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Welcome in episode one nine, What's Right with Nick Wright? Apologies for not being here on Tuesday. I was a little under the weather and was trying to save my voice for the television shows, so I didn't mean to put the podcast second. But you gotta make trade offs at times. So apologies for not being here Tuesday. We got a huge show for you today though, and it's our gambling show. And as listen if you're new to the Gambling Show, here's how it goes. I go too
and three and Demande loses his teaser. That's just what it's been all year long. So I you know I've in the last week I felt optimistic. I said, it feels like a five and oh week. We started out two and oh and then lost loss, loss. Demonse once again went two for three on his teaser legs, which he has done I think seven weeks in a row, which of course turns into a loss. So i'd last year we made a lot of money and we had a fifty to one futures bet that was alive until
the final weekend. It could be alive in our Niners Chief super Bowl. This year. Our preseason gambling show might have given out you know, ten units of winners. But our week by week picks have been pathetic. They've been awful. Demonde declared himself a teaser guy, and right now is you know, historically bad at it. I'm not picking on your pal, I'm rooting for you, but it's I mean,
I mean, of all media personalities. If we were to do this like we do sports stats, it's like of everyone with it this at least this many games played. This guy is ex of all media personalities, of which you are one who have given out to a nationwide audience at least eight teasers. I think you are the worst in history, I think. I think twelve and a half percent winners is the worst. And so the bright
side is can only go up from there. And the bright side is you maybe don't have quite the the following that you know I have to where you're not being mocked as relentlessly as I am for just going two and three every week, and two and three every week on the podcast somehow is turned into one and two or zero and three on TV. It's really been bad. There's just no way around it. Go ahead.
Somebody, somebody straight up tweeted me the other day like, you know, love the show, love what you guys are doing, but I can't listen to Demanze's teasers anymore, Like I just can't follow you and like you just said it. Finally, he wasn't trying to make fun of me. He was like very serious, which made it hurt a little bit more, but I respect it. Dude. I'm not trying to no listen.
At this point, everyone's got to do what's best for themselves and their families, and right now that is not following Demonse's teasers. It's not following my picks either. Listen. I am not if you had the opportunity from an ev perspective of going two and three against the spread every week or just losing one teaser every week. It costs you a little bit less to just lose a teaser, cause you're only losing one unit a week. I'm losing one point three units a week because of the big
So that regard you have been you know less. I don't want to say more profitable, but less negative than me. But it just feels embarrassing for both of us. And we're gonna do better right now. You know, right now, we simultaneously have the best father son gambling show and the worst. Because we're the best because it's the best. We're the worst because we just can't win any bets it. We're going you know what, I take that back. I'm not promising we're gonna turn it around. We're gonna do
our best. That's all I can say at this point. We're just gonna do our best. I can't make false promises to people anymore. I have a five year streak on the line of being profitable against the spread publicly. Actually that's not right. Five of the last six and that is in dire straits right now. It's in dire Straits.
Go ahead, like we're the Raiders of Betty. You know, we gotta tear it down research.
Does that mean we have to Does that mean we have to fire Gabe and Matt. I don't think that would be right. It's not on them bench. You fire Gabe and Matt, and I'm just Mark Davis, like, I don't know what you want from me. By the way, shout out to Matt who's not here today because he is a new father, happy, healthy wife and baby, the our fearless leader, Matt Ford, who I can now say, by the way, because he's hopefully not watching this show.
He's just you know, covered in marital and baby bliss euphemistically, of course. I finally rewatched Top Gun for the first time since I was a child. Start to finish not good. I love Tom Cruise. I'm the biggest Mission Impossible fan in the world. And now I've not yet seen Top Gun Maverick and I will watch it. But I watched Top Gun and I said, this is a bad movie. And I know we have to get to the sports business very quickly, like at there is in that movie.
Are we just supposed to suspend disbelief that the culminating the culminating scene. Wasn't the beginning of World War three like there was? We had we had hot warfare between the US and another nation state. There were jets shot down and then they like smashed cut to like the news coverage. They're like, oh, they're covering it up, Like huh, I think there'd be nukes dropping. Okay, time for the show. Here's what missed the cut? Uh we made demanse. We
did it. We made it through all of baseball season without doing a baseball topic. I don't know if that's good or bad, but at least it's honest. But hey, shout out to the Rangers they win their first World Series ever. Shout out what Oh, yeah, you're right, we did. Talk to Otani, and shout out to Bruce Bochie, who now has won a remarkable fourteen of his last fifteen postseason series as a manager. Four World Series rings for Bruce Bochie, and also shout out to you might say,
how can that be the case? Bruce Bochi since he took over the Giants, basically either misses the playoffs or wins the World Series. He has managed in the last twenty or in the last fifteen years, he has managed five teams to the playoffs. Four of them won the World Series, one lost in the NLCS to the Cubs. One of those World Series he won in seven games over my beloved Kansaity Royals. Klay Thompson last night hit a game winner against my beloved Kings, and the NBA
in season tournament pool play begins Friday. I'm gonna be totally honest, I still don't totally understand how this thing works, but I'm excited for it. I suppose what I'm definitely excited for, Demons is to talk about a game I stayed up for, watched the entirety of, and that is last night's Lakers Clippers game. For the well, you go ahead and walk us through it.
So the Lakers managed to not lose twelve games in a row to the Clippers. They won Lebron scored thirty five and played in forty two minutes. But the Clippers weren't playing James Harden and they obviously have no depth. Is this a problem moving forward that the Lakers, you know, are barely hanging around with these types of teams.
I guess I don't know if the Lakers are right now, a great team. In fact, I don't think they are. Austin Reeves needs to play better now. As far as depth goes, I understand the Clippers traded away a lot of their depth for Harden, and Harden didn't play, but the Lakers were without four of their top nine rotation pieces.
Jared Vanderbilt still hasn't played, Gabe Vincent didn't play, Torrian Prince, who's been a starter, didn't play, and Ruey Hotchramura didn't play, which is why Cam Reddish was in the close lineup. It's why Max Christy got real minutes, and they won the game despite being down nineteen at one point, despite not having beaten the Clippers since the beginning of the bubble. They won the game for one reason and one reason only. We've never seen an athlete like Lebron. And I'm not
being hyperbolic. I'm not being over the top here and I'm not even trying to have a goat conversation. And I tweeted this last night at it says ten o'clock. That's on the West coast because our producers that's where they are, but it was one am out east. Well, Lebron is doing right now. Is without president sports history, impossible still be this athletic, this productive, and this good
at this stage, just impossible. Lebron was on the court last night Demonse with three other no doubt first ballot Hall of famers in Kawhi Russ and Anthony Davis. One guy who will have have a fringe somewhat controversial Hall of Fame case in Paul George. Those guys, just for some context here, Kawhi Leonard came into the league. Lebron came into the league in two thousand and three. Kawhi Leonard came into the league in twenty eleven. Paul George
came into the league in twenty ten. Russell Westbrook came into the league in two thousand and eight, Anthony Davis came into the league in twenty twelve. Lebron was better than all of them, and this year has been better
than all of them. Lebron is less than four hundred minutes shy of having played the most minutes of any player in the history of basketball playoffs in regular season combined, and yet he still has the energy athleticism two in his four first minute of play in overtime, galvanizing a twenty point comeback, he can catch that lob from Austin
Reeves and have his head even with the rim. I I really want folks to have the context for what he's doing at this point, which is if you go through the games this year, and prior to yesterday, Lebron hadn't played great throughout the bulk of the season. Despite that, he's twenty five points, nine rebounds, seven assists on fifty seven percent shooting, and in the clutch. This year he
has been unbelievable. He's scored the winning baskets against Phoenix, he hit the go ahead three against Orlando, and he made the biggest plays of the game against the Clippers on both ends. He blocked Russ, he had another block that was ridiculously called a goaltend. And it's not just that he turns thirty nine in less than two months. It's the minutes. It's that I don't you know what, I'm gonna check this real quick. I think Lebron has let me see if I can even prove I should
have done this before the show, I apologize. I think Lebron has more minutes than Kawhi career minutes. Then Kawhi and Paul George combined, and so let me just see if Kawhi is even on this well he the I mean yes, I mean because Kawhi is Notawhi is not in the top two fifty all time as far as minutes played. Let me see if Paul George is, Paul George might be. Paul George is at one night, Paul George is at thirty one thousand, and wherever Kawhi is, it's not in the top two to fifty. So it's
under twenty eight thousand. So Kawhi and Paul George combined are well shy of sixty thousand. Lebron is about to be at sixty six thousand, and still at the end of these games, has more left in the tank. They said he's going to be on a minute restriction. It's the third game in four nights. He's on no type of minutes restriction. He has gone Sunday night thirty nine minutes in overtime, Monday night thirty three minutes, Wednesday night forty two minutes. And right now, and this is not
just Lebron. Right now, while you have Devin Booker can't get on the court, Kyrie has already missed a couple games, Bradley Beal can't get on the court. The three icons of this generation of basketball really of last generation of basketball, Lebron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant are showing up to work every night, bawling out, carrying, otherwise at this moment
somewhat underachieving, supporting casts. And Katie's had some rough moments at the end of these games, but part of that's because he's out there without Beal, without Booker, and Katie's old ass with you know, post Achilles surgery and foot surgery and all of this is like, I'm ready to come to work. Steph Curry, I'm ready to come to work. And Lebron James ready every damn night to come to
work and deliver. And now listen, the new generation yokichenianis also been ready to come to work and been yacht. The Bucks are. The Bucks might have a little more issues than some of us thought. The NUGG it's despite losing last night, clearly do not. And but those guys, I'm not taking anything away from them at all. But those guys are in their late twenties, the two best players in the league. They're supposed to be the two
best players in the league. They're doing what's expected. I almost think because Lebron is doing this, folks are under selling how crazy it is that Durant and Steph are doing what they're doing.
That we think he's very heartwarming. By the way, Sorry, you've you've You've come so far. Gave him his props.
Well, and I didn't even call him second best. I said he's one of the two best. I do think he's the second best, but I'm not. I don't argue with people anymore. If they say he's the best, I mean that the guy is. The guy's done everything you could ask a guy to do. But I just just some context for people. Kobe Bryant one of the greatest players by any definition. I want to get his make sure I have his birthday right. So he was born in January of I'm sorry, in August of seventy eight.
In August, Okay, Kobe Bryant's last great season, he was thirty four years old. That was the year he snapped his achilles He played after turning thirty four. Kobe played a total of one hundred and seven games, zero playoff games, and after turning thirty five, I should say after his thirty four year old season and was by you know, by any definition, you know, was not good average less than twenty points per game on well under forty percent shooting.
And nobody was like, oh what happened to Kobe? They're like, oh, well, I mean, what do you want from him? He's thirty five, thirty six, he's coming off an injury. Steph is thirty five years old. Kevin Durant is Kevin Durant thirty five? I think he is. Kevin Durant is, yeah, thirty five years old, just turned thirty five. He also came off
in Achilles. Lebron is about to be thirty nine, like Kareem is the greatest ever prior to Lebron on longevity, on like this guy was awesome latent to his career. And I understand and folks are not wrong when they mentioned with Kareem that he has the four years of college basketball, which you know, obviously there's a wear and terror factor there. I understand that. But Kareem's last great well, his last great great season, like MVP caliber season he was.
I mean, he's not won his last MVP at thirty two. His thirty two year old season, he won a Finals MVP at thirty seven and Kareem it was considered the gold standard for old guys still contributing. At thirty eight, he was twenty three point six rebounds a night Lebron. If Lebron this year put up twenty three and six, everyone would be like, man, father time got it. Like that father time finally caught up to him.
He's you can't help yourself. What what do you mean you can't help yourself. This is definitely a broad as the debate. This wasn't supposed to be. Oh, he's no.
I I again, I listen some people, I'm I'm almost post that. Like if some people want to just Michael Jordan in a way that they there and the six for six, I get it.
I it.
The The thing is at if people aren't moving it is. What is frustrating to me on that note is it feels like a lot of people's opinions on that argument have not moved in the last five years, despite Lebron adding more and more to the resume, including another championship, another Comper files appearance five more all NBA teams over
the last five years. So they're not gonna move that's fine, but that that debate shouldn't distract us from appreciating the fact that this old ass dude last night was on the court with Anthony Davis, Kawhi, Leonard Russell Westbrook, and Paul George and he had the most in the tank at the end, he was the best player. He was the one people were showing up to see. It's just remarkable.
And he takes care of his body. He's huge.
Well he's just like, yes, the the take care that takes care of his body part. And this is where like it is a little frustrating when you see a great player in Devin Booker, like you're you were able to play the first game of the year and now you're just out. You're just out, just not available. Kyrie, he played a few games, now you're just out, Like I do. There is a level of and I've made this point before and then we'll get to football for the rest of the show. And by the way, shout
out to Demonse Celtics. They did hang one and one fifty when last night, yeah yeah, yeah, one fifty five. They look really good. There is and I've made this point for I just want to make it again. People talk about, oh, you know, Lebron doesn't have this skill or the bag of certain other guys. And my argument there it's, first of all, I think that's a little overstated. But second of all, let's just say it's true. Like he doesn't have the handle of certain guys, there's no
doubt about it. He doesn't have the pure shot of other guys, no doubt about it. All that's true. Despite that, of course, he's you know, he's scored more points than anyone ever AND's gonna play all that doesn't matter.
Set that aside.
Here is Here is the I think the obvious point there. There are only so many hours in the day. Lebron has chosen to prioritize in a way we have never seen from an NBA player, to use his time making sure his body is ready and available, rather than spending all the time working or a disproportionate time working on skill. And so there is a trade off there. His hand is not as tight as other guys, even his size, right, But how useful is a tight handle or a silky
jump shot if you're not available. Lebron's going to end up being the most available player in sports history, and it's going to be because that is how he prioritized his time. And there is a lesson in that, which is if. And he said it after the game last night when they were like, you know, there's the most points anyone's ever scored in year twenty one, and he was like, yeah, I don't care about that. I think
he does a little bit. But he said, listen, I spend a lot of time making sure my body and my mind are ready to go. And because of that, he has this extended sub prime because he's not peak Lebron, but he is this lesser version of peak Lebron that is still at damn near forty, unequivocally one of the eight best players in the league. And we've never seen anything like it. All Right to football, Go ahead.
All right, guten talk. What's right, fans? The Chiefs and Dolphins are heading to Germany for a face off. Yep, Kinsey's practice games are over and all that. Taylor Swift's Boyfriend's really mad about the offensive production and says that it needs to come to a stop before things get out of hand. If these struggles continue and this offensive production continues to lack, how are they going to keep
up with the Dolphins. Well also struggles they yeah, I mean go ahead nine points on a defense that allowed seventy points just earlier this year. Is I don't really know how you what do you say about that?
Okay, so the so a few things on the Broncos game. Obviously, the Chiefs looked terrible offensively and scoring nine points, and by the way, in the game they won against the Broncos, they only scored nineteen. Now, it should be noted since that seventy point debacle, the Broncos defense has been far far better. People are like, oh, the Jets scored thirty on them. No, I mean Russell Wilson had a fumble six in that game. The Jets scored twenty four. The
Packers scored seventeen. The Broncos defense has, you know, improved from the seventy, but it's not a great defense. I'm not arguing that. But I also think that two things are happening with the with the Chiefs discourse right now. One is we are our memories have never been shorter. The Chiefs offense looked terrible on Sunday. Okay, sure, the week before, Mahomes had over three hundred yards at halftime.
The one week ago. The question was, is Patrick Mahomes going to set the single game all time record for passing yards, which Norm Van Brocklin has held for seven years. So that's first of all, second of all. In this Broncos game, the offense moved the ball, but they had five turnovers. No one wins with five turnovers. In NFL history games, you have five turnovers, you win six percent of the time. In NFL history games you lose the turnover battle by four or more, which the Chiefs did,
you win less than three percent of the time. Last year, the Chiefs when they got in the red zone got a touchdown more than seventy percent of the time, best in the league. This year, the Chiefs when they get in the red zone they score a touchdown fifty percent of the time, dead middle of the league, like seventeenth. Everyone right now, except for me, it would seem is freaking out about the wide receivers. They will be fine.
You have the same group as last year with Rashi Rice in for Juju Smith Schuster Nick, what about the red zone stuff? Juju had three total touchdowns last year. He was not the red zone answer. So a couple things are going on with the Chiefs. One is Mahomes needs to play better. I know no one wants to say it, but the reason the Chiefs believe they can get by with this group of skill position guys is because they believe they have the head and shoulders best
player in the world. They do. Thus far this year, he has simply played like a fringe MVP candidate rather than the head and shoulders greatest quarterback we've ever seen. That is a big responsibility to put on him. He can handle it. That's the first part of it. The second part of it is and people can say, Nick your wish casting here. I know I'm right on this.
The Chiefs have different I don't want to say different playbooks, but Andy Reid has the red zone packages and plays that he would rather not use early or often against bad opponents because he wants to keep them under wraps for the bigger games and for later in the season. And you know how I know this because last year they when they were playing a mediocre opponent, they were so they were so bored in the red zone they did the damn ring around the Rosie play that the
players had drawn up earlier in the week. The idea that Andy Reid doesn't have certain things he's holding in reserve is nonsense. Now it bit them against the Broncos, there is no doubt about that. But the idea one week ago, the discussion was Patrick Mahomes is the NFL's MVP. After the Charger game, he was the Vegas favorite. We couldn't even do the topic on first things first because everyone agreed. And now a week later, the sky's falling. No,
it's not Rashi that Now. What I do think they need to do with the receivers is this they were using the first couple months of the season. I called it practice, but it was also kind of tryouts. Who is going to earn the actual spots? And the answer has been Rashi. Rice has earned it, Sky Moore has not. So Sky's snaps are gonna go down, Rashi's snaps are
gonna go up. But this this idea that the Chiefs, who if the playoffs started today, would be the number one seed, the Chiefs, who Vegas right now has as the favorites to win the Super Bowl. Apologies guys that the idea that that team is in dire straits is lunacy. So here's a prediction for you. The Chiefs are gonna go to Germany and win. They're gonna beat the Dolphins. You know why, because the Chiefs defense can slow down the Dolphins offense, and the Dolphins defense is not going
to have its way with the Chiefs offense. The Chiefs aren't gonna have a bye and then at home off of bye, they're gonna beat Philadelphia and in three weeks everyone's going to be you know, the topics on the talk shows are gonna be God, that was stupid when everyone panicked about the Chiefs. They're going to be fine.
Go ahead to my topics. Probably they're kind of in the same situation that the Bills are in when they want to go face Trevor Lawrence, and Trevor Lawrence is already a week prior. The Chiefs are getting there after the Dolphins. And you always say that the checks with the flight and all that stuff, you know, groggy tiredness. Are you worried about that at all with the Chiefs?
So no, And I want to be clear on what I said about that. I thought the fact that the Jags had been over there a full week earlier was going to be a real advantage. And I don't know if it was or it wasn't. The Jags ended up winning. The Dolphins went over on Tuesday. The Chiefs are going over today. I am going to read you some tweets from Bobby Stroup. Apologies if I'm Bobby, If I'm saying your last name wrong, He's Patrick. If you watched quarterback,
he's Patrick Mahomes's trainer, his personal trainer. The guy who works with Bobby writes this, there's a lot of talk about NFL schedules to Germany this week. I would like to put out some information that is relevant. There are many ways to do this and experience coaches with Olympics, less frequent foreign competitions that have trialed options. And then
he includes in there a research paper on this. He goes on to write, general consensus from research is seven days is the best usually not an option for the NFL. Three and five days before present problems for reasons cited in research. Arrival two days before works great if players stay on us time with their schedules. This is just the information. This is a big part of the overseas game outcomes and it does matter how this is managed.
This is not an opinion on how any team has managed it years past, present or future, just my own research on the topic and reaching out to Olympic level coaches. So I say all that to say this, there is not a perfect way to go about this. The Chiefs going. The Chiefs could have gone on Tuesday like Miami did. The Chiefs are choosing to go on Thursday. According to what Bobby wrote three and five days present problems. Well, Miami went five days ahead, the Chiefs went three days ahead.
I don't think there is going to be a significt different in this game on the jet lag factor for Miami or Kansas City. It's if one of the teams has been over there.
By the way, say it again, you slandered Buffalo for going on a Friday.
No, here's the thing. No, I didn't brew did I did not? I know that's in the script. I know that that. But if find the tape of me slandering Buffalo for going on a Friday, what I did do the what I did do was say beforehand that the Jags being over there for a full week I thought was going to be an advantage. And the point that I am trying to make here is that I don't know what the what the correct uh, perfect travel plan is I do know that this is not done haphazardly.
My Miami clearly thinks that having to do their week of practices and having to spend more time out of their homes is worth the tra in Germany is worth the trade off of getting there, you know, way early so their bodies are fully adjusted. The Chiefs clearly believe they would rather have more time on a regular week schedule, and the trade it's worth the trade off of having less time to have their bodies be adjusted. I don't
think that will be the story of this game. I also think, because it's a story at all, it's a shame, a bit of a shame that a game this big is happening at nine thirty in the morning eastern six thirty West coast time with this added variable.
All right, next, all right, Speaking of elite quarterback matchups, the Bills play Cincinnati Sunday night. We always know you'll choose Mahomes over the field. So I'm going to give you three remaining elite quarterbacks, and you tell me what you want out of the three for all all weeks, just this week or no weeks between. Tua. Okay, go ahead, Oh, Tua, Joe Burrow, and Josh Allen.
So for all weeks, it's Joe Burrow with no question whatsoever. Uh, for just this week, I'm going to go Josh Allen because I think that Alan can have Listen, Josh Allen has not played well in his last few couple games against Cincinnati and this is a massive game for them, So I think Josh Allen can have some success. And this is really unfair. I mean, the only one left I guess is Tua with no weeks. But my feeling on Tua is very simple compared to those other two guys.
I believe. I know Joe Burrow can work anywhere and into any system. I know Josh is going to be Josh Allen anywhere and in any system, the good, the bad, the highs, the lows. I don't know that about Tua, and there is I know there is a level of folks that will say that is unfair. I think it is incredibly fair and I think it's very consistent. Tua, to me, is a good quarterback who is not as
good as his numbers this year suggest. And if the Miami Dolphins, well, I'm not saying Tyreek Hill is carrying him, But I do think Tyreek Hill is clearly the most important player on that team. And people can say, well, if Tua goes out, they fall apart like last year, that part true because there aren't enough solid quarterbacks in this league. What I would say is, who is give me a guy that this is gonna be hard, But who is the definition of like the median league average corps?
Like if you replace that might be you know, Kirk actually had been playing so well that he might be a little better than that. It's a shame popped his achilles, so someone. But yeah, so I don't uh right now, what's tough is there really isn't a league average quarterback. There's like twelve good ones and then a bunch of either media, well you will. This is the we don't
even have to talk about the Jimmy g thing. I've taken my victory laps on that I told everybody he was a product of Kyle Shanahan's system entirely, and now he leaves Kyle Shanaan's system. All he has DeVante Adams, Josh Jacobs, and he's benched and he leads league picks. So let me put it, like, let's say C J. Stroud. Let's use c J. Stroud is like right now, league average, If you replace Tua with c J. Stroud, how different would the offense look versus who is a league average
number one receiver? Not a league average receiver league average number one Terry McLaurin. Let's say that he's probably like the sixteenth best number one receiver. If you replace Tyreek with Terry McLaurin, I think the offense drops way more than if you replace Tua with CJ. Stroud, if that makes sense. Now, if you replace Tua with his backup, that is a different story because now you're replacing so Tua is the guy they could least afford to have injured.
Tyreek is the guy they could least easily replace. If that makes like, if Tyreek left and you had to go get another number one, nobody could do for them what he's doing for them. All right, next, All.
Right, So the Raiders got rid of everybody except for DeVante Adams, the poor guy, man, poor guy. As a Chiefs fan, you've got to be, it's gotta be very great news for you. So it's time to figure out the Raiders' future with a game of likely maybe or what if gave Las Vegas options for their future, each more galaxy brained than the last one.
Okay, so I'm actually not gonna because we've gone so long, I'm not gonna give them three options. I'm just gonna tell them exactly what they should do. What the Raiders should do is in the offseason, everyone's gonna try to hire Ben Johnson. Let's assume they can't because he's gonna have his options. They should hire Eric b Enemy, who I think has done quite well outside of Kansas City,
making Sam Howell look like a legitimate quarterback. They should use the seventh pick of the draft, which is about what they're gonna have on Shad Or Sanders, which will a give them a quarterback of the future and b give them real juice in Vegas, so all those home games are not simply opposing teams fans trap to Vegas where they don't have a home field. You would have some real star quality there. And then see they should trade away Devonte Adams. Maybe trade away and this one
would hurt a lot Max Crosby. You would get two first round picks for Max Crosby because he's young, awesome and on a great contract. You would get one first round pick for Devonte Adams and you would start over and you would say, Okay. In twenty twenty four, we are cleaning up our cap, cleaning up our books, and drafting young talent. In twenty twenty five, we hope to be competitive, and in twenty twenty six we hope to
be contenders. Because if you draft the right quarterback and you build the right pieces around him, by that quarterback's third year, you can be a contender. That should be the plan. Now, I don't know that they'll listen to me. What's the other one.
They're Lincoln Riley guy. There's talks of him wanting a coach in the NFL move up, and maybe they get him and Caleb Williams.
The problem is they're gonna be They're not gonna have I mean, they already have three wins. They're not gonna be able to get Caleb. And by the way, I don't know that I want Lincoln Riley as my head coach. Nobody's gonna trade the Caleb pick. I mean Lincoln Riley I don't think has done a great job at USC this year. I mean once for his for his seventh straight year. He can't field a defense. I think USC is underachieved somewhat. People are trying to put that on Caleb.
I think that's ridiculous May and the and the Daniel Wrights in there. That Drake May is on the top of some people's boards. Yet idiots. Anybody that is going to argue that you should not take Caleb Williams with the number one overall pick doesn't know what they're talking about. There is the idea that we are going to somehow twist ourselves into knots and say saying, you know what, maybe Caleb isn't the number one pick is lunacy, But they're not gonna be able to get Drake May either.
They're like, they're not gonna have a top two pick, and the top three picks of the draft are going to go Caleb, Drake, Marvin Harrison. That we know the rest is yet to be seen. All right, let's go to the Eagles Cowboys this weekend.
Dallas and Philly face off in a potential NFC championship preview. It's gonna be a great game. That's assuming Brock Party is still bad and the Niners aren't the equation for the sake of your Cowboys Super Bowl prediction. How important is it that Philly steals this game, that Dallas steal Dallas steals his game in Philly.
Sorry, well I don't. I don't think Dallas has to steal this game for them to be alive Super Bowl contenders. But if they do win this game, they are in great shape because Philly the Dallas is next three games after this are Giants, Washington and Carolina the Eagles. Next five games after this Cowboys game are the Chiefs, the Bills, the Niners, at the Cowboys, and at the Seahawks. That Chiefs games in Kansas City. So if Dallas Dallas wins this game, they're they're de facto tied for first in
the conference. And then all of a sudden, you know, they they can actually create some space. What's so interesting about the NFC right now is you've got five teams that are at the midway point of the season essentially locked into the playoffs, that are just fighting for seating. So Dallas and Philly are gonna be in, Detroit's gonna be in San Francisco, and Seattle are gonna be in. That's five teams. You then have the NFC South winner whoever that is. That's six, and then who the hell
is the seventh team? Gonna be Washington that just traded away it's best two edge rushers, Minnesota who's quarterback just popped his achilles, the Rams who just got rolled by the Cowboys, or someone else from the NFC South. So no matter what happens to any of those five good NFC teams, they it's almost impossible for them not to make the playoffs. So all they're playing for at this point is the number one seed winning their division home playoff games. We'll get to more on the Dallas Philly
game in our pick segment. Uh, but I think Dallas is in a really good spot here. We're not gonna do the wimb conversation because this segment went forty minutes. Take a quick break, come back and do our picks for the week. And Demons's teaser tries to win for the first time since Labor Day, What's Right?
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All Right, welcome back in Watch Drive with Nick write Episode one, ninety demands before we get to our picks, the producers say that they've pulled the tape of me talking about how the Bills lost because they went on Friday. Let's hear the tape and let's see what I said.
Isn't the travel of the main thing you're always saying is like a big factor.
It is a big factor, of course, and grown up teams, teams that have a level of consistency and emotional maturity, they either understand how to deal with it or they don't fly to London on Friday. Why did you do that? Why did you fly there on Friday for a Sunday morning game?
Dude, that's bad, that's bad. I mean you, you, like ten to fifteen minutes ago, you said that you literally didn't do exactly what we just saw you do. You made fun of the Bills for leaving on a Friday for a Sunday morning game.
I said you either, I said, hold on just a second year. This is why it's important to pull the tape. Yeah, I said, you either understand how to deal with it, or you fly earlier. You don't fly late, and they that.
So you're just saying so, you're just saying the Bills didn't know how to deal with it, and the Chiefs magically do. The Bills are the dumb guys.
Okay, well, what's today? I'm just curious what's today? Today, Thursday or Friday? Okay, when's the game? No, no, when's the game? Tell me?
No? So, the way to deal with it is to leave a day before the Bills do. That's the way you want.
I don't know, I don't know. I mean the Chiefs are getting there today, which is Thursday. The Bills got their Friday, and I don't see what the real issue here is. Like I did not say they lost because they went on Friday. I said, either you know how to deal with it, or if you don't know how to deal with it, you leave earlier. I think the chiefs know how to deal with it, and they're leaving. Earlier Friday did seem like maybe a touch close, but
just know how to deal with it. You're shaking your head. I stand by everything I said then and everything I said now. I think it is one hundred percent consistent. Let's go on to the picks. Let's go on to the picks. Last week started out great, den did not end great. Last week's picks, we can show you the recap. We won on Thursday night thanks to Baker Mayfield heroics. We won on Sunday morning thanks to Trevor Lawrence being awesome.
Atlanta minus two and a half. I thought that Malik Willis and Will Levis were gonna split snaps instead will Or Malik Willis barely played and Will Levis was awesome. I thought Indy could hang with New Orleans. New Orleans hung almost forty on them, and I said nine points was just too much for the Chargers to be laying to anybody. And the Chargers blew out the Bears pretty thoroughly throughout. So it started out great, went in terribly.
We are you know still because it's just two and three basically every week with a few three and twos mixed in. We're still just one great week away from having our head above water. But at this point, I can't guarantee that great week. I just can't. I wish I could. I'm hoping for the best. I'm not proud of how the clips have gone so much, so so much lately. But we move on from there. What do we got this week? Demanse?
You got Kansas City minus one and a half versus Miami. This one surprises me.
Why does it surprise you?
Why Miami probably win that game? Chiefs in Offensive Production? Can I ask questions out there?
Can I ask question? What? What's Miami's good? Like? Wow, they're They're a legit contender. Look who they beat? Performance this year.
I'm just cured they have right. They have not had the toughest lady games, I'll admit.
Well, well, they've had two very tough games and they got blown out in both of them. They Week one, they played the Chargers and that's a good win, but that's a win. They also needed a fourth quarter comeback to execute and they win by two. Week two, they play the Patriots and they win by seven. The Patriots butcher the end of the game when they have a chance to tie it. Week three, they embarrass and annihilate the Dolphins hang seventy on them. Week four, they play
Buffalo and get annihilated. Week five they beat up on the Woebegone Giants. Week six they beat up on the just as wobegon Caroline Panthers. Week seven they play a big boy team, the Eagles. They get annihilated. And last week they beat the Patriots again thirty one to seventeen. I the Dolphins with Jalen Ramsey I am more interested in because he came back last week immediate impact. I don't think I think the Dolphins are good. I think, despite everyone saying the sky is falling, I think the
Chiefs are great. I think the Chiefs defense will be able to handle as much as anyone can handle Tyreek Kill. They're familiar with him, they have the best pair of corners in the NFL, and McDuffie and Sneed, and the Chiefs are pissed off. Mahomes is clearly upset with what happened last week for all of those reasons, and I'm laying less than a field goal and one other note that I think is relevant in the Mahomes era, the Chiefs have lost back to back games sparingly few times.
So if we go through it, the Chiefs have. Last year they lost back to back games zero times. In twenty twenty one, they lost back to back games one time. One was a one point loss to Baltimore and then a final possession lost to the Chargers. In weeks two and three twenty twenty, they never lost back to back games. Twenty nineteen, they lost back to back games to Indy and Houston and that was it. In twenty eighteen did they ever lose back to back In twenty eighteen, oh,
at the very end of the season. So mahomes six years career as a starter, they've lost back to back games three times. Ever, all of them involved at least one of those games, either the loss coming on the final play or in overtime or by one point. They're not losing this week, I and so I like the Chiefs. If it were three and a half, I'd feel differently.
At one and a half, I like Kansas City. I don't typically put the Chiefs in Knicks picks because they're not a great covering team, but they are also not typically favored by less than a field goal. And by the way, but the producers put in there. Two has won eleven consecutive games straight up versus Super Bowl winning head coaches. Fun fact, here's the other fact. Touah's only loss against the Super Bowl winning head coach came against Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs.
Next, all right, Tampa Bay plus three at Houston. I love that one.
The you do love that one? Yeah, okay, So Houston is a good story. Houston also last week you saw it a bit doesn't have a ton of talent on the roster. The Carolina is a bad loss. Tampa is coming off a bye. Tampa is in a spot where they absolutely I shouldn't say coming off a bye. Pardon me, Tampa. The is had the mini by because they played on Thursday, so they're not coming off a bye, but they have the extra rest. I should say Tampa getting three points
when they are a desperate team. They are the more veteran team. And Houston right now is coming off its worst loss of the year, not because of the margin, but because who they lost to and the fashion that they lost to. Also, Houston's offense since the beginning of the season, offense was rolling hung thirty seven on the Jags, thirty on the Steelers. Since then, nineteen against the Falcons, twenty against the Saints, thirteen against the Panthers. The Bucks
have a good defense, They're a desperate team. They're getting three points. Think they went out right. I like Tampa the spot. Next Atlanta minus four and a half versus Minnesota. Okay, so here is the thing.
I mean, I have the quarterbacks. Kirk Cousins is the logic.
I have the last two weeks lost picks that I have based purely on who the quarterback is. I lost the Tyson Bagent game and then I lost the Will Levis situation. So why am I laying four and a half with Atlanta?
Don't do this?
And it is why are you shaking your head to Mirrow?
I don't think you should do this? I think this is why shouldn't I do? You know how you say, like the hot team or whatever a week by week you're doing, You're doing it with quarterbacks. First it was the Bears, and then you went for the Bears, and now you're going over here in Minnesota because Kirk Cousins is missing. I would not give Atlanta any bit of fit the doubt to be laying for and a half points. That's just where I stand on it. You're probably gonna go even hard.
On it now, but no, I'm not gonna go into even harder on it. And what you're saying does theoretically make sense. And I understand the point you're making, and four and a half is a tricky line, and it does feel like that I am this is a very square pick. I get all of that. The counterpoint is, I think that Heinike is better than Ritter and so Atlanta going to their backup quarterback, I think they actually
get an upgrade. Minnesota told us a lot about their confidence level in Jaren Hall by the fact that they traded for Josh Dopps. So Minnesota has seen Jaren Hall and they know they have Mullins coming back at some point, and they're still like, we've got to get another quarterback in here, and we've got to get it's someone who
can start for us at some point. Minnesota with no Justin Jefferson, with no Kirk Cousins that actually believe it or not, does have a bit of a margin for error because of like I said in that NFC, who you know at four and four right now their position to be a wildcard team, and they have after this week. They have the Saints, the Broncos, the Bears, the Raiders.
They have a bit of a runway. Jordan Addison's been awesome, but with no Justin Jefferson, with no Kirk Cousins, and with the emotional kind of atrophy of losing your quarterback for the season just a week ago, I don't mind laying the four and a half in Atlanta with Jaren Hall making his first career start as a fifth round rookie out of BYU, and so I like Atlanta minus the four and a half. I understand that there are a lot of trends against this. They opened as an underdog,
now they're the favorites. The producers tell me teams are forty three and eighty three against the spread since twenty nineteen in those situations, I get that. But a fifth round rookie making his first career start on the road without his best weapon, I am gonna go ahead and go with Atlanta. And then demons read what the producers are writing about.
The question why why aren't you gonna bet against the Cardinals as well? Since they're starting Clayton tune.
Well for two reasons. One is I don't know who's starting quarterback opposite him, because the Browns right now, we don't know if it's PJ. Walker or if it's going to be Deshaun Watson. I don't even know what's the better option there for them. And that would be laying eight points. So that would be I would be relying on a team who's often struggles mightily to cover by more than a touchdown. That is a different situation than a team that I feel just upgraded at quarterback, going
from Ritter to Heineke. Laying four and a half next.
Dallas plus three at Philadelphia.
You don't like this one.
I think Dallas is gonna get destroyed.
Okay, So here's Dak has lost once to the Eagles since twenty seventeen. Dak is the fifth best quarterback in NFL history against his own division. Last year, Dak hung forty on Philadelphia in a game Jalen Hurts wasn't playing. But Jalen Hurts doesn't play defense that Philadelphia secondary. Last week, let Taylor Heinike, I'm sorry, let Sam Howell look like a star. For all those reasons, I think Dallas absolutely can win this game, and I'm getting a full three points.
And Jalen Hurts is a little GIMPI which makes me question whether or not they're gonna be as gung ho on running the Brotherly shove, which has been such a valuable weapon for them. And listen, Dak is a twenty five and ten in his career against the spread in the NFC East. Dak is eight and three in his career against the spread and straight up against the Eagles. And Dak's never lost to Nick Sirianni for three and oh against the spread against Sirianni, And yeah, three and
oh straight up. For all those reasons, I like Dallas plus the three points.
Next, Chargers minus three and a half at the Jets. Yeah.
I think the Jets performance last week was one of the worst performances in a win I've ever seen. I understand they got the win against the Giants, that was a truly pathetic performance on all fronts. And if I know anything about the Chargers, what the Chargers will do is beat the Jets and look impressive, only to have everyone be like, oh, did we write off the Chargers
too soon? Only to then have the Lions absolutely annihilate them next week in Los Angeles, and so the Chargers laying less than a field goal on and by the way, Zack Wilson has pretty quickly gone right back to being Zach Wilson. I know we gave him his flowers for you know, acquitting himself decently against the Chiefs. Since then, he's he has a seventy five rating, one touchdown, one pick in three weeks of football. Remarkably, the team is three to zero in those games. I do not think
I think that is sustainable. I will admit I don't love laying the extra half point here. And it's the Chargers going cross country. I understand all of that. But Zach Wilson on National TV, I think this is gonna be one of those games that the Chargers pass rush gets home and gets to him. That Jets offensive line has not been good. The Jets are one and fourteen straight up in home night games since twenty eighteen, and
you give Robert Salah extra rest, it's not good. He's O four and one against the spread in that spot. And Herbert's actually pretty damn good at night nine and six against the spread. For all those reasons, I like the Chargers in this spot, you seem quizzical, you seem questioning me.
There no charges minus three and a half. Rust the Jets, I definitely trust. But how do you feel about Zach Wilson having his best game against your defense? How you feel is that ud good for him?
If you want to question the Chiefs defense number two defense in league, allowing fifteen points per game, you can go ahead and have phone with that. Folks want me to be worried about the Chiefs. It's like there is whether it's on this show or the TV show, there is Like people act like my faith in the Chiefs is like a Cowboys fan faith in their team or something like it's out of nowhere. They have been the
best team in the league for a half decade. Now, they're the defending Super Bowl champs, they're the current one seed, and they have the best defense they've had for this team in twenty five years. I think the confidence is well founded, all right. Recap of the picks. Five picks for the week. Kansas City landa point and a half, Tampa plus three, Atlanta Lang four and a half, Dallas plus three, and the Chargers laying three and a half.
All Right, Demons. Last week, the teaser once again goes awry. Miami was a good leg, Minnesota was a good leg, and then the Rams just get their teeth kicked in. They're down thirty three to three at halftime. It's just a disaster.
It's I know. Now, that was like a fifteen point teaser, but there was probably like ten minutes total of that of that game where I was like, all right, we might cover give it a lot. Yeah, it gave them a lot of points, dude, but yeah, yeah, they got they got dominated.
All right, demonte can you explain this tweet from last night before you give your teaser?
Yeah, So I've got a gift for everybody I thought about deleting sweet the gifts. It's a winning teaser. Oh I got you got something. And like somebody came to me in my dream and told me that this is the right teaser. I had the chance to change this this morning. But this this teaser is gonna hit. It's a okay, the three, the three team seven pointer we got. Yeah, we're teasing Miami up to eight and a half. Okay, teasing this one. This It's gonna kill me if it
comes back to Byby. But there's just no way this Seattle plus twelve and a half versus the Ravens, and then the questionable leg Cleveland minus a half point. They're playing the Cardinals.
I don't think that's a question. I like Cleveland. I like Cleveland straight up to win against Clayton. Tune that defense against Clayton. Tune in Arizona. I like that leg. I the I demonse. I'm not trying to talk you out anything. Didn't you lose a teaser two weeks ago.
Because you've faded the didn't believe in the Ravens? Yeah, yeah I did.
I did, and now you're and now you're doing it again.
Yeah, no, I'm last time it was what was it Ravens was Ravens Lions.
Yeah, It's just.
I just don't I don't see I don't see Seahawks losing this game by more than ten points. I mean, I just I think they'll be able to hang in to I trust it, I trust it. I think the are a good team. I think the Ravens are really good and I think, and honestly it's my team. I think they're on a little bit of a high right now. It's a little bit right now.
Here's a bright side. Here's a bright side for it. Well, yeah, the hot team corollary maybe applies to the Ravens. Now here's a bright side for you. When the Chiefs blow out the Dolphins and this teasers dead before you wake up on Sunday morning on the West Coast, you'll have enough time to put in a fresh one once. Like at least it won't be like the Dallas game where it's the last leg of your teaser and you're like, damn it, I don't even have time. You'll be able
to put in a fresh one. When the Chiefs beat the Dolphins thirty one to seventeen. All right, what's the offer this week?
Oh?
And I give this teaser is a seat? I give it a seat. He's going against his team, he's going against my team. I give it a seat. All right, what's the offer?
All right? For today's offer, we're gonna head over to Germany in a fade a former chief We're calling this one. Tyreek plays his brought worst. I want to broadsworst right now. Tyreek hill under under ninety one and a half yards, plus under six and a half receptions at plus one forty four.
I'm gonna decline the offer because there's just not enough value there the idea. And I understand those two things seem correlated, like, oh, if he goes under one, he'll go under the other. But I don't know that that's true. I think you could hold Tyreek to four catches and he could have one hundred and ten yards if he
breaks one. I also think there's a scenario where the Chiefs, because they're a great tackling team, rally and tackle and cloud coverage Tyreek and he could have eight catches and not hit ninety yards. So I know I'm gonna decline this offer. I will. We will take a very quick break, come back, answer a few questions before we go, because this show's gone too long. Quick break, right back, what's right?
All right? Welcome back. In What's Drive with Nick Wright Episode one ninety demons read us some of these listener questions and comments.
All right, Dussy said, this is one take I've always agreed with Nick on awful movie all about Top Gun.
Yeah, I just didn't quite get it. I didn't get it all right.
Next one, Colin Nincher asked, overreact and go all in on Little Levis tonight or fade the rookie in his second start against a sad defensive secondary.
No, I'm gonna I'm staying away from this game. It's it's Titan Steelers, it's two of the best coaches against the spread the I'm just staying away. I would say, you know what, keep your powder dry. You don't have to bet every game, all right.
Next talking, Cordon oh Finley said, my Seahawks are poised to make a playoff push, but you ranked them in the next year category on the TV show yesterday. What needs to improve? What needs to proved to move them into the contention this year?
Well, I listen, I think they are fringe contenders. I think the problem is I just think they are such a young o line in defense that they need another year. I believe in their coach, I believe in their quarterback, and I like their weapons, but I think they're probably a year away, all right.
Next, Kigaboo Slide asked how does trading for Josh Dobbs snuff out any chance of the Vikings getting a draft pick getting them a real contingency plan at quarterback?
Well, listen, I think that the Vikings are gonna try to find a way to sneak into the playoffs. And the fact of the matter is, you have four wins. You weren't gonna you already weren't gonna get one of the top three quarterbacks in this year's draft, so you're not like a tank eligible team, and you want to kind of keep the some positive momentum going that you built up over the next year.
All right, next this one, I think we might have answered, Austin R. Said, with the hot team losing every week? Sorry, Chiefs, what is this week's hot team that is destined to lose by this new trend this week?
Well, the hot team the team of the longest winning treats the Jags, but they're on a buy so they maybe have avoided it. Baltimore would be a prime candidate. But the other one would be Philly, which is a top every team's power rankings right now, is the only one loss team left and they're playing you know, they've got a brutal game against Dallas. The shocking loss would be Baltimore. If Baltimore found a way to lose, I guess that wouldn't be shocking because they're playing a good
team in Seattle. But that would be the probably more surprising than Philadelphia. But I think Philadelphia is the answer to that question. All right, de Mon's a great job today. I gotta go. We're running late. See you guys on TV at three o'clock. See on Tuesday on the show What's Right.