It's the Downbeat. I'm ninety seven to one, the freak thirty minutes away. The guttle Butt's got you covered. My traveling may not be a good idea. At least you need to do a little research. What's going on with your plane after a gaping whole situation in mid air? Plus the story that stole the internet this weekend Best Pro Shop cannonball Man hero he is a hero, is a little fella. How did you make to get him on
this week much? Yeah, I also have dangling I guess the interview request with people who were on the on the plane on the Alaska Airlines plants and we'll tell you more about that in thirty minutes, Budge. Right now, let's get right to it. The Cowboys are topic a this morning in the Metroplex, and we get you covered here on the Downbeat. Just god, and now the sports at seven. All right, so we knew yesterday Cowboys are in. But you could fudge it up and be the three seed,
lose the division. You know, there's a lot of things could have fell out to the five seed if the Eagles would have won, well, Eagles end up losing. The Eagles were losing twenty four to nothing at halftime, so you kind of knew were Cruise Control were in good shape, but doesn't mean that they're with some weird things. Yesterday's game I did not love forty
five minutes before the game learning that Zach Martin's out like Tyler Smith. We knew, yeah, but Zach being out with illness, right illness, And I'm like, okay, that reeks of danger. Anytime a Cowboy the Cowboys are missing a key offensive lineman like Tyrone or Zach Martin, it always feels like chaos would ensue and the quarterback would immediately be in danger. And man, I'll tell you what, yesterday is the best run games looked in a
long time. Tony Pollard looked like old Tony Pollard. Yeah, sure do. And that first drive was a lot of fun. I mean, the Cowboys looked like an unstoppable force. They Washington gets the ball first. They go for it on fourth and one twice because you know it was a tricks game for them, didn't care. They're probably trying to lose that game, honestly. But the Cowboys get the ball and then it is Brandon Cooks, Let's get you the ball let's get seedee lamb the ball, of course,
and Tony Pollards the ball. My favorite play was the wheel route to Tony Pollard, which you went up and on a fifty to fifty ball and you yanked it out of the hands of the dB. Yeah, that was hot inside the five. That was a fun play. Mid air, Tony Pollard Pollard hit a thou it becomes the sixth running back in team history app consecutive thousand yard seasons. The other five. Okay, I did not know that. Let's hear it? Am it? Yeah? Yes, Tony, yes, Marco Murray, yes, okay, Dad, this is oh Zeke of
course. The other one is the other one. McFadden, No, is it? Are we going to old school? Yes? Walt? No, how old school? Nineties? Uh? No, eighties, keep going way back. Seventies. Yes, boy, I'm gonna have trouble. No Walter, wait, wait wait, Walt Garrison, No, no, no, no, good lord, come on, come on. Seventy seven years old? Billy, Oh never mind? No, what's his name? Start with his name? Starts with Calvin cal Calvin Hill. You got it? Eh, that's a well polar joins. Uh you know, could come there?
No, absolutely, and it's a year where even he last week was doing interviews with the media. So it hasn't been a great year for me. But Mankel's feels fine, and I think we're gonna start seeing some explosive plays and we finally got some Heald good and it is strange. Rico Daudell looks good, dude. I love Rico daddle will always have, but he's always
hurt. But he is a little He's a good little toy. And they gave the ball and a hand off to Turpin yesterday too, which is kind of cool, just to mix up the burst and just speed of the game changes just a little bit. So Rico'd Daddell picking up that blitz was probably his play of the game. Yes, well, that game, well, there's a lot of unsung plays that we like, almost forget about, dude.
Jordan Lewis makes a big play every week and we don't ever talk about it really unless it's a turnover, because he has a bit of a turnover head on that was incredible. The strip and like in the middle of a run to take it out of the hands of Brian Robinson and then come away with it. You get the ball back and the right thing. You're going, game's over, and it's not what happened, but you were thinking it
because of how good they looked on that first drive. That was Cowboys, I thought, because we talked about last week, how you know, weird things happened up there in DC, especially in week eighteen, and that thing could have gone the other way. But that was definitely a team that probably, like you said, probably wanted to lose, but it was also a very let's just steady hand this. You know, we've got the weird deck
interception, the blocked field goal. I mean, those things were kind of falling in line with the I don't know, the haunted, that haunted city or that haunted team. It just things are weird when you play up in Washington, and they could have gone the other way, but the Cowboys, like, you know what, steady hand, steady hand, steady hand usually works. Now, the Aubrey field goal, it's seven to nothing. The
Aubrey field goal gets blocked. There's something off the left side there. I don't know what happened, but Washington returns it and they end up scoring in another fourth and goal with the one after they ran the worst trick play. They ran a trick play that got in about three yards, the reverse pass and we're gonna throw it to Sam Howe and tiptoes out of bounds for three yards, and you go, man, was that all worth it? But they end up scoring there, I mean seven to seven going to the to
the second quarter. Then they let them get the leads. It's ten to seven. Throw about twenty minutes of this game, and you're going, well, you're only gonna have to slug it out with them today. I don't know if that was what you wanted. And then once the Cowboys got the ball the next time, it was over. It's kind of telling, though, when Washington came out that first drive, they're running all these gadget plays. It just it should have been reassuring. If you have a steady hand
mindset that this is clearly all they have, that's what. Just wait this out. It's gonna be all right. Aaron Andrews said the Mike McCarthy halftime chat that she had with him. He basically said, it's getting chippy out there. I want our players to stay focused because they're gonna run every play
in the playbook. And that's when with the Cowys got fourteen to ten, and that was the drive where they ran into a lot of Tony Pollard on that drive fourteen ten and then to me, ultimately it's the play of the game in terms of just swinging the game. DeMarcus Lawrence, who still out of just don't think gets enough credit in this town, criminal that he's not
in the Pro Bowl. Hit Sam Howe and Howel's passes, you know, altered and picked off by Donovan Wilson for another interception for Donovan Wilson, and then Cowways get it score twenty one to ten, get the ball coming out of the half, score again twenty eight ten. Game over, Cowboys went thirty eight ten. It's pretty easy. Ceede Lamb had two touchdowns. Dak looked and crowd. Dak might have been putting a hey, don't forget about me for MVP, you know, like definitely in that conversation, should be
at least he was magnificent yesterday. He was absolutely magnificent. That game gave you for a Cowboy team that has kind of flopped around a little bit like a fish on the deck of a boat after that Bills game boy, that was what you wanted. I know, the Commanders are terrible, but look to be able to put all those pieces together, run the ball better, get turnovers. They didn't have their first penalty until what was it, like
five minutes left in the third. That's a huge, huge deal for them, Yeah, being the most penalized team in the league, So I think they. I don't know. I'd rather see a performance like that from a team that's going into the playoffs than what you got from Philly. Oh yeah, more than what we seem to see like every year here where it's like resting people in Week eighteen, just kind of backpedaling in there. This whole thing. We kind of needed to play, and you did and you get
the win. And the only thing that could backfire here through all this is if steff On Gilmore is hurt. Now after the game he said he's good to go. Dislocated shoulder. Basically they are waiting on for all of that. Yeah, but now that changes a lot with your defense because then you have to have guys like Nashon Wright go in there and play and they immediately become the mark. Look the boy, we all know how much you hate him, right Kevin, Uh, Yeah, I don't love him. Probably
a nice guy. And look, I know I promised I would cut down on my nation right rants, But but you guys get mad at me when I talk about McCarthy. So it's like, whatever, Gilmore you he told Macarthy, I'm fine, I'll be ready to go. But also what if the doctor's like, no, he's not. You know, That's where I'm like, Okay, the player can say that you were in a sling. He's a wily old bet he knows what he's dealing with. Yeah, he wouldn't have said that if he didn't mean it. You know, he had
a cool interception on that first drive. And it was kind of cool though, because when he missed it, you could see the wind, how visible the wind is blowing his long sleeves and you could just see how windy it was down there his sweat suit that he wears when he's playing football. That would have been a sweet interception. The the Gilmore thing. If he's fine,
then good. So a quick look ahead. Doctor Gold said he's cleared to play, okay, And what about doctor TiO Sorrel agreed, once we get into my MRI, or reach out to doctor TiO Sorrel and see what the status is. But also asked him about plant or festi itis just for us our audience out there who might be going through it, and Tyler Smith just hey, Metroplex. First of all, wake up two. You got a Packers expert on the downbeat this week for Packers Cowboys week. That's you.
And here's how you lose the game to the Packers right now. I'm gon give you the early and it's just by not doing what you need to do on offense. This will be the worst defense that you've maybe ever played in the playoffs. Listen to the host of Where's My Cheese? Yeah, who moved my cheese? Yes, thirty points If you don't get thirty points and maybe you neat thirty five. If you don't get thirty points against the Packers, that's embarrassing. This will be one of the worst secondaries Dak Prescott
has ever played in the playoffs. Now. Offensively, though, the Packers are playing pretty good on offense right now, and you'd like to have both corners, you know, to kind of come through and be there for you to help stop them, because they have four wide receivers who are decent and a pretty good offensive scheme and the quarterbacks playing well they're playing like they're peaking, So there is a chance your defense does give up twenty five, twenty
six, twenty seven, twenty eight points against the Packers. You lose this gate. The offense has to destroy them, and they they will so it won't be a problem. But let's rest it there and go. They ain't gonna help because the Packers, I do think, are going to score points against the Cowboys defense. I do think that Jordan Law has been kind of lighting it up for two months. Huh yeah, after two months of kind of being mad, yep, and they finally took off the They basically just
said, here, we're gonna let you have the whole offense now. They took off the restraining bolt. Took off the restraining bolt which Darren Sharper needs on his Wiener. Did you see the jail opening line? You guys see it? Yeah? Seven and a half? That's right? Is that right? I think it technically opened at seven, but it's already at seven and a half. It's probably Cowboys by seven and a half. That is the second largest spread of Super Wildcard weekend, after the Bills at minus nine and
a half hosting the Steelers. I'm not gonna blow through my Packers chamber all today. Yeah, it's a long week. Definitely a better, I think, a better matchup than the Rams. I think just because Cooper Cup and Pooka and Akoua and Kirra and Williams and the way the Rams has just been playing too makes you not. But the Rams took the day off Fisher Day kind of you know. It was a Carson Wentz versus Sam Darnold game, which was really weird, and that game could have gone different ways. I
mean, the forty nine Ers were two or three plays. It was kind of fun to watch after the games that had happened and the Cowboys are kind of closing up shop. It was kind of fun to watch the forty nine Ers and Rams in that game because the forty nine Ers are two catches away from being in field goal range kicking a field goal, and it's Cowboys and it's Packers Lions, which me a lifelong Packers fan who wants the Cowboys to do well. I wanted Detroit. Detroit tight end Samuel Porta is probably gonna
be out now. He got hurt. Yeah, they were playing. He's really good. Yeah, he's kind of an ugly knee mcl hyper extension, John bruised type thing. He's gonna miss time. They think it's Dan Campbell. God, I mean he was like, screw it, we're playing no matter what. We're not resting. We're playing our guys. They gotta learn battle tested to all that stuff. It's like, God, why are these
guys killing their players though they didn't have to do that. You know, this is better for the Cowboys though, because if it was the Rams coming here, it probably would have been what five and a half maybe four? No, No, it's this is better for sure. Although I mean I said the Packers beat the Rams twenty to three this year. Yeah, and I'm not. We're not hanging victories up yet, but the path is clear
and it's not too bad. No. I mean, you have the pack at home, then you'll you'll have either the Lions, Bucks or Eagles at home. And if the Rams win that game, then they go they're the only ones we can't play. I think, yeah, the Rams are the ones you can't. So, I mean, do any of those three terrify
you? Certainly not the Bucks, the Eagles shouldn't. The Lions are a good team, but Cowboys will be favored against all three and sports gun to my head, I think the Cowboys will beat all three of those at home. Considering how good the Cowboys are at home. We're not jumping all the way, but I mean this is on collision course to head to the Bay Area in the damn NFC Championship game. I'm glad you said everything you just said, because I think I teased this is the best chance in the DAK
Prescott era to win a Super Bowl. You did. The reason I think that is because of what you just said and the Rams if they beat the Lions IFFs here. But the Rams are a team who can go beat the forty nine ers. The forty nine ers are the one team I don't think the Cowboys can beat. I mean that, I really don't think they can
line up and beat them. I think the Rams can because the Rams playing twice a year, and Sean McVay knows Kyle Shanahan really well, and there's all a big setup there, Like, that's the team who can go beat the forty nine ers, maybe the only team in the conference who can go beat the forty nine ers as currently constructed and healthy. As constructed, it's the Rams and That's where I'm kind of like, what if the Rams take care of that for you, and then maybe you're hosting an NFC championship game.
And I know we're jumping way ahead here, but there's a path that has more positive outcomes for you here because you did your job when a division, you got the two and thanks to the Eagles for losing, you know, to the Cardinals last week and a lot of things that happened there, because the Eagles probably would have played seriously yesterday if they would have won last week, and that would have been a different thing. But I think this
is like we're kind of in like no excuses mode. This is the year that you get to the championship game. We've been talking about this for I mean, I thought it was highly interesting. There were two articles that that kind of came out before the week. Well and who knows, maybe it's all just NFL clickbait horse crab. One of them was David Moore Dallas Morning News about how this is probably it for Dan Quinn, which we said that last year, but what was his quote last week? I don't want to
see another person coaching these guys. Has he said that? I read that quote with Dan Quinn said, I don't want to see another coach coaching this this unit. Well, I mean, I don't know that Dan Quick will get a we'll get a head coaching job. He might, but I mean he's going to be pursued like he is every year. We thought he was gone. Last year he not wanted. And if he does, okay, but you know who knows I and if Jerry's paying him like we don't even
know, but it can be whatever whatever he wants. What if he's paying him head coaching money right now, we don't even know it. Just like Dan, just stay here. We got something pretty kick ass happening. I think the NFL network report was involved Mike McCarthy and that it was basically termed if it's an embarrassing loss, then they'll be moving on an embarrassing playoff loss
or from McCarthy, yeah, well, you cannot consider enough. I mean, we've seen in sports really good teams go through a rough patch at the end of the end of seasons. Hell, the Rangers, you could put that tag on them, But good lord man, this this stretch that the Eagles are on, you cannot cite that enough as being integral and where the Cowboys are right now, Yeah, by parts of unbelievable, how much they have been in the last two months, just exposed well, we needed it,
they had to, We needed them to collapse. That was a one loss team just a few weeks back because the Cowboys DEI lost to Buffalo and lost to Miami, and those are not shameful losses, right, but knowing that they weren't going to sweep through that brutal run of the Cowboys schedule, you needed so much help from the Eagles. You got more than you need. You know. The Eagles started playing bad after they beat the Cowboys at home, but the Cowboys did put up thirty on them or something and exposed
them pretty good. Right there, is like, hey, this is a team that could be scored on easily. Cowboys defense kind of let them down a little bit that game. Forty nine Ers went out and destroyed them, and they had tough runs, but they did not handle the gauntlet as well as the Cowboys did, you know, And we talked about the Bills game, you know, suppose to the Cowboys a little bit too. But the Bills are playing good and on a heater of the hottest team in football right
now, maybe the buzz saw you could run into on that side. There's no buzz saw on the NFC side. Besides the fact that you have this team hanging out that's just more physical and better than you in San Francisco. But what's a team that knows, like a seem that you can beat that type of team it seemed that plays him twice a year already and knows them in and out and beat him once. This so granted it was meaningless.
It was Carson Wentz. But Rams beat the forty nine ers once, and in week two, the forty nine ers beat the Rams thirty to twenty three. Yeah. I don't remember the specifics, but I mean that's at least uh pretty close. If you lost, I guarantee you. McCarthy did not. He would not tell you this, I guarantee you. And he had a really good answer to the to the press yesterday when he said he was asked about the He goes, I'm sure y'all are going to love the drama
of this week, but I'm not here for that. It doesn't matter who you're playing in the playoffs. He's right, but I think he really believes that though he did not want the Packers. He does not, because if you lose this game, you're dude there, you can't bring him back. You can't. So if they lose a week from right now, we and everyone's yelling to fire McCarthy, No are we are not? I'm not, he is. He's got a you're left on his contract. Why wouldn't you
want to get you at least look and see see who's available. Why would you not try to upgrade? How about Bill Belichick's available? I mean, look, come on, I'm the game doesn't know if he's a good coach or not. I think you just got the luckiest quarterback ever. Like they've had the best defensive football many times. He's a defensive whiz. And boy,
no team has been insert player here and still being good. Then that that Patriots two decade run they traded players and let players walk every five minutes for the last at least five years, is a player evaluation. They've drafted
terribly because they let that dog draft those picks. But it's not out of the realm that one week from right now, if that we could be yelling, oh my god, Bill Belichick, we should table this because it is a little bigger discussion, and there are like what are the names and alternatives that would make you and is it even realistic? Is it irrational to one of a guy who's finally taking you to the playoffs three straight years something you've
been do? But are you prepared? This is the whole thing about that report. Losing an embarrassing fashion lose. I you're running back getting trucked from the center position. Okay, who cares about that louse trying to get a playoff when there's no time left on the clock. I mean, we know what people are gonna do. People are gonna blame it on Mica not getting
holding calls. I know how this works, but I'm just saying, if it happens, you can look at the coach that the second scariest team in the NFC right now, They absolutely are, and the path is it lies ahead and it's somewhat realistic that they could that they you just should they should be playing in the NFC champions You just said it. So if they lose this Saturday or Sunday, then the second most dangerous team of the NFC, then they have to be in the NFC Championship. Does it depend on how
they lose, though, it absolutely does. Okay, if there's some weird clock management thing or oh we ran out of timeouts and we shouldn't have, or some dumb decision to go for it on fourth down when you don't really need to. Yeah, I could see that. But if Dat goes out there and has an inexplainable three interception game and it and they turn the ball over, that's not on. That's not on Mike, and he should be here. We'll see. This is gonna be juice art smashing. There's twenty
days from today, Cowboys at forty nine ers. Let's go. I'll see you live from Levi's all right, we'll have more on that throughout the day, throughout the week. You all know what's going on. I'm Kevin with Danny and Mike Siroy two four eight seven seven one nine seven one. You can call her text any time as well. But coming up next the scuttle Bud kind of our daily news segment, Why Traveling more Dangerous than ever? Plus the best Pro Shop cannon Ball Next Time. Ninety seven won the free