Let's off the edge.
Cousins thus and it's taken away by Addison for the touchdown. He and Sharvarius Ward fighting for the ball, and this time Addison takes it for the score.
It's at one big game this season, that was at.
Home against Dallas. Here's McCaffrey, he's gone touchdown forty nine ers. Purdy steps through floats at his pack and that's it. Playing him gets another. This season is hammered. This season needs to be put in a cab and send home before it says something it can't take back. This season needs to take advil and drink four glasses of water before they go to sleep. Preventative, because when we wake up tomorrow, we're gonna have a big headache. Trying to
make sense of the NFL. That was pretty good. Kirk Cousins led the way for the Minnesota Vikings in just a tremendous primetime performance. I don't think that's a thing anymore, going thirty five to forty five for three seventy eight two touchdowns in a twenty two to seventeen win over the suddenly vulnerable San Francisco forty nine ers. His counterpart
rock Perty. You heard they they are through too late interceptions, including a moonball over the middle to clinch the second straight defeat for the Niners after their five to zero head start. I am Dan hansis coming to you virtually
a room filled with heroes, Greg Rosenthal and Mark Sessler. Greg, I want to start with Cousins here because you know, no Justin Jefferson and the general idea was no hope for the Vikings and it kind of goes back to a thing, and it's been an internal conversation around this player, like is he good? Is he very good? Is he mediocre? Man? Kirk Cousins is a really good quarterback and he's proving it again for a Vikings team that is suddenly right back in the middle of the NFC playoff race.
I love that he had this performance in primetime because it shouldn't feel like it it means more because it's at night and it's in an island game, But it does, especially because of the team he was going against. Look, I give the Vikings offensive line a silver medal in this game. I did not think that they could dominate in the way that they did.
Early in this game.
I thought Kirk Cousins held the ball like a half second longer on a lot of these plays that he normally does, and it's because the protection held up. But he held it and he waited till the last second, till his receivers were getting opened down the field when he needed to. At one point in this game, he was eight for eight for one eighty eight on passes over ten yards, and I think that number got even better in the fourth quarter. Wasn't updated. You're absolutely right, Dan,
like he was the absolute difference in this game. And if you're just waking up in London or you're watching baseball or something and you didn't see it, you might be like, Wow, the Vikings got out of there with a win. They could have won this game by fifteen points. I'm really glad the result was how it finished Mark because he was the better quarterback and they were the much better team on the day. It actually felt a little closer than it needed to be, but they ended up getting it done.
Yep.
And I have a bit of a Niners fetish, and I agree with you. I thought that it was Minnesota's night. We got the best version of Kirk Cousins in primetime. Both teams missing their star wide receiver. You don't have Deebo Samuel, you don't have Justin Jefferson. And I thought the Niners are going to find a way to get their way out of this and like find a way with all the other stars to make production. And it
was the opposite. It was Jordan Addison tonight. I mean, I thought he played spectacularly and they got production from their run game, which has been up and down all season. I think they've came into the game with eleven rushes of ten plus yards. They had three of them early tonight. Kirk Cousins played really, I think the best game of the entire season for himself, and like their offensive line,
there's no sacks for the Niners. I thought they found a Kirk Cousins found a way to puncture the middle of that San Francisco defense.
And this was the Vikings team.
We've kind of been waiting for, and like, you know, yes, could they potentially melt out at the end. They found a way to not do that, and the Niners suddenly you've lost two games. You're in a strange spot. I'm not really like worried about them, but they're a little banged up. But I don't leave concerned about the Niners, but this is not where we thought we'd be with them a fortnit ago.
Yeah, and by the way, you mentioned Cousins was not sacked. He had forty five pass attempts in this game and not sacked, and I think I heard a stat that that's the most attempts for a player this season without being sacked. So a huge shout out times to the offensive line. And yeah, Jordan Addison, we've been seeing Addison flashing this season as a real number two in the replacement for Adam Field in there, and he kind of
put a stamp on that. TJ. Hockinson before he went out for injury, was getting open and getting the ball. He had eleven catches in the game. And you know, listen, the NFC is weird. Man like Mark, I know you nominated the Vikings to be forked last week and it was shot down because Minnesota has has the chance in this division to get back into this thing, and they already are back into this thing after an zero three start. It took one big victory to kind of change our
whole season. And here it is against the forty nine ers. On the San Francisco side of things, you do. Yeah, you didn't have debo, but let's face it, you really haven't had debo for most of this year. It's been another one of those years where he's just banged up and he could be out through the by with that fracture airline fracture in his shoulder. But you did have Brandon Ayuk who was five for fifty seven in this game,
but not necessarily difference maker. George Kittle had some catches obviously, but obviously they didn't hook up for anything. You know, in the red zone. Christian McCaffrey was held in check. Here. He after three yards of carry on fifteen rushes. He obviously busted one on a short pass for a touchdown and scored another on the ground to keep his incredible streak going. So there are elements of that offense that looked okay, but to me, it's been purty the last
two weeks. I worry if, like when we were speaking of London, when we were in London, I did a heavy metal rendition of Broctober and its return with Brock Purdy replacing Brock Osweiler, and all of a sudden, Purdy is looking extremely mortal grand and I know that you had said last week you didn't think Perdy necessarily played terribly against the Browns. There was just stretches where he didn't play so well in this game, especially with those
late those late picks. God, you start to get a little bit nervous about him coming down to earth now and looking more like the guy what we expected him to be when he first entered the lineup.
Well, I think this was very similar to last week in the way I looked at it too. Like you heard Troy Aikman say, I think it was starting the fourth quarter. You'd be hard pressed to find a game where you thought the two quarterbacks played any better. And I thought Perdy was almost throwing a perfect game through three quarters, and then you started seeing the limitation. Not like everything he did was perfect. But they only had
three drives in the first half. You know, one of them ends on the McCaffrey fumble, another mistake with penalties, and they missed the field goal on another. They scored the touchdown on the third one. They get a very quick touchdown drive to end the third quarter, and I thought at that point, like Purdy's playing really well. And then suddenly in the fourth quarter they're trailing. He's throwing these timing throws with a lot of confidence and he
just misses one to Jennings. There's another play where he's scrambling left on a third down and you think, like all the superhumans that play quarterback in the NFL can throw the ball across their body and complete it. He was trying to get a to Ayuk on that play and perty just didn't have the arm strength to do it. And then he's given the ball late with no timeouts, a chance to go down the field. Can he finally
have that like kind of big game winning drive. He hasn't had the opportunity to do that until last week really in Cleveland, and he just throws up a pass that was a nice play by cam Bina, but they were going over the middle of the field and you saw his limitations I think show up there. I'm not panicked about it, but it definitely didn't give you confidence that, like, if he's in a Kirk Cousins like spot where people are being taken away and he's under pressure, is he going to come through?
He obviously didn't. Tonight.
I'm with you.
I I think that you know, it's fair to have normal expectations about what rock Party would be very early in his career. But tonight, for me, was about a Niners defense that's been dominant for long stretches for a number of years. They looked a little uncomfortable tonight. And I'd even point to the fact that the Vikings had one drive that ended on San Francisco's two yard line and that was a long drive. That another one that ended on the three yard and of San Francisco also
a long drive, both field goals. I mean, this game could have been a much different situation going into the fourth quarter because we got a Vikings offense that actually was like extremely productive and they're understudies like the Jordan Addison's of the world, stepped up and did what we thought. I would have thought, like the Niners will find a way to get six guys we'd never heard of to produce.
It was one of the best offensive performances by any team all season Tonight's I'd agree. I know that sounds weird because they ended up with twenty two points, but considering the apoint.
They only had eight drives.
Dan they put up four hundred and was it four point fifty two and eight drives all eight drives against the forty nine Ers essentially were successful until they either you know, had the turnover on the first drive where it was Ward and Addison you know, fighting for the ball and probably should have been Addison's catch. A similar play ended up being a Touchdow.
We can get to that.
But like other than that, they were moving the ball and it really took Kevin O'Connell getting a little conservative on some fourth down decisions or else they would have had more. I was stunned to see the forty nine ers defense, which it really isn't that injured.
They're pretty healthy.
I know green Law and Warner Booth got banged up late in this game, but they both came back. Like it was kind of mystifying. I mean to see an offensive line for Minnesota like steamroll and they were running well early too.
What's the what's the defense now? And this this plays into the NFL's hammer drunk right now, like what is the defense that has for seven weeks gone kind of undefeated? If you will? I mean, I think about all these great teams San Francisco, Cleveland, the Jets, Dallas, New Orleans, Detroit.
I mean, you know, Baltimore has been very good. I know I'm trying'm blanking right now whether they had a real slip up yet, But like you're seeing all these teams kind of go into these funks and it tells you there's probably not a truly great difference making defense, or maybe it's more just a long season and this is a bad night for the Niners on that side
of the ball, but it is. Again, You've got to give so much credit to Cousins and Kevin O'Connell to be able to do this without the best wide receiver in the league, with him on the sideline whearing sunglasses, it's a pretty remarkable achievement. And I want to I want to. I know we've talked about Kyle Shanahan before and he is a gifted offensive mind, but he can
be sometimes conservative. I'm trying to wrap my head around that decision to with a struggling field goal kicker early in the fourth quarter to go for the fifteen yard the fifty five yard field goal with a struggling rookie to make it twenty two seventeen when it's fourth and six from the opponent thirty seven yard line, like that, that struck me, as HM, I wonder if Shanahan's not
feeling so hot about Party. But you're right, like that doesn't really make sense because Party really was playing well. That really stunned me and I was trying to do the math in my head is like why did he just do that? And then that's what the final score ended up being, So it didn't exactly work out right.
I think they you know, they were off balance all night offensively because they're playing this insane defense. You know, Brian Flores has brought a crazy energy. I think he's a he kind of reminds me of Wade Phillips in that Wade Phillips whenever you would bring him in, bring him into your twenty sixth ranth defense, Wade Phillips will clean.
It up fast. It might not work forever.
And and Flores is even crazier than Phillips and in the kamikazi style that he plays with, but he's basically taken these guys. They got rid of some older veterans and he's taken like a similar secondary friends and can bind them with the two interceptions. Akalab Evans, who is
out there on on ayuk all night. This same young guys in the secondary, and he's just in Harrison Smith, who's playing like he's five years younger, and he's just had blitzing every time, and when he doesn't blitz, he only rushes three and he drops eight and you're like, what the hell is happening here? And I think it just had them off balance. They definitely stopped the run really well, and it's not gonna work every every game,
and it's not gonna even work every series. You saw that three play drive where where they they had some good beat you know, cover zero beaters with McCaffrey scoring that long touchdown, and like that can happen against Flora's too, But he has them playing with an energy and I think he was messing with their minds a little bit. I really thought the Minnesota coaches were awesome because koc had all the answers for for San Francisco's defense, and likewise, I think Flora's really scrambled them.
And it was the second game in a row where we saw Purty, who has been if anything like if he's not majestic, you know, athletically, but he's been safe with the football and been smart and kind of like beyond his years. And that's what you like about him, and it's two games in a row where he's grew very dangerous lobs while he's getting tugged at the ground
and getting thrown around. And like, I, you know, the one for all the preseason tropes that we ignore, I kind of think I'm starting to buy into the one where like a bunch of defensive players are like, we've got a new coordinator. He's made it less complex, less mind altering, and it's like we just go be who we are, because like that was Schwartz in Cleveland, that's Flores in Minnesota, and it's you know, if anything, Minnesota
cut talent off that roster. They got a lot of young guys like they cut veteran guys, and like everyone seems to be responding better. And this was a pretty incredible, crazy, unpredictable performance on both sides of the ball by the Vikings, and it's just like something's working and like I I know, probably this is you know, it's a Monday night game
and in Minnesota will translate a week from now. The Vikings are bound to disappoint us and you know, be fuddle us again as as as viewers, But this is their ceiling in in two weeks in a row, two teams ceilings top the Niners, and I find that to be one of the more surprising storylines of this October month.
And this is why I like the Vikings. Like Greg has fourteen favorite teams, the Vikings would be on my list of teams that I'll always make be cool watching because they really are entertaining, like their games are more often than not, there's there's something going on in the game, whether it's weird or there's an upset one way or the other, or there's exciting plays going on. And I think Cousins for being sad being like the Huey Lewis of NFL quarterbacks like hip to be square like he is.
He's kind of fun and cool to watch as a player, and I've always enjoyed watching him, so you know, it's it's it's interesting to see where they end up. And I don't want to hear it. By the way, on the other side, and this is my last point, and
you guys could share whatever you want to share. I don't want to hear because I know it's gonna happen because everyone's going to key in on the the two interceptions with Purdy Now and you have all these idiots and bloviators on the fourteen different morning shows on all the regional networks and on the you know, on the world take a shot leader and our own on our
own network. Let's be fair that are now going to be running those two picks on an end of loop and some of the low lights from the Browns game, even though he got them into chip shot range basically, and the kicker blew it and they're gonna say, oh, now pretty stinks. So but you can't do that because you can't say when he was thriving that he's just a product of the system. And then when he encounters struggles,
you're not saying it's a system anymore. Then it's him and it's like, so just stick a sock in it. Let's give this guy a little room to breathe and stand that. It's a long season and it was very unlikely he was going to go poll to poll as a dominant player. I want to see the fuller breadth of things. But just get ready for that. There's gonna be a lot of mindless chatter about party actually not being good and the should the forty nine ers have
traded Trey Lance is Donald. I'm just Sam Donald. Maybe the better option for this team long term just shut it out, shut out the noise. In fact, use it as a barometer of whether you should watch or listen to those programs. Okay, that's my that's my advice. Greg.
I love Greg, I love well so Dan.
I as a party, I like, I really love what you just said. And it's kind of like you're you're sending out a proclamation anyone that's, you know, paying attention to this show a party out there. I'm a pretty like I think, like, let's see at this, Let's see if people can calm there and cool their jets a little bit. Let's not go down Dak Prescott Avenue you with Brock party, because I think you have to look at the overall like body of work as I knock
something off my desk, like he look at you. He's allowed to throw a couple of rough interceptions and a couple of rough passes like every other quarterback we follow.
He is very deck like I think, and he's gonna stay that way because I think he's gonna be there for a while.
And and I'm gonna I'll say this too, like the Cowboys heading into their bye week. I thought it was kind of interesting some of the things they were saying, because in our podcast is not as an innocent of this, the Cowboys have a stinker and we are just laying them to waste. But if the Niners have a stinker, the Eagles have a stinker. Where I feel like we're just a little bit more.
I mean, the Cowboys have had two. The Cowboys got beat by what we considered.
I'm just saying I get their point because of the it's because it's because of how seasons have ended there. I mean, it just because of how seasons have ended.
I think you're right.
I'm pretty I think he's a very promising young quarterback. I think it's into to see Kyle Shanahan go through on the sideline. You could see his frustration. It's almost like, I think he believes in Bertie so much in the
same way that he once believes in Kirk Cousins. It's very interesting to have this loss to Cousins, the guy that he famously was trying to get back in twenty seventeen, and then they tried to get Brady, and then they had Jimmy g and so then they couldn't get Cousins and like and Cousins is absolutely shredding him with an unreal performance. I thought it was interesting because I think he's almost surprised when Perdy makes any sort of mistake.
But he also threw some dimes tonight, and I think that if I'm laying blame like number one is on this defense for a total stink fest of a performance. And more to the point, I'm just giving credit for Cousins, like him moving out, moving inside the pocket, kind of like a Tom you know, a very poor man's Tom Brady, but moving in the pocket away from pressure, especially on that last third down.
Third down after third down.
These are third and seven, third to nines with no logical like guy who's winning one on one Addison left that game. Hockinson's in and out, He's throwing the Brandon Powell in kJ Osborn, Tristan Jackson and Ty Chandler. I mean, I I love this was great offensive football from him and from his head coach. I think really just in
a groove and it was a season changing. When we talked with Mike Garafolo earlier on Monday on the Trade Deadline special, everyone should check that out and we talked about the Vikings sort of like, well, if they lose tonight, you know, Daniel Hunter and would cousins even be You know, everything is much different than it was earlier today and very different than when it was.
If they listen to you, they heard Rosenthal totally dismiss Minnesota's chances.
And I still cause I think Quesse like in his heart, would love to get a first round pick for Hunter, which which they maybe could have gotten, but now it's now it's hard to trade him away. They're three and four. He'd try to win next week and maybe the luck's coming.
You know what.
I thought that was the I'll like end with this because it was a crazy play. Sixteen seconds left in the half. It was the game changing play in the first half, no timeouts. They get a sixty plus yard touchdown on a play that Charvarius Ward probably should have intercepted. It goes through his arms, probably Cousins Worth throw the night turns into a long touchdown. I thought, oh, maybe the football gods have returned to Minnesota. Now they're sprinkling twenty twenty two lock back on this team.
Wait a minute, wait a minute, like the football.
Gods they're winning, what score game?
Football gods, the football gods. If they're sprinkling luck on the Vikings, typically it's just to take you and tug you somewhere deeper into the fall and winter where.
We break your heart again.
I would say this because I think with football more than any other sport, we break down and look at every individual games. We stop down and watch, like we'll go watch the Buccaneers film. What if it's baseball or basketball, you just move on and look at like who scored what?
And you know you bypass it.
Like if they're five and two the Niners, I would not be surprised that they're ten and four when you double the record, not be surprised that the Vikings, who are three and four are six and eight.
Like it's it's one night in the season.
It was a return to normalcy in terms of like the Vikings are better than the record, I think a little bit like especially an offense, they've been productive, but like I'm not, I just I refuse to It was.
If nothing else happens this season, he had this night. This was a nice nights.
Uh, And now you're trying to take the wind out of their sales in this segment.
Now, No, not, don't try to straw man me into some corner like I'm happy for that.
Not, I'm just saying what you're saying. I'm just it's more.
Like I'm not going to panic about brock Party. To your point, this is what your argument was. I'm not talking about fourteen regional like local shows that you are talking about like that.
They're gonna be ten and four and be fine at some point.
So like, cool, nobody. I don't think anybody's disagreeing with that. I don't think I don't see a tailspin for the Niners here, right, Although they haven't lost two games in a row the Niners in like a couple of years, and they have.
It's been strange, like ten days. It's been a weird ten days.
But what are they learn from it? They got the Bengals next week. That's they got one a resurgent Bengals team next week at home. That that's gonna be a lot of fun. And last thing is to ties it all together. Kyle Shanahan, Kirk Cousins is like his white whale, right, you know, Kirk Cousins is heading towards free agency. I don't know that feels like six years too late, but just saying, and Brock Perdy probably is there for you know, a long time. I think Kyle Shannon loves him. I'm
just saying Kirk Cousins is headed toward free agency. I'll never forget that.
It's like a Mike Silver report on NFL dot com how he was like desperately trying to get Kirk Cousins.
I forget. I think it was twenty seventeen. You could look it up.
We're like doing podcasts and writing newsers and you know sometimes when it was a hot newser you'd even and write an analysis off the news.
There we're double news aer in it.
People wanted Mike Lennon for a couple of years too. I mean, people are strange.
Mark. Can you say that it's possible also that the Vikings are eight and six after fourteen games?
I do think it is.
I'm not that was more of a like a not panic about the Niners take than me trying to like cut Vikings fans off of the knees.
They're wicked sensitive. I get it, like I wish well for them.
I think it was more just like it was a nice night in the Kirk cousin's career arc.
It was just yes for him to beat it the star they're playing better show. Yeah, the difference between the thirteen and four vikings and this three and fourteen. They can get hot in that division. They can get hot. All right, let's take a break and then we'll do
some news. All right, welcome back. Yes, as we mentioned earlier, we had Mike Garfolo on the program from Chris Wesling podcast studio earlier today in Englewood and where Greg is sitting right now as a matter of fact, and we did our trade deadline primer, digging into the potential storylines as we look ahead to next Tuesday's October thirty first deadline to acquire a team, acquire players some other teams. So make sure you check that out also. And this
is I mean, jeez, it's back. I mean check your socials. This guy gets it with Mark Sessler and Mark, this guy gets it the season premiere. And this is very in line with how you know, big time TV shows operate through the years and you come back with your premiere. You're looking to do a big number with the Nielsen's and like this idea that you ran with was so hot that we could couldn't even reference really what it
was exactly in our social media teas. The people will have to hit it up on the audio podcast to find out.
I think they will, you know.
I think when you i'd take the model that I know of a couple shows that have a big sort of launch and announcement and say we're here to stay, you know, and they put out one episode a year, and like I kind of learned from that. We did one last year, We've got one this year. But I waited this long. I didn't want to rush.
I didn't want to.
Be superfluous like the topic I found to be honest, because I think no one of you know, importance higher up in the companies listening to this. We kind of like snuck it by the NFL. We snuck it by the company because it's a topic that's a little too hot. You couldn't put an NFL dot Com story out there about it the way you'd want to. You've got to find a way to, you know, shove it in there.
And that's what we did. This topic. What we've done, I think people will see exactly what we're talking about. It is hot to the touch, it's electric and I think it's gonna be succinnct in the sense that the episode is about an hour, like a minute and forty one seconds long. But why waste words, It's time to be succinct.
That explanation was almost as long as the actual episode.
It was longer than the episode.
It reminds me of you know, when a big feature drops and you're like in, you in the art and the authors like I have been working on this feature for seventeen months. You've been working on this. This guy gets it for twelve months.
Yeah, and it's my the Killer Moon. I think you know if you.
If you saw the write up in the Hollywood Reporter, Mark was referred to as a more carnally furious, morally safer. So I mean, if that doesn't get you plugged in, I don't know what it is. Uh And finally, before we get to the news, NFL Plus Game of the Week is back. We absolutely just killed it with our breakdown. I thought of Brown's Cults thirty nine to thirty eight. Uh so check that out for some deep discourse.
We might have included some elements of the game that we probably should have included in the Sunday Night recaps, so like you know, we find a way to match it up in the end.
So what does that mean? What do you mean?
I'm a journalist and I like what.
I don't need to get into it on this show, but like, there there are elements of that game that maybe if you know, there's been a little more robust Uh are you some.
Colts fans are angry at the sas dog about it.
I don't too well with that, so they can stick it.
So if those first of all kickrocks, I mean we do literally a trillion shows and we don't all hit home runs every single time.
Uh.
If you were looking for some deep discourse on the end of that game. As an addendum, check out the NFL Plus breakdown of that game. All right, now, let's get into the news bringing kick Rocks back.
Yah, kick Rocks.
All right, Let's get into it starting with a trade. And it actually is something that came down when we were doing our trade deadline primer with Mike Garrafolo. The Eagles added some reinforcements to their banked up secondary. They get Kevin Byard in a trade with the Tennessee Titans on Monday. The Eagles sent back Tel Edmunds plus two draft picks to the Titans. It's a homecoming for Bayard, who was born in Philly named after Brian Dawkins. How cool is that? And now he joins a new team.
Is anything else you wanted to add there, either of you boys?
Well, no, just I think it speaks to where they know their week on their team and it could work out really well.
It might not.
Like he's a little older that you know, he's an aging player. He might be on this team next year. It's more about this season. He's a player I always remember first became famous because Deon Sanders didn't know his name as he was headed towards an All Pro season, and he was upset about that and Dion took offense. And now he's gonna be much more in the spotlight. And they they needed it, Like I think they know they are not right in the secondary. But I don't
think it's like some sort of game changing move. It's just one that makes me think, Man, the Titans might be selling and Derek Henry might be somewhere else, and that's gonna give us some fun stuff to talk about in the next week.
The only thing I'd add is that there are like I've seen Titans fans out on X and other platforms a little annoyed that they've become this sort of you know, pipeline to recreate the Eagles and position groups where they're a struggling you need a wide receiver. Let us just sell you Aj Brown and have our head coach march out of the draft room. Oh you need a safety. Oh you're struggling, you might be a little vulnerable. Just give you Kevin Bayer, no problem. It's like, I don't know.
At some point, it's like, when do we stop just feeding force feeding and pink ponying the Philadelphi Eagles.
Forgot about ping pony.
Aj Brown has more receiving yards than the entire Titans wide receivers group.
By the way, Woolf and who would know more about pink Pony, the operation connected to the Patriots during their glory years than Mike Rabel, head coach of the Titans. So tough Stitch Justin Fields in injury news unlikely to be back in the lineup in Week eight against the Chargers.
That from head coach Matt Ibrafluss, who said he is doubtful doubtful to play, so that means another start for rookie Tyson Beagent, who had some big moments and flashed some really impressive ink along his breastplate and when he had his shirt off during game ball. And also Eric Rabbits producer who is inked up so hardcore that he will travel like to San Diego for instance, to go to tattoo festivals and competitions. That's neither here nor there, but Beijent has it on his back as well. So
I just I'm just into Bigent. He's an interesting guy and he gets another start.
Yeah, if Beijen beats the Chargers, that's a that's a fascinating draft. Picked of a game between two two win teams this week just because there's a lot of chaos possible. If the Bears win that game, I'm interested their Their offense will look completely different with them, and it certainly wasn't bad.
It's also happening on Sunday night. Like if you're Tyson Beigent, like, oh my gosh, you were anonymous, You were anonymous two weeks ago, and now you're gonna be playing on Sunday night football Chicago Bears Chargers.
This is just really we'll preview it during the week.
But man, Brandon Staley, I would rat if I was Brandon Staley, I do Fason beige It is the last guy I want to be facing on Sunday Night Football. It's potential to not make it to week nine for Brandon Staley.
What an indictment of the entire Brandon Staley enterprise that he's shaking his boots because Beigeent's getting another start. But it's a weird situation there. In other injury news, the NFL is asking injury report compliance questions to the Atlanta Falcons about when they knew rookie running back Bejon Rockrobinson was not physically well and why it wasn't reported per
league policy. Adam Schefter reported on Monday, this is standard practice when a player day of game suddenly is not available. There are a lot of reasons why it's very important that teams comply with the injury things. In terms of things that happen in the desert, it's a very serious thing. I mean, as you know from basically forty eight percent
of commercials connected to the NFL now. So, the Falcons declined comment Monday and evening from I covered that game for the podcast yesterday, and it like the stench was in the air, just how weird it all smelled, not because it's so strange that a player would wake up and I guess was a reported as headaches after the fact.
I don't know. It was all the way it was all reported, the way that he was in the he was active and dressed and on the field for some snaps and then getting a carry in the final minute. Everything about it were just I mean, it had Lady Smith's fingerprints all over it for starters, but you know whatever.
Yeah, and he also like I mean, he was not feeling well on Saturday, so it was the day before.
And I think that we all are if you're in a fantasy league.
Everyone had the group thread where one of the friends who had Jon Robinson is, you know, writing the text where he's annoyed that the Falcons did this. He's probably annoyed with the Falcons in general, but this happened. But then on top of it, like it made me think a little bit back to the like four billion like NFL dot com posts written about Percy Harvin with migraines, and I was like, just like yesterday when like I wonder if this was like, I don't know what it was.
Maybe maybe it was just a headache, but like a migraine kind of thing could come and go. You might be better the next day. But I don't know if you're the Falcons, but that.
If he would have woken up with migraines, Mark and they come on in the telecast and after he doesn't play in the first half, we'd come out at halftime and Christina Pink does that interview and the head coach says, yeah, he woke up, he had some head issues, he had some migrants. No one does batteran an eyelash because the league takes it very seriously brain trauma and things of that nature. And yet the wording around it was just odd.
He just wasn't feeling like himself or wasn't feeling great. Odd. The whole season over there has been odd, and yet the Falcons are in first place, also in first place of the Kansas City Chiefs, but they will be it without one of their most important defenders, Nick Bolton, the linebacker. He had a wrist injury. This was kind of a harrowing report from the CBS telecast. I think Wolfson reported that he was screaming in pain as he headed back
to the locker room. And that's typically what happens to people when they dislocate their god wrist and he needs surgery and it's going to cost them approximately two months according to Pell Raiser, And we mentioned that briefly on the Trade Deadline show as well, because in an underhanded way, Pallisero snowed under the old rap sheet and you know, rap sheet won't forget.
He won't and I won't forget Brett Veitch, their general manager, for signing one of my favorite off ball linebackers that I always thought could do a little bit everything, Drew Chank will and when he's come in for Bolton this year has really looked great. So I think they're fine with Tranquil and Gay, but it's in Willie Gays the other one, but Bolton's was playing at a Pro Bowl level, so it's a big time disappointment for them.
In other injury news, the Bills are losing a big part of their offense. Dawson Knox, their tight end, also had a risk issue that required surgery. He's been dealing with that for a couple of weeks and they decided to shut him down. Get the surgery done, they don't have a timeline on when he'll be back. He played sixty three percent of their snaps on Sunday. Dalton Kincaid, their rookie tight end, saw more work in that game, and you imagine he will continue to see more work after that.
And I on the Bills during the trade deadline thing, because like remember we talked this whole offseason, it's like, oh, who's gonna step up for being a weapon? Oh, they're going to do the two tight end thing, and they did. They were playing two tight ends more than anyone in the league until this week against the Patriots when they started to back off it. And it's just like they where's the third receiver? Where's even the second receiver? Gabe
Davis comes and goes. He's been fine, but they feel like a team, especially after this injury. I think that might try to make make a move.
That really showed up in the Patriots game. I think we mentioned that on Sunday night, was just like, where was the other weapon that they could have used when
it's not stuff on digs? And like I know with Kinkaid and Knox, they were doing what you know, not the twelve personnel, but the eleven and a half personnel where they they're using two tight ends all the time, and like I think Kinkaid maybe a little bit less as a blocker, but if anything, it might the one like blessing disguise is if you get Kinkaid in there, like one hundred percent of the time, I think he is that weapon, and like he's sort of shown that
and like maybe they come out of it with him growing.
Bill's got problems. Keep an eye on the Bills here. Broncos safety Kareem Jackson suspended four games for multiple violations of unnecessary roughness. Well, if the suspension comes after Jackson was disqualified from Sunday's win over Green Bay after delivering a hit to Packers tight end Luke Musgrave, who was deemed a defenseless receiver. He was flagged for a personal foul penalty in addition to his disqualification from the game,
and you do the math. I'm not sure what his salary is Kream Jackson, but essentially a four game suspension that's without pay, so whatever is game day check times for that is a huge penalty and you take him off the field for essentially a quarter of the season, trying to send the message to Jackson and others, just like with the gambling policy, Hey, don't do this because we're gonna come for you and it's gonna hurt in the wallet as well as your reputation.
One of West's favorite players because he's a throwback, like a Bob Sanders type. I mean, he loves, he loves hitting guys in the head. Just keeps keeps happening over over. I thought he might get traded, but that's not gonna happen now.
I know you're concerned about his reputee that his reputation is going to take a huge hit.
Honestly, could not care less. But I do like that West liked him. But I also like being a like I'm a throwback, I'm a hard nosed guy. I'm gonna knock this guy's head off. He won't know where he is after the game, Like, we don't do that anymore. So you gotta you gotta adjust, gottadjust. I'm sure he might now that he's lost, I don't know, like two million dollars or whatever. It's gonna be finally in the news.
Give me that iconic Mark Robudeo theme, Little Hard Knocks all right, we're coming off the New York Jets Hard Knocks season this summer, but unless you've been under a rock, you should know that they've been doing a in season version for three years now, and this is a pretty good get I thought for the Hard Knocks and HBO team, the Dolphins. The Miami Dolphins will be the featured in season team this season, the team and HBO and NFL Films announced in a joint statement. Last year we tracked
the Cardinals. I could not have cared less about that team or season, so I did not watch that. The previous year was what Colts Colts Colts, and I guess there was some palace intrigue because they collapse horrendously down the stretch. But the Dolphins are a bonafide AFC contender that have all this kind of buzz around them, and crucially Mike McDaniel, who is a hugely compelling figure. So this one might be one that I'm checking out.
I feel like these shows depend on the coaches so much and Mike McDaniel being the leader of this team and this team, and we'll see where they go. They got the Patriots this week, and who knows what their story will be, but they feel like the one of the freshest, most interesting stories of this season. So for Hard Knocks to have the Jets in training camp and then the Dolphins, now nice season for Hard Knocks. I will be watching this because of my spiritual brother Mike McDaniel.
Yeah, there's an invisible string mark that ties Mike McDaniel to Greg Rosenthal. And if anybody can unlock Greg, which we certainly have not been able to do in the last twelve years or so, it would be McDaniel. So in general, I would love I mean, I would love for us to talk to Mike McDaniel and maybe that's what that we could work on because I think we're all all of us are kind of super into the personality.
And then it's this guy that's an innovator in the league, and I feel like he would be I feel like he'd be good on the show. I think if we could get him on the program, that would be fun. So maybe watching this show will give us some good background. If we can make that happen.
He would be great on the show.
I don't know how, and Greg, I understand where you're coming from, Like, I don't know how you co opted Mike McDaniel. I think that there's a fascination.
This is my theory. Actually, yeah, I have to say, like I just the way kind of the mannerisms and the some it's like, you can't tell is he being purposely obtuse but he's obviously there's some deep thinking going on. But why is he trying to annoy me right now? There's a lot of things. There's a lot of layers to McDaniel and Greg that I just see parallels. I know.
I think, like, like Greg, do you call it like a fresh choice or whatever? Like I mean, the last two years of the show, it was like, first of all, we have football happening like literally every second of every day, whether it's news or games, and it's like it's just this, but this for this choice, I don't know how they can't. Maybe they've updated how they decide what team to pick, and maybe it's a little bit let's find out where we are a couple weeks into this season, but.
Like, I'll watch this. I'm interested in this.
If if you pick twenty five other teams hard out, don't care.
Like I'll survive without it. I'll watch this.
And I think Mike McDaniel is an Absolutely, it's for a reason why it's.
The it's the bi annual Mark Sessler caveat filled Hard Knocks endorsement.
No, but you know, but listen. But like that's because they made the right choice.
Like there was a period where like we got either the Rams or the Chargers on like the summer and the autumn version and all this other business.
So they live or die a show or whatever it's called.
Like all in like it's just like I don't need to see anymore, like Jeff Fisher Rams not all or.
Nothing, this this.
This, I'm in for this, I'm info probably in case you got two episodes.
We're curious. The invisible strain connects Greg to McDaniel. My invisible string connects to Jim Tomsula, and Mark's invisible string connects to Frank r. So there, that's that's everything for you.
It's not accurate.
Mark connects to Kate Winslet.
That is accurate.
He wishes all right, Uh that's it. Okay, So uh again, this guy gets it lands in your feed on Tuesday, so do not miss that because it's trenchant and like I said, the Hollywood Reporter called Mark a more carnally furious, morally safer. So if that doesn't get you to tune it, I just don't know what will. Uh. And we'll be back on Wednesday with Colleen Wolf in a very very special holiday episode in a way, so it is kind of a holiday in our show for this particular episode.
Until then, Heat the Call.