Vikings-Bears Recap, I'M MAD & TNF Week 11 Preview

I don't know if you saw on Twitter. This has been something we've been talking about offline for some time. When does Ricky Hollywood's guest appearance on the NBC game show The Weakest Link finally premier? And we found out the answer during Monday Night Football. My wife was watching, uh the show with her parents and there it is the promo at the end of the app Ricky Hollywood, and I want to bring in Ricky a second. Hey, Ricky, Okay,

I just gotta tell you so. The first of all, very excited, Monday night set your DVRs, watch live whatever I forget about Monday Night football next week. It's all about Ricky, Hollywood, I asked you to cut three things from that that brief promo that I am gonna be completely honest with you, Ricky, I'm nervous about okay, and you've done a good job with the the non disclosure agreement. Um, we are being completely honest when we say that Erica

was told not to say how the show went. We don't know how the show went, but we got some breadcrumbs here from the promo, so I'm gonna play I asked you to play three First. First, let's hear from Jane Lynch, the host of The Weakest Link. Here's one clip from her. Well, this is what happens when you vote off all the smart people. Okay, I don't know if that dog was part of the I don't know what the the canines suddenly, I mean I think the dog like the dog was proving the point there. All right,

so the line, let's hear that line again. Sorry, Well, this is what happens when we vote off all the smart people. Okay, that's a bread crumb, Claybon, that qualifies as a bread crumb. That is disturbing on some level. Uh, perhaps not as disturbing as the second, Jane Lynch read crumb that's dropped. Let's hear that? Is it too late to get new contestants? Okay, now now there's now, Now there's real cause for concern. And finally, Erica, should we

hear from Ricky very briefly in the promo? And I'd like to say it doesn't connect dots with the Jane Lynch teasers and the promo, but i'd be lying, what was that, Erica? I don't think it went well. Patrick. Am I reading into this wrong by being too negative? Yes? I do think you are. The show takes a very deprecating tone, especially the promotions, uh to the show that they want to hit you, uh, you know, set you up and then give you the day dead leg and cut it back and get towards the end zone or

the you know, the touchdown area if you will. And I think I think that things went well, honestly I do. In the TV promotions world, I'm looking forward to Monday. I think we've got some good things in store. I feel like you kind of need a translator for Jane Lynch, Like, isn't her role she meant She's meant to come on and be sort of smarmie and like firing arrows at people.

So what does it really mean that said? Um, it would be a bit of a surprise if Erica fared well based on what you've called their dan and she sounds fairly I know part of the role being the host, the old British bird that had the gig before she was she was sardonic as well. But I don't know, Ricky. I just I hope things went well. I'm looking forward to it. We're all gonna be watching. Uh and it sinks up nicely with our Tuesday edition of the podcast next week to unpack it. But how are you feeling

knowing that your life may may very well change? Uh? In Yeah, I'm ready for the public to see what actually happened. Um, you know it. Did they pick the greatest you know screenshot to show me in this promote? No? Um, but you know what I think, like, I can handle some adversity and um, someone tweeted at me like, oh, the camera doesn't add twenty pounds, it adds twenty years. So I was like, why would you say that all out?

That's so upsetting, But yeah that's true. Yeah, this this show has aged me and it's it was very, very very stressful experience. I would say, one one little breadcrumb, you know, outside of the promo, had Ricky gone on in one you know, four hundred tho dollars or something, would she have, you know, scooted over to a new apartment with like a crazy man and a frozen pizza at five feet away. I think she would be up in the hills or something. So I don't know, maybe

the money is not landed. Well, I don't know. I don't know if this is the case or not, but I did have to sign some thing that you wouldn't get paid until a hundred fifty days from when your episode airs. Alright, man, she's doing a really good job to keep keeping us in the dark. I'm gonna be honest her. And perhaps, you know, perhaps Erica could have been one of the people that was smart that got voted off, and maybe she was saying this is terrible

because she did get voted at all. Maybe Jane Lynch Is is caping for Erica tam policy because she's amazing. You know, your your dollars of optimism is really welcome around these parts. Patrick claiban Um, all right, yes, good show. It's gonna be a good show when Ricky's on the weakest link. We got a good show on the Around

the NFL podcast today, much to get into. We're going to begin our look ahead to week eleven, and we have an excellent, excellent Week eleven matchup on Thursday Night Football, the Cardinals at the Seahawks, So we're gonna talk about that game. Also, Greg wrote a woozy banger, the Old Deep Reef, the Old Rosenthal Debrief, talking about teams who are have every right to be frustrated at this point in the season. I will go through Greg's list and maybe throw in a couple of our own that maybe

didn't make Greg's list. But first, let us start, as we always do on this show, with the Monday Night Football recap. We have to it's contractually obligated. You still get a first down. I'm third and four. Cousins throwing ed is caught touchdown. It's Adam Feeling for the second time tonight, and Minnesota chumps back on top of HM

sell it ESPN Monday Night Football. That was the call from Steve Leaving Kirk Cousins throws two touchdowns both as you heard to Adam Feeling the second the difference in a nineteen to thirteen win over the Chicago Bears and Soldier Field, a game where the Barris dragged the Vikings down to their level and it was a dark place. It is. It is tough to watch Chicago Bears football in and that is coming from a Jets van Mark.

First of all, congratulations on your lock. You sweated it out a little bit, I imagine, but you got your lock with the Vikings. But did you learn anything about Minnesota games? You know what I learned about them? I mean, I like, I think that our role when we're covering thirty two teams is that, you know, you have to be flexible with early season impressions as the season goes along, and my impression of the Vikings, um continues to change. Uh.

You know, they were one in five. We were all kind of one in five and twenty and you decide whether to kind of work out of that or sink deeper. And I think the Vikings have taken the high road here. And that was a you know, that's these divisional games in November. Um, when everyone's kind of feeling a little

bit a little bit used up. UM. I thought it was a tough win because if you look at what happened, they were swept by the Bears last year and the year of war, and they scored twenty six points in two games against the Vikings last year, thirty or so. I think it's it's for them. Um. Your season remains alive because you got out of this. Dalvin Cook, who had been completely shut down against the Bears last season, really the last three games against them, ninety six yards.

It wasn't the typical Dalvin Cook game, but you know, they I felt like they could only win when Kirk Cousins also throwing the ball. Um, you know, twelve thirteen times a game. He had to do a little bit more last night. It wasn't perfect, Um, but you're always lucky to be playing a Bears offense that still thinks it's nineteen thirty one, and every week there's a new drama created, and uh, you know, we can get into that. But the Vikings took care of business or the better team.

So I'd rather at this time of year, let's I don't care what the records are. Let's dispose of the junk. I don't have any more time for the junk. The Vikings are proving to be a little bit higher than that, and so right on Minnesota. Yeah, they they proved to me they were so much better than the Bears, and they were. They were a little unlucky. You know. I saw Patrick's face the second this game's you know, recap started, He's like, oh, we gotta talk about this game. I mean,

pork Kirk Cousins. It's like the bar keeps changing. He finally plays a really good game on Monday Night football against a really good opponent. Adam Feeling drops a pass that turns into an interception on a perfect throw in the red zone, and his special teams is got off all giving up a kick return in terrible field position all day, or else they would have blown out a

good defense. His running game was terrible. He's ten of eleven on third down for a hundred and forty nine yards and two touchdowns, and most of that's in third and long because you know, the Vikings just refused to stop running Dalvin Cook for one in two yards on first down. They're gonna use this guy up, giving him thirty carries a game. Sometimes you got to adjust to the game that's in front of you. But they probably did that because they thought, we don't really need to

do much to beat this lousy Bears offense. And I suppose they were right on that. So good for Kirk Cousins. You know, it's this is the team of hands, this TL the Minnesota Vike games, and they're back in it. They are definitely back in it. I thought they had the chance to do it, and here they are. And when you saw, you saw claibon. Kirk Cousins is a guy that we all like to have our fun with. Me. Well, now I'm gonna I want to set you up here. I want try to be able to chime in here.

I'm doing a little host move there. Um. But like, Kirk Cousins is a guy would like to have fun with and and that's why, Like when he completed that pass to Kyle Rudolph Uh to clinch the game essentially late in the fourth quarter, I mean, that isn't as as excited as I've ever seen Kirk Cousins, maybe next to his high school plays where he was singing Oklahoma.

And then you're like, why is he this excited? I know he just probably won the game, it didn't even run out the clock, but probably want it and then you realize, like Kirk Cousins is human. Kirk Cousins, as much as we say we're sick of talking about, you know that Kirk Cousins can't win in prime time and he's own nine on Monday Night Football. He's sick of

it too. So when he completes that pass, he's celebrated because another Kirk Cousins narrative went by the wayside, which which Dan is an indictment of Kirk Cousins, because literally, Monday night is the game. The game's count the same. It's a dumb narrative in the first place, went on Monday as the same as a win on Sunday at one Eastern. It literally does not don't bring into this. It's a game. It's a win. And and the same thing.

I thought the same thing, Dan. There's a minute in thirty five seconds to go when they get that first down to Kyle Rudolph, and I'm thinking, the game's not over, Kirk, like you got well he the thing is like, so they're showing a graphic which was the only Monday Night Football uh CG graphic that I've enjoyed all year. The office space comage right to Kirk Cousins record on Monday night. But literally like it it does. There's no difference between

when or not. And it helped um. But as you guys mentioned, like the Bears, um they need a quarterback that can make plays. Uh, Matt Nage needs a quarterback that can make plays. And so like whatever last night, Uh was a lot of it, as Greg mentioned, had to do with what the Bears could not do on offense. And there was a point where there was a third down, the Vikings blitz in the A gap because that's Mike

Zimmer and that's what he's gonna do. And it was one of those rare occasions where there was a short receiver to get the ball to and Nick Foles bailed and threw some candle in the wind ball twenty yards out of bounds and Anthony Miller was like wide open directly in front of him, and like, I don't really

know what the progression was on that play. Honestly, to be clear, I'm not some savat that knows much about anything in terms of the schematics and football, but I just know what we saw last night was not going to work. And to Mark's point, last night, I get that the people of Chicago care, and they should care. It's a franchise a lot of them grew up with. But for those of us who are watching this team, uh that from the front office decisions and on down,

they just keep making these mistakes. I don't know why we're so involved in the franchise. It's just not that they're not doing anything. Like, congratulations on getting Eddie Jackson after he suffered all those injuries at Alabama and fell to you. Congratulations on trading for future Hall of Famer and Khalil mack Um. But if you if you can't get guys open, and you can't find a quarterback in an arrow where everybody seems to be on the burge

of finding their quarterback, none of that matters. Yeah, there's only like, there's only only a handful of teams that seem completely eyes wide shut to evolving in and you know you're you have to assume mail at some point realize that too. The Bears. My one thing with them is, and when we come at these teams, the first thing that happens you get a pocket of the fan base saying, you know, don't don't be mean to my team. It's like, actually, what we're trying to do, and this is an old

West is um is. We're not putting up with it, nor should you as fans, because the I've been watching football since and the Bears have been the same team essentially through that entire run. They've had four top ten offense since offenses since that's well, I mean, you know there's one or two years where that's occurred, and they're not like second or third, they're like ten. They've been a defensive oriented team that struggles to score points. I feel like my entire life, let's try a new path.

And here's the weird thing about Monday's game. The Vikings badly outplayed them in several facets, especially on defense, and Cordella Cordeil Patterson's kickoff return got them in the lead. The punt return later in the game put him in position again, and somehow, if Nick Foles just hits that past to Anthony Miller, it should have been Bears twenty,

Vikings nineteen. And that's why I think the Bears, and reasons that Mark just explained as well, are a sneaky I'm not saying pain rankings, but in terms of a frustrating fan experience, you're sure the Bears are are up there because they're not fun to watch, and then you have games like last night where it becomes just a public execution by everyone that just teeing off about how boring and terrible your team is. It's got to get old. Their their offensive line is so bad. I mean it's

it's part of it. So folds combined with that offensive line, and they they've been banged up and they've had COVID issues.

I think where Mitchell Robinski is coming out of the Buy as their starter folds, his injury um that he had at the end of the game is not as serious as they feared, and it sounded like he was day to day and has a chance to be ready to play coming out of the by but um on Monday or Tuesday rather, Naggi said that there they'll look at everything and including a possible quarterback change, and when they say that, they always make the change if they

gotta make so if they're sticking. If they were sticking with him, I think they would say so. They'll maybe the injury will be an excuse. I don't think it really matters. And by the way that game, coming out of the Buy is again on primetime against the Green Bay Paer. So you know they are they are, they are pushing into this. The NFL schedule makers, they've had some tricks up their sleeves this year, and this trick is on us. I do like that Justin Jefferson had

his moment. That dude is I think would be Rookie

of the Year if if um they didn't allow. I think they should separate quarterbacks and other players in all these awards so that we could have like a Jefferson Justin Jefferson versus Tristan Worth's conversation or whatever, because Justin Jefferson is like, I don't know if he's better than Stefon Diggs, but he's he's in that caliber right now, like as a I mean, that's that's where he is as as like a top twelve receiver in the league right now, where Feeling is the clear number two and

Jefferson's one. Like, that's pretty amazing. We just get we can get a sponsor. Oh, I know where you're going already with it. You're making the case for the Offensive Player the Year. Well, then say quarterbacks are ineligible. That is part of my problem is that a lot of times the same quarterback wins this both awards, and then some other years it's like though they decided to spin it off into Drew Brees or some running back or

something as a consolation. Well, I mean, justin Jefferson could have maybe you should have become a quarterback back in like seventh grade to deal with this specific issue. Well, I think we should get a sponsor to pony up some more money, right for the all Pro rookie team. Uh, so we can give all of these guys a little more shine. Well, maybe we'll give out the awards. We'll give the non quarterback awards show January third, January third. Yeah,

that's a great idea, Hey, Ricky. Uhh, this is when this is the part of the show where I asked Ricky seriously to do some show pre production work and then she ignores it. Uh, make a note of this, please, uh and bring it up to me after the season. We want to do some type of rookie awards shows or even like non quarterback awards too, like some give out some some non let's give out some awards. Please make a note of it. You got it. Don't let

me down. I really I can see her taking that note right now with the number two pencil on a piece of paper. She's watching YouTube cat videos as I'm talking. Um, let's give the last word an annoying dumb game to John Parry. Yeah. That is helmet to contact to the helmet of the quarterback there with the right hand, forcible contact. One of the things that happens when there's not a lot of penalties in a game. Your mind gets blowed into this sleep and maybe you're not processing things the

way that you should. That he is a foul and we should have had a flag there to extend the drive. That was such a fitting like breakdown from the rules official guy Patrick. Yeah, you can hear him trying to make a case right for apologizing for the officials, not realizing that he's making a case for getting rid of

officials just in general because of their overall uselessness. Uh. The idea that right, that we are so bored of this game that we have no part in that sometimes we forget to play our integral, supposedly integral role in officiating the game. So we just kind of whatever. We just gotta wing it, man. Something. I mean, there's there's a Kickers club and then there may be as a Zebras club for these officials. That's the kind of stuff

you only talk about behind closed doors. You don't know, then John Perry, go out and tell everyone that officials take plays off, quarters off, that they snooze mentally, you don't reveal. I felt like he was trying to be human, and he probably shouldn't have. I did, like, as someone is a space get at Like, doesn't your mind just sometimes wander, like even when you're on like live TV.

It's a problem for sure, But that's reason I wait, wait a second, Yeah, but you're not supposed to give the tour of the sausage factory, right, I do like that. Remember in the nineties when it was like a late nineties show on Fox and everybody was super pissed about it. In the Magic World, this guy was like showing all the tricks, all the different sleight of hands tricks and cutting the body in half of a saw tricks. And you don't do that, John Harry, this is not a

Fox reality show. Come on the prestige man, All right, good stuff. Let's never think about that game ever again. Um Greg I listen. I don't want to be confrontational here. Greg, But I really liked your debrief. The one thing I didn't like is that you allowed our editorial team to use the HTML formatting of my power rankings. When you ranked the eleven teams that should be frustrated after week ten.

That's out of bounds and I didn't know that. I never property haven't they used that format though for years Basically for like the Shook quarterback rankings, the position rankings, once it's attached to a DAN, I have not Dan's not going to consider what happened. I have not checked that out. I didn't even know that. I'm I'm glad they did. That really makes it like a ranking, al right, I mean there was a lot of there was a lot of explanations there. I will connect with Aliban party

to get to the boy. This reminds me of when the previous UM owner of the Power Rankings called me into an office UM set like an hour long meeting UM for this meeting, and spoke to me for forty five minutes that he didn't want us to use the phrase positional power rankings because he sort of owned the I P for Power Rankings, after which I was like, why didn't you just like email me. It's like, okay, you just talk to me. Probably I think there were

deeper things happening there. Greg, I think, don't you know, I don't seem like such an ass anymore? Now do I know you're second in that ranking? Come down down over there? Why I'm just in you're just a little you're a little uh fired up over there. That's it's a good segue. I think this is the time here people are a little they're a little ornery. It's like we haven't gotten to Thanksgiving yet. It's been a long season, but you're not to like the stretch run. And that's

what That's what these rankings were about. Who who's the Who's ornery, who's a little cranky? Who's who's piste off? Like you know, Lamar said he was piste off? Who else? Who did? Peterson was like, I'm piste off. Every La

Fleur was I'm piste off. There was a lot of pis Let's let's listen the good way to get into this conversation because you do have the Eagles at number one, and the Eagles are really you know, to three five and one that just got beat by who j Men and Carson Wentz is a mess, and part of that goes on Eagles coach Doug Peterson, and then he goes on local radio and he has to deal with this intro,

which just boggles my mind. Who do you blame the most for the Eagles ten point lost the Giants seventy two coaching head coach of the Eagles, Doug Peterson, Hi, Dog, good morning, Andrew. Thanks for I appreciate that. Sorry, I that was just was awesome. That really let that just puts me in a great mood today. Already in a good mood, I kind of felt you probably wouldn't be in a good mood. You hang up now, No, no, please, don't do I'm feeling my obligation right now. Hanging up,

I'm filling my obligation. Dog, I fully understand. Angelo, all right, what about Duck, I'm piste off. I love it. I didn't even hear about this story. That that is rough. Can you imagine? Can you how incompetent can you be bringing in the what was that? Doug christ Angelo? I get it. I'm with you, Doug. Yeah, he has because

he's like an employee there. Ultimately they're paying, you know, he's working for that station and it's sort of smarmy, like, you know, viewers pull on what they're most annoyed by and the idea they don't know what they're running before the head coach of the phil Eagles comes on the show, like, yeah, the zoom meetings between the Eagles and this is this happened with Andy Reid to um, I think it over

when they're losing. Man, it the reporters in Philly really get into They get into the coaches, you know what, a little more aggressively than any than just about anyone else. But here's here's the deal. If you're gonna do that, then then own up to it. Don't be like, oh, I'm sorry coach that we just we only had so many things to know, Like link be a jerk. If you're gonna be a jerk, it's got one super Bowl

with Nick Foles is the starting quarterback. Like, let's be real, man. Anyway, you have the Eagles at number one, Greg, why did they why do they stand out above all of their teams in terms of who should be frustrated right now? Yeah, well, we we don't have to go to because we've we've talked so much. But I think it's because they're stuck in this terrible spot where they still matter so much

because they're still winning. This should be a time. Mike Silver mentioned on her air that you know they're gonna look at blowing things up possibly, but they're in first place. So it's like this endless cycle where I don't think this. I think five wins is gonna win them this division with that tie if you look at all the schedules, if they can scrape two more wins out, it's like

this purgatory. But I think what's similar about the top of the list is if your quarterback, if you're a franchise quarterback or the guy you were hoping to be,

is a problem. I think that's the worst spot you can be there in this in between where they have old players worth a ton of money, like making a ton of money, and this should have been a go year, and it just feels like everything about this is gonna be drawn out because of this division, because they might even make the playoffs, Like either way, it's just seems so painful and impossible, almost like how they're gonna have to decide what to do. It's a pretty interesting departure

from a couple of years ago. When the Eagles front office under Howry Roseman was this you know analytics darling that found a perfect way to marry numbers and on field scouting and old football, you know knowledge with new knowledge. And now they're they're they have they have huge cap issues going into next season. All goes back to wins. Though if wins doesn't stink, then we probably wouldn't be talking about this. But they're gonna have to make a

decision there. Flip side, if someone told you you only need five wins um in August, so they need five wins to win the division? Would that put you in a good mood? But I mean, that's the thing. Well, I think i'd like to Greg's point, like, if you win the NFC East this year, what does that say about your organization? Not? Not much at all. You have You don't have the Cowboys on this list, but they I'll jump in here since we're talking to NFC East.

To me, they have to be frustrated because we talked about it going into the season that it seemed like things could break right for them. Finally it was all there and they should have walked to a division title this year. If if things played out the way they should have. They should have been picking up five or six wins in this bad division, and they should have had Dak Prescott on the field and some of these

Gerald McCoy and some of these other players. You win twelve and thirteen games potentially who those But instead, the injury God's turned on you. Your roster is worse than you realize and doesn't have the depth to survive the injuries, and you go up in flames. So it's like, this felt like and what's been an endless waiting period for the Cowboys to really make another run. This seemed like a year set up well for them, and they just were not able to capitalize on it. It hurts Patrick,

you know, closet Cowboys fan. I haven't totally even given up on them because their defense has looked much better the last couple of weeks and Dones coming back. I don't even know. I don't know, how is it? How is it going to get worse? Who's the question with

the Cowboys defense? And I like when we were when I was looking at when I was looking at Greg's list, right, the the idea that somebody should be frustrated, Right, So if we're going from the perspective of a fan base, you can be frustrated, but who's who are you frustrated with? And if you're if you're a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, ultimately you're frustrated with the circumstance of your of your

franchise quarterback breaking his leg right. Nobody in theory could have prevented that, but you could have had your owner, in the facto general manager pay that quarterback because um. Another thing that adds to frustration is seeing players who your team developed go to a franchise, like a Byron Jones going to Miami who was a perennial loser. Now they're in the midst of a playoff race. And the idea was, you can't keep Byron Jones because you have

to pay the quarterback. But you don't pay the quarterback, So what was the point of losing this talent? And now your your defense is giving up points, is leaking like a sieve, and and what do you have to show for You've got nothing this failed season in which the division is horrible, Like like you said, Dan, like who wins the East doesn't really matter. Everybody's mad anyway, Mark, what jumped out to you on this list or perhaps

not on the list. UM, I agree. I think that there's a lot of arguments that if you are part of the Niners organization, UM, just you look at I gathered together and I'm not gonna waste forty It would take probably a minute and a half to read off all the injuries they've had in Corona issues. Um, there's like forty six names here. I mean that alone, you're

you're the You're the defending NFC title champions. And I would say that a little bit in the Wentz world, you have, Um, this this season is a lost cause. And I'll tell you why, because Dan and Eric and I forked them to Thursday Nights ago. So the organization knows that it's over for them this season. Uh. But

a larger, a larger question looms. You've given seventy four million dollars to a quarterback for thirty starts over the course of four years, and I think you have to you there are narratives and areas and pots possible future scenarios where Jimmy g is not the starter here anymore after this, um, and you might be starting over at quarterback, or if you don't, you've got to continue to probably play around Jimmy g which at some point gets old.

If you're Cayl Shanahan, so you're you're entering into an off season where a lot is about to happen. I wanna bring up to that it maybe people be a little more surprised around this. Number one is the Titans, because, like like you mentioned, with the Cowboys, I think things were set up. We were starting to feel like the Titans have turned the corner. They were five and oh they're two and two in games that have been decided by more than a field goal this year, and they

got pushed around on Thursday night. They gotta play Baltimore and then Indianapolis. Again. Maybe they'll surprise me and they'll win both those games, but it doesn't They feel a lot closer to just being another nine and seven team again with a bad defense and a bat in an offensive line that's kind of collapsing right now. That's a

bad recipe. And then the Saints. Maybe the Saints fans don't feel like this, but this feels like it's it for Drew Brees and the team's really good and and I think he's playing at a higher level than Peyton Manning was in his last year, but when ian rapport started like mentioning all the other injuries, and I think there's some that maybe aren't even getting mentioned publicly because they're already getting in trouble with the injury report for

not reporting his shoulder injuries and his ribbon previous rib injuries. He might be bolsh Soldiers. There might be something going on. Who knows you? You want Breeze out there. He'd been playing pretty well. He had reached the top ten in the QB Index, and I think they had to have it. I think they still have a chance. Maybe he'll come back to go win a Super Bowl, but right when things were starting to crank up, you lose him. Jamis

didn't inspire a lot of confidence last week. Maybe maybe he'll be better, but it's a bummer, I think for that team who is more all in than any We always say, like all in, who is more all in than the Saints being a hundred million dollars over the cap for next year and Breeze almost certainly being in

his last year. So maybe Breeze comes back and he's fine by by when it matters, but I would be I would be a little frustrating right now after taking that hit, I'll throw out since you mentioned the niners um mark and the idea that the window which seemed open shut very quickly and hopefully they can open it

back up again. But I'm very frustrated right now if I'm the Ravens, because there is a creeping sense of dread perhaps that you know, you were window where you were supposed to go and win this damn thing uh closed, and now you gotta figure out how to do it a different way because last year I and I come back to this a lot, because usually when you have the season that the Ravens had last year, when you kind of take the league by storm, you actually catch

the league with it with their pants down. Is what they did on offense last year, with that, with the tight ends and with the running backs, and then of course Lamar just being brilliant um on top of it all. Uh, you just set the league on fire. And then obviously, unfortunately for them, things didn't work out in their playoff game. And now who knows what's happening this year? Is that the league catching up a little bit? Is that injuries? Is it both? Uh? Is it Lamar not playing at

the same level. It's probably a combination of all those things. And it's still early enough where they can get things figured out and they still have about very high ceiling. But I would understand if inside that building and John Harbor puts his head, uh to take a nap on his cow uch in his office, he's like, oh, no, did did we have our chance? And the chances already gone? I wonder if they think about that well. I mean that being said, right, they are a Willie sneed catch

away from knocking off a team in their division. Uh, that's the last undefeated team in the NFL. And not only that, right, they had the drive before that against the Steelers where they also had a chance to score. It was fourth down inside the red zone and they didn't get that. Part of the problem though with them, it's it's that ability to kind of just well, the thing is right with with windows in the NFL. The

window is your window of opportunity. It's not your it's not like a digital yes, no thing, it's do you have a chance? Right? And they still have a chance. Um, I think I really do. But there are some signs that are worrisome defensively, offensively, just in terms of the they are known as sort of like a tough team, and they're no longer like when their offensive line that starts falling apart and Nick Boyle is going to be part of that, that to me ruins at all and

they have not been able to set the edge. They're playing the Titans team we'll talk about on Thursday, but that matchup is fascinating because the Titans kind of match up well to go after that week that said, there's such a good org Dan that, um, like, I think they have a chance to win the Super Bowl this year.

But they're not someone I see as like a window team because they have what I would consider a top ten quarterback to build around and an organ organization that's shown they can be a great defense year after year, and so I don't like see them going away. I just yeah, I'd be frustrating if they come out of this year not winning the super Bowl. Of course, um after how good they were, but they just seem like one of those teams that's gonna be around each and

every year. Here's the thing though, I mean the Seas to Dan's point, it's the Ravens, so like the floor is different than what some of these other scenarios we're talking about. But Lamar Jackson mentioned earlier in the year when they were having a few up and down issues, like people have taken what Tennessee did in the playoffs and applied it to us that he sees it week after week. Last week at this time, he was saying,

the teams are calling out their lace. I think at some point they're gonna have to look at their offense and say, whether it's a Greg Roman issue or whatever, we're gonna have to rethink how we attack teams because that shouldn't be happening to a team that's gonna go win the Super Bowl. Roman got fired pretty quickly after basically you know, quote unquote revolutionizing the NFL and doing an awesome job with Kaepernick, and then it fell apart

quickly and he got fired pretty quickly. I don't think that will happen, but he just the way he does his offense. Who knows, you know, he might pizza finish the pizza. I know, you know what, I've thought about that if you had had that extra slice there. But um, he's probably frustrated because he should have made a full push to get the head coaching job. Last offseason. I mean, the Q rating is tumbling by the hour here. Well, the thing that works in his favor right is the quarterback.

Was was an easy spot to blame when it was Kaepernick, and it's probably gonna be an easy spot to blame again when it's Lamar. The way that people questioned them, but at some point not a fear of the Ravens though the Ravens aren't going to be questioning Lamar, especially especially after that game against New England, right were other than that pick at the end of the first half. Lamar kind of did everything that he could possibly do

and they still didn't win the game. Um, But on the terms of quarterbacks, you know, going through Greg's list, if I'm gonna pick a team to be frustrated about, it's a team that already has their franchise quarterback and the rest of the whole franchise is an absolute ruin. It's Greg's number two teams, the Houston Texans, because like whether it's Jimmy g and Greg's top five or you know,

trying to see is Carson wins the future? Like nobody is questioning if Deshaun is the future, but just everything is in shambles, and like Tyron Matthew is on Twitter making jokes about fitting the culture because like new Hopkins got traded, there's just so many angles for a fan of the Houston Texans uh to just be ready to flush this this entire thing. And I think that's my number one. They were number two on my list because

of that. Yeah, crossed my mind also when I was when I was doing just the research before the show that Deshaun Watson signed a four year extension before this season starts. Now, you signed an extension I think pays him nearly forty million dollars a year, So no one's ever going to say, I wonder if he's doubting signing

that extension, because look at Dak Prescott right now. But at the same time, I'm sure he's he's obviously frustrated, he's piste off Angelo that he signs this deal, getting himself in deeper with an organization that right now seems a little bit rudderless, and he's tied to them. So I'm really I'm really curious how um the media and public outcry against the setup that the Texans have now and you know, we don't need to talk about Jackie easter Be specifically anymore, don't do it, Mark done it.

We've done it. We don't need insurance. You've got a dental plan. We don't have to repeat ourselves. But I think it was really fascinating to see our guy then the network insider. It's in his contract. You have to say NFL network insider part it's really true. The other guys are just NFL Networks Tom Pelsero. But Ian's the insider. He had. He had that report Sunday morning, and when he does these reports, he's always telling you something good.

That they might keep Romeo Cornell next year, and that in that scenario there might not be a GM, that it's just Easter B And so that that tells me like they're they're priming the pump. They're either checking out to see if the public revolt, or they're just like kind of trying to let everyone down easy, that this is what's happening. They when you start mentioning that, um, they couldn't fly in people, you know, necessarily for interviews because of COVID for the new head coaching job, so

you might as well keep Romeo. Was a very generous report for the Texans I mean what what I mean what you can't you can't pick a head coach on zoom. You're you're, you're, you have like people in the stadium. You can't do a head coaching interview. I don't know. It's well, it's actually it's a cood ata, you know, happening before our eyes. So you know, have a nice time with that. Texans fans, all right, check out the debrief on NFL dot com Slash Rosenthal. I'll tell our

editors you know, that is Power Rankings, um property. It's I thought it was the I P of the Power Rankings, and you want to the Power Rankings is an important article on their website every week. I would think they'd wanted to have a unique look, but apparently, you know, they have other ideas and maybe I just need to get my opinion in there and shake things up, all right, before we go Thursday night football. Good stuff here. This is really good Cardinals at Seahawks to six and three team.

I feel like there's seven thousand, six and three teams in the league right now, and here's two of them, and they are in two very different places right now. Because the Cardinals obviously coming off the drama of the Hail Murray just a brilliant win against the Bills. And

the Seahawks. Now they've you know, they've lost three or four and uh they are They have a quarterback in Russell Wilson who has seven turnovers in the last two weeks, so maybe he's in a little bit of a funk right now, which they frankly, quite frankly, Patrick Claybron the Seahawks as they're built can't really deal with a Russell Wilson funk of any extended uh measure. No, and when everything, like the whole plane is built off of Russell Wilson

at this point. And so there's there's gonna be fluctuations that they're gonna be high variants because they don't have a defense. They lose to a Jared Golf team, uh where the you know, the Rams lose Andrew Witworth, and you wonder what their long term viability is at this point. But um, this is what it's gonna be. Like we we knew this early on that this defense can't stop anybody. So this is this is all gonna kind of be built on whether or not rust can complete those balls.

And you you see, like the past, the Tyler being knocked away and there's one pass to two d K where Jalen Ramsey played great. If that happens in the playoffs, yeah, but there's there's only so many teams that can do that. Uh, they can match up with the Seahawks. So it's you know, it's gonna come down to to Russ making a play in the final moments, which is what the Sea Hawks always come down to. So so I don't think they can be uh to frustrated with their position, because that's

what it's gonna be every single year. I thought that I still think that their defense could get better. I mean, I guess I hadn't given up hopes because it doesn't make sense. They're usually well coached and they have some talented players that if they can get to be average by the end of the season, they can be a factor. And that's why I think that's possible. I'm actually more concerned with their offense at the moment because that's how

they're built. UM and I think this matchup is really interesting. First of all, it might be the first time that two teams have play in prime time UM in a month, you know, two times in a month, both games in primetime other one was switched because of a COVID issue. Um but I love it. But who yeah, I love it. I mean this sign me up for all these NFC

West gemes. But I think it's it's kind of telling because I think the end of that game, when Vance Joseph started cooking up the Seahawks offensive line with all those pressures and the Cardinals don't really get pressures on their own, that's set up what's happened to the Seahawks since. Because the Seahawks offensive line had no answers. Russell Wilson, surprisingly for a veteran quarterback somewhere, had no answers. And

that's been the game plan ever since. Even in the game against the Bills um which they put up points, they had no answer for the Bills blitz. Last week against the Rams, they had no answer. And you just that's an offensive line thing, that's a coaching thing, and that's a rust thing. It's all together, and you gotta expect the Cardinals to do it again. Are you saying let Vance cook That's right, he's gonna have to. He

doesn't really have any players up front either. It's not like they had they had any pass rush as we saw against Buffalo. I mean they barely sniffed Josh Allen. I mean the Broncos gave him a chef's kitchen and he did he did attempt to cook and that didn't go too well. So I don't know if he should be Maybe they get in the whole house. He's not a guy who can take care of the whole house, but maybe he can do some damage in the kitchen. That that's a possibility. I like, I feel like, for

the first time since we've been doing this show. I don't know what is it, thirteen episodes or something, I don't trust the Seahawks. This is the first time I felt that way. And Greg, I'm surprised. I know this is what you mean literally, but that you're more concerned about the offense than the defense. Um this defense because they can't survive being an average offense, which they have, Well, that would break the back, but it's because the defense

has been, you know, consistently horrible. That game against um Arizona, I thought was such an effective show of what both offenses could do. They combined for about a thousand yards at the end of regulation, but there was no stopping. I thought the Cardinals in terms of the play that you called unstoppable Greg Kyler Murray on the ground, I mean he fried Buffalo is well, and I just I don't like the trajectory of the Seahawks team right now. They were exhausted at the end of that game against

the Cardinals last time winded. No. I know it went into overtime, that game had possessions, but I don't see why the script would be that different. That was like two weeks ago. These teams haven't changed that much, and you know, you get them all out of his back, but I don't think he's healthy and like one guy alone,

it's not going to make the difference here. One thing that does help, if you're gonna make an argument for for the Seahawks, is there's a there's a reason right that that Alex Collins was off the street that we haven't seen DJ Dallas make a lot of plays, And there's there's this, you know, super trite conversation about what running backs actually bring to the table. But like especially in past protection with dealing with the blitz, Uh, it's

gonna help to have Chris Carson back. Um, it's gonna help russ uh measurably, especially a guy who who makes plays leaving the pocket to to have a to have a back out there that's killed them. We can do that. They haven't been able to pick up short yardage. They were missing their starting cornerbacks though still and they're missing their starting center very likely still Um and the Cardinals running game. I do think they're different than a month ago.

I think they're more consistent throwing the ball, and when they get Kenyan Drake back, that three headed monster does matter. I think him and Edmonds together are better than just one of them, and they put up, you know, over two hundred yards rushing. They are the best rushing team in the league because of Kyler Um, but because they have those other two guys and they coach up the

offensive line really well. I look the one thing that can Like one little note on the Seahawks defense, I feel you just come out of a game with the Rams, a team you know really well, and the Dolphins, basically I thought showed how a defense could diagnose Jared Goff and make life really difficult. Seattle took no notes from that, or if they did, were completely unable to duplicate that. So I don't see how you slow down this Cardinals team that feels like I don't know what the ceiling

is for the Cardinals. Would anyone be surprised if they were in the fourth quarter of the NFC title game with a chance to win. I wouldn't. I wouldn't rule them out because I think Kyler Murray is an X factor in all of this discussion in the NFC. And speaking of Kyler Murray, UM, my last thought on this game. We love m v P watch. I think Greg has now cleared it. We're allowed to talk about this on the podcast. Uh and on the internet. Is that clear? Guy? Is that? Are we okay? Yeah? I mean and fat

and emphatic get started started. We're starting around, turning around that corner. Okay. Good. So anyway, primetime games, big deal, big deal when you're talking about the m v P. We're factors in UH. When people have to cast votes, and I have it right now, Mahomes at one, Kyler at two, Rogers at three, Russ at four, and then take your pick Kamara or Dalvin Cook at five. That's my rankings for m v P. So this game under the lights and because they're different than the Sunday games.

It's different than the Sunday one o'clock game. Dollar of what claimant says, these games are different. They matter more. Um and momentum is a real thing, and trap games exist. This is all real and Santa is real. It's all there. Anyway, whoever, whoever really steps up and falls out as a quarterback in this game, that could that could make it diff watch. Yeah, I would have Rogers one right now and my Homes two. Um, But I definitely don't have, um a problem with with

Murray and Rust being in there. You know, if they if they finished strong, and the Seahawks are favored in this game, we're like talking all doom and gloom. It's worth noting in the desert. Um, yeah, their favored. I think it's a I thought. I think it's a total toss up and I and I don't think it's necessarily because it's a primetime game. But I do think there is something to the fact that the Cardinals are new operation.

They haven't been in these big games. Um, we're starting to get to the portion of like their big game season. And I do think that you know, having veterans and a heter in coaching staff, and all that knowledge, like it helps the Seahawks a little bit here and they know how important this is and so wouldn't surprise me if we see, um, the best Seahawks you know, effort that we've seen over the last month, and it should be a good one, great one. This game is going

to be four and a half hours long. It's good. I'll be fine with that. It seems like we could have another great game. It's a good job for Colleen, and I hope, I hope she has one of these quarterbacks at the end of the game. If you put a nerf gun to my head, um and how to pick the division winner, I probably would despite all their problems. I would go with the Seahawks just because of all their big game experience. And I do believe Russe will come out of this slump. I think it's gonna go

down to the last week. And you can make a case for any of these teams besides the Niners, but I think the Seahawks are my pick where we stand right now. When I picked Cardinals Seattle second in the RAMS, I understand the rams, the metrics heads, No, I don't, I do not. I just I I don't see it on a week two week basis, I don't see the makings of a team that's going to go on a Super Bowl run. I'd be I'd be really subcrision. I'd be really surprised that they won the division. I I like,

maybe I and I get overconfident. I confidently feel like Arizona is gonna win this division in terms in terms of the division, right, I would decide, even with the injury to Whitworth, which is a significant problem in terms of their Super Bowl aspirations, I think the defense is easily positioned as the best of the division, arguably one of the best uh in the NFL, and they have

talent right at spots that nobody else has. Um Aaron Donald is probably my perennial m VP pick as as a literal uh as as a literal player that's valuable uh in in a relative position to his peers. To Greg's point, if it's all quarterbacks, if all quarterbacks are at the top of your m v P list, then what are you saying about their relative value with each other? Really?

Um So I would say, you know, call it the Aaron Donald Award, to give it to him every tier because he's that much better than than and the other players one Rams in the division maybe Seahawks uh. In terms of threatening for the championship, the one huge edge of the Seahawks have is schedule. Um, they have not played the NFC East, whereas the Cardinals and and the

Rams beat up. So if if the Seahawks could somehow win this game on Thursday, you get their little mini by then you've got the Eagles, Giants, Jets, Washington before you play the Rams and forty Niners at the end. So if you compare the schedules, that's a it's a pretty significant edge to the Seahawks if they can, if

they can pull this game out, especially they lose. They've been swept by Arizona, So I mean that's but I mean, but you know, you suddenly play Cupcake City and you take care of business and you win for in row, while the Rams and the Cardinals are dealing with each other and dealing with tougher games. That's a problem. Right. The path is wide open to eleven wins at least if you can win on Thursday. But I gotta win on Thursday, all right, Good stuff stuff, Patrick Laban, You've

done it again. You've said it all, and uh, you've done it at the level of grace that very rarely is seen on this show. I don't know, I don't know about I mean you guys, you guys cracking out every every single every single time you're at the plate, I mean to to mark plate appearances, and as far as I'm concerned, you're on base every single time. So I'm just I'm glad to be not just in the stadium, uh,

in the general vicinity of this uh illustrious podcast. I think we've been We've been through a few batting slumps along the way, but I'm thank you for that. I'm piste off Angela. All right, we'll be back on Thursday. We got, of course, the recap of Thursday Night Football coming uh that's a mini episode, and then the full preview of everything to come in week eleven. Both those shows coming up uh this week. Uh. And also you u K listeners uh in Game Pass subscribers, keep your

eyes peeled. That so all I can say, I don't even know if I can say that. I think it's Game Pass International too, so you know, you could be throughout Europe. You know, we know a lot of you are sheltering in place right now. I like the coordination going on here between the countries and so you've got more time at home. I think it's all the international game. Pas No, I see how the Irish listeners right now. Irishly, we're not the UK. We're separate and you are. Yeah,

we can't even agree on numbers over here. So Australia, Germany, we got listening here in Africa. It's happening in Africa. We're very blessed all of you listeners across the world war so please continue to listen and watch and keep an eye out over on game Pass. This is Dan Hansons signing off for the graceful one. Patrick clay Band, Storm the Old Bows and Ricky Hollywood are Little TV Star until Thursday