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former NFL scout with the Philadelphia Eagles. He's got a three and out podcast on the volume. So we break down a lot of stuff today. Even one of the Saturday games, we spent about almost fifteen minutes, twelve minutes on the Lions big win, what to expect from them going forward, and Sean Payton and Russell Wilson's blow up in the sideline. One guy doing the blown up Sean Payton. But we'll start with the Cowboys getting destroyed by the
Bills in a couple of minutes. But you know, my takeaway as we watch this Sunday is there are teams in this league. You know, if you have a bad CEO, the business gets worse over time. You saw that with Brandon Staley and the Chargers. They got worse every week. They opened the season nearly beating Miami looked really interesting, and then a poorly run business gets bet Washington. The Commanders with Ron Rivera, they were a viable team seven
weeks ago. They just get worse. It feels like every week you can see some of these defensive coaches they feel Jurassic. They're out of touch.
You know.
Meanwhile, you've got Shane Steichen taking Gardner Minshew and beating the Steelers. You've got Sean McVay. I think Sean McVay right now, week to week is doing the best job of coaching in the entire league. Really outplayed the Commanders from the very beginning, and you just saw a classic, young, smart, progressive offensive head coach just getting better offensively every week. It's amazing. He takes a rookie Puka Nakua, he takes Kyron Williams, who's now like the third best offensive player
in the league behind Tyreek Hill and Christian McCaffrey. Folks, that's coaching. Coaching is getting the most out of your players. And here in Los Angeles, nobody got less than Brandon Staley, and nobody gets more than Sean McVay. The job he
has done this year is absolutely remarkable. He is squeezing every ounce out of a defense that's Aaron Donald and kids and an offense which is guys mostly Stafford Cup, Tyler Higbee, probably Rob Havenstein didn't play today, the right tackle a little bit out of their prime, and then kids Kyron Williams and Puka Nakua. It is a marvel to watch the Rams play. And I know I live in Los Angeles and you're thinking, oh, Colin, you're going overboard.
This team was picked to win five games in Vegas and they have an opportunity to win ten, and you look at their schedule. I'm just sitting there watching that Rams game today against the Commanders, and I thought, that is the difference in the National Football League offensive coaches and defensive coaches, the ability to take young players on the offensive side. Sam Howe very good early, a mess quarterback, a kid for Washington. Why got a defensive culture with
Ron Rivera. Meanwhile Puka Nakua the running back. They have young guys all over the offensive line. That's the league. And so if I had to vote coach of the year, probably give it to Dan Campbell, Sean McVay, Demico Ryans at Houston would be at the top of the list. I just thought the Rams today it wasn't nearly as close. You know, they got Jacobe Burssett came in, they got a couple of eight touchdowns. McVeigh runner up arguably for
Coach of the Year. He's been that good. And now for a segment called making It Look Easy, brought to you by Morgan and Morgan, America's largest injury law firm. Baker Mayfield. He made it look easy. We'll talk about him later, beating the Packers three hundred eighty yards and four touchdowns and a perfect passer rating for Baker Mayfield. Just like he made it look easy, so does Morgan and Morgan. Over one hundred offices nationwide, eight hundred lawyers,
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You know who I am. I hope by this point in my life. And this is John Middlecoff Three and Out podcast at the volume you see them all the time on our digital stuff, the Twitter accounts and a former NFL scout. We start with the obvious one. I did like Buffalo to win. I do think this this league week to week. It depends on the spot you're in. I think San Francisco is unique in where they're bad game is still good enough, you know, to go to
Clee and almost win if they hit field goals. But most of the teams in this league have just bad Sundays. They're off a big win, they're you know, they're This was a spot for Buffalo. James Cook now is becoming a real part of this offense.
Uh.
All of a sudden, Dallas on the road falls behind. Dak's not the same quarterback behind. Are you surprised, however? How the Bills ran the ball on the Dallas defense. It was I don't remember seeing the Dallas defense run defense that poor for a couple of years.
To me. One thing that Dallas over the last month, why a lot of us have been buying in is because of their physicality, Like just their overall toughness, and today Buffalo kicked their ass. I mean that goack on was a beatdown. And I think I said last week when we watched Buffalo pull that crazy game out against Kansas City, it's hard to take them seriously when all their games were like that. They were like the better version of the Chargers. They just found a way to
win some of them. But today you gotta give them their ceiling. I mean, they have a couple wins this year that Miami win early in the season. Miami's pretty good. That game against Dallas today, like their ceiling is pretty high. When they're on obviously playing at home, the division is still open, like the division is not set. Miami schedule is very hard. They play Dallas, they play the Ravens,
then they finished with Buffalo. You look at buffalo schedule, at the Chargers, who mailed that thing in the Pats, and then they finished, like we said, with Miami. Listen, they've kind of reeled me back in because today it was as much about Josh Allen just going Lebron James or Steph Curry. It was more the defense annihilated McCarthy's offense, and like you said, the run game, what has Buffalo
always lacked. It's they've never had a running back beside Josh. Well, if you can get a guy, you don't need him to get one hundred and eighty yards every game. But if you can rely on an individual to be one hundred yard a game guy in cold weather games, hard not to like Buffalo and look at him a little differently after the last sixty minutes.
Right right. You know, I was thinking about the Steeler teams with Tomlin when Ben was in his prime. Is that and they had like, you know, a lavian bell, And that's what Buffalo reminds me of. They didn't win, you know, they got a Super Bowl, no question, a couple with Ben. But this is what Buffalo reminds me. A defensive coach, a defensive culture with a star quarterback that's about seventy percent of the offense. And they when they had the star running back kind of in his
prime as an energy, a twitchy, energy player. There's always Pittsburgh always had a star receiver on the outside. They draft and developed receivers better than Buffalo. But this is what this is really what they remind me of. This is a big Ben Steeler team with a defensive coach, defensive culture that has enough offensive pieces to win. And I when I watched them today, I'm like, not everybody peaks at the right time. Rams are a totally different
team than six weeks ago. Don't even look like the same team. I mean, that's a dangerous team. Now they're blowing people out. So I do you buy my Bills look like a Steeler comp Ben Josh Allen defensive coach where they're very, very energized running back.
Yeah, don't hate it at all. And like the Pittsburgh they're comfortable playing outside, right, And that's and look at the AFC, It's hard to know how the seeding is gonna shake out, but they would be comfortable. We've seen them go on the road in Kansas City and play well, go on the road in Baltimore and play yeah, right,
Cleveland no problem, Miami, no problem. They won't. They view Miami as an inferior team, right, So you go listen if this team gets in there and they have a chance to run the table and get to eleven and six, I mean a couple of weeks ago, it felt like the building was on fire. And this is where you got to give McDermott and Josh and some of the guys internally some credit. They handled it. They kept, you know,
kind of the train on the tracks a little lucky. However, you want to look at last week it played out they won the game, and today they beat the living shit out of the Cowboys. And that was Listen, a lot of people were betting on the Bills. It's another thing to be up thirty to three and the Cowboys struggled to get over one hundred yards of offense with five minutes left to go in the game. I don't
think anyone saw that. And that's kind of a rough reflection on Dallas that you know, the Eagles obviously, the story today changing the defensive coordinators, guys are sick, they're working through some stuff. But how's that team going to go on the road and beat the Niners? Because you want to take Dallas seriously as this NFC contender, this team to go to the super Bowl, and then you watch a game like today, you're like, how does that happen?
How does that happen? Don't the Cowboys play Miami next?
Yes?
Okay, so this is classic NFL. Dallas gets humiliated physical team, so they are gonna flex physically. Miami finesse team blows out a physical Jets team. They come back to Earth watch Dallas face Miami and push them all over the field for three and a half hour. I mean you can see it a mile away back Dallas. Yeah, they're coming out. They just got humiliate And not only did they get humiliated, they were pushed around the field. So the whole week of Cowboy practices, let's get back to
physical football. So, folks, I'll just I had a really good Sunday today. I had the Lions, I had the Bills, I had the Rams. Okay, not so good on San Francisco, Arizona. Take the Cowboys right now against Miami.
And the other thing with Dallas, Right, we'll see how tomorrow plays out. They still you know, Drew Lock's probably going to be the quarterback. But what if the Eagles lose, right, the Cowboys would still get a little life. You know, just talk a Monday night, sitting at home. Get to look in the mirror, take a deep breath. Miami's a much better matchup than that version of whatever we just saw out of Buffalo. The way they just played, right.
You know, there is something you know, I always felt there are certain glamour franchises, the Lakers, Texas Football, the Dallas Cowboys, that it's almost impossible. As the NFL's gotten younger, you get this young cowboy team and they're on every show. I mean, if the Jags going a seven game winning streak, guys like me, steven A, doesn't matter who it is, we don't talk about him. Cowboys going a three game winning streak, every player turns on the TV, how about
them Cowboys? And I do think it's really hard to sometimes manage young athletes when they're rolling. I think it's harder to be Sark or Mike McCarthy because you become a centerpiece of discussion and elevation. And I think Dallas kind of just got into Dallas and it's very this is what happens. They win, they roll, and all of a sudden you're like, oh wait, this is the NFL. We're going up to Cole Buffalo. I mean, there was not a minute of that game. No, Dallas was not ready to compete today.
Well do you know what I've always had the take of, You know, I didn't love paying Dak forty plus million dollars a couple of years ago, thought he was a little overrated, and then he's kind of shutting you up. He started to play really good football. You're like, got this guy, I might win the MVP. And then you watch today and you go, yeah, that's kind of the guy. It's like, you know, he's still got that in him. He's done in the playoffs the last two years against
the Niners. How is there any scenario without major injuries where you can see the Cowboys beating the forty nine ers, Because I just I struggle to do that. I don't think it exists.
Yeah, I think Dak is a different quarterback trailing, and most quarterbacks are. But the difference between Dak at home leading and DAK on the road trailing, it's like two players, right, like it really is. And at most quarterbacks, you know, Baker Mayfield's always been He's a good front runner, he's not good trailing. But we don't consider Baker Mayfield to be a forty five million dollars year quarterback. So I look at DAK, and you know, there are components to
Dallas that feel like a super Bowl team. A good quarterback having a great year, Matt Ryan, cam Newton dak good quarterback, having a great year, a really unique energy, play well at home, have a knockout punch somewhere on the perimeter as a weapon. But those teams didn't win super Bowls. And I just feel like in order to win a Super Bowl, Dallas being a wild card team, potentially it'd be just at San Francisco, you know, at
a Philadelphia at Detroit. That's really hard. Cincinnati almost pulled it off a few years ago, but they were you know, Burrow was on just a streak. But I just think I just think Dallas. I think it's a hard ask for anybody if you don't have a star quarterback.
Yeah, I think those two teams you named, they got home games. And like you said, this team more than likely is gonna be the fifth seed and they're gonna be a heavy favorite in that first game. But Tampa's got some good players. It might not be as easy as it was last year. Right So, and then right away you got to go on the road to Philly to San Francisco to Detroit, depending on how the seating
shakes out. And that's just a lot to ask. And let's face it, because like you said, of the brand, do they get thrown on Monday night football game again, right, and then all of a sudden you get that weird kind of shorter week, even if you get the afternoon Sunday window. Because I would say, yeah, if it's them against whatever team no one cares that much about in the South, it's an easy Monday night football game because it's big ratings. That's kind of what it's been. So yeah,
I have a hard time. I think it's borderline one. They haven't been in the conference championship in two and a half decades, and then when they still have this in the back. I mean they have two. Even if you give them the Arizona game, weird loss to a bad team, they had two real games against Buffalo and against San Francisco with a lot of hype coming into the game. They had momentum coming into the game, and
they got destroyed. I don't know what the final score is of those two games combined, but it feels like negative sixty plus points on their side of the ledger.
Yeah, it's just it's one of those things. Dallas is very much a momentum team. You know, Nick Saban's team Alabama have never been like he can just certain teams have the ability to flip at halftime and it doesn't matter. Dallas always feels like there's a way they play and when they get when they get, when you get them off their block off platform, they can unravel, especially away from home. It's a young team, there's a lot of emotion.
I still think they're fine. I want to pivot to Miami destroying the Jets today because that's who Dallas plays next, and I think Dallas will handle Miami. But and I think we both feel the same about Miami. They're electric, they're fun. A Dolphins team that has a speedboat offense is always good for the NFL period. I just like, like I've said this before, there are certain college football programs that just they make the sport bigger, you know. And I think Miami, you get that wild aqua water
a playoff game in January, great weather, scoring points. But the Jets thing is interesting, John, because this offense. Neither one of us loves Zach Wilson. I think he's probably a backup in this league, but Nat Hackett has not elevated him. And some of this is on Aaron's buddy And there was a couple of weeks ago. Alan Wizard was a healthy scratch and at the time, I thought, is that they're sending a message like Aaron, you know, we got to play the best players. This can't be
about Aaron. This is a bad old line. Matt Hackett to me has to go. I mean, if you despite what happened to Denver, they're a different offense. Without Matt Hackett the Jets things going to be fascinating. The team looked like it quit today, was not prepared today. So you run. You're a former scout, you run the Jets. I mean I move off Hackett. I draft another quarterback, probably third, fourth, fifth round, not first or second. They need a left tackle regardless, They've got to get left
tackle solved. What do you do with the Jets going forward?
Well, I thought today Fangio was trying to end his career. I mean, that's the way it looked. Fangio made it look like he didn't belong on the same field. Coaching against him.
Right.
That Miami defense coming off a short week and in the first half, they couldn't gain a yard. They had negative yards in the first half. And this Dolphins defense, Zach Thomas and some of their great players aren't walking through that door. This is a pretty average personnel team. I just think when you're beholden to Aaron Rodgers, are
you fire and Hackett? Like I don't know if sala that's ultimately this is where their organization is all out of whack, right, Like the coach isn't really in charge anymore, even the GM this quarterback who keep this story the running thing about him coming back, Like what are we talking about? And then I have a hard time seeing them firing him. Now, if I was the owner, I would like to bring in a real coordinator because I think most people around the league don't think Nathaniel Hackett's
very good offensive coordinator. And today he was Today was embarrassing. It really was. It's one thing to lose Miami's better than you, it's another thing for it to look like that. I mean, they're coming up, Miami's coming off a short week, one of the worst losses, like statistically in like NFL history, three minutes fourteen points is like unheard of, and for it to look like that, and like you said, the effort, the quitting Zach did get knocked out. And you know,
I think Zach. The problem with Zach is he can have the half where you're like, God, this guy's really talented, and then he comes right back and he looks like
a third stringer. But I'm with you, Hackett has been an utter disaster because we are seeing so many quarterbacks around the league that aren't starting quarterbacks that have real offensive coordinators, whether it's Zach Taylor's crew, whether it's Shane Stiken, whether it's all these guys that are making these players Kevin O'Connell looks serviceable, and they get to these points where they can't even think about moving the ball until the game's so out of hand and all of a
sudden you get the hallow yards when you're down thirty to nothing. But I do not think that it's an option from the head coach or the GM to fire him, because I don't think Aaron's gonna want that. And once you put all your chips on this guy, you kind of like, to me, the bringing in the Randall Cobbs and the Lizards, like those days are over. But I I think I want to play for this guy. I still think Aaron has that juice right. He gave you the pay cut, and I'll be stunned if he goes, Yeah,
get rid of him bringing any guy you want. That's not really how he's operated.
You know, it's interesting with Aaron. I Aaron. I'm not insinuating that he doesn't watch film, but I've been told he's not as devoted to it as Brady or a Manning. He's just not or Russell Wilson. He's not as devoted to film that Aaron's gonna kind of want to do what Aaron's gonna want to do. I'm not saying he's lazy, but I've talked to a couple star quarterbacks in the
league and I remember years ago. I don't want to give too much away, but it was somebody connected to Aaron, and they're like, listen, man, he's not sitting in his house tonight breaking down a bunch of film. You know, he could be watching something on Netflix. And and maybe some of that is because he's so gifted.
Those guys couldn't write.
And so does Aaron want to Does he want to learn a new offense at this point?
No chance, I mean, I'm not none.
That's my takeaway. So Aaron, if you go up to him and say we got to get a new ac Aaron doesn't far of at the end of his career, didn't want to Aaron at the end of his career. I don't think Aaron wants to learn new offense. Is there a possibility that Woody Johnson sala these guys next year? I mean, if I'm Sala and I have any choice, I'm not tying my career to that offensive coordinator. Do you think there's any chance they would just blow it up and draft a quarterback?
I mean you have moments where you watch today you go, could this owner just lose it and fire everybody and just say, you know the history of the NFL, the players don't dictate the terms. Even Tom Brady was shown the walking papers in New England, right, So this is and the Jets are historically dysfunctional. What's this thirteenth straight years now no playoffs? Yeah, like they're just what are
They're gonna win six games? So at any moment, these owners, we know money's not an issue, and we know patience is not something that a lot of these guys have, especially the losing owners. So I think everything's on the table because what's what's Aaron gonna say to Woody? Right? Like, I still signed the check. So, yeah, you gave me some money back, and yeah, we brought you here to
work with this guy. But I don't think Wood he's shown to be like the Rooneys and see something out and in fairness has Robert Sala and this group really earned like the benefit of the doubt that they know what they're doing. I like Robert sal seems like a great guy, was a good defensive serminator. By no means would I put a lot of money on investing on him as being like some the next five years, be a successful head coach. He has not shown anything even remote.
He doesn't know anything with offense, so he's very beholden to the coordinator. He hired his buddy Lafleur, that failed. Now he hired Rogers' buddy. That's been an utter disaster because, like we said, even Rogers gets hurt four plays in, you should still look consistently a lot better than you've looked. Just some innovation, just some being able to move the ball. They consistently have halves that I would say the worst
in the NFL. Them in Carolina Carolinas, I mean the worst team we've seen in the while, them in Carolina worst offenses. Just I tests, I would imagine the stats back it up as well.
Yeah, so I think I think there's a lot of different options. There's a lot of options to the Jets. I would go get left tackle. If you start looking at the mock drafts right now, they have a chance to get the number one or number two left tackle, and despite who your quarterback is, you just have to get one of them. I'm not putting Aaron out there with their current situation, but there's a lot of things on the board for the Jets. Now. I want to talk about a team that's not very good, but I
find fascinating. The Cleveland Browns beat the Chicago Bears. Almost didn't that Hail Mary should have been caught by movie crazy. But the Bears defense is interesting because they had what three picks today, They're playing very well, their secondary and linebacker crew very well. Matt Eberflews over the last five weeks. He's a defensive coach that defense. Now that they've got Montese sweat, they've got a great corner. You look at it and you're like, Okay, they've been in this system
a couple of years. I'm not sure I can fire him. That looks like he knows his side of the ball. And I've said this before when McDermott was getting crushed. Our take was always sort of listen, we don't know if he has vision, but he's obviously a good detail guy. He's Chuck Knox. He'll clean it up. He knows his side. He's just not a visionary. Eber Flues may not be a visionary. I can't fire him. The defense looks absolutely legit despite losing today. They did their job. But the
question becomes with Justin fields. He again today, he makes plays. He had a touchdown drop by a tight end Robert Tanyan. But he doesn't win enough games. I don't want to hear that. You know, winning's not a quarterback stat. He doesn't win enough. I still think at times he doesn't see the field. He can be a tatty erratic. I move off him. But boy, when I go to Twitter and I hear these Chicago fans, there's a lot of love.
You know. There's a difference they always say with coordinators, John calling plays, just calling plays or really calling a game. Mcveigh's calling a game. A lot of guys call plays. There's also a difference as a quarterback just making incredible plays and managing a game like mahomes with an occasional great play. I kind of feel like justin Fields is just a series of plays. That's how it lands for me. I would move off him. I think you could send
him to Atlanta and get a second two seconds. What would you do with Fields?
Yeah, I mean I haven't changed one iota, no matter how many awesome plays he makes with his legs in Maunie, how many great throws he makes. I mean that heyl Mary today was the thing of beauty right that Oh York on it. The way he puts you right there in the middle. Thing. His his physical gifts are elite. But to me, he's been like he's not coming. He's
not gonna be the Chicago Bears quarterback next year. I actually think though he's earned we keep talking about every week a lot of credit, showing a lot of mental toughness and even just subtle improvements. And there are we keep talking about Atlanta because you know he's front played at Georgia for a split second. Makes a lot of sense.
But they need a quarterback.
They're gonna be other teams that need quarterbacks. Like I watch New England their quarterbacks. It could be a bitting war. Maybe, like you said, it ends up going from a couple of weeks ago, like maybe get a third now, maybe get a couple twos. Who knows. So it seems like a good guy. People like them. Teammates are rallying around him. But to me, you're not passing on the number one
overall pick New. I do think it's a big question though, with the coach, because at one point in time you look up at seventeen to seven, they're beating the shit out of the Browns like it's gonna be difficult now, a little like the Jets, kind of just functional organization they have, you know, a former Big ten commissioner who's trying to get power. Is the GM gonna stay? What's really going on? Owners old school? So I still think
a lot of stuff's on the table there. But eba Flus is proven to be a really good defensive coach this year. Yes, I mean their defense is vastly improved. Listen. Yeah, I was critical of the sweat thing today. He was dominant. He looked like Nick Boster, Miles Garrett. But do you want him to be your head coach with a young quarterback moving forward, and do you just give them, well, we'll give him one more year, and then you're firing
them a year in to your rookie quarterback. But I don't think that you get the opportunity with Carolina to get the number one overall pick and then pass on it. I just think, especially with a guy who's really really talented, some years, one hundred percent, you would just roll it through another year. With Fields, I don't think you do it this year.
Also, they have two firsts, a third, two fourth, and a fifth. You could absolutely replace your second round pick. You can get a second for justin Fields. So now I've got two first, a second, a third, two force. That's potentially you know, that's you're talking six really good players. And it's interesting they have good players on the roster now too. They have a number one receiver, they have a left, they have two tackles. Yea, they have Caleb Williams.
I even like their offensive coordinator. I know, you know, we always blame the offensive coordinator, but they've they've got their pieces here. I'm never gonna love their ownership, right, I'm never gonna love it. I would prefer an offensive coach but they've got the tight ends, a number one receiver. Now, they have a dominant guy up front. Defensively, they have a star corner Johnson, they have incredibly Now they're expensive but active linebackers playing very well. So I'm with you.
I just think you can talk yourself into a lot of things. But the Houston Texans are a different team because of C. J. Stroud. Yeah, okay, Like it changes the dynamic. And if you don't have a star offensive coach like a Shanahan, like a McVeigh or a Shane Steichen and the Chicago doesn't, then you need a star quarterback. It just changes the entire temperature of the franchise. And I like Justin, but I think it now becomes people trying to talk themselves into him instead of just going,
we don't win. There's too many turnovers. He's been banged up by the way in his career, he's struggled to have a full season without missing a game. I think it's time.
Well, for example, watching Arizona and the Niners today, Arizona's team's terrible. I mean, their rosters really bad. That quarterback's a real big talent. He's not big, he's small, but he is really really talented. I think if you're the Bears, like if you put him on the Bears with the roster they had, like Kyler Murray and I think, you know CAYLEB Williams kind of not his fast version of Kyler,
but enormous arm accurate. I think you immediately have a chance to be competitive next year, right, especially if you hit on some other picks that they they they're going to be a fascinating offseason team. To me, it just starts with the coach, and I think I think you
got to move on. I give him a lot of credit for this, because it felt like at one moment a couple of months ago, the ship was going to sink, and eber flews to me as an immediate like is he the number one defensive coordinator option on the open market? But I would try to get an offense. I mean, I still think Jim Harbaugh makes a lot of sense there.
Yeah, all right, let's and there's a lot of different things to talk about here. Let's I want to talk a little bit about green Bay. So we all kind of fell in love with green Bay and then they come out today, the Packers, and they don't now I will say Jordan Love and the reed. The wide receiver from Michigan State, Jaden Reid had a one of the better throws and catches on the season today. But I'm gonna look up. I'm gonna look up something very quickly. What do we do with Green Bay? Now? So Baker
Mayfield and that defense, Joe Berry's defense. Baker had three hundred and eighty yards, four touchdowns, and a couple of weeks ago, I kind of felt like I really like this team, and then as I watched them today, I was like, no, I really do like this team. They need a defensive coordinator change, but I wonder I see it with Green Bay. I think there's a lot there. I think they're such a young team, Like sometimes you'll watch a team and you're like, they're just a year away.
They are a bunch of kids. It was we probably should have thought that with Josh Allen his first big year, Like what do we do it? We're falling in love with this boxer who doesn't have a jab, Like they're just big. I watched Green Bay and I like sort of the direction they're going. But today to get gashed by Tampa, am I over my skis on Green Bay. Are they just actually a pretty average football team today?
I had the Bears on one screen in Green Bay and another. I thought, if you could combine the two, take the green Bay offense and the Bears defense, No one want to play him in the playoffs, right, I mean they got I think the average age of the receivers are twenty three. Obviously, the running backs are good. Lafleur's a good coordinator. Love is dramatically improved over the course of the year. I mean, Joe Barry has been a guy they've talked about in Green Bay. Let's face it,
this goes back to the McCarthy era. Their defenses have just not been good on all their playoff teams, and this team's not going to go to the playoffs more than likely. But their defense to day with Swiss cheese, and they've invested a ton of picks. They spend a bunch of money. They are not physical, They don't make open field tackles. Their dbs don't make any plays. I mean, Baker Mayfield. They have skill guys, right, Mike Evans good player,
god Win good player there. Running back White I don't know that much about him, but he's a talented player annihilated Green Bay. So it's this. You go to an offseason, you invest in a new defensive coordinator, maybe you get eber Flus, Maybe you get you know, if Todd Bowles is available, if they fire him intent you know, you get Dennis Allen if he gets fired in New Orleans. Whoever doesn't make and get the top guy because Joe Barry was Lafour's buddy from the Rams, and I think
sometimes the Shanahan guys. This happens a lot in college. You kind of hire the guys you know and listen. People like the guy, but he's a position coach. You put him at defensive coordinator. It's been an embarrassment. Now you could argue maybe it's the players. Maybe their players are a little overrated, but today was really bad because their offense has played, for the most part, really really well in winning football. I mean last week the Veto ran for seventy yards on them in big spots on
Monday Night football. It was the defense. This is this isn't Kyler Murray or Lamar Jack. You can't let Tommy DeVito have seven carries for seventy yards in big spots, picking up big first downs. So yeah, at the end of the day, their special teams let him down. A couple of years, their defense let him down. I think Lafleur has to find a way to button up his operation because clearly he can handle the offense and they've
always been able. Going back to Ted Thompson, find guys in the draft, the Jordy Nelson's, the Drivers, the DeVante. That's never going to be their problem. Quarterbacks. Hell, they can find those guys. They might be the Steelers of the quarterbacks, right, the Steelers with wide receivers, then with quarterbacks. But defensively, this is the best. The Niners defense is good.
That's the Eagles problem right now. How do you take them seriously as a Super Bowl contender if their defense is going to be a problem, right, and it's the big offseason question mark, will they fire his friend, which sometimes can be hard in football, and then will you go out and pay a top defense? I mean, Vick Fangil costs five million dollars, Yeah, that's what it costs. These guys in the SEC make a couple million dollars.
The defensive coordinator. Yeah, this is not You're not hiring a six hundred and fifty thousand dollars defensive coordinator here.
Yeah that's UCLA.
Yeah, exactly exactly.
So it is interesting though, because the best quarterback is winning all these divisions almost down the line. Baker Mayfield's the best quarterback in this division. He was a number one pick. Nothing against Derek Carr. I defended him for years, but my ship has sailed When a coach takes him out in the red zone for Taysom Hill. You know, it's like, all right, you're telling me something. So Baker's the best quarterback, probably most talented quarterback in the division.
Tampa has a chance to win this division. And now they're going to draft near you know, at the bottom third of the first round. You're not getting your quarterback. You'd have to wholesale sell it. And my takeaway with performances like this from Baker, if it's a reasonable contract, is it the craziest thing to say he's the best quarterback in the division. We can get him for twenty eight million or whatever it would be. Wouldn't have to pay thirty eight forty eight We're not going to pay that.
Baker probably you're you know, Baker's now no state tax. Tampa. Good receivers. Not dysfunctional Cleveland. Tampa is actually a highly functional team. I mean they've drafted very well for years. When I covered him with McKay, they drafted well. They've always had they've had good goach good players. They really have not done the quarterback position particularly well. But you go from Tommy and now you go to Baker a
number one pick. Does Baker have a chance this year they draft a quarterback fourth round, you just get another year.
Yeah. To me, Baker's like a one year, fifteen million dollars a year guy. I think this year is like one four, one five. Now to me, I can't give him twenty five to thirty million dollars because he's had a lot of games, and ultimately me, he's like a fringe backup, probably somewhere in the twenties. But he has the talent. When he looks good, he looks like a legitimate starter. But then next week he'll go struggle to
throw for one hundred and fifty you know yards. So yeah, probably roll it back, especially if you're drafted twenty help. You could bring him back on a one year fifteen million, one year twelve million dollars and still draft a guy at twenty. If you like him, he kind of becomes your version of Gino Smith because the one thing you gotta givehim a lot of credit. Colin is unlike Cleveland, where everyone was like kind of over him. They like
him there. Jason Leisman outspoken. The players like him, so listen. Men mature a little later sometimes, and he leads him to the playoffs be big for him. It'd be big for Todd Bowles. I mean, it'd be a pretty big moment. Back to back playoffs, even if it's a shitty division. That's that's back to back home playoff games for the ownership.
Okay, so Atlanta doesn't have a quarterback even if they went and got Justin Field. Ridder's awful bake. Yeah, Ridder's awful. But Justin Fields has not proven to be a winning quarterback yet. Derek Carr Saints are tied to that for two more years. So Baker's more talented. Throw over the.
Football Caroline is a disaster disaster.
So my takeaway is I'd roll the dice with Baker one more year. He's still be the best quarterback of Monivation.
I think he'll be. I think he'll be back. Jason light likes him a lot.
Yeah, and there you know there is something. There is something about Baker is that if you have Baker, there is a certain edge like he does bring. People think I hate Baker. I really don't. I've had experiences with people that know him. I like Baker. I think Baker. I've always said he's one of the thirty two best quarterbacks in the planet. There's no question in my mind. He's a very emotional player. So he gets down on himself. I mean he can do the roller coaster. I mean
he can be brilliant and awful in two drives. So he's very led by emotion. And you know, certain guys are certain guys are not. But I think Baker. I think I would I draft another quarterback third fourth round. I would absolutely have no problem rolling the dice. And to your point, Bowls does a pretty good job, Todd Bows does a pretty good job on the defensive end. Wouldn't shock anybody if they went to Detroit and won, No,
it wouldn't shock me. Like I don't think it shocked me if the Rams went to Dallas in one I mean this year in the NFC, outside of the Niners, who do I.
Love well to me today's news on the Eagles and listen, I've been in that building. It can be tight. You know. It's just an intense coming into this season beside the Chiefs. To me, the Eagles and the Niners, it was kind of super Bowl or bust. You have a couple of weeks like that. All of a sudden, they're making a defensive coordinator change in December seventeenth. What's their record? Ten and two? It's pretty crazy, So they're not feeling great. The Lions at any moment can look like they did
on Saturday night or look awful. Beside the forty nine ers, everyone in the NFC is a complete coin flip. You wouldn't be shocked if anyone beats another team. We don't even know. I mean, the amount of different playoff teams that could get in, it wouldn't shock you. If the Saints and Tampa get in, it wouldn't shock you. Neither gets you know, it's like, who knows how this whole thing's gonna play out. You can't trust any of these teams.
So now let's move to a Saturday special. Denver getting buried by Detroit. So I was thinking about this watching Detroit so they're a very good Dome team. Goff's a very good dome quarterback. He's had at least two touchdown passes in five straight indoor games. So they could potentially play Tampa warm Weather at home, Dallas warm Weather rams so far. So there's a lot of matchups. Obviously, Philadelphia, a team struggling, is not where they'd be at their
best on the road cold Weather. But I'll tell you, in most organizations, John the quarterback and the coach, it's the star. I think the front office for the Lions is their star, Laporta, Gibbs. Everybody knocks some of their draft picks. These guys are unbelievable. I look at that roster and it's very rare, John, that a team wins the division and scores a lot of points and we don't look at their coach or their quarterback as driving it.
I think this is one of the better front offices in the NFL drafting the last three years.
Totally agree. I mean Brad Holmes that draft day trade he made to get Gibbs and then ultimately Laporta has a chance to go down. It's like a franchise altering move. The other thing is because he was a Rams guy and knew Jared Goff. The forty nine ers offered the same deal to the Detroit Lions for Matt Stafford, but it was Jimmy Garoppolo. He said, no, I'd rather have the same deal with the Rams and Jared Goff and
a lot of people at the time. I mean, the way we're all talking about Jared Goff now is a lot different than people were talking about couple of years ago when he was about to get traded, and that honestly has changed their franchise because we talked about Baker and a lot of these guys being these bridge quarterbacks. Jared Goff is more than that now. Is he a top five guy? Of course not. This is he a top ten guy depending on the week. Most times he's
somewhere between like twelve and fifteen. But for them in that dome, they also play Minnesota, which is also a Dome team, pretty good spot. So yeah, that trade. A lot of people on the internet crushed. You can't take a running back. It's like the draft was awful and that running back and this is what Dan Campbell said at the time, who was with Sean Payton, was like his mentor in New Orleans. It reminded us of Alvin Kamara, and you're watching him last night. He's like a Christian
mccafee Avin Kamar. He can catch the ball and Laporta looks like Kelsey meets Kittle, So he is abs.
You know, tight end. I was told this years ago by an executive. He said, tight End's tough for rookies. Even ken Caid and Buffalo can disappear because for the first time in your life, you're gonna be asked to block seventeen weeks. Now, certain programs like Utah asked from Kincaid. Utah ask your tight ends to block. Not all of them do. Hell, some of these programs in college don't ask their offensive lineman to block much. R it's just pushing guys around. So tight ends come to the NFL
and it's John You know this. It's a two three year process to get these guys ramped up. They go up against and coaches like McVeigh Higbee has to block. You're not on a field if you don't block.
So why these Iowa tight ends have so much success.
That's right. They're physical and that's a great point. So in the NFL, tight ends are asked to block. It usually is one of those positions. To think, that guy was so good in college, what's happened? He's getting locked
up sixty snaps. So when I watch a tight end come into the NFL and he's a top three to four tight end in the league, you're looking this is like an Antonio Gates moment or a Winslow moment or a Kittle moment, where it's like, this is not a fluke to be that good as a rookie tight end, you are completely different than the rest of the league at that space. I mean, that's what I see.
Well, he's not only a star. That position doesn't cost much money. So once you extend them, they don't cost what wide receivers costs. They cost half as much. Right, the top wide receivers make thirty million dollars. Kittle Kelsey they make fourteen to fifteen million dollars. So the other thing, it's an incredible value on your salary cap. So when you hit a home run. If you draft Brock Bauers in this upcoming draft in the top ten and then he becomes a top five player, he actually becomes a
top five player in the league. Who's cheap, so it enables you to even buy and spend more money on other players. So from an economical standpoint on the salary cap, you could argue it's the best value that if you get a star middle linebacker because they don't cost what defensive ends or left tackles or quarterbacks cost. But Fred Warner, what's his impact? I don't know. It's like a ten out of ten, right, what's Dronk or Kittle or Kelsey when they're on no one can stop them, but they don't.
You don't have to pay him this much. To me, what I also think Dan Campbell, if they win eleven or twelve and win the division, I think he has to be the coach of the year. When you just look at the Detroit Lions in ninety years, they've won double digit games nine times. For example, Andy Reid when he wins double digits this year, has eighteen double digit
win seasons in his career. So the Lions, like, if you go, if Josh Levy, the dude that just from Oklahoma and went to Mississippi State, if they become a perennial playoff team, we go, that's incredible, right, But you don't get as much credit when you do it at Georgia, Ohio State what you're doing in Detroit. And you can say, well equality in the NFL, that's not true with the Lions. They never win, and that he won nine games last year. He's gonna win eleven or twelve and win the division
pretty easily. And they're just good. Like you said, they're gonna be hard to beat at home, and they're gonna get a home playoff game because in a dome, they're very comfortable and they're very fast. Like how do you cover all these guys? They actually have a lot in common with like the forty nine ers all their position, they all speed guys. They all can break tackles. How good Saint Brown? Their defense is pretty questionable. But if you can score thirty five points, like try to beat me well.
And also Dan's created a culture. They're a kind of relentless attacking team. Is he a great schematic coach? I doubt it, but he has created a culture and for years that's what Detroit lacked. They had players Hell Stafford, Barry Sanders, Calvin Joons.
Dominican Sue. I mean, they've had good guys.
They've always they're like Tampa. You know, they've always had good players. I do want to segue to Sean Payton and blowing up with Russell Wilson. So I think I told you this that I think the frustration for Sean Payton with Russell Wilson. He's not as athletic as Taysom Hill and he's not as good a pocket passer as Drew Brees. So he feels like, you know what I mean, Remember when he signed that extension for Taysom Hill, we
all went, Sean, you're crazy. Sean wants hyper athleticism or hyper accuracy, and with Russell it's a lot of dink and dunk underneath stuff. And he's not as twitchy as he was a couple years ago. He's clearly a franchise quarterback. But he went off on him earlier in the year on the thing around his risk right, like he wasn't learning to place. He went off on him again. And I always say this when you're going If you go to a party and a couple's arguing, like how bad
is it in the car ride home? How bad is it at home? If you can't hide the anguish, Sean is blown up with Russell at the podium on the sidelines, and maybe Sean's more emotional than much coaches most coaches, but when I look at Russell and Sean, I don't think it works. I just don't think it works. I don't think Shawn's ever going to buy in. I think he's done the best job he feels he can do.
But I think he's a difficult player based on the fact that Sean feels he's getting a bee guy at both passing and athletically.
Well, to me, the one thing with Sean Payton is he has obviously Bill Parcell's guy. He's got some Belichick Walsh inm He's pretty cutthroat. So to me, if he's over him, he will not be on this team next year. And it's all It's been well reported on the money how they can eat some of it and just kind of be rid of the contract and have it directly impact their salary cap for one year and then just to be somewhat rid of themselves from it. But I'm
with you. I mean, he even said I was yelling at him just because I was frustrated everything he really wants to yell at him all the time, I would imagine, right, and he's let's face it, when you go into a new relationship and your previous relationship is the best relationship you're probably ever gonna have. He compares everything to Drew Brees and Russell just strictly is not that from And listen,
Russell's not a bad guy, not getting any trouble. He works hard, but ultimately this is like it's a result oriented business. So all that stuff's great, but then we play the games, so do you get the job done? And last night they weren't even close. Now, the Detroit Lions are just a better football team. They have much more talent on offense than that team has on offense. But there's been countless times where they have won in
almost in spite of him. I mean, their defense is played beside last night or two nights ago, a lot better over the course of their run. But if I was a betting man right now, Russell Wilson will not be on the team now. And know how they facilitate that. They eat money, they trade them, they cut them. How it goes down. But we've seen enough. Sean Payton earned a lot of credit because at one point early on in the season, like is this gonna work? And then
he got the thing clearly knows what he's doing. If he wants them gone, he will be gone. Because that's how the NFL works, right. This is what we talk about with Rogers the quarterback, that the players don't get to dictate any of this stuff. It's a management leak, right, the gms, the coaches because the owners kind of let
them do. The owners don't know anything, right, And that's one theory I had with the Chargers, and you see this with the Giants is when you get the ownership who has family members in the front office, in the scouting department, Like I like my owners to be like wheeling and dealing with business stuff. Even Jerry he's the GM, he's not watching any film. He's doing deals right, and Steven that they're making money. But you know, the Spanos family has their kid who's involved that he's a good,
smart guy. But you get involved in football and there's too much crossover. The best owner Clark Hunt, Andy Veach, you cook right the craft for twenty five years, Bill do do, Glorie Howie, Sirianni, Doug Andy, make me money, win games and all just that it's a unique business, right because you have this multi billion dollar asset. Yet the most important guy in your organization, the coach or the GM or the mix of the two of them, you don't really know anything about besides like being a fan.
So you can't really even if your expertise, like David Teppery's this great all time market guy, can't footwork. When I see him telling coaches about footwork or the quarterback, I'm like, they're in trouble, right, you just And that's that's why this business is so Once the owner gets involved, it always cracks because most owners, like are not Al Davis in the eighties. They know football, right, They just don't.
And I think you're gonna see with Walmart, these guys are very successful and they're just gonna let Sean Payton do whatever he wants to do. They're paying him ninety million dollars to do that. So Sean Payton wouldn't shock me if he basically gets a new GM this offseason and the Russell Wilson, I would imagine it's gonna be one of the biggest stories heading in a free agency what he's gonna do with him?
Right, Let's talk Patriots, Kansas City, Kansas City struggled in the first half, pulled away. So like one of the overreaching stories here is we'll get to the Belichick stuff in a second, his future, but a Kadarius Tony had another ball, totally catchable. Office hands intercepted Mahomes reacts viscerally on the sidelines and I said it this week on FS one. It doesn't really matter because Rashi Rice is
their number one at receiver. Kelsey's their number one. They need Tony Sky, Moore and Watson are not game breakers. Tony's twitchy. Can you trust him? No, And as we talked earlier on this podcast, it does feel like it's becoming Buffalo's year. You know, Joe Burrow's gone. Maybe it's Baltimore. We'll see tomorrow night when they play. But we don't trust the Jags. Chargers we thought would be good. They're
not Denver, probably a year away. So you have this Kansas City team that's still absolutely viable in the AFC right now. They don't have to go through the Niners. They don't, you know, going on the road and playing Dallas would be no fun for this team, or Detroit for that matter. They already lost to them at home this year. At the Lions, But I look at Kansas City and I think it's one of these things. I think they're transitioning stage one of the dynasty of stage two,
and you generally don't win in a transition year. But as I watched them today, I thought to myself, they got about four games to figure this stuff out. I think Rashi Rice and Kelsey Patrick completely trusts. I don't think they have anything else there. They got a little bit of a pop from the running back, their former first round.
Clyde made some plays today.
Yeah, I still buy Kansas City. I still think they can get to the AFC Championship, although after Buffalo's performance, I'm not sure where are you on the Chiefs.
Definitely, I mean I think they are as every bit as viable as any team in the AFC because their defense on any given game can hold you in the teams. And to me, if you can do that, they've been winning like that this year, right, I mean, they're going to get to leven wins, winning a bunch of games scoring between twenty and twenty five points. They not beholden like the Lions, for example, of we got to score
thirty four points to win the game. Like they've been used to winning some nineteen seventeen games, right, some twenty three twenty one games. Even today, How are you even in this game? With the peat? They just do not run away from me anymore. Though those days are over. I think they gotta regret, you know, passing on Laporta last year, because you put a guy like him. If they would have drafted, you know, an offensive playmaker on this team, just one more guy, they'd be right there.
Travis kelce I saw mentioned it to Jason on his podcast that like, we like Tony, we seeing what he does in practice. Like you said, they are beholden to his skills because they don't have anyone else that can do that. There's a reason they traded for him in the middle of the season. But they're much better on defense. You know that their talent on defense is better than those early era on the Dynasty teams. So it's just can the head coach, who's an all time great quarterback,
all time great, can they make enough plays? Can they draw up enough stuff to just get over the hump in some of these A lot of the Patriot teams that won it, we're never the teams that look like the ninety four nine ers or the ninety two Cowboys on the roster. Wise, they just outrat they out coach you, they out tough you, they outsmarted you. They didn't fuck up. They didn't have a big penalty, Like that's a cowboy problem. Like at any moment, you're like, oh, they could get
a fifteen yard penalty, they could do something stupid. They did it today when they the guy ran into the plunter. You know, you just never know the andy. They're gonna have to be very buttoned up and they're just gonna have to win. It's not gonna be pretty. They they are not if they play Baltimore or the Bills or
any of these teams in the second or third round. Like, I don't expect them to win like thirty to ten, right right, You'll be on the edge of your seat and it'll pull it out and it'll be like one of the great victories of the era. And that's what the Patriots had a lot of because they were not running away once they played the better teams. And that's
this version this year. And I think I'm pretty confident this offseason they can kind of have a Patriot type Hey, Mike, Evans, you want to come here a little less money, We'll get you a championship and then draft heavy and some offensive skill guys like they always do. But I think they're gonna be in the business the next couple of years of doing what the Patriots did for a long time, getting kind of the older veteran maybe take a little less and have a chance to kind of just play
for a twelve thirteen win team. But they don't have that guy right now.
Yeah. And also the Patriots, their margins were always tight except for the Randy Moss years, and they never won Super Bowl st So the only time Newing the Blue people's doors off was about a three year Randy period. So if you go to the early and late stages, Patriots won a lot of twenty seven twenty threes a lot, and it was coaching and quarterback play and generally a big defensive play late. So I think Kansas City's built for an AFC championship and beyond. So let's wrap it
up with New England. So Tom Kern is a reporter I've used for years. I trust him. He said, the organization's made their mind up. I think it's time. I think their tone deaf. It just doesn't work building a statue. I don't you know. I was talking to somebody in the league who I trust about the Chargers and they said, you know, I'm not sure Bill would tolerate kids in the front office. Like it just wouldn't work. And that's
the way the span else's work. Washington's got a lot of money and they do have they do have weapons, which he's not good at drafting, but they don't have the quarterback. He's got a lot of property in Nantucket. He's not good in the front office. He can't do a parcels and go down to Miami, hire his coach and do the drafting. That's not what Bill does. Like that's that was parcels or Jimmy. I thought Jimmy Johns would always come back and like do a front office
because Jimmy was such a great personnel guy. I always feel I always felt Jimmy would say, I want to coach, I want a life, Give me four or five million bucks and I'll run the front office six million bucks. He didn't. You want to fish And I get it. But I can see Belichick just not coaching, can you no?
Because I've envisioned him as like an eighty three year old coaching high school team, you know, coaching the kickers and the punters. I think I remember being told a long time ago by a guy in college football who's close with Saban, and this was when USC was going through the clay Heltons. It's like, could USC just offer him amount of money he could never refuse? Kind of like Texas tried, but even more. And he's like he
would never come to the West Coast. He's told people like he's not honestly, the Austin, Texas was a little too West coast he vibe for him. And when I think Bill Belichick, I just think the Eastern Seaboard. You know, his entire career has been spent there. It kind of fits his personality. The type guys it's a little more gruff. You can be an asshole, even separate from the organizational set up with the Chargers. So I expect him, and
to me, I think he's earned the right. They should fire him, like, not try to trade him, just have a clean fire him. Let him choose his destination. You shouldn't be worried about him going somewhere. Now I could understand, like if the Bills fired McDermott. Would you want him go into Division or the Jets, even though he hates the Jets, But you never know, maybe out of spite. He's kind of a spiteful guy. I think it's tricky
because he's earned them, him and Tom them so much money. Right, he has been one of the great employees in the history of America, and now he hasn't been the easiest got to deal with. But he's put from the pocketbook. So I expect him to go to Washington. That would be my best guess would be the Washington Commanders. He's their head coach and it probably you know, I don't expect them to be some powerhouse and I don't think
he clearly is still a pretty good defensive coordinator. He can bring Josh McDaniels with him, which I think makes him a lot more desirable because it's pretty clear like without Josh McDaniels, he's not exactly the same guy. Billy O'Brien is not as good as an offensive coordinator as Josh is. For Bill. But to me, the Washington Commanders, doesn't it just make a lot of sense kind of that region the area.
They and they would pay him. They'd make him the highest paid guy. They'd give him a five year, one hundred million dollar deal and be public twenty million bucks a year. By the way, DC, he would be able to get on his private jet and go to Nantucket. It's close. It would just for his lifestyle. By the way, He's got places in Jupiter, Florida, Nantuckett, it's easy. It's East Coast.
I think Tomlin and listen, whether they fire him or not, I think it's over a lot. Like Bill, their record isn't as bad, but what are we watching? This team is worse than they've been. Even if they end up going nine and eight, that they stink. I mean, they got work To me like Bill, To me, Tomlin has a lot of similarities with Andy and McCarthy when they both got fired in Philadelphia and Green Bay, and they both resurrected their career other places. To me, he's a
huge personality, he's a big name. I actually think he would make a lot of sense with the Chargers. He just knows what he's doing. I heard you talking about it on Friday.
So let's do that. He needs right now, Chargers talk. So this has been discussed, so I know two network executives that would absolutely hire Tomlin tomorrow. For sure. He'd be great on TV. But I do think the Chargers make sense. He doesn't necessarily give a rip about personnel. He would look up and go, here's here's what I don't want. I won with a star quarterback. I don't want to back up. You could get out of the Kenny Pickett situation, which is weird. It's dicey because he's
a local kid. The Steelers don't want to send him shipping. They're going to be totally sensitive with Kenny Pickett, and he's just not He's just not good enough period. He's like the twelfth best quarterback at thirteenth best quarterback in the APC. Like, it doesn't work. I think it's a time to exit. You leave, you got super Bowls, you have the stories for a month, Networks vying him, vying form. I don't think he wants control in the front office.
He won't get it. So I actually think Tomlin of the Chargers makes a ton of sense.
Yeah, to me, we talk about the Charges a lot like the Clippers. Well, what did Balmer do? He went out and got Tylu a real coach. Now basketball's a little different, But to me, there's a name recognition that gives them some just headline power in Los Angeles, and he's proven to be very serviceable. And to me, they can't afford like Ben Johnson might go on to be the next Shanahannah McVeigh, or he might just be like the next Joe Judge or some other coordinator who flops.
They need to get a guy. That's why Belichick, Harbaugh Tomlin to me, dan Quinn is a name, but he was not that successful when Kyle Shanahan left him. Say what you want about Tomlin. He's had a lot of different coordinators and he's consistently won. I mean dan Quinn
bottomed out, you know. Tomlin never bottoms out, and he just if you ask Andy Reid and Sean Payton, to me the number one coach, they would not want to go to the charge, would Belichick right, They probably don't have to worry, and then it would be like Jim Harbaum, like people that know what they're they would much rather sign up for some coordinator who's just going to be
learning on the job, and that's what the Chargers. I'm not confident that they're going to do any of this because they have consistently shown two higher coordinators who are just cheaper. I don't know how Dean Spanos, who has gone through what he's gone through over the last decade with the three different coaches, and what just happened on Thursday night against Mark Davis. Say what you want about Mark Davis, he at least tries to buy people. Josh McDaniels,
John Gruden. It hasn't worked, is blown up in his face. But I give him effort credit, like he's willing to spend I don't know the monopoly money that the league gives him that the Niners and the Cowboys, you know, and the Chiefs are generating on television right now. And to me, that's what Dean Spander's like. This is not money that he just has to earn on his own.
He gets handed to it from the league. So just give out, you know, some twenty million dollar contract or whatever Mike Comlin would cost if he's available, which I kind of expect him to get fired and get a real coach for the first time since the Marty Schottenheimer era. Think about that. That's a long time.
Yeah, no, they they and I said this the other day the Chargers need a culture creator. Mike McCoy, Anthony Lynn, Brandon Staley, whether it's their persona, they're DNA. They're not culture creator.
They're position coaches. Colin, they're position coaches.
And so to me, Harball's a culture creator. Belichick is Tomlin is spend money. I mean, did you see what the NFL handed each team this year revenue? Like when it's all said, four hundred million, four hundred million dollars, You're not going to pay a coach twelve and a half. You've got to be kidding me. Look at what Peyton has done to that shipwreck in Denver just twelve and a half million bucks. You pay your quarterback thirty What
are we doing here? Like it just that this money is the greatest thing to own in America outside of maybe Google or Apple. Is an NFL team, just buy a coach?
Well, think about it. Your expense is what's the salary cap? Two hundred and ten million dollars, So you have one hundred and ninety million dollars. Your sales guys don't cost that much money. Your your West Coast scout, I mean, you have one hundred ninety million dollars, but that's year after year, right, you know, one hundred and twenty five, one hundred and fifty that's a lot. What's Dean Spanel's
doing with all this money? That's not even counting any other money that they generate, but they are just unwilling to spend it. And you just look at the NFL, who are all the best coaches. They're all the guys winning. John Harball makes a ton, Adie Reid makes a ton, Kyle Shanan makes a ton. Right. I mean it's you get what you in college. All the top guys make a ton of money. Like that's just the going rate
for a coach. You cannot be at the bottom of the wrong and expect to win and then complain about it because they've been doing They've been spinning their wheels in the same situation. From a coaching standpoint, I do think it gets back to kind of their organizational philosophy. A lot of cooks in the kitchen, so they they got a lot. This month is a big time for them just to do a little looking in the mirror and like, do we really want to win or we kind of want to do it our way.
John Middlecoff, the Voice of John Middlecoff three and out. You see the hat, that's his podcast. It's he is as good a voice on the NFL as there is this industry. Every Sunday night we chop it up. It's live on YouTube, becomes a podcast. John as always. We're gonna be breaking down some college football games, probably next week. It's great seeing you.
Good seeing you too, Colin
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