2019 Week 4 Recap

the meat. Yeah, you were not included in that, but the three of the rest of us make up for you. Not only did I have Korean barbecue, I mean what a family affair. This podcast is Korean food in Korea town. Uh, chosen by Greg. I see Greg tell us tell us my wife and I where to go? Went to this place that he liked. We need somebody to watch your kids. Chris Westling, Uncle West and aunt Lakisha watch the boys, good boys and um and now we're all together here

in the studio. And Mark, you were around, Yeah, I don't. I didn't play any any serviceable role. Mark, keep getting left out of these things. I mean I feel like you would be happy to be left out of that, you know, child, and I'm already involved with picking out meat restaurants. Is not something you would go to. Um, this is the Week four Sunday recap show, our flagship show. UH, so we're gonna go through all of the games that were played on Sunday one by one, as we do

every week. Uh. It's also streaming on video, so we get we have everything coming to you guys, great content. And it was a week greg where if you went to an NFL game, UH, and you wanted to root for your favorite team, there's a good chance you went home disappointed. Home teams two and eleven this week four, entering Sunday night, we don't know at this time, we don't know what's gonna happen uh in New Orleans. But two and eleven the home teams went. That's outrageous. I'm

taking a stand that as outrageous. Although I do think home and field advantage it's a little overrated. Yeah, we always we make a big deal out of it all this week it was well, I don't think it's overrated as it it's just like it's just like a yeah, it's just sort of like an extra little thing, but you know, you make a big deal about it. Come on, come come down in September. All right, Okay, that's an interesting I thoroughly disagree, but I but I hear what

you're saying. So we're gonna go through all these games, many of them. As I just said, we'll feature teams on the road that's stepped up in a big way. And why don't we start in the game. Everybody was excited about Western New York. The Buffalo Bills three and oh, feeling themselves welcome to New England, Patriots the town. Would the Bills make a huge statement or would the Patriots do Patriot things? And a third and ten staff Parking

drops back. There's probabi second Jenny Collins ut side first out of bounds, but the interception was forest like Kyle van Noy who hit Barkley with the deflection to Collins with one seven to go. Here on the fourth, Bob soci with the call, do we have Scott's lock on suspension on this show after his absurd, ridiculous Antonio Brown cheerleading in week one? Is that what we're doing? Ricky, Alright, don't worry about it. Reggy ke Good talking about Patriots

Radio network with the call yes. Jamie Collins comes down with the loose ball off the hit from Kyle van Noy on the past attempt from Matt Barkley to play ceiling a Patriot sixteen to ten win over the Bills in Orchard Park. The Bills made this a game after a very slow start, but there would be no magic when Barkley replaced an injured Josh Allen greg who bravely locked up the Patriots in this guy That's God. Didn't see a lot of offense on displaying buff No. You asked,

you know going into this game. Did the Bills make a statement or did the Patriots two Patriot things? I guess it's both. Because the Bills made a statement. They made Tom Brady look worse than he has in in a long time. This was his lowest passer rating since two thousand six in a game. It's the most passes he's ever thrown in a game without getting to two yards. Didn't even get close. He had one fifty. He was under completion. They had seven drives where they went three

and out. They had only a couple more where they got one first down, They did nothing offensively, and late in the game, they were inside the five yard line with a chance to go up two scores, and they smartly kicked a field goal. And I thought that was Bill Belichick saying, this Bill's defense is too good for us. We need to just go up six points. That's the

kind of defense Buffalo played. But they get a special team's touchdown, they knock out Josh Allen in the fourth quarter, and they do a lot of things defensively on their own to get the West shopped me in my tracks. The decision fourth and goal to not go for it, because it feels like a Patriots thing that they would go for it, and since the moment, but you're right, they had that much faith in their defense, which they should. New England's defense is incredible, and the Bills just weren't

moving the ball. I mean, you locked up New England. But if someone had told me that you would have held Tom Brady to three point eight yards per attempt, if you would have given up only sixteen points to this offense, and if Frank or would have run for a hundred and nine yards at six point four yards per carry, I would have locked up the Bills. I would have thought they're going to find a way to They're not an explosive offense, but find a way to

get seventeen points. And I mean the difference was the punt return touchdown, the Patriots score. The Patriots offense only scored ten, Bills offense scored ten, and the Patriots defense was very lucky to hold the Bills to only ten because the Bills did do a better job, especially in the second half, moving up and down the field. But the situational defense that the Patriots have, especially in the red zone with Jamie Collins and Kyle van Noy and

everything that they can do was really special. Today. You're tipping your tap, you're tipping your cap to a good Bills defense and a well coached team. But how much of this doesn't raise any red flags for you on the Patriots offense. It's a long season. I said going into this game. I didn't think their offense was nearly up to speed. Their offensive line got pushed around. I think this Bill's defense had a great plan for them.

I mean, yeah, they have to be it. They're gonna be a different team in December one way or another. Whether they're better or worse. They're gonna be totally different. The fact that they were able to sneak out a win was nice. The peace scale was high, though, Uh, you know, you haven't asked me that in a while, and I just felt like they were not the better team in this game, and so my peace scale was And I won't be asking you on Thursday's preview show

when they are preparing for the Washington Redskins either. UM, my schedule for the path so far, feel free to lock that came up. By the way, Greg, there's no rules. I might lock it up because I'm owing four in the locks. We'll get to that on Thursday. John Brown biggest individual play of the game. UH takes the pass from Matt Barkley. UM this late in the fourth quarter. UH gets stopped at the one jo wanted by Stephan Gilmour, who makes an incredible tackle, And that was the closest

that the Bills came. They gave very close to time this game, and multiple times misses a field goal, a very makeable field goal at the end of the first half, which, uh, you know, obviously every point counts in a low scoring game like this. The Patriots knocked out Josh Allen and what you know, I think is controversial call up. I don't think it was a dirt I mean a controversial hit. They called the penalty on the Patriots. It was a play where they were trying. It was a desperate situation.

They're trying to stop him from getting a first down. He was picking up about six yards and and I think who wasn't it was j C. Jackson just knocked him right in the helmet, like cold in his tracks. They they flagged him. I didn't think it was anything dirty necessarily about it, but it changes the game. Barkley came in there, had better decisions, moved the ball actually a little better than Josh Allen did, but they were multiple throws where he just didn't have the car to complete.

I thought it was interesting. The Bills tweeted out a video of Micah Hyde, Buffalo defender defender, saying that but Brady would have if someone hit Brady that way, they would have been ejected. There might be some controversial thing for a team to tweet out. There might be something to that because in in that play, Josh Allen has kind of has his head down and his running I would I just assumed he was getting that first down before he got knocked over, and you're treating him like

a running back. And that's that's what happened. And this shouldn't be lost in the in the mix either with Allen because he does go out with a head injury and hopefully it's okay and not something that keeps him in the sidelines. Did not play a good game, Greg, maybe you could shine a little more light on but just from what I saw, and when you look at his numbers, three interceptions, um, they only scored uh what ten points when he was on the field, and in general.

We talked about this leading into the game. This was a big like spotlight check on Allen and he did not exactly straight. He hasn't in the first three weeks either. I mean, he started out the game totally abysmal, one for eight with two fumbles and two interceptions and ten yards in the first quarter. He's not accurate. They came out after halftime. I think Brian Dable, who's their former Patriots coordinator, did a smart thing. Starting in them in tempo.

They did a hurry up. They had a great touchdown drive. That was the only time they look good all your old game don't know why they didn't go back to that, but three interceptions and a couple of fumbles, one that got overturned my penalty. No, he he hasn't looked that much better. I can't think of a quarterback in the league where I would love to know what team brass truly think about him behind the scenes, because there's a lot to like about I think there's a lot to

a lot to him that's positive. But the turnovers are You cannot advance in the NFL with that kind of an issue. This is this isn't a veteran defense. It really hit me today how old the key guys are. It's not a young defense. I mean, Devin mccordy's playing as well as he ever did. Jamie Collins is wearing the captain's green doting right now. That's where Jamie Collins is played every single sex snaps seventy nine snaps today. Not gone is gone, and he was better than Tower

could have been. You know what it isn't on It's a total testament to New England because when he went to Cleveland and they paid him a ton of money and they were not a good team obviously on any level, but he was accused by fans and onlookers and tape watchers of being a guy that was taking plays off in series at a time off and you got the worst version of me goes to New England. They totally

flipped the switch on the dude. Well, if you remember the reason why the Patriots traded him, and the first place was the reports that he was freelancing on defense, it was just doing whatever he wanted to do. But it's similar to Kyle van Noy. I mean, who is he in Detroit right now? He is the best player in the Patriots front seven and he had a big He's a defensive player. Of that your candidate. If he keeps playing like this, by the way, that would be amazing.

Before we move on, I want to point one thing out. We've been joking about it the last couple of weeks. The tired um insight that the way to get to Tom Brady is to, you know, you get pushed that middle, win the battle in the trenches, get pressure in his face. Well, there is a Patriots version of that as well that you hear every game. Anybody want to take a crack out out because they the Bills did a good job of that, they moved him off his spot. They said

that about ten times. And the Patriots version of the tired cliche and Alice is Bill Belichick. This is what he does. He takes away the one thing you do best, takes away that one thing. I don't even know what that means, takes the thing that you do best, and then now try to beat us, unlike other coaches attempting that. Thurman Thomas thirty five years ago or whatever, takes it away, takes it away. We can take and get tucked in there off the right hip hand off, Darrell Williams trying

to dive Die tucks down Jans sitting. Darrell Williams gets barely into the end zone, but twenty seconds left in the game to put the Chiefs up thirty three. Mitch Halt Chief's radio network with a call yes, Daryl Williams

takes it in for one yard. Owt Patrick Mahomes converted a fourth down with a run of fifteen yards to extend that game winning drive, and the Chiefs survived after a hell Mary that closed that a win over the Detroit Lions at Ford Field in a game that uh listen, they don't hand out medals and their own hand out lollipops. UH two teams for losing, But the Lions deserve credit here for really playing the Chiefs wired to wire and they played really well in this game. They played well

on offense. Matthew Stafford UH played again good football. UM carry On Johnson had a hundred and twenty five yards and the Lions rang up about a buck on the ground. UH. Their defense, specifically UH their secondary avoided giving up big plays, which of course is what the Chiefs do, and the front four of the Lions consider instantly got Mahomes uncomfortable and gave him I wouldn't say happy feet, but caused him to just throw him a little bit out of sync.

Like when you watch this game again, especially in the first two quarters, I'd say there will be three or four plays that the Chiefs hit with regularity that go for fifty yards or eighty yards or seventy five yards,

and he just Mahomes just kept missing them. So and it's it's a it's a credit to the Lions for their effort, but it's also a reminder that in a game where Patrick Mahomes does not throw out touchdown pass, which has only happened four times in his career, and he had fourteen straight games that streak ended where he had at least two touchdown passes. Well, he doesn't need to fill up the box score to leave this offense.

They they still put up thirty four points. He still went over three hundred yards, and when it mattered most, when they're down three points, he takes over at their twenty one yard line and goes seventy nine yards on thirteen plays, uh for the clinching touchdown. So uh, the Chief showed me a little did a little backbone in a game that could have easily gotten away from him and they would have survived if they would have lost and moved on, but they decided to find a way

to close it out. And the Lions they deserve some respect. They didn't win, and I still don't think the Lions are any powerhouse West in the NFC, but I absolutely think they showed us today that when they're having a good day, they could play with anybody. I started developing some feelings for the Lions last week against the Eagles. I'm not saying I'm falling in love with them, but there are some feelings there where this team is frisky.

They seemed to be well coached, whereas last year the whole narrative was that there might be almost a rebellion going on because nobody liked Matt Patricia. But they seemed to be well coached, they seemed to play together well, and like I said Thursday, they have good starters. I just if they have an injury or two on offense, I think they're cooked. It's uh. I mean, it seems like it was a game of what ifs, though, because they had four possessions inside Kansas City's eight yard line

and came away with ten points. There were three chiefs fumbles at one turn of the point of the game where Detroit came away with no points off of that. But I couldn't agree more. And and you know, watching this out of the corner of my eye, the crowd was super into this. I didn't We've I've panned Lions fandom, I panned the home stadium, I panned everything to do with Detroit for a long time. I'm with you, this feels like a different operation. And it's not that surprising

if you're Matt Patricia that there was a rebellion. If you're gonna bring in a Belichick like culture change. Most teams are gonna bounce on that in year one, and they got rid of some of those guys that didn't fit. So the big uh you mentioned issues in the red zone the biggest turn of this game. It was a fourteen point swing. So Walter Anderson is the official, the lead official official of this crew that put in this game.

It's the same Walter Anderson crew that blew the whistle in Week two on Rams Saints, costing the Saints a long time having a good year. I mean while Anderson has been NFL official almost longer than Erica our our producer, has been alive, and I mean like the lead official. That's how he's definitely been an official for a lot that Walt, I'm sure I got called to the carpet after that game at the Superdome where they prematurely blew that play dead. Who knows how that game turns out,

if that touchdown stands for the Saints. Well, this was this showed some growth or perhaps um the ability to know that your job could be on the line if you don't straight now. Because he does not blow the whistle on a carry On Johnson play near the goal line where he reaches out about six inches shy the goal line, it gets knocked out of his hands. Uh, and Bush Brelan to his credit, Uh, He's just jumps in out of nowhere, scoops it up, starts jogging in

the other direction. No whistles blown, no one is playing the ball, and he just jogs into the end zone. It's ruled a touchdown on the field, and then it stands on a review, so it goes from it was thirteen thirteen, what could have been a Lions lead was all of a sudden Chiefs lead. And again to Detroit's credit, that was an absolutely crushing uh set act at that point. Greg, I believe you heard me say this game is over at that point because you just assumed that the Detroit

lines would crumble after that. To their credit, they kept on coming back. In fact, they took three leads in the second half, but Mahomes and the Chiefs kept coming and Uh, they deserve credit for that. Stafford banged up in this. I thought, I I didn't see anything. Um, maybe there was something of a hip issue. I'm not sure I would have to hit. Yeah, he was playing through it, but he played great and he's I think

he's been very good for them, uh the season. On balance, it shows that the Chiefs are playing a different game than everyone else. Though, when you're when you're without Tyreek Hill and did other defense does all these good things to you and Mahomes doesn't throw a touchdown and you still wind up with four and thirty eight yards completely just like that's like the base line. Yeah, and and I kind of did hit on it a little bit.

But in that touchdown drive, the thirteen play, seventy nine yard drive that led to the game, when we scored, the Detroit lines have the Chiefs at fourth and eight. Uh. In the Chiefs are in their own side of the field and they have to play well covered. When Mahomes drops back to past and Mahomes takes off for fifteen yards, keeps the drive alive. Yeah, I think this is this shows that this is a bad Mahomes game. You know, we see bad Cousins games are bad Trabiskie games are

bad Flacco games. In a bad Mahomes game, they score thirty four points. He rushes for fifty four yards and has an higher ESPN qb R than Matthew Stafford, who threw for three touchdowns and played almost flawless, and at the end of the game, when when with the game on the line and him set up to march for a potential game winning score, I had no internal doubts

that he was going to get it done. And I know, I know it's early, but I'm sure I wasn't the only Patriots fan and maybe Ryan Bartlett are our producer as a Chiefs fan was tracking the Patriots. I was, you know, seeing this and thinking, we're down to the last two undefeated teams in the a f C. These were the best two teams last year. They kind of looked like the best two teams so far. Like the

race every lost between these two teams. I think it's important and so I think in well, it's clinched now for the Patriots. Why is that Because the Chiefs can only win fifteen, the Patriots will win sixth. I don't think that's gonna happen. So that that's over. I'm just saying each each one of the they're not gonna be able to afford many glasses. Yeah, that's true. All right, Let's check in on the a f C North Hey Field with Chupp behind a tall suite beer side. Here

comes Chop with a cutback. He's up to the fort. Here he goes to the fifty, hare goes jump. He's gonna go twenty fiftime touchdown job, He's got a hat trick. Whoa eighty eight yards fight Chub Jim Donovan with the call Brown's Radio Network. If you're sensing in Mark Sesler's voice a little extras, you know, pep to it and if you look at it the way he's walking around NFL network, Pep's a little time to his step filing happy. He's a happy man, and there is a direct correlation

everybody the Browns win. Mark's happy, so we need the Browns to keep winning, just like today eight yards Nick Chubb, It's well, you told our entire British audience that without where we had not spent more than eight seconds together all day. But that's fine next to each other. What are you talking about? There was a there was a difference to Mark Sessler today and it's because of those Browns.

Eighty eight yard touchdown round by Nick Chubb uh an important and impressive for for the Browns over the division rival ravens Mark out of nowhere. The Browns two and two share first place in the a f C North. They're okay, they're okay. It's maybe better than okay. It's how they won today, how they performed from wire to wire on both sides of the ball. That has me and I was thinking about this downstairs. This is the

biggest Browns win in ten fifteen years. There was a year they were ten and six that they didn't make the playoffs. Here's why I think that's the case, because we are two or three days removed from most people thinking that Freddie Kitchens is someone who's in totally over his head, that Baker Mayfield talks more than he performs in year two as a quarterback, that the offense, which came in with so much hope, looked completely broken, and there the words coming out of Cleveland from the coaching

staff did not sound like we plan to adjust. We just planned to keep doing what we're doing. And there was legit concern about where this team was going and what the reaction would be for me three or four weeks from now if they started one in five or you know, one in five, you go into your by then you play the Patriots season over. This is your most natural rival outside of Pittsburgh, the Baltimore Ravens. They were they came from your own belly if you're a

Browns fan. They were pulled out of the Browns failure when they moved. It's a disaster. And they've been dominated by Baltimore for so long, and I thought this was the kind of Ravens team that might be the worst type of team for Cleveland to match up with. And Steve Wilkes has done an incredible job with Cleveland's defense, and I think we all we talked about is Cleveland's

offense over and over. It happened against the Rams. They had a great game plan with with their two with four defensive backs starter starters out last against the Rams, Greedy Williams, and they they had two cornerbacks out again today and you cannot tell the way that they shut down Lamar Jackson. Outside of some very frisky runs by the Ravens quarterback. They did a great job against Baltimore's offense, and that Nick Chubb run was something else that I

have not seen them do this year. Really, you have to go back to last season where they kept taking hope away from the opponent and Nick Chubb had not, you know they I thought they needed to center this attack more around him. They found a way to do it today. Baker Mayfield was not badgered from wire to wire the way he has been in the other three games, and you got this result. It is hopeful they've got

a short week before they play the Niners. But I thought that they looked like a different offense that against what I thought. The coaches could adjusted, made adjustments and got their act together, and it was. It couldn't have happened a game sooner. I'm not sure how this believing your own hype phenomenon works, but they must have just like they just picked this week to stop believing their own hype, according to the narrative, And it came on a day where Odell Beckham was not a factor at all.

You know, what are the odds that he gets twenty yards on seven targets in a forty burger in Baltimore? Big time concern if you're a Ravens fan about the state of this defense. I think you know we said going into it, this is a Brown's offense that good defenses should handle. Right now, I think the Brown's offense that showed up today is was probably it was a

lot about them. But still this Ravens defense when it's so early in the season that we it's such a small sample size that you see them against the Dolphins and the Cardinals and you think, you think one thing, But as we're getting more information, they just don't look like the Ravens defense were used to see. Well, they put all their resources into offense the last two years and Lamar Mania, which is you know, running wild in weeks one and two. Things have cooled off a little bit,

it seems in week three and four. What did you see from Jackson Mark, Well, they put the clamps on him early, and you know that I thought that he was going to potentially fry then with Marquis Brown and they didn't. That connection did not work today, And to me it is it is partially Baltimore, But I have to say Cleveland's defense is playing in a way that I I just don't remember them playing. And they've been good in every game except that opener where they got

tired out against the Titans. I think you can say Lamar Jackson's a special talent, and he says bright, he has a bright future and also point out that the only two quality defenses he's faced in his career are the Chargers defense that shut him down in the playoffs and the Browns defense that shut him down today. Joe Schobert has been playing well. I mean, they're just deep. The the Browns defense, they're good on every level. How about a little Steve Wilkes come up. Didn't expect that

to happen. Top ten defense this year, and the Browns have another prime time game next week against the Niners. Would anybody be surprised if that defense steps up again? I mean, we'll say that conversation for Thursday. But it does feel feel like the possibility that they might have turned a corner with this game. I want to see Mayfield, you know, do it week after week. I mean, I

want to see this game closer too. But it sounds like he looked he was making decisions, was more comfortable than Yeah, it just looked like last year's attack, where the first three weeks to me was something completely different and uninviting. First first place, Margie, I mean place in week four We'll talk to me in week fourteen or but first time in first place since when since Actually it was a night when they beat the Bengals on

Thursday Night Football. You got you you, I believe the podcast recap dialed Dan and I up at Lost and found it was a boozy evening. Let's move on to the NFC North one sas depens without Hicks. Evening of yard lane under center set from Ah paul Is out inside the fifteen yard line, pilot up Bears a taken it away first snap of the second half, Hess kirk Cousins gets sacked on first down. Huge play Jeff Johnny Bears Radio Network with a call Khalil Mac makes big

place and you heard another one there. Chase Daniel through for a d nine yards and a touchdown after Mitch Drabski went down with the left shoulder injury on the opening possession, and the Bears defense absolutely took it to Dalvin Cook and Kirk Cousins in a sixteenth to six victory over the Vikings. Um this was a home win for a win for the home team. The Bears absolutely um took it to the Vikings. Mark your thoughts on or West this is your game, correct it was? Yes?

Your thoughts on the effort by the Bears defense, Well, I know everybody wants to give their state of the Union on Cousins after every Vikings lost. But this ain't it, man, This is not The quarterback has nothing to do with this game. It is a Bears defense, a front seven that absolutely dominated an awful Vikings offensive line and Vikings offensive line that is terrible and has been terrible. They

shut down Dalvin Cook. The Vikings offense had two possessions in the first half nine plays in a punt where Cousins just barely missed Adam Phelan on this long play right here. Now you gotta make that catch too. Who knows whose fault that is. But on the next play they go twelve plays, next dry they go twelve plays. Stefan digs fumbles. Those are only two possessions of the first in the first fine in the first half, they just didn't have the possession that fumble. I'm blaming on

Kirk Cousins. It should be blamed on the quarterback. Clear They come out of halftime, first play, blindside strips strip sac clear Meck goes right around Riley Rife, the left tackle, and it was more of that the rest of the way. This is an underman Bears defense playing without ro Kuan Smith and a chemicks, two very good starters. They plug in Nick Williams and Nick Quickkowski and against this Vikings offensive line, those two guys combine for seventeen tackles in

three sacks, another tackle for loss. These guys were fired up and the Bears just absolutely dominated. To me, this is more about the Bears defense than it is about the Vikings offense. And if you're looking for a scapegoat, it's the Vikings offensive line that is just not good. And they were the scapegoat through all of last season two and they thought they fixed those issues. If you're a Bears fan, because Chase Daniel comes in today and you know he knows Matt Niggy's offense, been with Matt

Niggy longer than Mitch Robinsky. How concerned are you about Mitch Raisky being out for a while because I thought Chase Daniel came in sight unseen and played pretty good game. Well, I think history is instructive here, and last year he came in, played the game manager role, nurse a lead. Eddie Jackson had a pick six to help them win a game on Thanksgiving against the Lions, and the next week when nobody he's paying attention to the game. He goes and gives it to a bad Giants team and

they lose with his two interceptions. I just think we know who Chase Daniel is and he did a great job today. His job is to play the game manager, let the defense win the game for you, and when things are going right, he's capable of doing that. But he's just as capable of giving the ball to the other team. And you see that he processes faster than miss Robinsky, which you would expect from a veteran. His ball placement is better than Mitch Drobinsky, who is an

inaccurate passer. You'll see that the Bears will miss Mitch Robinsky's arm strength and athleticism when they play Chase Dames. Well. To me, history is instructive, and that history started. June twenty, two thousand thirteen went around the NFL editor Greg Rosenthal wrote up Chase Daniel, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback as making the leap Canada. It's not too late West. He comes in and directs force, scoring drives out of the first five or six possessions. Let's go, Let's ride. Is there

an exploration data? No? I think it always and even development could make the lead inspired last year against the Giants. I was gonna say, though, if the story is written about his making the leap with the Chiefs, by the way to get credit for my favorite part is the headline making the leap come on number thirty five. I did a top forty countdown that yearly. Yeah, I think that's what I mean. I mean, nonsense, Um West, You're

saying makes so much sense about Daniel. He doesn't need to be a star, just like Mitch Robiscuit doesn't need to be the star. Kind of get out of the way a little bit. Just do what you have to do, be a game manager, and this team could be playing in the in the first Sunday in February. I think this defense is every bit as good as left. It's an unbelievable defense. And and that's two things I'm learning.

We're amazingly a quarter through the regular season. Now for the most part, one of the Bears defense is just as good, if not better, as than it was last year. So look out. And number two, I was I was big on the Vikings heading into the season. I'm shook now because this game, especially when the other team loses their starting quarterback and then you don't even you're not really competitive there. They are several steps blowhards the Vikings.

You know there's a long way to go, but they to me, I they've lost my trust in terms of as soon as they're put into And it's not just a Kirk Cousins thing. I don't love Kirk Cousins either. I don't feel like he's gonna suddenly go on some hot streak and win nine games and it's fair and like I just to me, Minnesota feels like you're ceiling is about nine wins and if you ever snuck into the playoffs, as soon as your environment becomes unfriendly on

any level, bye bye. This divisions gotta be tough and this is a bad road loss. And the takeaway I think though, is that you know, ultimately these teams are built similarly. The Vikings have so much money in their defense. EVE been building it up for a long time and it's it's a good defense, but it's nowhere near as good as the Bears, and that's the difference. I agree with that. And don't let Mike Zimmer off the hook

for this one either. He cost his team three points by calling a time out when the Bears were set up to punt on the Vikings thirty four yard line because their kicker has a bad plant leg and can't make a fifty one yard field goal. Emer calls the time out and Neggi says, all right, you can give me time to think about it. We'll just pick up the first down they go and get. They gotta pick up a first down and kick a shorter field goal. I I defer to your knowledge on this West and

you watch this game closely, Um, I don't. I don't know. You're gonna let Cousins totally off the hook though. The fact that he's is he is? He just a guy? Is that who is? And then if he doesn't have the right set up around him, they're doomed because I think when they signed him, I think they thought he was more than that. I just don't want to litigate this after every single game, like are we gonna do this after every State of the Union, after every Cousins game.

He's kind of a fascinated guy for people. From that perspective, I get that I'm begging people to watch the game, watch the game, and this is all Chicago's defense in Minnesota's bad offensive lines and penalties, and the digs play was a killer, Like nobody's gonna get on digs for

that fumble. All I'd say, though, is you look at someone like Deshaun Watson, who has been sacked at like near historic levels early in his career, and he's someone that you know, it's not every week he creates and comes up with stuff on his own under duress, and I just don't need a better place. Well, I mean he had, he had just this band of a game his cousin. It's just that you've paid Kirk Cousins free agent.

It's not every week with the Shawn Watson, but Kirk Cousin has been paid the kind of money where he's gonna get talked about week to week. Let's uh, Let's move on to the highest scoring game of week four. Dropping under from the ball, it's loose, it's picked up by the Buccaneers to the thirty. That's funny, to the fifteen. Dombako suon again. I'm double and willy. Buccaneers are gonna beat the Rams the mine six to go fifty four

big points on the West Coast, a record. Jean Decker Fox Radio dock work Shack Mason, Strip, Jared Goff and Dominican sus snatched the loose ball Tucket to the house. You heard it, the clinching score in a fifty five to forty win for the Buccaneers over the Rams at the Coliseum. Jared Coff finished with over five on a yard passing, but he had four turnovers in the rams first loss of the season. The Bucks they got three five yards and four touchdowns from Jamis Winston. West is

gonna have to eat humble pie about that. Wait, then, Mariota has just as gonna have a game that's not That's not what I'm saying. You've been decided with who dismissed Winston's effort last week and indication on how we should look at this game. He carried that performance into a second lights out performance. He has my attention. I also think it's important to be anchored by four years of data so you don't flow away once I got

your data right here. Anyway, Winston Winston had a big day career day for Chris Godwin, who has who has emerged as one of the best second bananas in the NFL behind Mike av Evans and the Bucks head to London at two and two? Is that right now? We're gonna see the Bucks in the Panthers. And I mean, if I just hit that kick this Bucks teams three and one, I'm so excited about our trip to London.

I'm getting ahead of myself. But uh yes, a really really important win for the Bucks, who, as we know, had their hearts ripped out when the kicker blew the chip shot. After Bruce Arians, the coach moved them back five yards. They somehow lose a game to the Giants at home, and they go to l A and they absolutely light up the Rams and do not let do not let the numbers fool you. Um. The Rams finished

with um well over five yards of total offense. But Todd Bowls's defense did a good job overall in this game. A lot of that was just counting stats at the Rams piled up. They made big plays, and the Bucks are two and two and gotta be feeling pretty good right now, very good in fact, especially because Bruce Arians was brought there to bring some the offense to life. And now we've seen that two straight. Godwin's a one A right now. I mean, his numbers are right there

with anyone in the league. We've been honking about him on this show since the end of his rookie year, and there's not many slot guys like him in the league that's as good. At one when Arians said this is gonna be a one hundred catch receiver and if a day like today twelve, he's right now. We said after week two and Mark, you have the theory that

Arians maybe doesn't really be here. But after that those first two weeks where the Winston was a messing Week one, Week two, they get uh, they have another quiet game offensively, but the defense does a nice job. The last two weeks they've had almost a thousand yards of total yardage on offense um. So there is absolutely potential here for this to be a very good offense and who knows they could be that this could be a frisky team potential.

I don't want to get overly pumped up about the bus because what West is right about is Winston does suck people in a lot, and he will have moments like this or even games stretches and then throw three interceptions in the first quarter in his next game. That could obviously happen, but you can only at this point look at where they are right now and the fact that Winston is with Bruce arians for the first time, and if you're a Bucks fan, look at that with

hope that maybe he is turning the corner. Well, the credit he's the one calling the plays a right. I mean, the Bucks to me have been a team that you know, coming out of hard knocks a couple of years ago, there was a lot of optimism. Last year was old. They added all these parts on defense, there's more optimism. They've never been the sum of their parts, and today you're finding out the last couple of weeks that they're living up to their potential and you feel completely differently

about them. Well, even in this game, Winston through a killer interception pick six late in the game that let the Rams back in it. But then he responded with the touchdowns and then your boy Mark Sessler Shack Barrett got one of those two sacks that he needs to get to ten for the year. You said it's not

gonna happen. Yeah, Sandwiches, I said, what I because this is gonna drift away to to talk about not anchored, is that these fast risers on like early season guys that have eight sacks and three games that a lot of times they end up with like nine, just like the biggest play of the week on top of the last. I would happily be wrong about him specifically, what I was discussing is true as a statistical anomaly in the

NFL off happening. I don't think this is gonna be a fun game to watch the game pass, but it might set a record for the longest. The Rams had eighty one plays, the Bucks had seventy three. The Rams only ran the ball eleven times. They dropped back seventy three times. They did what I think a lot of teams should do the second they fall down to the

three scores. Literally, don't run, throw the ball every single time, and stretch out that game for as long as you can, because who knows, you might get into a situation where Jamis Winston throws you a pick six and it's a one score game in the fourth quarter. They stretched this thing out. Is the longest game I've ever said we would predict the game pass length. Let's try this forty six this the winner gets sandwiches. How about that? Is it the iPad version or the longer version of the

two I'm going for? Yeah, I think they're going to find a way the editors to indulge themselves for no one cares that except for us uh week. It was not a good game for golf. Todd Gurley we talked about on Thursday, is this going to be his coming out party? Hasn't had a hundred yard game yet? And yes, they threw the ball constantly, but five carries for sixteen yards, did score two touchdowns. Um yeah, I mean Goff made

some pretty throws up that's the thing you're saying. It's a bad game, and it was without turnouts, but he did throw it for five yds, turning the ball over a point. Well, this is the first time the Rams have fallen out of first place since Sean McVeigh was high. And I don't know who this Rams team is. I thought they had an improved defense, and they give up fifty five points to the Bucks and they still don't have a consistent running game. But here's here's the thing

we saw it on Thursday night. Defense. You know, improved defenses are nice. It doesn't matter in the I mean it does matter because you have to win different types of games. But they're gonna get blown out there. You're gonna give up yards and points some game. It's two thousand nineteen, even the Bears. I hate to say it. You're gonna have to score some points or else that team is gonna, you know, get hit and knocked down at some point. I mean, good defenses are not as

good as great offenses. I want to give one final shout out before we move on. Matt Gay, who got killed by me and a lot of other people after blowing the game last week. The place kicker, he drills a fifty eight yard or uh in this game, and then downstairs, well not only drilling, I mean he smacked it up against the net. It just it's a guy that stepped up in a big spot. And then after that terrible Winston picks six gave the Rams life and it was forty five to forty I believe um or

in that range. Um he hits another field goal that essentially gives them the distance they need to win the game. So a nice bounce back before and Spike, can you believe that you've motivated him during the week with your comments? Do you want my honest answer him? Yes, that's what I would imagine. You say, Let's move on. I mean, you asked me a question. I'm gonna answer down in six. It's almost sack, but he keeps his ball. Now he

throws at the twelve yard line, first down. Panthers. Incredible, cherious right from Kyle Allen who went off script and played it just right. Mick mixing with that drawl Panther's radio network, nice and smooth. Kyle Allen evaded ashore sack by J. J. Watt delivered a huge completion the most important play in the Panthers thirteen ten win over the Texans in Houston. Alan lost three fumbles in the game, but the Caroline defense stepped up huge and shutting down

Deshaun Watson. Nuke and the Texans offense. West had the Panthers do this well. They're defense has fourteen sacks and four takeaways in two games since Cam Newton went down with it foot injury. They sacked Kyler Murray eight times a week ago, and they sacked Deshaun Watson six times today, hit him eleven times, hurried him nineteen times. And we know that some of that is on the offensive line and some of that is on Deshaun Watson's playing style.

And to Mark's point about Kirk Cousins who it can be said that he holds the ball and then probably checks down too often. Deshaun Watson holds the ball to go for big plays, and today he missed a few of them. He had some open and he missed them. And he said after the game, look that's on me. I held the ball too long and I didn't hit the big plays. That's his playing style. He holds the ball too long, which contributes to his hits and sacks.

I think this offense is fixable. They've been under I believe thirteen points are under in two the last three weeks. Let's get some sink uh. Let's get some rapport between Watson and his offensive line on that and his receivers. But you have to give the Panther secondary a lot of credit to or Kenny Stills injured his hamstring in the first quarter and was their leading receiver midway through

the fourth quarter. James Bradberry did a really good job on DeAndre Hopkins today and the Panthers defense was lights out. Hopkins forty one yards. There's not too many weeks where

he's not. No matter how the team is faring, he always produces, and through an interception a very costly interception on a trick play, and Bill O'Brien killed himself for the play call After the game, weren't we just discussing Bill O'Brien and his lead pastor individual outside the building as front office executives of the year and them as the favorites in the a f C South, which I still think they are. But it's a division, you know,

spoiler alert. Everyone has the same record right now. I think they're the most talented, but they're they're not a team that's you know, bulletproof, especially when they're playing Lazarus. I mean Ron Rivera, we talked about it a couple of weeks ago. He rises from the dead. Every time you think he's about to lose his job, what do they do? They smack around the Cardinals on the road. They have defense shows up like that. That's kind of what Ron Rivera has been able to do over the years.

At a certain point, you kind of you just gotta figure that's what he does. That's his movie's gonna use it well. I think we see their formula now and it might be similar to what the Bears have going on. They probably trust Kyle aw In a little bit more than the Bears trust their quarterbacks because Kyle Allen's played pretty well outside of the three strip secks today once she lost three fumbles. And that's my biggest concern with

him is how he deals with pressure. But you can see that he's got the touch, he's got the accuracy, he makes pretty good decisions, and he's got an m VP candidate at running back. Christian McCaffrey thirty seven touches today, a D seventy nine yards. He put the team on his back. He had also and if you haven't looked at the replay, go find this third down catch where it's bobbled through the air and it's the one of the more acrobatic athletic movements you'll see all season. And

they're developing an identity. Brian Burns is playing with his hair on fire. They have done Terry Poe and Mario Addison, Jack Thompson without Kwan short shack. Thompson doesn't leave the field now he's replaced Thomas Davis. They got a lot of pieces. I understand you're in a tough spot with Cam Newton out and Alan who's shown things, but still you you really need McCaffrey to be your centerpiece. I'd be curious to check out where his touches are through

four games. They don't want to manage that a little bit. You don't want to be doing thirty seven. He's so valuable they don't think they can take him off the field. And part of that it has to do with the fact that they've never really had a great backup behind him. All right, Uh, let's go to the a f C A West South showdown. That just stays in the gun on this first down and ten again intercepted. Gonna be a touchdown. Gotta be a touchdown, Eric Harris lot a game,

it's safety. Well, that's one of the finest places I've seen Eric Harris making wide money lots, aren't. Let's go to London Boys Bred Glussburger of course, the Icon and Lincoln Kennedy with inside therrif k CBS. Rick Carris stepped in front of the Uh, Derek Carr passed, excuse me? Eric carrs stepped in front of a Jacoby Brissette pass and took it earty yards to the house, the clinching

touchdown in the Raiders over the Colts. The Raiders got a huge play there by Harris because it did feel like a game that had the potential to slip away from Oakland. The Raiders, who had done really nothing on offense. In fact, they had two scoring drives in their previous eighteen possessions entering this game. They get up fourteen nothing early. In fact, they scored three touchdowns in their first four possessions the Raiders in this game, but then go cold again.

Uh so car Derek Carr finished fast ends up throwing for less than two hundred yards, and at the point when that final interception was made, it seemed like the Colts were gonna find a way to win this game, but instead the Raiders get it done. And uh I just think John Gruden on balanced so far again. We're at the quarter pole. I know they said there's no such thing as a quarter pole. Well I guess what.

I don't care what you say. Oh the horse racing fans, all three of them, get upset about it at the quarter poles. How about you keep your horses alive a little better? At the Quarner poll. The Raiders are two and two and they are on a absolute marathon road trip. It's absurd the way this has been set up and John Gruden, love him or hate him, uh, he has

right to be annoyed. The fact that they're going forty two days between home games and how about umb botch your stadium situation and not be able to afford sim that you have to give up your game and go to London. Everything. The guys in the locker room have nothing to do, get it, but they still this is their second road game. Now they go to London where they're the quote unquote home team. Then they have a bye, then two more road games. They don't play at home

again until November three, um against the Lions. I believe. So any win you can get during the stretch, if you could survive this this brutal uh slate where you're just traveling constantly, and you could be in good shape. Well maybe when you get back home you could be a little frisky to Thanksgiving and and so far. Again, the Raiders not not a great team, probably not even a good team, but they are showing fight and this was a really nice effort on the road against a

Cults team that we all like a lot. Yeah, and credit, I mean we there's all those studies every time the Raiders have to travel East and play the early game. How they're like one and a billion when they have to do that. So credit to them, I will say, though they caught the Cults at the right time. You've got t Y Hilton out, Darius leonard In, a defensive Player of the Year candidate out with a concussion, maliek Cooker at safety out, and they lost Marlon Mack for

a big chunk of this game. They're deep team and they're well built, but you get to a point where you can't compete. I agree with that, and you you could see that, and when you guys check this game out, you'll see it too that Brissette really did look a little bit lost without t Y Hilton, who was so important in this offense. When we saw that when he was on the field in the first three games. He is Brissets go to guy when it counts, and with him on the sideline, and uh, they barely moved the

ball for the most of this game. They finished with three forty six yards, which is not great but not terrible. But then just know that more than half of that yardage came in the fourth quarter when it was just a man scramble to try to get back into the game, so Indy kind of had a lost day on offense. Um shorthanded a wide receiver. Bunches, of course, is also out and Um and the Raiders showed up and balled out and the Raiders leading receivers Darren Waller again seven

for fifty three. West mentioned, you know that Eric Ebron might be the next thousand yard tight end or thousand drop tight end. No, I don't think it was. I mean, not Eric Ebron, Evan Evan Ingram. Yeah, Waller's on pace and then something you look he's got, He's got three hundred plus yards. He's writing quite a story. I mean, he might be a Pro Bowl type of tight en. He has really fun to watch. He's come back from

you know, addiction. He's a guy that John Gordon literally signed because he liked the way he looked on the sideline. And it's wild then that he's a leading receiver on two and two an NFL team ultra rare hard Knocks. It's so easy to fall in love with Hard Knocks players that are featured on the show. And like Greg said, his addiction backstory made him a compelling figure on the show, and then he would be killing it in these slow motion NFL films practice highlights, and then he steps into

action is just as good. You never see that in hard knocks. It always plays you for a fool, But not in this case. Can we talk about a generational cheap shot artist, dirty player? Oh my god, Yes, Vonte's perfect, absolutely as cheap shot as a cheap shot can be. Uh. Goes for Jack Doyle, who is in a very vulnerable position after making a catch, goes helmet to helmet, and good on on the officiating crew who take a look at the play. And in addition to the fifteen yard

personal foul, say get addie here, Vante's perfect? And at what point is the NFL just gonna say get Addie here Vante's perfect? Period, I've got a couple of steps for you. Okay, let's hear him. Last year, the league imposed more than one sixty five thousand dollars in fines against perfect are illegal hits. That's just last year alone.

This is from the Football Zebras Twitter account. There are six times in one years of nl NFL history when a player was suspended multiple games for an on field infraction. Two of those times are Vontes perfect, and I would bet it's about to be three of those. If you're if you're going to London, you're gonna see Chack the game next week, which looks pretty good all things considered. Raiders bears at three and one versus two and two, and I don't think you're gonna see Mitchell Robinsky. I

don't think you're gonna see Vont's perfect perfect. I got even one of these fines, my bank account, our entire family structure would crumble. I can't get a don't stop the run. God, it takes shotgun staff. He's back to throw, he's under pressure. He throws it off the stuff he throw it like pick off five Peppers putting down the right fuse t puts down Giants. Peppers hostetures under pressure. The throw was laid off the back foot. Pepper spread it all the way that your brow pup bixis Bob

Papa with a call w f A and Jabrill. Pepper's first year as a Giant scored on a thirty two yard interception return, the knockout blow for the Giants and an easy three win over the more of under Washington Redskins. Daniel Jones is now two and oh as the starter Wayne Gallman ran for two scores and plays of se Quon Barkley Mark Dwayne Haskins made his debut for the Redskins.

But there's no stopping the suddenly resurgeon je. Honestly, I know they're not a complete team, but the right to bring that chant back and do that as much as you want because they are fun to watch and I know that the the knock is their defense is utterly inept.

Not today, I realize you're playing a team in the Redskins that at this point I would put around Dolphins level in terms of unwatchability and uh in terms of their on field capabilities, planned lists like you know, they couldn't have made it more a parent that Dwayne Haskins was not ready for prime time with coach with the coaches comments, you know, hammering that to us week after week, and you put him on the field today because case keenom is is not functioning at all as your starter,

big surprise. Who saw that coming? And Haskins was absolutely victimized and I he he is just he for what he does well, he's got a big arm. He's also just not he's not seen the field and so you know, that was true from the coaching staff. And with Daniel Jones, you know, he there were there were some issues in this game for him. He had a couple of bad interceptions. But what I love was that Patcher made the comment after that after he threw the two picks on the sideline,

it wasn't like a rattled you know, deer and headlights time. Thing, totally composed, came back, made some big throws when he's on the field. Guys like Sterling Shepard, we've talked about Evan Ingram come to life. Wayne Gallman, as you mentioned, had a big game, and I thought that they It's not that they didn't miss se Quon Barkley because he's a super special talent, but it ran for a hundred and sixty four yards at four point four yards per carry.

With Jones in there, everything just functions a little bit differently, clean water, fresh stream, not a dirty pond like they were with Eli Manning. The Redskins stink, but they also won twenty four to three, and they didn't get they did. You know, the Redskins have had a couple of quarters where they put points up on other teams. They didn't against New York today. Right, we give the Bears credit

for totally shutting down the Redskins. I think it's significant that they held the Redskins the hundred and seventies six yards and three points. If you're not gonna if you're gonna give the Patriots credits for like trouncing the week sisters of the NFL, that's what competent defenses can do. Now, I don't think the Giants defense is suddenly going to be competent, but can they improve? You know, teams change a lot during the course of this season. They're gonna

be totally different December. Can they improve from the thirty second best defense in the league to somewhere around twenty or twenty three like the rest of the way. Is that possible that they can scheme that up and that will help them be competitive with a young quarterback? Like I think that's possible. And now this is an outlier and something it's something to watch. And there two and two, Well, it helps when you're not you know, with the Eli

in there. And it's not just on Eli Manning, it's highly but they were three and out operation that had it seemingly planned one offensive drive and then they dry up the attack the entire rest of the game. That's not true. Now Danny Dimes gets golden tape back next week too. You know, I just clicked into a New York Post story um about Landon Collins. You know, I guess, yeah, his first game I forgot and that you know obviously

didn't work out for him. But what I really want to bring up is on the sidebar of the New York Post there's a trending now in sports section with three headlines, and I just want to read them off because they're all compelling. Odell Beckham is choked out in Brown's Raven Raven's fight NFL villain at it again with ghastly head shot. I assume that's our friend Ron Tess perfect and Bill's coach escorts Bill Belichick's son off field in sketchy scene. Who is what? It's like a gossip?

And that was the third one that was the best, like website for pro booball the post. Nick Dermott got all fired up at not Steve Belichick, but another bellotchick and another Patriots stafford who was like watching the Bills warm up and they got into some sort of argument. Sean McDermott was one of them. No, he was. He was in. It was all. It was all on video. This was a big story, you know, for the pregame shows. And then everyone realized like, okay, it was just he

shoot them off the field. You don't want to mess with McDermott. That's that's a state high school wrestling champ, isn't it that he was? He was a wrestler. All right, let's move on. He told us that New York Post. Yeah, you know how to intercepted Clowny? Hello, Mr Clowney touchdowns debian Clowney stretched out, reaches arm almost to the ceiling, pulled the ball down on a screen pass and took it about thirty yards for six. Seattle goes on top

now by a score of nine. Enough, that's how you do a radio broadcast, Steve Rabel Dave Wyman on the call Seahawks Radio Network to Dave and Clowney, you look like a tight end on his interception return, covering twenty seven yards for a tv UH Seattle's first score touchdown of the day over the morabund Arizona art right. Michael Kendricks finished with two sacks. Chris Carson went over a hundred yards for the Seahawks, who are three and one

with a huge Week five matchup against the Rams looming. Greg, What did you take out of this game? That the Seahawks are ready to win some games like easily, That Russell Wilson doesn't need to do crazy things to be an m v P contender through a quarter of the season eight point six yards per attempt, doesn't have an interception this year, eight touchdowns for him, and that they can just kind of have a no drama free game,

like you never see that out of the Seahawks. They were watching the Rams game and on their in their locker room, and when and Dominican Sue ran that touchdown for back for the Bucks, they erupted. And I like that. It's like there's a little bit of a rivalry there. That's a Thursday night game this week. The forty niners are undefeated. This division is interesting except for the Cardinals. It's fun by the way, that who are not interesting. It's fun on Seahawks quarter. Do you want to come back?

You're I never I never put your stuff away. It's all your rooms. Just now I'm worrying. I'm watching him. It's been fun. It's fun to watch him going in back. I guess I kind of wa back it. It's like when when they're turning will dis lee into a thing. Well this he has almost more catches this year than he had his entire college career. He ran like a five to forty. He came out of nowhere and here he is as they're leading receiver coming off attending right,

that's right. You gotta use Clowney on offense. The car Yeah, the Cardinals are the one team that doesn't excite you, and that's not what this was supposed to be. This wasn't supposed to be a super Bowl campaign for the Cardinals. But the fact that they're not really moving the meter, that's not a good Well. They were the unknown and what we're knowing about them is not particularly interesting and not interesting is not what I expected. I thought it

would either be an epic disaster or something. The Corners shocked the league and it's kind of it's just middle place. They haven't won a game, and they got blown out twice at home in a row here, so that that's a bad sign. David Johnson looked better today. Hundred and thirty three yards from scrimmage. I thought he had some of his old juice, which was nicely. But here's what not on the ground though, what's going on with it? He's had they were trailing, you know, that Clowney injury happened.

I mean, the Clowney touchdown happened. They really went out of their way to establish Chris Carson, who had a great game hundred forty two yards and it was just a nice This was a Sessler Fever dream game, as we talked about downstairs. It was quick, it was over and under three hours easily. It was a blowout. I mean, cess, that's how that's how a pro football game should get. Execution, shooting in the back of the head, bang, it's over quickly.

Their linebackers. I'm really impressed by the Seahawks linebackers. They never leave the field. They're the only team in the league really that's like that. Michael Carroll said, this is the best linebacker quarries hand. I don't doubt if Michael Kendricks played awesome today. kJ Wright has played great last week. And you're playing a team that plays four receivers every snap or many steps, and yet you don't take your linebackers off the field like that is tough to pull off.

But you're when you're right. When you're talking about Kingsbury. You know, what we haven't seen out of them is like a schematic advantage, you know what I mean? He hasn't come in and provided like I think Kyler Murray looks quite good. I think he had a fine game today, act despite the final score, which seems like we're, oh, they're gonna They're gonna revolutionize the game with the past happy. It's how every team in the league that isn't completely

out of it is past happy at historic levels. So how different are they than anyone else? At this point? Where did uh Kyler Murray's height come in for this game two? I mean this was the short guy ball here, So shout out to short men everywhere. Stay strong, stay proud, you know we love you. He can't look too big with without Jenevian Clowney's streaking by him at like six ft eight. No, that was kind of a flukey, a tough play for him, But it's like the Cardinals have

no ability to come back. Our friend Jason Somwalts ready to call it a season. I think his counting numbers don't look that bad, Kyler Murray. But he's dropping back as much as anyone and getting first downs less than anyone. Problem. Let's move up I formation, single receiver Brown, wide layout playfing Mario to fires over the middle. There's Brown at the forty, at the thirty, five, at the thirty, at the five, at the twenty, at the fifty, at the ten,

at the five tighten Jay Brown. Yeah, it's fun, my Keith with a call. Titans Radio Network Marcus Mariota through three touchdown passes and one half. That's gotta be a record. Uh to to a J. Brown, including the one you just heard. And the Tennessee Tattoos snapped an ugly two game losing streak with to tend Road win over the stumbling the Moribunda in Atlanta Falcon wes uh. This is all. This is all a script for the Tytoons. Just when you're ready to write them off, they deliver a complete

performance to remind you of their potential. But what does it mean in the big picture? They have the potential to go nine and seven and lose it in the first round of the playoffs. I'd be good luck figuring this team out. They it was so unusual to see a wide receiver making plays for the Titans. And A. J. Brown was beating Desmond Trufont today and you see right here making plays after the catch runs away, and it does remind me a little bit of a young and

Quan Bold in the way he plays physical. He's very physical. He's good after the catch, and you don't see guys like Corey Davis, drafted fifth overall doin stuff like this. Now, Corey Davis did get a touchdown, but he's not making plays at the catch like that. Um. But the the receivers won the battle against the Falcon secondary that hasn't been very good this year. And the Falcons have fallen behind twenty eight to nothing to the Vikings, twenty three to the Colts, in two to seven to the Titans

by halftime. I mean this. This team has been out of three or four three of their four games. And it's pertinent that the head coach fired his top assistance last year, and the owner is paying out more cash for his players than any other owner in the year two thousand nineteen. I'm bummed out. I'm always the guy who's not gonna say their seasons over or anything like that,

but this this results. Seeing them go down like this today got me thinking, I will be bummed out if the Falcons era under Dimitroff doesn't get closer, it doesn't ever win that super Bowl, you know what I mean? Like if I I kind of get it both ways, what do you mean your your team is responsible for the most destructive loss any team has ever suffered, and now you're gonna cry all about there that the Falcons, Well, then you should have been. I was like, you're playing

both sides on this one. I was all about the Falcons the year after that. I just liked the whole vibe of the organization. And now I'm just surprised that there's there's this little fight right now to start. This seems like a team that needs a soft reboot, and it's too early. It's both too early and too late because this season has already started there already in a deep hole now at one and three, not too deep. But it's not a great situation. But it's more the

way that they're losing. Uh, and we all have to watch this game closer. But I mean it's the way is it one of those type you get from it other than the Falcons just doing very good? Is that what this is? They're just not a very good team. Well, look, we can say they are a good team that's playing

very poorly. I don't think they're very good. And we can say we like to mitrof and we like Quinn, and we do, but we don't like the product they've put on the field since the Super Bowl since Kyle Shanahan. The next year, I did, the next year, I did, but with Sarkasian's lost offense that year, I mean ever since Kyle Shanahan's left, What what is this team's identity? Well, and Quinn has talked about, you know, his defense, like Seattle,

is going to be urgent, fast, disruptive and it. Mariota looked terrible in the Jaguars game, which feels like two years ago, because Jacksonville piled up nine sacks in that game and made life about as impossible as you could on the quarterback. None for the Falcons Today, Mariotta was kept clean on the subject of the Falcons. They did to their credit or as an organization and to the players and and Dan Quinn. They did recover from that

absolutely staggeringly terrible Super Bowl loss. Pass away from beating the Eagle at the KYL s in l A. When they beat a very good Rams team in the wild card round. They were, but really, since the moment Julio Jones slipped in the end zone in Philadelphia in that Division round playoff, it has just been kind of a sad slog for the Falcons. And I know they put up a lot of good numbers last year offensively, but this doesn't. It doesn't feel like this team has juice

right now. And not sorry, they remind me of the Panthers, who it's just a reminder of how impossible it is to get back to the super Bowl. And you can still be competent, but it's not nearly good enough. I think you can watched teams like the Broncos, Bengals, of Vikings, and Falcons and get frustrated with all four of them for the same reason. The offensive line is blowing things up. Quinn's gotta make a new T shirt. Yeah, they did this brotherhood one where they're all holding each other this

last week didn't work. Who the Titans seven next week? A lot of T shirts I cannot wait to see. I think some of the angry Falcon T shirt now let's see the Titans have the Bills. Oh, that's pretty good at home, Josh Allen. We'll see if he's playing. I mean, if you're if your thing is you're looking for a back down turn it Bills. Well, not necessarily. They could Barkley in Nashville. They could put two or three good games together. What they need to do is

show they could sustain. You know what I'm talking about. They're gonna they're gonn real me back in for a game. They don't need to stay in that range where they can get to nine. That's the goal. That cannot be the goal. The goal was supposed to be better than nine, but this seems to be their face. Credit to their secondary today too, which really controlled the game and held Julio Jones down for a while. Titans defense look good today.

You know what I mean though, Greg Right, I don't mean to be uh overly passionate about it, but when you talk about how you really feel bad for the Falcons, you know, as a Patriots fan, you did this dune you created. I didn't anything. I didn't do any remember the photo in the box, I mean, the evil you had. We'll have to reservice that. It was, well, I don't even remember what which Patriots winning Super Bowl? Seattle satisfac alright,

not evil satisfied Grid. Alright, let's keep moving. A thirty three yarder from just inside the left hash the Lambo. Here we go, Broke gets it down, Lambo kicks it up and field goal is good. Good. The field have beaten the Denver Bronco took four mile high stadium. This one belongs to do alright, right, Cranty, I like it. John. By the way, update breaking news. Mark saw the movie

Sirens with j Los Sirens. Yeah, it was totally different films. Well, I want everyone to know that the scale has been balanced out because I just thought it because Josh Lambo. Mark told us today that he saw Rambo in the theaters. Everything's even Rambo colon Last Blood and I'm not gonna By the way, last Blood is the stupidest name of the movie ever. I know there was First Blood. It's thematic. If you're looking for stupid, it was. But I kind of enjoyed the film to be first Blood last Blood.

If you enjoyed it, I did because I went in thinking this is just gonna be ninety minutes of total you know, it's like last Blood until they cut off you know, stallone Social Security, then we'll go like last their blood. I don't think he's coming back from this

one based on what I saw. But Josh Lambo not John Rambo went four for four on the day, including that game winner as time expired, lifting the Jacks to win over the still winless the moribund Denver broncos Gardner Minshew heated up in the fourth quarter after a slow start. Leonard four Nette had a career day with two yards on the ground on twenty nine carries. Mark Jalen Ramsey heroically he was able to summon the energy to come out of his home and be on the sidelines of

this game. For this game, Uh well, he got a good show, We got an up close view and another exciting Jaguars win. He did. I've mentioned before that his focus is a laser focus and he he was zoned in on this game watching it from the sideline. Was he was he in a hospital bed on the sideline or was he able to stick up right? Where is he? Bat at? Physically? Seemed uh nimble and I was child It's not like they made that up that had a daughter. Man.

This game, and you know, it makes it look the score a little closer than it was, because you'd be hard pressed to find a contest where one team was as thoroughly dominated for a twenty minute stretch as Denver was in this contest. They they flat go through two early touchdowns that made you think this is the perfect way for Denver to get out of their own three hole,

and Nick Chubb von Miller came to life. They sack Gardner Minshew five times today, but before the half, flat go through an unforgivable pick that allowed the Jaguars to go down kick a field goal, and I believe that made it seventeen to six at the half. And then from there, Jacksonville came out of the locker room and absolutely dominated with a sixteen play touchdown drive. At one point in the going heading into the fourth quarter, they had held the ball for like thirteen and a half minutes.

Denver was offense just taken out of the game. They weren't even allowed to come onto the field basically. And it was Leonard four Nette, the laughing stock of Thursday Night Football to thursdays ago, who dominated Denver's tired out defense. I think Denver's defense just got winded and exhausted by the end of this game, and they this allowed the running game. Jacksonville's ground game to absolutely explode late, which

helped Minshew a lot. But Minshew also, despite getting hassled and he was on the run a bunch, showed some great movement in the pocket in this game. There's one play where he unfurled the completion, but he had to change direction in the pocket and climbing out of it like five or six times. And I am so impressed

with he really did. I was so impressed with him because, yes, I know he is a nice mustache and all this business, and and you know they're milking that for all it's worth, and that's fine, but he is a player that gives me hope that in the in the a f C South, which is a weird division, I'm not counting them out. The reverse they when their defense did what it did against Tennessee where they're dropping nine sacks, they didn't happen.

That didn't happen today. But they stepped stepped up around their quarterback and produced in a tough place to play. I don't care if the Bronchos are owing four or not. That's a tough stadium to go into, and they came

and delivered. It was go watch that third quarter. Total, he's been streaky, but when he's gotten hot, he's saved their season, basically because they could have been dead in the water after their starting quarterback goes out in Week one and instead he's a guy that while not a perfect quarterback and usually six round picks are not perfect, he seems to have a little bit of just he's not making mistakes and I think they're doing a good

job calling plays for him. John d Filippo. He does not go down the field very often, but he doesn't put them in bad situations, and when they do go

down the field, it's very effective. In time of possession in general is overrated, but when you get when you have forty minutes time of possession and it's almost all that advantages in the second half, there something happens to your defense and they and they went up and down the fens of the is the defense This was going to be, you know, the defense their game that you've waited for from Dick Fonio, and instead what you remember is that they absolutely got gashed down the down the stretch.

Every time I looked up in this game, d J. Chark was having a big play taken away by penalty. It's been every week. Well it's phenomenal, but but he is. His connection with Minshew has been consistent. And forget D. D. Westbrook and the rest of him, he's the dude is Minshew. And I don't want to undersell his his future and

he's obviously just starting out in the league. Is he potentially that the next generation Ryan's fitz Ryan Fitzpatrick like a fun perfect Well, I'm just saying Fitzpatrick is you know, thirteen years later or whatever it's been. Is had a lot of great moments in his career. Not a champion or anything. But I mean, even if that is his ceiling, Uh, that would I think the Jaguars would sign up for that,

considering uh what what what they were entering the season with. Well, let's put it this way, He's just created a ten year career for himself one way or the other. Right, I don't want to undersell his upside because if a first round pick k men and played the four games that he did, we we'd be you know, writing tea poems about him. They used Mark Sessler's phraseology. The Bills signed fits Fitzpatrick to that like sixty years, sixty million dollar contract at one point, and they only lasted a

couple of years. But nobody really ever saw him as the franchise guy. There's a chance that Minshew could develop into well, there is a little tea boat about him, especially seeing them win on a game that it didn't look like they were gonna win on a field goal

in Denver. It not the you know, the mania around him or whatever, but just that they're finding ways to win these these crazy sort of games and it's like the close I don't doubt I would say that the mania with the looks and the all this other business

around it is. Actually it does him a disservice because you think that that's why everyone is hyper focused on him, that's why a bunch of people are But if you took all that away and just looked at the way he plays, and if he were to your point at the draft pedigree had been there, people would be going absolutely nuts about who he is. On the fifth Nick Foles was playing like Gardner Minshew, people be like, all right,

the Jags are in great shape. They've got their quarterback UM and Mark you you saw the game, so you have a better idea of it. You said, the Broncos defense looked gassed at the end of the game, So I won't. I can't kill them having not watched the game, but I will just make a stop. I will point out UH Joe Flacco for all his UM ups and downs this year. UH takes them down the field late in the fourth quarter six place, seventy five yards, eight

yard touchdown pass. It's with ninety two seconds to go. And just like the Steelers last week, when you thought that their defense would be able to close out a game that they desperately needed, you would think that the Broncos defense would summon that to be able to get out of here with the win. But there I I would imagine Broncos fans are very upset about a roughing the pastor call on von Miller that sprung Jacksonville for that game winning drive. But it was a fair call,

I think. And then on top of it, they gave up a huge chunk run and Minshew made Keith rows and that was the whole second half Outside of Miami. That might be the most depressing UH season ticket to own. Right now, you've seen two games. In both of them you've lost that the buzzer on a field goal, and both of them your quarterback, who hasn't been that great overall, has to go ahead touchdown pass with a minute remaining. You still lose. You can't kill Flacco and that he

becomes lazy to do it week after week. But there is something also about him where just I don't know, there's a sense of he's not inspirational, not at all. Just the guy at this point, right, is that kind of what it is? He's just kind of a guy down right? Yeah, Man Rivers climbs the pocket, bind Zackler left sideline, one man to beat five into the touchdown, chargers into the end zone for Austin Ekeler. It was a hesitation by the official. He strums the guitar and

the chargers put six on the board. By the way, that receiving touchdown means that he has now posted at least three in each of his proceedsons. That is the first time an undrafted running back has done it in the common draft ERI since nineteen seven. See by the way, you don't I owe thought this. You don't need move the sticks in that Daniel Jeremiah is the color guy. Well, guess what Matt money does a ball he can He'll give you the highlight and then he'll give you the

insight and then and the data. So what, it's totally redundant to have moved the sticks paid by the charges. Some would move the sticks. Hearing this might argue that hit hit what you know, don't don't step on his part of the role here, but fair enough, I don't like what you're doing there. You're trying to create dissension. I think Matt made it very clear. Matt money Smith the voice of the Around the NFL podcast, what's going on in that? Philip Brother rivers through yards and two touchdowns?

That was like his moment. He was like, that's what I can do. He's like, I'm getting on the eight ten podcast Forget you Sticks. He's been Scully Sticks ever his voice ever been included in any of these Chargers highlights that we've done very briefly, and I've instructed Erica to avoid it when possible. Philip rivers through for three ten yards and two touchdowns, including that eight seniord hook

up with Austin Ekeler. Charges Crews win over. Now, I'm not gonna say it, because they don't even deserve that. The miserable Miami Dolphins. Greg The Chargers had rough losses in each of the past two weeks. Luckily the scheduled gods gifted them Sunday with potentially the worst NFL team of all time. Yeah, and and the Dolphins showed in this game for the second straight week that they can be competitive for a half. And they could have easily had the lead after one half of this game, just

like against Dallas. But but they didn't. And then it's like the other team gets down to business. The Miami Dolphins has had twenty one drives in the second half of games this year. On those twenty one drives, they have failed to score a point. I mean, this is the NFL we're talking about. It's it's it's outrageous. I don't know what more of there is to say. Melvin

Ingram got hurt in this game. That's a concern. Melvin Gordon did not play in this game, so he was active, but they an emergency, did not you need to use him. And Philip Rivers did what he does, which which is an underrated part of his skill set. He improvises really well, and you don't think of him as kind of an

improv guy. But that Austin Ekeler touchdown, for instance, was him moving up looking to his fourth read, and he just kind of makes something out of nothing on a lot of these plays, and that that's all he needed to do. The Dolphins point differential of minus one seven is the worst three four games of season since at least nineteen forty. The previous worst nineteen Redskins minus one two. So the Dolphins have blown them out of the water. I mean, they are going to set some records, not

the ones that they were. They're gonna be tweeting out for the next and again, Rose like Rosen started out the game well six or six two yards and a touchdown. They didn't punt or turn the ball over in the first half. I mean, their offense played pretty well in the first half. And still when you look at this Dolphins team, I think maybe the most frustrating thing is all the guys that in theory would you would want

to be core guys are playing terrible. I mean, Charles Harris, their defensive end is doing nothing, Kalen Blige is doing nothing. Jerome Baker and the cfl Um linebacker that they were all excited going into the season. They're not playing well like the the young guys who you would want to be building around are are some of the most disappointing players. And so that's like an extra layer of pain for

this team that was. That's now a hundred and twenty regular season wins for Phil Rivers, the first he ever had in Miami. His quote, it has been a long time. Myself, I haven't played worth a hoot. They're the last two times rough days for us. It was good to win it bad. You know, this game was a hoot. Yeah, I don't know. Just rolling up on him, I mean, he was about perfect today. Sunday Night Football. The seconds left on the park is to be the last player

of the game. Jack Prescott in the gun, three seasons to the far side, takes the snap, say spring five. Prescott's on is this one. It's not even gonna get to the end zone. It has intercepted. Marcus william and the New Orleans Saints take this one from the Dallas

Cowboys twelve to ten on a phenomenal defensive performance. Oh yes, Marcus Williams, there is life after the Minneapolis miracle, Zack Street Saints Radio Network with the call an excellent defensive effort by New Orleans who get that final stop on the Dak Prescott tail Mary closing it out a twelve to ten win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, a game in which Teddy Bridgewater again stepping in for

Drew Brees. The Saints didn't light it up on offense, but west when they needed the defense to step up, they sure did, and a great Cowboys offense really had no answers tonight. We were questioning a few weeks ago if they should be going with Taysom Hill instead of Teddy Bridgewater, and Teddy hasn't played great, but this team is now two and o with upbre in. The two teams they've beaten haven't lost anyone else. I think Saints fans would have been happy splitting these last two games

if you told them that a few weeks ago. And now they're sitting pretty and you can't say enough about

their defense, their leadership, their coaches. To to win against on the road at Seattle, and then to beat a Dallas team that looked gangbusters through three weeks, it is to come to come down an earth game for the Kellen Moore in this Cowboys offense, I mean any thought that, Okay, hey, we haven't really we played three of the worst defenses in the league, and now they come out, they put up ten points, They put up two d fifty yards. This is very similar to the Cowboys Saints game last year,

which was thirteen to ten. This is twelve to ten. Both games had under five hundred yards of total offense. Neither of these teams moved the ball. But the Saints are loving it because I think the Saints and what we saw today with the Bucks game, and we saw in Packers Eagles, and we've seen you have to be able to win different sorts of games. I think there's no you're not gonna win just with defense or just

with the offense. You've gotta be able to adapt. And the Saints have shown that they can win with Chimara and a little bit of magic, a little bit of situational football. I thought that against Seattle in Seattle last week, the Saints control the line of scrimmage with their defense early and they made life very tough for Seattle's ground game. And then in this it translates again one point nine

yards per carry for Zekiel who never plot unhooked. And the Saints teams of olds that we covered for years. If you said New Orleans is gonna score twelve points of Teddy Bridgewater, no way do they win those games. They're a much more balanced team. They're well built in any victory with Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback, it's a coude at this point to go to and Oh on this journey so far, they're gonna run away with this division

if they keep like we said. Teddy was up and down in this game, and his worst moment UH came in his final possession, his last snap. They are in field goal range up two points UH, and he gets overwhelmed by a strong uh Dallas pass rush, loses about fourteen yards on a sack. Instead of having Will Lutts, who's almost automatic, attempting to put you up five, you have to punt it away and the Cowboys take over

fairly deep in their own end. However, in addition to the failure to get into field goal range, as you heard the interception there that sealed the game. Tyrone Smith, the star left tackle for the Cowboys, Jerry Jones said after the game has a high ankle sprain, and we talked about high uncle springs a terrible injury because you never know how how much time it could cost you. But they tend to linger. It's the same type of

injury that se Quon Barkley has. Well. Now, uh, the blindside protector of the vaunted Dallas offensive line could be on the shelf for some time. We'll have to see how that plays out. That's that is a massive lot. I mean, that was a terrible moment for the Cowboys and they play against the Darius Smith and Preston Smith in that Green Bay Packers defense next week. I mean,

that's so that's why we like the NFL. It flips pretty quickly that the Cowboys suddenly okay, they've they've got some issues to work out, the Saints of feeling good. I liked what Daniel Jeremiah I know, um, you know you've taken some shots at him Dan on this episode. I liked what he tweeted earlier today, which was essentially, don't put much stock into the previous month. What's happened the preseason sort of over that most of these teams

and the players have knocked the rust off. You've kind of put out the tape, the tape into the ether, like Kellen Moore that now other teams have a feel of Okay, what's this team doing this year? And moving forward you kind of this is where we start learning about teams. I think there's a lot to that. You don't like to think that the last month was meaningless, but there's some of that that the teams are going

to be so different. And that's why, especially for the Saints team that doesn't have breeze, it doesn't matter how you're winning these games, just stacking up wins. His math be as ugly as you need to be get to win, and like at just the fact that that division is crumbling around them to some degree. To the Bucks next week that Teddy Teddy said to Michelle Tafoya after the game, no one said it had to be pretty. It was not.

But the Saints are feeling good right now and as we hit the quarter pole of the season, and we're gonna talk more about it this week on the Around the NFL podcast, which is the show we're doing right now. I don't know I'm saying it like I'm talking about a different show. This is the round. The NFL is so wide open after this preseason part two. Once you get past the only two undefeated team, well there's three, including the Niners, but the Patriots in chiefs. It's really

hard to figure out who's the true power players. But a Saints performance like this with Drew Brees getting closer, you feel confident having them obviously in that conversation, and the Cowboys as well, winner lose today, uh, you feel good that these are two the best teams in the league. Absolutely. I think when you look at the league as a whole, is there even a third good team in the a f C. That's a question I would have. Well, I also want to see the Cowboys like perform against other

competent defenses in the roster. Is we know this this is a playoff caliber team. I don't think one loss at New Orleans changes, but I want to see their offense against more quality defense, just absolutely to see what they do. And I wouldn't worry about records at this point at all, because I take a Philadelphia Eagles team over other teams with better records right now because they've played through a lot of ups and downs and they

what they did in Green Bay was huge. Okay, program note before we sign off, a reminder that a week from Friday, October eleven at the Curtain and Shortitch, London, England. Around the NFL podcast is live and tickets go on sale Tuesday this Tuesday, seven pm GMT plus one. I don't know what that means. I'm just reading the copy and I hope it's very clear what that means, seven pm GMT plus one on Tuesday, tickets go on sale.

Where do we have a We have a link yet it has not been announced yet, so where can people find it? Where will you should be looking at our our socials personals. We will, we will make you have another show or two. Tickets will go quickly, so be sharp on Tuesday. All right, that's it. Then hands a signing off for Quiet Storm, the Mailman, the Old Boss, Ricky Hollywood, Ryan Bartlett and the whole team behind the glass. Thank you to everyone until Tuesday. M