Nightcap Hour 1: Rams KNOCK OFF Bears to ADVANCE to NFC Championship + Broncos Jaquan McMillian JOINS Nightcap + Patriots ADVANCE to 1st AFC Championship since 2018

22:54You just hope those that you're throwing the ball to can make those catches. I get the ball to you. I get the ball to you.

23:01Shannon Sharpe:I'll definitely make it happen. Yeah. But the Los Angeles Rams move on. They played their division nemesis, the Seattle Seahawks, 20-17. They're very familiar. This will be the third time that they played. there's no love lost between these two teams

23:22Seattle

23:22Shannon Sharpe:physical both sides they want to run the football with Walker III and Charbonneau is Charbonneau good? because he left the game he got Nicked didn't he they elevated somebody up from the practice squad I think I read that Ocho but look the way Kenneth Walker running he good we just keep running him and you know those JSA in. Now, Cooper Cup Cup, yeah, he made some big catches yesterday on third down. Now you're just hoping that Sam Darnold doesn't revert back because he has a propensity to put the ball in harm's way. Yeah, yeah. You got a great chance to winning if you don't put the ball in harm's way.

24:05Shannon Sharpe:You turn the ball over. You're not going, you're not going to represent the NFC and the Super Bowl. No. So, I'm just letting you guys know, just hope Sam Darnold do what he's been doing, which is not turn the football over. I don't think he turned it over that last regular season game against the 49ers. They got 49ers again. He didn't turn it over. He needs to repeat that song. Just play that. Just replay. Just put that on replay. Repeat and keep playing it over and over because if you take care of the ball, there's a excellent chance that you're going to go to the end of the Super Bowl. according to NBC sign line reporter Melissa Stark Rams players were putting cayenne pepper in their socks to stay warm against the Bears hold on cayenne pepper what the hell cayenne pepper gonna do in those kind of conditions it's still pepper it heats up boy that's a new one now boy I ain't never heard of that one well when you put a what what the, uh, Icy Hot, Ben Gay.

25:12Shannon Sharpe:Remember they used to put that in people's jock and when you start sweating, what it do? Oh, you heat up. Yeah, I ain't never used that before. The only thing I had, what you call it, the warmers they give you and you break them. The hand warmers, yeah. I ain't have those either, yeah. Yeah, that's the only thing I know about. And I used to take the hand warmers once it got cold, Unk, I take one, break it up, let it get warm, and I put it on the inside of my glove. Yeah. I put one on the, I could, I have my, I mean, I ain't need none of that. Yeah, you need no pouch? Mm-mm. Oh, but look at you.

25:44Shannon Sharpe:Okay. No, no pouch. The last time the Rams won the Super Bowl, Cooper Cup was the MVP. Next week, the Rams will try to get back to the Super Bowl with Cooper Cup. Now on the opposite sideline as a member of the Seahawks.

25:59Shannon Sharpe:Look, he knows this offense. Yeah. He knows that when they get in certain formations and you hear certain calls, he can call it out because he's that kind of smart. He's that kind of player. Right. how much they rely on that. The film study normally tells you. Maybe he can give them some intricacies of like when you hear certain calls on Joe, this is what that means. Because it was always interesting when we play a West Coast team to hear, they try to disguise it with both. Bro, I know what Lucy is and I know what Sluggo is and I know what all that. I know this and I know smoke, square out, come back.

26:34Shannon Sharpe:I know we knew all that. And we know we all was trying to give us those bogey dubby calls, too. So, get that mess out here. Ocho. Yeah. We're going to talk about the Texans-Patriots game in a bit. But first, it's time to welcome Broncos cornerback Jaquan McMillan. Eczema isn't always obvious, but it's real. And so is the relief from EBCLIS. After an initial dosing phase, about 4 in 10 people taking EBCLIS achieved its relief and clear or almost clear skin at 16 weeks. And most of those people maintain skin that's still more clear at one year with monthly dosing. EbGliss, Librikizumab, LBKZ, a 250 milligram per two milliliter injection, is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 88 pounds or 40 kilograms with moderate to severe eczema.

27:22Also called atopic dermatitis that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin or topicals or who cannot use topical therapies. EbGliss can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. Don't use if you're allergic to EbGliss. Allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. Eye problems can occur. Tell your doctor if you have new or worsening eye problems. You should not receive a live vaccine when treated with EpGliss. Before starting EpGliss, tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. Searching for real relief? Ask your doctor about EpGliss and visit epgliss.lily.com or call 1-800-LILY-RX or 1-800-545-5979.

27:52When it comes to advancing your education, you have more options than you think. At Rasmussen University, they find ways to remove barriers, not build them. like a new laptop if you're eligible and enroll in select online or on-campus programs. That also means flexible and engaging online courses and resources, tuition savings options if you qualify, exceptional student support, and much more. Online nationally or check out their 20 campuses across six states. Start when you're ready and get the support you need. Visit rasmussen.edu. Attention fans of Jury Duty, the groundbreaking comedy series is back for season two, Featuring an all-new cast, this installment takes the comedy out of the courthouse and into the mountains above Malibu for an annual company retreat.

28:38The catch? Everyone but the new guy is an actor. Oh yeah, and the company's fake. Get to know all the employees of Rockin' Grandma's Hot Sauce, a family business with everything on the line. Season 2 arrives with bigger laughs, higher stakes, and the same heart that made the first season a cultural phenomenon. And here's the fun part. You'll be able to try all four flavors of Rockin' Grandma's Hot Sauce on Amazon. Jerry Doody Presents Company Retreat is now streaming on Prime Video. Don't miss the feel-good comedy everyone's going to be talking about.

29:13J-Mac, walk us through that play because I know your heart was beating fast.

29:19Shannon Sharpe:You let Brandon Cooks kind of get behind you like, oh my goodness. We had the ball first. if he catches this ball, they're at the 20-yard line. They're in field goal range considering Matt Prater kicked for almost a decade in Denver, and he had just made a 50-yard field goal to send it to overtime. So you're like, okay, walk us through that play. What's going through your mind? Because you look up and you see the ball. Take it from there. Yeah, man. We was actually in zero. We had zero coverage. Yep. And I see Josh Adelight in and kind of bring to it like a 20 look, which is a protection look.

29:59And I'm just thinking in my head like, oh, man, like, okay, they better pick up the blitz. So I kind of back up a little bit. It was like 30 and 10. It was like 30 and 10. So I'm right at the sticks. I'm playing at the sticks. I know I got two droppers at the hook, but, you know, they ain't really going to help. You know what I'm saying? So I'm playing sticks. He's running and he kept going. So I just kind of gave him a little jab and running. That's how he had me by like a yard or two. He kind of under through it. And you know, I'm just running, running. And I try not to panic and I didn't panic.

30:36And I seen his eyes getting big and I'm like, okay, the ball is in the air. So once he starts going down, okay. I'm like, now I'm like, okay, the ball is on the throne. So now I'm just playing through his hands. I'm just waiting on the ball to drop So I'm like really having my hands, you know, do his hands and uh Once he he had it at first coming down and then once I got my hand on the ball I'm following with him. And once we feel together. Yeah, he lost control and I just get that his hands in

31:05Shannon Sharpe:I mean you like you say, okay I'm playing through his hands and that Ochoa now was talking about this a receiver Sometimes they give it away right give a tail away. Yeah a receiver with late hands is very difficult for you because he'll wait until the last second and pluck it. Some guys can keep their eyes like, damn, when is the ball coming? The next thing you know, it's in his arm. A lot of guys can't control their eyes. It's just like, oh, my goodness. And their eyes get bigger. You're like, okay, the ball's in the air. Like you said, the ball's in the air. So now you're playing through his hands.

31:33Shannon Sharpe:You're like, okay, I got the ball. He got the ball. But the problem is he falls. You fall on top of him and pull it. Yeah, did you did you know did you think like what are they gonna call? Are they gonna give me the interception? Are they gonna say he's down by contact? Are they gonna say incomplete? What is your thought process? What's going through your head play every scenario? What you thinking? Yeah, man, once I came up once I had the ball in my hand, I kind of rolled on top of him. I get up and holding the ball in the air and you can see the video. I'm looking at the back. Like, okay, what you gonna call?

32:05Once I see him doing this and point the other direction, I'm heading to the end zone. I'm about to celebrate. So once I see him do that, it was over with. The funny thing about it, too, is there's been so much controversy about that play. A lot of people saying that obviously the Bills got hold because the play call was wrong. But obviously what happens is there was a smooth transition from him catching and you coming up with the ball to where the call was made the right way. Yeah. The call was made the right way. In order to have a completed catch, the person has to come down with the ball, secure the ball and be able to get up with said ball.

32:42And that was you who got it with the ball. So I'm not sure how the people don't understand the rules. And one of the things that that that that kind of gets everybody upset is because tonight we had something very similar with Devontae Adams. And there's no consistency with plays that are like that. So I think that's where the confusion comes in that it just think that the refs they have to find some of the competition committee Whoever it is they need to find a way to have the calls always remain consistent based on the rules that those that have already played the game know And were able to call right away when you got the interception

33:14Shannon Sharpe:Did you know J-Mac did you on did you know the rules that if a receiver catches the football goes to the ground? He must survive the contact from the ground and to and possess the football because you You survived the – he caught it. You took it, survived the contact from the ground, and got up with the ball. That's the way Carl Jeffers, that's where all the referees that have been going on shows explained it. It's like, yes, there was a transition that on the way down that the DB took the ball. He survived the contact from the ground and got up with the ball. So what we have is an interception.

33:52Shannon Sharpe:It can't be anything but an interception. what did VJ, what did Vance tell you? Because I know he was like, oh, my goodness. We just went bomb blitz. We just blew it up. They max protect because, like you said, they went 20 protection. They brought two extra guys in. So now whatever you come with, they can pick it up. They got seven protectors. They got enough to hold it off because, you know, hey, you go here, you go here. They always go in bombs, in the bomb situation, they always go send one player deep, at least one. and you like, hold on, wait a minute damn, they can pick this up Lord have mercy, Jesus I'm out here by myself and this guy can still run he might not run 4-3 like he did coming out, but he can still get on the forward he was running but BJ came to me he was just excited he was like, hey man, you made a play which you always do I always come up the clutch time, I made a play it was just crazy man but Matt it's it's people don't understand it's a whole different animal playing the slot as opposed because the slot he can go across the field he can start in and come back out he can start out come back in he can go up the scene he can go far across he can go sail he can go stop he can do so many things yeah and like you're playing like you're based on formation down and distance of where he is on the field.

35:21Shannon Sharpe:So you've studied the game like, okay, in this formation, this down in distance, this area of the field, he likes to run this. And so you kind of play, but you can't get too aggressive because if he options away from you, ah, you're out of position. Like I said, we had two hook droppers. You can see in the video, you see Nick Benito, he dropped. So I'm like, okay, even though we're in zero, I can line up, like, head up to outside. In a slot, you always gotta pick a leverage. Because you got a two way go, you gotta make sure you know, okay, he can't come this way. And if he go this way, okay, I'm already open to run.

35:59So that's what I would, I was head up to outside. If they do anything quick, I knew I had my help defender, low help defender on the hook. So he kept running, you know, I just played outside leverage and gave him a jab. And I just ran with him, just ran. Like I said, he just played through his hands, man. But he was rolling, man. He was rolling. The ball was a little bit on throwing. Slow down a little bit. That kind of helped me. But just made a play.

36:22Shannon Sharpe:But he showed you the ball also. Ocho and I was talking about it last night. If he lets that ball kind of like with Marvin Mims, Marvin let the ball go over. So now you got to run through him. He opened up and allowed you. He kind of jumped in the air. He kind of jumped in the air. So it helped me. Yes. Because, Ocho, remember we talked about a lot of times when guys jump up in the air, that's how guys punch it out because you got no leverage. You're not grounded. That's why it's so easy to get the ball out when a guy's up in the air. You see guys try to go up over a running back or a wide receiver try to go up.

36:56Shannon Sharpe:It's easier because they don't have no stability. They're not on the ground. And you said when he jumps up, okay, now he ain't as strong as he would be if he was on the ground. If he was on the ground, yep. And plus, I know one thing. If you play basketball, I know the guy, he's got to bring the ball up. so he gotta bring it to me yeah well he gotta bring it down because he gonna try to get it to his body that's exactly what i did you bring it to your body yeah i'm gonna shoot through and i'm gonna get it yeah that's exactly what i did once he came down with that mug i'm already in in this in this uh you're in between yeah yeah i'm already in the pocket so he he brought the football to me and i just filled with him and uh ripped that thing up Go ahead, Ocho.

37:42Now, in those pressure situations like that, especially understanding it's cover zero, you're on an island all by yourself. Most of the time, the ball got to come out short, but you got your hook coming to help you out, right? Most of the ball, the ball got to come out fast. Even though he had that step on you and you got to play catch up, how do you stop yourself from panicking in situations like that where you know you beat? Because that's the hardest thing for DBs is when you know you got to catch up you lose all technique and all you're doing is just running just going how were you able to keep yourself in a relaxed mind state to make that play you did make just reading them the receiver um just reading him once he slowed down i knew the ball you know was short so i had to adjust to that and um you can see in the video i kind of like once he slowed down i see them jumping i kind of turned my head a little bit yeah and got my hand up in there um um but man um it's just it's practice it just take practice you know uh receiver and uh that that's what that's how you stay calm just yeah in the moments yes it's one it's one thing to say it right it's one thing to say it but you know I'm talking about game and practice and practice it's easy to stay calm and relax but in the game time in game time you know shoot man well you see it all the time boy every every Sunday we always we always we always talk to like force the receiver to make the catch.

39:10You know what I'm saying? Fight them all the way to the ground. That's what I'm saying. That's what I did. Just fight them all the way to the ground. And, you know, the ball just so happened to be in my hand, but I was going to get the ball out regardless. That's what I'm saying. I was going to get the ball out regardless.

39:24Shannon Sharpe:J-Mac, but here's the difference between practice and the game. Because in practice, it's quiet. And you hear them say, ball, ball, ball, ball. You start looking. You can't hear ish in the game. They can be screaming, ball, ball, ball. You ain't going to hear it. You don't hear nothing. You're not going to hear it. They buy who a BG is, pow, pow, pow. Because you don't hear a thing. Yeah. But he's just reading it. Like I said, he's just reading the receiver, man. He's going to tell you when the ball is right there. And he jumped up in the air. He gave me all the signs that the ball was right there.

39:58So, yeah. Yeah.

40:00Shannon Sharpe:Did you watch any of today's game between the Patriots and the Texans? Yeah. Yeah. What do you see? What do you see on film? I mean, they got to come there. Obviously, everybody knows Bo Nix is done for the year. You're going with your backup, Jared Stenum, who at one point in time, he was a star. He started for the Patriots, started for the Raiders. So now I think he's been there for like three years. I think he's been there two or three years. So you know what you're going up against. You're going to have to do what you've done all year, play to your strength, but you're going to have to do, you know, help your young quarterback out.

40:37Yeah, they got a good quarterback, good run game. They roll off the run game, play a run off play action. They got a decent receiver core, man. But I haven't watched too much. I just watched the game, so I don't really know too much about them. But from baseball, I see it. I got a good run game. It's kind of helping them, you know, in the pass game.

41:01Shannon Sharpe:You like watching? if I'm playing a team, if I know that team is on our schedule, I can't watch them on TV copy because I would get a false sense. If they played bad, I was like, oh yeah, we about to run through these dudes. And if they play good, I was like, oh my goodness, Lord have mercy, how are we going to score on these guys? So I never watched it. I just wanted to, hey, just give me the cutoff. Just give me the breakdown and I'll take it from there. So you actually watch a team that you're going to actually play. Do you get the TV copy to try to hear calls or anything like that? Cadence, if you're going to come off the blitz or anything?

41:37Shannon Sharpe:Do you watch the TV copy and try to pick up the sound? Because some guys, some defensive linemen obviously try to get the cadence of the quarterback. I kind of watch the TV copy kind of like on the back end of the week. I get my cut-ups first. I watch all my cut-ups first, second down early in the week. And then the next day I might do third down and do that. And then towards the later of the week, closer to the game, I watch the TV copies because, you know, the commentators kind of give you a lot of information. They do. You know what I'm saying? And you pick up on little signs based on like checks and you hand signals and stuff like that.

42:11And you know how this guy does he like to hard count? You know what I'm saying? He just, you know, I'm reading everything. His first reads, you know what I'm saying? And I'm just listening to the commentators, seeing how the game flow, how they, you know, the flow of the game is going up. But I don't watch too much of the TV copy. I'm more of a cut-up guy, you know, watching formations and things like that. So based on what you've seen so far, based on what you know about them, even though you haven't gotten into preparing for that game against them, is there anyone on the Patriots that you see might be able to give you fits on the opposite side of you?

42:47Or are you feeling comfortable going to that game where it ain't nothing? I got this. I just have to be technically sound and be disciplined with my eyes and I'm going to be all right. When I always go into a game, like, man, if I just do what I do, my job and have my eyes where it's supposed to be and play off the technique, man, I feel like I just can't be beat. And that's how I feel. I like it.

43:08Shannon Sharpe:I like it. I like it. You guys got tomorrow off? You got to go in and watch film. You got anything or you got tomorrow off? We go in for like a team meeting, but we don't do too much. It's like a regular week now. So go in a team meet and then we have Tuesday off and then we start back Wednesday. Okay. Yeah. I like man. Congratulations, man. I was that man. I was. I said, man, if the Broncos lose this game after getting five after getting five turnovers, I will lose my mind. I will lose. I bet I will lose my mind. But I talked to Pat PS2 before the game. And I think, you know, now is that there are no insignificant plays in the postseason.

43:49Shannon Sharpe:Every play matters in the regular season. You might can brush a playoff in the first or second quarter. But you can't do that in the postseason. I'll give you a prime example. I think it was the second quarter. You remember when Coleman dropped that ball in the end zone? And people said, whoo, glad he dropped it because it was a penalty. But if he catches it, you guys are going to have to accept the penalty. Now you give Josh Allen another crack at you. You see what they did, Ocho? Yeah. Now because he dropped it, we can decline the penalty. Instead of giving him another crack to get seven, they had to settle for three.

44:21Shannon Sharpe:See, there are no insignificant plays. People like trying to, well, you know, it really didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. Come postseason, every play matters. Talk to Sean. And I know Sean told you guys, like, Sean, hey, you've been here. You know what it's like. You're like, we're ready to play. We're ready. And you guys, Matt, you guys got to put that away. They come out. You get the strip sack. Benito chops him. You get the ball. You kick a field goal going into the half. They get the ball. Benito hits him in the back. You get the ball to the 19. Put him away. You get a touchdown there.

44:59Shannon Sharpe:You put him away. Yeah, game over. Yeah, that's one thing about NFL football, man. Like you said, we got the forced fumble right before we have three points and then come back, you know, force another fumble. And we done all this and the game still closes. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, it's a long game. It's a long game. and the field are crazy. It's a long game. Playoff game, the atmosphere is just crazy. It's different. The tempo is different. The ebb, the flows. I mean, it's a different world. Oh, yeah. Man, that stadium got so quiet when they took the lead because they got a field goal and then they came back and they took the lead and they made it 24 to 23.

45:42Shannon Sharpe:That might have been the quietest I've ever heard mile high because they're like, hold on. We got four turnovers. We were kicking the ish out of them the whole game. how they got the lead? That's what would be the crazy part. Like, man, like, you would think, like, if you don't even look at the scoreboard, you're just thinking, like, man, we own them. Like, we own them. Dominating. Yeah. And then, yeah, we dominate them. And then they score one touchdown. It's like, dang, they right back in it. Right back in it. Man, well, congratulations. That's one of the biggest plays in Bronco history. A postseason play.

46:18Shannon Sharpe:Congratulations, proud. I think you or Benito going to probably be AFC Defensive Player of the Week because Benito got two forced fumbles you got a pick I don't know it's going to be out of you and Carlton Davis but I think one of you guys going to probably be the AFC Defensive Player of the Week but congratulations great season thus far hey I'm trying to see y 'all the same frame bro Matt I got a question go ahead hey if I was playing today right like hypothetically speaking if I was playing today game You think you can cover me? Of course, 100%. 100%. I'm being serious. This Ocho you're talking to?

46:56I know who I'm talking to. I know exactly who I'm talking to. I've never watched the highlights before. You're talking to J-Mac. You're a Bronco, bro. You know we do it. Listen, I know you're a Bronco, but he said he can cover me. You think you can cover me right now? What, Ocho? Of course. We can line up. Got locked up. Won't let them buy. We can line up whenever. We can do something. Listen, your whole secondary can come get this work now. Ain't nothing wrong with my feet. Hey, we ain't dunking nothing. The whole secondary. All right. I'm in Miami. Come on down here. I'll be down there. I'll be down there.

47:31For real? Yeah. Fort Lauderdale. All right. Holla at me after y 'all hold that trophy up. Yeah. I got you. Hey, you nervous, huh? I can hear it in your voice. Nervous? Yeah. Yeah. I ain't never nervous. One thing about J-Mac. Hey, one thing about J-Mac, I don't care who I line up against. Yeah. Yeah. Anybody can get it. Hold on. This is me, now. This ain't them. This is me. I understand who you are. I know you are. I'm the original shit talker. This is me. I know who you are. Don't do that. I know who you are. Okay. But I'm J-Mac. Oh, damn. Bronco country. Yeah. Hey, have a good one, boy, man.

48:09I salute you, man. I salute you. Appreciate y 'all.

48:12Shannon Sharpe:Congratulations, man. Great week. Keep it going, man. Hey, one more. We so close. One more. One more. Appreciate it, man. Thanks for joining us. Yes, sir. Appreciate it. Juan McMillan. Eczema isn't always obvious, but it's real. And so is the relief from EBCLIS. After an initial dosing phase, about 4 in 10 people taking EBCLIS achieved itch relief and clear or almost clear skin at 16 weeks. And most of those people maintain skin that's still more clear at one year with monthly dosing. EBCLIS, Librikizumab, LBKZ, a 250 milligram per two milliliter injection is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 88 pounds or 40 kilograms with moderate to severe eczema.

48:54Also called atopic dermatitis that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin or topicals or who cannot use topical therapies. EBCLIS can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. Don't use if you're allergic to EBCLIS. Allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. Eye problems can occur. Tell your doctor if you have new or worsening eye problems. You should not receive a live vaccine when treated with EpGliss. Before starting EpGliss, tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. Searching for real relief? Ask your doctor about EpGliss and visit epgliss.lily.com or call 1-800-LILY-RX or 1-800-545-5979.

49:24When it comes to advancing your education, you have more options than you think. At Rasmussen University, they find ways to remove barriers, not build them, like a new laptop if you're eligible and enroll in select online or on-campus programs. That also means flexible and engaging online courses and resources, tuition savings options if you qualify, exceptional student support, and much more. Online nationally or check out their 20 campuses across six states. Start when you're ready and get the support you need. Visit rasmussen.edu. Attention fans of Jury Duty. The groundbreaking comedy series is back for season two.

50:02Featuring an all-new cast, this installment takes the comedy out of the courthouse and into the mountains above Malibu for an annual company retreat. The catch? Everyone but the new guy is an actor. Oh yeah, and the company's fake. Get to know all the employees of Rockin' Grandma's Hot Sauce, a family business with everything on the line. Season 2 arrives with bigger laughs, higher stakes, and the same heart that made the first season a cultural phenomenon. And here's the fun part. You'll be able to try all four flavors of Rockin' Grandma's Hot Sauce on Amazon. Jerry Doody Presents Company Retreat is now streaming on Prime Video.

50:37Don't miss the feel-good comedy everyone's going to be talking about.

50:43Shannon Sharpe:Denver Broncos. The Patriots beat the Texans by the score of 28-16 to reach the AFC Championship game. New England earned their first AFC Championship trip since 2018. It's up a clash with the Denver Broncos. I don't know, it always comes down to, you know, Peyton and Tom. Yeah. The victor keeps alive. A 15-year streak with every AFC title game since 2011 has featured either the Patriots or the Chiefs. The last without them was Pittsburgh over the Jets in 2010. C.J. Stroud had arguably his worst game of his three-year career throwing four interceptions in the first half. He finished with 20 of 47, 212 yards, and a quarterback rating of 28.

51:29Shannon Sharpe:Stroud scored a deception in the first half tie for the most in a playoff game since at least 2000. C.J. Stroud's passer rating was 28. Ocho, if he had taken a snap and just backed up and threw it into the ground, his quarterback rating would have been 39.6. Hey, Unk, that was embarrassing. That was embarrassing. You can't do. You got the best defense in the NFL. You got the best defense in the NFL. You got away with it last week. And you watch film all week. All right, I can't go into this game. I understand the importance of this game. I can't do one thing. I can't put the ball in harm's way.

52:10I can't turn the ball over. I just can't. And to watch film, to understand that you got by, by the grace of God, You come back in this game and you still do. Oh, come on now You got the best defense that can take you all the way to Santa Clara All I have to do is the quarterback of this team is don't put the ball in harm's way.

52:31Shannon Sharpe:Don't turn it over. That's it I Mean, it sounds easy. Obviously sitting here on the goddamn, you know, no, it's not I would have thought he learned his lesson Monday night. Don't show we talked about it. We talked about it Ocho, he fumbled four times. They got two of them back. So he had two fumbles and two picks, right? Or would he have two fumbles and one pick? What did he have on Monday? But he got seven turnovers in two games. Ocho, this is what Troy Aikman said on the broadcast. C.J. Stroud has been chasing his rookie success for the last two years. He's not been the same player. We've not seen the development from him.

53:07Shannon Sharpe:There's a reason for that, and it needs to be addressed. Now, when Shannon said CJ Stroud has not been the same since his rookie year. What did they say, Ocho? Go ahead and tell them. What did they say about when I say CJ has not been the same? They say you hating, huh? They say you hating. You hating. Where is that energy for the white quarterbacks? Now, what y 'all say about Troy? Maybe because Troy played the quarterback position, and I give you that. You know what? I give you that. He played at an elite level. the guy with a Super Bowl MVP led a team to three Super Bowls. So if you want to say would Troy know more about that position, I'll concede that.

53:49Shannon Sharpe:But all he said was the exact same thing that I said. It was just a different voice. You see, C.J. Stroud, he got intoxicated by the success that he had. Listen at him talk. This man said his rookie season, he was one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL. As a rookie! He was going on everybody's platform. He that guy he that guy and he's regressed every year but y 'all don't want to have real conversations y 'all want y 'all want us to because before well we you wanted guys like ocho and myself guys that played the game guys that played the game at an elite level but then when we tell you the harsh truth well oh where's that energy i said something today i said think about this think about i said chad think about this.

54:37If we want to debate Peyton and Tom, Joe Montana and Patrick Mahomes,

54:46Shannon Sharpe:okay, we can critique that. I say, think about this here. Y 'all talking about Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. Neither guy has won a championship and now we're debating who's turned the ball over the most in a playoff game. Let that sink in. Something we've never done before. We're not talking about championships where we can compare. You want to compare LeBron where LeBron got four championships kobe got five lebron got four mvps kobe got one lebron got four finals mvps kobe got two kobe's been the 19 uh has 19 uh all-star lebron has 21 uh all-star game mvp if you want to debate that we can have a conversation right since when do we debate guys that don't have a championship we start bake we start picking apart when one guy turned the ball over four times the other guy turned it over three one guy turned it over three the other guy turned over two when do we start doing that Ocho?

55:33No, because there's nothing else to talk about. You have to pull something out the air to create dialogue to tell the difference between two quarterbacks that haven't won a championship yet. Back to the CJ Stroud thing, I want to have a better understanding on why he's regressing the way he is. Is it the coaching? Is it the OC is gone from his rookie year? What can it be? What is the issue behind it? Because he has a talent around him. He has a great supporting cast around him offensively where the struggles that he's having he shouldn't be having them one of the best chances as far as that window for them and having the opportunity to compete for a Lombardi trophy was this year having the defense that they do have yes this was this was the year yes I I just I just don't understand he's been very inconsistent he's been you know up and down he has good games and he have a string that are bad it had you it leaves scratching your head based on on the standard in which he's set from his rookie season, you expect him to continue to get better and keep chopping wood, keep chopping wood.

56:36Sophomore year, okay, it was a little shaky. Okay, we can live with that. We know going into your third year, maybe things will continue to get better and you build off some of the things that you've seen that have been mistakes. You learn from them and you don't do them again. But now those same mistakes are continuously happening. Those same incessants, those same fumbles, that clock in your head has to go off sometime as a quarterback, understanding when you got to get rid of the ball.

57:01Shannon Sharpe:No one will let it go. Let me ask you this, Ocho. Is he getting better or is he talking about getting better? Because here's the thing now. See, it's kind of like winking in the dark. You know what you're doing, but nobody else does. You can tell us whatever you want to tell us. We have no choice but to believe you because we're not there in your most private moments. but that's not what the work says but i i will say this i will say this you don't get you don't have the success he's had you don't get to where he's gotten to and done some of the things he's done in his career without putting in the work oh cho how many guys got to the nfl there have been a lot of guys that had great college careers we've seen a lot of guys have great one years yeah the trick is to do oh cho if you go to the pro bowl one time man didn't nobody know you had that in but now can you go back again?

57:52Shannon Sharpe:Can you go back again? Can you go back again? When they build a game plan to stop you, Ocho, can you still have success? Okay, so now you have that outstanding rookie season. What you gonna do about it in your sophomore year? Yeah, you gotta keep building. What about your junior season? You gotta keep building. Are you gonna talk about it or are you gonna be about it? Come on now.

58:13Shannon Sharpe:Damn, man. Hey. Sometimes you have to have real hard conversations about these guys. Like I said, I came in the league in 1990. So that means I've seen a lot of quarterbacks. I saw Mahomes, I saw Brady, I saw Manning, I saw Rivers, I saw Roethlisberger. I've seen a lot of quarterbacks. I've never ever, since 1990, so that's about 37 years, of being in the NFL and covered, I've never heard a rookie quarterback talk as much as this young man did after success that he enjoyed in one season. I've never You know it's funny It's hard for me to be able to Give my context and perspective On what he said because most of the time The times that I've heard him talk It's obviously God fearing God so I haven't seen Or heard some of the things you might have heard So it's hard for me to Give my piece on that but I just don't understand What the issue and why As good as he is as great of a thrower of the football that he is, having Nico Collins and having some of the other weapons.

59:24When Nico was out today, Ocho. I'm just saying in general. Yeah, overall, yeah. But he had Nico the large part of the season. Yeah, during the season. I just don't understand. I get what you're saying. Maybe next year. We got Tank Dale coming back. You got Tank. Tank, one hell of a player. Yeah. Tank is one hell of a player, and he changes that.

59:42Shannon Sharpe:Hopefully he can come back. That was a gruesome injury, Ocho. Yeah, he hit me back, though. That was a gruesome, Ocho. It was. It was. And then, if he comes back, it's still going to take another year for him to get his timing and his legs up. And whereabouts. Because Ojo, he's been rehabbing all this time. He ain't training. Yeah. Fuck, I hate. My bad. Excuse me. Sorry about that. No, you're good. I hate stuff like that. You understand how that position is scrutinized. Yes. In general. But you also understand why they get$60 million a year.

1:00:21Shannon Sharpe:Come on, man. Look at your Bradys. Look at your Mannings. Look at your Jacksons. Lamar, this year, I'm going to chalk it up to injury. He was injured. He was in and out, and when he came back, he wasn't the same Lamar. But you go back and look at Lamar's track record, Lamar is a proven commodity. You look at it. His first year, he started like six games. they make the playoffs, he come back the next year, he wins the MVP. You look at Mahomes boy, and maybe it's unfair. Because everybody in their second year, third year, not winning MVPs. Everybody can't have the level of success that Lamar Jackson has had.

1:01:01Shannon Sharpe:Patrick Mahomes has had. Drake may have been the running for the MVP in his second year. Could win. I think Matthew Stafford's going to win. They're going to give it to Stafford. that he's in the discussion only in year two. Says a lot, yeah. Yes. Now, maybe we look at the coordinator. Who's coaching him? What's he teaching him? And is he processing, is he learning what he's being taught? Mm-hmm. Because we've seen coaching matters. We look at Mac Jones when he had Josh McDaniel, and we look at Matt Jones when he had the other guys in his ear. Yeah. Mm-hmm. We look at Cable on Chesson. Now that he's here with Brable, he looks like a different player than what he was with the Jags.

1:01:54Yeah.

1:01:55Shannon Sharpe:Coaching matters. Systems matter. Organizations matter. Sam Darnold. Ta-da. Those things matter. So I would ask D 'Amico, look at your office. Who's coaching him? The quarterback. Who's in his ear? OC. He's regressed. He has not gotten better. He has not. And you cannot convince anybody that's watched him his rookie year and watched him sophomore and junior year that says that C.J. Stroud has gotten better at anything than what he was as a rookie. Yeah, and I don't understand it. From the outside looking in, I'm not in that building. All I get to see is I get to see the finished product like everybody else in the chat.

1:02:42I get to see them on Sundays. Obviously, playing that position, you understand the work that has to go in to improve from your rookie year to your sophomore to your junior year. And for some reason, things haven't, it just hadn't done that. Now, the one thing that we can't hoop and holl about is the goddamn defense over there in Houston. That's one of the best, if not the best in NFL, outside of the goddamn Seahawks and the goddamn Broncos. can you imagine could you imagine understanding i'm just i'm putting myself in cj stroud's shoes me having a defense like that just don't f it up i ain't got all i got to do i don't gotta i gotta mess it up i mean it's you gotta be a hero it sounds easy you know but obviously oh man that's how about just not out joe look at the plays that he was turning the ball over on though ocho

1:03:35Shannon Sharpe:What was complex or overly complicated about that? Just don't throw it to the other team. Hold on to the damn ball. They would have won this game if the Texans could have got those scooping scores like they got against Pittsburgh. They'd have won this game.

1:03:58Shannon Sharpe:Drake may fumble twice. He only lost two. He followed me four times What if one of those Or two of those They scoop and scores Like we saw against Pittsburgh They got a scoop and score And they got a pick six

1:04:18Shannon Sharpe:Changes everything It changes everything But when you got a defense like that You don't have to do much You don't

1:04:30Shannon Sharpe:I don't know maybe he goes to Whitfield or he go to Tom House or he goes to someone but whomever is in his ear currently, Ocho you can't regress like that. You can't. Now I promise you, we gotta have real, Ocho they're having real conversations. Do we extend this guy for$300 million or do we make him play, oh, do we just pick up that fifth year option and make sure he plays year four?

1:05:03Shannon Sharpe:300 million or play out year four and we pick up year five? That's that. Oh, that's, see, that's one. I wouldn't want to be Nick Sicario. Is it Sicario? No, you said you want to be a GM. You said you want to be Matt Ryan. That's what you're saying. Chad, did he not say that? Why the Bengals should call me, one of these teams should call me so now here you are you're GM so okay I'm the GM of the Houston Texans right now do I pick up do I pay C.J. Stroud what $300 million or do I pick up the fifth year option and make improve himself one more year I'm going to take option two I'm going to pick up that fifth year I'm going to make improve himself next year and then boom okay you know what you're the future for the next 10 years I got you let's go I can do that.

1:05:54Shannon Sharpe:I mean, both guys were just like staking up the joint for a long time. I mean, Ocho, if you go back and think about it, Drake may got three touchdowns, but Boutte touchdown and Stephon Diggs, I don't know how they held on to that. I still don't know how Stephon Diggs – Stephon Diggs was looking at his damn hand like, how did I hold on to that? What the hell? Yeah. Boutte, in those elements, he caught the ball with one hand Against Stingley Jr. Yeah, he had him beat. You know what? That was great coverage by Stingley, but a perfect ball placed would be great coverage any day. No, absolutely. That was perfect ball placement.

1:06:38Ain't nobody...

1:06:40Shannon Sharpe:A perfect shot beats a perfect defense. I don't care how... Oh, you see, we've seen Kobe and Steph and LeBron and Jordan, all these guys. The defender, I mean... Bro, how you, first of all, how you, KD, how you even see the basket? We watched Steph, we watched Steph last year at the Olympics. Yeah. I mean, 24 at the Olympics. And you're like, hold on, wait a minute. Batoon and these guys are basically in the job. Bro, how you making shots from 35 like that? Like it ain't nothing. Ain't nothing you can do. We've seen the hottest hitters and a pitch come pick, the perfect placement. Ain't nothing you can do.

1:07:21Shannon Sharpe:that was a perfect throw bootake huh huh oh guess what he caught the ball he survived the contact from the ground and got up with it that is a catch yeah but this defense at some point in time Mocho you can't pay everybody on that defense now oh Will Anderson Jr. contracts up what you gonna do with him Hold on. That's what I'm getting ready to say. He's a three-time – I think he's going to, what, three Pro Bowls? Yes. Two or three Pro Bowls. He's an All-Pro this year. He's going to be probably a top 20 of the top 100 players. He's probably going to be in the top 20. Mm-hmm. Okay. CJ, if you get CJ 300, oh, you just saw what Amiles Garrett got.

1:08:11Shannon Sharpe:You just saw what Michael Parsons got. Mm-hmm. And he younger than Michael Parsons. Yeah. so you're gonna have to be looking at to give him $192 ,000 you just paid Stingley and you paid the other guy Lasseter on the other side Petrie wait wait no Lasseter, Petrie Bullock hey this was their year man hey they got a squad man hey Shazier Shazier is up or he still he got I think Shazier might be up too. Ooh, they got a squad, man. Yes. This was their year, boy. Look, they've taken care of Schultz. They've taken care of Nico. Huh? Stingley. Lassiter. Didn't they take care of Lassiter?

1:09:11No, Lassiter only in his second year, ain't he?

1:09:13Shannon Sharpe:oh is he yeah he only said what about petrie i'm not i'm not sure i'm not sure about petrie all them boys man hey god wait hey could you imagine could you imagine if i was out there at the quarterback quarterback at houston way huh hey i call josh mc i call uh mike mcdaniel joe blue rape oh that's a good one for the oc Yes. Hey. Oh, hold on. I'd rather, I mean, honestly, I like the idea. I like where you're going with it. But I prefer, I prefer goddamn Mike McDaniel over there in Detroit. Because he has more to play with. He has more tools to play with. He got more tools in his toolbox. And that kind of offense, and it's basically what he's already used to running.

1:10:00I like what you're talking about, though.

1:10:02Shannon Sharpe:I like that. I like that. Check this out. This is what D 'Amico said. he never considered bitching CJ. CJ is our guy. I believe that he could come back out in the second half and flip it. I believe that he could come play better and he did that in the second half. He did play better. We had some positive drive there in the second half. I believe that we would do that and he did that. As I always tell our guys at halftime it really doesn't matter what happened in the first half. Yeah. It's a two half game huh? It is. Two half game. You can sting it up the first half and come back and look all world in the second.

1:10:36Shannon Sharpe:Yep. Yep. But in a game like this, it's hard to overcome four turnovers in the first half. The only thing that saved them, it was that Drake May was throwing picks and fumbling the football. The ball, yeah. That's what kept them in the ball game.

1:10:57Shannon Sharpe:and they needed their defense to get some scooping scores or some pick sixes like they got against Pittsburgh. And they had one. The guy tried to pick it up in that area of the field. You got to just jump on it. Just jump on it. Yeah, just jump on it. Trying to try to play hero. Will Anderson Jr. got one out and he almost had it between his leg and then Campbell jumped on that one. That could have been another one that could have led to points. maybe a touchdown, maybe a field goal. We don't know. Yeah. But there are some opportunities there for the defense. But it's just hard when your offense puts your defense on short fields and keeps putting you in harm's way.

1:11:36Shannon Sharpe:Because I don't care how great you are. That's what we had to learn at the 2000 Ravens. Yeah. As great as our defense were, if we kept putting them on short fields with a guy, hey, all they got to do is just kneel down and kick a field goal. Yeah. And then a busted play or a broken tackle, that's a touchdown. make them drive 70-80. You weren't driving 70-80 on that defense. Not that year. I don't believe a team is going to consistently drive 70-80 yards on that Houston, Texas defense. Nah. The only thing that would harm them, would put them in harm's way, turnovers. Yeah, offense turning the ball over.

1:12:09Shannon Sharpe:Eh. And the Patriots, hey, they got their hands on the ball. Gonzalez got it out from Woody Marks. Carlton Davis had two outstanding picks. Hey, they intercessible night. Hey, Carlton Davis played a little receiver, boy. He must have played a little receiver back in the day. Those guys played well. They did a great job. Anthony Jennings had a sack. Tonga had a sack. K-Levon Chason had a sack. They put pressure on him. But, man, Will Anderson Jr. was playing out of his mind. three sacks. Danelle Hunter, two sacks. Countless pressures. Hey, they supposed to come away. Ocho, your defense do that for you.

1:12:59Five sacks, you're supposed to repay the favor though. You know what's funny? It's them five sacks, the four turnovers. It counters. It evens everything out. Yes. It evens everything out. Yep.

1:13:16Shannon Sharpe:And the thing is, the reason why it was a close ball game is that, like you said, one team had five turnovers. No, they had – no, Woody Marks lost – yeah. Woody Marks lost one. And – so that's five turnovers. And the other team had three turnovers. Mm-hmm. That's crazy. But, look, I got to try something. Because something is going on with my quarterback. and I believe he's the guy if I'm D 'Amico this is how I'm thinking I'm D 'Amico Ryan my quarterback is not the same as he was in his rookie season now I need to know why I'm not I'm not going to leave a stone unturned yeah I'm going to scour heaven and earth maybe he needs to get a note OC maybe he needs somebody else in his ear you know I don't know what it is they need to do something because when CJ Stroud missed a few games David Mills came in and kept their head above water.

1:14:14David Mills came in and kept that Houston Texans offense above water until C.J. Stroud got back. He did. So if David Mills can do it and look the way he look in such a short amount of time, I'm sure C.J. Stroud can come back and do it. I'm not sure if his confidence may be shot a little bit. Maybe need to have a different approach into getting him in rhythm. Stop having plays that are so long. Stop having plays that require play action. I don't know. I don't know. That team D 'Amico they understand what C.J. Strout's C.J. Strout's strengths are as a quarterback and they understand what his weaknesses are.

1:14:50You need to make sure you play to his strengths and hide his weaknesses the best way you can until you can make his weaknesses a part of his strength and that takes years and years and years of working at your craft to do that.

1:15:05Shannon Sharpe:Yeah. What today was the AFC championship game in 97?

1:15:15Oh.

1:15:17Shannon Sharpe:Yeah, that was 97. I think we did pick up Cordell a couple of times. What did we pick him up, three times, two times? You played against Cordell Stewart? Yeah. With the Steelers, huh? Mm-hmm. Okay. Yeah. Three times. Yeah. Well, I think if they know he could, because one year, Cordell, I think it might have been that year Cordell finished like second or third in the MVP voting. Who won the MVP? In 97, Barry and Brett Favre tied. Brett won it three years in a row, 95, 96, 97. And then TD won it in 98. And then Kurt Warner won it in 99. And I think Marshall won it in 2000. And then Kurt won it again in 01.

1:16:13Shannon Sharpe:I think. With the Rams, huh? Nah, Rich Gavis. Yeah, I think Kurt won in 01. I think Rich won in 02. That's with the Raiders. Yes. Yeah, with Jerry and Tim. Yeah. Yeah. But Houston, you got too much talent. Don't squatter this. You got to find out what's going on with CJ because you're about to have to invest a boatload of money in him. So you might want to make sure everything is on the – that you give him the best tools possible from an offensive perspective as a coordinator and a quarterback coach to make sure you're maximizing his ability.

1:16:56Shannon Sharpe:After the game, several fans posted Stroud's infamous post-game moments with Caleb Williams from week two of last season. Stroud's big brother Williams, despite them being the same age, and told Caleb, stop taking those big hits, and then he would be a hell of a player in the NFL. Well, he didn't lie. Williams did not look at all interested in what Stroud had to say. Since that moment, C.J. Stroud, 5 ,795 yards, 34 touchdowns, 18 picks. Caleb Williams, 6 ,612 yards, 48 touchdowns, 12 picks. Eh. Eh. tough he just tried to look out that was a genuine moment too from two players obviously knowing each other before they even made it to the NFL just give me some you know how they were giving Caleb Kraft CJ from California from LA Caleb is from the DMV they know each other I'm talking about from college I'm not talking about when you know you know you're competitors I was going to say, I was going to say.

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