And for a long period, for a decade straight, the guy was used to winning at a really, really high level.

And now you look, he's just kind of an eight and eight, nine and eight, you know, nine and six, seven and six. Like that's just kind of his vibe. That's just kind of who he is right now. And I think no coach, if he hit the open market, people would be lined up to hire him. I actually think he makes a ton of sense. I said this yesterday. The Chargers to me cannot afford to hire an unknown. They cannot go the coordinator round.

And for every good coordinator that's hired and becomes a stud head coach, a lot of them miss. A lot of people, and you guys have been sliding in my DMs at Job Middlecalf on Instagram, asking about Dan Quinn because everyone's like, this guy's locked to get a job. It's like, guys, did we see him in Atlanta? Like, yeah, when he had Kyle Shanahan, one of the great offensive coordinators of his era, he was good. Other than that, it wasn't so pretty. Like this notion that Dan Quinn just going to hire him,

yeah, he's a high-level guy, he's really good. What if he's just a really good coordinator? So you hire a guy like Mike Tomlin, here's what I know. One, he's going to be pissed off. Because any time, if you got any, you know, stuff inside, when you're told you're not good enough, even if it's kind of obvious at the time, it pisses you off.

Happens to me, I'm sure many people has happened to you. You get a little pep in your step. When you get dumped or you get fired or you get, you know, broken up with in terms of professionally in a business partnership. It's the way it works. And I think the Chargers, he would make a ton of sense. Gives him a little pizzazz in L.A. He's a bright lights guy, big personality, but he's a real football coach.

And to me, now, he wouldn't be cheap. This is not some $7 million lowest end of the ring when hiring a head coach level guy. You have to pay him $15 plus million because there would be countless teams very interested in this guy. imagine Washington in an area where he played college football would be another team that would be very interested, right? All the teams that are interested in Belichick should be interested in Tom. And both guys are very dependent on their coordinators. Obviously, Belichick is going to have one in his back pocket, assuming that Josh comes with him. But to me, this notion that like, Mike, they're never going to fire him. Why not? What are we doing? If I'm a Pittsburgh Steeler

fan, it's time. And sometimes it's hard. Like, some divorces are easy. I hate her. She hates me, let's go our separate ways. We haven't slept in the same room in a decade. We can't even fake it in front of our kids. This is pointless. Let's go. And then everyone's happy. And some are difficult. Like this is not an easy breakup. I even think the Belichick breakups pretty easy. It's clear, Bill. This shit ain't working.

We fucking appreciate everything you'll ever do or everything you've ever done for this organization. Now we've paid you for it. We've paid you a premium. And you widely have benefited by being talked about as the greatest coach of all time, but this thing's over. The Tomlin thing you can justify, well, it doesn't suck. It's like, well,

come on, guys. Sometimes you just got to press the eject button and blow the thing up. You don't even need to do that. You've still got a lot of good players. You've got to figure out the quarterback position. But it's just time for a change. And to me, that's with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

And when he and if he becomes available, to me, the charger should be all over him. I mean, he, he would have to be their number one choice. And then it would come down to, and we've been talking about this, what happens with the Chargers general manager. And again, I'm not, I wouldn't bet $10,000 that if Tomlin was available, that the Chargers would land them because I would not shock me at all if they went cheap.

That is historically their MO. But if they didn't, I think it would be a sad day for football, because I think him going there would immediately make them infinitely more relevant and impactful at a high level in the National Football League because of their quarterback. So I think it's over for Tomlin. However this season plays out, whether they make the playoffs or not, I mean, they're a one and done team. You're not winning a game with Kenny Pickett

and definitely not with Mitch Trubisky. And listen, they keep resigning Mitch Trubisky to these backup options. It's hard for me to have sympathy when that's the guy they believe in. Just look at the Cincinnati Bengals. Look who they made their backup quarterback, Jake Brown, who is clearly in a different. fucking universe than Trubisky as a player. Like you put yourself in a position, you have to value the backup quarterback in

2023. Because as we see, it's never been easier to play the position, just to function. I'm not saying to be Mahomes or to be Allen or be Lamar Jackson, but it is easy to find a guy who can function. Joe Flacco just showed up off the couch and is helping them win games. But you can find these younger guys who are improving, who can function in your offense. And they chose Ms. Trubisky.

I'm sorry, is a reflection on Mike Tomlin. Because that should be a guy that you throw your body in front of and say, under my dead body, is this guy going to stay on the team? Because we are one broken ankle, we are one, you know, broken hand. We are one, whatever injury away from this guy starting games for us. And if he starts games for us, unless T.J. Watt, Highsmith, have 17 sacks apiece in those games and Minka has four interceptions. We're going to lose.

And that's what's happened. I saw some NFL news today that the NFL who clearly, who clearly enjoys going international, right? This year they went to Germany. They've been going to London and over in the UK forever, which I totally understand. You're either growing or you're dying. You can never be afraid to try uncomfortable things in business.

The NFL has gone international for a long, long time, especially adding this 17th game. It's not really taking away anything from the fans. But today they voted. One, they're going to go to Brazil, next year, which I'd say is a pretty bold move. And two, that they are going to, in perpetuity, basically have eight plus international games moving forward.

And I think you can see this coming from a mile away, eight's going to turn into 16. Like, they're just going to have a full slate of games internationally. And I think the NFL has to be very careful because one issue, and I, listen, Adam Silver's never listened to me. Most people probably think I'm an NBA hater. I should be their most value customer. I was born in the MJ area era. I had a pair of shorts for like 10 NBA teams throughout junior high and high school.

I have watched so many NBA games up until the last five or six years when they've lost me. They've lost me as a consumer. And the reason is because when I show up to give them their time, half the time when I turn on the TV, the best players are not playing. They are basically putting middle fingers up and saying F you to me. Last night in Chicago, the multiple time MVP, and best player in the NBA and current NBA champion, Nicole Yokic was tossed out of a game.

We're calling the referee a motherfucker after a blown call. This is not high school. Chicago, I guess, I read on social media, has the highest percentage of Serbians in America. And obviously he's from Serbia, a pretty big deal. Like, it's a pretty big deal for those individuals to make an effort. I don't know if you've ever Googled NBA,

tickets because I would imagine many people listening might not have been to an NBA game recently. They are outrageously expensive. And the way they treat the consumer, like Amazon's the best, right? No company in America right now treats the consumer better. You press a button, it's there within 24 hours. You don't like it. You got 30, 45 days to send it back free of charge. Like they are the most consumer friendly business in America. What's Amazon doing? Kicking fucking ass, taking names. What's the NBA doing? anti-consumer bleeding on a daily basis. And the NFL, the reason they have laughed everyone else, it's extremely consumer-friendly.

When you show up on your couch, which is actually more valuable than going to a game, you know for a fact if it's Bill's Chiefs that unless they have major injuries, every good player on both teams, is not only going to play, they're going to give you everything they have. And America has embraced the sport like never before,

and it's huge. But the NFL makes their money with people in America. Right. And you can, and listen, this is nine games, whatever. But part of business is you're always thinking bigger, bigger, bigger, bigger, bigger, bigger, expand, expand. Money's all relative. 100 grand to me might not be much.

100 grand to you might be everything. A million dollars to me might be a lot. A million dollars to you might mean nothing. Every single person values money. differently, no different than business. At one point in time, a billion dollars to the NFL was a big deal. Now you sell franchises for six, seven billion. Now the league is signing $100 billion television deals. But you never want to go backwards. You always want to go forth. The NBA had this happen with Adam Silver. He became huge ongoing international. And it felt like he forgot about us. And right now they are not reaping the

benefits of that. It's cost their league a lot of money potentially here in this next, you know, 12, 24 months when they negotiate these new television deals, which could be an utter and epic disaster. I mean, I expect it to be at the pace in which we're going. The NFL has not had that problem. And because, like I said, they are very, very consumer friendly. But I think you've got to be very, very careful and never forget. And I think about this a lot too.

Like I get sometimes, I had a lady slide into my DMs the other day. I think I made a comment about, you know, I was using an analogy about a girl. getting big and I don't know. She's like, that offended me. And listen, I don't mean to offend anybody, but I can't worry about offending everybody. You know, I speak to my base. I mean, this is kind of the way the world works, right? And I talk like I talk. So I'm not going to make everybody happy on a daily basis. And that's not really my role to. I try to play to the greatest percentage of people that I think I can relate to pretty well. And I know the way we talk and I know the way we think, because I'm just one of you guys. And I, I'm just one of you guys. And

I think the NFL has really, really resonated with people in this country. And it's, it's never been bigger. And I understand the, I think sometimes we throw around the word greed instead of just like business. It's business. You always like, Jeff Bezos didn't stop when they really started making money. He kept the pedal to the medal. Neither did Steve Jobs. Neither do any of these people.

And I understand why the NFL is thinking like this. And especially the league office. But you ask all these owners. the reason why their teams are so much, the reason why they're buying yachts and homes in Italy or Brazil or wherever the fuck their seventh home is and unlimited cars and private jets

and the life of the elites of the elites is because of us and because of the fans, you know, in this country and in the cities and the greater areas around those cities that have NFL teams. It's just something to be cognizant of as this league continues to get bigger because these games are going to be successful.

They'll sell out in Brazil. They're going to continue to sell out in Europe. They went to Germany. Why wouldn't they go to Spain or Italy? They'll go to other countries. They'll go to Japan. I mean, they used to when I was a kid. I'm sure they'll do that again.

And it's going to work. And when something works, what do you usually do? You want more of it. And I just think you've got to be very, and I'm not some alarmists. I've just seen in other sports, you go more international. soccer can go internationally. It doesn't matter. It's the biggest sport in the world.

It always will be just based on the quantity. The NFL is very dependent on the domestic consumer. I mean, paying the bills for literally everything, especially their television deals, which, let's face it, pay the bills. So it's just something to watch. And another thing that came out of the owner's meeting was the hip drop tackle.

I personally think it's kind of stupid that you try to over-legislate, you could find anything in slow motion that looks really bad, right? And some things like the NFL I grew up on in the early mid-90s was a very, very violent sport. Right?

It was some of the best players were the most violent guys. And the most violent guys were truly celebrated when you lighten guys up, whether you were Steve Atwater, John Lynch, I mean, everyone knew the big hitters. and you would get absolutely destroyed if you went over. Those days are done.

And I think the violence, and I've been saying this forever, it always bothers me in college football when someone gets kicked out of the game because we only play so many games in football. This is not baseball where there's 162. Like if you get run in a baseball game and you're an everyday player, like whatever,

it's a six inning, you only had a couple more innings anyway. You're going to play 150 games. In football, you don't get that many spots. And when you eject a guy, It's why my issue with Big Dom and Drey Greenlaw, like no one needed to be thrown out of that game. This is not Peewey football here.

Just separate them and let's move the, you know what on. And I think the hip drop tackle is one of those things that's getting over-legislated. No one's trying to hurt anybody. But I can't tackle you high because I will get a flag and I will get in trouble. And I don't want to tackle you too low because players openly talk.

I don't want to get too low. my ankles, my feet, and my knees are my moneymaker, right, if I'm an offensive skill guy. And those are the guys that are tackled, running backs, high ends, wide receivers, quarterbacks. Tackle me in the midsection. Well, if I tackle you in the midsection, and one of the tackles in most recent memory that became a point of a topic was the Mark Andrews injury. Mark Andrews is not 510, a buck 70.

It is hard to tackle guys the size of George Kittle and Rob Grunkowski and Mike Evans, how am I supposed to get this guy to the ground? Especially if I'm not Ray Lewis. What if I'm just a DB or a safety or just a smaller linebacker? Like yeah, Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw don't typically need to, quote unquote, hip drop tackles. They can just tackle through you, right? Luke Keekely. Most guys are not that.

Most guys need to do everything humanly possible to get you to the ground. But no one's trying to injure anybody. So you can throw a flag on that play. What's it going to do? What am I supposed to do? Do you want me to hit guys on the knee? Do you want more knee and ankle injuries? Because I think this always gets back to why Belichick and Sean Payton, they despise.

All caps despise the league office. It's a bunch of guys that have never been involved with teams. Listen, Roger is very, very successful. Him and David Stern are easily the most successful commissioners of my lifetime. They are guys you want leading your organization. toward financial prosperity. But one thing I think David was probably better about is being in the trenches with the guys.

Not that he, I mean, he was just a lawyer. But I think the disconnect sometimes between the coaches, the players, and Raj and some of his cronies is wide. Now, you can say Troy Vincent played in the NFL. I think Troy is kind of morphed into a Roger 2.0 type. And I think there's a lack of, you know, there's a disconnect and to not have coaches and GMs. It's why, like, people in the media, if you don't talk to coaches in the GMs,

I don't take your opinion if you're a quote-unquote reporter that seriously. If you only talk to agents, like, you're very, very biased. Who are the people making the decisions? What are they telling you in business? You want to be a sales guy? Get to the decision maker, right? Whether that's the secretary or whether that's, you know, the guy pulling the trigger. But unless you can get to the decision maker, you're wasting breath.

You're just wasting your time. and ultimately the people that coach this up and sign and cut and get rid of and add these players are the people in the front office and none of those guys are involved in the league. So the hip drop tackle to me just feels very stupid. It really does because I don't think it's malicious. Even the thing that happened to Mark Andrews, that wasn't malicious at all. He was just, I don't know, trying to tackle the guy. Now, I totally understand if you're like doing a 360 barrel roll like you're in

alligator or a crocodile once you're connected. Yeah, that's a little shady. It's no different than like when the guy's on the ground and you twist their foot. I don't really see that happening. But clearly this is going to be a point of emphasis and they're going to go at it in the very, very near future, which I just think is a mistake. A couple NFL newsy things. You just go to Rotow World, which is where I just kind of go through to see injuries.

It is crazy how many guys on good teams are hurt. Listen, it's the NFL. It's the middle of December. Every team is injured. Even if your guys are playing, they are banged up. But you get countless guys that can't practice that are game time decisions. This is really a time of year when your GM and your front office need to thrive. Because the practice squad, my guy, Stephen Spock, who played at Fresno State and played in the league for a while, I played golf with them a couple weeks ago.

He's a listener of the podcast. And he was telling me his first year, you know, he made the team. with Philadelphia Eagles. Terrell Owens last year when he got, went to the, you know, the driveway with Drew Rosenhouse. But back when I, even, you know, 10 years ago in the NFL, it was honestly, it's less than that. Practice squad, the moment you made a team and started playing in real games, whether you were on a shitty team, whether you were just an undrafted free agent and made a team, your practice squad eligibility was over.

So like when you see Jason Peters at 40 plus years old on a practice squad, that was not possible up until a couple years ago. Like Josh Rosen, once he played as a rookie and was terrible, historically the rules, he would have been done. You either have to put him on your active roster or he can't be on the practice squad. He has no role. He either makes a 53 or he's done.

Well, they've expanded the practice squads, they've thrown out the practice squad rules, and anyone can be available, right? Which is pretty cool. So you can find like, I can just sign Larry Fitzgerald tomorrow, put him on my practice squad if I want to do. Terrell Owens or just any player that's like JJ Watt, whoever, guys in the league, right, that get cut. I can put them on my practice squad regardless of their tenure in the league.

And to me, the pressure right now on having a practice squad of not only guys with a future, but then assistant coaches, I say it all the time once the season starts, that your coordinators are just so focused on the game plan. And rightfully so. It's every day of every week Throughout the week Monday through Saturday About building a game plan against my opponent

The assistant coaches are much more involved Like the position coach I'm a quarterback coach D line coach whoever I play a role in the game plan But I also play a big role at practice And working with young guys to improve them If I'm the play caller

My role as a developmental guy Is pretty slim to nut My head coach and a lot of head coach now call plays, same thing. There is a ton of emphasis on the lower end guys on your staff to work with these guys and have them ready because on any given game, a corner and a guard can shatter a leg. And all of a sudden, your corner and your guard on your practice squad, they know your plays.

Are they ready to go? Because they don't need to be as good as your starters or even if it's a backup, but they do need to be functional and can they get you through a game? And if you're a playoff team, can you win games with them? And I think the emphasis right now around the league on all these guys that are banged up, how good your practice squad? How good your coaching staff at developing these guys? How good was your scouting staff at identifying these guys with an upside?

Because that's what it comes down to. Obviously, you know, the high-end guys, right, whether it's whoever, from A.J. Brown to Travis Kelsey to Justin Jefferson to Debo Samuel. Those guys get injured. There's an enormous Trent Williams, you name it, any sweet. player in the league. There is a gap the mile wide. Most players are just considered average starters.

The majority of players in the NFL are not C.D. Lamb and Micah Parsons. They're just like the rotating defensive tackle on the Cowboys. Well, what if that guy breaks his leg this week? Who's the guy you have on your practice squad to take his spot? Is he good enough? Is he good

enough to give you 88, 92% of what that backup was giving you? Because if he is, you're fine. If there is a dramatic drop off, then there's a ripple effect. And there's a domino effect that can lead to a problem. Because then you've got to play your starters more. They're already worn down.

That could lead to injury to that guy. That could lead to him not being as effective. It's just something to keep an eye on. And to me, the teams, we talk about depth a lot. And for most, like, well, who's your backup? It's actually like, what's your three or four deep? And most of us, myself included, don't, who cares about the practice squad? Until you have to care.

Until three practice squad guys get brought up over a two, week span and they're starting and they're playing roles like a right guard a nickel corner and like your you know your punter broke is like you got to get this punter off the street and it's like okay this kind of matters now and it's just something to keep an eye on before we get in the bold take of the week i think two teams this week have a lot of pressure on them i saw today that dan campbell is still the betting favorite the betting favorite for coach of the year which i understand because if they get to 12 even 13 wins it's the detroit line Lions. That's how many 12 plus win seasons do they have in three plus decades? Not many. So I get it. But let's face it, they have not been good as of late. They got their ass kicked on Thanksgiving. They got worked last week. And these are two divisional games. Like part of why I love the Lions were it's one thing if they play like the Cowboys or the Ravens or whoever, like a good team and loose. Like yeah, I totally get it. It's another thing when you play teams in your division, whether it at home,

like the Green Bay game or whether it be the Chicago game on the road and get worked because Thanksgiving they got worked. Last weekend they got worked. That's a problem. And now they're hosting Denver, which is an uncommon opponent for them at home. You should beat this team by 10 plus points. This is a game where if I'm going to take you seriously and pick you to win a playoff game, especially hosting a playoff game. Because when you lose as a team hosting a playoff game, Minnesota,

year, that sucks. I mean, that is not ideal. It's time to get it together. Let's see a game where, you know, you win by double digits, you're in complete control, you're scoring at will. Denver obviously has some momentum. They've been playing much better over the last couple of months, but I'm very interested in Detroit this weekend.

That's Saturday night game. The other game that I was telling Stucky today, my gambling guy who action network, you see it's on the podcast, obviously. coming up. And if you're watching this on YouTube, we had another video. You go watch an incredible gambling picker. That Miami's loss against Tennessee, to me, is still the second worst loss of the year. Now, I know statistically it's the worst loss because no team, three minutes to go, up 15 points. But to me, Dallas, losing at Arizona is just pretty bad. Now, the thing with Miami is, I think a lot of us never really bought in. It's like, I've seen

them play good teams. Doesn't really work out. They beat the shit out of the bad teams. You know, two is good, but his ceiling can't really move. The moment Tyreek gets hurt, as of recording this Wednesday, didn't practice. I expect them to play, but they have a million other injuries. I don't feel that good. Now, I'm not acting like the Jets, all of a sudden what we witnessed last week is going

to be the norm. I think there's a lot of pressure on Miami because they lose this week. I'm sorry I'm out on them, like completely out. Like, you could tell me that if the bills win that they, lose the division. But this is must win, especially when you look at their schedule. It's like the Cowboys, the Ravens, the Bills, you can't beat the Jets. I'm sorry, all of a sudden the season went from what an incredible year for the Miami Dolphins to disaster potential. So I'm fascinated by this game. And I think that's why I'm going to make it my bold take of the week. Last week,

I said that the Jets not only would beat the Texans in the trap spot, but Zach Wilson would play well. And I do think whenever, and listen, this has happened to me. I'm sure many people listening, it's happened to them. Sometimes we can overthink stuff and put too much pressure on ourselves. And it limits our ability and our capabilities at whatever we're attempting to do. It almost slows you down. It's why coaches say with football players, like, you've got to take the knowledge and learn it so well that you can just play free.

You're not even thinking. You know what's going on because you've studied and you've studied and you've, practice hard, but when you're playing, you're just playing. It's very free. Like anyone that plays golf knows if you're thinking about seven different swing thoughts, inside of my back swing, get to the top, be slow, come inside, keep my left foot. You have no shot. You just got to swing.

You just got to play golf. And that's your best chance at shooting a low score. I do think there's a little looseness with the Jets. What do we got to lose? The other thing is, like, they got good players. and they have a really, really good front. Their defensive line can really get after you. And the Miami Dolphins offensive line is not only atrocious,

when healthy, I think it's pretty average at best. They have a million injuries. Tua can't move. He's not really good against pressure. I think the Jets win this week. And I think all of a sudden it is a five-all-alarm fire with the Miami Dolphins. So my bold take of the week, I'm not putting predictions on Zaz. but it might be a weather game,

but I think the Jets, back-to-back weeks, take out playoff teams, and all of a sudden we're talking, what the hell is going on with the Miami Dolphins? This is the bold take of the week, brought to you by Guinness, gather your friends, raise your glasses, and toast to a win. Guinness draft stout, imported by Diageo Beer Company, USA, New York, New York, please drink responsibly.

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Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators,

and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger.

So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs?

Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. We pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people.

Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Okay, back at it. Again, with my main man Stucky, who, uh, his Ravens got a big win. He watched the brownies. That one was tight.

Uh, but that, that, that, that, that two-point conveys. version, you know, saved a lot of people. You could argue the Seattle game for anyone that gambled and had money before some news broke and that line started ripping. I heard someone say that it closed it, like close to 16. When we were talking, it was like 10 and a half 11, so Drew Locke will do that to you. Obviously 16, even with Drew Locke, be very tempting as well. But that's, we'll throw that one out.

Bears, shit, they look good. And like we said, the brownies. That was a weird game, but hey, you know, if you got them at three points, you feel pretty good about it. Stucky, what's up, bro? Yeah, and Lawrence, like, I didn't think Lawrence was going to play. I would have been almost double-screwed on quarterback news. But he played looked okay, but they had some other injuries.

And it was a crazy weekend in the NFL. I'll sum it up with these stats. Mahomes was 46 and 2 when the Chief's opponent didn't reach 21 points, lost. Wallace walk-off punt return for the Ravens. Never returned a punt in the NFL before last week. Titans, first team ever to be down 14 with less than 255 to go and win in regulation. NFL teams scoring three or fewer points since 2008 were 0 and 255 until the Vikings. Steelers first team ever over 500 to lose back-to-back games to teams with at least five games under 500.

Unders had hit 35 straight times after a scoreless first half. that went out the window with Jets, Texans. NFC and AFC players of the week, Zach Wilson, Tommy DeVito, quarterbacks to win a game last week, Wilson, DeVito, Levis, Zappy, Browning, Flacco Mullins. Crazy NFL times right now. Really is.

You were at the Browns game, correct? You ended up going? What's your take on the Joe Flacco, 38-year-old gray beard experience for his Browns quarterback? Yeah, I mean, he's won me a lot of money in that stadium backing him going as a Ravens fan who's very surreal being there and then everyone else

rooting for him. Well, even the Browns posted he wins a lot in this house. 10 and 2 now and 10 and 2 against the spread. Yeah, I mean, he's their best option. He still has a rocket arm, man. You have a lot of these quarterbacks that have been drafted recently that

it's, you know, you kind of want to get more mobile guy. Like, Blacko has a stronger arm than half of them. He can still get it out there. And, And yeah, it was a fun game. And then after, I didn't even think that they would go. You know, I should have known that that Doug would do something like that. You know, it's kind of like going for two, which won the Titans the game,

going for two down, two touchdowns. We left the stadium. We were like, let's go. We had a reserve, we had some, you know, reserved booth at the casino for the four o'clock games. And we left the stadium. And I said, oh, wait, they might go for two. Let me pull this up on my phone. So I pulled up the stream.

and we watched it and sweated as we were walking to the casino. But then I get there with a group of friends who are Browns fans, and I'm sitting there just in shock because they are having a legit combo, by the way, but they are having a real heated discussion about whether Joe Flacco, the same guy that used to tell me is terrible back 10 years ago when he was 28. Is Joe Flacco a guy they signed off the street making league minimum? is he better than Deshawn Watson, who they gave a billion dollars to? And I just had to sit back and laugh and enjoying that conversation, because it might be true.

So, yeah, that was very entertaining to hear after hearing Cleveland fans would always trash flaco, and now he's their savior after coming off the street. And the Watson trade might go down as one of the worst in sports history. You read some of these stories. they sure like him a lot in a short period of time. Now, you would say one thing Flacco has always hung his hat on, like a lot of the quarterbacks of his generation, the rivers, the breeze, like they were beloved by their teammates.

Like they were dude, guys like him. I'm not saying they don't like Deshawn, but it's a weird situation, you know. And if your quarterback, I just think that's one position that if he's not beloved when he walks in the room, because let's face it, like Aaron Rogers, somewhat of an outlier, and even him, I think that was a lot. little overplayed, but the Mannings, the

Brady's. I mean, you see it right now with obviously Purdy. I mean, those fucking guys love them. Mahomes, Allen, I just, that's something that if I was a little nervous, but on the bright side. Throw Lamar in there, like all these top players. Yeah, Lamar's a great example.

100%. I mean, DAC, most of the top guys. Cousins, like, it feels like he started really resonate with his teammates before these last couple years. Talk about, it feels like they like Tua, but that loss, you know, if you're telling me that it turns out, you look at that schedule, I think they go Jets, uh, cowboys, Ravens, Bills.

I mean, if they're the three seed and they're playing this team, the Browns as a six seed, you're telling me, you, Flacco, that defense against Tua, they're not going to be a lot of money flowing toward the Brownies. Yeah. Well, if the dolphins lose this week and that's not one of my games, but we don't know who's going to play for them yet, we'll see. they have a couple of day. A bunch of defenders that are hurt.

They lost their center for the season. Taran Arms said their left tackle was out last week. We don't know if he's going to play. Their guard's definitely out. Their other guard might be out. Tyree Kill, is he going to play? Is he going to be healthy? It's a whole different team without him.

So all those injuries, say they're down three or four offensive linemen, and Tyree Kill doesn't play against that Jets defense in 30 to 40-mile-hour wins could change, but that's what it's projected now. I mean, that game could be, you know, you lose that game. If it's just a weird weather game and Tua under pressure just, it could be under pressure the whole time. And yeah, without Tyree Kill, they just lost. They lose that game. They'd be in trying.

I mean, yeah, the bills all of a sudden, everything's turning up Buffalo Bills. They're live for the division because they all they got to do is get one game back because they already beat them by the finale. And so Buffalo wins this week and Miami loses somehow or, you know, Miami loses to Baltimore. because of that loss, Buffalo controls its own destiny for the division if the Dolphins drop just one more game before that regular season finale. And you just mentioned the schedule. It's one of the hardest in the NFL with a ton of injuries now. Just a horrible loss. And yeah, the Ravens can now you can even afford to drop a game before that Dolphid.

The one seat now becomes a much more difficult path. So, yeah, it's. just a terrible, terrible loss for the Dolphins. And yeah, you can't really watch that team and believe in them just yet, or at least myself. Okay, let's transition to the bills game because I got to be the best game on the schedule. It's just it doesn't get much better, especially now that the bills have a little life. Were you at the casino when that moment happened with Kelsey? Yep.

What was the reaction by everyone in the book? Well, most people have the chiefs. I think a lot of people had the chiefs. especially because that thing went down to like one so everyone went nuts and I was with a bunch people that you know a lot of them follow my bets and some of them had the bills else I just otherwise we all had the bills so my first reaction was they it's the uh score too fast championship yep I tweeted it out too I was like there's too much time and I was was first I was shocked by that play I was like oh my gosh that just happened but then the flag came out

so everyone is like oh wait wait wait wait and then there was just chaos and then they went like this so I just felt offset's the offside signal like you know you get that off sides offense five times a year I think it happened like once two years ago three times last year and then it's been a point of emphasis this year they've called it yeah clearly I know so they went like this and I just and I didn't even look and my friend hit me in the chest and said, no, dude, it's all sides of offense. I was so confused. Obviously, I had a lot of beverages. I was like, wait, what?

Did I just miss see that? Look, the Chiefs then stole it second and 15, and all I knew is a field goal. And Butkers hit a lot of big ones in his career. Yeah, so I then I started to panic. I was like, man, they're going to get a field goal now. And then they're going to win the top. Because this is what the bills do. The bills are what?

Like, Owen seven in overtime. So then I was like, I wish they scored. I wish they scored the touchdown. I started thinking in my head, this is how, you know, how nuts gambling is. Because then at least I would have had Allen with the ball. I was like, now they're going to kick a field goal with no time left,

and then it's going to come down to a coin toss. So roller coaster remotions. Great game. And yeah, bills will be in another one this week. I like them here. I like them under a field goal. Yeah, my take on the bills is like clearly their quarterback is, you know, one of the more fun players.

I think of like my life. I was a little young for like peak Elway. Obviously, I lived through Fav. You know, Rogers, he was incredible, but he, it was very smooth. It was not this like chaotic physicality. You know, this guy's got like a quicker Rathfusburger, but, you know, it's just, you've never seen anything like them. It's hard for me to have much faith because, like, they easily could be, you know,

several more wins. But all their fucking games look like that. I mean, all their games kind of play out. They're like the better version of the Chargers. You know, the Chargers for like a decade have just been losing. They win a decent amount of these. But like, and I understand they were like 50 to 1 to win the Super Bowl a couple weeks ago. And I get it like because of a quarterback.

I just have a, don't have much faith that like, one, that they easily could drop one of these next four games in a game that looks exactly like it could screw them. Or a playoff game. They'll just get the most devastating loss you'll ever. They're the new chargers on steroids. Yep. No, I look, and I don't have anything. They're playing really well.

I faded them on this show and just in life. I think five weeks in a row. And every week I would just tell you about the defensive injuries, the defensive injuries, the market's not capturing them. Well, you know, then the market kind of bottomed out on them. I remember this was before the Eagles game. Everyone was like, Allen's done. This team's terrible.

I was like, so the market went way too far the other way. They signed Russell Douglas. He's been great. That's helped really plug up one corner spot. McDermott's made some schematic changes. And some other guys have gotten more comfortable. Like over time, it's been a month and a half. That's what happens.

Cook makes way more plays now that he did last year. The offensive lines playing really well. Joe Brady's been great as their new offensive coordinator. And the team's rallied. I have nothing bad to say about Dallas. Since that San Francisco game, we really have to buy. I haven't wanted to fade them. I've only backed them because I loved all the changes they've made on offense,

like just their play calling or throwing an early down stack using his legs um which just adds another element makes their offense much more difficult to defend and then their defense is you know it's it's kind of boom or bust but you know they've really adjusted in post digs life uh but i will say that the schedule's been very easy if you look at all their wins and they got the eagles in a prime spot like you know the eagles at the end of just an exhausting run and they were beat up Dallas had extra rest at home and Dallas has been so dominant at home. Things might not be as easy. On the road, outdoors, in Buffalo and December,

in front of what should be a raucous crowd. I'm going to trust just Alan and this desperate Bills team that's starting to peak to get it done. And for what it's worth, if you're into trends over the past 20 seasons, underdogs in December or January that have a winning percentage of 75, percent or more, which the Cowboys do.

They're just 29, 49, and two against the spread. That's 37%. 16, 37, and two when they're on a multiple game winning streak, 30%. So, yeah, I think that this is the time to sell high on Dallas after that big win, going outdoors in Buffalo. I'm going to trust Allen and then to get it done. This isn't really, like, I don't have much, I don't have many bad things to say about the way Dallas is playing right now, but I'm going to trust the spot in the way that the bills

are playing right now. And I think Allen and company get it done, but I think it will be a competitive game. To me, the crazy thing is like, you said the stat to start off about that Tennessee Miami loss, which statistically is probably the worst loss given the way it happened with a couple minutes left being up that much. But I don't take Miami. I guess if they were hosting the one seed, you know, you wouldn't just say they have. no chance against the Ravens, the Chiefs, or whatever. But I was never going to pick them to make the Super Bowl out of the AFC. I'm sorry, even if they were home and maybe call me a hater.

To me, Dallas is a Super Bowl level team if they had the number one seat. And I think that Arizona game is the worst loss of the year factoring in. Like, if you don't take Miami as a legit Super Bowl contender, that that loss was statistically worse because Dallas just got their ass kicked in that game. But like that's, that to me, like in this game against the bills, they still have a lot to play for. Now, you know, this probably is the only loseable game for the Eagles, right? Long flight, Seattle, but I don't know. I feel like Seattle's kind of imploding. Maybe you say one of those Giants games, hell, maybe this

upcoming, you know, the following week, off a short week, the Giants have nothing to lose, DeVito Mania, but I don't know. I mean, that Dallas, that Dallas Arizona loss, I mean, they would have two losses right now. Granted to be the Eagles and Niners, but they would have be the one seed. They would have just more. room to breathe. These games all matter. I mean, there's a lot in the line for both these two teams. Yeah, yeah.

I think the Dallas, yeah, the way that Dallas that offense at home, too. And there's still, you know, there's still just a little more finesse to me. Yeah, well, they don't have a big power running back. You know, Paul is much more of a space guy. That young guy they got from South Carolina is actually not a bad. But they would really like, obviously, Zeke in his pride, just a physical back for this type game, right? Fuck, they just ram it down their throat, control the clock,

but that's not really how they play. Yeah, so which I think makes them, you know, that one seed, not only do you get a buy, but them playing at home more important than I think the Eagles. I think the Eagles need it more this year because they got to get healthy and they need to like, now that they will get the rest, I guess, with this schedule. But yeah, I think Dallas ultimately needs it more than San Francisco. or Philadelphia. I think the lions would need it more than any team to even have a prayer.

Golf has to be indoors and that defense is terrible. They're not going to get it. So you can write them off. So then it's like the NFC, this is a three-team race. And I think Dallas would need to get that. And yeah, you bring up that Arizona loss. Now, if the season ended today, the Eagles, the Eagles, the Cowboys would have won the division.

But the way the schedule breaks, if they say they both went out, then the Eagles would get the one seed because they both would have, they would have split, lost to the 49ers. And then the Eagles lost to the jets, the Cowboys lost the cards. So that could ultimately do them in for the division, for a one seed, and then ultimately, you know, chance of the Super Bowl. I think one thing's looming. We'll get to Detroit. I know you kind of like them this week.

I mean, they've been leaking major oil. They get the Denver Broncos on Saturday night. But they have a game. Now, we don't know, you know, the wild card situation in the NFC. There's like 75 teams with 6 and 7 records. Based on the way they're playing, I would say Green Bay and the Rams would be the best two teams, assuming that their quarterbacks and guys are healthy. I think there's a chance if one of those.

two teams has some momentum coming in and they're the six seed, a lot of people were picking that team against the Lions in round one. What do you think about that? Yeah, absolutely. I agree. Now, if it's one of the NFC South teams, maybe, you know, like Tampa or something, maybe it's a little different. But if it's, to me, if it's the Rams or the Packers,

I think there would be a lot of momentum people picking them and, like, legitimately betting a lot of money on them. Yeah, the NFC could break a lot of different ways. and I hope just from a viewing perspective, we get the Rams and the Packers in. The Vikings just don't have a quarterback now. Brian Ford is a tremendous job of that defense, and then no one needs to see multiple NFC South teams.

Not a soul. So, yeah, I hope that those two teams get in. They had pretty big swing losses on this weekend. I mean, both those two wins for those two teams would have, I don't want to say sure they were in but holy shit how would they not

would have given them that they're kind of behind the ape all a little bit yeah and the thing to note is that the Rams had to start who was the is a ripping

at Green Bay so they lost that so Green Bay has a tiebreaker of them which is worth noting now if it's multiple teams it could get a little messy but yeah I agree I think those two teams

Stafford was fucking awesome against the Ravens. He looked like Peak Detroit Lion, just badass. Yeah, unbelievable. And then even if you get the Rams,

you know, the Rams at the Eagles in that, you know, as the two seed, right? That'd be a great game. The way that secondary

is playing, Rams would have a shot. So, yeah, I hope that, you know, those three road teams that we get in the first round, Packers,

Rams, and then either Eagles or Cal boys. The same thing with the AFC though. Like the AFC we could get you know, if the bills don't

we could get the bills in there or you know, you could end up getting like the, you know, you could get the Steelers or the no, no, no. I just,

I want bills, Browns and then whoever the best version of the third team is. Yeah, if it's like the Texans have been striled. But, so yeah, there's a lot to be decided. The final few weeks

there's going to be it's going to be fun and you know here's the thing you don't remember every year you've got to tell yourself this is an NFL fan you know you can look at the schedules I always go in the playoff simulator

and even in week 18 used to be week 17 one of my favorite things that vet is against the teams that need to win against he's playing for nothing still professional still playing for their job and then usually the lines are inflated because everyone is just back

this team that needs to win there will be many more dolphins Titans maybe that not that big of the spread but there will be many more teams that go down that need to win and there's a long way to go. So are you out? I know you like Detroit minus four at home against Sean Payton and Russell Wilson. Are you out on the Broncos? Yeah, I mean, I just think this is a good, number one, golfs at home indoors. Their offense is

going to look dramatically better. I mean, they've gone four and two. They haven't looked great. Their two losses, they were negative six turnover margin, one of ten on fourth down in their two losses. This is mainly so Gough indoors, offensive should look better. I think Ragnar's Center will be back. He's important. And, you know, Gophan indoors 30 and 15 against the spread in his career. It's the most profitable of any quarterback. He just looks terrible

on grass. I mean, put him on grass and his dark outside, he looks bad. It's unbelievable. And this Broncos team, yes, their defense has improved. If you look, since they gave up 70 to the dolphins of week three, since week four, overall, their fourth in EPA per play. But EPA heavily weighted by turnovers.

there's six wins since then. They've forced 18 turnovers. They have a plus 15 turnover margin. If you remove turnovers, which are not predictive, for the most part, there's a lot of noise.

And you remove the garbage time they've played against backup quarterbacks. There's still 25th EPA for playing defense 30th and success rate allowed. This defense has improved. It's not historically bad, but they've been getting so lucky.

And then let's look at all the breaks they've gotten along the way. They play the Browns. Everyone of the Browns gets hurt, including they're down to PJ Walker at the end. They play the Chargers last week. The Chargers, by the way, went 0 with 13 on third down one of six on fourth down. But, yeah, Herbert got hurt.

The game was over once that happened. They play Mahomes with the flu, who's just coughing up the ball the entire time. You know, one of their other wins was against the Vikings and whoever the hell they had a quarterback at the time. They won on a last second touchdown. So this team has been extremely fortunate in turnovers, fourth down luck. the quarterbacks that they faced, opposing team injuries,

and even Tank Dell goes down against them. So there's just a, I think this is a good buy spot on the Lions at home. There's a ton of regression coming for this Broncos team. You still, you have the much better offense of the Lions. Sean Payton has done an amazing job of this offense, but the Lions indoors have a significantly better offense.

So, yeah, I'm going to trust the Lions to bounce back here. Okay, I think statistically one of the hottest defenses is in the league over the last month plus has to be the Chicago Bears. I mean, Jalen Johnson, he's definitely played himself into making a lot of money. The Montes Sweat, I still stand by, you know, trading a second rounder, especially when the second rounder was going to be high. Now, if you end up winning seven, eight games, easier to stomach because you would have to overpay to get them no matter what.

You watch them. They are physical. You can't run on them. I mean, Jalen Johnson's picking the ball off. I don't know if Iber Fluse survives. I would doubt it, but he's definitely proven to be a pretty big-time defensive coordinator, which he's took over.

Remember when the guy got in trouble, if he's got good players. So I'm not buying the Justin Fields resurgence in the sense of like, now he's a stud. No, he hits some big runs and he hits the occasional big play. But he skips and overthrows a lot of balls. But he makes enough plays, unlike he did early in the season, that just whether it's a running touchdown,

whether it's a bomb the DJ Moore, I give them their fucking credit because they were a franchise that easily I mean they were getting to having like guys houses get raided I mean coaches quit every week it was getting great fields gets hurt and they've showed a lot of like

just moxie and just organizational like we're not losers so I I give the Bears a lot of credit yeah bears defense playing really well the other thing with the sweat thing because I agree with your stance but like you got them in and then you fixed your D

and you won like seven, eight games, you don't get to the playoffs, and you just, so then you hurt your other draft picks as far as positioning, which is something else to consider. I think it makes it, it makes it way easier

having that Panthers thing in their back pocket, just no matter what. You just know you have the one. Yeah, that's true. Why I really hated it is when they made it, they were terrible, and it was a lot like the clay pool.

That ended up costing them like pick 34, and I forget who, oh, it's like Joey Porter Jr., They would have to have that guy. Yeah. Now, I agree with you. At least they signed him long term. Exactly.

That wasn't even guaranteed, which would have been historically bad trade. But yeah, defense has done a complete 180. Since week seven, their fifth in EPA per play. And they haven't been, you know, ridiculously lucky with turnovers. One spot ahead of the Browns. Ninth in success rate. Sweat has helped provide pressure. Jaylon Johnson's playing an all-pro level.

26.1 pass a rating a lot. out on the season. Just silly stats. You have, you know, take it, you have a guy just elevated his game to an all-pro level. I think he's definitely top-fired right now. And then you have a guy, you know, one of the other most other important positions is someone that can get pressure. And, you know, you have both of them now.

You also got healthier. And they have good run-stuffing defensive linemen. Their secondary in general dealt with a lot of injuries early on. So their defense is playing really well. And Gokwe's out for the year. It doesn't really matter. he's way past his prime. But they're pretty much all healthy.

Their offensive line also is healthy of the backfield. The Browns have a ton of injuries. I mean, look, and everyone wants to crown the Browns after last week, especially Cleveland fans. But they got the Jags in an ideal. It's a short week. They were without their left guard, their left tackle, without Christian Kirk, without multiple defenders. Quarterback had just been bent over on Monday. Yeah.

Couldn't really practice all week. That was a phenomenal spot for the Browns. And they still ought to barely hold on. I love Flacco, been a huge Flacco buyer and believer's whole career. But he's 38-year-old Joe Flacco. And they now have lost their third offensive tackle for the season. DeWan Jones just had IRR. They already were down there to start tackle.

Their center might not fly. Ethan Poached, he left the game. They lost Maurice Hurst. They're starting defensive tackle. He's out for the year last week. They lost Delpit, their safety. Thornhill was out last week. Denzo Ward was out last week.

They lost their backup defensive tackle. Jordan Elliott took concussion last week. Ocaronquo, one of their other backup defensive linemen went down with an injury last week. I mean, I can go on and on. The injuries that the Brown suffered last week and we're already dealing with are massive. And now along the offensive line with Flacco is not mobile. And you can't really run on the Bears. So, yeah, I think the Brown's minus three and a half, getting too much love here in the market.

I'll happily take this confident Bears team. And one thing to note with Justin Fields is if you go back to, The Bears, I mean, look, the Brown's defense has been great all year. Some weird results on the road, but especially at home. But quarterbacks who can maneuver and run and evade that pressure have given them, mobile quarterbacks have given them issues this year. So Fields at least has that. You don't want a statuesque quarterback in Cleveland with that pressure.

So, yeah, I think a plus three and a half of bears play. I just wanted to touch on this game before we get out of here. We talked about a little bit about the dolphins, but are you buying any of this jets? I'm sure you saw the quotes. Zach just said, F it, that was their mentality.

Now, the first half, it was zero to zero. He was awesome in the second half, but it's not like he just played some thorough start to finish ball and game. But maybe they have a little life. Miami's short week, is that kind of a sucker spot? or is that like, you know, the dolphins better be careful

because now Tyreeks a little banged up. They just, I mean, that was a devastating L, but it is a divisional opponent. Things get weird. I don't really know what to make of the Jets. I would probably stay away, but, you know, I'm tempted. Yeah, I would probably stay away. I mean, you always want to remind yourself,

look, teams aren't as good or as bad as they looked at previous week, so then it's easy to fall into the Dolphins suck. Look at the Jets last week, let's bet the Jets. but I will say with there's a lot of unknown right now I might I might play the Jets I I wouldn't lay it with the Dolphins but I want to see who plays the Dolphins like the Dolphins like I said they could be out three offensive linemen triby kill could be hurt they have a bunch of defenders that have eight and a half's a lot of points for a team that get pressure and a quarterback that can't avoid pressure with his offense ball and now they're

out their center's definitely out and they don't really have a backup you saw the Titans just get pressure every play and if hills out I want to see if Javon hollon plays because the Dolphins that them were down they've lost both. their safeties last week. They've lost two linebackers that are out now. They already lost their defensive end, one of the best past ones. Jaylon Phillips. So their defense is getting just decimated by injuries and now your offensive line and then maybe Tyree Kill. And I can tell you this Miami offense with Tyree Kill, the difference with and without Tyree Kill is night and day. You go from having to defend Tyree Kill to River Craycraft. It, it,

cannot be more of a difference. And then because of that, you can defend everyone else a lot easier. Yeah, stack the blocks a little more, you know, that's their run. You could double waddle a lot easier. And then you can get pressure on Tua and Tua, you know, he's just not an elite quarterback that's going to win your games by himself. So we can't avoid, he can't avoid, he's not great against pressure because he's not like a, he's not for being a small.

He's not super athletic. No, you think when you see him, like he's going to be some mobile kind of move. It's not, he's a pot. He's closer to Jared Goff than I think the casual fan realizes. I agree. I completely agree. Yeah, so those offensive line injuries are devastating. So yeah, and then throwing the weather, that's the, you know, 30-mile-hour wins.

That's the ultimate equalizer. So if the weather ends up being, as of right now, Miami by far, and there's games in the northeast in December, but Miami by far has the worst pronounce Wednesday, things can change drastically. There was a chance last week that the Cleveland game was going to be. a 40 to 40 mile an hour sustained wins. Hard to project, especially near Lake Effect. But as of right now, this Miami game, 30 to 40 mile an hour wins possible, which basically make a game close to unplayable from a passing perspective,

which would just increase the variance. So, yeah, I think it's Jets or nothing, but I want to see who's playing for Miami later in the week. How shitty do offensive football need to be played to score three total points in a dome? Yeah, I Longest zero Longest zero Tie In a

It's before the merger Yeah There was somehow It was 48 games in NFL Estre that have ended zero zero They've all happened before 1937 I

Probably Probably weren't many domes back then right? No This is like I don't know No forward pass There's no forward pass Yeah

But Yeah In a dome Zero zero I mean, 3-0 final. We might not ever see it again. No. No, we will not. Okay, Stucky.

Well, have a great week. And listen, I like the Chicago play. I just don't know what to make a Denver. But I'm with you. Like, they've hit two or three big plays on offense that have made the game probably, I mean, like bombs. You know, now Sutton's a really good player. But I think they're a tad bit overrated.

And the Bill's Cowboy game, man, that's a big spot. Dat goes in there and wins, throws three touchdowns. I think it'll be hard for him not to be the most valuable player in the league. There are going to be a lot of people watching that game. People are like, well, he's good in the dome. He lost the Niners. He wins that game. I think he would get, I think he is the betting favorite.

Yeah, but those things, I will tell you, those things historically. I can tell you, for fact, 10 years in a row, the MVP has gone to the quarterback with a buy. and now there's only two every year. But that's happened 10 years in a row. Last time that didn't happen was Adrian Peterson 2012. And they usually come down. You'll see the odds go all over the place with these results the last three weeks. And if Purdy gets to buy any beat DAC, and you got to remember Purdy Lamar, New Year's Eve.

So that's, you have this DAC, you have this DAC. Everyone's going to watch it, National TV versus the bills. Christmas Day, I think. Christmas Day. Christmas Day? Yeah, the night game too. So everyone's going to be home. Yeah, so then that becomes your, you know, it's your recency boss.

And then, you know, if he gets the one seat beat Dak and then he'll have the, you know, if he outplays Lamar, I think also if Lamar, if they get the one seed and, you know, Dak were to lose one or two games and Lamar were to win at San Fran, outplay Purdy and put up great numbers. Yeah, three touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. He would skyrocket up. Now, they have a hard schedule. They pretty much got to beat like Miami, Jacksonville, and San Fran.

I think for Lamar to have a chance. He's got to get touchdowns. A lot of times they'll run in touchdowns. But I think he, and then Allen is the wild card. If you're looking for a long shot, if Alan wins out and he has this really hard schedule. 12, 13 touchdowns in that stretch. And he already has the numbers. So I think he's the long shot.

So I think, yeah, it's Purdy versus Dak. Purdy has the easier route. That Lamar could throw a wrench into that. And then your ultimate wild card is Josh Allen. I don't really think, like the Dolphins, I think, were eliminated on Monday night, any of the dolphins. And Hertz, I think, is done. Hertz is done now. And they don't play anyone the rest of the year.

So, yeah, I think it's just, it's those four. It's either it's Purdy and Dak, two-man race. Lamar and Alan because of their schedule have the chance to make a run as a long shot I would consider so it should be a good race though but 10 years in a row

quarterback with a buy that's been the formula yeah well ride that one yeah okay Stucky have a great week talk to you next week take it easy bro absolutely have a going

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