Welcome to NFL Daily, where we're all just trying to be in the face of the network. I'm Greg Rosenthal, and yeah, that titles taken at NFL Network by Rich Easen and then maybe like six other guys. Steve Weisch, my co host, would be one of them. But my guest has that title. It's not right now.
You don't know that it's been foisted upon me by some charlatan's on the internet. Listen, I know you don't like FAF to start the show, just so you can set a sixty second clock here. There's just a couple of things I want to say. One is I went through my email lesson I couldn't find it. I really think you the first time you came on one of my radio shows was sixteen years ago. I honestly believe that, and like you were one of my go to guys.
I would call and you would very kindly come on, even though I was like you were getting nothing out of it, and I've never been able to return the favor. So this is a real treat for me. That's point number one. Point number two. I'm a long time Greg Rosenthal listener and fan. Loved the old pod and I have not missed an episode of this one, and in fact, the only one I haven't listened to in its entirety is Wednesdays because when we are recording Thursday, I haven't
had time yet to listen to the whole thing. But I heard the beginning of it. You and another guy used to have come on the radio show all the time, Evan Silva. And the last point is this, and this is important. You are one of three people. The other two will remain nameless. That way everyone can think they're in that group, that here's this who when they say something that I vehemently disagree with in the NFL, I
reconsider my opinion. Everyone else I just think they're wrong, and I'm right you and two other people, I'm like, well, maybe I need to look at it again. So thank you for having me on.
Well that that is all making me uncomfortable.
I now just want to spend the show guessing who the other two are.
One of them's Barnwell, Barnaball.
Okay, I booked Barnwell in a big spot. He's gonna do our TNF free cap week too, so there's a little.
The third used to be Mina, but now she's my sworn rival. So now it's got to be so much. So again you have to leave a spot like that open that way. Anyone that hears it can't be offended. They're like, wait, why am I not on that list? It's like no, no, no, you were the missing person.
Oh last thing.
I do a podcast in addition to the TV show with my son Demonse.
My son. I was a bit old to that you've just taken over. No.
I was just gonna say it because you and Walker, I think one day are going to do a pod together. I hear his takes. His picks sometimes are a little chalky, a little square, but I like it. So that's all, But go ahead.
I appreciate that, all you know. I am now reminded of a great chew. I don't know if it was you or Adam Lefko who was on with Bomani, but he noticed on his podcast when you have another host on the podcast, they just start hosting.
Yes, and that's what Nick's done to me. No, I love it.
I love it, and I'm glad actually and yeah, Nick is of course the host of First Things First on FS one that's every day at noon Pacific three Eastern. You know, I like to let list Pacific first, it's the important people, and then yeah, what's right. I really was going to mention that that you co host a podcast with your son Demanse, and that's fantastic. That is life goals, and so that's what's right with Nick.
Right.
They just did the over unders all thirty two teams. I'm jealous of that now, as like, Okay, next year, I want to do all thirty two teams.
That would be fun. And you managed to jam.
It into an hour, so you got to check out that show. And yeah, at the risk of getting too heavy on top here, I'm glad you brought up the radio thing. And maybe you don't remember this, but I actually do remember that. I think the last time I ever was supposed to be on your show, I canceled that the last second, like two minutes before I was supposed to be on.
And I remember where I was.
I was in the newsroom in Culver City when I was in middle management. Hell, it was like a five year period where I realized I had to get out of this job. And I actually remembered it, and I flaked on you at the last second, And I hate doing that to radio host, and at least in my head, that was the last time I ever was going to be on. I was like, oh, now I got on that guy's list, and then what happened? He ended up becoming a big national sup.
No, I listen, anybody that ever comes on for free out of the kindness of their own heart. I never get upset with the one rare exception of friend of mine, so I can now say it. Seam Sheranio was once midg mid interview with me on Mad Dog Sports Radio mid interview and he's like, oh my, He's like, oh my god, I'm sorry, I have to go breaking news, and I'm like, oh, this is exciting. He's going to
break major news. And then I checked. Thirty seconds later he tweets out that some second round pick signed a two way contract. I'm like, you gotta be kidding me. You gotta be kidding me. That is what took precedent. That's the only one that I hold the grudge yours.
Those insiders are different. We had Ian Rappaport. He's done that to us, did that on our own show to us in the past. All Right, we're gonna get to a lot today. We'll get to Nick of course has been blessed to be a fan of the Chiefs, so we'll get to them at some point in this program, I'm sure. And of Carlos Alkrez, he was at the US Open. We'll get to that. But I have a structure here which we don't do in every show. It's an AFC preview. We're gonna try to get a lot in.
We're gonna get our seven AFC seeds by the end of this. But I'm just gonna throw out a few categories to start. The first one is just a team that's favored to make the playoffs that will rather a team that's not favored to make the playoffs that will make the playoffs. So first I'm gonna tell you who is favored just in Vegas, Chiefs, Ravens, Bills, Texans, Bengals, Jets. And then the last one I was a little surprised is the Dolphins are this favor to be the seven seeds.
So who is a team that is not favored to make the playoffs?
You would pick Jaggs.
To me, there's two and they're kind of there as well, and are one of them Jags Chargers. So that's but I think we'll maybe have different teams out now. Neither of those are that bold because but I think if we were to go down playoff odds, Jags, Chargers are probably eight, nine or nine, you know, eight and ten. They're close. It's not picking the Patriots or the the Titans,
the real low teams. But I just I am. My premise, as you'll see throughout the show in the AFC, is that I think there's so many excellent quarterbacks that that is going to carry the day because if you don't have an excellent quarterback, your thirteen conference games a year, you're going to be or I guess twelve conference games a year, you're going to be at such a structural disadvantage.
I'm and I still listen. I'm still a Trevor Lawrence believer. There, you know, there is in one version of history, Trevor Lawrence after a bad rookie season, had an awesome second year, one of the greatest playoff comebacks ever, and then was playing on Monday Night Football at eight and three to be the one seed and got hurt and the season
went to hell. That's how I view it. Everyone else seems to view it as they fell apart and Yes, he doesn't seem to do well in the rain, which is unfortunate when you play your games in Jacksonville and in London. And he does have a bit of a fumbling issue. But I still believe in Trevor and your show.
Is part of the reason I've been convinced on the Chargers is you've just had so many people make the point of the year one bump for Harbaugh everywhere he's gone and so but I the Herbert injury concerns me. But those are my two.
Yeah, Chargers were for me. I did not expect this. Jaguars I debated between those two. It was just a process of elimination, you know, Browns. I just don't expect the defense to be as good. They got too many problems, like.
Can they might have a bottom three quarterback situation in the AFC.
It's a it's a problem. They have backups. We'll see if they trade one of them. But uh, Steelers, maybe go if you had if I had done this in June, Steelers might have been that team.
But just it's too messy. Uh.
And then the other teams are too far away that the Chargers. I feel like people are predicting them to be terrible this year. And yeah, I'm also someone that doesn't try to make it too complicated before the season.
I'm usually a little bolder.
I think I will be with the NFC, But I would rather just bet on a coach, a quarterback, and an offensive line and a defensive scheme to raise you to just be average. So Mina and I disagree vehemently on this. She thinks they're going to be trash. We have we have some line here. She thinks their defense is going to truly be trash, and she just doesn't.
So here's this sneaky thing about the Chargers when it comes to the AFC Western projections. There's two things that I think people know one of them and are kind of maybe know the other, but I haven't thought about it. The Chargers, despite being in a division with the Raiders and Broncos, have the last place schedule, and that is
such an edge. And amazingly, the Raiders have a second place schedule this year, So anyone wanting to be bullish on the Raiders, the Raiders did themselves no favors by beating the Chiefs on Christmas, and that you know it's actually the last game the Chiefs have lost, so it's not that bad, but all of a sudden they have a second place schedule, So that makes that makes me much more bullish on the Chargers.
Than I'm glad you mentioned that, because you know, sometimes people overrate that last place schedule.
It's like it used to just be two games, but now it's three. Now it's three in the NFC.
But it also depends which NFC and which happened to be the last place seam for the Chargers this year. Here's the three extra games, Pats, Titans, Cardinals. That's beautiful, Like that's I'm.
Unbelievable, and they think about the Raiders, sorry to interrupt you. That means for the Raiders, it's in the play of the Pats, it's the Dolphins. In place of the Cardinals, it's the Rams, and in place of the Titans, it would be the Jags, right, I think they finished second or no, the Colts. It's the Colts there because they played, but regardless, like that's a huge difference. It's a huge difference.
It really is.
I think people overrate that sometimes, not this time, so I'm into that. I've been a team that is favored to make the playoffs that won't And I mentioned Chiefs, Ravens, Bills, Texans, Bengals, Jets, Dolphins.
So there's obviously, since I have two in, I have to have two out. But I'll give you the one that I'm most competent in. The Jets are not going to be good. I just I don't I don't understand. This is one of those things where I'm like, oh, this is a smart person whose opinion I respect. I wonder why they're so wrong about this. And there's a lot of with the Jets. They they're favored to win the division. Robert Usually to win the division, you have to go at least four and two or five and
one in the division. If the Jets go four and two in the division, Robert Salo will have doubled his career division wins. For his career, He's four and fourteen. They have an offensive coordinator that they tried to shadow replace because they thought he was so bad and they were too incompetent to do that. And even if we were to just pretend that Aaron Rodgers didn't tear his achilles, let's just pretend last year instead of being out with the torn achilles, he was out because he was canvassing
for RFK Junior. Fine, then I'd still be like, well, his last season before that, he wasn't good, and people are like, no, he just wasn't good by Aaron Rodgers standards, but he was good by NFL standards. No, he wasn't. Look it up, he was league average in everything. Well, who could have won with that team? I don't know.
Jordan Love played pretty well and in the final, in the last game of relevance that Aaron Rodgers played, he was at home against a team he had owned forever, played one of his worst games of the year and threw the game away at the end. So that guy is all of a sudden going to be the connective tissue and the best, not the best, but a very good quarterback. Like I just it's people. Everyone who doesn't believe in the Jets says, while injuries could kill him,
obviously that's true. I think even healthy, they have average They have average quarterback play this year.
I think you might be right, and they're on my list too.
They're one of those teams that, again, if I did this earlier, I agree with everything you just said about Rogers and the Jets, and I do this thing that I know.
I'm a hater.
Basically, I'm a little biased against the Jets, so I almost try to like pretend I'm not and make the case for them in the end, But when it comes down to it, I don't believe in them. They have so many aspects of the team, even if you take away Rogers that I'm with you, I'd start with Rogers. But who's their second best defensive lineman after Leonard Williams. Robert Salah counts on a great defensive line to help them.
They were counting on Hassan Redick. I don't know how that's gonna happen, but at this point I'd almost be surprised if he plays with them. Jermaine Johnson is maybe their second best. They're county on Javon Kinler, like Tac McKinley's in the mix. So there's so many ifs with this team. On their offensive line, their defensive line, obviously Rogers, Tyron Smith. I know they have backups in certain places,
but it's just so many ifs. All in a season where they're a GM and their coach both knows they're going to be fired if it doesn't go well.
So that's too much.
I think they'll be okay and they'll stay in the mix and they'll be dramatic. But they were on my list too. They were the one I was going to talk about. But I had two teams out too, so I also, by the way, we'll throw in the Dolphins just because offensive line, defensive line, the edges coming off injury just a little too much.
So we're gonna this is I promise, because I went through your producer did a brilliant job, sent me a really thorough rundown, so I know what's coming and I anticipate we're gonna have more disagreements later. But we have the same two out, the same team, the Dolls and the Dolphins. Can I give I don't know. Can I give a quick Dolphins?
Yeah? You can do whatever you are.
You know this is the year, so I have uh. I like Mike McDaniel. I think he's sharp. I think he's a good coach. I also personally have graded him in Miami on a bit of a curve. The curve being man, look at what he's doing with Tua, who I think is a limited player. The moment he signed off on them giving to a fifty three million, I made a decision. In my head, I'm removing that curve. Like now now you you are telling the world that you think this guy's top light quarterback, and you can
say it wasn't his decision whatever. That's so in my head now it's like, no, now you're graded the way people.
Great is his decision though, it was like he showed up there and he made it, and he's made that work. Weirdly too is kind of the least, not the least of my concerns. But Mike McDaniel tua as a combo to me, that works, that works to be a playoff team.
It's everything.
There's other things I think he I'm great amount of curve because he's a Dolphins coach, very similar to anyone who's a Jets coach. I just feel like, organizationally, there's a reason why these teams haven't won.
And I just I think that, Uh. I think that your point on the defense is a great one. I also, I know this is called NFL Daily, but I think if it had a subtitle, it might be called you know where, the regular OBJ Report. I really appreciate that you've covered that story when the rest of the media you're in my You're in.
My head though, because I realized after doing the Cutdown Day show with So it's like, why why am I leading with OBJ?
I just keep talking about OBJ.
I think it's interesting.
It's my old blogger mentality from around the NFL days that it's like, well, you got to lead with Terrell, Pryor or OBJ because everyone's into it, like they really do sell you know.
But it is.
But I guess the point that the point I'm making is your while it has maybe been a little more focused than I would have expected for the whole league. Your point that they signed him because they expected they I don't want to say they needed him because they have Tyreek and Waddell. But the offense they want to run, they want to have three guys out there, and they want to threaten the defense in those ways. And I think it's on the board he plays. Let me set
it like this, I am a gambler. If you set his over under for catches as a dolphin at twenty four and a half, I would say, I think that's a good number.
Yeah, I agree, that's about right. I was expecting you to say something in the thirties, and I was going.
To go under.
But twenty four is about right. Yeah, all right, let's go best division race. Just just pick one, which one?
Which one? You're to me?
The this is It depends on how you slice it. If you want a division where I think three teams theoretically could win it, I would say the South. But I think the best division races the North because I think the Bengals are going to be excellent and I think the Ravens are going to One of the things that I've tried to hammer on the TV show is that during the year, when a team surprises or a team's doing well, we always be like, man that coordinator.
We give a lot of credit to coordinators when it's happening. Bobby Slowick, the guy in Detroit. Sorry that everybody loves Ben Ben Johnson, you know what I mean. Last year, Mike mcdonaldo back in the day, Louis Arumo up until last season, Spags in Kansas City. We always do it when those guys leave, though it totally removes from our analysis. We forget like it when last year nobody went said
about the Eagles, man, they're gonna miss Shane Stiken. But during the year when they were awesome people are like Shane Stiken. So that's part of my not that I think the Ravens are gonna be bad, but part of my Ravens analysis is I think they're gonna miss Mike McDonald. You had, You had so many guys who I thought were near the end of their career or just you know, middling players be monsters, and that to me is usually scheme.
And so I think that the Ravens come down a bit, the Bengals come up a bit, and I think that is a division race that will come down to the final week of the year and be massive, because that's the type of one where the winner of that can end up the two seed and then obviously the losers on the road the whole playoffs. So that's the one I'm most interested in. That's probably the most important one.
You're right, just from a who's gonna win the super Bowl perspective, because I think they'd be on the short list we did. We did a power rankings a couple of days ago, and they were both near the top, so that makes sense to me. I'm also just curious will it be like the haves and the have nots in that division? I went with AFC South though to me, because I do think the Colts, like their ceiling is just much higher than people give credit for, I can't go all the way there.
I still like the Texans better.
And yet if I think, if you play this season out ten times, like there's a few scenarios where the Colts are the two seed with thirteen wins, twelve wins, and I don't think people really like see them that way because I don't see why they wouldn't have that high of an upside because the defensive line is nasty, it's just it's exciting. The defense could be a legitimately exciting defense because of their front, they have some continuity,
and the offensive line's fantastic. And again I always feel like which teams are the best on the lines plus a quarterback plus a coach, Like, to me, they're up there with the Texans. Now, I kind of don't see that scenario happening. Richardson's probably going to be two up and down the divisions tough. But you throw in the Jags,
who yeah, I couldn't quite get there. As know that the team as my last playoff team, But I do think all three of those teams have really good quarterbacks and they're really talented, and that it's it's a breath of fresh air to have an AFC South that I'm totally into watching every game.
I almost feel cliche though, because I agree with you entirely about the optimism about Richardson, but it does feel I am aware of my own biases and so like all, if someone were like, be Nick, you're starting an NFL team, you can pick between these three quarterbacks, Tua Tongue of Iiloa, who has led the league in passing and put up amazing numbers, Brock Perdy, who's been to an NFC championship game in a super Bowl and it's the highest passer
rating NFL history, or Anthony Richardson, who's played nine quarters of pro football. I'd be like, you know, I'll take the big, strong guy. And so I recognize that there is it just it feels to me like he is such upside that it's exciting, but it is. He was felt like a bit of an unknown at Florida, and now a year into the NFL what we saw was enticing. But yeah, those were were those were the two divisions I was thinking about. So I'm with you on a lot of that.
Yeah, the ceiling is also partly on Stich and that he I mean he made it work pass away minshow minshew Yeah right, and if they really, if if Richardson can stay healthy and they just lean into the run eagle style like they could be dangerous. All Right, we're gonna take a quick break. We're gonna be back. We're gonna predict the number one seed. We'll get to all
the playoff rankings in just a second. All right, we are back on NFL Daily, and we've reached the portion of the program where Nick admits his own biases.
That's that he knows his own biases, and we'll have to test that. I don't know if we really can be sure that, but I have to admit it.
I would not be biased if you say what I think you're gonna say to my next question, which is who's the number one seed? I mean, it's how lucky are you not just to be a Chiefs fan, but to be where you are and to be a Chiefs fan? How much of your success is because of Patrick Mahomes directly?
So this is no So this is this is a great If I may talk about myself for a moment because people there is there is a narrative out there in some corners of the Internet that I owe my success to the two greatest American athletes ever, Lebron James and Patrick Mahomes, Like, oh, you just said these guys are awesome a lot. Now you have a TV show, Michael, Oh, you don't get me started on swimming gold medals? How many would you say Balds have if they're like I.
Don't, okay, thank you, I don't believe that.
Okay. So now, and what I would say is we have this incredibly populated sports media, sports take landscape, and everyone is at different times fighting over the same corners you have. And for the Lebron thing, I was just fortunate enough to see earlier than most like, oh, it's not is he going to be better than Jordan? He already is. So I said that a bunch and then it's like, hey, he's the Lebron guy. I'm like, okay, cool, I'll take it. And then the guy never retires, so
it helps. I'm from Kansas City. I was at the Lynne Elliott game as a child getting frostbite. I had my first foray into media was being Nick the kid on Bill Grigsby's post game call in show at ten years old, calling in from the parking lot after every home game.
I really, yes, that's it's not too early to get Walker in the middle.
Yeah, there you go.
I I remind people that I was born in nineteen eighty four and the first quarterback in my lifetime drafted in my lifetime to win a drafted by the Chiefs in my lifetime to win a game for the Chiefs was Patrick Mahomes. They had not had a quarterback they drafted win a game from my birth to nineteen eighty four, because black Ledge was the last one to do it. He was drafting eighty three. So this idea that like, oh, it's been this blessed life of the Chiefs fan is.
No, it's not a blessed life.
It's just that the rise of Mahomes happened to coach now and you've enjoyed it.
So now, to get back to the sports take point I was making, I did have the wherewithal to recognize hmmm, seems like in my business, the sports national sports television business, everyone is fighting over the same corner, and it's the Cowboys corner. So what if I just say, you know what you know, Unlike Marlow's Stanfield, I don't want all the corners. You guys have that one, and I will fortify the Chiefs corner and make it very clear that's my god dang corner and no one can take it.
And then they ended up becoming the greatest Dinos. Well they will, sorry to your patriots here in about five months when they win their third strade Super Bowl, the greatest dynasty ever. And I just get to be along for the ride. So that's all. That's all that it is.
I mean, yeah, you're not the only one on that corner.
I mean, in fairness, And if you go back and listen to the Round the NFL podcast back in the day, we were debating, like hell before the Chiefs won their first Super Bowl on this podcast, is Patrick Mahomes the greatest quarterback I've ever seen? Literally, And it was before he even won his first Super Bowl? And I was in that argument. I was just like, well, you can
only judge them on what we've seen. The first two seasons are the greatest two seasons I've ever seen, easily, And the only other person that could possibly be in contention would be Dan Marino, and I don't feel I can speak to it as much. But through two seasons, he's the greatest quarterback I've ever seen. And yeah, he had a lot of pushback then and then after year three,
this is the greatest quarterback we've ever seen. After year four, like I've said that throughout, you know, we got to cover all thirty two teams, it also gets annoyed and it almost becomes obvious.
So I don't think I don't think you can question it that much.
This season's interesting with them though, because I actually feel like.
I haven't been down on them going to the last two seasons.
I had them in the Super Bowl, but there were just more doubts on paper about them. This year, there's it's hard to find any doubts. The schedule that you know, maybe the defense takes a step back. Everything is just set up for them. The biggest doubts to me, And it's why, you know, spoiler alert, I'm not going to pick them to win the Super Bowl this year or even make it is just is just something ineffable of like they're going to get picked off that if there's
a reason why it's so hard. But I'm still picking them as my number one seed. I'm just saying like that, they're gonna have a great regular season. They're gonna have a great season. The Patriots had some seasons where they peaked almost a little too early. Everything was perfect, and it's just so hard to get through every year, and that's it's hard to define why or why that would happen.
So I agree with that entirely. I and obviously, single elimination tournament things can happen. I would argue that if they were that people when I hear a lot of people say similar things, which is nobody's doubting how good they are. But eventually the ball is going to bounce wrong for you know, I mean wrong for them. I would argue that happened last year and they won anyway. The and so two years ago in the playoffs, Patrick Mahomes suffered a high ankle sprain and they won anyway.
He suffered a significant injury. They won anyway. Last year, they the they fumbled the ball at the goal line against Buffalo. Everyone now in the revisionist history in the game, the Chiefs were leading by ten points in the fourth quarter, have decided Zay Flowers fumble cost the Ravens the game as if that.
Time Biggs dropped that sticks out right, You're right, though the Bills at that point should not have been in that game.
I agree, correct, And so like they there were the moments that were those like, oh my god, it went the wrong way for you moments might have happened and they got by and so I I just think this year they are so much better then they were each of the last two years. And I do listen, I think Sneed's an excellent player and they will miss him, and that to me, if people are looking for a weakness on the Chiefs, I think the secondary is going to be a work in progress over the course of
the year. They're playing a lot of young guys and guys that aren't necessarily you know what I mean fully ready. I think the safeties will be good, the corners could be a problem, but the mahomes. Let me say one I think about the Chiefs that I think I think the NFL did the Ravens a disservice by putting them that Week one game.
I agree.
I just feel like that it is such if the Ravens had such a great season and then they have their worst game of the year and they lose to the Chiefs. If this year then starts like that, no matter what they do over the next four months, I just feel like, psychologically, it's gonna be like, well, damn it. So I just I thought, if I we're a Baltimore fan, maybe that's because I think the Chiefs are gonna win.
The flip side is if the Ravens win that game, then it's like, hey, monkey off our back at least a little bit.
But a little but I just was on the radio with my friend Glen Clark in Baltimore, and at least the way he says it, I think it's kind of cop coopium. They're they're like, that game stinks because we're gonna even if we win it like no one's gonna think it matters because nothing matters now except for the playoffs. So that's shouldn't be weak one. But okay, I agree. I wanted that game to be Texans. It made more sense the NFL. Look, they've been out front with it.
They decided this strategy of they're gonna front load this season. For whatever reason, they wanted to go big and get the most monster ratings possible.
The first three weeks of the season.
But the schedule for the Chiefs after the beginning, when they do have at at San Francisco, they have the Bengals early.
It's just too easy. They're gonna be fine.
I disagree though, that they're much better because their defense can't be better and that's from Na Hughes out and they'll just be closer to average. But they're a freak fifteenth in points scored last year and that's never going to happen again with Patrick Mahomes, So that'll make up for anything, all right, that these can be quick first QB to be benched.
There's a few options.
Jacoby Brissett, Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson, you could throw in there, Gardner Minshew, who you go with?
So I I'm going to get this wrong because I the I don't consider Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew as like real, I don't consider those, you know what I mean?
So I'm going and also, honestly, Jacoby might not even make it to week one. I've had this hunch that that girod Meyo wants to start Drake May and nobody else does.
And that's just my hunch. And he's the head coach.
So does he just put his foot down and say sorry, Alex Van Pelt, like you're not the coach here.
Uh so I'm gonna say, Deshaun Watson, Okay, that's because that's a real bench and I don't think he can play anymore.
Uh.
I think that there are psychological reasons, physical reasons, and just too far, too long away from the game reasons. And I found the Jamis Winston acquisition interesting. Oh yeah, because they had Huntley, who's a Mac Jones memorial pro bowler on his Wikipedia page and a uh and who's the is it?
DT?
Who's the other guy TTR?
They say they're not trading DTR, who's you know, solid young backup prospect.
But so my my point is like we live in a world where there are teams that have two quarterbacks and one of them is Malik Willis. Like you had you had Huntley and DTR, you didn't need to go get Jamis as a backup. But maybe you thought you needed Jamis as a starter.
Yeah, and they're not blind he's not healthy right now, Deshaun Watson still and yeah, that's a good choice. I just think they'll be stuck on keeping it going. I'll go Russell Wilson there, partly because of what rap Sheet said on our show. He made it sound like, okay, I I think maybe Fields has convinced some people in the building a team or let's go with the coach first, if any in the AFC to get fired.
Oh all right, So I I had Do you dream about the show?
You do?
Sometimes?
Now I do?
I never did before, but now that it's every day, yeah, I do. So I actually have dreamed about the show every day this week. It's funny to say this.
So I also wear nicotine patches. I've worn nickeotine patches for seventeen years. I don't know if that's really the way it's supposed to go, but it's what I've done. And I sleep with them on which again I don't know if that's healthy, but it keeps you, like brain moving. So I sometimes have a dream that's very specific. Sometimes there's even stats involved, and it's stuff that is accurate, and I use it on the show. So I had Wilds makes fun of me when I talk about this.
He's like, do we don't want to hear about your dreams?
Man?
And I'm like, I'm not saying they're premonitions. I just think they're a good ideas. So I had a dream that Robert Sala got fired and Matt Hackett got to be the interim headshot.
I mean the second part of that is definitely never happening.
But that is what do you mean it's never happening if they fire. If they fire Robert Sala during the year, who is the I mean that I know who, I know who Rogers would advocate for, and it seems like he's in charge. We can say it's never happening. And I don't know the Jets full coaching staff a week.
I'm looking it up right now because I'm just trying to find someone. Well, yeah, all Breck, who's kind of impressive in that hard knocks thing.
I I don't know.
I know my initial instinct was, who is the just oldest guy that has respect but really isn't cut out for it. John Jefferson has been a coach for twenty years in the NFL. He's their wide receivers coach. I don't know it'd be a guy like that, but you're right, they don't really have anyone else.
They don't have the only guy with head coaching experience.
They can't.
Heck, and I just don't think that. I think the Jets are going to stumble out of the gates. Oh that's fun and so the and so I don't know the I'm trying to think of the other possible option.
There's not really many in the AFC. Doug Nah, there's actually coaches that have no worry, and then there's new coaches. So Doug Peterson was probably the one I was going to throw out there just if things go sour. I don't think they will go sour. I think they'll actually have a winning record if I had to choose. But I think if they were two and six or two and five that he'd be dating.
Maybe they'll leave him in London. I'll be there.
By the way, you mentioned Jags in London earlier, So that's that's a little breaking news. I'm gonna go see the Prince versus Caleb Williams, So that's gonna be fun.
What again, are you going to stick around for the next week to see him against him?
Fortunately, I can only get the the finances or whatnot, the approval for one game.
But I'll take it, believe me, I will. But just real quick on this topic. It is interesting that in the AFC it feels like you just go division by division, take out the guy I mentioned Robert Sala the other. I guess McDermott theoretically could be fired during the year if they're awful, but that's not gonna happen, feels like the rest of the AFC. In the AFC North, all four are one hundred percent safe during the year. Feels to me Stefanski just won Coach of the Year again.
In the AFC South, Peterson's the only one who could be fired during the year yea. And in the AFC West, I think all four are one hundred percent safe during the year. Like Antonio pears that I just don't think you're gonna hire an interim coach, and then obviously Sean Payton, Jim Harbaugh, Andy Reid aren't the The NFC has way more coach.
And now Dennis Allen is.
I actually read something about this that initially this offseason, Robert South it was the Vegas favorite to be first cotch fighted, which seems crazy to me. But now because so many people put their money on Dennis all and Dennisallen is, we'll go through these quick and then we'll get to our seeds halfway decent team that gets talked about the least on your show.
First things first, well.
You can take this however you want. If you want to just say any team, you can say, no, that's fine. It could be a bad team. It could be the Titans, because the Titans.
No, no, no, you said halfway decent. I think the answers the Colts. Okay, the because I think the Colts are a lot of what you said, I agree with. The Other one that I think could be halfway decent this year is the Broncos.
That was the one that popped in my mind that like, I don't I don't love this team, but their over runners five and a half and it's Sean Payton will probably because you'll probably scrape close enough to eight hundred and or five hundred and they might not get mentioned for weeks on first Yes, first, that's correct, way great find I would have never you know, not that, not that you found him, but uh a delight.
No.
Kevin Wilds is I think the best at what he does, which is a very specific thing in the business. The only person to me similar to Wilde's and skill set and ability is actually a guy you already mentioned on the show in lef Goo, a guy who like can you know, host and have takes and be funny and just universally likable. But uh, but yeah, the one other bonus Broncos take. I think bo Nicks is the most
likely guy to trick people into thinking he's good. Yes, So I think that there is a lot of mac Jones rookie season for bo Nicks where it's like you reach your ceiling immediately and it's kind of training wheel stuff and it's like, hey, look at him, look at what he's going to be. But it's actually just that the whole time, because he's twenty nine years old.
That's tricked. But if mac Jones.
Said, well, I wasn't trying to take a shot at you.
No, no, but I was tricked because well, first of all, mac Jones didn't stay at that level.
Obviously, the things around it, like if he could have just stayed at the level, he could have had a real career. He could not.
Maybe he's.
Preseason maybe, but if you watch.
There were some Yeah, he had a lot of numbers and highlights, but if you watch those games, he had some mac Jones moments too that were like, okay, that's why you're back up, all right, one last quick break and then we're going to go through.
Our seeds and our pick for the championship game.
Back on NFL Daily an inspiration as I've gotten used to these daily shows.
And thinking, okay, it's a lot planning, and every.
Day I do, I do think about the Good Morning Football people and what they've been through the last however many years, and then I think of people like Nick Wright who have a daily TV show, which I know personally take it's a different sort of energy out of you, takes more out of you, frankly, and then on top of that you then go do your YouTube show. So I'm like, if they can do it. And now that I've once I got used to it and into the flow of it, I was like, okay.
This is this is quite different.
It's also let me tell I don't know again, this is a little psychological. I guess. I have found I really enjoy now like building legos and doing puzzles. And the reason is just follow me for a moment, is because I like when I finish something there to be proof of it. One of the weird things about a daily show is no matter how One of the good things is if you think it was awful, it's like, well,
I get to do it again tomorrow. One of the bad things is and I've just done daily radio or TV or both for now gosh, you know almost twenty years, or I guess eight seventeen years. Is you do all this work, you can do all this prepe, you get everything ready, and then it's just gone, just like into the ether, you know what I mean. So like I like so just psychologically and like it's like, oh, I did this project and now it's sitting on my mantle. Not that I build a lot of legos that then
we display in the house. But you understand, you understand the point that I'm making. Yeah, it's it's a weird thing in your head.
Yeah, I've and I've been doing ephemeral stuff forever.
I mean it was doing wrote a world.
You gotta just enjoy the actual doing of it, and that that for me is the reward. Because none of this stuck. It has stuck, like rote a world player
news that does not stick. My PFT posts, all the things I wrote on PFT because they messed it up now are under someone else's name, and I always get like tweets that I wrote some incendiary thing from two thousand and nine and it was actually Mike Florio that wrote it, but for some reason my name's on it because they they messed it up, and so everything's ephemeral. Nothing I wrote has ever stuck, and that's fine. I'm fine with that cause it's a fun life.
All right.
Let's wrap up with, you know, the most important stuff, our seven playoff seeds, and then we'll also after that go with our championship result because you know, maybe the seeds don't match up the same as as what the championship game is. Why don't you go from seven to one? You can start.
Seven to one, all right, So I want to get this exactly right because there's nothing I dislike more and judge folks more for in our space where if on one platform they have X and then on another platform they have why, because it's either you weren't paying attention and didn't care, or you're actually trying to hedge. You're like the guy who fills out seven March madness brackets, so you can be like I had that upset. I
had that upset. So I'm checking my official document Nick Right twenty twenty four.
The tricky part is you might change your mind between now and the season, but no, it's.
Locked in stone, locking stone. Okay, seven seed Los Angeles Chargers, Dame, six seed Jacksonville Jaguars. Do you want to say yours? No?
Yeah, I want to go for three years? Oh? Okay, got that?
Five seed Baltimore Ravens. Hmmm, okay, four seed Houston Texans, three seed Buffalo Bills, two seed Cincinnati Bengals, and the number one seed the Kansasity Chiefs.
Yeah.
I think it was harder to get overly creative in the AFC.
None of those will shock me.
I am pleased, And I don't know if it surprises the word, but that you stuck with the Bills, I guess I could have figured out because you went Dolphins and Jets earlier.
But why are you staying?
You know, thinking the Bills, who have just had a strange run here under Josh Allen, they just are very streaky. There's always a point in the season where it looks like things are going to crater, and then by the end they're usually the second best team or the third best team, which is frustrating for the Bills, but also to me is extremely impressive because I as a for you know, as a Patriots fan, I think that's the hardest thing to do, and the Bills have basically done it.
They just have done it in an era where Patrick Mahomes is there, and they haven't you know, quite gotten over.
The Okay, So this is I'm glad we're having a chance to talk about the Bills because I understand people, you know, might look at me as a Chiefs guy, but there are other people that have been close to, if not just as correct about the Chiefs over the last few years as me.
No one right here, I didn't pick against them once in the playoffs after a couple.
There, you go, exactly right. No one has been more accurate about the Buffalo Bills than me, and I have been ridiculed, called a hater, called a hot take artist,
all these things when it's just been correct. And I reject the premise that other people have and I think you might be one of them, like ah, you ran into Michael Jordan, you ran into the Chiefs because the fact of the matter is, there is not a single game the Bills have played the Chiefs in the playoffs that you have real evidence had they won, they would have then won the Super Bowl.
Oh there's the twenty twenty two right, you know that the overtime game. Yeah, I was convinced they would have won the Super Bowl. Okay, well that's they were better than the Bengals and the Rams.
Okay, well that's interesting because the very next year they then hosted the Bengals and.
They were a different team, rocked.
They were a different team that was their best team, and that didn't happen for him, and it is And look, they they deserve it because their defensive coach and everything's about to be the consistency of their defense and Sean McDermott's peeded down his leg and their defense has played the very worst in the biggest moments, and so they deserve to lose it.
But they they were.
If they had had if they had found the way to win that game with one more stop, I felt like they were winning that Super Bowl. Those that was a bad team super Bowl relatively Bengals Rams.
I understand. But the point that I'm making is that's the one everyone goes to. And that season they lost to a team that then lost to the team that lost to the Super Bowl.
I know how it happens, though I do.
I just think it's for a team that has three consecutive seventh place finishes. They've sure been talked about it than a lot of Super Bowls. But that's on the point. The reason is, despite that, I now think people have overcorrected and people are now underrating them a healthy Josh Allen, you have a baseline of nine or ten wins, and I think that even though they have a lot of defensive personnel losses, they were without Milano for a lot of last year. I think the guys in the secondary
weren't still great players. They were good players, but not great players. And Digs whether it was because of personality or age or whatever after the first five games of last year, was not a top forty receiver. And so I just think that they are they I think they're going to be fine. I think that they are going to be what they have been in my opinion each of the last few years, which is a good regular season team that when it is all firing, looks like,
oh my god, that team's amazing. That then plays a true contender in the playoffs and loses. And so that's just how I so I am, but now it's we're in a world where they're not even the favorite to win their own division. So I think now the Bills are being disrespected by Vegas when previously they have been way overly respected, which is good for me because it just means once again I get to be right down the middle about the Buffalo Bills.
I'm with you, and I'm high on the Bills this year.
Partly maybe I'm just pushing against that, but I do believe it that it was the same reason why I picked the Chiefs in twenty twenty two to make the super Bowl and I think to win the Actually, no, before the year, I had Eagles over Chiefs, that was right. I got it wrong, but I had the matchup right, which is very that does not happen. But it's because offensive line and quarterback. Like I'm not making it that complicated, and there's enough of everything else. And I think this
is the best Bills offensive line they've had. It just has good continuity. And I do think Josh Allen He's never going to be better than Patrick Mahomes overall, but I do think we're right about the point. We're getting the very best Josh Allen, and I do think he can lift all the tides, and I wanted, like, I think there was a point in the offseason where I probably thought I'd be more creative and not as high in the Texans because it's like everyone's going to be high in the Texants.
But they deserve it. They really are that good.
They really do have a chance, and so I have them up there winning the division. I'll go through mine too, and then we can talk our championship results. So seven Chargers, I'm with you, didn't feel great about it, but I had to go somewhere.
Six Colts. I do have them in the playoff.
So I have two AFC South teams, five Bengals, four Texans, three Ravens. I have a weird feeling about the Ravens, and yet when it comes down to it, I just can't pick against them. Two Bills and then number one two Peas. Yeah, why not? I mean they're the most consistent regular season team and there's a lot of Like I think Rousseau could have a breakout season every year. I think ed Oliver is gonna have a breakout season, except what he does is improve like ten percent every season,
which is fine. Like he improves from very good, so like, yeah, closer now he's like pro bowler, And that's fine if you have two good defensive linemen. McDermott knows how to coach up the back seven, which to me is just so valuable even if he's you know, holds the as we would say in tennis, like he holds the racket a little too tight, like he just he just that worries me in a playoff setting, but that that's my
playoffs and I might as well just go to it. Yeah, I have the Bills in the Super Bowl this year. I'm going Bills over I'm going Bills over Texans. I'm gonna actually be because the Chiefs freaked me out. I guess in this scenario, the Texans pickoff.
The Chiefs, So that's what That's what the Texans.
Last year, broad Brew had Ravens over Bengals in the AFC title game, but his his logic was the chief the Bengals beat the Chiefs for the Ravens, yes, and then they and then they go I'm.
Going that way because I really do.
It's more of a bet against the Chiefs in the sense that this is the best AFC I've seen. I think there's gonna be four to five really great teams, and so I am gonna I take the field over the Chiefs. And if I'm gonna take the field over the Chiefs, this is the first time I haven't had them in a Super Bowl before a season.
In a while, maybe almost.
Ever something, Greg, because you're my friend and I love this show you. It's one thing to not pick the Chiefs to win the Super Bowl, yeah, another thing not picked the Chiefs to make the Super Bowl.
Yeah.
But the Chiefs seasons start the Chiefs since Mahomes have been there, they have a one or two game season and it starts in the AFC Title Game. And if they go to and oh, it's a great year. If they go one and one, it's a sad year.
I mean they want that. Bill's overtime game was a preseason game. I mean, giving a break. You don't know when your tough games are gonna come.
No, no, No, that's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is one one hundred of the time when the when the AFC Championship Game trophy is in the building and the winner of that game gets it, Patrick Mahomes is playing in that game. That's why I'm not allowing it to get to that game, you know, but you're saying that he won't play in it. You're that that's why if he gets there, I actually maybe it's game.
He's maybe the Patriots.
Fan in me that recognizes how great this Chiefs run is and is going to be, and they have a chance to be better than the Patriots. It'll be different because that was twenty years and who knows, you'll see, but they have a chance to be better over a shorter period of time this year right now.
They you know, there's almost an argument they already have. Uh.
I do think those divisional round games sometimes are the toughest. You've come off of a little of a bye, and the other team maybe has played in this scenario and they're fantastic. So I do think it's just as likely that the Texans beat them as some other team, and that it's that first game and that it could happen. And I just wanted to be a little more fun and throw this great Texans team into a big spe Listen.
I like the Texans and they should pop. And there's a you know, a pretty decent history of this is how you do it. The Everyboddy knows the rookie quarterback, your rookie contract quarterback, load the team up, go go, go got it. I think having the having the by your predictions, the Chiefs are going to win zero playoff games. And I think that's lunis.
Why it happened. It's happened.
It's it's literally.
Like an NFL history where the best team loses and sometimes it happened history.
I'm john about Patrick mahomes history, and I'm just saying he is the it's never it's never happened to him, and.
That's never gonna it's not gonna get you do understand as Chiefs, and that will not continue his whole career.
There will will be games, there will be seasons like this. Yeah, but the I don't think this is the year. Also, if I'm not mistaken, your Patriots did make eight consecutive AFC title games, so that's doable. Twenty eleven to twenty eighteen, you guys were in eight straight AFC title games. And since part of Mahomes' legacy is going to be to break all of your guys records, I guess he's gonna have to go to.
Nine I always said that was the.
Most impressive thing.
Four.
It's hard to pick, but that that was at the time it felt. And why I always thought twenty fourteen was the most satisfying because because they were so good for that decade, that they were sneaky. The best team in NFL history not to win a Super Bowl for a decade was the twenty two thousand and five through twenty thirteen Patriots, and so it was it was great to get off of that. And who, I don't know if the Chiefs all. I don't think they'll ever have
that long of a stretch without Mahomes. And yet I still would take the under. And this is a whole other podcast. I would take the under of Mahomes getting to six or seven, whichever one you want to use, whether it's Patriots or Brady.
No, I would take the under. Discuss football, you have.
To take the under. If the numbers six and a half, you have to take the under. With that said, it couldn't have started better. I didn't give mine Chiefs over Bengals, Okay, and me and that this this whole cause you know, the Chiefs have ended the Bengals season in consecutive years. Last year, nobody cares because it was Jake Browning, but they did do it and for three straight years. I think that would be good. And I like, listen, I like, I really like the Bengals in Burrow and I am.
I am worried if they don't win the Super Bowl this year, they being the Bengals when they're going to have a great opportunity, a great opportunity again in the short order, because it does seem like ownership might be messing this up a bit, and that I don't understand
the Jamar Chase thing at all. I get the T Higgins thing, I get it, but the T Higgins thing only made sense because it's like, we can't pay you because we're about to give Jamar all this money to do the t Higgins thing and then not give Jamar all the money is baffling to me.
Yeah, in their top level talent on defense and we'll see maybe Amarius Mims turns out into that offense. Whereas I'm with you that this is kind of their year. I think I spend most of the off season thinking I'm gonna either pick the Bengals or the Bills to win the Super Bowl. That this feels like it's going to be one of their years. And I just settled on the bills of CAMPI.
It'll happen eventually. It'll happen eventually. I just think the I think that the laser focus on a three peat and potentially letting Travis walk off into the sunset. Everyone's gonna be long, but we'll see.
I appreciate you, Nick, right again FS one. First thing's first noon Pacific three eastern. What's Right with Nick Wright? Check out the podcast. It's a YouTube show. This was a pleasure. It's a daily show. So I do want to have you back on at some point. Maybe this is an off season show where we compare who's going to have a better career. Carlos Alcarez your guy. I do love that you're pumping up Alcarez on a national stage.
We need more tennis talk or mahomes. I mean that that's an interesting I mean.
I was at the Real Quick before we go, because you'll love this. So yesterday I'm texting with Greg about today's show and he just texts me go out or go Alcarez or something.
Yeah, And I was, like, I said, in the time, we can watch some Alcarez. I figured on TV. I know you're a big fan, and I had, and I had, and I was like, how the hell. I was in my car on my way to the US Open. I was like, how the hell did he know? I was like, did I say it on the air?
Like, I don't know.
So I get to the US Open like fifteen minutes after the match starts and just buy upper level seats for al Carez the for like eighty bucks. And I'm watching the kid qualifier. Looks like he's going to win the second set, and I'm like, all right, now we might have a real match. I'm in the stadium. I've already paid for tickets. I go on a ticketing app and see four throw sideline right where you serve. There are tickets still for sale. But now it's eight thirty.
So those tickets, which were twenty two hundred dollars earlier in the day, we're down to two hundred bucks a seat in the stadium. I bought two tickets just so I could move down and watch and watch from there, and me and Mark Carmon and Danny Parkins went down and watched from the fourth row. It was great. I love the US Open.
I'll be back my live tennis.
I'm very happy with my life here in Los Angeles and my family. The thing that happens every year this time of year that I wish I was having my old life when I lived in New York for ten years. I would love so doing a football show and heading up to Flushing a handful of times during this US Open. Nick Wright can do that and like I said, check them out every day on his shows. We will be back with an NFC preview on Friday, wrapping up the week.
Big time, big show, Jordan Rodrieg, Steve Weisch and a new guest, new co host Keigan Abdu who does next Gen stats for US. So it's a big pack studio. We'll do the NFC preview before the week is up. I'll see you then