Ranking Title Contenders, Playoff Bubble Teams and Football in Ireland with Michael McQuaid

0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Lowe's knows Sundays are for football. So tackle your home improvement projects by Saturday and earn your Sunday with great deals on LG and Bosch appliances, select Bounty and Swiffer cleaning products, and more. Then once your to-do list is done, get ready to kick back, relax, and enjoy the game. shop in store or online now and earn your sunday with help from lowe's official partner of the nfl wasabi is purpose-built to free your business from skyrocketing storage costs and fees wasabi is the go-to provider for professional and collegiate sports teams around the world check out wasabi's ai-enabled intelligent media storage wasabi air to the industry's only cloud storage service with triple protection against cyber criminals.

0:54Wasabi, driving innovation and data storage for up to 80 % less than market competition. Try for free at wasabi.com. Wasabi, hot cloud storage, proud partner of the iHeart Podcast Network. Life moves fast. At American Military University, they're ready to help you keep up. AMU's flexible, affordable online programs in cybersecurity, IT, space studies, and more are designed for service members, veterans, and their families. AMU provides the support you need to take the next step wherever life takes you. American Military University. It is made for what's next. Learn more at amu.apus.edu. This is Tab Ramos from Inside American Soccer.

1:38And this summer, Topgolf is turning into the ultimate soccer destination. They've got a new soccer-themed game you can play with your group, exclusive food and drink items. They've even installed full-size soccer goals so you can try to hit golf balls right into the net. And every match all summer long will be on throughout the venue. And if you want to keep the fun going all summer, you can get the Topgolf Summer Fun Pass, which lets you play every single day and bring up to five guests every visit. Get yours now at topgolf.com slash fun pass.

2:14welcome to nfl daily where it's the irish super bowl this week i'm greg rosenthal and i could not be more excited to be joined by the unofficial host of vikings dealers the first ever game in dublin michael mcquade uh how are you doing are you going a little crazy i know you're running all over the place this week greg falchia welcome to ireland i know you've a lot of fans on this island both north and south and it's funny i was talking to a few people before we came in here i really mean this it really means a lot to us to see not just yourself but the league come over here so it's good to see you man how you doing hey i'm doing great and yeah like i get to the airport the entire gate are steelers fans in their jerseys did you fly from la or from la So that's either spawns in LA.

3:06Oh yeah. I mean, there's Steelers fans everywhere. The fact that it's all Steelers fan on a like red eye in LA, like, okay, that feels different. Get off the flight. You see the Steelers and the, all the NFL stuff all over the city, get to the hotel. There's literally 20 Steelers fans all taking pictures with their jerseys on. And it just, you've been on a, on a bus around town with literally the bus, Jerome Bettis. And yeah, it, it does feel like a special week for football in this country and the NFL in general. And I have got a present for you from all of us lads here, including Mark sitting beside us.

3:45I've got you an Irish terrible towel, which I don't believe is available in Pittsburgh. So you can keep that as a memento. I mean, I'm not keeping this thing. I'm a Rogers hater, but I will give this to a deserving friend, my good buddy, Anthony Jeselnik. We're here with a big fan of the Jessal, Nick, and Rosenthal Vanity Project, JRPP, Mark Hogan here. And I'm giving this straight to him. He will really appreciate that. And yes, if you're listening to this, what's this show all about? We want to get a little bit of local flavor, a little bit of knowledge about the growth of the game here. We're going to talk a little Viking Steelers.

4:26We did preview the game on our preview show, but just a few more thoughts about it before we get ready, what that game is going to look like. And I'm actually going to throw some rankings at you because I can't do anything in my life without ranking them. And they're not exactly power rankings, but I thought this was like a good time to just look at preseason predictions and who we think, me especially, are going to make the playoffs, how that's changed. So it's kind of ranking the teams based on how I think they're going to make the playoffs or not. I divided them up into categories, and you can just tell me where you think I'm wrong.

5:01and where you think i'm right but i do kind of want to start with a little bit of ireland chatter still how have you seen like the culture of nfl fandom grow i i'm sitting here speaking to somebody like yourself that's been to london many times london's great london's amazing i think tottenham is really really special the first ever game i went to was in wembley and i know you've experienced that journey numerous times and continue to do so i went to twickenham that was twickenham rams wasn't it rams against yeah i've never been to twickenham now so i'll give you that i think you know when we go to an airport whether it's belfast dublin cork carry whatever it doesn't matter where you are in this island the fact of the matter is we cannot walk on water yet so we have to get a play into an nfl game to see it actually come over to here is really special especially when we have kicked sort of the season off football wise with college football for the last few years and man this is like the fifth time i've said this but i'm almost asking myself why is it only happening now this should have happened like 10 15 years ago but you know and i know your listeners know as well you know guys like alistair kirkwood who really gambled his career on that game in 07 working in with miami and with new york and look where we are now three games coming up over the next few weeks in london and dublin on top it's you know you mentioned when we met you about munich it it got that damn feel to me the fact that i've left the house gotten my car and i've drove down the road to an nfl game is something i never thought i would see but it's so so special man i can't tell you how excited i am i do want to wrap up sort of talking about what we think it's going to look like on sunday because it's a different stadium and everything but i i think the game's here and you're right it is too late and it's not going to be the last one the nfl is expanding you think so do you think it'll be another one in ireland at some point, even if it's not next year.

6:52Yeah. I mean, I think if I had to guess without any inside knowledge, and maybe our friend Henry Hodgson will slap me for this, but I would think it's going to be next year. Or whenever it is, if anything, the only concern will be like, can they match up to how big they're going this time around with the Steelers? Because there's a lot going on. Like, it feels like a first game in the country. And the reason I think it'll keep happening is because they're going to go where the response is. And Ireland punches above its weight in terms of fandom so much. Why do you think that is? I went and looked at our listenership over the last month.

7:34Ireland is fourth in terms of the country's listing. It's the US, of course. The UK is a massive way out in second. Australia. And then it's Ireland. I actually did some comparison. I went and looked a year ago. and it's like ireland zoom past germany so it's like it's growing and for such a small country for it to have that sort of audience i i don't know what do you think the reason and if you actually extrapolate potentially the uk data as well how many people are from northern ireland as well and that so and that goes into the stats so it could be sitting third for all we know we will talk about that over it and the fandom is just growing and growing and you know you talk about it feels like a real first game vibe i think it's because of the fact of the heritage and you know i know you've previewed the game but there's been no international game ever where an ownership has came over and they've literally you know come over to come home you know 200 years since they emigrated from north america the rooney family you know i was lucky enough to be up in nury earlier on this week and you could see the roonies emotional like jerome bettis got it immediately what it meant to him and you know kids are you know like it was in a girls school and you know they've probably never watched a dino football in their life but when he walked out with a gold jacket they were like oh my god this is incredible there is that vibe of you know it's the first time and i agree with you what you're saying about it you know potentially coming back and you know from a fan perspective first and foremost when you come down here you see dublin castle you see every street decked out i think to get the right matchup i can't see why it can't happen every year and it's an easy addition for the league to have it year on year if they have or if they want to have additional games i think it's just about getting the right palette i'd happily take a game every year if they offer just make the steelers the the irish team i'm sure they'd want to be i know they really like and it's not even like not like it's public knowledge they really want play in mexico and i know i remember i spoke to a guy called alvaro martin who does the spanish broadcast and he met me at the super bowl and he was like man i'm so happy for you but like i really wanted it to be us and fans and there's fans from mexico flying over to this game so i feel like yes they'll come back to stealers please god touch wood etc but i think they might go to mexico next at some point well they've only had you know dan rooney's only been an ambassador to one country Yes, I am confident it'll be here partly because it's open that the NFL's idea is to play more international games.

10:05And it's pretty obvious to me that the way to do that is eventually have a schedule where every team plays an international game every year. There's an entire week of international games. It solves the whole uneven home away schedule. It's an extra television package. They're going to renegotiate that. I'm just spinning off of speculation. This is not inside information. And so at that point, you need inventory. You need 16 games a year. London can handle, what, five, six, whatever it's going to be. But you're going to be all over the globe. And I think they'll go where the enthusiasm is, and it's here.

10:41So let's put a pin in that for a minute. I do want to circle back and end with that. We can talk a little bit about Viking Steelers. But I'm going to just do something. I was on the flight over. I was thinking about it a little bit. And I just thought it would be a good time to think about where we're at after three weeks. I don't think it's too early to start overreacting and just categorize these teams. And so we're going to do it pretty quickly here, Michael. You are an analyst. I don't want to just put you in the box of like, oh, yeah, tell us about how meaningful Ireland is. you're actually going to be broadcasting.

11:20What is your role with Virgin Media for this game? It is the first Irish production of an NFL game since 1990. Yes. Which is outrageous. I was born in 91, so I'll take that. That's annoying. You didn't need to say that. Like, you're going to be part of it. What are you doing for the game? I'm doing pregame, halftime, and postgame on the television. And our friend who we were talking about off audio, So FA Obata is going to be doing not play by play, but whenever the U S goes to commercials, he's going to be talking to each play. And I know you love the guy. I absolutely love that guy. He is amazing.

11:56And I can't wait to see what he's going to be like. That is amazing. You're kind of a competitor. I'm doing halftime for sky sports, but ultimately I don't think you can get both. I don't even know how it works, but sure. Look, it's fine. We can scope against John and have some fun. Flip it in between. Okay. So I've divided the entire league into different groups. Hmm. Okay. I'm going to start at the bottom and then go to the top. And the different groups are based on if I think they can make the playoffs. After three weeks, and I do generally enter the season, but there's only a handful of teams that you think have very little chance to make the playoffs.

12:29And looking at the teams in this category, it's amazing how predictable it'd be. So this is teams I would be shocked if they made the playoffs. And I'm going to start going backwards. So dead last in the NFL, I would put the Titans. That's 32. Saints would be next. Dolphins at 30. I still would be shocked if the Carolina Panthers made the playoffs, even though they just won a game via shutout. The Jets above them. That's one where I probably would have changed categories in the last three weeks because I actually had them as a seven seed. I don't feel good about that now. I still think they can be relevant.

13:04It'd be tough for them to go 10-4 the rest of the year. That's probably what they would need to make the playoffs. The Raiders, the Giants. And then at the very top of this list, the Browns. I even thought about bumping up a little bit. The Browns defense against the Packers last week. Obviously, their offense has got issues. And I've got, frankly, a lovely man, but a very old man playing a quarterback in one sense. I would probably like you find him physically attractive. He's a great hair or he's just a nice guy. I've met him. He's a lovely lucky. He's a very good looking man. I can't believe I'm saying this on an NFL podcast.

13:40but he's actually he's a really really nice guy a family man as well when i had the chance to meet him whenever i actually big like not that you're shocked that joe black was big but he's an enormous he's a giant man he's an absolute giant in terms of being a brown though offensively do i think they could make a run it's difficult but that defense against the packers shut down i know jordan love it a really poor game but like man i would put them up a little bit i would actually have the giants maybe towards the bottom two or three here um whenever we went to new jersey and seeing the jets training camp the optimism was so different from any time we've seen him come to london like justin field's been really really confident and i just find it really funny how you've got them down at the bottom with training camp yeah sometimes you fall for it but i that's why i think they can still be relevant but this category is shocked if they made the playoffs I'm assuming you probably need 10 wins to make the playoffs.

14:33You don't have to go 10 and four. It's a lot. They have more defensive problems than I really expected. But shout out to the Browns because they maybe deserve to be in this next tier up. Because I do think that defense is that good. It's just hard. The combination of quarterback and offensive line for the Browns is going to make it very difficult. All right. The next section is I would be surprised if they made the playoffs. So the first section, I'd be shocked. I'm basically crossing those teams out. Like, apology to the Dolphins and Saints. I don't think their fans feel different. And the Raiders fans probably do feel different because they're always overconfident.

15:09But they've got a lot of issues. Another team with a bad offensive line and not enough talent on defense. This group is the teams I would be surprised if they made the playoffs. All right. The number 21 team overall, the Bears. Then the Bengals. I have the Patriots at 23 and the Cowboys at 24. So those four teams feels very unlikely that they would make the playoffs to me. Of that group, who do you think would be the most likely? Just because I know it's an absolute storm down there at any given moment. And for all we know, they could go in on Sunday night and beat the Packers. Give me the Cowboys.

15:48Like, how far up are they going to be going up against Micah Parsons on Sunday night? Like, they're going to be all over it, man. That only goes so far. I mean, they just don't have the juice. One of the things I regret the most about my preseason analysis was how I thought the Cowboys defense. Now, this is when they had Parsons would be frisking in terms of the edge players next to them having the depth. I think the combination of the scheme and the talent, they just don't really fit each other. So I'm not I'm not crossing them out. Any team with a quarterback playing that well has a chance, but losing CeeDee Lamb for however long it's going to be, losing two offensive linemen for at least the next three, four, five weeks is a pretty big deal.

16:34I think Patriots fans might be annoyed that I put them down here, but I would be surprised at this point. I feel like an eight or nine win team would be a big victory for this team. You've got the Bengals in exactly the right spot. I actually felt bad watching them last week whenever Browning had a bit of a brown himself watching it. It was absolutely awful. And obviously, we'll probably talk about that Vikings defense later on in this podcast. But I think you're in the right spot there. Patriots, you can see them maybe winning one less than what they lose overall. But they're sort of stop-start, stop-start.

17:07They really should have pushed on against the Steelers last week. I thought they would have done a lot better, to be honest. We had about 14 points last week. Yeah, if they score and eliminate mistake, they have the most potential here because of the schedule. Again, they have the Panthers next week. They have these NFC South teams. The rest of the AFC East is very forgiving, but I think they're still short in a lot of places, and so I would be surprised. All right, my next group, I'm counting as the playoff bubble. These teams have a legit chance to make the playoffs. Yeah. At the moment, they might be, in my mind, like a little on the outside looking out or right on the border.

17:46And so at the top of that list, I'm putting the Vikings at the top of that list. I had them over eight and a half as one of my favorite over unders this year. I feel OK about that now, but not amazing. The Jaguars are next. I think they're very frisky. Steelers below them right in the middle of the NFL at 16. The Broncos at 17. I'm a little concerned about Bo Nix. They're lower than they would have been going into the season for sure. The Texans, I'm hanging on. I'm keeping a little bit of stock because that defense is championship worthy. The Cardinals and the Falcons are also in this year. Make fun of one of these rankings.

18:23Which one do you dislike the most? The Broncos. I think, you know, if you look at two of their games, they've lost by a combined four or five points. They were very unlucky against Indianapolis. this they should have offensively really took the chargers last week i understand how they lost the game bo nicks how we've seen him last year especially in the second half of the season to now clearly isn't at the level that he was last year but he needs to try and push on they've got the weapons offensively they've got defensive leaders there they should be at the upper echelon of that i really find it interesting you've got the vikings at the top of that steelers as well especially when they've got a you know positive record so far is really intriguing with that like obviously what two and one three weeks so the Steelers have a lot of concerning aspects to their their offensive line their quarterback doesn't like to be pressured the depth of their offensive players to this point the defense is under achieved but they have been winning doing it and Mike Tomlin usually figures it out and they always win more games than they should so maybe I'm I'm being a little bit of a hater to have them here at 60 I mean they are grinding out of the minute they're They're not at the top level where they could be.

19:31Their run game has been quite inconsistent as well. It's like 40 maximum yards. They're on the bubble. They're on the bubble. They're an average team that I think the expectations were too high when Mike Tomlin said that he thought this defense could be sore. It's like, let's be average first. At least the next group. Okay, we're getting to some intriguing teams here. 10 through 13. Number 10, and this would be the category, disappointing if they don't make the playoff. At this point, based off what we've seen, I think if they don't make the playoffs, their fan base, and certainly internally, they're going to be pretty disappointed they don't make playoffs.

20:07The Seahawks here I have in my top 10 overall team, and I was very tempted to put them in title contenders. The Darnold thing is a little worrisome, but I do think they have a lot to really like. The Colts at 11, I know it's only three weeks, but at this point, you're 3-0. Your offense has been this good. This is an opportunity. If they don't make the playoffs, everyone gets fired. Like it, it actually is putting more pressure on them. Maybe they couldn't have any more pressure. It's good pressure to have, but they needed to have a playoff season, I think to keep all their jobs. And now with this start, they need to keep it going.

20:40The commanders at 12 and then the 49ers, so many injuries, favorable schedule, three, you know, but I still put them in this year because of the injuries and some questions I have. What's, what stands out to you here? all all for them to be honest we if we start with the Niners like how they're grinding that results of Mac Jones aren't still picking up even with they have different injuries you know that Brock Purdy is going to come back from his uh turf toe injury at some point they've got guys there on both sides of the ball Colts I mean I know you know Jeff Reinbold and he was he was uh comparing him to Johnny Unitas and Peyton Manning on a podcast earlier this week I actually compared Daniel Jones to Peyton Manning he he was like look there's all these different like different legendary players in indianapolis and he went and now we've got daniel jones through three weeks i'm really happy for him man i get like it but i was saying to to mark my mate as well here on our podcast this week they are so fun to watch offensively hey who they were playing last week the jaguars am i right last week but i thought it was a texan for a second how do they get the ball down the field is just like their running game is so so fun to watch i would put the colts if they win this week against the rounds i'd put them up in the upper actual on of that so interesting pick for the seahawks as well but colts for me you're the one to stand out there definitely

22:01for adults with crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis symptoms every choice matters trimphaya offers self-injection or intravenous infusion from the start trimphaya is administered as injections under the skin or infusions through a vein every four weeks, followed by injections under the skin every four or eight weeks. If your doctor decides that you can self-inject Tremphaya, proper training is required. Tremphaya is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease and adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis. Serious allergic reactions, increased risk of infections or lower ability to fight them, and liver problems may occur.

22:42Before treatment, get checked for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms, or need a vaccine. Explore what's possible. Ask your doctor about Trimphia today. Call 1-800-526-7736 to learn more or visit TrimphiaRadio.com. Lowe's knows Sundays are for football. So tackle your home improvement projects by Saturday and earn your Sunday with great deals on LG and Bosch appliances, select bounty and swiffer cleaning products, and more. Then once your to-do list is done, get ready to kick back, relax, and enjoy the game. Shop in-store or online now and earn your Sunday with help from Lowe's, official partner of the NFL.

23:25Innovation is what gets your business to the big leagues, and Wasabi is designed to give every business a shot at competition. Break free from skyrocketing storage costs and unpredictable egress fees from old and top-heavy legacy providers. Wasabi is the world's hottest cloud storage company and the go-to provider for professional and collegiate sports teams and leagues around the world. And here's why. Innovation. From Wasabi's AI-enabled intelligent media storage, Wasabi Air, to the industry's only cloud storage service with triple protection against cyber criminals, data deletion, and ransomware, Wasabi has taken the lead in big lead data storage.

24:02Remember, Wasabi is up to 80 % less than market competition and doesn't charge a cent for businesses to access their own data. Wasabi, another championship story. Check them out for free at wasabi.com. Wasabi hot cloud storage, proud partner of iHeart Podcast Network. Life moves fast. At American Military University, they're ready to help you keep up. AMU's flexible, affordable online programs in cybersecurity, IT, space studies, and more are designed for service members, veterans, and their families. AMU provides the support you need to take the next step wherever life takes you. American Military University.

24:42It is made for what's next. Learn more at amu.apus.edu. This is Tab Ramos from Inside American Soccer, and this summer Topgolf is turning into the ultimate soccer destination. They're not just throwing games on in the background. Topgolf is going all in on soccer. They've got a new soccer themed game you can play with your group, special in-venue activations, exclusive food and drink items inspired by the global game. And at more than 60 locations, they've even installed full size soccer goals. So you can try to hit golf balls right into the net. And every match all summer long will be on throughout the venue.

25:22So it's a great place to watch with friends, hang out, compete a little bit and enjoy the atmosphere. And if you want to keep the fun going all summer, you can get the Topgolf Summer Fun Pass, which lets you play every single day and bring up to five guests every visit. Get yours now at topgolf.com slash fun pass. Summer hits different at Topgolf.

25:49Yeah, we should give some pop to the podcast, Pro Football Ireland, little Jeff Reinbold action, our friend from Sky Sports. You got any other pops you want to give? Well, firstly, Jeff works in college football, and how we do a podcast twice a week is a minor miracle with that man. I love him, and we appreciate him. Just everyone, like Mark, Jason, all the guys who have a college football podcast. A young man called Conal, 20 years of age, has been at a national championship. Dara as well. I do a Monday morning podcast as well. Just guys that do it for the love of the game, and it does make a huge difference.

26:21You've built a little empire. How many people have you left on the side of the road with sharp elbows on your way up here? I do the best I can. I try my best. I love the game. And, you know, we'll talk about it after this. But, you know, when you have weekends, I guess it means a lot. I was asked by my friend, Matt Casey, I'll name drop him here, who is the producer for Football Night in America, also Mike Florio's producer. And he was like, is there a Neil Reynolds of Ireland? And I sent him your way. And then you were on Florio's show. I know I should be getting a co-producer credit for that.

26:58But you, that's your status at this point. Thank you very, very much for that. And it's funny, like I really appreciate going on, obviously love Florio. It was windy outside, right? So you can imagine being on PFT Live or whatever and my hair just went, man, live. A bit embarrassing, but man, great way to go on it. And thank you for the reference. And a co-producer situation will definitely happen. Absolutely. And I don't think you need to say, obviously I love Florio because I feel like there's a lot of people that don't. I enjoy his articles. I enjoy the discussion, shall we say, and the opinions and different things.

27:35He cranks. No one works harder, and I'm joking about it because I feel comfortable doing that. I used to work for him, and I know he pisses a lot of people off. That's what he's trying to do. Sometimes it's people inside the league. Sometimes it's people working for teams, but you need someone like that in the mix. All right, let's get back to the mix. And yeah, like the commander's defense is a little more impressive so far than I expected. And so I actually am upgrading them a little bit. I was not so high on them repeating this year. And the fact that their defense, I think is going to be as good as it has been, makes me more optimistic that I'd be disappointed if they didn't make the playoffs.

28:17And the Seahawks, very close to putting them in the title contenders, because I just think they have a lot to like on this team, especially on defense, but I like the way that the offense has been coached. I just need to see it a little bit more. All right, let's get to title contenders because we're taping this too before that TNF game and we could sound stupid talking Seahawks or Cardinals. Title contenders. And tell me if you don't think any of these teams are. Ultimately, I had a pretty big group. People think that it's very predictable. I think this season in the NFL, at least where we are right now, I felt comfortable putting nine teams where if they won the Super Bowl, I'd be like, yeah, I could see it with maybe, you know, one caveat.

29:03And that's at the bottom of this. But at the top, I'm putting the Packers. I know they just lost to the Browns. They still have Matt LaFleur, a quarterback I believe in, and what I think is going to be the best defense in the league. So I'm putting them number one. The Lions and Eagles right behind them. I just think they're going to be the class of the NFC in general. Chargers, Bills, Ravens up next. Even though the Ravens have lost two games, I anticipate they will figure things out. My friend Jordan Rodriguez on the show on Wednesday said, are the Chargers the best team in the NFL? I thought, man, that is a wild statement.

29:38But it's not crazy when you think of how well Justin Herbert is playing right now and that they're a pretty balanced team overall. so they're there at four Bills at five Ravens at six and then the Rams the Bucks and the hardest team to put in this list for me was actually the Kansas City Chiefs it just felt like I'm like falling for it if I don't at least put them in this category it's the first team that looked at me there and I like granted I watched about 56 minutes condensed of Sunday Night Football with the Chiefs and the reality is something we talked about earlier on this week for two teams on that list one of them barring a miracle this week is going one and flee and like what's the percentage chances of making the playoffs if you go one and flee never mind the consequences in the AFC North if the Ravens go to one and flee with different teams there and with the Chiefs offensively bar that like bar the final couple of offensive drives on Sunday Night Football in New York I was sort of surprised at how much they struggled to get the ball down the field and relied so much on Harrison I thought there would be more of a movement on the offense with Patrick Mahomes.