2019 Week 17 Recap

Fifty games in the can first UH year or first Sunday Night rather all year that we're wait waited till the final Sunday Night game of the season to talk podcast. And what a game to wait for. Absolutely the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco Forts. They went down to the last play, well the second to last play and accompanying video review after that play. It should have been reviewed, it wasn't review. We're gonna get to all that, but let's start right here. The playoffs are set. Here they

are wild Card weekend. The number five seeded Buffalo Bills head to Houston to face the Texans. That's a four thirty five start on ESPN slash ABC Eastern time. Of course, also the late game. This number six Tennessee Titans at the number three New England Patriots. The Patriots playing on wild Card weekend for the first time in ten years. That's an eight fift pm Eastern primetime game on CBS. You know what that means, Greg, what Tony Romo and

Jim Nance means a lot of things. And then on Sunday, so all a f C on Saturday, NFC on Sunday. The number six Minnesota Vikings at the number three New Orleans Saints. That's the one of five Eastern Fox game with Charles Davis, Joe, Troy Akman, Greig what's going on in the late game? The number five Seattle Seahawks at the number Philadelphia Eagles. That's a four forty pm Eastern kickoff on NBC AL Chris and Michelle. Yes, playoff football is ready after week seventeen and uh and I couldn't

be more excited. How about you guys? Oh yeah, West of Its which you guys know, is the annual since two thousand eleven, day of the Bengals losing on the first weekend of the playoffs, the Festival of Slights Texas have officially overtaken them. This is six times in nine years. The Texas played in that sad early Saturday time slot. All four times Bill O'Brien has made the playoffs, They've stuck them in Texas, Texass Texas. It's the festival of slights.

You stick him that are only Saturday game. It's not a showing of respect, not at all. But one of those teams are gonna come out of that game with a chance to win the Super Bowl. They'll be in the Elite eight. As it were. We were wondering because it's the pretty rare occurrence of two a f C games on Saturday and two NFC on Sunday. I couldn't remember that it had ever happened, but apparently it happened in so, I mean, everything is a mental hey is

at this point, it's fine. So we're gonna go through all the games, and like Greg said, we're changing it up a little bit. We always customarily um handle the Sunday Night Football game last, but because the stakes were both so high and also what it meant for the rest of the NFC and the seatings and all of that, we will start with Sunday Night Football, a huge game at the clink. Four down, here's your game, here's Russell Wilson back. Wilson throws called Hollisters hit over gold line

to drop our Dray Garade Law. He is short. Forty Diers come away with the ball. The forty Diters have stop Tollister on the goal line. The forty Diners I gonna win the game and they are the number one seed in the NFC. And that feels great, baby, what a football. Great call. Great called by Greg Papa and Tim Ryan of k n b R. Yes, the road to Super Bowl fifty four in the NFC, it's gonna go through San Francisco. It's been a while, in fact, it's been twenty two years since you could say that.

The four Niners get the stop at the goal line. Jacob Hollister catches a pass and Russell Wilson but gets stood up by rookie linebacker Dre Greenlaw. The fourth and goal play ends the game. After a review to make sure he just missed crossing the goal line. It was the right call on the field and they confirmed it. UH final score after a QB sneak to end it. UH the Niners wine over the Seahawks and as we said,

that's the number one seed goes to the Niners. The Seahawks have to drop all the way down to five and play next week, and Greg, uh, you know it worked out because the Niners, it did seem for most of this game, were the better team. However, the Seahawks had it right in front of them, including Marshall and Lynch running onto the field at the goal line before all. Michael's called it one of the worst penalties of the season, the delayed game that pushed him back ahead of that

um in completion to end the game. There were there's so much to get to and the forty Niners deserved the number one seed. But to me, the fact that the NFL did not look at the potential pass interference got to look at it on third and goal from the five yard line with fifteen seconds left to Jacob Hollister, was a total failure of the league and the system of replay that the league put in place for exactly

this moment. I haven't criticized the replay process throughout the year because it just doesn't seem as important to me compared to what happens on the field, But when you look at what happened in this game, this was the reason they put that role in place. This play, like this exact moment was the reason they put that this rule in place. And when you looked at the replay, it seemed clear and obvious to me that he held

Hollister's arm back. But even if you weren't gonna overturn it, the fact that didn't look at it, what did we just spend their whole off season season or that was it? So that opens up Pandora's bucks. If you look at the replay, what standard do you use? The one from week three, the one from week thirteen, or a new one that you're making up as you enter the playoffs. And in forty Niners fans, all of you and my mentions who are saying, well, what about the delay a game?

It looked like, oh, you know when the Seahawks scored, or what about the Ben Garland Like, shut up, that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about a failure of the system. I was hoping the forty Niners we're gonna win this game because I thought their season was better, that they deserved it, that they're more fun team. But that's not the point, Like, I'm more concerned about the process and the fact that the process completely failed in

the biggest What possible explanation can they offer? Alright, Mike Santo the Athletic actually has one the NFL resting Al river on from ahead of the playoffs. Maybe it was one of those situations where I thought you had a lot there's no answer, Go ahead, Mark no, I it's just a problem to Greg's point that for all the drama and rather amazing play that happened for both sides,

that that's the talking point. It's a totally inexcusable flub by the league, and it seems like this is every well, I mean, who's not going to be discussing that just I don't know, there's a lot else to talk about, and you know, I don't know if we need to hammer that that forever. It seemed pretty clear the Seahawks, as Al Michael said, botching that situation with the delay of game and out is a pretty running onto the field. And who knows that they end up begetting the delay

a game. Maybe it's something with Marshall Lynn which coming out and field late. We don't know, we'll get probably answers. Um I was seeing like a glowing green hat. I don't know. I don't know, but the moment was so beautiful. Of course, the most infamous moment in Seahawks franchise history is the decision not to give it to Beast Mode. He comes out of retirement, uh for this game, and it wouldn't have made the Super Bowl forty nine and right,

but it was. It was cinematic. And then for them not to get the playoff pushes in back five yards, no longer goal line situation, Lynch goes back to the sideline where he stays that was a huge mistake. And then the Hollister play he put you know, Russe Wilson puts it on him and like I said, the linebacker,

you just gotta give him credit. That's a great play in a huge stock spot that can save a team, and it could be the difference between the four and Niners winning the Super Bowl and being one and done in the playoffs. The NFL is so resistant to clarity and grand sweeping statements about what just happened at the start of that drive. I wrote forty Niners defense para shifts in the first half of the season, but below average statistically. This is a big test here, and it

feels like they passed the test. Because green Law decleted Hollister right at the goal line. But all that happened in between there, there's no clarity is that game could have gone in so many different directions just by the vicissitudes of what was going on. That the stuff that you can practice in terms of situational football, I think should bother Pete Carroll I had like I had a

smarmie tweet. I'm glad I did not send out. But immediately when they took that delay a game, I thought that's why Belichick didn't call the time out in the Super Bowl, because Pete Carroll gets so excited, over excited about everything. They're just like, oh, what do we do here? Oh, let's get lit it, Like, let's do that. They took a delay a game, not after they're injured. Player George Fan had to run up to the line and spike it,

which was also a mistake. Ultimately, you only have four plays to win the game you would love and you have plenty of time. You would have to call a play there and run it and throw a ball into the end zone. That after that spike, they still didn't have enough time. They also burned time outs late in that spot when they got to the one yard and they got a first down that went past the two, and they didn't have a time out to use because

they just burned a couple of them. I mean, I would say also, though Seattle in the second half three straight long touchdown drives, they deserve credit for showing up with a banged up roster. And you know that a

few little things go in the other direction. We're talking about Seattle having won the visions, and that's why it's so crushing for the Seahawks to lose in this manner and they're so banged up right now that they're really, to me, their only hope was to get a bye, get a home game or two, and use that clink advantage, and they lose that now. And to me, they're not a team that you could expect to make a deep run. I could see them going out as soon as you know,

six days from now. Well, they only stopped the forty niners offense twice the entire game days two punts. And now you're going into Philadelphia team that I'm not saying they're clicking on all cylinders on offense, but they found something to hang their hat on over the past month. This is a big test. I didn't expect to think the Seahawks might be the underdog in their first playoff games, right me, me and either and yet you're you're so right.

Mark to point out after their scoreless at halftime, dominated and they go touchdown, touchdown, touchdown. Jimmy G and his offensive line shows up in in in a game where they didn't really run the ball well, A place stands out to me. With about seven that's left, they have

third and five. That's the point where you you think the Seahawks are gonna get off the field, maybe force a field goal, and Jimmy G has all day to throw, finds Deebo Samuel for an easy first down where he beats Shakil Griffin and they score a touchdown on the very next play. Their offense, for the most part, answered the bell time after time. The average eight point three yards per play, which is outrageous. I mean, that's it's far more than the Seahawks. So it's just two really

good teams and one team in the Seahawks. It's been lucky over and over and over, and sometimes when you're counting on luck, like it just doesn't go for you. And tonight they were unlucky, alright, So San Francisco gets it done. They're the one seed. Let's talk about a team that's gonna actually be playing next week. But you can argue that we might be looking talking about the greatest number three seed in NFL history. Uh, they are

the Saints. So a third down and seven answers, bring five, bree has time in the pockets, throws when there has Taysom Hill light over to the forty thirty five thirty twenty five blocker in front, fifty cups. Thats n fun touch down. Tightsom Hill, what Tanta man do? Who gets out in front for the block? There? Mike Thomas and Michael Thomas brings a block down at the ten yard line and Taysom Hill does the rest forty five yards.

Drew Berri used to Taysom Hill, Zach Streep and US McAllister with a call for w w L. Taysom Hill delivered an exclamation point and sandwiches for Mark Sessler with his eight touchdown of the season. The final score and the Seahawks forty two to tend win over the moribund to Carolina Panthers at the Superdome. As I said, the Saints entered Sunday hoping to get a bye and be

set up with the Superdome. It didn't work out that way, but Chris Westling despite that, and it is a bit of a bummer day if you're a Saints fan or you're inside that building. Uh, they have to be feeling good about themselves. As we turned the page to turn the Calndar over to January, Yeah, it wasn't It wasn't hard to uh see the juxtaposition, the contrast between the

Saints and Packers. I thought watching this game, the Saints look like the grown ups sitting at the head of the table carving up the roast beef at Holliday holiday time, and the Packers are relegated to the folding wobbly card table in the corner with the kids because they were messing around with the Lions, while the Saints came in and just took care of business with the Panthers to the point where a few minutes into the game, the only suspense was is Mark going to get his Taysom

Hill Sandwiches? And will Christian McCaffrey joined the one thousand, one thousand club. That happened in the third quarter and Mark's Taysom sandwiches came in the fourth quarter the Saints. This was a well round a game. Once again Camara had t tds and once again he ran through a big hole with great blocking. And we don't know if he's back to his normal self or not. I'm not seeing a guy who's two thousand eighteen explosive. But this

offense is getting it done right now. You go back to Week ten, were they the Saints fell to Atlanta nine to two. Nine. Since then, their offense has been on fire. Thirty four points, thirty four points. That's why I'd already yes, every team would like to have a buy. I don't have a problem with some teams having to go that extra game, that extra journey. And I think that they're gonna wax Minnesota next week with very little issues. Saints of average forty points per game over the final

four weeks of the season. That is outrageous. And the way it's set up, they still are, you know, in the packers lane because if they beat the Vikings, they will be going to Green Bay. So even though you wanted the home game, you still would like to be in the packers lane versus it could have worked out in a way where you were playing hosting the forty nine ers in in the second week of the right playoffs. This isn't that batters the benefit when you talk about

the three seed or the four seed. The three seed means you avoid a one seed until the latest possible stage of the conference playoffs, which is the championship game. I mean, the Saints aren't the first team I'd want to throw into like negative thirteen Windschill in Green Bay necessarily, but this is a little bit of a different Saints teams.

And you would think that even more if you saw the deep ball that Drew Brees tried to throw the Tech Gin today where he put his whole body into it, and I don't I think it might have been trade. Boston had all day to run under it. And I'm

not doubting that guy after the last month of football though. No, he's played well, and I believe if my calculations are correct, he has a career high and passer rating this year one sixteen point two big us upset of the day though the leading receiver of this game, anyone want to guess, how about Brandon Zelstra six for six for the Panthers Kyle Allen coming in off the bank this that was not a good audition for Mr Greeney went out of this game with a foot injury or correct well, he yes.

It was ugly early for him, and I think the Saints did him a favor by putt him out of the game. One of our listeners City looked like he had a thousand yards stair coming off the field, and that was putting it mildly, a guy that had seen too much at war. That team crumbled about as about as ferociously as one could imagine. This Saint's team has been through a lot. The fact that they could go undefeated without Breeze. They lose two starting offensive lineman three

weeks ago, four weeks ago. That hasn't slowed him down there. They're unlucky that they get the thirteen and three. I don't know, it just is they feel like there is mentally psychologically tough as any team in the league. And they get to take out some Minneapolis miracle revenge game next week. That's nice. One quick note before we get to the Green Bay Packers, we have for the first time ever, our own television so on NFL Network that will premiere on Friday. This Friday at what time three

pacifics six eastern, three Pacific. The around the NFL Show and NFL Network, they're giving us thirty minutes each of the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, so three shows leading up to conference championships. So that's very exciting. Like the network is finally into generating some ratings and are doing and they're replaying it all the time. I mean, just just season pass it, DVR it, just watch every time they play it too. I love it. It's your job, alright,

the packers, we're gonna we're gonna head over the kids table. Yeah, it's the paper plates out and the styrofoam cups. People are playing with their food. Yeah. The kids, you know, they're not even they're not they don't even appreciate what they have. There's a dog sitting at the table, and there's one crazy kid who won't even sit down. And you want the other parents to be like they're the kids. Parents to be like, hey, put the boy in line, get a beat on that child. His hands have cranberry

on him. Now he's on the couches. It's my couch. That's the past. That's why no one comes over to my house. Let's check it out. Here we go. He has a chance to win it for Green Bay. Here we go, down on wondering arm extended. Here the snap high snap place, the main j place. God it is God. He Mason Crosby has said it a dagger and the Packers are into no worse than the number two seed in the NFC playoffs and a week off Free Bay.

He's into the divisional round of the playoffs. Wayne Laravy with a call for w T M j Yes after Aaron Rodgers, Aaron jones is thirty one yard catch and run moved the Packers into field goal range. Mason Crosby kicked the thirty three yard field goal, this time expired. It lifted the Packers to twenty win over the lines at Ford Field, the game that the Packers fell behind two touchdowns before finally waking up and mark This is a game that Aaron Rodgers could not look worse early on.

His numbers were some of the worst of his career. At halftime, but the Packers credit they're not playing as well as some of these other superpowers. They found a way to get the job done, and that happened a lot this season, as their thirteen and three record illustrates. Yeah, I mean, maybe, you know, if you want to look at it from a positive standpoint, that they they're working out the Kings finally before they head into this postseason journey.

But Aaron Rodgers over the first twenty seven minutes of this horrific Packers first half, had twenty nine air yards and just looked completely out of sync with his wideouts. And you know, it's Detroit has made uh cottage industry of blowing games. No team in the league has blown second half leads more than Detroit Lions under mat Patricia.

And so you know, it was not surprising to see Green Bay kind of finally find the rhythm and get back into this Rogers, you know, and I went on we went on Sky Sports, and I basically said how the Packers looked done to me? And two seconds later, Rogers, you know, hits an absolute dart to Davante Adams for a touchdown, then hilt Alan Lazard some beautiful throws. So it's like, I don't want to over worry about the Packers. They don't feel to me like a thirteen and three team.

They don't, and I'd be a little bit concerned. Now they have a break, which is nice, but they lost Brian Bloga to a concussion. Corey Lindsley, their center, went out with a back injury. Came he was okay apparently after, but they were real banged up. You know, the Lions to me, do not deserve to be toying with Green Bay for thirty plus minutes of this game the way that they were. I mean, you know, big day for the blowhards, almost almost, but more adversity a hand gredades.

My friend, this stat feels like who the Packers are. They have led for zero seconds against the Lions this year and won both games. That's crazy, it is, And I you know, Dan Orlovsky, who does a good job with this analysis on ESPN, said after the game, if you have to pick a quarterback likely to go bonkers in the playoffs, look for Aaron Rodgers, because you know, he just missed a couple of a series of beautiful

throws on Sunday. We say this almost every week. He throws beautiful downfield passes and they just miss a lot of them. That's not the issue. The issue is feast or famine. What do you do when you're not hitting the throws, and usually their offense goes in the tank for long stretches, and he was protected well, and he just he didn't have an answer for it. After the game. He just said he was missing like some some weeks.

He he can't explain it. But I mean it was one of the worst games, as you mentioned, just in terms of accuracy of his career. ESPN tract them for sixteen overthrows. That was the most in a game, or tied for the most since they've been keeping track of the stat in two thousand six, tied with Josh Freeman's one start for the Minnesota Vike against the Giants exactly.

One of the ferments is ever, not that Rogers was in that category, and they do get some credit for finding a way to actually win, but it's like, yeah, the Lions didn't even have GOLLA day in this game. After a little while, I just I don't know if their fool's gold, because I mean, they played a very complete game against the Vikings last week, so you know, listen that there. I just I would have no, no, not be surprised that they if they were the team

that in the you know, the divisional of lost at home. Well, no, no one's gonna if if the Saints beat the Vikings, no one's gonna expect the Packers to win that game. Whether whether in no one you know that's off the contents is often wrong, but everyone is going to expect the Saints to go to in Bay. It depends totally on what the weather is like. Yeah. One one. My last point about Green Bay is I feel the same as you Mark, and I guess Greg and I think

we're all on the same page. Can you kind of fake your way to thirteen and three or at a certain point that they just get they do a nice job closing out games, and that that means they should be taken seriously. I mean, it's just puzzling. They just don't feel like a thirteen. But you know, you don't take our next team, the Patriots, seriously at twelve and four. And it is just about the eye test and a lot of times the regular season I test doesn't carry over.

And and the Packers are one of four teams that get next week off. That is pretty huge. That is huge. All right, let's move on first down. First here, it sucks down unbelievable four seconds left about Mike and Sicky back to the end. Zoe running right down the middle back to the end. Zo Fitzpatrick puts it right on the money. Holy smokes. Oh indeed, indeed, Jimmy, Bob Greasy and Joe Rose with the call Ryan Fitzpatrick more like fits magic. Am I right, Greg through a five yard

touchdown pass to Mike Sicky seconds to play. The Dolphins stunned the Patriots to twenty four when the Costs the Paths the first round by for the first time in a decade. Greg uh This was first of all, this whole scenario was foretold by someone on Thursday Show, But who cares about that. After years of taking advantage of other teams late season stumbles, the Patriots stumbled himselves and it has cost them dearly. They're playing next week, Yeah

they are. It reminds me of two thousand and fifteen when they also lost in Week seventeen, lost home field advantage also to the Dolphins, and that was a team that felt like it was on their last legs, and offensively, this team is certainly that way. The fact that Tom Brady played his worst game today I think was the most notable part of this result. The defense didn't play well. They didn't force it turnover, you give up a big drive at the end. Fitzpatrick was the best quarterback in

the division all year. He's better than Sam Donald, better than Josh Allen. I think he was better than Tom Brady when you consider this game. But Brady's missed throws and seemingly the punishment that Bill Belichick was giving Brady or the offense by not even trying to score at the end of the what was going on using time outs. I think it was his way of saying, we don't want to give the Dolphins the ball back, we don't

really trust our offense. We're gonna run a lot. And it was a very strange moment and a lack of confidence in this offense. Would you can understand why there's a lack of confidence, but it seemed like cutting off his nose despite his face. Patriots desperately wanted this game. We heard Belichick tell his players the playoffs start this week, and they they played their hearts out and still lost.

And credit Ryan Fitzpatrick. I feel like this game was the microcosm for a wild season, and this season was the microcosm for a wild career. It just like everything came to a head in this game. He was supposed to be a tackling dummy. He was the old quarterback that was being sent out to slaughter on what was supposed to be the worst team of all time. And week after week after week, he's been keeping this team in games and winning games. And yeah, this was the microcosm.

This was the culmination of what yes at five and eleven is not what the Dolphins wanted because they wanted to get Joe Burrow wherever the quarterback finished five and four. They beat two division winners in December, so the Patriots weren't the only team that's gonna be hosting a game in the playoffs and lost to the Dolphins. In December,

they beat the Eagles. I saw someone note on Twitter that New England lost to the four best teams in ANFC, with with Miami being being one of them at this point. And you go back, you look at the journey for

this team. Week one losing fifty nine to ten, Week two to the Patriots forty three to nothing, Week three, thirty one of six, and they went on and on, and it was like they looked like one of the most disgraceful operations around, and I guess I would trade in the whole first round pick thing for the concept in the idea and the belief that you have a really good coach. And Brian Flores, who did a lot

with a little. He could have left Josh Rosen in for the season and said, hey, we we know we're building, we know we're not playing for this year, and instead he went. He tried to win games, he tried to play good football, and they the last drive thirteen play seventy five yards and that for all the struggles of Tom Brady in the offense. And you know, the one thing that Patriots have had all season is this defense.

And it hasn't been a It hasn't been as historically dominant as it was in the first half when the Pats were an oh and they finished twelve and four, So even I could do them if they were five hunder team in the second half and they couldn't get the stop. And even even the great Stefan Gilmore who um may win Defensive Player of the Year, Davante Parker, he had his way with him. You're cackling in he

had a fourth quarter. This is the biggest moment of bands decade, I would say since we've had the podcast, except for that um Ryan Fitzpatrick when they won or know what they lost in week seventeen, but they won ten games that year. This was the right from It's amazing because Fitzpatrick does this with no running game. I mean, they have absolutely no rank game. I found it stunny.

Ryan Fitzpatrick ran the ball more this year on called passes than any quarterback in the league, more than Lamar Jackson, more than anyone else, and he was effective doing it. And today it was a great example why the Patriots had twenty nine hurries on Ryan Fitzpatrick. So many times they got rushers a lot of times free rushers in his face and he got out of the way of them.

A lot of what they've done defensively, especially the cover zero where you're blitzing like crazy, just hasn't worked that well in December, and they've made a living off a turnover differential all year. They didn't force a turnover. They ended up minus two. One of those was on the last play of the game, but either even then they were gonna be minus one. Today it was Tom Brady's pick six on a weird throw and that was kind of the difference. In the end, Brady like led them

back from Ted Nothing got the key touchdown. It was a full team loss, but not a not one that was undeserved. These looked like two very even. The craziest statistic of the entire football season is that Ryan Fitzpatrick is the oldest player in NFL history to lead his team in rushing, and he had about two hundred and forty something yards rushing. To your point that the Dolphins cannot run the ball for his life all season and

he stay alive. And now factor in what he did with the Bucks offense last September and tell me this guy shouldn't be a starting quarterback in the NFL. He's under contract with the Dolphins, a team that's gonna draft a rookie quarterback, draft a quarterback and presumably want him to play immediately. I'm not ready to say goodbye to Ryan Fitzpatrick. He see you know one thing though before. I don't want to get too carried away, because he always finds his way back into the starting lineup. I

just would rather him go compete somewhere. But I don't know if teams are like that with him at this point where they're going to say they'll bring in Fitzpatrick for a chance to start. He might be better in Miami and like a tutor role and end up getting starts out. Would be surprising to see someone want to trade for him, and there's no way that the Dolphins. I mean, I guess someone would for the for a really low price, but you would expect him to be competing.

Maybe it's with two of the Dolphins didn't even lose any in their draft slot today by winning, so that was another bonus. They stayed at the number five pick. Obviously they're going home and the Patriots is the bigger repercussion because this team, which was so limited all year, really needed that by I think more than any other team. And I kind of thought when they beat the Bills, maybe that's their moment and their next big game is gonna be against Kansas City, which was gonna be a

big time uphill battle. Now there, if they try to make it to the Super Bowl, you're gonna have to win a very tough wild guard games. You're gonna write you're gonna have to win on the road in Kansas City. That seems like a death sentence even for a team as resourceful as the Page to win the first game. The sense of justice is that the a f C is correctly seated the Patriots. I don't care about the record. They are not the one of the two best teams

in the level. I I agree, and it I feel like as a Patriots fan, a you're it's really hard. You can't come. It's hard to complain when you've just watched the greatest run and they're still in it that any American you know, professional sports team has ever been on what you're gonna wind because you've got a three seed? I really, I really do see I'm saying in our in our lifetime, in our lifetime, and to me in in the NFL, it's such a unique thing to do

it over twenty years, nothing's been close to that. But the fact that they've managed to scrape out twelve wins with a pretty bad team like that, somehow winning is such in their bones that they still managed to have a twelve win season, which four about twenty franchises in the league would be the best year they've had in a decade, is almost to be a testament to how good they are. It doesn't make this team any better, though, they would have been ten and six with a tougher

rec Greg's and denial. But he has a really good attitude on the surface. You are not you. You have a positive outlook on the surface. Not everyone is feeling as positive on the surface or beneath it. Here's Ricky Hollywood right after the game, Patriots stink. I can't believe how old are you? Er uh, you're allowed and you've known nothing, You've known nothing but glory. And after a season ends twelve and four. Look at the Chiefs fan right next to your Bartlett two twelve and four, you're

saying the Patriots stink. How about you eat some humble pie? Lady, What do you mean, just you know, take the loss like a woman. I got a text from my dad. You just not wait until like Adam Gates or the Jets have like one ten one season so we can get back at the end one of day. How is a woman supposed to take a lost person today? And did you see that stat a f C E standing since week nine, Patriots are in last place, heading in the road where the Browns? What about your Rams West?

What about Broncos? Hit me, I'm not walking around celebrating the Browns. Where's your head coach? Mark? All right? Oh my good to get to that spoiler alert. Uh and you know, since we're here, I'm curious how Scott Zolak is taking that. It's magic touchdown. So let's let's let's check that out. What a great day? This is? Sick you to the right this istation stuff. He's looking to the middle. He talking to the back of the end zone. Cap by get sick. What a troge down in Miami.

Twenty four seconds to go and the Dolphins have taken the leave. What an unbelievable drive by Miami. Credit Chado Sha and Ryan Fitzpatrick more poorly divine day Parker, phenomenal playmaker down the right side, you get it, calling on a big twenty nine yard the past receiving tight end with the big touchdown catch to take the lead late. What are you measured? Professional? But sure? That's like, I'm so annoyed that I didn't listen to this before we

played its sportsman he is growth. I don't know if maybe he's hurting right now. He was hissing at me. Maybe I'm saying maybe Zolac is in the same place watching this game, and it's like, I don't know, there is a piece to it. If if if they don't if they're not a good team, they're not a good team. I don't think you and Zolak have ever been in the same place watching it. I thought the same thing Greg's saying, or a similar thought that Zolac you give I give him, We give him a lot of heat.

But he's plugged in, he knows that team. That sounds like a guy that understands that this team isn't a great team. And I think one of the most jarring newsroom proclamations I've ever heard out of Greg's mouth mouth was that no matter what this Patriots team does, they'll always have Week sixteen against the Bills the season was making. I thought that was their moment. It was a nice man. That is so depressing. The are a lot of things. Yeah,

you know, psychologically, Greg is going through some stuff. So I'm sure Brady's gonna put that Week sixteen win on his mantel next to the Lombardi and we get one more loss the season. Oh it's coming, you know it's coming, Greggy, No parade this year. Let's move on to one four deal kick taking three archdep in the n jone left shod return pay back. He's got some room at the stage on his feet cuts it back. Mcconel Hartmann five touchdown Kansas City one hundred and four yard kickoff return

by the Pro Bowl return Specialists. But Cole Hardman Mitch halt Is Kate see f X with the call. Mitch does a good job. Nice class stop glass we call Harvny gave the Chiefs a massive boost when they needed it most, right after a Charger's go ahead touchdown got the people on Arrowhead nervous. A hundred and four yards later, Kansas City's ahead to get a harder over the Chargers. Suit of their credits showed up here, but it wasn't

enough with the game in hand. Uh. The Arrowhead crowd went into a frenzy when they learned that Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins that shocked the Patriots, allowing Casey Now to grab that number two seed. Friend of the show, Kevin Harland, by the way, painted the picture calling two games at once and his latest master work. Do we have that? Meanwhile, Miami has first in Gold down by four seconds left. Here Bucker kicks the extra point and Ricks tat Ricks throws in the end zone touchdown Miami

that the Dolphins have just scored. Kisiki the tight end got a laser in the back of the end zone by Miami quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick to take a lead with twenty four seconds to go, and mcrown now knows it. What a strong guy fitz Patrick. What a touchdown run by Williams. On the last weekend of the regular season in the NFL. If the Chiefs when and New England loses, the Chiefs will be the two seed, they'll get the bill and they'll have a home game the next weekend.

I'm getting confused. What game are you calling? I'm calling both games. CPS is going to send your two chests this week. I think I'm breaking every yet. CC rook. Kevin Harland, friend of the show, and remember when he was on our show. It was after his famous black Cat call where he was calling a Evan Ingram completion at the same time that the cat was running. There's nobody else in the business and I can do with

Kevin Harland. And it's impossible to know how hard it is to even call what you're watching with your eyes down on the field in front of you, much less double dift the way he did. And there's no other play by play guy that ever, the course of every football season has four or five of like intense signature moments. You see his his voice, chriscend does with that. That guy is both games. Uh. It was an interesting game because it was while the drama was unfolding in Miami,

the Chargers are hanging around in the Chiefs. This was hardly um their best game. Uh offensively, in fact, they managed just three thirty six yards of offense. They were out gained by the Chargers just barely. They ran only forty eight plays to seventy four by the Chargers, but

two huge plays. You heard the McColl hardman kickoff return that gave them the lead back after they had fallen behind early in the third quarter following a Patrick Mahomes interception, and then on the next drive, Patrick Mahomes takes the ball sticks in and Damian Williams gut and he goes eighty four yards, breaking a tackle and then taking off

down the near sideline for a touchdown. And I thought it was just kind of like symbolic and showed once again why I liked this Chiefs team's chances next month that that sequence, the kick off returned by Hardman, the run by Williams it wasn't Patrick Mahomes, and then the

defense getting the job done closing out the game. This is not a one dimensional team and that's why armed with a buy and a home game that gets them to at least the a f C title game, perhaps they even get home field of the Ravens, stumble uh

that this uh team has a real shot. Well, sometimes you need some luck to break what's been an unbelievably unlucky and unsuccessful playoff history that the Chiefs have had the last what four decades now, and they are so close right now to setting up what I think would be the bet like just on paper, the most exciting a f C title game matchup, like in memory, if you get Lamar twenty, you know, a second year m v P versus Mahomes, a third year quarterback who's also

the m v P. Like, I can't think of another title game that would have more hype ahead of it. Maybe five Saints in oh nine when he was with the Vikings kind of reminds me of that and this Chief's team, Like you said at the end, like the way if they can win games like this where when the offense isn't at their best, like I at least think they're gonna get to that game. And as a football fan, I don't know, I think that would be exciting.

I think another thing is a football fan. If you look at the history of the draft and the linking between Eli Manning and Philip Rivers, that Philip Rivers after this game, was asked basically about his future in Los Angeles and said, you know, this may not happen, but we'll find out. Yeah, well, let's hear what Rivers had to say. You could say, I think it's that I can I can say I gave it up everything I had.

I mean every week, you know, so you know, and and maybe it means an interception on fourth and eighteen when you're down town, because I don't care, uh that it's gonna say two interceptions, you know, I really don't. It's just like I ain't quitting, So I think that. I think I think that that um doing it with so many guys over you know, fourteen years and going to the locker room win or losing. I can say that we're sure we felt we felt short but or we won you know, uh, but shoot, I couldn't try

it any harder. So I think two different kind of elements there. But I think that's the two things that come to my mind. Does that sound to you, Greg like a guy who knows, uh a chapter in his book is closing here expecting it at least. I don't know if anyone there totally knows what like who's going to be there and who's not. But I think he's reading the tea leaves that this coaching staff might not

be a huge fan. And he did say if some other team will have me, I'll be starting game, you know, number two fifteen in a row in the week one

next year. So as he says, as long as one of the thirty two teams sees me as a start, I think someone I think someone would have I was just gonna mention that it's wild that we could see the end of Rivers in with the Chargers and Eli Manning in the Giants after the way that traft Day thing went down on the same day, many many men later in the same day, just because at this point with his injury, that what you we've heard no lock

that we'll see him again. I never heard that Rivers to the Colts connection until brand Damn brought it up last week. But now I'm seeing it all over the place. I hope that has influencer. Oh yeah, that's the way I look at it. But I do think he could have good football and he's a guy you root for and you want to see him have and maybe a Montana final act where he goes to a team and

it's fun and he has one more shot at it. It It would stink if he somehow landed with a team that you know, you know, pick a team that that was not a contender, or in Carolina, Panther just fades, yeah, into oblivion. We don't need a Panther's type team. Let's hope he lands on his feet somewhere and maybe it's

still in the charges. You never know. One thing with the Chiefs, they Wan Thornhill, who was a safety on my All Rookie team, had a knee injury today and rap Sheet reported that they think he's gonna miss the playoffs with the injury. That's big. Um. All right, let us move on now and check in on the NFC East see how that all sorted out. Jones calling to the football, he fumbles it, he is hit the Flotballttle funckle the Eagles afterward and it is picked up a

Tims recovered not talk the one by Fletcher Cox. Flincher Cox then about the one yard one as Daniel Jones lost the football for the eleventh time this season too many times. Merrill Reese w I P with the callei vertil from Merril Reese because the Eagles keep winning. Fletcher

Cox scooped up Daniel Jones bumble. They put the Eagles in control and Boston Scott who Boston Scott had three touchdowns and well over a hundred yards from scrimmage and place something injured Miles Sanders as the injury ravaged Eagles beat the Giants thirty four to seventeen. The win, of course, clinches the NFC East title UH four the Eagles, who

were in the playoffs for the third straight year. It was a four and oh close to the season for Philadelphia and head coach Doug Pederson, who deserves to me Coach of the Year consideration. John Harboll probably get it, but what he was able to ring out of a roster that's been decimated by injuries week after week after week, and it happened again today with Sanders going out, also

Zach Ertz not playing in this game. Guard Brandon Brooks goes out with a shoulder, Sanders had an ankle, and they just kept finding ways to make it worth I at work, I think it's a combination of Carson Wentz, a great young quarterback, kind of uh taking his game to the next level, which is what truly great quarterbacks do, and a coach who knew how to make the most

of a roster when it got the crunch time. Chris Wesley and I think an Eaguals team that's a veteran team with playoff experience, knowing that there was a sense of urgency maximizing its roster, you know, and basically whatever talent they had left that was healthy scratching its way into the postseason by hook or by crook. In juxtaposition to the Cowboys who underperformed and let the season slip away. Yeah, I feel like there were different type of Coach of

the year arguments. There is the John Harbaugh, who I mean, Kerson wouldn't be in the top and he wouldn't, But I would say this that like what they he had guys on the practice squad, like I get it. Also under they underachieved for half a season, and they went nine and seven and they beat the Giants, Redskins. You know, at the end of the stock is absolutely but they were one of the most disappointing teams for half of this They also right, and they did an unbelievable job

getting it all together. Don't get me wrong, but their defense for the most part has been healthy. They've been a very up and down team that got it together, beat the Giants a couple of times, beat the reds because they were all close games went was been unbelievable.

I mean, they have been resourceful and it's nice to see a team that kind of has the d n A of playing well late in the season, no matter how that they got to that point, especially after that Giants game, it felt like, hey, we act, we got here, let's go win and who knows. I mean, they are not pretty doing it like they This game was in question for vast amounts of time. This is my lock and I thought this was the dumbest decision I made

all year. Here's the stat that purpose that perfectly encapsulate what it means to be a franchise quarterback. So Whence became the first player today in NFL history to throw for four thousand yards in a season without a five hundred yard wide receiver, uh, which just tells you a couple of things. Tells you the injuries that hit this

wide receiver group. They lost what their top three wide receivers uh, and Wentz staying healthy and continuing to find ways to make it work, especially in these last four games. Because yes, you can't completely divorce the first three the first three quarters of the season from the final quarter. But you know this is money time. We we joked about it, the season starts after Thanksgiving and but it's

kind of true. And and now here we are in January and Eagles, I know they're probably not a super Bowl team, but they're one of the teams I look forward to most watching play because I'm wondering if this is a Cinderella situation, uh, in a different script from the one that led to their Super Bowl win. But again, is this a team to to completely count out? Uh? Anyway, I'm not gonna do it. We'll see who's healthy next week. That'll be a big factor. Miles Sanders Brooks I mean

those zach ERTs. Those are players that they are gonna be hoping that are available, and uh, you know if they're not. If nothing else, they're the class of the NFC East. I think that feels good that you got uh Cowboys to get rid of their coach. Probably by the time people listen to this, we don't know this, but it will happen. Like the Giants, that could be the same too. The Redskins, they're changing, like the rest

of the division is a mess. And even with all these injuries, the Eagles end up on I would say plenty of Eagles fans would rather the Jason Garrett stay in Dallas too. So I'm glad you introduced that by saying Carson Wentz is a franchise quarterback, because every quarterback in the NFL goes through ups and downs. And we've had fans reach out to us on Twitter and say, when are you gonna take Carson Wentz to task for not being a franchise quarterback. Look, we've seen him play

at an m v P level. We saw him raise this team. Next time he goes through a slump, we don't have to have and is this guy a franchise quarterback discussion because he's already proven it. I think part of it was even Eagles fans being a little salty about because Folds is the one that closed up the last two scenes, which makes this run, even if it ends next week, all the more meaningful that this was something Wentz can put his signature on. Alright, so let

us now move on. You know the Dallas Cowboys, they were hoping to steal the division at eight and eight. It didn't happen. Let's check in on that game. Snap out of the gun on third down, they block it up over the middle. Cat first down, Gallop kept his feet twenty five up sideline tub five dancing in. Gallup walks the dog. Touchdown, Cowboys, What an athletic play. Hen Gallup takes it into the end zone for the second time, his second touchdown of the game. Brad Sham the sham God,

Oh crime spree, drop the pen. This is what it is more forgett crime spring as the natives. No, No, it's to me. It's a decades old cop trauma like San Francisco streets, Bring us the Girl, It comes cons through the trees. That movie is not getting made in twenty night Now it's not nat I mean natives. We can't say natives anymore. Well you have so bring the girl. Sometimes that still feels off killed. That's natural. There were sacrifices. That was a thing. Don't try to erase history, Greg,

I you you were answering a question. I didn't ask. I wouldn't know what you're talking about, but I'd like to know what's in your head. I'm not I know I was. I was talking about the cong of it. I don't even you went. You took in another direction, but it was nice. As the kids say a cell phone. I have no idea what you're talking about. All right, here we go. Dak Press got through four touchdown passes Sex for two thousand nineteen breakout wide up Michael gallop Steen.

Cowboys win a win that meant nothing when the Eagles beat the Giants West. This game will further burnish all those impressive d v o A analytics for all those Cowboy heads out there. But like this game and ultimately means nothing. Eight and eight Mark and all covering this game. But I did see a Troy Eigman quote where he basically said the Cowboys are talented enough to be to beat any team in the league, and fans out there will say, well, any team can say that they can't

any team cannot say that they're not talented. The Cowboys had the talent to beat any team. They also can play as poorly as any team and lose to any team. And that's been their season all year long. Yeah, this was the anti uh Chiefs, Dolphins Patriots Kevin Harland moment because as Dallas was romping over the Redskins, you know, in the fourth quarter, you could see that the Eagles were pulling away and that this win was utterly meaningless and to your in West before about just their talent

and how disappointing their season has been. They're different to me than the Eagles because this game showed flashes of total dominance from Michael Gallup. I thought Zeke Elliott ran really,

really well. Dak Prescott had a couple of amazing throws and one gallop where he broke away from a Redskins defender, ran into another one and stiffed arm the guide to the ground, and you just went and when they're like the against a couple weeks against the Rams, when they explode and blow up and do what they can do your look at it, you're looking at a playoff team. This I would have taken Dallas at their peak as the NFC S team that could have won a playoff game.

I don't feel that way about the Eagles the same way. I just think they're ceiling is different. But the Cowboys are so wacky that they're perfectly what you would consider an eight and eight team. One week this, one week this things are because things are well, They're kind of an unusual eight and nate and that most eight and eight teams are just kind of mediocre middle link teams

that win one, lose one, win to lose to. This team showed an elite ceiling and then a floor that was just like gross finished this season with a plus nineties seven point differential, which is what you would expect out of a twelve and four type of team, eleven and five type of teams. I do wonder just because sometimes the how the season ends has an emotional impact, especially on such an emotional decision maker like Jerry Jones.

If Michael gallups big finish will have and Amari Cooper's disappointing finish on balance will have any impact on Amari Cooper's quest to become, you know, the highest paid wide receiver in the league. Because all of this Dak Prescott messing around with his contract I don't think has been a huge deal because it's not like Dack's going anywhere. But if you don't get the deal done now and DA's got all the leverage in February, you can only

franchise one of them. And if you can only franchise one of them, Amari Cooper is probably playing elsewhere this year. Maybe maybe the Cowboys won't mind that. I don't. You can use the transition tag too, we'll see, I mean, yes,

you get an extra tag this year. That and we will you know, will hold off in the Jason Garrett job security talk for the most part because tomorrow show we'll have a special Monday edition of the podcast Black Monday Now excuse me, New Horizons podcast coming up tomorrow, and we'll dig in on the fate of Jason Garrett, which seems sealed but as of right now he's still employed. Uh well, he's not under contract in it now, he contracted. Jerry doesn't even have to fire his favorite employee ever.

All right, let's uh move back to the a f C. There was a team that plays in Nashville that had a chance to do two things, to go nine and seven again but also make the playoffs. Did they get it done? During the late game tonight, as Henry gets the carry, he's to the fifty, tot to the forty, to the thirty, to the twenty, to the ten, to the five, to the end. So Henry to the house fifty three yards textdown Titans. He's over two hundred, he's over fift hundred, and he is the baddest mate in

NRG Stadium today. Yes, my w g f X, Yes, you are a bad man. NFL rushing champion Derrick Henry ran for Season I two eleven yards and three touchdowns. I guess that hamstrings. Okay. The Titans beat up on the Texans reservesteen is the final, the Texans, of course, resting many key players ahead of next week's playoff matchup with the Bills. The wind clinched a wild card spot for the eternally nine and seven Titans. Titans, uh, and here's the difference nine and seven was it was a

bit of a scarlet letter for this team. But this team is different right west, This team feels dangerous oh that is true. And this team, this game, you know, let's call it what it was. The Texans sat stick six starters and benched others throughout the game as the media carried water all week for for a coach who was going to perpetuate half truth as a pep talk for his team, and the media just let him do it, like they were like, he was really gonna play affs.

Who didn't let him do it though, Chris Wesley, they really didn't. In Houston. They even as early as like Thursday, they said, well, they'll probably sit there, don't take down West's We bought it. A very a very solid national reporter was out at the forefront of the saying he's gonna play all his players, and you know, said national reporters should have seen through it. You know, no, no, no, he does not work. He works three ESPN and he's

away anyway. This was the game of the triplets. Ryan Tannehill, to my mind, who has come back player of the year locked up a J Brown who has I think beaten Josh Jacobs by a nose at the finish line by averaging a hundred eleven yards in a touchdown over the last six weeks and Derrick Henry, the NFL's rushing leader who went over two hundred yards on a fifty three yard touchdown to seal this game. And at that point it was the Texans subs in the game. So

we'll take from it what you will. My thing on the on the Titans, they are scary for the Patriots, very scary because of this offense, this averaging thirty points a game with Tannehill in ten games, uh and Tanney will Tannehill a note first quarterback in thirty years since Joe Montana to complete seventy of his passes at nine yards an attempt. Just a great hyper efficient showing of

him this year. This team has defense issues and they allowed A J. Mccaren to go down the field on the opening drive of the game, and they allowed him to go down the field on the opening drive of the second half. AJ mccaren is not good and he held the ball too long in the pocket. That should not be allowed to happen. The Titans have cornerback issues, they have pass rush issues, and they have kicker issues. Yeah,

it's not a great defense. So I think the Patriots, you know, think, okay, this is you know a defense that made the playoffs that we can actually score on. But the Titans offense is so explosive. They've are they I know it's a long time ago, but they beat the dry I'm out of the Patriots a year ago. And I just think when you look at the whole playoff field, like if I was power ranking, uh wait, a second playoff field. I think the Titans are better

than the Bills. I think they're better than the Texans. I think they're better than the Seahawks. I think they're better than the Eagles, and they're probably better than the Patriots. And if it's a neutral field, I would say they're better than the Patriots. Like, I think the Titans have that sort of upside. So this is not a normal nine and seven sneak into the wild card type. I can definitely see a scenario where Bill Belichick closes this

season having lost to two former employees. I imagine the Desert will be feeling the Patriots win this game. But I don't think anybody would be shocked. And you know, we'll get into this later, but I don't think anybody will be shocked if the Titans advanced beyond the first round, just because they're so explosive and and we just saw what happened with the Patriots of course getting beat on

a final drive. That defense is not invincible anymore. That that is that is not only the Patriots fall out of the bye, they to get a hillacious first round track here, right. I think it's because there's nothing you can do to coach up against. To me, A J. Brown's physical dominance and John who Smith is athleticism and Tannehill is playing so great. It's definitely they have weaknesses,

certainly on defense, but it's a pretty complete team. It's very, very different than the other nine and seven Titans teams. And you can look at it just by how they've scored, how they've played with Tannehill and their point the frenchial on the year. I mean, they don't have the profile of a nine and seven. I understand people who haven't watched the Titans on a weekly basis would be skeptical

of Tannehill has maybe a one year wonder. But this guy is playing quarterback how we want it to be played. He is aggressive downfield, he is pulling the trigger on tight window throws. He has the athleticism to escape pressure and make plays out of the pocket. This is how we want swash buck swashbuckling quarterbacks to play football. I think it's probably people just can't get past what Tannehill was for so long in Miami and that's completely changed.

And this team may have found a quarterback for as a long term answer. And this game coming up, and we've laughed at the Titans endlessly on the show, is one of the biggest games in franchise history. I mean, this could alter everything. You The current perception of the Titans for people aren't watching them weekly, would totally changed that they're going into England. We are mistaken. Left at

the Titoons. This is not that team. That's fine, But even when they were, even when they were, yeah, even when they won a playoff game they've knocked off the Chiefs, it didn't stick, right, it didn't stick. You do wonder about the priority a little bit having Derrick Henry in there. Obviously didn't get tackled on that run because they want to get him the rushing record. He had thirty two carries.

That the history of guys coming off of, you know, games where you have more than thirty carries the next week is pretty dramatic in terms of a decline, and they had him out there because they wanted the rushing yards he wasn't taken. He was dishing out more hits than he was taken in that second half. Al Right, Pittsburgh entered a week seventeen hoping to find a way in the playoffs. That didn't happen. They didn't find a way to win to close the season. That's a problem

as well. Offensively, we'll have a chance to put it away. Barry from his five drops to snap, turns around his draw ball comes loose in the end zone. The Ravens recover touched down. The Ravens coming up with the ball is Brendan Trawick and falling on it in the end zone was Jordan Richards six. The play in the ball game, the hayze in the barn. I was waiting, now, what are you doing? I was trying to see you scored

the touchdown. It sounds like Jerry Sandusky and Dennis Pitta of w b a L are so used to winning that it's just like it just seems tired. Didn't even need to put the hay in the barn, not not even take it outside. Not a lot of barns in Baltimore, by the way, just throwing it out there, but um, it gets it gets far me really quick though outside but not in the not in the city limits of Baltimore, or they're not not many. It's wire season six, it's on the farm. It would have been better than the

way they ended it. A little wire talk for the wire button, please. The Ravens rested their starters against the Steelers team playing for the post season. It didn't matter Baltimore. Baltimore's defense shut down Pittsburgh the final Ravens finished a regular season a franchise record best fourteen and two. Up next to buy and prep for the divisional round. Greg, I'm sure John Harbor relish beating the rival Steelers in this fashion. He loved it. They were throwing bombs up

with r G three on first down. Uh, they're going for a fake punt on their own eleven yard line, down up nine points in the fourth quarter, and they converted it. I loved it. Uh. It was a very risky. Why did they do that? They were up nine, it was fourth and one from their own eleven. They had it. They probably it's one of those automatic checks where they saw they just hiked it right to the guy who ran for it. It It kept the ball. That's my coach of the year. That I mean, that is the coach

of the year stuff. And he said after the game how much the rushing title meant to them? The rushing record they broke a record that's been there since nineteen seventy eight. I know, people say, okay, a lot of inflated numbers in todays NFL. Just the fact that they played sixteen games and those teams only played well one of them. They almost I think they came in second for yards per game and it was very close West So actually the team, the team the seventy eight Patriots,

they had played sixteen games too. Patriots today. Yes, you know, it's sorry to uh what is his name? How many people even knew they had that record? Sam the Cunningham Sam Bam Cunningham back in I think they made the playoffs. They Ravens are a defensive team and they did rest a lot of key guys, but the secondary was almost all in there except for Earl Thomas, their pass rusher was in there, and it was it was a treat to watch them just destroy Duck Hodges nine nine. I

don't know. I just like dominance. They're the best team I've ever seen since I've been covering football. The Emino seven pay Striots would be the two. But they've closed the season much stronger than the OH seven page. But when you say that r G three was unfurling bombs, he had nine yards on this house, so he wasn't completely unfailing in completion up to ten deep down the field. Just like you could tell they were trying to rub it in. The Steelers deflated as a team when they

realized Duck didn't have it in the Bills game. And I commend Greg for having his finger on the pulse of both of these teams. Going into this game. You said the Ravens backups would take it to the Steelers, and they did. And I don't think that you meant the Steelers defense has been bad all year, just that going into this game there they have been broken by their quarterbacks, right, and the and the Ravens running game. You know, Gus Edwards a hundred and thirty yards, r

G three gets fifty on the ground. What a great sign without just sitting there, d I just think they're the system is so good that they're tough to stop. The Patriots when eleven and five their quarterback was Steve Grogan, who had touchdowns twenty three picks, completed exactly fifty of his passes. The different world they went one and done, got wiped out by the Oilers on New Year's Eve. So there you go. Uh, anything else in this game? Greg, No,

I think that's it. T J. Watt with another force fumble maybe helps him in his Defensive Player of the Year race, especially on a really tough day for Stephane Gumar. Theyd have three penalties to t J. Watt, but he does that thing where he punches the ball out but sometimes he misses it. And he just swung and punched r G three eight in the in the biceps so hard. I was like, God, that looks like the high like a thirty yard penalty. That wasn't even a penalty. I mean,

that's legal. You can punch guys in the arm if they have the ball. You know that should be reviewable. West, what do you think punching in the army. I want to see a pair of brothers in the history of the NFL win Defensive Player of the Year. That would be amazing. Big. I think Watt's got a pretty decent shot t J. Watt to plenty of teams aside not to draft him. Nice good luck to me on what well you want to see two brothers win defense player? I hope that happens for you. That is a goal

of mine. I mean I have it's a purely vicarious want. Let's move on harm in the polling for you. Poor bank car looks for you and so pulls the ball. There's defecting and to a point conversion? Five? Yes, who Shelky Harris t pass deflection of the season seven secus left sixteen dever Dave Logan ko A with the call Derek Carr's potential game winning two point conversion temp batted down. Yeah, but you know who Shelby Harris who Greg alerted the group when it happened that he leads a league in

those deflections ten on the year. At the line of scrimmage sixteen fifteen, the Broncos hold on um beating the Raiders in the final game for both teams. Oakland did not get the outside help they needed to remember the four coin tosses? Did they lose all four coin tosses? They were the Steelers lost they needed them, so one out of three is not gonna get it done. They were one out of four ain't gonna get it done,

and uh they were. Their fate was decided by early in the fourth quarter essentially, and um good vibes around the Broncos. They finished strong at seven and nine, drew lock wins four or five starts. Philip Lindsay becomes the first undrafted running back in NFL history to go over one thousand yards and back to back seasons to open

a career. And we also had a charming little anecdote from the CBS broadcast team that Vic Faggio, who was spending Christmas alone because of the nature of the gig friends. I mean, that's that's one of those two Christmas Eve. He watched a Hallmark Christmas movie alone in his easy chair, went to the facility, did his coach work, came home, maybe grab the beer. I don't know what he's doing, sat back down, and then kept binging Hallmark Lifetime movies

or Hallmark Channel Christmas movies. So not just a nice little feel good do you imagine Vic Fongio away from the family, got that Christmas cheer anyway, And it's just a nice little but what you look puzzled? Well, you know, so during the Super Bowl weeks when you get a chance to talk to these guys. Fongio was with the Niners at the time and I sat down. He was at a table with no one else, so I tried to sit down and ask him a couple of questions

in the routes my time to do that. I don't think I've ever met a grumpier man in my left said on the telcast too. So the last guy in the NFL you would ever think would be taken by Hallmark Christmas changes. I'm not a man that's looking for intellectual stimulation with his entertainment outside of the game, but I understand it's a lot going on. Turn it off the brain, Yeah, yeah, turn it off the brain. But no,

this was a nice back half of the season. Obviously the Broncos, who were totally lost in space in the first half. I believe they won six or eight to close the season. And it's still disappointing because of the Denver Broncos thought they could uh with Joe Flacco and all that. With Joe Flacco fields like a hundred years ago that they would be a team that would be in contention and perhaps playing next week. That never came

close to happening. But West, if you squint, you could maybe see the Denver Broncos with some pieces Courtland Sutton among them, as being a team that can be turning it around in a quick fashion of some things go their way. I agree, and I don't think they played better in the second half of the season. They just got luckier in close games, right. This was a game where it's kind of abnormal for the year. The Raiders more than double their yardage. They were competitive in almost

every single game they played and lost. The Raiders who got had a lot of good fortune. This seventh window doesn't make them Bowl eligible. They're gonna face off next week on Saturday in the West Bowl Broncos Cowboys Saturday. They're just both of those teams can look for it the next year. Anything else do you guys need to know about this game? Well? No, but I just think that we talked about this four coin toss for the Raiders.

Like the Raiders have had one of the most disappointing final six weeks of any team in the league, and it starts with that. Jacksonville laws at home and as every sandwich by a bunch of other totally deflating results. That took a six and four squad that was something delightful at one point, and I, I don't know, I I but didn't really feel like stunning. When the wheels came off, it felt like they were playing but and they were a nice story, but this felt more like reality.

And even so seven and nine for a team a disaster and had a year ago, I like, I'm back on Gruden and I think that you know, Maya died an excellent job with the draft, So there's there's reasons to be hopeful. But it's got to be frustrating for the people in Oakland to have watched this team spiral out of control over the last month. And there was a little moment right after the two point conversion failed.

Gruden didn't even seem that upset. It actually helped. He smiling, He gave Paul Gunter put his arm around him, and then he gave Derek Carr a really nice handshake, and it seemed like a nice moment between the two of them. I I imagine they felt pretty good about how the season went, that they found some players that they could build around that. They have a bunch of draft picks coming uh in the first round and my boy Hunter renfro greg six or one two. Darren Waller went over

a hundred yards again. You have, of course Josh Jacobs, who the injuries kind of cost him the end of the seat. Jonathan back next year with Abram coming back, Ahler is gonna win that comeback Player of the Year award? I bet, I bet it is, Tannehill. You want to talk about narrative based awards. I mean, that's kind of what the comeback Player of the Year is. And this was a guy on a hard knocks was going to uh A a meetings man, Tannehill. Turn the whole Titans

franchise around there. Theren Waller got what goes over a hundred today to go over nineties something catches and eleven hundred yards of the season, just pure stats wise, one of the best received being tight end seasons of all time. And we have no idea what come back player of the Year is. It can be anything you wanted to be pure stats wise, Tannehill, I have one of the most efficient quarterback seasons. Why do you hate Darren Waller? I don't. I'm just saying it's way more impressive to

turn a franchise around into a cruise stats. You have a good cruise stats, screw stats. Both of them are crew. All right, Can you at least give me the Dann Waller is a triumph of the human spirit. Guy, I'm gonna give you more than that. I wrote an article a month ago saying he's comeback player of the year. But things change and Tannehill is the guy. You gotta give us a link dot com slash westling. Well that no, that takes us to a jumble of articles and we

have to search through that. So all right, let's see. Let's move. Let us now from like that. You sit three for three today from the right ash high snap pulled down by down. The kick is up and the kick is good. Freddie painetto ten seconds to go and the Bears back in front, leading one nineteen. I love Jeff, Johnny, I kids the pinetto. That's good again. That's pros bro. That's a pro bro w BBM with the call you

drilled u pineto. Eddie's fourth field goal of the game came from twenty two yards out with ten seconds to play. They gave the Bears stop Bears nineteen win over the Vikings, who rested their regulars ahead of the playoffs. West. If you would have told Bears fans in August that their team won their final game of the season with a field goal the seconds to play, they probably would have guessed they had a parade coming up down the street

of Chicago. Chicago, Chicago. Didn't quite work Main Street in Chicago, famous Main Street Park. It didn't quite work out that way. No, And I think it's a major upset that Eddie Pannero last the entire season. Is the kicker it is he hung on. It sounds like they were afraid to go down that road of trying to replace the guy mid season, so they stuck through it because Pinero hardly had a

great season. No, but there were more questions asked about the quarterback position and whether he was gonna be yanked than whether the kicker was going to be covered. And I feel like this was a fitting end here for Mitchell. Fourth and nine game in the balance. All the Vikings have to do to get a win with Sean Mannion as your quarterback and Mike Boon against all the Bears starters is uh, stop Drabinsky on the fourth and nine.

But Drabinsky makes a nice throw on a rollout, and now he's going to somehow like convince the entire organization because of that throw that we're bringing it back. Please, I'd say this. I think that was in the Gabbard zone, by the way, you know, against the Vikings backups. It was not a great performance. I think this every year, but I can't take any team seriously as a super Bowl contender if they entered the season with Seawan Mannion

as their number two quarterback. This gout the third stringer at best. And that's been the case since he entered the league. Every time he plays, I'm thinking, how does this guy sell people on him as a backup? How about Mitch Drabinsky is the backup? He should be a back I think I hope that they should know that correctly. I don't want to hear an off season of hoop law about we're working on his footwork and Mitchell trip Bisky's had his screwed back on straight leave me alone.

It is, well, they're not coming after you personally. Well, I don't know, but this is a this is a nice day where you get to you know, and we've talked. You get to wave farewell to a couple of teams that desperately need to get out of our world, and this is one of them. Go away. I don't want to hear anything else from the Bears for many, many weeks, or the Bears actually take a break from the Bears. Yeah, we could certainly take a break. And they have a

decision to make. Obviously, this was a second overall pick. It was his third season, but there's so much ugly baggage attached to it. Um after him, it's almost like, if he's not showing you and you don't want that to be reminded forever and have this guy in your building, just start fresh. I imagine that's what's gonna happen. But we'll we'll see how it plays out. Uh, it might play out with they bring in an Andy Dalton type and Ryan Fitzpatrick and there's a quarterback portion m big

bearded man in the streets of Chicago. Let's move Michigan Avenue, Michigan. After looking for amazing Michigan Avenue with the great architecture and one of the great cities, the second city, Go ahead, Aerica, you know, Horry. Why wouldn't they be play Clockett for shotgun from men jew I went on the river tour. The architecture is gonna be again. Frank Frangie and Tony

Boselli with the call like you need to hear. A Jaguars highlight in Week seventeen w O k V with the score with the call there, Gardner, me and show Uh turned in a really solid performance through for two nine, five and three touchdowns, leading the Jaguars to a thirty eight to twenty win over the Colts. Means Shoe stands to have you know, stands a serious chance to be ja Sxonville's opening day starter in the question is, of course who will be his coach again? New Horizons Monday

coming up. But this is you can avoid this this subplot around Jacksonville right now. Rap sheet reported early Sunday. And this is always a weird thing whenever I see this out there that today's game, the week seventeen meaningless game against it also ran Colts team could play a role in Jacksonville decision. Jacksonville's decision, well, they beat up on a Colts team that packed it in a couple of weeks ago. So now do you feel better about duck run. I just never understood that. I hope that's

not actually what the front office is thinking. The same thing was happening in Cleveland. I agree that it's very awkward to suggest that this game of all games would be the the referendum on Doug Marone or anyone else attached to the Jaguars. And it was. I thought it was Minshew's best game and it showed again why he fit in this sort of mostly broken down offense much

better than Foals. And it's not a knock on Foles, but he can he can move and he can escape, and he he needs to do that in this in this in this attack, to me, I like the Colts geez six and four at one point they have been absolutely they are like the Raiders have just been lacerated down the stretch. And I I left this game with with additional questions about Jacoby Pursett, who walked into a

couple of sacks. Um had a terrible fumble in this game that really pivoted the contest in Jacksonville's favor, And you know, I know they're banged up. Marlon Mack looks great. I think he's the best player on the field for the Colts today. And you know, but you're here's a perfect example. And we've actually you've mentioned it Mark before, Doug Peterson. You know, Frank Reich, you know he leaves and as Doug Peterson a guy who can do it

on his own. Well, Doug Peterson, with the true franchise quarterback, was able to see their way through the wilderness. Whereas the Colts with Jake Brisket, and I know Brisket had the knee injury. When the injuries hit the Colts and they were a team at the crossroads, they went a different direction. It's very easy to end up going the direction the Colts are going, which is why I think what Peterson and Wentz did together was so special. You know,

they what team has been through more. You lose Andrew Luck in August and you have to turn around and they they look to me like one of the feistier a f C clubs for a while. But the injuries have taken such a toll in their defense has given up in the last four games thirty four and then today whatever the point total was today and they they had a nice game against the Panthers sandwiched in there. But that's ugly. So that's you know, that's not the way you want to season of one of the best

performances about the Jaguars offense all year. Take note that Leonard four Nette was not on the field, right. I'm just do not make him the focal point of you're off now, and he won't be after that. He's under contract. But when he tweeted out, you know yes on Saturday that you know he hopes uh a lot of the his teammates are back with him next year, I was thinking, I don't know if Leonard Fournette's back next right. Then again, um, it was a big win because you know, you got

the sixth win. That's only the second time in seven years under David Codwall you got the six wins. So that's a big that's a big euston. Why not bring the whole gang back together? Great rookie class and DJ Chark became a star this year. They do have some bright spots. That's fat dog, that's fat Josh Allen gets to the quarterback. They got some things, all right, let

us move on off. You know, right around the time that the Patriots fell on the Dolphins, this went down snap, the Winston dropping straight back bros intercepted Dean Jones and the ball game is over. And that's thirty picks from pearl Boy Winston and Jamus. Winston throws his thirtieth interception on the first playoff overtime and Atlanta wins the game two. Westerham of the Callums Dave Archer that called James was

an our boy. You know that as patronizing Dave Archer w z g C. Deon Jones intercepts Jameis Winston on the first play of ot returns to twenty seven yards of the house. Falcons win the sixth victory and eight games to close the season. We learned Saturday that Dan Quinn would keep his job. That's correct, right. That wasn't like a really sad dream that I had over the weekend. I believe that was That's real. Yes, thank you, uh, And now Quinn and the Falcons can look to the

offseason with some optimism after the one in seventh start. Uh. Winston, Yes, he did it, he did it. He did it. He did at the first quarterback ever to go thirty thirty. Were on that four or five weeks ago. By the way, if that became a national story. Yes, um, not that he did thirty thirty thirty, but that I was on it. Yes, but Winston becomes the first Tampa Bay quarterback to pass

for five thousand yards in the season. But they don't go anywhere again with Winston as their quarterback and Bruce arians Uh who that nobody had a worse final two weeks than Jamis maybe Duck Hodges, but like Jamis Winston h Entering week sixteen, there was a report out there that, oh, yeah, the Bucks are ready, it's a in business with Jameis Winston. And then he goes out and absolutely craps the bed. In Week sixteen and seventeen, he threw six and NFL

record seventh pick six. They lose both games, and it makes the decision with um, you know a Winston up for a new deal really difficult. He played the exact same those two weeks is the entire year though, if not better, I mean with worst receivers. That's that's what he is. That's siminitely not true. He was doing special things, uh in the that little three week run up to the last two weeks. But he's throwing two picks a week every week. They lost buzzer like, that's this is

what they are. If they somehow fooled themselves into that that stretch was any different, they just had a couple of Yeah, the last two weeks took a toll in arians. Let's hear what Arians had to say. Yeah, I mean that's just there's so much good you look at, there's so much good, and there's so much outright terrible, out right terrible. Do you know what? I think it hurt Arians so much because he knows if they re up with Winston, he's gonna enter next season with that scarlet ratio.

People are gonna think of him as the thirty thirty quarterback. They already think of him as this brilliant artist whose medium is turnovers. Like he's he's a fun quarterback to watch, and he leaves his fingerprints all over football games. But it's sloppy art. He's not a winner, he doesn't mean just has not been a winning team with him as their starter for four straight years. Super productive in one way, but what what team is winning games when your quarterback

is turning over? It's not just the it's the fumbles too, It's not just even the interceptions. I mean he thinks he has leveraged. We'll see. Jamis Winston thinks he's I think that he would get that. Not only that, like that he would command a big salary that he's definitely gonna get tagged because there's no way they could afford to pay him. Doesn't not depend on who else becomes available, who's out there and what. Yeah, that is a big factor,

but Tempo will have to make the decision before that. Well, we'll have plenty of his history. He's he's a person the owner would have to sign off on. Yea. And by the way, on the bus, we know that they do. I misspoke. Winston has been here five years now, and their record in those five seasons six and ten, nine and seven, five and eleven, five and eleven and seven and nine, So I mean, I get. I mean, well, I would say that a lot of you know, who

else has been there that long. The general manager who continues to uh, you know, stick around with the team when they're not growing. The Quinn the Quinn decision, you like seeing some continuity. I think it really meant that they were keeping general manager Thomas Demtrof. I have a feeling I feel like if they were gonna blow it up. They were gonna blow the whole thing up. But it is interesting to me, like the way you measure teams and players is in sixteen game increments, and they went

seven and nine in the last two years. So it's just it's an oddity of football to me that because they got to seven and nine this way, that's somehow better, But it's not. It's no better. There's no correlation between finishing strong in the next season period like it almost never happens. In fact, the Falcons are a great example. So ultimately, UH team that entered two years ago with a roster we all said was maybe the best roster in the entire NFL has gone seven and nine two

street years. I think we know this about demotrof after all these years. He can build an offense, but what can he do about his defense? And it Jerry Jones is, you know, potentially susceptible to making an emotional decision at coach. I think Arthur Blank, who has been extremely loyal to people in the past, is tied ending we should have had a Super Bowl trophy with this organ with this regime,

and they want a happier ending. Uh No, happy endings in the final game for the Rams at the Colosseum, well, actually kind of a happy ending, but that's it. The season's over. Let's check in on that game. Nail that one. Get the fitish out of wind the end zone. It's Tyler Hi with the December He'll never forget touchdown l A seventeen. The Rams are back on the highside. That's our boy. See, that's how you use our boy. J Blong with the call for KSPN. Congrats to j B

and his wife just had their second baby. He's right back to work. Procreating bro Tyler Higbee and Robert Woods called touchdown passes from Jared Goff in the fourth quarter. Yeah. Higbee was a monster his final month, and the Rams said goodbye to the cal Seeum with a over the Cardinals. No playoffs of the Rams, but their third straight winning season. That's not nothing, West Uh. This wasn't how the Rams envisioned it ending, but their offense put mostly good tape

out there in the final month. That's something to build on. I think that's how they probably want to look at it. That our offense finally jelled down the stretch and I don't know what's gonna happen with Todd Gurley next year. That is a huge question. But I do know that they can't allow Tyler Higbee to just be a blocker again the rest of his career. He's got to be a big part of the passing game. The way he's played, it's not just the numbers. He's looked good doing it.

And then the Cardinals side, Kyler Murray didn't do enough for me for Rookie of the Year. He he just wasn't special enough compared to other quarterbacks. But you know, another game where he made a slew of impressive throws. He also made some turnover worthy plays. Overall, I think if you're a Cardinals fan, you're still pretty happy with the way the season ended. He put together a few few good games, and he looks like a unique talent.

Let's not forget about the Mike Silver report mentioning that Wade Phillips future in question, some issues potentially with the front office, some movement there. So you know, I think there's a very intriguing, interesting off season coming up for they had their rise and they stalled out a little bit, and now they have to figure out what comes next. Alright,

Two notes in this team. Larry Fitzgerald says will take a little time before making a decision, but he also said this was the one of the most fun years he's played with the Cardinals. I think that has a lot to do with Kyler Murray and Cliff Kingsbury and Chandler Jones. Had a couple of passes defense, tackle for lost quarterback hit, but did not have a act, which allowed Shack Barrett to lead the league in sex. Looks like he wasn't just kind of a flashing the solid,

solid player, good athlete you're happy for. I am extremely happy brother has won the Defensive Players of the Year. I want to be with Mark in in Miami when they announced the Defensive Player of the Year because it's the excitement that's gonna spend all our time together, literally every day every week. What was that, Mark? Oh yeah, he wants he wants it bad. All right, let's move on. Do you have two points? Donald? Play acts it again, flips it in the end song Tamison Crowders got it.

That's a chet touchdown off the play acts and fakes Sam Donald a little flip over the middle to Jamison Crowder. He makes the touchdown catch and the Jets take the lead back and they have scored the first touchdown of the game about nineties seconds gone by on the fourth form Bob was Shusan w e p n with the call. Yeah, not exactly a shootout in Orchard Park, Sam Donald Uh to James crowd Crowder was the only touchdown on Sunday. Uh. The end result of thirteen six win for the Jets

over the Bills backups. The Jets finish the season like the Falcons, seven and nine after one and seven start that was so bad. You may recall that there are reports Adam Gaze he fired mid season, he'll be back. It sounds like, uh, that didn't happen. Uh. The Jets actually finished with their this is bad. Their best record in a season since two thousand fifteen, so I guess progress. Um. A cake schedule certainly helped in the second half of

the Jets. But yeah, six and two after one and seven, that that is a nice way to close, even if it means they're draft pick isn't as good. I don't care as much about that stuff because you know, the drafts are crapshoot. Anyway, Anyway, on the Bills side, UH, the number one goal was staying hell they couldn't achieved that. Starting cornerback Levi Wallace was ruled out after suffering a

pretty nasty looking ankle interception injury. On an interception offensive lineman Tie He aggravated an ankle injury and his first action since week eleven. So I was like, the only thing the Bills were trying to do is stay healthy. Of course, they're locked in uh for a playoff spot at the five seed. They couldn't do it, so hopefully those guys are able to play. I haven't gotten updates on where they're at. Josh Allen played one series and there really isn't much more to say about this game.

It does feel to me and this is not the first time this has happened that the New York press has it in for gays to some degree. It feels like there are some sort of weekly stuff coming out that can paints them in a bad light. And I don't know, we talked about this is this is not the worst coaching coaching job the Jets have ever experienced that I don't know didn't take a step forward, and

that's his job one, So that's the biggest concern. But yes, as Dan said, we'll have all offseason to tuck about the Jets. All right, let us move on to the Cleveland brown Dalton in the shotgun. On third down and goal from the five, the Bengals leading by six points. Dalton dropped back to throw from the twelve, looking around and scrambling out to the left, being chased handy trying to sprints from the part of yes, yes, if this is Andy Dalton's final game in a Cincinnati Bengals uniform.

He has a touchdown pass and a touchdown run. Dave Horde Dave lap him. That was Dave lap him getting pumped. I love it, Dan Horde and Dave lap Dan Horde wave lap him, as we used to say, the lap dog, the lap dog. He got excited there on Dalton's run. Yes, Andy Dalton did throw for a touchdown ran for a score in what was likely his farewell as Cincinnati's franchise quarterback. It was a thirty three win for the for the

Bengals over the Browns. That's a two and fourteen finished for the Bengals, who will get the number one overall pick and most likely that Joe Burrow guy who seems pretty good Anyway, the Cleveland Browns made headlines after the game when they fired Freddie Kitchens after one season on the sideline six and ten. The Browns were let's start there, Mark.

You know, it was last March. I believe it was that we were at the owners meetings and we had that sit down with Freddie Kitchens, and he was delightful. He was a guy's guy. He was a dude that you know, he just seemed like a guy you could go get a stake with and have some drinks and he'd be fun and and hopefully that would be something that translated as a head coach, uh, that good old boy type vibe. But it certainly did not. It wasn't. It wasn't a bad move by the Browns ultimately, wasn't.

I think they had to do this. And I feel like he lost this locker room a couple of weeks ago, if not, if not previous to that. And I couldn't agree with you more that One of the things that's so disappointing as a longtime Browns fan is that I kind of felt like the drive to get Freddy Kitchens and the way he sort of has carried himself that he might have been in a way from another angle, the perfect guy too could have been right exactly like,

and it went in completely the opposite direction. I think it's a it's a case study in when you know, if you look at his resume, he really didn't have a lot in his past suggesting that he was going

to be a successful head coach. It was, you know, high the Peter principal hired above his skill set for where he's at right now, and then on top of it, trying to be one of these guys that calls plays while trying to manage an NFL game at the same time, and kind of always had an aura of being in over his head from the very first game until today, when you there's no excuse with the talent on this roster uh to lose to the Bengals or to lose

half the games they lost. And you know, if you look at the Rob Kazinski is just a few coaches ago,

a one year, one and done guy. And the Browns under the Haslems have had so many coaches at this point and tried so many different types of coaches, but they've never really had the veteran guy that has come with a track record from somewhere else, and I would imagine that that's the what they're attracted to right now, is not We'll see it could be we'll get into that down the road, but you know they want the opposite of what they've just experienced in Freddie Kitchens, which

is a young, in over his head guy trying to figure it out. Good guy, yes, but the right guy to be head coach of this super players. No. It seemed like they settled on Kitchens last January against their better judgment, because they just decided what he did with Baker and Mayfield and setting a new rookie record for touchdowns and playing really well down the stretch, we just want to disrupt that. But that's yeah, that was emotional, terrible leadership, and he was so genuine is to seem

almost guileless. And then when you see reports Sunday night that he thought he had the backing of the Brown's front office, that is guileless to not even know that as undisciplined as your team was all year, the lack of priorities every week, that it wasn't about anying and losing, it was about so many other things that you were so guileless to not know that you you were going to be out on the street after this. Well, he he had someone who hired him and John Dorsey that

maybe he believed at his back. He had an owner who took over in what two thousand twelve was the first season, and they're gonna be hiring their seventh head coach. So this isn't on Freddy Kitchens. Freddy Kitchens helped their offense improved last year as a position coach. Like, this is the organization, This is ownership just having another huge

swing in a miss. There's nothing else other than That's there else And I think any candidate has to look at this ownership group and have questions about this job versus no matter the talent, because talent coming still a job that would be appetizing, I think to a coach because of the talent level on the roster, which remains significant. It is, but I mean, no one they've had two coaches last for more than two seats. But Brown's coach is ugly as well. Yeah, that is you know that

seems cursed at this point. I think one thing also to remember it seems so long ago now after another NFL season that in our league. Um, but how great Baker was, especially closing last season. So it might seem crazy now that they said, oh, we want to keep

this guy in the building. But Baker was like ruling the world a little bit by the end of last season, and it was like people, but no, maybe from that's from our advantage point, that's it's also when you're unsuccessful, profoundly unsuccessful, as the Browns have been, when Baker does what he did to close out that season, I get how it happened. I totally do too, and I, you know, maybe I was the guy less one, but I thought that it was gonna work, and I had a good

feeling about him as a person in general. And you know, nine d five percent of these things in Cleveland go totally raging lye South. So chapter new no, just another chapter of the same. It was sort of the easy decision to make. It was the one where you couldn't be faulted at the time for it, because if Baker had struggled like he did this year under a different coach,

they would have blamed that on on ownership. To that there end point is that Baker ended up with twenty two picks, twenty two touchdowns, and one picks this year and took a pretty big step back around and is onto his fourth head coach. The offense was significantly worse four Well, I mean, I'm counting Greg Williams as a head coach during his I mean, well, it's it's the culture. You know, you've been back. It's funny because there's a

there's a brown reporter. Well there's a brown reporter out there that that asked around, like some various people, who would they want and someone seriously mentioned Greg Williams. Not that they're gonna do it, but because that's how different of a sea change they want in their leader versus what Freddy Kitchens was doing this season, which we don't

know of what was going on behind the scenes. And that is just a quick peek at New Horizons Monday, which you'll catch in full more like Nuclear Morning late uh. It will go up late Monday, and we'll have a full update on every all the comings and goings on. What is a somber day in the league. Congratsandy Dalton putting up thirty three points for him, and I hope

he lands in a good spot too. And our boy Freddy Kitchens, I hope he lands he won't land as a head coach anywhere, But hopefully these guys get paychecks somewhere. The hasms are going to be paying him millions and millions of dollars for the next three years. They're paying like fo coaches right now. So what did Chuck begano say? They can't kill you. They can fire you, but they can't eat you. Freddy Kitchens will be all right, he might be happier doing something else. All right, boys, what

what did we learn today? We learned so much? Uh and just and just remember again we got the playoffs coming up. That's fun. Mark twenty teams history, Bye bye bye, what harsh farewell to them all? See in late July. And now we got twelve dogs ready to rumble. Okay, and we we greg we achieve something here. We covered every game in the regular seas. We did it all. We covered every single game. I don't know if we

ever did that before. Some games fell through the cracks and past seasons, whether it's a Saturday or holiday, we got every single game. That's an achievement. By the round, I thought you were gonna say that. We got on our network. Finally Friday, the Around the NFL Show Hubba. When are we three Pacific sixth eastern or three thirty? It's in that hour, does it matter? Set your DVR are on three straight Fridays. It's gonna be replayed up the wazoo. Set your DVRs for are you to watch it?

It will keep us glorious. If you like this podcast, keep us on the air, and keep us employed by watching our Around the NFL show on NFL Network. We've never had our own show before, so we're very excited about that. And Yes, New Horizons Monday UH spectacular podcast on Monday. Sources confirming it is three o'clock Pacific six eastern. Some people like to call it excellent, so make sure again set your DVRs. UH. New Horizons Monday podcast lands tomorrow.

Check it out. Thank you to everybody for listening UH and following along all season. We're heading towards the home stretch now January football is coming your way. Dan Hanson signing up for the Quiet Storm, the Mailman, the Old Boss, Rick Hollywood, and the entire gang behind the Glass until Monday, m