2025 Week 13 Recap: The Broncos Survive, The Panthers Won't Die and the AFC South is ALIVE

1 Dec 2025 · 1 h 39 min · 48 chapters

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In short

Week 13 NFL recap focused on major upsets and the playoff race, especially the Panthers’ win over the Rams and the AFC South tightening after Texans-Jaguars-Colts results; also includes Bills-Steelers and AFC/NFC North implications.

Guests (hosts/participants)

The episode is a panel-style recap with multiple hosts/analysts (names not provided in the transcript). Notable quoted contributors include “Robert Mays” (writer) and “Steve Smith Sr.” (mentioned as a broadcaster reference), plus “Mike Tomlin” (postgame quote) and “Liam Cohen,” “D’Amico Ryans,” “Sean McVay,” and “Josh Hines-Allen” (discussed via game context/quotes).

Key claims

  1. Bryce Young was “selectively elite,” especially on 4th down, leading Carolina to a 31-28 upset of the Rams.
  2. Panthers are a “spoiler team,” built to capitalize on opponents’ mistakes/chaos.
  3. Texans look “normal” on offense and can run out games; they’re closing the AFC South gap.
  4. Jaguars’ win over Titans was driven by defense and playmaking (Jacoby Myers chemistry).
  5. Bills dominated Steelers on the ground; Josh Allen set a rushing TD record (76).

Notable examples

  • Panthers: 4th-down TDs to T. McMillan and Jalen Coker; two pick-sixes by Carolina (Nick Scott, Mike Jackson).
  • Texans-Colts: Nico Collins TD; late-game ball-control run by Woody Marks.
  • Jaguars-Titans: Jacoby Myers in-breaker/“ghost route” TD; Josh Hines-Allen 7 pressures, 2 sacks.
  • Bills-Steelers: Benford scoop-and-score; Benford interception; Steelers fans booed “Renegade.”

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Chapters

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Carolina Panthers' Upset Victory

0:56 to 2:22

Discussion on the Panthers' surprising win against the Rams.

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Carolina Panthers' Upset Victory

3:42 to 4:28

Discussion on the Panthers' surprising win against the Rams.

“When you're looking for some of the most compelling football in the NFL.”

Bryce Young's Performance Analysis

4:28 to 5:24

Analyzing Bryce Young's pivotal plays during the game.

“Rams crowd the line of scrimmage with a one high safety look.”

Matthew Stafford's Struggles

5:24 to 8:07

Exploring Matthew Stafford's challenges during the game.

“Patrick, we have called Bryce Young on this show selectively elite.”

Game Dynamics and Strategy

8:07 to 9:18

Discussion on game strategies and pivotal moments that influenced the outcome.

“But yeah, the invincibility that they had in the first quarters of games after that first touchdown, they had outscored opponents 70 to three in the first quarters of these games.”

Panthers' Defensive Strategy

9:18 to 14:00

Analyzing how the Panthers' defense capitalized on Rams' mistakes.

“And that's why I've called them the spoiler team all year because they've happily played that to teams that are dramatically favored to win.”

Panthers Exploit Margins in Win

14:00 to 16:57

Discussion on the Panthers' strategic plays and their performance against the Rams.

“All week, y 'all just kept talking about how great he is and how, like, he was Superman with no cape.”

Texans' Rise in the AFC South

16:58 to 19:36

Analysis of the Texans' victory over the Colts and implications for the AFC South.

“Let's go to Indianapolis with one of the biggest games left on the schedule in the AFC South.”

Injuries Impacting Performance

19:37 to 21:53

Discussion on key injuries affecting player performances and team dynamics.

“Yeah, injuries are such a big part of this game.”

Daniel Jones' Performance Under Pressure

21:54 to 24:10

Examination of Daniel Jones' performance despite playing with a broken leg.

“I think the Texans secondary and their defense played just as well as they did against Buffalo.”
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Texans and Colts Missed Opportunities

24:11 to 26:16

Analysis of critical plays and missed chances by the Texans and Colts in their matchup.

“And he did kind of walk into a couple of the sacks today.”

Jaguars' Dominance Over Titans

26:17 to 28:00

Recap of the Jaguars' strong performance against the Titans and player highlights.

“And that opened up the door for the Jacksonville Jaguars to enter a three team race.”

Titans vs. Jaguars: A Game of Missed Opportunities

28:00 to 29:26

A recap of the Titans' struggles against the Jaguars, highlighting key moments.

“who Trevor Lawrence clearly is gaining such a rapport with.”

Jaguars' Offensive Challenges and Defensive Resilience

29:26 to 33:34

Discussion about the Jaguars' inconsistent offense and resilient defense in their recent game.

“That's two times in three weeks, including the Chargers game, where the Jaguars defense essentially just won the game by themselves.”

Upcoming Challenges for the Jaguars

33:34 to 36:26

Analyzing the Jaguars' position in the division and their upcoming matchups.

“For the rest of the way, we're giving ourselves an opportunity to play meaningful games in November and December, and that's ultimately all you can ask for in this league.”

Upcoming Challenges for the Jaguars

37:53 to 39:14

Analyzing the Jaguars' position in the division and their upcoming matchups.

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Bills Dominate Steelers: A Recap

39:53 to 42:05

A recap of the Bills' victory over the Steelers, including key plays and player performances.

“Allen in the shotgun here with Ty Johnson to his right on third and goal from the eight.”

Steelers vs. Bills: An Ugly Game Overview

42:05 to 44:12

A recap of the Steelers vs. Bills game highlighting key plays and struggles.

“James Cook actually fumbles the ball and the Steelers turn that shorter field into a touchdown by Jalen Warren.”

Aaron Rodgers' Injury and Its Impact

44:12 to 48:22

Discussion of Aaron Rodgers' injury and the subsequent struggles of the Steelers offense.

“He seemed like a happy as a pig in poop.”

Analysis of the Seahawks' Defensive Performance

48:22 to 53:12

A breakdown of the Seahawks' defense and the challenges faced by the Vikings offense.

“They couldn't get anything done really in the passing game.”

Sam Darnold's Struggles and Future Prospects

53:12 to 56:00

Examining Sam Darnold's performance and the implications for his career moving forward.

“The Seattle Seahawks defense became the first defense to intercept a quarterback four times in a game since.”

Quarterback Conversations: Darnold and McCarthy

56:00 to 57:26

Discussion about the quarterback situation, focusing on Sam Darnold and potential alternatives.

“specifically of the quarterback, undrafted free agent quarterback, making his very first start probably hasn't gotten, I know this has been a huge topic of conversation everywhere around the league.”

Buccaneers vs. Cardinals Recap

57:26 to 58:59

Analysis of the Buccaneers' narrow victory over the Cardinals and their performance.

“Seahawks now tied for the Rams atop the NFC West.”

Key Moments in the Buccaneers' Victory

58:59 to 1:00:56

Highlighting crucial plays and player performances in the Buccaneers' win.

“And Jacoby Brissett just flat out misses the throw over the middle.”

Cardinals' Missed Opportunities

1:00:56 to 1:04:06

Examining the missed chances and mistakes made by the Cardinals in close games.

“And then Todd Bowles actually opts to go for it on the fourth and two.”

Dolphins vs. Saints: Game Highlights

1:04:06 to 1:08:24

Overview of the Dolphins' game against the Saints, including key plays and performances.

“The pass rush pressure was great, though, with Redick back.”

Tyler Shuck and Dolphins' Performance Insights

1:08:24 to 1:10:03

Discussion on Tyler Shuck's performance and the implications for the Dolphins' season.

“Like, I think we a couple of weeks ago, we were excited about the potential for messy fun from this Dolphins team.”

AFC East Insights and Game Highlights

1:10:03 to 1:18:44

The hosts discuss recent performances in the AFC East, including player highlights and team dynamics.

“because Tyler Shuck making plays looking athletic when he gets outside of the pocket as well Yeah.”

AFC East Insights and Game Highlights

1:18:52 to 1:20:16

The hosts discuss recent performances in the AFC East, including player highlights and team dynamics.

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49ers Performance and Player Analysis

1:20:16 to 1:21:42

Analysis of the 49ers game, focusing on Brock Purdy's performance and team strategy.

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49ers Performance and Player Analysis

1:22:21 to 1:24:00

Analysis of the 49ers game, focusing on Brock Purdy's performance and team strategy.

“Purdy's in the shotgun with McCaffrey to his left.”

Niners' Strong Performance Against the Browns

1:24:00 to 1:25:14

An analysis of the 49ers' successful game against the Browns and quarterback performance.

“in his progression and not just, you know, doing what he did against Carolina.”

Quarterback Performance and Injuries

1:25:14 to 1:26:21

Discussion on the quarterback's performance, challenges faced, and notable injuries in the game.

“This offense is just, again, it has such a low ceiling.”

Controversial Trash Talk and Injury Reaction

1:26:21 to 1:27:43

Exploration of a controversial moment involving trash talk after a player's injury.

“But I don't respect it because you say that, then run behind your O-line.”

Myles Garrett's Impressive Performance

1:27:43 to 1:29:04

Highlighting Myles Garrett's performance and tracking his sack record.

“So we're watching Myles Garrett each and every week.”

Chargers' Running Game and Herbert's Injury

1:29:04 to 1:30:19

Review of the Chargers' game and the impact of Justin Herbert's injury on their performance.

“We'll be we'll be tracking this in the coming weeks.”

Herbert's Injury Update and Game Performance

1:30:19 to 1:31:40

Discussion on Herbert's hand injury and how it affected his performance during the game.

“Kind of a what's your deal touchdown by Jim Harbaugh.”

Evaluating the Chargers' Victory Over the Raiders

1:31:40 to 1:34:14

Analysis of the Chargers' game against the Raiders and their performance metrics.

“I don't know what was going on with Aaron Rogers.”

Geno Smith and Offensive Line Struggles

1:34:14 to 1:35:38

Discussion on Geno Smith's performance and the struggles of the offensive line for the Raiders.

“Like they've won two games, but they're just brutal.”

Brock Bowers' Impressive Skills

1:35:38 to 1:36:42

Highlighting Brock Bowers' remarkable plays and showcasing his talent.

“Unfortunately, that's the company that Geno Smith and this team is keeping.”

Broncos' Dramatic Victory Over Commanders

1:36:42 to 1:38:01

Recapping the Broncos' thrilling win against the Commanders in a close overtime game.

“Gino somehow only had five incompletions and yet they absolutely got manhandled.”

Broncos vs. Commanders: Thrilling Finish

1:38:01 to 1:40:18

Explore the dramatic ending of the Broncos vs. Commanders game, including key plays and officiating decisions.

“The Commanders were ready for this game, and yet they've lost seven straight.”

Overtime Drama: Key Moments

1:40:19 to 1:43:04

Delve into the critical overtime moments that defined the game's outcome and the players' performances.

“It was the anti-Bo Nix game because the first three quarters, he was good.”

Marcus Mariota's Performance

1:43:05 to 1:45:00

Discuss the ups and downs of Marcus Mariota's performance and the emotional impact of the game on him.

“to win the game swatted away by Nick Benito, one of the most underrated players who's just had a hell of an 18 months in the NFL.”

Outstanding Catches and Player Highlights

1:45:01 to 1:47:35

Highlight the remarkable catches made during the game and the standout performances of key players.

“And it was the old guy showing up for the commanders.”

Broncos' Season Outlook

1:47:36 to 1:51:21

Evaluate the Broncos' recent performances and discuss their potential for the rest of the season.

“I mean, the Broncos, I don't know what to think about this team, but I did just want to give a shout out to Riley Moss.”

Broncos' Season Outlook

1:51:38 to 1:52:50

Evaluate the Broncos' recent performances and discuss their potential for the rest of the season.

“or some adults with overweight who also have weight-related medical problems to lose excess body weight and keep the weight off.”

Broncos' Season Outlook

1:54:11 to 1:54:42

Evaluate the Broncos' recent performances and discuss their potential for the rest of the season.

“You could literally be adored by everyone and then come home and still get completely ignored by your own cat.”
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Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

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3:42When you're looking for some of the most compelling football in the NFL. And you find it. You find it right there. We're folks that kind of written it off. I, myself, you know, made a couple picks against the NFC South on the course of the day. And I got them wrong. And I'm excited that I got them wrong.

3:59Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah. I mean, we got some upsets, you know. Yeah. We had a lot of doubt. I mean, at the Carolina Panthers, we're a real team. And we'll start there. Because this was a table setting type of day. I know we already had Thanksgiving this week. But this wasn't a day I think that like changed everything. The biggest games happened this week. But what happened, especially in Carolina, I think sets up how the rest of the races in the NFC at the top and then certainly in the NFC South go the rest of the way. Nobody in the NFL has more fourth down conversions than the Panthers. It's fourth and two from the L.A.

4:3343. Rams crowd the line of scrimmage with a one high safety look. Bryce off play action. Has time in the pocket. Throws downfield for McMillan. makes the catch of the 20. He's got the 10, the 5. Touchdown, T-Mac. Touchdown, Carolina. And the Panthers take the lead with 634 to go. Oh, Niestroff on WRFX. If it's fourth down, it's Bryce Young time. Two fourth down touchdowns on this day. Also had one to Jalen Coker. And the Carolina Panthers pull off one of the biggest upsets of the year. 31 to 28 over the Los Angeles Rams. Panthers to 7 and 6. The Rams fall out of that number one seed. Now at 9 and 3.

5:27Patrick, we have called Bryce Young on this show selectively elite. I want to find whoever wrote that on Twitter because I want to thank her.

5:36Jourdan Rodrigue:Wordsmith. today he's selected to be elite yeah he was he was great especially in third and fourth down where he was eight of ten through the air including that fourth down two of his touchdown passes came today on fourth down and the one that was ultimately the game winner to Ted Arroa McMillan but the game starts and it feels like a regular old Rams game to the extent where the Rams are running the play that they've scored almost all of their touchdowns on where Devontae Adams is lined out wide to Matthew Stafford's right and they're 13 personnel there's three tight ends over on that side of the ball and Mike Jackson they're playing with no JC Horn today which of course you're playing against Puka Nakua and Devontae Adams that's already a situation they give Devontae the inside release and Stafford's like okay he throws a little pass that's kind of low in a way and Devontae is able to catch it that was the 28th Matthew Stafford touchdown pass without an interception yay celebrate ball goes to Canton Tom Brady coming out of Canton and then hilarity will ensue for Matthew Stafford after that.

6:38But you think it's standard Rams. But no, Bryce comes out. They have a nice drive. Chuba Hubbard out snapped Rico Dowdle 20 to 48. I mean, excuse me, 40 to 28 in this game. A lot of Chuba Hubbard, even in the carries, but more work in the pass game. And he got a 30 yard swing pass touchdown from Bryce to tie it at seven. And so the Rams come screaming right back down the field. They get everything they want because Parkinson gets an inside release. But Derek Brown hits the football with his helmet and Nick Scott picks it off.

7:08Jourdan Rodrigue:Former Ram Nick Scott picks it off. Oh, Nick Scott in the revenge game. I will note, which I forgot. But Jordan, thank you for that. And so then the Rams get the ball back. Matthew Stafford is looking towards Puka Nakua. You know, I'm doing this on Game Day Live. Steve Smith Sr. having to weigh his allegiances because Steve Smith loves being a wide receiver. He also loves the Carolina Panthers. Mike Jackson got very physical with Puka Nakua at the top of the route, able to pick the ball off and take it all the way back for six. Backing down and 10 from the shotgun. Play clock at four at three.

7:43Chest high snap. Four man rush. Quick throw. Nearside. Picked again. Mike Jack down the right sideline. Scorton throws a block on Stafford. Jackson takes it in for a pick six. Oh, this is the moment, Jordan, I think, where not only we realized that your premonition of doom for Stafford and the Rams could really be in trouble in this game. But yeah, the invincibility that they had in the first quarters of games after that first touchdown, they had outscored opponents 70 to three in the first quarters of these games. And then for the Panthers offense and defense to respond so quickly, you did have a feeling that they were going to be in for a back and forth game.

8:23And that's what they got.

8:24Jourdan Rodrigue:Yes, and you guys will recall on the preview show, we talked about how, yes, Matthew Stafford is gunning for this record here. Once he broke the record, all hell and dark chaos returned to the universe as the universe set about balancing itself back out because it wasn't just the two interceptions. It was also at the worst possible time, Los Angeles gets their first penalty of the game on third and five inside the red zone, down three points to the Carolina Panthers. and then that sets up a third and 10, which then sets up a sack on Matthew Stafford. Derek Brown had an incredible game and then forced a fumble.

9:02Jourdan Rodrigue:He kind of just dribbled out of his hands. He could see it happening almost in slow motion as it's happening. You could see it all over his face. And this is that comes at the exact worst time Matthew Stafford game that the Sears foretold. Like this always happens. The dark chaos at some point during the season happens in credit to the Carolina Panthers because they are a team that as much as they're trying to figure out what their actual identity long-term now is and will be, and they're pushing for the playoffs at this point, but this team is perfectly built to capitalize off of somebody else's self-inflicted mistakes or somebody else's chaos.

9:43Jourdan Rodrigue:And that's why I've called them the spoiler team all year because they've happily played that to teams that are dramatically favored to win. They're so weird. And your colleague, Robert Mays, wrote a very succinct summary of the Panthers that I couldn't top. So he points out the Rams have lost. I mean, the Panthers have lost to the Saints. They've lost two games by 25 points or more. They've scored 13 or fewer points six times this year. But they've also had a 30 to nothing blowout win when wins over the Rams and the Packers. I mean, this is just a team you don't know what you're going to get on a week to week basis.

10:17but you get a great effort every once in a while. And for them to have a winning record, I don't blame Dave Canals one bit for Peacock and a little bit after the game. Really, the challenge was for the guys, you know, and Saturday night just saying, you know, we have seen the Rams' best football and they've been playing amazing. And I said, no one's seen our best yet. Ooh, I like a little spicy Dave Canals. I don't know if it's spicy about the Rams. It's just noting to the fact to his team and to everybody else that there's room for them to grow um and we saw it we saw it today of course you you know we we've already seen and heard the fourth down completion uh to tetherola mcmillan a rough day for emmanuel forbes because jalen coker also got him uh on a deep touchdown pass from bryce where it just went past as outstretched hand and canales kind of got um sean mcveigh in a situation where i want to get y 'all's opinion because there is after the derrick brown great play to get the ball back from matthew Stafford that the Rams actually can stop the clock and get the ball back and you're coming up to the two-minute warning there is a there's a run by Rico Dowdle gets stopped doesn't quite get there Sean Gavey calls the timeout on that side of the two-minute warning with two minutes and 17 seconds to go in the ball game which to me kind of frees up the the opportunity for the Panthers to pass setting up a Bryce Young to Coker pass that essentially ends the game and I'm wondering is it really worth the 17 seconds in that situation uh to to call the time out on that side of the two minute i do not have a strong take on this one i always debate this one uh of when to use that last time i think the book would tell you to do it how mcveigh does it for some reason uh but i i put it more on the execution that like bryce young is able to do that in that moment the rams defense isn't able to get home in that moment they did not have a high pressure rate today.

12:13I think on that play, if I'm correct, and definitely a lot of these fourth down plays, like he's unbothered. And so I guess I put it more on just like they were better today. And Emmanuel Forbes, who's had this great season is on the wrong end of both of those fourth down, like long touchdowns.

12:28Jourdan Rodrigue:I think if it were me, I probably would have waited. I would have used the two minute. Obviously I would try to get them to run a play ahead of the two minute. And then I would have used the two minute as my own, like an extra timeout because, um, you know, they had already taken the delay penalty. Sean McVay goes back and forth all the time with his game management people about, you know, I don't care if you take a delay, you cannot burn a timeout when you might need it at the end of the game. This game, they did both. And that's, that's a double negative that does not make a positive in my opinion.

12:56Jourdan Rodrigue:And so I think they would have liked to have that, especially on that. What was it that third down and it's a pass play and the coverage is pretty soft in the middle and Bryce Young executes the perfect play, the perfect throw to keep the clock running and essentially ice out the game. I think a lot of the times the Rams seem to be expecting the Panthers to run to do those types of things, but Bryce Young was making great throws all day. You heard it on the touchdown. That's a single high safety look. And Emmanuel Forbes was talking about how they ran coast to coast on him. So they, they basically swapped assignments, um, or had They moved Teddero McMillan within the stack to where he basically swaps assignments all the way across the stack going coast to coast, which means that that's a confusing thing for a corner, but still a play that you need to make.

13:42Jourdan Rodrigue:You can't leave them all alone back there. And so I think when you go up against a team where you're not expecting, clearly this Rams team is not expecting to have to win in the margins the way that they ultimately had to do. And that's what happens when your quarterback turns the ball over three times and the defense doesn't play up to par. then yeah and and like compliments to the panthers because they exploited those margins they managed the clock really well at the end of the game yeah and they didn't exactly steal this game the panthers like i do feel like some of the other close wins like the packers win it's like they they almost snuck out of there and i get that they did have a three to nothing like turnover advantage in this game but they made they made those plays yeah that's what i said and and the design success rate like for both teams was about 50 50 you know maybe sean mcveigh wishes in the end like he called a few more runs because they were running whenever they wanted to they had a 70 success rate on the ground and over seven yards per carry but ultimately like both sides of the ball uh were doing great for the panthers offensively and then making enough plays on defense let's listen to uh mike jackson after the game uh talking about playing against matthew stafford what was the difference We just came to play today.

14:55All week, y 'all just kept talking about how great he is and how, like, he was Superman with no cape. It was just like, at the end of the day, it's about who's better today. And we were. We got the ball out twice, what, three times. So we got the result that we want. Because y 'all was just acting like the man. Don't get me wrong, he's a Hall of Famer. When he's having his Hall of Fame speech, I'm going to be thinking about this pick. So he's great. But at the end of the day, like, it's about who's better that day.

15:19Jourdan Rodrigue:I love that. I do, too. And I love that they are writing themselves into this season as a real deal part of it. And look, no loss is good. It is a conference loss. To me, the rest of the Rams regular season mostly came down to the Seahawks game. And if you want to add to it, the Seahawks and Lions game, it now really just comes down to the Seahawks game. It's still the same. Everything's still right in front of them at 9-3. If you were going to lose a game, maybe this wakes them up a little bit. And the Bears had a great weekend. Yes, they did. Now, now one in the NFC. And if you're going to lose a game, at least maybe put together one of the plays of the year.

16:02We can't leave this game without at least listening to the call. I have not heard this yet. But Puka Nakua just went crazy on that one handed catch. Stafford set up in the shotgun. Panthers creaking. Here comes the blitz. It's picked up. The throw goes left. It's Nakua. Oh, my goodness. Stabs it with the right hand. Pulls it in at the 10. the catch of the season for Puka Nakua. You can't be serious. First and goal Rams at the eight. He goes over the shoulder of the corner. Mike Jackson, who had inside leverage. Puka stumbles. He mitts it and he pulls it to his rib cage. You will not see a better one than that.

16:47Absolutely electric by Puka Nakua. and by J.B. Long, for that matter, on a losing effort there by the Rams. Okay, so that's the NFC South. The Panthers are staying in the mix. Let's go to Indianapolis with one of the biggest games left on the schedule in the AFC South. First to goal at the 7th, straddle the gun. Marks to his left, bunch formation left. CJ takes the snap. And they hand it to Nico on the end around. Running left, Nico to the goal line. He's got it! Nico takes it in for 6. From the seven. That was Nico Collins, one of many key rushing plays by the Houston Texans on a day where they not only went into Indianapolis and won the game for maybe the third or fourth straight week, they look kind of normal on offense.

17:40Like normal enough. That's all we've been asking for because normal plus this defense possibly means an AFC South championship. I mean, they're only one game back. This division is looking awfully different. That was Mark Vandermeer on K-I-L-T. And yeah, that was my big takeaway from the game. We'll get to the defense. But I think when you think about these two teams going up against each other, first of all, D 'Amico Ryans is now 4-1 versus Shane Steichen. Kind of owns him in the division. And the Texans defense, they got their stop at the end when they needed to. But what really stuck out to me was the Texans get the ball back with plenty of time.

18:21You thought maybe Indianapolis will get one more chance to do it, but they don't. Because Woody Marks and the Texans did something fantastic. They just ran the ball to win the game. Second down and eight from the Houston 33-yard line. C.J. Stroud under center. Woody Marks in the backfield. Stroud hands off to Marks. Running left. Marks taking the ball across the 40. Marks close to a first down. And he's got the first down at the Houston 42-yard line. Nothing crazy there, but one of my favorite plays of the year, that they're just lining it up and they're getting the win. And you had the entire Texans offense signaling first down all at the same time.

19:00Jourdan Rodrigue:I always knew when that happened. Yeah, all in unison. It's like, you know, the folks think that there's a, you know, we're all living in a simulation. They get the ammo there. I'm just, it's sad to learn that Daniel Jones is doing all of this on a broken leg. We can say, like, you can use all the technical terms. Like, he's playing with a broken leg. And, like, I feel upset not having full awareness of this in previous weeks and talking about him looking clunky, running the ball. Yeah, his leg is broken. He only completed 51 % of his passes where they had opportunities. They did some weird stuff on offense in this game that probably cost them the game.

19:39Yeah, injuries are such a big part of this game. First, that Daniel Jones injury that he's playing through that we learn more about during the week. Then Sauce Gardner leaves with a calf injury. He says after the game, he does not believe it's an Achilles injury. He felt like it was like a shot, which does not sound good. But he was standing in the locker room and walking around afterwards. And Tom Pelissero reports they don't believe it's going to be like an overly serious injury. Now, what that means, I don't know. It still could be multiple weeks, but it doesn't appear to be an Achilles. But I got to say, Patrick, as ready as I was to talk about how clunky Daniel Jones looked, because early the pressure is all over him.

20:18He played great today. He had so many third and long completions. And even when he hits on a third and long and then there's a bad penalty, takes it over. He still gets the first down on a long throw to Alec Pierce. Like he was not on the list of reasons. I think that the Colts lost this game.

20:35Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah, he was pressured on just 30 % of his dropbacks, which with this Houston Texans front, I guess is a little surprising how you would think it would be at least 10 % higher than that over the course of the game. But he played a clean game against pressure, which I think is the most important. He didn't take a lot of negative plays or make a lot of negative plays or turn the ball over, fumble the ball, anything like that against pressure. No, no touchdowns and only 52 yards when he was pressured today. but like I said he didn't play like it and he was more likely to sort of dirt the ball or just take the incomplete pass versus make some catastrophic mistake.

21:14Jourdan Rodrigue:This Sunday morning Adam Schefter was on ESPN talking about how they're not worried about the forward and backward movement because of the fracture and broken leg essentially. They're worried about the lateral movement. I'm like that's half the movement. Yeah that's It's a significant. You could absolutely see it. 50 % of all the movement. You could absolutely see it. Cause when the pressure was getting on him quickly, and I didn't think the interior offensive line for the Colts played that well in this game, then he basically had no hope, but yeah, I'd go a step further. Like the completions that he was making in the second half of this game to Josh Downs over and over the touchdown that he had to Alec Pierce, Pierce skied for another one.

21:58I think the Texans secondary and their defense played just as well as they did against Buffalo. But he's just completing very difficult throws in the second half of this game to really talented receiver. I mean, your guys, Alec Pierce. Yeah, he's got better targets to work with. Like, like, like I was like, where is Derek Stingley in this game? I go back and look. He had one target against him. So it's like the best matchup you can find is Alec Pierce on Kamari Lassiter, like just getting in there right before like Bullock gets there and Jalen Petrie had a game. This defense is just great. And so it takes great offense to beat them.

22:32And I think it was just a good game up in the second half. But the biggest difference to me is the Colts defense just can't get off the field. Ultimately, the Texans had the more consistent offense today. They had 24 first downs like their success rate was high. They were the ones that were variables, negative plays. CJ Stroud missed some throws, some big mistakes, but more than not, they were moving the chains on the ground and with C.J. Stroud, especially in the second half of this game, he kind of looked like the C.J. Stroud you want him to look like.

22:59Jourdan Rodrigue:And remember what we said about what this less so Ramsey kind of offense was going to look like or Shanahan-y kind of offense was going to look like more so attempting to look a little bit more patrioty. Now, I'm not making a statement saying they're there yet by any means, but in terms of the short throws on attempts under 10 air yards per next gen. CJ Stroud was 16 of 19 for 162 yards. So that made such a significant difference, not just in the overall production. And like you said, being able to stay on the field and just eat away underneath that defense in bits and pieces, but also to stay ahead of the sticks, to be as efficient, more efficient versus feast or famine plays, trying to press to make too hard to make a play, especially when sauce Gardner, unfortunately leaves the game, this offense recognized that it had an opportunity to just chip and piece away and salt away at this defense.

23:51And he had a ball sale on him for an interception. His pocket presence, I would say, was very erratic. Like sometimes it was OK, but they actually mentioned how he said J.J. Watt on the call said this, how he's like, yeah, I got to get used to like having a good pocket. I'm so used to in practice. Just imagine the Texans defense in practice against that offensive line. I'm so used to in practice having to get rid of it so fast. And he did kind of walk into a couple of the sacks today. But once he calmed down in the second half, he made some good throws to Nico, who almost went for 100. He made some good throws to Higgins and Schultz.

24:22And he played a good enough game. And they're all the way back. I mean, they're one game back in this division. And they are, what are they now, 7-5 after an 0-3 start. Yeah, with the Jags and Colts, where you're looking at the AFC South and you had this look of suspicion, you know, like we noted at the top of the show. But do not be suspicious. The turnover festival that happened, though, on back-to-back plays where you mentioned, you know, CJ airmails one to Xavier Hutchinson. Cam Bynum picks it off and looks like he felt like he had a team celebration planned, but the rest of the Colts were not aware of his planned team celebration.

24:58So it was a dance where one man just had a big audience. But the play before that, the Colts have a fourth and one from the nine yard line. I initially watching thought that they threw a bounce pass to Jonathan Taylor. I'm like, wow, that's a great idea. It's very dangerous. No, the tight end direct snap, which I've celebrated with Mark Andrews, went over three league wide today. And this was probably the biggest failure because the Colts had a scoring opportunity. I recognize they get the Alex Pierce. Yeah. Alex Pierce touchdown like a couple of minutes later. But this was a scoring opportunity that they completely missed because the snap exchange was bad.

25:31And Daniel Jones, not that they didn't do that a little bit before anyways, but Daniel Jones is not an option anymore to sneak. It does limit them.

Read the full transcript

25:39Jourdan Rodrigue:Broken leg. Yeah. Yeah, like play football with a broken digital version of Greg Jennings. I mean, that's the thing is like the Texan, you know, it wouldn't be a Texans game without three times in the first quarter. Their offensive line literally couldn't line up like two illegal formations and a timeout because they would have had one. They also gave the Colts that last chance to possibly win the game because they could not pick up a third and one or a fourth and one got stuffed two times in a row. So they're they're still the Texans. But ultimately, last couple of weeks, their defense has come through in that got to have it drive late in the game.

26:09And the Colts defense, I do think they're the weakness here in the NFC or the AFC South. They've been on the field for 161 plays over the last two weeks, 90 and then 71. They cannot get off the field. And that opened up the door for the Jacksonville Jaguars to enter a three team race. Third and goal Jags from the four yard line of Tennessee. Got a bunch to the left. Trevor drops. Fires middle of the field. That ball is going to be caught for the touchdown. Now Jacoby Myers in Jacksonville is in the end zone and has taken the lead. Great read by Trevor Lawrence. And, man, you talk about chemistry with Jacoby Myers.

26:47Before the game, they're working all the different plays, and it looked so routine on that play. It's a bunch to the left, three wide receivers. Jacoby runs a slow slant from the left side in, and Trevor makes a nice, accurate throw. Ooh-wee. That's an early highlight. First quarter, but that was all the Jaguars needed. They win 25-3 in Tennessee. That's Frank Frangie and Jeff Lagerman on WJXL. Jacoby Myers, always been a good player. In Las Vegas, you couldn't see the talents rise up. In Jacksonville, I mean, he might be like prime Chris Godwin or something. He is looking incredible.

27:26Jourdan Rodrigue:And what direction was he running on that touchdown, Patrick? It was a slip to the inside. To the inside. and that is crazy. That was just his second touchdown of the season, you guys. How bad did Jacoby Myers need to get out of Las Vegas? He's got back-to-back touchdowns in these games, and this is five catches, 82 yards, and a touchdown all on in-breaking routes, a.k.a. the ghost routes that Liam Cohen was desperately trying to force square pegs into round holes before they finally made a move for a receiver who Trevor Lawrence clearly is gaining such a rapport with. And then you can put other players in other areas to do other things like catch a crucial third and long like Brian Thomas Jr.

28:11Jourdan Rodrigue:did earlier in this game. I want to start with the Titans, guys, because this is probably all we'll talk about them. And this is the Titans in a nutshell. This game was actually a game for a hot second. The Titans could have made it actually a game versus the specter of one. They get to the Jacksonville 30-yard line with about 45 seconds left in the first half. And if they get a touchdown there, they're down only five points. Their defense was, yes, giving up volume in yards per play, but they were playing well versus Trevor Lawrence on pressure downs. He did start eight for 11 in this game, but in pressure downs, they really, they got to him a couple of times.

28:49Jourdan Rodrigue:And then they're in this position where they could potentially turn this into a competitive event. And Cam Ward misses two throws. They get a delay of game penalty in their own house. They pick up a few yards under what they need on a long third down, because apparently it is impossible to design a play at or beyond the sticks for this offense on third down. And then Tony Pollard drops the fourth and two pass from Cam Ward. The Jags get the ball back and they end up getting three points out of it. This was never a game. Once the Titans failed on that fourth and two, this was never again a game the entire time.

29:27That's two times in three weeks, including the Chargers game, where the Jaguars defense essentially just won the game by themselves. I know this is against the Titans, but it's a division win. You need it. And on a day where the Jaguars offense didn't go over 300 yards, the success rate's not particularly high. They couldn't run the ball. Their running game has been as inconsistent as their defense this season, maybe even more so, because sometimes it looks incredible, and sometimes it looks terrible. It does remind me of, you know, like that they're like a scheme slash game plan type of team.

30:05There are teams that pop up like this each year where it's like they got the right game plan on a given day. They look incredible, but sometimes it looks poor. But now they're finding at least one part of the team can step up in a given week. Yeah, ETN gets 2.3 yards of carry. Tootin comes up behind him at 2.1. Got a touchdown. Yeah, Tootin hives. He did get into the end zone, but it was a good Trev day. You know, not just the touchdown, and also the longest reception of Jacoby Myers' career came before that Jacoby Myers touchdown. So congratulations to him.

30:37Jourdan Rodrigue:Also an in-breaker, long in. 50 yards. Yeah, the removal of Jacoby Myers from Las Vegas. Great for Jacoby Myers. And a bonus for the Jacksonville Jaguars, where Brenton Strange also got an in-breaker on a touchdown where you'd see that go horribly wrong for the Jacksonville Jaguars. And again, we'll use the it's the Titans caveat. But considering the way things have gone this season, you have to think, hey, positive things, not just for the Jags, but the AFC South as well. Let's get three in there. Bretton Strange changes their offense to me. What did you think, Jordan, just watching with Brian Thomas back in the mix?

31:13Jourdan Rodrigue:Well, they're still trying to figure out like where everybody actually, like what their role is going to be. And remember you guys, like this is still going to be, we have to do this again. If you're the coaching staff, because you're trying to figure out also where Travis Hunter fits in. It's not just Breton strange who, yes, I do think is a, is a key element. He's like that, um, Liam Cohen and this coaching tree, they always want the, the one outlier tight end who can block well enough, but certainly presents a mismatch in the passing game who can align and change gaps for defenders. That's what this guy does, right?

31:45Jourdan Rodrigue:That's, that's all great. it's actually Jacoby Myers. I think it was helping them figure out what the identity for conceptually, specifically their passing game is. It's not doing much for them on the ground. They only had, you know, 70 rushing yards total today. I credit the Titans defense. They are not a good defense. Okay. But they are, they do not quit. They are not just creditable that we talked about, which is a word, but they're credible as a group. They play. Creditable and credible. They play hard. Like this had to be a Trevor Lawrence plays well through the air game and you would have expected this Jacksonville team to close this game out far, far earlier than they did, but they could not close it because they could not run the ball.

32:38Jourdan Rodrigue:And so this game just like it dragged on and on and on because of that reason. and I do think that it's Jacksonville will have to continue to figure out what its passing attack actually looks like. It's great that they've got two pieces in Jacoby Myers and in Brenton Strange who they can sort of move around the stack a little bit, sort of like they're orbiting in a solar system, if you're looking at the center as the literal center of the solar system, because those guys can move. The problem is they keep losing and adding different guys. Parker Washington left the game clutching. He just fell down on the field, clutching the right side of his abdomen.

33:16Jourdan Rodrigue:They called it a hip injury. They also lost another offensive lineman. Walker Little is in the concussion protocol. Might have had something to do with how poorly they ultimately ran the ball. They weren't having a lot of success beforehand. This team is still figuring itself out. They're kind of lucky, I think, to be where they're at in the division. They're 8-4! It's crazy. I love this division right now. Let's listen to Liam Cohen. Just one week at a time, 1-0. For the rest of the way, we're giving ourselves an opportunity to play meaningful games in November and December, and that's ultimately all you can ask for in this league.

33:53And the rest of the way, you've got competitive, meaningful football games, and I think that that's just an important thing for us to go through as a team in year one to have the opportunity to do those things and to earn that, I think is important for us to be able to continue to move forward as a team.

34:13Jourdan Rodrigue:What's also important is that when one phase of this offense shuts down completely at any given moment, the defense really steps up. And I want to shout out very quickly Josh Hines-Allen, who had seven pressures and two sacks, had an absolutely monster game. Yes, it was against the Titans, but still he has 33 sacks between weeks 9 and 13. The Jags were on their week 8 buys, so post-bye week, which is the best in the NFL per next gen. Five and a half sacks through that span as well. He's playing monster football. And almost all their games the rest of the year are at 1 p.m. Eastern. Like they are a candidate to get flecked somewhere.

34:46And, you know, it's too late for next week. But, you know, they have next week the Indianapolis Colts, a battle for first place. But you know who's in first place technically right now? Who's that? The Jacksonville Jaguars have already overtaken Indianapolis. It's going to be a fascinating end because they have the Colts twice. but they also have the Titans and the Jets and mixed in their games where they, you know, at home in Jacksonville where they'll be heavily favored. So it's kind of the schedule you want. And a big one against the Colts next week. Let's take a break. We will come back on the other side.

35:20I thought that Josh Allen versus Aaron Rogers would be in the a block, but do better, do better bills and Steelers, Steelers, especially.

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39:58Allen going to keep it. Going to look to bust it outside. Lowers the shoulder. The surge. Pushing him forward. progress. He's in for the touchdown. The Beast has been released as he goes eight yards for a touchdown. The Beast resides in Buffalo, and it made a trip to Pittsburgh to help embarrass the Steelers. 26-7 in a game where, yeah, they were just tougher than them on the ground. Once upon a time on the Around the NFL podcast, I made the worst comp ever saying Josh Allen could someday be a poor man's Cam Newton. Well, today he passed Cam Newton as the all-time NFL leader among quarterbacks with rushing touchdowns.

40:47That is 76 on the ground and typical of a day where Buffalo dominated on the ground.

40:56Jourdan Rodrigue:249 net rushing yards. I almost got to my 250 mark that I was just shouting across the newsroom with you guys that every after every you wanted it bad James Cook carry guys. This was a dismal dismal night for the Pittsburgh Steelers and for their fans on a night that these fans booed renegade when it played in the fourth quarter, which reporters who have been there forever say has never happened before. And you got to hear from Mike Tomlin postgame about that vibe. but did you have a sense for how restless and frustrated the crowd was today um I don't know how restless and frustrated I was and so I assume they were in the same state we were in and that's a NFL daily listener and my good friend Brooke Pryor with the question there tough question getting asked post game there because that is pure misery this was a 10 two quarterbacks 10 completions game between Aaron Rodgers who at one point left the game because he split the bridge of his nose and uh uh Mason Rudolph whose name I always seem to forget can't really imagine why and this was just an ugly ugly game for in every phase for the Steelers and it's really interesting that it happened that way because it started out as if it would be that way in fact for the Bills Brandon Echols intercepted Josh Allen on the opening drive he sat right down over his route to do it then the Steelers make nothing of it offensively and then it's the second quarter.

42:27Jourdan Rodrigue:This is still a rock fight. Zero, zero. James Cook actually fumbles the ball and the Steelers turn that shorter field into a touchdown by Jalen Warren. As I look over my cubicle to Patrick claim on, um, and the second half opened up and it was, then it was Buffalo's turn to not just join the takeaway party, but also to completely smother and suffocate this game away. Joey Bosa sack of Aaron Rogers on the first play from scrimmage, uh, led to a Christian Benford scoop and score. That was also the play that Aaron Rodgers got hurt on. And then when Mason Rudolph goes in the game, he very quickly thereafter throws an interception to Christian Benford, who had a hell of a game.

43:09Jourdan Rodrigue:Let's listen to it. First and 10 at the 26. Pistol look from the Steelers here with Warren behind Rodgers. And he's going to take, no, it's a fake handoff play action. Rodgers darting pressure in the pocket. He snacked and he fumbled. It's scooped up by Benford and he races to the end zone for the touchdown. Joey Bosa with his team record, fifth forced fumble of the season leads to a turnover and a touchdown for Buffalo. Oh my. Well, that was the scoop and score, but yes, Christian Benford also followed up that play with another amazing play, intercepting Mason Rudolph. It got worse from there.

43:49Jourdan Rodrigue:At that point, the Bills put together a 16-play drive, a 14-play drive, essentially salted this game away, ran the ball behind James Cook and only spelled him a little bit for Ray Davis when it seemed like he needed a little bit of a breather. This was all Buffalo the rest of the way. And even when this game sat at 10-7 earlier on in the third quarter, you really thought it doesn't really matter. This is all Sean McDermott's Buffalo Bills need. He seemed like a happy as a pig in poop. The game was that close, and they were just going to have to run it down Pittsburgh's throat to seal it. Just not the recipe for the Steelers that I know Josh Allen, it was kind of flipping scripts with Aaron Rodgers got rid of the ball much quicker than Aaron Rodgers today, but they had one quarterback hit.

44:33Pittsburgh Steelers. And they're getting steamrolled on the ground, which has been a trend throughout the course of the season. But you have all those pass rushers, all the guys up front, and they blitz 44 % of the time. There wasn't a lot of pass attempts. Like it was a conservative Bills passing game as usual lately, but But still, to get dominated like that one quarterback hit a 25 percent pressure rate like they're just not going to win that way. And even when Josh Allen was dropping back to pass, the Steelers would T.J. Watt missed him a couple of times. There was a fourth and goal where Josh did, you know, Josh Allen's pump fakes.

45:08Somebody's jumping every single time, whether he's down the field or not. He gets a defender to jump, comes back. Keon Coleman gets a touchdown reception. So I'm glad he exists and he's back in the good graces of the staff to allow them to play football because they need him there. And over on the other side, when they when they were up 10-7, like, you know, it's a goal to go situation. So I, of course, in the newsroom arguing for a field goal. And Jordan's like, no, they need a touchdown. I'm like, have you seen the Steelers?

45:33Jourdan Rodrigue:No, I said I wanted a touchdown. A little bit of a difference. A sign of life from the game, which was already a rock fight at that point. but Aaron Rodgers was 5 of 12 on passes beyond the line of scrimmage. And some of those behind the line of scrimmage completions, like Kenny Gainwell had to make a grab with one hand off of his shoelaces on a swing pass. Like, it was, he gets 17 yards there. For some reason, you know, Jalen Warren gets the rushing touchdown after that. But it was, like, what the Pittsburgh Steelers had to do to move the ball was crazy. The offense is doing nothing. It's offering nothing.

46:10I wouldn't pick them to win it. What did you say he's playing with on his arm? I mean, he's like a microwave. Yeah, it could have been a microwave, an Amazon box, a water bottle. Like the cast is so big that Aaron Rodgers couldn't fully close his hand.

46:21Jourdan Rodrigue:He could be receiving signals off of it. I mean, who knows? And so like. Some faraway planet. How dejected do you feel if you're Mason Rudolph and Aaron Rodgers goes out there with a club on his left hand and then he gets hurt. You go in the game, throw a pick, and Rodgers with blood streaming down his face and a broken hand goes back in the game. This is how great careers end. And we get to a point, and Mason, let me be clear, the 10 completions that I spoke of were all Aaron Rodgers. 10 of 21. Mason Rudolph was 0 for 3 with an interception, and Aaron Rodgers had just had enough of himself, of his own.

46:58Jourdan Rodrigue:I'm sure he was in a great deal of pain because he could not receive the snap with a closed hand. he had to flat palm, like even receiving the snap. They showed a close-up of it. It looked pretty painful. The split across the bridge of his nose started leaking out of the bandage that was around it at one point, but we still had Aaron Rodgers just in peak annoyed Aaron Rodgers throwing the ball to places on the field that his receivers should be in, but they were not in, but still making that throw to make a point, you guys. I just sprayed all over the table. this is this like this has got to be bottom for these Steelers can it not oh there can always be they're literally tied for first place right now so it could get a lot worse for the Steelers or because it's Mike Tomlin and because it's the Steelers although this does feel different with fans in the crowd literally chanting to fire Tomlin that's a new one but yeah it could always get worse.

47:57You got the Ravens two more times the rest of the way, including next week. And so the Ravens are not playing well right now. The Steelers are not a team you can remotely trust right now. And we'll see.

48:09Jourdan Rodrigue:We'll give you that one, Greg. I feel like this also should not go unsaid is that the Bills, it's a good thing that they could win on the ground that very quickly and very clearly became the number one A-plus plan for them to be in. And they stuck to it, to their credit. They couldn't get anything done really in the passing game. I know I'm a broken record at this point, but the first play for either team of over of 20 or more yards happened with 11 minutes and 29 seconds left in the third quarter. And it was of course a James Cook run. This was not, nothing was happening. An explosive run schemed up for those Steelers fans who were chanting to fire Mike Tomlin.

48:45Joe Brady might be available. If you're looking, if you're looking for a boost to kind of change the circumstances, go get one of these hot young coaches and get Get rid of Mike Tomlin. Do that Steelers.

48:55Jourdan Rodrigue:I think Patrick's placed Joe Brady on like seven different teams today. Just just just my fans are calling for it. They want to change. So we got Steelers Ravens for first place of the AFC North next week. That's an early game. Colts Jags for first place of the AFC South. That's an early game next week. Bears Packers for first place of the NFC North. That's a late afternoon game. Pretty spicy time of year. The weather is getting bad. The offenses are getting bad. And speaking of bad offenses, let's go to Seattle. Fourth and one Minnesota from the four yard line. Brosmer breaks the huddle. He'll go under center.

49:34CJ Hamm and Aaron Jones in the backfield. It's fourth and one snap. Brosmer rolls out to the right. He's in trouble. He's going to throw the ball up. And it's picked off. Awful decision by Max Brosmer. And this is going to be a defensive touchdown for the Seattle Seahawks. It's Ernest Jones, the fourth, with the first touchdown of his career. And Seattle has taken a 9-0 lead. Max Prosmer falling to the field, decided to underhand it to absolutely nobody except Ernest Jones. That is Paul Allen. That is your first ever worst throw of the year nominee to lead a game. That might be the leader in the clubhouse.

50:22Let's be honest. Thank you, Eric, Chris, whoever decided to go with Paul's call there. That's your late Thanksgiving present to me.

50:32Jourdan Rodrigue:An awful decision. I thought Paul had hit bottom. Right, no. He had not hit bottom yet. So that's the thing. It can always be worse. Our friend, Arif Hasan, who I saw in Dublin this year, he'd been making the point this week on Blue Sky. I'd be like, everyone who wanted Brosmer, it could get worse. It did get worse. They didn't score a point. And Max Brosmer was the first quarterback to throw four interceptions in his first start since Nathan Peterman. Okay. That's it. This is not because you talked about this. This is not the Peterman game. But before I even knew that stat, before even the fourth interception, I was like, this game has Peterman vibes.

51:19It could have had Peterman vibes if he had thrown all of those interceptions in the first half after a weird decision to play him instead of Terod Taylor in the first place. Sure. And you go back on that. It's a dark moment in the McDermott timeline. We've put that. There was a tweet, you know, QB one, Nathan Peer, Peterman. It was a moment. This was different. This was playing the best defense in the league, in my opinion, at least in the NFC. I'm giving it to the Texans right now. Overall, it's a it's a brutal matchup. Jordan Addison has a key drop early. There's a couple passes that were not perfectly on target that his receivers didn't help him with.

51:55Couple to Justin Jefferson. One bounced off Jefferson's chest. Looked like the defender maybe got there like a little early and so maybe nobody's at fault there. That one gets picked off. The game actually started, I thought, with Brosmer looking better, making quicker decisions, making some positive plays. But ultimately, he was not accurate and the good decision-making ended. Obviously, on that throw especially, that was a fourth down play. So I think he was just thinking, well, it's fourth down. You can't just eat the ball in the red zone or you're just trying to throw it away and not give up the field position.

52:32But it was a disaster, and it was an awesome game by DeMarcus Loren. Awesome decision by Max Brosner. He's already got the cut. I love it. I just love how healthy this Seahawks team is. That's a weird thing to say. I don't want to jinx it.

52:49Jourdan Rodrigue:Knock on wood. Yeah, somewhere. But as a reminder, like right now, they're all out there. Like Witherspoon. Eamon Worry had a couple great plays. Leonard Williams was with the pressure, I believe, on that play. Made a couple nice plays early. And then Demarcus Lawrence has been awesome and had a crazy good forced fumble in this game in addition to a couple other plays. And so, yeah, it wasn't a good Seahawks game on offense. Didn't matter. The Seattle Seahawks defense became the first defense to intercept a quarterback four times in a game since. The Los Angeles, right? A couple of weeks ago when it happened to Sam Darnold, who, let's be clear, did not.

53:31Jourdan Rodrigue:I mean, to your point, Greg, did not have his best game today either. was facing pressure, especially blitz pressure on like 63 % of his dropbacks. Yeah, that'll, that'll hassle anyone. And, you know, I, I always hesitate to same with JJ McCarthy back when he was first, you know, starting and we were getting an actual understanding of who is, I don't want to ever write off a young quarterback when this is your first start against. Yes, I agree one of the best top two defenses in the NFL and depending on the week probably number one and and as aggressive and smart as they are and well coached as they are this is this just seemed insurmountable for the start from the start yeah the world was was up against them they got some good runs late but that was at the point where the game was was already the Vikings yeah oh okay late.

54:26Yes, because they actually had a 0 % success rate with about 8 minutes or 10 minutes left in the game. A 0 %!

54:32Jourdan Rodrigue:Very hard to do. Once they got into garbage time, they got a little healthy in the run game. As Greg, you pointed out during the game, we look back during this season and it was already established by the esteemed Baker Mayfield as well as Greg Rosenthal. His games start to matter more and we begin the conversation with Sam Darnold scoring points. Him and JSN are both within the conversation. He has not scored a point in the conversation since week 10. And Greg, you made the call today. No more points for Sam in week 13. Not in this game. I mean, he had 126 yards. He had a couple fumbles. I think the Vikings defense looked like the old Vikings defense and were very much up for what could have been a fun defensive game before that interception.

55:16The Seahawks had 84 yards on offense in the whole first half.

55:20Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah. And they had opportunities. I think the number one thing to feel good about, though, from the Seahawks offenses. The running game carried them throughout the day. Their running game was consistent, really from start to finish. The passing game and the pass protection was not especially on the interior. But ultimately, I do think Kenneth Walker is playing better. And yeah, like, I'm not going to take too much from this as a difficult challenge against the Vikings. And I do think Mike McDonald and, you know, their offense absolutely called the game in the second half, even in the first half, some of the fourth down decisions that like, Like, hey, we know we're not going to give up any points today.

55:55So let's just be safe.

55:56Jourdan Rodrigue:And I think even though you don't want to put too much on the shoulders, specifically of the quarterback, undrafted free agent quarterback, making his very first start probably hasn't gotten, I know this has been a huge topic of conversation everywhere around the league. Probably hasn't gotten a ton of reps in practice or anything like that. Certainly got all of them leading up to this game. But it's like an organizational question. Because, I mean, the biggest storyline entering this game was the one that got away in Sam Darnold that reporting by my colleague, Alec Lewis, by others around the league showed by Sam Darnold commenting himself earlier this week about how there was a split in desire to keep him and him being aware of that.

56:38Jourdan Rodrigue:And that part being part of the conversation, the other conversation, not the most important, not the conversation. And, and so this was, you You know, no, Sam Darnold did not have his best game, but against the caliber of play, if you were to just kind of role reverse a little bit, against this caliber of play, you at least get a higher floor, whether it's Sam, like whether it's J.J. McCarthy, like you get a higher floor if it's Sam Darnold. And I think the Seahawks have known that all along. It's interesting. If that split happened to be the coach wants the quarterback, but the front office doesn't, like that's kind of the second straight quarterback that went out the window that the coach wanted.

57:16because I think on some level, you know, he was a Kirk guy for a while. They didn't want to go far enough. And now they're in a situation they're four and eight. It can it can always get worse. And it might. Seahawks now tied for the Rams atop the NFC West. That game that they have, I think week 16 looms large. All right. Let's we talked to NFC South earlier. Let's go to the team that had the lead entering Sunday. We move right lead 10 three pistol formation now. Hand the ball off, running to the left. There's a Bucky Irving inside the 10, 5, 3, 2, 1. Touchdown, Tampa Bay. Bucky Irving, first touchdown of the season.

57:55That's Gene Decker half on WFUS. Great to see some of the players for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers playing football together again. Chris Godwin, Bucky Irving, Hassan Redick was out there rushing the passer. The Buccaneers hold on to win 20-17 over the Cardinals, who haven't met a close game that they couldn't lose. How did the Buccaneers do it?

58:21Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah, well, first of all, the Buccaneers know how to win close games, as evidenced by their previous record to this point, and the Cardinals know how to lose them, as evidenced by their previous record to this point, because the Arizona Cardinals are now 0-7 in games this season, decided by four points or less. That's a real one score. When people are like, oh, the Chiefs are in one score. It's like, yeah, they scored a late touchdown to make eight points. The Cardinals are losing at the very last second all the time. I would call this knife twisting one score because Jacoby Brissett, who had an early interception, but then played so poised on a touchdown drive that got them within three points in the fourth quarter, made one of the most beautiful throws I think I've seen all year in terms of just the, you know, the quarterback doing it and just the gracefulness of which he hits Bam Knight for the touchdown to bring the Cardinals within three as he's twisting away and throwing as his body is contorting and he's drifting away from the direction of the throw and throwing across.

59:23Jourdan Rodrigue:And it was great. But that was the only moment that made you feel for a second like maybe the Cardinals could make this comeback because with 149 left to play, He and the Cardinals offense get the ball back and ultimately see a fourth and two. And Jacoby Brissett just flat out misses the throw over the middle. Kind of looked similar, honestly, to his interception where he just throws it right to the defender. It's just off target. And that's it. And the Cardinals know it. And, you know, cut to Jonathan Gannon. Speaking of knife twisting on the sideline, who just looks sick to his stomach because it's happened to this team yet again.

1:00:00This Buccaneers team is strange because so many of these wins they get and you're there maybe on paper leave you a little wanting. So you watched it closer. Obviously, you know, they win the turnover battle two to nothing, but they're out gained by more than 100 yards in it. And like, did they look like the better team in this game for it?

1:00:25Jourdan Rodrigue:it was fits and starts as this Buccaneers team has looked so often. And I will say there were some issues with drops earlier in the game. Um, Emeka Buka had a drop. Chris Godwin dropped a, would have been a touchdown catch in the end zone. Uh, he made up for it later by catching like a pretty crucial third down, um, later in the game. And this was a team that's like trying to figure out what it is again, after getting all of these back Baker, there were a couple missed throws a couple of times he went on the run and just said okay i need to pick up these third downs 21 yard run in this game yeah so he breaks off a 21 yard run and converts this was one of the biggest drives of the entire game um tez johnson draws an opi that like even i who i don't really argue about calls or whatever i was like that probably could have gone either way on that one and that brings back a rashad white touchdown off of a screen and then And that sets up a third and 13.

1:01:25Jourdan Rodrigue:The Bucs get a couple of yards. And then Todd Bowles actually opts to go for it on the fourth and two. And Baker Mayfield hits Sterling Shepard for five yards. And a couple plays later, another touchdown is called back again through penalty. So King Grizzard just goes, f*** it. We'll give the ball to our best player. And Tristan Wirfs declares as eligible and catches his first career touchdown. Let's hear that thing. Third down and goal for the two. Play action, fake, dropping, a throw may be a close left eye. Caught ball. Touchdown to an eligible receiver. Tristan Wirps. Tristan Wirps, a little strict memory.

1:02:03And the Buccaneers score a touchdown. Fire the cannons.

1:02:06Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah, I loved it. And to your point, Greg, or to your question, the Bucs just had a bunch of crucial moments, including two touchdowns called back because of self-inflicted errors, penalties, calls that maybe don't go their way. they needed this win so badly and and they they needed to really kind of find themselves again Chris Godwin and like rightfully so based off of what he went through has not been playing confident football in my in my eyesight like and and this game getting that third down was so important for him and Baker Mayfield Emeka Buka has been in a little bit of a slide too and it's a lot for a rookie to have to take on him getting his rhythm back a little bit later in the game that was important this this whole uh this whole offense just is regaining kind of like what it was especially having Bucky Irving back was so important for them yeah good to see Irving get his first rushing touchdown of the season there on the one we heard earlier and you know second game back for Chris Godwin looked like he had more of his legs under him and I'm glad the Bucks are getting more healthy but I picked the Cardinals in this game because I thought that all the things that had happened, the kaleidoscope of events that it takes for the Cardinals to lose these football games.

1:03:22And this was a new one where you have a game-winning drive opportunity. It's fourth and two, and Jacoby Brissett has Trey McBride as a decoy on the play. He looks his way. The problem is Xavier Weaver is the other receiver there, and Savasier Dennis is looking at Jacoby Brissett like, you're not going to throw the ball to Xavier Weaver. Not again. He was the guy he threw it to last week. And so he comes back to Michael Wilson thinking that Sarvasia Dennis would have moved at all. No, he's just standing right there because, yeah, he's not throwing the ball to Weaver. He's going to Wilson the whole way and just adds on to the, again, the full kaleidoscope of things that have caused the Cardinals.

1:04:00Yeah, they're just a weird team. They're 60 % success rate for the Cardinals in this game, under 40 for the Bucs. Not many games this year won that way. The pass rush pressure was great, though, with Redick back. So maybe he helped out quite a bit.

1:04:12Jourdan Rodrigue:And let me correct really quick. and I know we have to move, but I want to correct myself. Trey McBride's touchdown catch was the one that brought them within three points. The incredible throw to Bam Knight was a little bit earlier in the game. But still, this game, they had a chance to win it and they couldn't take it. So they don't look amazing. And yet you look at the rest of the schedule. They got the Panthers two times and that's going to be really exciting. And all the other three games that they have, they will be heavily favored in, including a couple of home games against the Saints and the Falcons.

1:04:40let's go to Miami where yeah they're winning some more games they're trying to stay in that in the hunt graphic they're trying to get Mike McDaniel a job for next year From the 7-yard line now, Shook out of the shotgun, trips to the left. Snap, looking, pressure, gets it off, intercepted! It's Patrick down the sideline. Two points the other way! It's Patrick walks into the end zone and is going to wrap this game up. It's the first two-point return for the day, or for the season, rather, as a highlight. That's Jimmy Cephalo. That's on WBGG. The Saints had come all the way back to within two points.

1:05:27Just over a minute to go. And Minka Fitzpatrick helps to save the day. And the Dolphins survive an onside kick that was successful by, how do you pronounce the name? Charlie Smythe? Yes. The dude. But the Dolphins, hold on, 21-7. Yeah, the former Gaelic football player from Northern Ireland. shout out to the community there making his NFL regular season debut. I'll be at, you know, it felt great for a moment, which they can't erase. You know, we'll still have that, but it felt like the, the fins were going to run away with this game. Starts off with a Devon H and a touchdown run. He looked explosive.

1:06:04He was the best part of the offense. Weird game from two, several passes in danger. One that was picked off for Jalen Waddle, where Kool-Aid McKinstry had the deep third on the left side of the field. Darren Waller was screaming up the seam. and McKintree's hips went to Waller. His body did too. Tua was like, oh, goody, this is a touchdown to Jalen Waddell. No, he threw up a hot air balloon. It hung in the air. I got the stopwatch out for two and a half seconds. McKintree had time to turn and pick that ball off, and the rest of the game was a lot of Riley Patterson field goals, including a weird situation at the end of the first half.

1:06:40The Finns had a third and three from the 35. Tua hits Malik Washington for a first down with 24 seconds left on the clock, and you're thinking, okay, they're going to get up there, clock it, take a couple shots in the end zone, and get Riley Patterson out there. No. They wait for the clock to get down to two seconds, and then they spike the ball, and Riley Patterson comes out. They kick a field goal to go into the half. Weird look from Mike Mack on the sideline after that decision. I'm not sure anybody knew what was going on, but they go in up 16 to nothing, but because of that weirdness, it allows a weird second half where Tyler Shuck trailing 16 to nothing, gets going he's 19 to 26 through the air for 196 yards and two touchdowns in the second half including a 17 yarder to chris olave where tua went five of nine for 78 yards in the second half they only got a field goal later on shuck gets a score to devon valet and we're cooking we're inside of a minute going valet now that's that's the pronunciation valet valet i don't know i will go both just in case uh to cover my bases and so that's what sets up the two-point conversion to tie the game and Minka Fitzpatrick hops in front of that.

1:07:47The Charlie Smythe onside kick is recovered by Valet or Valey, but it wasn't 10 yards. And that ultimately does it in a fun, great game between the Saints and the Dolphins. I mean, it was a dime to Valet. Devon Bailey. I always say Bailey, who hasn't been seen at all, but barely used until they finally traded Brandon Cooks. And maybe that was a situation late in the first half. I don't know that they just were like, well, we're creaming the. Yeah, I think it was to us thought, despite the consternation on Mike Max was, all right, we get a field goal. We get out. This team's hard. We're going to we're going to win.

1:08:23And it ended up not being that simple for the Miami Dolphins like like a lot of this season. But they got them.

1:08:31Jourdan Rodrigue:Yeah. Well, it's an important one. Like, I think we a couple of weeks ago, we were excited about the potential for messy fun from this Dolphins team. This game in no way seems indicative. They've won all their games. They've done their part. But they've been winning. The rest of the AFC hasn't, you know, cooperated. Because I was like, okay, there could, I remember, you know, four weeks ago we were saying there could be a situation where they're six and seven going up against the Steelers in that following week. And now they're one game away from that. Next week they have the Jets, which is not an easy game.

1:09:05The Jets are playing better right now. It's in the Meadowlands, but it's still a three-win team. but ultimately they haven't caught up any ground. The seven and five Houston Texans aren't in the playoffs right now in the AFC eight and four is what you need. And I, I think you're going to need a minimum of 10 wins. You're probably going to need 11 wins to get into the AFC playoffs. And there's a chance an 11 win team won't make the AFC playoffs. So in terms of like post-season, not that we were really considering the dolphins.

1:09:34Jourdan Rodrigue:No, it's not, it's not happening. Give me your Tyler Shuck report, Patrick. First half Tyler Shuck, awful second half Tyler Shuck great okay true it wasn't it wasn't just the numbers it was extending plays when the pocket broke down in the first half I don't know what you know coach Moore did at halftime and it could be a lot of it the Dolphins having the attitude that they did going into the break you know this game is over but it was not over because Tyler Shuck making plays looking athletic when he gets outside of the pocket as well Yeah. And I know Taysom Hill, which I was going to say, did he potentially in the locker room threaten him with more Taysom Hill?

1:10:16Jourdan Rodrigue:Because I'm not seeing a lot of Taysom Hill touches and progress. That's progress. Right. And then thank you, Tyler Shuck, for saving us all from that. Yes. And I was, I was looking at some, some tweets from the Dolphins faithful, who almost maybe think this is like the perfect way to win. Cause to a plane this poorly. I think a lot of Dolphins fans are ready for a new generation at quarterback, a new era. And these type of performances won't help to us cause Devon H and though outside runs by Devon H and continue to be like the best play in the NFL, 134 yards on the ground. He was awesome. Let's go to the other team at the bottom of the AFC East.

1:10:55Let's go to the metal lands. Well, here comes Nick folk five seconds to go. It's going to be a 56-yard field goal attempt from the right hash. In rainy conditions here at MetLife Stadium to try and win it. There's the snap. The kick is on the way. It's a line drive towards the uprights. It is good. Nick Falk puts it through. No time on the clock. A 56-yard game-winning field goal. And the Jets mob the folk hero at midfield. They've won it. 27-24. Awesome call by Bob Wachuzin. WAXQ. Maybe put that on the calls of the year. I just like the energy. I like the two iron that broke out there. 27-24.

1:11:46The Jets have done us all a favor. We can take the Falcons off the In the Hunt graphic after what's happened today in the NFC South. And this was the most Falcons way to lose a game possible. They fumbled the punt that was inside the five-yard line that directly led to seven yards. They gave up a long kick return that set up three points from the Jets. They let Tyrod run all over them. In the biggest of spots, Tyrod rushes for a touchdown and also has a key run to set up the game-winning field goal. And more than anything, they had the ball, Jordan with 53 seconds to go in the game they received the ball from the Jets who had just failed to go on what would have been like a game winning field goal type of drive they get the ball 53 seconds left in the game at their own 33 not bad and they managed to lose that game in regulation like that's that's hard to do and you came into this game saying man this would be a loss that will be felt in that building and it did feel like a game that like you can look directly at the coaching, how they handled that situation and some of the other details just not being correct in this game and you worry for what's going to happen.

1:13:07Jourdan Rodrigue:Well, all season, all season, the details have not been correct. I mean, you know, as much as I admire and appreciate Raheem Morris as a person and as a coach, this is not, he is an experienced coach. this is not a team that's on its details this is not a team that is functioning like it knows what it's doing week to week with regularity and consistency it's not a team that is existing in a competitive space and and that first of all I know that's got to eat at Raheem Morris and many members of that coaching staff Jeff Ulbricht but it hasn't it hasn't been good enough and it's these little, it's some, sometimes it's missed kicks.

1:13:51Jourdan Rodrigue:Sometimes it's situational management. Sometimes often it is the offense failing to do enough from drive to drive or give enough of a changeup from drive to drive. Um, the defense we have been so optimistic about for, for a lot of the season, but you in this league, it is very hard to, to hang your hat on a still developing defense. And so altogether it's, it's formed this sort of cacophony around this building that I do not think and for Terry Fontenot as well I do not think that it it is um Fontenot good scene that's Patrick's guy top 10 GM it is my guy and we see it in terms of this team collectively having a bunch of failures but the individual parts having great moments where yeah you see it's a good point you see the talent on the field you see but John Robinson have 6.2 yards per carry He had 193 yards today, I believe.

1:14:44Jourdan Rodrigue:To lose off of that, that's like what we were just talking about, what, prime Christian McCaffrey seasons just going to waste like that. Like you're getting the contributions from Walker and from Pierce. Like the individual parts, like in different moments, are working for the Falcons. Collectively, as a unit, they are having these failures where even Kirk Cousins was having successful spots in this game. Kyle Pitts had a solid game. but when they needed to, when they needed to move the ball, especially late, you get nothing. You get your Tyler Algier power runs in the inside, successful. Bijan to the outside, successful.

1:15:23And then, I mean, you have David Sills making two defenders miss with like 11 yards to go and scoring a touchdown. At that point, I'm thinking they are going to win this game. That's when they give up the kick return. Darnell Mooney has killed them this year, dropped a couple more passes. It didn't come up with tough ones in this game. And I do want to give Aaron Glenn and the Jets a lot of credit because what he's been preaching about kind of turning this ship around slowly. They have been a better team over the last two months. They've they've been creditable as a team. And they took advantage of the Falcons mistakes and they they made their own luck.

1:15:58And Tyrod is is an upgrade. As long as he stays healthy, the offense makes more sense with him. He's getting rid of the ball quickly. And yeah, he had his first rushing touchdown since 2021 in this game. and then it was a scramble by Terod, who people don't remember. It was like a fallow era for quarterbacks that ran well for about a year and a half. I remember having this point. He was the best running quarterback in the entire NFL. And despite his age, he still got a lot of juice in his legs. And they were picking on James Pierce. He had a bad game today because they were running right at him.

1:16:32And then they also, he couldn't take Terod down when he had absolutely no one blocking him on another play where Terod just got rid of the ball. And shout out to Aidy Mitchell. Eight for 102, getting it done. He was not just some throw in. He is by far the most talented receiver on this team. He also drew a long pass interference. Like he is a real deal dude and helped make up for, look, the game might have not been as close if John Mechie hadn't dropped a couple of key passes.

1:16:59Jourdan Rodrigue:And late when it counted, two things showed up. And that was Terod Taylor and his 14-yard run. And then his 10-yard and then his 5-yard throws to both to 80 Mitchell that helped get Nick Folk in position to make that game winning kick. Yeah. Mitchell made all sorts of like good routes getting open. He had like one drop, but he also made some tough catches and I love seeing them use him. I love seeing you guys. Every Sunday, we're going to take a quick break. We're going to say goodbye to Nick. I mean, to Patrick and Jordan, and we're going to say hello to Nick on the other side. Any final words on Thanksgiving week?

1:17:37Happy Thanksgiving, everybody. Go football.

1:17:39Jourdan Rodrigue:Go football. Woo. I always love putting you in a tough spot there. You? No. Great spot to be in.

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1:22:11savings today at boostmobile.com slash unlock based on average annual single line payment of AT &T Verizon and T-Mobile customers compared to 12 months on the Boost Mobile unlimited wireless plan as of January 2026. For full offer details, visit boostmobile.com. Balls at the two and a half. Purdy's in the shotgun with McCaffrey to his left. Jennings right or Jennings left rather Pierce all right. Shotgun snap for Purdy. Fakes the give. He runs left. He's got a nose for the goal line and he's in for a 49ers touchdown. Reed opted in a celebration for the quarterback Brock Purdy. The toe looks just fine on a two-yard tamper.

1:22:44Wasn't just any celebration. It was like Brock Purdy doing the Dougie and doing it well. 26-8. The 49ers win in Cleveland. That was Jack Smith on WNBR. Got Nick Schuch here. Watched a lot of Browns games over the years. And we will get to the Shidur Sanders of it all and the Browns of it all. Obviously, the 49ers, the more relevant team in this game. Nine and four. I love seeing records like that. They're one of the teams, by the way, like the Panthers, who have not had their bye yet. So they finally get a week off next week. Nine wins already in the bank. Did Purdy and the offense. Let's start there.

1:23:26Look better this week, especially throwing the ball. Yeah, I mean, the bar was low last week, right? With the three interceptions that he threw in three consecutive drives. So, yes, he looked better. But he looked better beyond just, you know, protecting the football. He made some key throws in this game in, in pivotal spots that extended Niners drives and allowed them to put the Browns away. Now you saw that, that highlight there, the read option, which I had the same thought that the broadcaster had, which is that the toe looks just fine. Cause he looked very agile there, that play right there.

1:23:52They're only up 10 to eight. It's late third quarter. It's a very close game, but Purdy was able to get them down there by converting third downs, by moving within the pocket and finding guys going to second and third reads in his progression and not just, you know, doing what he did against Carolina. line of the ball looked better coming out of his hand, which is the most important thing to me. And also he did it on a day where it was very windy. This game was in Cleveland. You know where I live. I woke up this morning and heard the wind from inside my house and I'm like, it's going to be rough for him.

1:24:17And it was not rough for him. He did a really good job throwing the ball. Didn't have to lean too much on Christian McCaffrey and a nice solid total team victory for the Niners at this point in the season. Yeah, I really think Kyle Shanahan's a strong candidate for coach of the year. It's amazing. This team is nine and four. And, you know, part of it is the NFC West schedule out of the division has helped them ultimately in a down year for the AFC North, a lot of which didn't have Joe Burrow, and they've taken advantage of that. But like they are impressive, and I'm really curious to see how they look down the stretch.

1:24:51And this was a great test having to play that Browns defense. How did Shader look, by the way? Because this is a game I did not get a lot of eyes on during when it was happening, but obviously not a lot of production. Minor steps of progress, you know, nothing super flashy, made a few nice throws. Statistically, he had a passer rating of 93.6, which, you know, anybody who just wants to run the stats real quick would be like, oh, that's a good passer rating. This offense is just, again, it has such a low ceiling. And when they get into third down, you know, Robert solid was not afraid to send the blitz and, and he found himself crumbling beneath that.

1:25:25He did hold onto the ball really long, like 3.36 seconds average time to throw, which is not ideal. And the San Francisco did rack up more pressures as a result of that because they had more time to get after him. And we know their pass rush is essentially non-existent. It was not today. Cleland Farrell with two sacks. We had a Keon White with the sack as well. So, you know, he's operating within the offense. It's really crazy that like Cleland Farrell and Keon White are the guys that are getting it done. Although Keon White, I once thought, has some real talent, I guess. Yeah, absolutely. And look, we admitted this last week when they when they played Carolina, like their pass rush has been not been consistent.

1:25:59And it was a little bit better today, but it helps when the quarterback hangs under the ball. So like just minor improvement for your door, like he left for a play, came back because he got hurt and just got a little dinged up, came back in the game. Just just small baby steps forward. The Browns are who they are at this point. So there was an injury in this game. Malik Collins and he leaves does not come back you know it always sucks to see an injury but especially a guy who's been playing so well and is in a free agent year Shelby Harris his teammate talked after the game about an exchange that he had with Juwan Jennings he's a and I want that known like I see why he got punched in the nuts because that's like he says some things that you should not say to another man ever.

1:26:48But I don't respect it because you say that, then run behind your O-line. That's some real soft s**t. And I want that known. I see exactly why they punched the nuts. I'm surprised nobody punched him in the jaw yet.

1:27:00Spit the fire, Shelby. Give us some context on that, Shook. I mean, it looked like, so Malik Collins gets put on the cart and there's obviously players around and there's a clip of Juwan seemingly saying something to Malik and to the Browns in general. And that's obviously not when you talk trash to a guy when he's hurt. And he's, you know, that's a callback for Juwan for when he got hit in the groin area in previous weeks, you know, by angry teammates or angry opponents at the end of the game. So obviously he's like, he falls in the category of what Jalen Ramsey and some other players that really like to talk trash, but it sounds like he crossed the line.

1:27:30Other than that, we don't really know the details as far as I know. Okay. And yeah, that was courtesy of Cameron Justice of WEWS. Thank you for the sound. That was some of the best sound of the year. You know who else has good sound? Andrew Siciliano. So we're watching Myles Garrett each and every week. Can he get this sack record? He did add to the total with one of my favorite sacks of the year. Let's listen. Myles Garrett sitting on 18 sacks is lining up. You gotta be kidding me. And right at the cross from the future Hall of Famer, fellow future Hall of Famer, Trent Williams. Third and four from the 41.

1:28:07Purdy. Shotgun. Here comes Myles. He got him! Sack 19 for the best defensive player in football. And it's fourth down. Put that on the call of the year list. I had no idea. Siciliano calls his shot. And it's probably because there's so few third and long situations. That's not even third and long. It's third and four. And he does the teleport move. I don't know if we have a name for that. The Euro step. And Trent Williams doesn't put a finger on him. Pretty sweet to watch, Nick. Yeah. You know, this is a player that came out of the draft and was considered a generational talent. and he's done nothing but prove that over the course of his career.

1:28:45He's an athletic freak. We've seen him dunking basketballs. We've seen what he does when he works out with LeBron and what he does in the football field, but it's plays like that where you just smoke a future Hall of Fame left tackle that just shows how special you really are. That literally you move in a way that I don't think anyone in the history of the NFL has moved. There's never been a guy that big that can move laterally that fast and on the inside. What an incredible sack there. And yeah, he's he's what? Three and a half away. We'll be we'll be tracking this in the coming weeks. That's probably the most important thing about these Browns games, although Shader Sanders development will be interesting to track to much more important or what happens to the Los Angeles Chargers moving forward.

1:29:29They had the Raiders coming into town after that Chip Kelly firing. And there's the pitch to Vidal. He's got to get to the corner. He does. There he goes into plus territory. Vidal on his horse. 30, 20, 10. Kimani Vidal. Touchdown, Chargers. 59 yards. And the energy is back in the building. The energy is always there with Matt Money-Smith on KFI. Kimani Vidal. Maybe his last game as the true starter for the Chargers, although he has earned a role when Omari and Hampton comes back off IR. Hampton wasn't quite ready for this one. Vidal finishes with 126 yards and a touchdown. They tack on a Jarrett Patterson touchdown late.

1:30:21Kind of a what's your deal touchdown by Jim Harbaugh. Like rubbing it in 31 to 14. We'll get to that. But ultimately, the postgame news is the biggest news here, Shook. Justin Herbert fractured his left hand. He missed a few snaps of this game. Trey Lance threw one pass, but then Herbert finished the game out. It's, it's his left hand. He is going to get it surgically repaired. He believes he can play next Monday night. Jim Harbaugh wasn't making any promises about that. They'll see how soon they can get him back. What did it look like actually him playing with, with that broken hand? It looked a little ginger, but not that much.

1:31:01You know, he has a rollout on, on a play along the goal line in the second half where he, he, you know, rolls to the left. It's right. It's like within like the 10 yard line and he fires a bullet, lad McConkie and they were talking about the hand injury on the broadcast. And he had a glove on it and he's always got that, you know, the coach wristband, right. With the, and it's always flapping around. He never secures the thing when he's looking at it for his place. So when he's running, it's just flapping around. I'm looking at that hand thinking like he's acting as if that's really not hurt at all.

1:31:27Didn't bother him at all. So maybe it's a little bit of the adrenaline. Maybe it'll hurt more tomorrow probably will. But when you think about hand injuries, hand fractures, that sort of thing. I always think about defenders who then get a club, right? You can't have a club as a quarterback. So it's going to be really interesting to see. Well, Aaron Rogers kind of did today. I don't know what was going on with Aaron Rogers. I like on his left arm. It looked insane. Well, you know, when it's going to hurt more, I guess it won't. Cause there'll be knocked out when they're surgically repairing it.

1:31:52I mean, this, I don't know. Football players. What do they do? Put pins in it or something like that. I, that's gotta be dangerous. I can't imagine that you just be able to go out there and play on Monday night, eight days after your most recent game. That's crazy. Well, he better because I'm planning to go to that game. Walker was going to bring my son. I was going to come over afterwards and, and do the show here with you. I don't think we'll be able to do YouTube that night. I'm breaking some news here, but you know, when you got Herbert versus a broken Eagles team, like this is a, it's a spicy Monday night game.

1:32:26We got to see it in person. Let's talk about this game. Like they're running game and, and I know they're playing the Raiders. It's hard to evaluate like how a team looks, but this was the chargers coming off their by coming off a bad defensive performance. Kind of giving me your just take of how the chargers looked overall in a game. They obviously just couldn't afford to lose. They get to eight and four and where they are kind of in this AFC playoff picture. Well, the battle of the two teams that could have been roommates in Carson, California years ago, the failed move plan. They wanted it.

1:32:59They wanted it. They did. They won and they just took the same design and plopped it in Vegas and put a roof on it and called it a Legion stadium. Anyway, I digress. The battle between these two teams, there's no better time to play the Raiders than when you need to get right game. And that's what the chargers enjoyed today. I think the thing that mattered to me the most or was most prevalent in this game was just the superiority in the trenches, which is saying something because we know how bad the chargers offensive line has been without Joel Alt and Rashawn Slater. That's how you rush for 192 yards as a team.

1:33:25That's how Kamani Vidal goes for 126 and rips off a 59 yarder. how Jarrett Patterson, former undrafted free agent out of Buffalo, bounced around the league a little bit. He gets in there and gets a touchdown. And he also has a long of 22. They were kind of gashing the Raiders on the ground, which is not something the Chargers have done in a while, at least consistently enough. And it took the load off of Justin Herbert. He only had to throw 20 passes. He completed 15 of them. Sure. He was under fire on third and long situations early in this game, but it wasn't a consistent theme in this game.

1:33:51Like it was against the Jaguars because they were able to control the game on the ground. So that's a big win for them, but I take it with a grain of salt because they were playing the Raiders. Yeah. Because other than Max Crosby, that front does nothing to stop anybody. And the Raiders lose the trench battle on both sides of the ball. So this entire game, while it looks good on paper and you're happy to have the win, I'm like, hey, we're playing the Raiders. Let's see next week. The Raiders are one of the worst two team wins I've ever seen. Like they've won two games, but they're just brutal.

1:34:17They fire Chip Kelly. And yet Ashton Gentry goes 15 for 31. It's so bad to watch, Greg. It's so bad to watch. When they hand him the ball, he's constantly hit two to three yards behind the line of scrimmage. I feel so bad for him. Geno Smith takes at least four sacks. And the stat that Josh Dubow of the Associated Press had, which I found interesting, was they've had four straight games where they took at least four sacks and they rushed for under 75 yards. They were only the second team in NFL history to have that level of futility, which to me, those are offensive line stats. They're offense stats, but they're offensive line stats where Pete Carroll's son is running the team.

1:34:56The other team was the 2016 Cleveland Browns. I'm going to put you on the spot, Nick Shook. What quarterback started the most games for the 2016 Cleveland Browns? Now, there were three starters that year that started at least three games, but I only accept the guy who started the most. This is a tough one. You said there was three? There was three that started at least three games. Is that the Cody Kessler season? He got it! Bang! Let's go! He got it! I had no idea. I went to go look. I was like, what was that 2016 team? I have memory hold. Cody Kessler starting nine games for the Cleveland Bubs.

1:35:36RG3 got five starts that year. And Josh McCown also. Yeah, that was the other one. Unfortunately, that's the company that Geno Smith and this team is keeping. We're going to move on from this, but we do got to give Brock Bauer some love. I really ask everyone to watch on YouTube. You can see the great videos that we show. And, you know, we have this video here and we're not going to do the call of it. You can just watch it. That one night to catch just like this guy is such a freak. He goes four for 63. But like every catch he makes is better than the last. Just give me some Brock Bowers love before we get out of here.

1:36:14So one of those rare moments where having a dark colored paint in your end zone kind of betrays the eyes initially because that ball nose dives right out of Gino's hand. And I'm thinking, oh, well, that's short. There's no way he caught it. And then as he falls to the ground and wraps it in with his left arm, fully extended and the ball disappears, I think, Oh my God, did he catch that? Sure enough? He caught it. He defied the laws of physics and gravity and just proved why he's the best tight end in the NFL because he has rare skills like that. Yeah. He had both of the Raiders touchdowns, by the way, today, Gino somehow only had five incompletions and yet they absolutely got manhandled.

1:36:47All right. That's it from the chargers. But what about the leader in the AFC West? Let's go to Sunday Night Football and the Broncos.

1:37:22Right play by Nick Benito. He came untouched. And the Broncos in overtime have beaten the Commanders 27 to 26. Oh, it's just that close. A rare double highlight where we got not only Ram Weinstein on WBIG with a heroic Marcus Mariota touchdown on fourth down in overtime, but also Dave Logan on KOA. It comes down to one play, but as they've done all year, the Broncos get that one play. They've won nine straight games. The Commanders were ready for this game, and yet they've lost seven straight. Denver survives 27 to 26, Shooky. So much happened in the last five minutes of regulation and overtime of this game, it just goes to show, this was a game I was complaining about on this very show.

1:38:25Why didn't you flex this out of primetime? How can you leave the Broncos and the Commanders in primetime? I say more Mario Ta all throughout the next month. We just need it. That game was absolutely incredible. Start wherever you want. More Mario Ta since the internet was obsessed with that throughout this game, right? this was a game that I think I tweeted this. This is a game that had big tie energy, but was not going to end in a tie. It just felt like there were multiple opportunities for the Broncos to put this game away in the fourth quarter. And yet they didn't. And the commanders just kept finding ways to hang around.

1:39:04And it felt like they couldn't get over the hump either. And then they finally did in the most try. I mean, let's all right. Well, this is where we'll start. Final minute of regulation when the commanders get the ball back and they're operating with one timeout and Marcus Mariota pulls off the an amazing feat where he gets tripped appears to get up without being touched and then takes off to try to salvage something out of a play then the commanders get burned by officiating which tells them that no in fact he was touched down upon uh replay assist and we also can't flag the broncos for tripping him so now suddenly they're facing what was it first in 15 or whatever it might have been and then after the sack then it gets even worse because terry mclaurin gets nailed with the worst false start penalty i've ever seen there was no false start he was set for a second i I don't know why the refs are involved at that point in the game.

1:39:50And yet, third and 25 is where it ended up. Yes. He finds McLaurin to cut it to what? Fourth and five, fourth and six. They get that played. They get the job done. They get the first down the next play. Then he gets down there again. He scrambles with less than 20 seconds left and no timeouts and manages with the final lunge to get out of bounds to stop the clock. And all that sets up a Jake Moody game tying field goal to send us to overtime. From there, it felt like anything could happen. Anything was possible. And anything, did happen in this game. It was the anti-Bo Nix game because the first three quarters, he was good.

1:40:26There were a few, you know, misses in there, but he also had a great diving touchdown to Cortland Sutton. He pretty much made good decisions. It was just a good game. And I know the commander's defense hasn't played well in general. They didn't even play that well tonight, but what they did was keep the ball in front of them, make the Broncos go on these long drives, the running game for the Broncos. Not great. And yet the fourth quarter starts, and that's usually Bo Nix time. And the magic all goes away. He just stares down a receiver on a Bobby Wagner interception. He runs into a sack, and that sets up this late sequence that you're talking about.

1:41:02Let's now take it to overtime. So the Broncos go right down the field. Evan Ingram makes Bobby Wagner look very old on a catch and run. Good play call. Good execution. And they score in five plays in overtime. and then it gets really crazy because in overtime, just in the little final sequence, let's think about what happened. There was a fourth and six where it looks like Mariota is going to go down and instead he gets out of it and they end up calling a penalty on the Broncos. There was an interception on the play that looked like it was going to end the game, was going to be our highlight. Instead, it's a pass interference on the Broncos.

1:41:46It keeps it going. Then he throws a touchdown to Terry McLaurin, but it's wiped away by penalty of Josh Connerly. Then he throws what looks like, you know, a touchdown to Zach Ertz, but he drops it. And that sets up the two-play sequence we get there. And your heart just breaks for him because they had the right play call. And Nick Bonino makes a great volleyball spike of that ball on the two-point conversion. But if Mariota wanted to, He could have just thrown that ball. Easy for us to say after all the plays that they had, 85 plays on offense for the commanders. And he just throws a normal pass.

1:42:23And Benito, who has been just stepping up big time moment after big time moment tonight on a night where their defense didn't play great. He makes the play to win the game and get them to 10 and two. Didn't play great, but played really well in the biggest moments for the most part. Now you could say in that sequence that you just described, was the Josh Connolly hold really a hold? maybe probably not the edge rusher was already kind of falling down but did Terry McLaurin get free on a bit of a pick play for that fourth down touchdown yeah and was I worried that they were going to throw a flag there too yeah and it didn't and I think that this sequence kind of just described if you ask the commanders fan how do you feel about the 2025 season they'd say did you see how that game ended how we just went to overtime and we scored we thought we scored about three times and then we finally did score and then we had our wide open two-point conversion to win the game swatted away by Nick Benito, one of the most underrated players who's just had a hell of an 18 months in the NFL.

1:43:15Yeah, that's our season. At least they were competitive. I mean, the defense looked normal tonight. It wasn't great. Still gave up over 400 yards. They got too much praise in the broadcast, by the way. Yeah, too much praise. Yeah, too much praise on a night where, look, they gave up 27 points. They did force three straight punts in the fourth quarter. And they got an interception and forced three straight punts in the fourth quarter. So they weren't great before that. In fact, they were terrible. They had given up two touchdowns and two field goals on only five drives. I mean, you can't do that much worse than that, but the fourth quarter, they did show up and it was a close game.

1:43:52And Mariota's played great this year. I know people haven't been watching the commanders and he always throws like, you're giving me a look. Okay. So he has the jump tonight. Great tonight. Great tonight. I think for a backup quarterback. Yes. Okay. Well, that's given. That's a given. And he's usually one of the best backup quarterbacks in the NFL. But there have been some stinkers lately. That doesn't discount tonight. I'm just saying overall. He wasn't great in Madrid, but he was pretty good. I would say overall, like the drop off from Jaden Daniels to Marcus Mariota is pretty low on the list of reasons why the commanders have stunk this year.

1:44:25That's all I'm saying. And I just wanted for him to have that moment because, man, he's had a lot of losses in his career. It broke my heart. The look on his face. Did you see it? Yes. Yes. He takes his helmet off and you see the salt and pepper hair and you're like, oh, Marcus, your best years are behind you, but you're still playing good football. I hate that you just get your heart broken again. You're the Heisman Trophy winner, the number two overall pick in the 2015 draft. You're supposed to be the Titans guy. Maybe they forced you out a little too soon because he couldn't stay healthy. And now this, when does the man enjoy success?

1:44:55He lost the national championship game to Ohio State. Just give the guy some happiness for one. Just give him a win. And it was the old guy showing up for the commanders. Zach Ertz goes 10 for 106. Terry McLaurin makes a huge difference on his first game back. Goes 7 for 96. And then the catch of the day, maybe even the catch of the year, is made by Traylon Burks. They're 5 for 6 on third down. Can they make it 6 for 7? Mario to throw in a fade route. Oh my gosh! One-handed catch! Give me a break! Touchdown Washington! Unreal grab by Burks! Are you serious, Trey Burks? Who needs two hands when you can go up and make a one-handed, snag and grab like that?

1:45:42That was filthy. That was the most disgusting thing. Riley Moss, man. Give him a poster real quick. This was the Odell Beckham catch from years ago against Dallas. Put that on the calls of the year. We've had a hell of a Sunday for calls and a hell of a Sunday for catches, Chuck. Yeah. I liked that. A lot of people made that comparison. Cause I think that's pretty accurate. I wouldn't say that the degree of difficulty is maybe increased or less than, than the Odell catch because the other catch was like way downfield. There was a lot of velocity on that ball, but Riley Moss is blanketed on him.

1:46:15He's draped all over him. That's an absurd catch. And what hit me in that moment was, Oh my God. And this is no shade of him, but we know the rough road, the trail on Burks has traveled since he was drafted in the first round by the Titans. finally he made a play that justified his draft standing was it with a new team was it after he got cut was it after he failed to effectively replace ajay brown which was always unrealistic yes but it's really nice to see guys have that moment in the sun in a big spot like that yeah he quietly had three great catches in the last game i believe that he played against detroit and then got hurt in that game and i thought hmm like that was a better game than i ever saw in tennessee maybe he's turning the corner then he misses about a month comes back tonight makes that catch unfortunately there are a couple routes that he took tonight where he did not read the field the same as mariota and you thought okay maybe that's that's why he you know didn't last in tennessee but what what a sunday for catches you got the brock bowers one-handed catch you got the puka one-handed catch and then this one i think was the best of them all and i apologize if he's out there ever listening uh to bram weinstein i should not be talking over his call.

1:47:21That's like drawing on a Michelangelo painting. Just don't touch it. And good job by London Fletcher and Logan Paulson jumping in there. That is on my calls of the year. But take me out of it, guys, when we play that for the calls of the year. A couple last things. I mean, the Broncos, I don't know what to think about this team, but I did just want to give a shout out to Riley Moss. That was not his fault and he actually made a number of good plays late in this game. And then Alex Singleton, one of the Most amazing stories of this season, who found out he had testicular cancer three weeks ago, had surgery, back on the field for this game.

1:47:59Now a team captain for this Broncos team and makes a huge breakup down the field late in regulation. Obviously, their defense didn't make enough plays late, but that was incredible. And for him to be back out there, you could see how much it meant. And I think for the Broncos, you don't have to apologize for wins, but you also don't have to pretend that this team is looking any better than it is. They're just somehow finding ways to win. And the thing about getting to 10 and two shook and like not playing that well, it's like you can start to play better. Like, I think that is on the table for them just because they're a little lucky to be 10 and two.

1:48:36Does it, doesn't mean that they're not going to get better and they're in a great position to get better. So we'll see, we'll see where their path goes because I think they're a little short on playmakers on offense, but we've seen the playmaking they have on defense. Yeah. You know, and I agree, especially at running back. Um, but I like that the direction they're trending in Bo Nix has put together a few solid games. You know, it was the inverse Bo Nix game, like you said today with three good quarters and not a good fourth quarter, but that's fine. Ultimately for me, um, I think that they have enough difference makers on both sides of the ball.

1:49:02And that's, that's the most important to me because that, if you have that nucleus, they can come together late in the season. You want to peak late in the season. I feel like they're slowly climbing toward that. And defensively, they have a bunch of difference makers, you know, you get Pat Sertan back, you got Nick Benito, even, you know, Riley Moss playing here and Alex Singleton back, all these guys you just mentioned, like this is a good group. And this is a group that I would never want to try to run the ball against in short yard situations like that, that goal to go situation in overtime, where I was convinced that the commanders were not going to score because I knew they could not run the ball.

1:49:34And that, that speaks to their stoutness upfront and the cohesion of their defense. Cause I think that's still their strength. And they have, again, enough difference makers on both sides of the ball that they can be, I mean, you're 10 and two. It's not by mistake. You know, it's just that you haven't peaked yet, which is not the worst thing. And you haven't you just win all these games at the last second and no matter who it's against, I just I just think the ultimate thing that matters is they're four games ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs. The Kansas City Chiefs are not winning that division.

1:50:04They are two games ahead of the Los Angeles Chargers and they'll need to win that game. But if they do, because the Chargers won the first one, like the Broncos are going to win this division and they got a chance to be the number one seed, maybe even after this weekend. Monday Night Football. We're going to be back sooner than later. I thought we were going to get out of here early tonight, Shook. I thought this game would be moving along quickly. My parents are in town. I said, I'll try to get back, get out as soon as I can, and I'll say goodnight, goodbye to you before you leave on a very early morning flight back to Massachusetts.

1:50:39Guess what? They're going to be asleep by the time I get home. You prevented me, Broncos, from saying goodnight to my parents and saying goodbye after this great week-long Thanksgiving trip. And you know what? At least you did it with a great game. How dare you? Now Greg doesn't believe that you can win the Super Bowl. No, I forgive you. I forgive you. If you were going to do it, at least do it and entertain us. And they did. It's been a great week of games. Chuck, come join me. Monday Night Football. We're going to be on live after the game. I got a feeling that this game is going to be a tricky one for the Patriots.

1:51:12It's going to be frisky. We're going to have a lot to talk about. We'll have some news to join us on YouTube. Monday Night Football. What a week 13. We'll see you then.

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1:55:21Jourdan Rodrigue:This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human.

From the publisher

Gregg Rosenthal is joined by Jourdan Rodrigue, Patrick Claybon and Nick Shook to recap the Week 13 action from around the NFL, starting with the Rams at the Panthers followed by Texans at Colts (13:40), Jaguars at Titans (23:00), Bills at Steelers (32:17), Vikings at Seahawks (41:45), Cardinals at Buccaneers (49:57), Saints at Dolphins (57:05), Falcons at Jets (01:03:10), 49ers at Browns (01:10:16), Raiders at Chargers (01:17:20), and Broncos at Commanders (01:25:51) on Sunday Night Football. 

Note: time codes approximate. 

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