2021 Week 1 Recap - Everything We Thought We Knew Was Wrong

That first Sunday is a glorious thing because what it does is it up ends all of the various offseason narratives, all the things that we all and not just the three of us, everyone is so sure of. So many things get up ended totally based on one game of football. All and as we go through the games today, Mark, that's what we're gonna see a lot of stories or a lot of ideas about teams that we thought we kind of had a beat on. We do not have a beat. And that's one of the beauties of the

actual playing of the games. You quietly want to get to Week two because it is sort of an unmasking of the entire um public that covers football. It's like, wait a minute, you've been talking for seven months about, um, these rock solid takes in life scenarios that you're shore going to unfold on a football field, and you've been proven wrong most most all of you. Um and if not this week, next week. But I think also it's

like week one. And I'll say this real quick, but like you come out of it, maybe a couple of teams today thought, you know, we're not a very good team. You have a win today, you're feelings kind of you're playing with house money. If you come out with a loss, you're like, wait a minute, this is back in my life. This little amount of sports heartbreak that has been gone not you know, it hasn't been trenchant and it is stabbing you. I mean it's not. It's like those feelings

come back your teams. So I'm talking about a lot of things today because as a group, we took a huge, massive l various territories. Oh what a tough what a tough star for the pod. We got swept on our lock predictions. This really again builds back back into the La rabio magnifico of the entire experience. All of our favorite teams lost, the Patriots, the Jets, the Broncos one, so one of our that's shoe. Congratulations on that, Greg.

Even the Titans went down. The grave Digger takes an l The grave Digger was on a massive winning streak in life until now. Now it's all downhill. The Bengals one and maybe West in our first season without the man watched it somewhere. I like it. He has like a drink in his hand. He watched it, and maybe he's building a new dossier. Why I'm falling back in love with the Bengals. Who knows, But good day for Cincinnati uh football fans. Greg. We're gonna dig into the games.

Do you have anything you want to share before we get role now? I just want to clarify when you say you know for one more week, you said you know some hear us for one more week. We're all gonna be here for one more week. We're gonna be virtual for one more week. We'll be back in person. I'm just don't want anyone to be worried that one of us. Do I have to with the dead hands is don't spit in the sky. I hope we're all

back together next week. All right, let's get into it, and Mark, we gotta start where we gotta start, and that is Arrowhead in the game pup faking is Mayfield. Now we'll throw it to the left flat. It's gonna be an accepted in accepted on the far side, I might choose. In its first National Football League game with the Chiefs, the former Viking first round pick pitched it off and the Chiefs are gonna pull this game out

after trailing for fifty three game minutes. Mitch Holt is with the call w D A F and welcome back Sam Spence in the NFL most beautiful music in the twentieth century. Patrick Homes through for three seven yards of three scores, and yes, Mike Hughes ice the game with an i nt of Baker Mayfield in the final minute to lift the defending a f C champions to eight thirty three win over the visiting grounds market. It was It's just so damn hard to beat the Kansas City Chiefs.

The margin of error is so small, especially in that building. Yeah, I mean, we were texting throughout and I tried to not bug you guys too much about it, um, but you could. I you know, I thought the Cleveland answered out of the gate. Um many questions about who they could be this season. I mean, their first half they were perfect. If they played every half of football three straight, three straight touchdown drives that I thought marked them as

their characteristics are aggressive. Um, they're gonna go edgy, They're gonna they're gonna dump the whole playbook to beat who they need to beat. And the strategy clearly was, we know Kansas City, even though they were held to ten points in the first half, they will score and so we can never take or foot off the pedal. But if you're the Browns, you're not the Chiefs, and you just cannot let the mistakes start to creep in. And I could feel the game getting away from them bit

by bit. It was the uncharacteristic Chubb fumble. Um with about two minutes into the third quarter. Okay, you have the Tyreek Hill mystifying John Johnson on that seventy five yard touchdown that made Jamie Gillen, the Browns very reliable punter a year ago, botching the long snap as as Arrowhead was going absolutely nuts. I mean, the crowd was

a huge factor. And then you know, I thought there were little tiny moments like the shot to Anthony Schwartz, the rookie who played really well for the Browns, broken up by wan thorn Hill. It's just Cleveland started to not close drives. When Myles Garrett sacked Patrick Mahomes though they had a chance. There was a moment that just reminded you of last year. And I know this game is not I don't care about the Baker Mayfiel interception, but it happened, and the drive ended that way, the

game ended that way. I thought that Baker Mayfield, there might have been a little part of him that was trying to throw that ball out of bounds, but he got caught up. Um Dan Sorenson grabbed his foot a little bit. You know, he can answer that question. But it wasn't some sort of dunderheaded um ill equipped quarterback mistake. But it was his one poor throw of the entire day. I mean, he really was almost perfect um outside of

a couple of little misques. And I thought that overall, you could look at the Browns and say, wait a minute, this team, actually, for the first time in about twenty years, is picking up and building off where they were a year ago. But so were the Chiefs and Travis Kelsey

and Tyreek Hill were completely unstoppable, especially Travis Kelsey. It's it reminded me very much of January's game in that sense, no matter who Cleveland added on defense, I think, if you go best, who are the best combos of quarterback and receiver? And I know he's a tight end, but you know as a pass catcher, ever, at least in my lifetime, I think about Montana and Rice and then you think about maybe a d In Moss in that magical year of two thousand seven. I gotta put my

Homes and Kelsey right there. And I'm I'm watching the game, and I have a soft spot for the Browns because of Mark. So you're rooting for the Browns, but I'm thinking to myself, God, geez, I mean, imagine being a Browns fan of being this close to getting over the hump against a team like this, and every time you try to get a big spot, these guys are doing these outrageous plays. And I know Kelsey wasn't a flashy,

but he got his big go ahead touchdown. But the Mahomes, These plays that Mahomes makes when he rolled to his right, and you mentioned the touchdown when Johnson got caught I guess snapping, but he gets flushed all the way to the right, falling out of bounds, seventy five yard touchdown. That's just we've never seen that from a quarterback. And that's the type of play that no team could stop, not not the Browns, not anybody, but I guess Greg

for me. The thing with the Browns in terms of they did get the ball back, they got the big play from Miles Garrett, but just like last year, they've see title game when they couldn't put together that last drive. They couldn't put together the final drive. So it's like finishing. That's maybe the last part of this for the Browns in terms of being a true Super Bowl contender. Right, you turn the ball over twice and I don't even know if that includes them not being able to get

the pun off. I think it does. That is a turnover. You're not gonna You're not gonna win this game. They they had the recipe to do it. They did the whole short in the game thing. The the Chief's got eight drives in this game. The Brown's got nine. And I always say, well, that sounds good, but you have to you know, don't shorten the time you're gonna lose. The Browns are so efficient on offense, it makes more sense for them, like when you can go touchdown, touchdown, touchdown.

Unfortunately they can't finish off that long drive in the end of the second quarter. Then that shortening the game thing works. You Like, you look at the score thirty three to twenty nine, like you would never think that each team only had eight or nine possessions. It's crazy. And so then it comes down to one play. Baker Mayfield's not gonna make the crazy play like Mahomes did.

And defensively, I know that Chiefs weren't great, but ultimately you call a safety blitz, you get Daniel Soremston to hit Baker Mayfield on that play. He was trying to throw it out of bounds. I mean, there was no question about that. Romo said that, Mayfield confirmed it after the game. You know, looked pretty clear. So I have no reason to doubt, you know, Baker saying that, and

then and that's your ball game. Like it just you're right about the margin for air because they essentially played their game, by the way without Oldo Beckham, they kind of they had faked everyone pretty well there. I was wondering, and then people sounded so calm. I was like, this guy isn't taking a hit or played full contact once in practice, and everyone seems so confident he's playing, and they had faked him. He wasn't out playing because he's not ready to play, which is which is a concern.

I mean he hasn't fully practiced, like really practiced one time. Yeah, and and they're being careful, and clearly week two is the big It's going to be the big thing to watch with Odell because if he's not playing week two, then you start to be like, oh, is there a little hitch in this that we didn't know about and they've been keeping under under wraps. I loved Baker in this game, Mark, I thought, yes, the last turnover aside,

he made so many big money throws. I thought Tony Romo And by the way, I kind of I see what you're talking about with Oh my god, he's so and I get it. Part of what makes Tony Romo experience so great is his infections. He's so infectious. His joy for the sport comes through. And who brings more joy to a football fan than Patrick Mahomes, So that makes sense. It checks out. It's not like anti Browns.

But when Patrick Mahomes is on the other side and he's Michael Jordan's like, we're in the we're just starting out Michael Jordan's career. Play this. But but you can sense though it's not it's really not a Romo thing, because I thought Romo actually did a ton of homework on Cleveland and couldn't have been more complimentary about aspects

of the Browns too. So I'm not trying to be some homer, but it's the two straight Browns games in a row, and these games turn out to be like three and a half hours now we're so we're talking seven hours of Romo gushing over Mahomes. I just need a little bit of a different scenario next week. That's all Patrick Mahomes in September and his career. And sometimes you can chop these stats up and it's like, alright, September, well, that's the least important month of the year, if you

want to look at it that way. Whatever, this is the craziest stat I've ever heard in football history. Nine and oh okay whatever, thirty five touchdowns. WHOA, that's a lot for a month that only has four months typically zero zero interceptions. This guy, we might be watching the best quarterback ever. Ye it's in the county. I told I told you that after what season? Now you do that and when you come out of this game, though, Mark, I'm sure you feel a lot of things, but you

in Joco backed up what you heard in camp. Schwartz makes some plays that's big. You didn't even have O B J out there. I think the probably the number one thing, you know, just not having watched it as close as you is. Ultimately, the offense did get three cracks in the fourth quarter, so it's not just that he couldn't get the ball out of You are an offensive team in the offense, but great overall today. But you've got three cracks in a row that didn't go

anywhere and when it matters. So that's right, it is, and I you know it's we see this in sports all the time where team A is trying to get over team B. And you know, the Browns and Chiefs are not died in the world rivals, but of recent times they are in Cleveland's not quite there yet. It

was the one game I watched today. You know that I watched closely where the crowd made a huge impact and we kind of forgot about that obviously last year, but Baker Mayfield couldn't hear at times there were penalties driven drummed up by that, so it was a huge factor as well. The hope here is that you are the late eighties Bulls and the chiefs of the Pistons and you will get over that hump. But every every champion has to do it. And that's what the Browns

are trying to do. That's what the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Buffalo Bills are trying to do. Get past the cheese. But first they had to deal with each other. Formation maybe touched up the Bill Hill grow w d V with the call the Steelers is still the mother Flippings Steelers, Mike Tomlins, the smothered Josh Allen and Company, and Ulysses Gilbert gotta we need more Ulysses in the world. Gilbert

returned a blockbunt nine yards for the score. Pittsburgh rally for over the Bills in Orchard Park, and they got

to do that thing. It's the best thing, It's the most rewarding thing as a fan when you your team goes on the road, enemy territory in a very hostile environment, and you deliver a kick ass performance and the game's over with like three or four minutes left in the game, and you see the comeback from commercial they're doing there like the subway add graphic on top, and then you just see all the people leaving the stadium because you've

ended this. Not only did you defeat the home team, you you way the will and the spirit of the fans and you sent them back to the parking lots. But it didn't seem like it was headed that way because the Steelers were down ten zip in this game, um, and it was a very slow start. The Pittsburgh offense had three first downs and fifty four net yards on its first six possessions. It basically looked like, oh, here

we go again. That collapse of the offense in the last season didn't matter that Matt Canada is now in the building. Uh, and you're ready to blame Canada nailed it, um, But guess what they get hot? They scoring each of their first four possessions In the second half, Ben Roethlisberg makes a bunch of big time throws, big bend type throws and your defense does the rest. And Greg, this is a Bill's offense. We talked about this on the Thursday Preview podcast. A Bill's offense that shredded top ten

units all last year. Uh, and they could not get anything going, especially like big strike plays. They couldn't get anything going against the Pittsburgh d And that bodes very well for the Steelers going forward. I mean, not nine targets for Stefan Diggs sixty nine yards, twelve targets for Beasley catches eight of them for sixty but you know, so that's seventeen throws to their best two players. None

of those plays went over thirteen yards. There, You know, no one, no one can like, look at the Steelers game plan of the last two times we played the Bills and exactly copy it because they don't have the bones and they don't have the players and everything that the Steelers have. But the Steelers defense did a fantastic job against Buffalo in Week fifteen for about three quarters last year, and the offense so bad that they just eventually buckled. And then they do it again here Josh

Allen averaging five point three yards per tempt. T J. Watt comes comes off, you know, this contract that he signed since we last spoke, massive deal and immediately shows up with five QB hits. I mean that is that is next level. That is, hey, I'm the best defensive player in the league type of stuff, and getting a

road win. I mean that it makes does make you think a little differently about the Steelers right off the bat well, and especially their defense, which I think we were noting that their defense was going to be a positive factor, but like Kim Hayward looked fantastic from some stuff I saw, you know, last last year when they played each other, the Steelers were starting to become mired in their in their woes. I mean, they still ran the ball today for what like under three yards per

carry or something. If there was the usually the game would have been over at halftime because the Steelers offense was so bad. But they they almost worked out of all the issues and problems that we had hampered them with and mentioned, um almost in like in a micro

causing way, inside this one game. I mean, I look around the league, I'm not sure there's a more If you're a Steelers fan, you could be as happy as any fan base in the entire league with what happened to because we were talking about the Bills as a lock and load a f C title team. Josh Allen did not play well today and the defense sort of

the Steelers defense controlled the game. To me, it leaves me with a little bit of concern about the Bills in general, just that you mentioned this, and it's then it's not like we want to, you know, grip onto this yet, but can you really expect it to be quite as perfect and flawless as they were a year ago, because that just doesn't happen to offenses typically, and the Bills had only done that for one season, and that is and yeah, we're not going down that road and

saying that teams have figured out the Bills, but teams did have an entire offseason to study what works so well for Brian Dable and now they have more tape based on what happened in this game. Now that said, I will say this, and the Steelers deserve all the credit in the world that defense is what they did today.

But the Bills had opportunities to I mean, there were there were plays left on the field in this game early on, especially where this could be that if they execute they the way they did when they were in top gear for most of last season. Like they did last year, It's probably a different outcome, but that just

is not the way it worked out. And I guess Mark you already answered the question, but Greg I was, I'll ask you this game does it does it strike you as something I could changes the way you feel about the Steelers more um or on the other side of his the Bills that do you now have more doubt? Or is this just one week and we'll leave it here? Doesn't change how I feel about the Bills at all.

You outgained the Steelers by twenty yards. Your defense held the Steelers to two hundred and fifty yards, which is, you know, next level. Ben Roethlisberger is getting a lot of slings and arrows from most people watching this game. It's a great defense. It's it's one home l I'm not worried about Buffalo at all, but it does give you a frisky feeling if you're a Pittsburgh team, that you're gonna be able to maybe win some games in different types of ways, and that people are digging their grave.

I mean, Damna check is tweeting up a storm. I've seen I've I've been I monitored Damna check tweets because he targets certain things that I care about, um, and he seems to go off on those things in a very unmerciful fashion. But um, he was a happy boy today. So I'm happy for Scheck. You know, I can. You know you're not. You know, I'm fine. And first of all, you knocked off a Bill's team. That's gonna be right

there too. This is one of those games where whoever loses, Like if you think of your own team as a contender, it's not a total loss, right, But like you could say, just like certain when you have your favorite team, there's always one other team that if you lost and then may one, it makes the day that much worse than they're extremely annoying. They're extremely annoying. Still a lot of football left, and in a lot of ways, Mark, you could look at this way, with the added game to

the season, the season hasn't even started yet. That's that's how long the season is now. That does not help me at all emotionally. Eighteen weeks. All right, let us move by the way, shout out Kicker club popping bottles, Chris Bobswell was excellent in this game. Hit all three field goal attempts, including the game ceiling forty yard or with two forty two to play. Just a really solid strong clothes to that game. It was Pittsburgh Steelers football.

Let's head to Indie second down and twenty rush steps off of the pocket and he's gonna let fly Fields got him out overlock it ten fun stuckles, he's touched down, Steve Rabel with the call. Russell Wilson through four touchdown passes, including that sixty nine yard hook up with Tyler Lockett as the Seahawks coasted went over the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Greg, the new partnership between dangerous an offensive

coordinator Shane Waldron is off to a tremendous start. You almost are, you know, as a football fan, a little worried that this went too well for Seattle. I mean, this was Pete Carroll's like dream game. Russell Wilson barely throwing the ball at all while they win comfortably. He threw twenty three passes for two and fifty four yards. And that wasn't like, hey, we got a big lead and sat on it. He that was where he was

like halfway through the game. He was like nine for eleven at half time, And yeah, that that works out, okay when like you can hit bombs. One team's explosive. One teams not Tyler Lockett. You know, four for a hundred, but almost all of those are in two catches, you know, too long touchdown catch. Just you know, one of the most underrated receivers in the league. He's been called that for so long. I'd like to think he's not still underrated. Like I don't know that. I think he's a top

ten type of receiver. And he wasn't. He wasn't in that, he wasn't in the top one. Um. And it was pretty cake city, Like they they had the explosive players, and I just don't see the explosive players on Indianapolis's offense right now. Yet they had to work really hard to move the ball up and down the field. It didn't help that the Colts to ne Xavier Rhods out there played well last year. Um, they just weren't last year's defense, which was so reliably, you know, for stretches,

totally dominant. I think it's a huge development for Seattle that Russell Wilson's, you know, happily employed in an offense where he can throw four touchdowns. They didn't need him to do everything. They looked dominant. I mean, and there it sounded like from some of the stuff that like Seattle's own defensive front really handled the cults. It's just uh, I mean, whence though, did you did look to you Spry? Did he look healthy? He had a couple of a

couple of throws, he was on the running. Looked good to me, it was. That's a surprisingly good performance from Carson Wentz. I actually thought Wentz was the least of their problems. So if if you're looking for a bright side as a Colts fan, you just were reminded, like, oh yeah, Frank Greik's awesome, Like he put went in

positions to succeed with open receivers. The problem is it when it's third and long and you're always running screens or you're always throwing short of the sticks and you're kind of counting on the play call to get it done for you, Like, that's a hard way to beat good teams. But you're right. The Seattle defensive line I think is sneaky good. They're very deep, They won their

matchups against the Colts offensive line. For the most part, I thought Wentz handled about as well as he could, but ultimately, like they did not score for most of this game. They had a big drive early and a drive late when it didn't matter, and ultimately couldn't score. India doesn't have big time splash players. I like Taylor needs to be Taylor. Yeah. I like Michael Pittman as a pros fact. I know t Y Hilton. He'll come back eventually, but he's also you know, up there now.

Jonathan Taylor is their big playmaker and held down obviously here. He had seventeen carries, never a bigger play than twelve yards average three and a half yards carried to hem Himes. He didn't do much either. So if they can't get the running game going, you're in that situation and where you're putting a lot on a passing attack that you know is obviously a work in progress right now. Um, but that would be I guess the positive to take

out of the game. Greg. If you're saying that Wentz did not look lost, I kind of thought they were gonna come out of this game and he would have been limping around and playing poorly because he doesn't know the the offense well enough because of a lack of reps. So it looks like he wasn't the problem. And you got to give credit to Seattle's defense, which they took

care of business, especially in the trenches. Ten ten QB hits and when said three sacks, you know, if you look at the stats and went ends up with like a twenty six QVR, that looks like more of the same. Maybe it's the low expectations, but it just didn't feel like he was their problem. Their offensive line, though, could

be a long term problem. You know, Eric Fisher didn't play in this game, but you know, asking that guy to come off the achilles, you know, an achilles injury and save your season at left tackle um might not do it. So they gotta play a lot better. But I'd feel very good if I'm Seattle that the NFC West looks preposterously good right now. Quentin Nelson make it through that game, by the way, he had the bad back.

Yeah he played all right, let us now move to the NFC and uh yeah, this one was a stunner to me. Straight back in the pocket, he's looking deep. His name for Deontay Harris, He's open and Deonte makes the Cats see you later, bar touchdown. Saints, my coss, your hoss with the call w w L. Jameis Winston was lazik focused in his debut as the Saints QB one, throwing five touchdown passes and a glorious I mean I turned this game off at three? Is that where it finished? Three?

Romp over Aaron Rodgers and the packers at the Saints temporary home in Jacksonville. Um, whoa, Mark and I locked up the pack and guess what we're eating the poop on this one, buddy boy. And and uh and good good for the people of New Orleans dealing with the destruction of Hurricane Ida. They get to sit down if they were able to watch the watch this game and they're treated to it. Just a brilliant performance all around. And and Winston, he was tremendous. But he was not alone.

I thought their front seven, the secondary, the coaching staff, um even uh. Sean Payton called out the operations department for the Saints after the game for everything they had done behind the scenes to make this process moving from New Orleans to Duval to get set up here they obviously did brilliant work because the team looked comfortable and ready to play, and the Packers, quite frankly, Mark, they look stunned. Uh. It was a buzz all game, straight up. Yeah.

It's like I I was tracking this and I looked at you know, minutes into the third quarter, they put a graphic up noting that New Orleans had had twenty six plays in Green Bay territory where the Packers in reverse it had to uh, you know, and they were back to back horrid picks by Aaron Rodgers, who you know. And Aaron Rodgers obviously has had a rough offseason, a weird offseason. He looked a little just despondent to me when I when I noted him during the Bruce Arians disease.

I don't know, it doesn't seem like I'm one that should be calling these things out because I probably was totally wrong about Bruce Arians, but he just, you know, it seemed obviously given it the probably after the Super Bowl championship, some hope that you were right, and that well I pack into I always still pack into that Arians is broadcasting stint where he seemed very bored to me, so that I I didn't think I got parts of it to your point, like the fact that Aaron Rodgers

is now looking like a more fit version of the big Lebowski, Like he just he just looks like the dude with the long hair and the beard. Well tell me about his I did not watch this one yards at half. But by the way, Winston had sixty five and became the first quarterback like in the modern era to throw five touchdowns but less than a hundred and fifty yards. So this was a weird one field position baby, because it's not like Alvin Kamara had a massive game either, right,

is is did he like does play bad? Was the offensive line? But I am stunned when when Aaron Rodgers averages under five yards per attempt. You know, hey, they could not get anything. They could not get anything going in this game. And you you know, you're used to like what we saw, for instance, with Baker and the Browns for most of that game, the mistakes notwithstanding where they're just getting whenever they need a conversion of just

going up and down the field. That's all we saw from Aaron Rodgers and the Packers for the majority of last season too, So to see them in third and longs and to see him, uh, you know, have a miscommunication downfield leading to an interception, to see Adams not be able to get the big third down conversion. I mean, where's Randall Cobb the security blanket that Rogers wind about to get him back? For much of that game that

I noted, he was not on the field. So it was just everything came very difficult for and I think, and again you don't want to make too much about week one, but I think things snowballed. I think it was one of those things where you got off to slow start and you're like, all right, we're down three. Huh, we're down ten. Whoa, We're down seventeen. It's like, oh, we get this score, will be back in the game. Oh I just threw an interception. Oh and then they

went down to score again. Now it's over. It was like one of those type of games. So, yes, bad start for the Packers. And all though, thinking about all those fans Green Bay fans, like we you know, I've always wanted to go with my boy to Lambo and we never can get the tickets. But we found a way. We're going to Jacksonville. There's no Christmas this year. But we're going to Jacksonville, you're going home early to the parking lot, to the old parking lot walk. But what

was the what was the crowd breakdown there? Because we asked that on last week if we thought it would be, would they get you know, eighty they said the Saints that Sean Payton actually went on to like um expedia to look for the most impossible, most expensive locale for Packers fans to actually have to go see a game. So did that work? Was it? No Saints fans? I wish I could tell you. I wasn't plugged in too

much on that. And again it's harder to hear. You could hear their cheers, but there was a lot of Green Bay fans, but since they had nothing to cheer about, very quickly that became not even issue or anything anything anybody we're talking about. But didn't hear a peep from Packers fans after about four minutes in. But that last the highlight you heard of the bomb touchdown. That was just the exclamation point um for what was just just couldn't get better. You can't get any better for the

Saints after what's been a really tough month for the team. Uh, I think that's a factor. I think it's a factor. I mean you can never you can never break this down analytically. But in a game like football, like where it helps if you have something more to play for and you have a coach like Sean Payton, who if you listen to these players, especially all weeks ever since the stormy, they seem like a team. They seem like they have a purpose. I think that helps you. And

they got a quarterback who's got Lasik surgery. That helps you too. The old Jamis Winston you can make fun of, uh, you know, the best shape of his life. Thing. All you want wasn't running six for six times for thirty seven yards. So that has nothing to do with the lace. That has to do with the body. And this team has a little bit of a higher purpose and maybe maybe that along with like an amazing, amazing offensive line, can can carry you pretty far. The Saints did not

punt in the first half. Chris Hogan had a touchdown. He's a lacrosse player, right, I just want to read you, like, after all the callaway excitement, he went one for four seed. I mean they're leading receivers where Deonte Harris Juwan Johnson converted, you know, tight end, Deonte Harris, Adam Troutman, Callaway and Hogan. I mean, they didn't need to throw the ball much. The way they played it was such a weird game boys that I don't really know what to make sense

of it for anyone involved. But all I can know is that it was a really nice day for the Saints and their fans, and a really crappy one back there. The only downside is it was such a blowout. Sometimes you can kind of skip the fourth quarter of a game pass, even when that happened. But I want to

see Jordan's love Jordan. I want to see Jordan's love and see how he looked down and all those, although I know in the condensed version you won't get to see it as much, but a lot of salty shots of the of the Big Love Bowski Part two on the sideline too. Well, you know some of the way they edit some of those game pass you know, in forty minutes in quotes um games, you might see a

ton of it. Oh man, Like I'm just I'm here for the Aaron Rodgers, like press conferences and whatnot, Like if this, if this is a rocky up and down season, but it's a little early. They also didn't there are another one of those teams that didn't play any steps. I'm gonna be selective because teams that played well when they didn't do that in preseason. It's like there were plenty of the Chargers played fine, but they did not play a snap in the preseason. They did not look

ready here. There were also reports one little thing that the Broncos are interested in trading for Aaron Rodgers after this season and have talked to Green Bay about it. So maybe not after today, but I don't I would assume they don't such a knee jerk reaction scenario inside the idea. I saw it on Twitter somewhere that what if this is the ultimate endgame for Aaron Rodgers is going to just totally destroy the Packers with a terrible season. Checkmate,

let's move on back golf time. Golf throws off what laughed into the ground and can play no flags down good forty dinerss. We'll get out of this with a victory. Greg Papa with the call and Tim Ryan with oh my goodness. K n b R defense stepped up when it mattered most forcing an incompletion by Jared Gotham fourth Dace secure thirty three win over the Lions at board Field. San Francisco led thirty eight ten early in the fourth quarter, but allowed Detroit to score twenty three on answered in

three plus minutes. What Mark has a die hard Kyle Shanahan as a man who believes the Niners are gonna win all this year. How nervous were you at the end of this one? A weird game, just a very strange game in the in the second half. Answer the questions. I was not nervous on any level like that. That's not something that's going to really. It was more just like, you know, I'm watching two games at once. I'm taking endless notes. But suddenly, you know, like you're you're with

the Packers Saints game. I kind of checked out of the Niners game a little bit, right, but then suddenly like they have a two point they get a touchdown in Jamal Williams touchdown, get the two point conversion unfurling on side's kick that the flex off of George Kittle, It's still out of reach that point. You think, well, as a little bit of a mistake, Uh, this is not an issue to deal with. But then suddenly Quentin Sefas has a touchdown, he has a two point conversion.

They go for the on sides again and they don't get it. It's forty one thirty three with a minute six left. Then Deebo Samuel loses the ball and Jared Goff start making it, starts making a couple of incredible throws, and you're thinking, this can happen. And you know, one of the questions I had about the Lions was with how short staff they look as an offensive team in general, they can look like they can run the ball and if their line holds up. You know, Penei sewell, Pride

played pretty well today. That would be a note, But they seem like a team that was sort of built to be, you know, within a score or leading the way that they are in their wide receiver group. But they kind of came up big today down the stretch. And I still chalk it up as a strange game because you know, outside of the Niners, you know, allowing that then back in they dominated early on and we saw a little bit of Jalen Hurts. He came in and threw a five yard touchdown pass um They didn't

use him a ton. He had made a run as well, But Jimmy G. This is the formula. It's sort of like when Jimmy G is playing as well as he did today, he didn't make any killer mistakes. He's probably gonna see more of the playtime until they get a couple of weeks into this season. It sounds like what they did in that one preseason game against the Raiders, were they both kind of plaid equal time may not be on the shelf yet, but you know what, who knows.

I believe that Trey Lance got in the game, not Jalen Hurts, right, Yes, that would be more of a story if it suddenly Jalen Hurts were in dressed in red and gold. It was how did it all like? Unfur light? The box score tells me that Trey Lance through one pass and it was a touchdown. But this is Jimmy G's offense for most of the way. It looks like, yeah, they used them really early, um and he and that they didn't really use them much ever. Again,

so he came in. They pulled Jimmy G from you know, five yards out and then there were a lot of comments about what a gentleman Jimmy g Is and how such a good sports You're going to hear that a lot. Well, he's hugging each other. One killer thing for the Niners. Like late in this game when some people were maybe tuning out, Jason Varette got hurt and it sounds serious, and that's a killer loss for them in the secondary right, they just um you know, had given him, you know,

a contract to come back. He was a great story for them. I think that's their thinnest position to begin with, and so that that's a big downer. They lose wheheaem Moster. In this game, they surprised a lot of fantasy football owners by uh scratching tray sermon their third round pick that a lot of people drafted pretty high. I thought was gonna uh step up, and incomes Elijah Mitchell and he runs for a hundred and four yards. This is

just like the forty Diners. You can put in anyone at running back and he's gonna run for a hundred and four yards. So he will undoubtedly be everyone's first like fantasy waiver wire, unless there's another obvious one that I'm not thinking about. Deebo Samuel had a huge game. We we've always liked Deebo around these parts, and he went off twelve target targeted twelve times, more than double anybody else, including George Kittle. Um, I don't even see

Brandon Aiyuk in the in the box score mark. Well, no, it really went. It was all Samuel and Kiddle. Samuel at a d eighty nine yards and a like a seventy something yard touchdown looks great outside that fumble that you know, had he not fumbled there, that game would have been over. Created a little bit more drama, but Samuel is a real deal. Kittle. Kittle looked looked really good too, as he normally does, but there wasn't really

much else out there sherefield. I thought, how did He's the one that had the traide Lands touchdown and looked pretty good in a smaller role. They barely used a Yuk. They kind of decided to ease him back in from like a hamstring injury. I really think they managed this gap and who knows about most there, like how serious it was because they were playing the Lions, you know that was part of it. I think they decided not to risk Ayuke and figure you can win without him.

This week and welcome back Nick Bosa coming back from the a c L last year early last year, he came back four tackles, a sack, three tackles for lost, two QB hits, keep keeps left tackle by all accounts, played very well against Bosa for the most part. He looked like they maybe they just got injured into making the right decision, like don't don't put Er comes back and you you just kick him to the right. Yeah,

I mean he's plus. Wouldn't wouldn't like a veteran like him be more well suited to be able to change business, which which player is is more tied to your future. Let's put sewell where he feels at home. And he looked much better than he did in the preseason. I do like the idea of every once in a while this happens where there's a quarterback and a crappy team and he just has a marvelous fantasy season. Jared Goff

off to a great start, three touchdowns, eight yards. I can't you see him wining some fantasy leagues as his own team goes four and twelve four. I could, but I would say this that like if the game had changed and been a little bit different. You'd also look at the killer interception that he made. He's gonna give one of He's gonna give one of those two every week. But that's what I mean. It's not really about like

Jared fantasy wise. Sure he's putting up some numbers, especially as they try to kind of throw themselves back into games in the second half. Let us move on, snap to Murray, quick throw over the middle. Hopkins has a catch of the tent, turns to his lap at the five and hits Pater touched down DeAndre Hopkins, m Dave Bassard goll k d A R. Guyler Murray five touchdowns total. I forgot. I'm so mad at myself because I had written about it on the thumb website that he was

my m v P sleeper. Why didn't I just write that in the predictions. I don't know. I'm upset. Linebacker Chandler Jones had a career high five sacks. What as the Cardinals chose the Titans as their subject for a nuclear bomb test in the Desert final score thirteen greg. This was played in Arizona. Correct, No, it was in Tennessee. It was a bomb test in they dropped the nucle

or bomb on enemy territory, not their own city. That makes even more al Right, well, you can't scrub it out of the show, Ricky, because it would have been so perfect if it was in Arizona. But anyway, Greg Jones also forced two fumbles that turned into fourteen Arizona points. It sounds like one of the most impactful defensive performances you'll ever see. Did it feel like you watch? It

was insane? I mean, I've never seen a guy like Taylor Luan, who's you know, made some Pro Bowls and whatnot tweet after the game, thanking Chandler Jones for humbling him and and helping him to improve, while also apologizing because you got Ryan tanneheld destroyed. Chandler Jones also had a sack you know, on the other tackle, at least one of them. But it was insane. In the first five plays, he had a tackle for lost. J J. Watt had a tackle for lost, and then Chandler Jones

got the first of his two forced fumbles. It was a bum rush and I'm glad it didn't turn into one of those games where Tennessee made it look more into thing because it wasn't just about um. The the offense, it was. The defense was just flying around and hitting people like football comes down to matchup sometimes, and new Hopkins was destroying Jack Rabbit Jenkins, Chandler Jones, we already mentioned how he was destroying t J. Watt was fine too.

He made a couple of plays. And then Kyler Murray, My god, the two touchdowns he had um one to Nuke where he runs all around, another third and long where he runs where you'll see on every highlight package, where that's just all Kyler Murray. And then a beautiful touchdown to Christian Kirk where they call the right defense. They get free rushers in on him, but he sees it all before the snap and puts it beautiful touch opposite shoulder to Kirk who makes a long touchdown. It

was just like it was amazing. It was just amazing individual performances by their superstars. And I think that's what you could get out of this Arizona Cardinals team. I think if you're a Cardinals fan, you are right up there in the top two or three. That what we're talking about coming out of Week one. UM with your spirits lifted, because they have been taking verbal jab after verbal jab all off season. I think people have been

down on the Cardinals. I've been down on them. I saw them as like an eight eight and one type of team, and a lot of it maybe had to do with the with their finished last year and Murray wasn't healthy. But you know, there were questions about how Cliff Kingsbury ran the offense, and a lot of their offseason signings to me felt like too little, too late, Like you're signing guys who would have been a hot, actual prospect to have on your team three years ago.

But look at it's working, at least at work today. I mean to the point where Mike vrabel is coming out of this game saying, we'll find out now what our culture actually is. I mean, he's been there years that they did this. Rock the foundation of Tennessee that much. Greg. You know, mere days ago you were saying that, you know, the football world is too down on Tennessee. They looked

like a dog locked them up. I locked them up one of the you know, the two of the three of us made some of the worst locks in the history of this program to club. I was all into a terrible switch to go away from my beloved Broncos and I deserve it. Uh. It was just it was crazy and I and I would feel good if you're Arizona because of the players who did show up, Davin Collins, Isaiah Simmons, ron Dale Moore has got some juice, I'm

telling you he he went four for sixty. Some of that was on this phony play at the end of the first half, but there was one other screen pass where they threw it short on third and ten and more had after burners. And you're kind of looking for some other playmakers that we didn't know about in Arizona, and they've got one, I think in ron Dale Moore. And by the way, on the subject of Titanically Lost lock Weeks, the Westling Brothers are in the mix this year,

and they locked up the Steelers. That was they locked up the bill. We might as well have the floor fall entitle. That would have been. Yeah, that was like the most logical one. Also, Julio Jones had kind of a nightmare game here, So I'm not gonna push the panic button. What does that mean? Nightmare? What do you mean by that drop? That led to an interception? Not a lot of separation. Not on the same page with Tannehill in the end zone where Tannehill through a nice

pass that probably should have been a touchdown. You know, six targets for twenty nine yards. Basically as bad a game, you know, as as you would want, like a superstar receiver to have as one game. One game, just one game. And Mike Brabel said after the game, it's unfortunate. It

is disappointing. There's no other way to put it. It sucks when you lose, especially like that, when they're doing a nuclear bomb test, uh in your own area of Nashville, Like, not even in the desert where it's safe and you don't have any homes or apartment buildings or parks or schools. You're doing it straight up in the Nashville area. The crowds were going. The crowd was like stunned. They were booing, they were so ready to enjoy this game, and they

were just like, what is happening to us? Our faces are melting off. I mean to your point. And if you dropped a nuclear bomb on Nashville, it would resemble a desert in many ways. So we have two deserts who had a worse who had a worse week. One of the Packers or the Tytoons. All the Packers come on because it's so on Aaron Rodgers, it's a Rodgers. Yeah. The Titans feel like they mix in these games every now and then, like where you're just like what the

heck just happened? And a lot of these plays like no one could have stopped these Kyler Murray plays, like they were just too good. Just one quick note. One last one was that he's the second quarterback ever to like throw for fifty and rush for sixteen and like x amount of games. Uh, Dante Culpeppers the next one, and uh, I don't know, he does remind me of Dante Culpepper in some weird way, even though he's like

a hundred and fifty pounds less. As just like a joy to watch that there's sometimes there's nothing you can do to stop Kyler Murray. And that was the case today. Um. By the way, money bad money Badger Michael Badge Lee Um got on the team when Sam Faking was moved to injured reserve and he missed more kicks. I mean that the Titans, this is a game from hell. Missed an extra point in the field, missed an extra point, and I'll just say that. Um. Chandler Jones. We cannot

give him enough love for this performance. His five sacks are the third most by a player in a season opener. Derrek Thomas had six to open the ninety s, and Derrek Thomas was unbelievable. Watch out, Michael Strahan, watch out here. You know, Chandler Jones got pretty close. Chandler Jones got pretty close. Chandler Jones should be going into Steve Kime's office tonight and saying, give me my money. Give it to me now. You wanted to wait and uh, you wanted to wait and see I did show up. I'm

playing on time. How about you go make like Mickey Loomis over in New Orleans and give me the contract right now. They gave Marshawn Lattimore a contract after the game. I don't know how that works out. Marshall and Lattimore got more guaranteed money than any defensive back in history.

According to Ian Rappart, after one, you know, solid week one, Chandler Jones as well, And they showed Chandler owns, you know, on the sideline after he had had five sacks and he was just confidently strutting up and down with a smile on his face. He knows good things are about to happen. And I don't want to leave up Billy Gay, who had five and a half sacks for the Detroit lines to open the ninety three season. Let's move on.

Donald fakes to McCaffrey, moves up with the pocket, throws long and middle An says they're cought ted toutsdown Robbie Anderson. Now Nick mix and w BT with called Robbie. You know after he catches that, he puts up the Jets side. He's like going through the end zone, which was his celebration when he was with the Jets. And Keith hands as text me and he's all fire up. He's like, God, that think doing that celebration. I said, Dad, I wrote back, Dad.

Jet's quit on Robbie Anderson. They did not want to bring him back. He's sticking it to a team that didn't want him. Fair play, I like to think coming back into the operation. Sam Donald through for seventy on in a touchdown and ran ran for another score against his former team as the Panthers beat the Jets nineteen fourteen. And um, yeah, this started very badly for the Jets, and some really bad stuff come out came out of it.

But it was a nice, nice day for Sam Donald. UM. Even though they got shut down in the second half, they were held to three points, but Sam Donald played a big role in the win. He looked much more comfortable. UM. It turns out having Christian McCaffrey on your team makes you a lot better as both an offense and as a quarterback. And he avoided the type of mistakes. He did have a fumble lost fumble in the red zone.

But I when I think about the Sam Donald mistakes that haunted his time in New York, and they mounted as his confidence wayne as the as the roster got worse and the coaching bottomed out late in his third season with the Jets, I think about all those interceptions and as a Jets fan now and it was even weirder than I anticipated when the game started, because in a lot of way, it feels like and this also goes back to just how fast time goes now is you start to get older and you have kids and

things like that, Like Sam Donald was I blink and he was the Jets future, and now he's on the other sideline and we have Zack Wilson here how many times he would kill the Jets with interceptions and I'm rooting for that to happen now and he just didn't do it. So good for Sam Donald. I truly am happy for him that he had this moment and on the Jet side of the ball, total wipe out performance in the first half. There was some good to take out of the second half of how the defense fought hard.

Robert Sala obviously has these guys passionate and caring about their job, which was not happening in New York under Adam Gaze last year. And then um, Zack Wilson, after a very quiet first half where he's running for his life and looking like he was a little scatter brained, really turned it on and did some nice things in the second half. So there were some positives there, but the Panthers get the win, and UM, a nice way to start the season for for Sam Donald. I mean

McKay beck in the injury there as a killer. Uh that there's so many of these around the league today that suddenly you look at certain position groups and you're like, oh, but I love Zach Wilson's comments after the game. Um, what Robert Sala had to say about Zack Wilson, He's in a tough spot and not every one of these rookie quarterbacks. Today was a huge example of that are gonna be shining stars from the beginning. There's a lot

to learn. And I love his mental makeup. Though I know that's sort of a cliche thing to say about some of these quarterbacks, but everything I hear from Zack Wilson UM seems like a total team guy, who is, you know, not going to shy away from some tough sundays. I thought he was pretty beaten up today. Was it like ten quarterback hits? I don't know if that's a Carolina defense thing or if that's a Jets problem on

offensive line. It's both, Um, but you know that's part of the job, is not turning into what happened to Carson Wentz last year from the neck up when you're getting beaten up on these Sundays. Eight to what you're saying nineteen eight. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Jets are scrambling to try to get it back within a score, and they're they're knocking on the red zone of Carolina and and Wilson gets absolutely creamed. And it looks like

in the moment it looks like a concussion. On the telecast, they thought it might have been because he got slammed so hard. Uh, this is just with two minutes to play and he pops up, shakes it off, completes a past two minute or and completes a touchdown past and I'm like, damn, okay, that's that's something that that really showed me something. Um and Christian McCaffrey, I just want to say this like he is. It's almost like Matt

Rule has to Um. Really, it's it's a test for Brady and Rule the O C two not use him too much because he's just so good that I feel like they could have put the Jets away in the second half if they just just started feeding McCaffrey every time nine cast. That's what I mean. It's like. But it's like if they would have given Hi an extra five, I think he would have broken one of those. And God, because he's that good, he looks, he looks like a guy.

It's poised to challenge all those records when it comes to multipurpose in terms of total yards. Well, our Guy rap Sheet reported Beckton has a sprained MCL, so it

could be worse, but could be better. You know. With with the Patriot, that's actually great news over I mean, you were thinking the knee was completely gone, but during the game, had he blows out or it looked like he blew it out on that first touchdown pass by Wilson And when he's leaving in the cart, when you whenever the player has had the look of anguish with the towel over the face, I usually take that to me in an addition to him being pained and upset

that he's been told they did a test and he has a tour and that's what everyone kind of assumed. So if you're telling me he's gonna be back at some point this season and he doesn't have a year rehab ahead of him, that's a huge win. Yeah, that's the early evaluation. Sometimes they do change a day later, but you're right, that's that's good news. But the kind of buzz that maybe the line that they're really putting there, that Joe Douglas putting his kind of name behind, is

this line that they had a rough first month. Just looking you know, at the box score. That's the crooked I like looking at the ESPN box score, I have to admit, just for like the crooked numbers, the ten QB hicks hits, six sacks and six tackles for loss, Like I just like that's just a quick snapshot. Are you making splash plays behind the line of scrimmage and those are big numbers? Ten? Good job. And it's not just on the Jets offensive line. It's Brian Burns, um

uh Shaq Thompson everywhere. They really, Um, Caroline is interesting. Your team, buddy, your team. That's my wild card pick, and I I don't think it would be that surprising if it happens, because I just think they're well coached. I'd like to see them against the team other than the Jets. But um, they have some they have speed, they have some guys that can get after the quarterback.

They have some playmakers in the secondary. Of course with Chin in the second year, and this offense will score points, especially if Donald plays like this. All right, let's move forward, pressure Taylor throws are hits, takes it across rocking roll, touchdown Houston. I guess it's got him a dad move rock and roll. I love rock and roll. That's the touchdown. Call. It's not like term is a reference to something more

that where you don't know, I don't know? Or is that always the TOUCHDOWNE call Ricky dig In on this Mark Vandermere find out if he has any connection? Does he does he have a I don't know. That's some type of name play there. K l I t Tai God Taylor through for two to ninety one and two touchdowns filling in for Deshaun Watson, leads the Texans to a thirty one win over Trevor Lawrence sloppy Jaguars team in urban Meyer's NFL debut. This is a fever dury

and for Rosenthal. Now, Greg, I have to I have to dip my cap because you thought A the Texans had a legit chance to win this game, which I pushed back on, and B that the Jaguars might be a bloody mess under urban Meyer and so far at one game, Yeah nailed it. Yeah, I mean I didn't nail it. If I what a glorious moment, it would

have been a lock up the Texans. Uh. And you know, instead you go for the lousy tightens tie God and the coaching staff showed out though Tyler Tyrod Taylor once it was like the second best running quarterback in the league, like just in terms of pure running ability. It's a little bit of that. Today there's only one like twenty nine yard run. But you saw a little juice and you saw a running game that you know, just kept the ball the whole time. But the key moment was

that Amndola touchdown. I was watching this game late in the second half. They score a touchdown with under a minute, or score get a field goal with under a minute to go, and urban Meyer does the thing where they

throw three passes. They're trying to be aggressive, don't take any time off the clock punted away and I was like, David Kelly's gonna tell me something here, is he gonna try to be aggressive with like thirty seven seconds in seventy yards to go with Tyrod Taylor because like the move that you expect the Texans do is now there's not you know what he does. They go balls to the wall to get like another touchdown, and Tyrod and the rest of those boys delivered. Like Pharrell Brown's making plays,

a Mendola is making plays. Nico Collins's okay, he made like one place he didn't make any place. But I was just like, wow, that was that was an impressive moment. That drive, to me was impressive because it was Collis saying, like, we need to put up a lot of points. I know Tyrod Taylor's our quarterback, but like, let's be ultra aggressive with thirty eight seconds to go, and then they rewarded him with the touchdown. Dra It's the old Lester

Burnham quote. I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose. That's David Culley. Why not, why not just go for it? Everything's set up against you. Nobody really expects you or maybe even wants you to succeed. So do the old major league thing with you beat go full Behringer, Always go full Berenger. I mean they've they've you know, he talked about after the game that one of their biggest chores in two Dudes was shutting out the intense negativity.

There aren't that many teams that have been dumped on and for a lot of their own reasons. I mean, they created they've created a lot of their own mess, obviously. But you know, you're you're deactivating to Shaun Watson, you're starting Tyrod Taylor. Most of the nation things, you're gonna go one in sixteen, you drop a hammer on a Jaguars team that there were whispers today, even little stories already, that there are players in Jacksonville not adoring the urban

Meyer experience already were one game into the season. So I know that delights Greg as well. But you know, it's just it is I think for the Jags. My question on our TV show, well the honeymoon and at four PM, I feel like I didn't think there was a honeymoon to begin with, but I see. But but

to your point, like something ended today. Those whoever, those guys that are given these quotes of the press, you better, you better trust your journal because if it gets back to urban Meyer, he ain't one and done, you will be one and done. Especially uh, you know that's a young team. Everyone's replaceable except for the big guy. Uh. Number one. Overall, what did you see uh in that

game from Trevor Lawrence Greig? His you know, his interceptions were bad, Like it was him on the run plays you would think he could make, just didn't make it. I think he made a lot of positive There's two kind of like the kind of like the preseason. So I don't think it was on him. They were. They were bum rushed for the most part, but there was a couple of surprising decisions. The Texans three interceptions tied their total from all of last year. Love Smith, how

about Lovey Smith. We haven't given Lovey Smith any I gotta say Lovey Smith was a was not just a good defensive coach in the NFL. People think like his the way he coached passed them by in terms of the scheme. It's a very safe, boring scheme. He was a great defensive coach. I'm just I'm just saying. And and in this game, they didn't blitz as far as I know because I heard this that midway through the third they didn't blitz one time. They dropped seven or eight.

Every single play made Lawrence have to like make decisions and play played very good team sort of defense and it worked. Um. Somebody tweeted at me, because you know the power rankings, a lot of eyeballs get on them, and then people take it personally and they save it and they get ready to attack me on Sunday as soon as something happens that I didn't predict in terms of with my rankings and someone wrote tweeted me, you're sticking by your ranking the Texans last than the power rankings.

That is probably gonna burn you owned. And then another guy, another guy, got pre emptively mad at me, a Titans fan who's obviously very upset and probably about six or seven beers in at least. He said, if you put the Titans anywhere inside the top twenty, you should be ashamed of yourself, like preemptively shaming me for something I didn't do. In Wait, they want them inside or outside. So if I if I don't drop them, I think I haven't. Oh, he wants you to punish his own team.

And if I don't, think the Jaguars might be thirty two. I haven't really thought about it. But if you lose to the Texans by this much, maybe you replay them. But like, I just thought it was funny, like you should be ashamed of yourself for something that I hadn't even done. I mean, that's how this works. Though, you're gonna get tweets like that. You said six or seven beers in was what you assumed based on how you know?

That was? K I l t by the way, kind of transposed a letter to there I was, but I wasn't. I wasn't asked actually gonna ask on this show, but I was gonna ask after. But you've solved the mystery and solved Let's keep moving. I mean that would be an interesting radio station. The other one, Yes, it would and he who's got it? Yeah, but don't write wow.

Jimmy Seo and Jason Taylor. The sack MASTA w q A M with the call to a tungle by Lowa through a go ahead touchdown past the Jalen Waddle rookie in the third quarter, and Davian Howard recovered to Damian Harris bumble with newing and driving to help the Dolphins hold on for a seventeen sixty and win over the Patriots in Foxborough. Greg, we entered the season viewing these teams, or at least I did. I think you did too, as very close in their division, and it didnty closer

than seventeen six week one. No, it was um an example of how the Dolphins have kind of become the new old Patriots where you're like, how did they win that game? Where you where you leave the game being like, what what just happened? Um? Like, because I think they do a lot of smart things schematically, but the Patriots ultimately, you know, outgained them by hundred forty yards something like that.

Mac Jones looks like the better quarterback. And at the end of the day, they forced two really key fumbles by the Patriots running backs, including one you know that you heard inside the ten late in the game where you really felt like the Patriots were gonna go in for a touchdown of nothing else, they were gonna take

the lead there. But the Dolphins, like Xavian Howard, like they find a way to make play is and I just think they are a smart, like well coached team that again is like greater than the some of their parts. The out patriot of the Patriot your your boy, Flora's I don't know whose boy it is is three and

two over. He is shown over the past few years that he knows what he's doing and that that had to feel really good to be a Belichick disciple going up in that building and started season and out Patriots eying the Patriots. I mean that is that was their earmark last year. I thought they found ways to win games by dismantling quarterbacks and getting you know, fringe no namers to do special things down the stretch. I mean,

this game, you're right, was so bizarre to watch. But I did think that mac Jones got more comfortable and made great throws as it went along. I mean, if you're just wanting to say, look at where are we as the Patriots offense with this new quarterback. I saw Erica tweeting about him. She seems um enamored to some degree. I don't know. I mean, because part of it was this was the two of verse, two of verse mac Jones and I don't know mac Jones supprested. Is do

it to me? It looks better? No, you flipped the quarterbacks in the and give mac Jones to the Dolphins. The Dolphins win by twenty. I was I was kind of flying after this game. I was surprised to hear how sad. I mean, I wasn't surprised, but a lot of you know, my dad and a couple of Patriots friends in my life, you know, really down that they can pull this out. Yeah, Ricky jump into and I'm like, Yetta, look at the big picture. Mac Jones looked awesome in

this game. Yeah, I think beyond the stat lines, the next level things that he's already doing as a rookie, the touch on his throws, the way they're going like five wide and empty and crucial moments. The offensive line for the Patriot, which is supposed to be great, played terrible. He was under more pressure than than to a he handled it much better for the most part, and it's like, I feel like the Patriots have a quarterback and that's

that's the bigger story. I totally agree, Greg, Like I think at the beginning, you know, in the top of the show, you guys were talking about that feeling of like getting excited and when they were marching down the field too, before that fumble happened, like my heart's right saying and I'm like, oh my god, like we're gonna do this, Like I can't believe this is happening, and that feeling when it when you know it didn't go that way, But yeah, of course it was like wow.

This Actually there's so many times where I was like, if Cam Newton was the quarterback right now, I don't think we would have been even close in this conversation. I hope because I really like Damian Harris as a player, and I hope this doesn't lead to him having to sleep outside for three months or now, and he looked incredible. He also got banged pretty hard by a helmet um

and his helmet came off during one play. Greg, I don't know if you remember that, and not saying that I had anything to do with it, but like he carried so many times, and like just like the brute force of what he did for this team, like helmets coming on. I just he's awesome. How annoyed was Belichick at the end of the game. I thought I saw a few looks from him where he seemed a little peaked.

But or does he share your optimism to Greg? No, he looked pretty flung that, like what are we doing here? We just fumbled the ball inside the ten? You know they lost, they lost the turnover battle, like they couldn't get They had a chance to get a stop in the end and you know that they couldn't. Um. But I just think as a Patriots ban, you just look at the players that are on this team and they just look they look a lot better, Like Damion Harris

looked great today. There's a couple you know, the passing game was the passing game wasn't perfect, but it's like when you're throwing the ball to Johnny Smith and Hunter Henry and agil Are at the end, it's like a couple of them made plays on their own, and it's like they just didn't have guys like that last year. So I think even though they lost, I felt a

lot of productivity. That's what's kind of tricky here with the pats um that you spend a hundred and sixty million and guaranteed money in free agency, which tells you we're looking to win now. But then you cut Cam and you say the rookies starting, and then that puts you into different places a team, which is well, it's not really always about wins. It's about progress for the kid as well. It's almost like they're trying to live in two worlds. And I'm not saying that can't work

at least from a fan standpoint. Maybe there's gonna be some Uh, it's gonna be tough to focus for some people. I know if Cam would be well, they told you everything that they that you need to know about what they think about Cam Newton. And there's another world where Mac Jones by week eight is playing in the universe that we didn't expect in all these pieces. Physically today

he did today. I know that numbers weren't crazy, but I think, like what he's doing as a rookie, I'm you know, I'm trying not to get too carried away because I know I am a Patriots fan, but I swear I would be saying this if he was on another team. That the things he's doing now maybe like he doesn't have the room to improve as much as some of these other quarterbacks, but the level he's at now is rare for a rookie. How did he look?

Look looks better than last year. I know that there was a lot of and I'll shut up because that no one wants to hear me talk about the Dolphins, But I think there was a lot of stuff, you know, going in this offseason. It's like, is to a really the guy that you know the Dolphins? You know Tank for two? I do inc that you know there were some you know, he had a rushing t d and and he I think he played better, and Greg correct

me if I'm wrong. I think that there was an improvement from last season better, but a couple of groaners you don't need to take, you know, you you asked the question and then left Eric like you were like, I'll hang up and listen. Uh, a couple of growners. I mean a killer interception at the end where he's

trying to throw the ball. He said, he's trying to throw the ball at a bounds but he didn't reach it, which is kind of the thing with Tow Like we heard mac Jones's arm wasn't great, Like mac Jones's arm looks fine to to his arm, I think it's a question of some of those deep balls. Hanging up. Um had another groaner where he was lucky to get away with another interception but had positive place. Miles Gaskon looked awesome and they looked pretty tough to defend with some

of the read option and everything they got. Will Fuller coming off suspension next week. He is an underrated guy and a great deep threat to we can get it to him. Let's move on. That goes hurts, he is lucky he is firing for a touch Um the first touched off the l career Merrill Reese, the legend w I P with the called Jalen hurts through three touchdown passes,

the first of them too. Yes, the heisman Trophy winner DeVante Smith and the Eagles made a winner of Nick Sirianni his head coach debut rout of the folly filled with the bang thing on him at Mercedes Benz Stadium. But me arc Nick Sirianni sounded kind of nervous and

his introductory press conference, how can this happen? Exactly? I don't appreciate the way you just addressed my name either, but I'm gonna I'm gonnafod John uh I would point to this one little chunk of the game where it turned from a positive Eagles experience to an incredibly hopeful one,

and it was the end of the first half. Jalen Hurts and the two minute offense totally comfortable Number one, the heat basically just went out there and said, I'm going to run against the Falcons one I need to. They had nobody that could stop him. He moved to feet the team so confidently down the field, and Sirianni is an aggressive coach to who I'll get into that in a second. But Hurts on this drive to help them go up fifteen to six, because what happened was

they were up seven to six. They he threw a great pass to Dale at Dallas Goddard, who really battled Dion Jones to make a great catch in the end zone.

Then there was a penalty on the Falcons. So it's at that point thirteen to six, and Sirianni dials up a two point conversion that Miles Sanders got and suddenly it's fifteen to six at halftime and the Falcons, who came out of the gate explosive on offense, I mean, moving the ball really well, to the point where I thought the first quarter of this game was one of the better first quarters I'd seen in Week one in a long time. They could not get out of their

problems in the red zone. They had drives that finished at the three and the nine I believe of Philadelphia, and they never got back there again. Arthur Smith was visibly annoyed on the sideline. I think that everything that they planned to do, he the announcers made comments that he wanted to say, look at we don't want to be predictable, and they got stuck into a predictable place because they got down. I think this jail and hurts

offense works very well under Sirianni. There's a lot of encouragement here if you're an Eagles fan, and after another after a bad offseason, he looked great. Let's hear from Arthur Smith, who was very unhappy with his team's performance in his first game as head coach. I did a really poor job getting us ready to go. I feel uh awful for our fans. Everybody showed up today. We'll do a better job at games on going to define us. It's a long season to go, but I certainly didn't

a good job getting us ready to go today. Kyle Pitts not much there and his debut after an off season of breathless hype from the tight end, but that it's early. Um, and in general, Greg, this is not the offense I think you saw either, because I know you were pretty high and Matt Ryan entering the year. Yeah, I never liked to hear when the coach says we've got a long season to go after week one, like

that's a little bit of a cell phone. It's like, this isn't gonna define It's like, bro, no one said it was gonna define you. It's like week one. Um, he's feeling it, and you know the caveat Yeah, the caveats apply. That it's going against the Falcons defense, which probably the most talent poor defensive league. But I do think there's a Lamar Jackson element to Jalen Hurts where he raises the rest of the running game to an

incredibly efficient degree. You know, you think of the Eagles is all about analytics, like so are the Ravens like team. You know, teams are into running when it's incredibly efficient.

So if if you if you run at thirty one times for a hundred and seventy three yards, that's great, you know, Like, and I think Jalen Hurts is running ability with this offensive line at least has a chance to like raise the running floor really high for this Eagles team where that can be something that's repeatable even if you're not, you know, dropping thirty every week. Yeah, I mean, I think we just have to look back at some of these teams to turn into total disasters.

Like last year's Eagles that the line went through multiple combinations was never healthy today healthy line? And how about the defensive line that down the stretch when the Falcons were becoming predictable and Matt Ryan was stuck in passing only situations, was completely and totally harassed um Javon Hargrave played great. The Falcons left guard Jeralen Mayfield had his name mentioned for the wrong time, way too often today because he got smoked a number of times. And so

it's a bad matchup for Atlanta. But that's it's because the Falcons are completely legitimate up front or the Eagles. I should say, let's move on St. Juice in coverage. That's where he's looking, That's where he's throwing. Mike Williams talk touch style. Mike Williams and the big body at St.

Juice never had a chance. That's my power rankings Buddy and the voice of God for the Around the NFL podcast, Matt Money Smith of k Y s R. With the call justin Herbert wasn't perfect, but he lets scoring drives of seventy, seventy six and sixty eight yards lost that go ahead pet ten to Mike Williams secures the bag and win over the Washington football team. Now let's welcome

in the pipe for another season. On The Flagship Show, Nick Shook, Herbert didn't look special in Washington because it's I would be concerned if we don't Clip secures the bag as a drop in there because it really wasn't like a correct usage of it, right, I mean right exactly getting that money. It's all about money. I mean he's not getting the money. When is he gonna get the money? Like three years? I guess we'll just say that it still works. Um, I can't stay with you

hip kids, Go ahead, show Yeah. I mean you try that. That's that's showing that you're trying so far. Um yeah, justin Herbert, I'm telling you what you know. We we saw what he did last year and the Rookie of the year offensively, and everything's great, but you always have that question going into year two, is there going to be a sophomore slump? Is he gonna take? You know?

Is he gonna continue moving forward? And and all I saw out of him today was a calm and cool and collected quarterback who looked wise beyond his years and basically served as the difference in a game that Chargers teams of years past would have lost. They would have found ways to lose it. There were moments where they I'm sitting there watching and going, oh, that's the crushing penalty that gives Washington another chance. They go down and score.

They end up winning this game by three points or whatever. There was late in the game where they forced a fumble and the Chargers get the ball on their own territory. It's third and long, and what does Justin Herbert do. He steps up in the pocket and rips one down the middle of the field for our first down. He did it on multiple occasions on that possession alone, and honestly, they probably would have won by more if his receivers would have figured out how to catch the ball in

the first half. So um, you know, Chargers fans who have dealt with so much crushing heartbreak, especially in recent years, they gotta be really excited after watching this knowing that they have a quarterback who, more often than not, if their defense plays adequately, is going to be able to

throw them too close victories. Well I know. Also, you know, Washington lost Ryan Fitzpatrick in this game, and we can get into it, but you know, first takeaway small sample size, but of the Joe Lombardi offense which we talks about on Thursday, does it look like a Saint Fitch offense or is there Shanahan elements like you mentioned. Did it

stand out to you to have a certain vibe. I would say, yeah, there are definitely some Saints ish to it, but they throw the ball further downfield than they did uh in the final years of of Drew Brees with the Saints. So I think that there's kind of an adjustment because you have a quarterback who's more capable at this stage in his career when he's younger, he's got a live arm than the Saints did down the stretch with Drew Brees. But I mean, you've got to be

encouraged about what you saw. I know they only put up twenty points, but they had a lot of opportunities where they probably could have scored more. Like I said, if these guys had just executed. There was even a moment I think in the second half or Keenan Allen had to catch and run and he just dropped the ball during the run. He was able to recover it,

you know, averting a disaster. But um, it took them a solid two and a half quarters to kind of rediscover that they had hands and then put them to work. So I think if you kind of clean that stuff up, you get that in week one, you know, from time to time and continue to move forward, you're going to be in a situation where this offense is gonna look a lot better than I think, um it has in

pasted years, because you know, you have the weapons. It's just really been down to execution and uh and being healthy. And they got for the most part, they got all that to come together. So what happened with Fitzpatrick He was tackled by Yucheno osu um and and suffered a hip injury. And it was really strange when it actually happened because you couldn't quite tell. It looked like a pretty normal sack, but he couldn't really get up and

he needed help walking off and everything else. And um, he was done after six attempts, so it was really early. But oddly enough, you know, you think, we think about all the excitement that Ryan Fitzpatrick has created over the years with his many stops with different teams, and you're like, well, that's got to take a lot of juice out of him. But Taylor Heineke actually did the opposite. He injected some

life into them. Their problem was that they couldn't close the deal, They couldn't finish drives, and we do see that a lot again in Week one as well, teams that show potential, but they haven't quite figured out how to finish off drives by getting points, and that's ultimately what kind of did them in, especially fumbling down the stretch late right. The Chargers, you know, sneakily had almost

a dominant offensive performance here. They only had eight drives, they reached the red zone and six of them, so you're right, like there were those charged moments. There was the it was kind of a flukey fumble from Herbert where he was trying to throw the ball and they slapped it out as he's throwing it, and you know, it ends up being Washington ball and then there's an interception. But to end the game on on a fifteen play eighty two yard drive, to me, that's like the best

way to end any games. And then you're just kneeling on it. They should give style points, like because I guess they covered anyway, so it doesn't matter, but they should after the game a judge should award them five at least five extra style points for that drive. There there were a few throwers in that drive were actually like audibly yelped, like where he just could connect you with Mike leans down the side and I was like, oh,

oh wow, you know I fired me up. At one point I think I had tweeted I know I wrote about in the recap. I would trust Justin Herbert. If I had to diffuse a bomb, I would call in Justin Herbert to cut the proper chords and avoid blowing us all. I mean, Dan, the Titans, could you could use that? Well, that's a nuclear bone. I'm not sure you can different properties, different mechanics to it. But when I didn't see a stitch, I didn't see a second

of this game. So but based on what people are saying about her its performance, which doesn't sync up with the box score, I'm really looking forward to it. The Chargers have a good one and we'll see this Ran Fitzpatrick injury. I believe I'm seeing some reports out there. It's a multi week situation to Taylor, Heineke is gonna get his chance Thursday night, Thursday night, four days against the Giants. Let's head speaking of the Giants to the swamps of Jersey. Lord on the right side of the

big hole. Here we go. Midfield sixteen ten five touchdown dead four seventy yards for Melvin Gordon. Oh you gotta get in the groove of the bottles. I mean if when she sends us on so so, no one's looking at me there, like because you don't really have the flows. I'm not the only one they've got the shirt forard at least when you say ko a with it called, Melvin Gordon says, don't fade me yet, fantasy heads, Yeah, give me the bag. It was one run. It was

for seven yard touchdown run. It was the clincher for the Broncos cruise to over the Giants at MetLife Stadium. Uh shook. Uh. Teddy Bridgewater two touchdowns and his broadcast debut, and the Denver defense had all the answers against New York. You know, watching Teddy Bridgewater play quarterback can be an adventure sometimes because every time that he does something that makes you think, like we did early in his career,

that oh, this guy can be a franchise quarterback. There are a few plays where he's slowed to decide to deliver the football, or he makes a mistake or whatever it is. We were like, oh, that's what's always held him back. And I think it was perfectly captured. Surprising on a touchdown pass that was completely chaotic in the second half. He rolled out to the right and it looked like it is just gonna end in complete disaster.

And then he finds a tight end Albert albert O We're gonna call him because I don't want to try to pronounce his last name, and he sneaks into the end zone on the front right pylon and it was and it was another one of those things where you're sitting there going, oh, no, no, alright, alright. They scored um. But I do see why Vic Fangio picked him because for like the stat line says, for the majority of the game, he was a very serviceable, if not better quarterback,

and he kept their offense moving. I mean that some of the points they scored late were kind of just tacked on. It was a close game until about late in the fourth midway or late in the fourth quarter. But you gotta be, you know, pretty excited because serviceable or better, if you can get what you expect out of the Broncos defense, should make them somewhat of a contender.

It's it's gonna be, you know, tough to battle with the Chiefs, but it should make them at least a competitive team instead of the team that they've been in recent seasons. I mean they put up a four and twenty yards offensively twenty my right endver Hey, that's the right city for it. Um, It's like, and what more do you want? If they put up four hundred yards a week, They're they're gonna go to the playoffs and

I'm gonna win my sandwiches right now. Winning on the road is is you know, I'm impressive when you do it comfortably. But this Stian's team seems like it it has some problems. Chookie that that this week didn't, you know, make you feel any better about them? I'm sure. And that's the perfect lead into because while I said Teddy Bridgewater is an adventure, Daniel Jones is a damn roller coaster. And he's a roller coaster with an eighty eight degree

drop on the first, second, and third hill. Because as soon as you get down, you go, all right, well we survived. Here we go here's the big hill. Oh

my god, we're dropping again. Daniel Jones with a textbook fumble at a bad time that kills a drive, making mistake a play and then making another mistake and then ultimately digging themselves too much of a hole to get out of, you know, not being able to convert on fourth down on the edge of the red zone late in the game when you absolutely have to have it.

I hate to say it, but as I watched him, like man, Giants fans just have to be absolutely exasperated with Daniel Jones because again, it's just like it was last year and somewhat in the year before too. He shows flashes where you're like, man, this guy can make a play. Wow, he's talented, he's athletic, he's got a good arm, but he can never really quite get out of his own way there. It was really what did Then I saw a good tweet and twitter from when

I wish I didn't remember who it was. It was one of the guys who covers the Giants um who wrote, Daniel Jones is good until he's not. And that's the problem. Like just when you feel like, okay, he's in a groove, we're in the right direction. Maybe this is something to build off that fumble. That fumble killed him. And I'm not saying they're gonna win that game, because the Bronchos were just the better team, but it's just it's all the air goes out of the balloon in that building

after that bumble. And I'd say, like ten years ago when we started doing all this, like there were a dozen teams that had somewhat flaky quarterbacks, and there were five or six that had terrible quarterbacks, and there was a dearth of quarterbacks. That's obviously changed in the last three or four and you can't have a quarterback that's being described and is living up to the description as a roller coaster. He also like need more from the

running game. And in Sa Kwan Barkley, it's like I read so many articles how how much of a difference it will be with Sa Kwan Barkley and he goes, you know ten for twenty six their first round pick, cold areas Tony has two catches for negative two yards, Like Denver is gonna present a lot of problems to a lot of offenses. I think even even without you know, Bradley Chubb, I don't think played today right, but it's still I don't know. I just you don't see a

lot of answers. And they suddenly that that Thursday night game, it's like one of those teams is gonna feel very dark at and two Yeah, there seems to be a lack of balance with this offense, and and almost like

they need Daniel Jones to prove it. But there it's not quite that they're putting too much on his plate, but that in these in these scenarios, you know, thirty seven passes, it's not a ton of passes, but they were never down by a margin that would necessarily say that you have to air it out until we got

pretty late in that game. It's just they don't you know they you have the glimpses, you have the touchdown pass to Sterling Shepherd, but there's too much in between the just it just leaves a lot to be designed. They also had I think maybe the worst summer of anyone on offense. I mean outside of maybe one or two teams, and half of those guys that you mentioned. Greg barely played all August, so it's gonna take some time. Jerry Judy looked for all the world like he had

a season ending injury. They announced after the game that it was a high ankle sprain. Tom Passaro reported that too. That's even more stunning. And Mackay Beckton because you know, we don't you know, you don't want to be graphic about it, but that looked like one of those, you know, leg injuries where the leg is not attached the way

it should be anymore. Good. That's great news to but maybe in general we shouldn't be eyeballing injuries from like our living rooms that you don't you know, we didn't do anything. I'm not pointing that you specifically, just the general public. When a player who's clothed goes on the ground, we may not know everything that's happening with the person's body. That's all, just do I don't follow your take total. Yeah, that one was gruesome. His his it looked like the

saying the fact suggests that it's not. It looked like that to you, But the facts suggests that it's not quite as severe as you think. So my point is, you wait a little bit, just let it. You know, settle can move the show, please do. We're onto Cincinnati. Borrow back to pass, has time throws it down field for you. He has it at thirty twenty yardline. What a gutsy call and what a throw by show the chicken. Oh what a day with the Bengals. Dan Bard w c k Y with the call Dave Lapham there too.

Evan McPherson kicked the thirty three yard field goals time expired, an ot to push the Bengals to win over the Vikings and shook. You know, we've talked about Zach Taylor on this show is a faceless entity entering this season an important season for his career, and I thought he gained one when then guts he asked play call in that spot to set up the game winning kick. Good job by Zach Taylor, good job and Joe Burrow, good

job of the bank. Yeah, it wasn't the only time in that game where you saw a play call where you're like, wow, that was perfectly time. That was genius that it felt like he was getting into a rhythm. You know, you want to talk about a lack of balance with other teams. The one thing I thought the Bengals were really hurting with last year was dropping back Joe Burrow to pass fifty times a game behind the offensive line, which is better now than it was then.

It's still not great. The only seven past attempts today Joe Maxon ran the ball twenty nine times for seven yards. That's the balance that you need to be effective and end up winning these close games. The only thing that really mattered to me that kind of um I didn't enjoy was the fact that there was this push and like tug of war of sorts as some ambulances and cop cars drop bam. Sure you guys can hear that the downtown city life. Yeah, well that's every night there

was this. There was this tug of war sorts where they were just it's kind of like when you see a team spent a lot of time between the twenties and and that's where they were for a lot of the final quarter and then going into overtime and it was like, all right, you guys need to break one. He had a great play play call where they got to c j Usama off a tight end leak that got him down into you know, scoring territory. That I

was like, wow, it's a great play call. But really, if they have this type of balance, they can be competitive and they can win these close games. It's just that they have to commit to it. It helps, of course when you can get a good day out of Joe Mixon. You know. I I saw that throw to Zama and I like the borough's response to it too. He was so fired up, and you can tell his teammates love him and like talk about another guy that had a rough summer and they've showed so much faith

in him. And I love what he did today. Why I don't like a game where Kirk Cousins is throwing the ball? What was it forty nine times? Yeah? Did they just shut down that? I mean, if you're the Vikings, you wanted to run the ball all day long and have Cousins throw the ball about twenty a few more times in that. Yeah, that's usually your formula victory in Minnesota. But they were down by two touchdowns in the second half,

so they kind of had to get things going. And I'll tell you what if we give Zach Taylor credit, he also had a moment of faceless entity where he opened the door for them to come back. You know, he went for it in his own territory, didn't get it, sets the Vikings up for a quick score, they get the ball, they go down in the game. At least it's being aggressive. But you're right, um, the the whole

ending sequence was weird. Like Cousins was totally bailed out, um by by his kicker after really like managing the two minutes situation in a way that you're just like a veteran quarterback shouldn't be. I guess I'm just you just used to like the bradies of the world, like knowing kind of what to do. But he got it close enough, and Joseph then hits it, and then that

Dalvin Cook fumbles it in overtime. Both offensive lines, just looking at the stats in terms of QB hits, tackles for loss, could be really bad all season, or at least at the beginning of the season. Both defenses kind of I have a Vikings fan buddy from back home who is very salty and unhinged on text a lot about his team, and he thought that they got totally jobbed on the fumble of Dalvin Cook. Was that was that something that could have went either way? Because it

swung the game? If so? I mean it was close. But if you're talking to somebody who's a Vikings fan, I haven't imagined that, you know, a little bit of the bias comes in right, it kind of gone. It didn't surprise me at all that they didn't overturn it. Yeah, it looked bang bang, and whatever what happened on the field was gonna happen. How about five for one oh one, talk about bad summers and it just goes again. We the first Sunday wipes it all away because everyone is saying,

this guy is not ready. We were mocking him about the comedy made about how the college football is different with the white mark around the edge on the ends of the ball. All that mark, All that's gone now because he steps in and delivers the five for one oh one in a touch in his first game. Shookie, Yeah, three targets his first three targets for receptions, he gets the long one for the touchdown. Looked a lot like

Burrow to chase him or l s u days. And we also might have learned that Jamar Chase is never gonna be brutally honest with us in press sessions ever. Again, Yeah, that's what you get, and it's just a bad loss for the Vikings. That's a that's a bad way to open your season. I know, maybe Cincinnati is gonna be a frisky team this year. Maybe this isn't the first time they're going to surprise the team who thinks they

have a w on their schedule. But you you know, you open up that way and I know how these scheduled makers work. By the way, I'm not I'm looking at it in real time. They'll they'll give you a quote unquote cookie in week one, but then they give put you in a tough spot right after that, and yeah, well, you know, it could be worse, but they have at Arizona.

They might have to go to the desert and get the bomb dropped on him, you know, next week, and then home against Seattle, then home against the Browns, So you don't get that win against Cincinnati, and now you're in You're in a tough situation here and you're you're clawing for your life in September. Yeah, and and I don't know if how much of the preseason that you managed to really like really tune into with them, But like Mike Zimmer had this halftime press conference and they

get in week one. It was, you know, just a little like sideline thing, not a press conference, but the sideline thing where he just like unloaded on his team. It was when they played Denver, because they're always one of the most annoyed coaches around. I mean, he's generally a little salty, but um, it seemed to be peaking. I witnessed some of that. Yeah, so he that has essentially kind of carried into the regular season because they looked a lot like that team in the first half

before they ended up making up the deficit. That does worry me about them going forward, all right, Chuck, going forward, I hope you will continue to be with us because you are a weapon and a pipe a pipe is a weapon. So again the nickname is perfect and round on and I could tell look at that, He's like, I get it. It makes sense now, the pipe a weapon. I mean, I'd like to be a weapon instead of the opposite. Darry Smith was six Men of the Year.

He was all these connections, important city for a lot of people in the Midwest. Anyway, Chuck, thank you, buddy, Thank you guys. Appreciate it. Now on to Sunday night. Enough of that, Oh highlight running left after the faith, He's gonna air it out deep downfield has a man often he's called at the fifteen yard line by Van Jefferson and he gets up and run those to the end zone. Matthew Stafford with a bomb. It's got the great arm. We know that. And then Jefferson makes the

cash rolls over it doesn't get touched and takes it in. Yes, Al Michael's the legend with the call friend d C. Matthew Stafford connected on three touchdown passes, including that wild catch it run by Ban Jefferson, and the game that was a little closer than perhaps the final score indicated. But also that's about right to board team over the Chicago Bears. The Rams triumph in their first game in front of bands at so BI Stadium, Mark, I feel like this is exactly what the Rams had in mind.

If they could have drawn up their first game with Matthew Stafford in front of the home fans and the shiny new stadium on in prime time. This was it a clean, tidy fourteen victory in every possible way. I mean, okay, he's back. It's an old trope. I mean it would be. It would be. You know, if that were Erica's original gag, that would be even more effective. But if you want to pull gags from days ago, that's fine, years ago. Um I can take it. Would you say that as

a manufactured joke? Okay? Hi, the original gag was that that was that's that was from the Sydney realms. I mean Erica has many effective gags of her own Trump. It's also a bit of a low blow because that's that's part of the show's history. It's not Erica's fault that that's one of the that's the greatest hit and it still works, right. But if I'm gonna be attacked, I can attack back. That's how this works, you know. I don't. I don't. It doesn't please me to attack

Erica on that front. But you just had she she pressed the button, So that's how it works. Do you want me to say anything or have I Is that enough for me? Another nuclear bomb goes off in the desert? No? I mean I just would say that. First of all, I think outside of the four of us, everyone else from our office went to this game apparently in suits and ties, and they're sitting up in the seats. So

I'm very happy for them. Like everyone on Instagram that I know from our work is like taking shots from Sofi Stadium. I mean, so incredible, every single one of them. Um, you could not design a more perfect opener on offense for the Rams, because with the first shock wave of the offseason was the we're upgrading at quarterback. We're moving

on from Jared goff, we're getting matt Stafford. No, but she's going to be annoyed because he's got a little bit of Greg and her where if you take a shot at Greg, Greg's gonna his The wheels are gonna spin inside the mind for the next minute or two. I'm gonna get this comment out very quickly because I'm not gonna have this happen again. Last year, I mean, the Rams had two touchdown passes of over forty yards.

Stafford tonight did all of it in one evening. He was sensational, and I might have been one of the people that thought, like, what are we sure we're getting in Matthew Stafford after all those lines years great quarterback, good arm maybe great quarterback, I don't know. But tonight he just looked like he completely mind melds and fits with Sean McVeigh. And you know, all that I needed to see was the smile on Stafford's face at the end of the game walking up and down the sideline.

I mean, we have not seen Matthew Stafford smile like that ever, So I think you brought that up because it was he was glowing as he was going up and down that sideline. No I just think it was, you know what, it was closer than than perceived. But that doesn't really bug me at all because I think the Rams took their completely, took their foot off the

gas at the end. They are a deep strike, um intriguing passing offense, and after or what they watched the rest of the NFC West do today, there was pressure on them to deliver and they did just that. That's a good point. NFC West undefeated, NFC North windless. There's two different divisions. You know. I wasn't on the Graham, you know, I'm more of I'm like a football guy on Sunday, So I didn't see that. But I do know, I do know I care about people and friends. Our friend, uh,

you know, our great friend Nakisha Westling. She's not in a suit and time, but she was in in the crowd watching this game and enjoying this game and um, you know, yelling for Cooper cups. So I think that's awesome that they got got her the victory. And you do almost get the feeling like that the Bears were like served up. I mean, you don't want to be too conspiratorial that, you know, they get good ratings the Bears. But it was almost like it felt like they were

served up on this night. And it's almost like everything we've been saying for the last four months about like don't put Andy Dalton on Sunday night football and the no one wants to see that in London, it's like here it comes and you kind of like see Matt Naggie's galaxy brain thinking of like why he would start Matt, you know, Dalton because they're they're already short at tackle. They lose Jason Peters, then they lose their backup tackle.

The Bears actually had six more first downs in this game, like nineteen more plays. You know, they moved the ball up and down. I think they went into Ram's territory six straight times the first six times they had the ball, but they kept coming up short on fourth downs. You know, there was that tip play by the Rams early and so if you're Matt, you're like convincing yourself somehow that this is like a better thing to do to put the veteran in. But in the end it's like, uh,

you just throw the ball thirty eight times. Only one play went for more than eleven yards. You got Jared Goff and the Rams now got this whole new offense is like, hey, maybe we don't need to work so hard and go fourteen plays every drive. We can just go fifty bombers here and there and uh be on our way go in Now Rams had like thirty three plays, you know into the fourth quarter. It's it's when you can cover fifty eight yards on one throw, it's less place.

And that was a missing aspect of their offense last year. Absolutely, and the idea was, now we have de Sean Jackson and that's gonna take care of business there. Well, no, Van Jefferson said, I can do that stuff and give it to me Cooper Cup the yak MC monster. I can get a chunk place if you give the ball to me in space. And you know, color me a little bit suspicious when, um, you know, late in the telecast you hear Collins World start to say, well, this

is a problem with Justin Fields. Andy Dalton gets the ball to his receiver when he pops open, and Justin Fields is slow to go through his progressions or holds onto the ball for too long. I mean that felt like I could have been fed to him straight from Naggy and the brain trust in Chicago, UM, who are out thinking themselves here? Um and again, Andy Dalton, this is what you know. Five and a half yards an attempt, um thirty eight attempts and now they go back to

Chicago to play the Bengals. The Bengals team that might be better, who knows, but they look very good today anyway, and it's a tough spot. So whether Justin Fields is ready or not, he's coming soon. That's That's one thing I took out of this game. And the other thing the other thing I took out of it is and I think I'm gonna put them in the top five, maybe even the top three the power rankings and make

a frisky here. I just love this Rams team. I'd like the mix on both sides of the ball, and this this McVeigh Stafford thing, assuming if Stafford can stay healthy, I think this is gonna be a special season for

the Rams. Twelve or thirteen wins. I mean. Mcveigh's need to stop talking about Jared Goff though, like every quote is like he's trying to make it sound good, but it makes it sound worse when he's like, well, we really want to thank Jared Goff for making us the type of team that Matthew Stafford wants to go for it. That's not a compliment. Put like slugs in his back and dumped them in the Pacific. Let's said he wanted

he wanted a partner, not a student. Well that we know that's not a compliment, but that is that is a tough one. Um one. My other, my other big takeaway was though this Bears defense has lost some players over the years, and you know when they're going through all the starting lineups and they do like the PF ranks at the bottom, It's like half the Bears starting lineup doesn't have PF ranks because they didn't play last year. You know, they didn't play enough, or their rookies or

their randoms. Like it's you've got a couple of you've got a couple of really good players, but it's not a difference making defense anymore. And if you don't have that, I think you do have double digit losses. I mean, you know, it's like our producer and friend Matthew Tanton was up in the stands something like section to twenty eight or whatever, and he tweeted that he was closer to Cooper Cup than any Bears defender. So you're right.

I mean that you could trust the Bears in Mattnegie's first year to score the defense alone to generate you know, a touchdown turnovers in great field position. It's not happening, is easily right. Now, think about think about how fun it must have been. Like all our colleagues, they probably rad. They probably all got together at the commissary and like they were wearing their little like outfits or their jerseys, and maybe they had a couple of pops or you know,

maybe that who knows. Maybe the because we're so close to the stadium, maybe there's a little place you could pop in and get a little loose before the game. Then they all went into there and they were enjoying the popping circumstance. But then here we are grinding, sitting in our little holes or caves. Yeah, I just ordered I ordered take out food that is um an hour late, and all I can see on the app is that the car that was bringing it just stop somewhere in

like South Englewood. Yeah, it's at the bar with everybody from the Rams games. Well, that's probably exactly where. If nothing else, they gave you a short game, Mark, I mean this was this had to be the shortest game of the of the week less than three like well less than three hours. So you know, maybe he's warming up to these rams if if they give them a lot of credit that to the recap of this game. All right, good stuff. We're on two week two. We're

on two week two good uh Week one in the books. UM, coming up, We'll have a podcast on Tuesday from the are be back together on Tuesday. Now, Thursday is are Hopeful day one in the studio, So Tuesday is the next time you'll hear from us. So enjoy this extra long edition the week one uh super Flagship Show, UM, the two hour around the NFL broadcast on Friday, I implore you guys to check that out on NFL Network. That will also be we'll be back in the studio.

So this is now happening. We are moving out of this remote world, hopefully for good. And UM, we thank you for sticking with us during this time. And I thank a special thank you, UM as we get to the end of this yellow brick road, hopefully to Erica Ricky Hollywood herself for doing such an awesome job this whole time, UM, getting us through this technological maze. But all right, any any other thoughts on week one before we I also would thank Erica. That's my final thought,

and there's a you know a lot of appreciation. Mark. I also want to thank Erica, and I just want to thank the listeners, um, because this is the last time I'm gonna be able to say this all year. Football is back. I mean, oh my god, that's it. It's over. I can't with you guys. You're just so ridiculous. All right, that's it. Then Hadn't signing off for it, Quiet Star, then the old Bows and Ricky Hollywood He'll Tuesday, whoa we did? It might eight