Bears hold off Patriots in Thursday night thriller

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2:08Derrik Klassen: Welcome to the Athletic Football Show presented by the U.S. Bank Smartly Visa Signature Card. I am Dave Hellman. What a treat of a Thursday night game. The Patriots and the Bears played a banger at Soldier Field. Caleb Williams and Drake May putting on a show. Derek Klassen and I recapped all of it. And if that wasn't enough, we did get a visit from our own Robert Mays, who was in attendance at Soldier Field. We got Robert's breathless reaction to everything, as well as just breaking down every aspect of one of the best games of the season so far. Without further ado, let's get into it.

2:51Derrik Klassen: well Derek as the Chicago Bears hold off the New England Patriots 30 to 24 I have I have two main takeaways that I want to start this off with a aside from the NFL's insistence that its officials throw 20 flags a game this year what a freaking football game dude like you could not ask for better. We had Thursday night goofiness. We had high level quarterback play. We had four or five holy shit moments. A plus no notes. Thought number two, we could have sold a live stream of Robert Mays watching this game live at soldier field and made a mint off of it, dude. Like, can you imagine Robert going through the end of half hail Mary or the seven holy shit, Caleb Williams throws or the colston loveland drops or the xavion thomas blocking the back flag i just feel like he must have lived and died four different times over the course of this game it would it would be the highest

3:54Dave Helman: viewed thing on our youtube channel not even close now immediately and for the rest of time it would not be touched if we had video of of literally any one of those moments let alone in the entire game. But this. This game was just. All right.

4:10Derrik Klassen: So where are we starting? Where do you want to start with this? Because it is it's a lot to digest.

4:15Dave Helman: I'm going to start biggest picture of all. I think what we just saw is what the NFL will be for the next decade. Those two are special, special football players that felt like I realize this is prisoner of the moment on a week seven and Thursday night football that felt like watching Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen to me that felt like the next version of that coming along and I realized that that feels like a lot but May was second in MVP last year and Caleb Williams was this heralded superstar freak prospect like this is what these guys were always going to be capable of that's you

4:47Derrik Klassen: know screw it dude like of course on a long that's what I'm saying screw it yes on a long enough timeline all of our predictions could look shitty and like who knows what could happen over the course of three years, let alone 10 years. Of course, we don't know that for sure, but Drake may has already put together a case to win MVP and played in a Superbowl playoff performance, notwithstanding. I don't really give a damn about that in the big picture of who he is as a player. And then Caleb Williams just keeps doing this. I mean, how, how, if you're on the fence, Hey, what are you watching? Like, what are you actually watching?

5:26Derrik Klassen: If you're on the fence about Caleb Williams and B how many more times do you need to see him do it before you're just an outright believer I mean my notes are just littered with seven different times that I wrote holy shit Caleb and it's it's week after week with this so I don't know if they're going to be MVP candidates in 10 years but I'm comfortable making that bet that you're probably right dude like I don't think it's that wild of a take I just could not stop myself from resisting

5:55Dave Helman: the feeling of like these two are just going to play so many games not necessarily against each other because afc nfc but they are going to play so many games over the next decade where it's just like wow that guy took over the football game or it's crazy he made this throw x y and z and like i just thought that the way both of them battled in this game was phenomenal and to me it's it's not just the superstar freak athlete stuff and they had that right like drake may what he was doing as a scrambler in this game was incredible the five or six caleb williams throws into tight windows were just like oh my god but to me it's you watch these two the nuance that they're playing with because like last year the bears offense was good right but it was because they ran the ball and they were explosive and it it never quite felt like caleb williams fully had control of the offense in this game i was like they didn't run the ball in this game exactly it It was all Caleb just like making the right throw all the time on time accurately.

6:51Dave Helman: It just felt like a very, very good quarterback.

6:55Derrik Klassen: So let's get into it in more detail. But I think you hit the nail on the head and I want to state it better because like the game itself was good. And let's not minimize some of the other heroism in this game. Right. Like off the top of my head, Gabe Ackes was a freaking monster for the New England Patriots in this game. uh Roma Dunze had like oh my god hello buddy oh oh look at this when are we putting the Chicago

7:22Robert Mays: Bears at the table when they want to do it right now right now when they can defend when they can

7:27Derrik Klassen: defend an end of half Hail Mary is when they can go at the table anybody period we don't even make it specific to the end of Half Hail Mary oh they were they were pretty good other than that honestly

7:39Robert Mays: all things considered well yeah the offense is really good the defense is genuinely concerning i'll say this number 10 for the new england patriots is a player yeah man my goodness those two quarterbacks right like four or five times in that game and just the sheer amount of plays that dude was making unbelievable and then cairo santos i i feel so we're sitting there in the stands and I'm like, he's going to try to kick a 58 yard field goal. Like I, I truly mind boggling. I'm so glad he made it mostly in part because if I felt, I felt so bad for Caleb, if that kid could not go in after taking that sack, just like truly devastating.

8:23Robert Mays: And after the second half he had to potentially lose the game on that sack would have been soul crushing. And so, man, if you guys can tell I'm a little amped and you should be, I would be concerned if you weren't.

8:37Derrik Klassen: If you weren't. If you weren't. If you weren't. If you weren't. If you weren't. If you weren't. How was the atmosphere? It looked electric.

8:42Robert Mays: It was awesome. It was awesome. I just. Even walking to the stadium. There was a guy who. Walking down Roosevelt to get to the stadium. And he recognized me and he was just like. It feels so different going to these games right now. And it's cool. It's like. It's just. It's cool to be able to say that. You know. And so I think that people feel that. It honestly. Maybe it's just because I don't go to very many games, but the quality of the game, the back and forth, the quality of the quarterback play felt like a playoff game. I mean, it really did in a lot of ways feel like a playoff game. It had that sort of vibe to it.

9:13Robert Mays: And maybe that's just being caught up in the moment. But I really do think that it had that sort of feel.

9:18Derrik Klassen: That's when you buzzed in, I was in the middle of saying like, and we'll get to so many elements of it, but I'm just so happy that it delivered on that level where like it felt like that through the TV screen and the quarterbacks were just throwing punch after punch. I just, it, it delivered, I mean, it surpassed my expectations and I was geeked going in just as a neutral observer.

9:42Robert Mays: Can I rank them? My worst moments. We were talking about that. Yes.

9:46Dave Helman: Where was your heart pumping the most? Yeah.

9:48Robert Mays: My heart wasn't even pumping when they allowed the touchdown before the half. That wasn't even like a heart pumping moment. That was like, I can't believe this is happening sort of thing. I went to the bathroom and I'm watching it on my phone as it happens. And I'm just losing my mind. So that was one. I handing the ball off to an offensive lineman illegally inside the 10 yard line and torpedoing the drive as a result of it. That one's up there. And then Caleb taking the sack. I'm literally sitting there with my head in my hands being like, I can't believe he just took that sack. There's the one thing you cannot do is that moment is take that sack and so it does not take away all of the amazing stuff he did in the second half of that game those two third down completions on back-to-back drives my god the one to roam is like i still i was showing casey on my phone like the replay of it i was like watch this throw back again and so it doesn't take that away but i cannot believe he took that sack so those are

10:42Derrik Klassen: my three like i'm losing my mind moments the beauty of football is that cairo santos makes the longest kick of his career and just drills it by the way drills it and now we're not talking about caleb being an idiot for the next week thank god thank god because the way that he played he

10:59Robert Mays: didn't deserve it it's the same as like drake throws a terrible red zone interception he was amazing the entire game and so those two moments should not define the games that both of those quarterbacks had i'm very glad that they will not yeah i really quickly the ben johnson trying to

11:13Dave Helman: hand the ball off to a guard. Do you think he thought he found a loophole or he just thought he could get away with some shit? I don't know. I don't know.

11:20Robert Mays: It was a frustrating game for as explosive as the offense was. The run game is still struggling. Like there were a couple of second and 10 runs in this game. They're a little bit frustrating, but I don't want to fixate on that. Like it, they were so explosive. A burden is just, just an absolute lightning bolt. Every single time he touches the ball, he is a case of dynamite. And then I honestly, I feel so good for Rome for Rome to have kind of a weird season and then have that OPI in the, in the, in the end zone and then come back and make that catch and then come back on that, on the next play and get another chunk.

11:52Robert Mays: Like everybody had a little bit of it. And then level had those two tough drops. Then the fourth and two, the fourth and two, that was when my heart was pounding out of my chest. I could literally feel my heart pounding out of my chest. And so for him to come back and make that catch, everybody chipped in over the course of the game, which was nice to see.

12:09Dave Helman: it's a nice fourth down two to loveland really quickly was sick because they went to him right before that and he dropped it like caleb put it on him that is a perfect ball and the fact that they won like tried to go to the line had some sort of miscommunication have to burn a timeout that's a frustrating moment and right after that quarterback is calm as hell rips it to the guy who just dropped a pass and they nail it and they move on and it's like that's what good football teams do man good football teams are resilient in those moments and even that the rome completion

12:40Robert Mays: on third down that was after a hold remember the baby and thomas hold that brought him back on that drive and then they still got it and so and loveland also you know not to shit on colson loveland he dropped what i thought was caleb's sickest throw of the game before the rome completion late in the game he bends a ball on a crosser to colson or in the first half and he drops it and so again i'm glad a lot of the guys that had tough moments came back and made their presence known over the course of the game, but I don't want to completely hijack your guys' show, but we planned on doing this. I wanted to, no matter the outcome, I was going to have to jump in and say hello to everybody.

13:14Derrik Klassen: No, this is such a cool change of pace. Like it's, you know, we, we have fun doing this, but like, it's, you know, we're in our offices removed from all of this. Like, it's really cool to like be part of the energy of an environment like that. Like I'm, I'm getting a buzz just from your excitement about this.

13:32Robert Mays: Listen, man, I, I, my favorite place to be in the world when I was a kid was that place with my dad. It's my favorite place to be in the world. And so even walking to the stadium and getting in there and standing in the North End zone where our seats was, where our seats were, I feel really close to him when I'm there. And it just, it's, it's really special. And there's really nothing else in my life that makes me feel that way now, you know, 20-ish years later or whatever it is. And so that's why it's important to take these opportunities. Like it, we're getting, oh, we're getting older. There isn't a lot of stuff that takes you to a place that feels really special and different.

14:06Robert Mays: And when I'm in that building, there's just something about it. And so I'm glad I went. I'm glad it was a banger of a game. And I appreciate you guys letting me butt in here.

14:13Derrik Klassen: I'm glad Casey got this experience to negate the JJ McCarthy experience. The like, wait, I thought they were supposed to win experience.

14:22Robert Mays: So we're walking out of the stadium and my wife goes, man, it's really nice when they win. It sure is. She's like, if you're Casey, all you want is an entertaining game where they win. So that was amazing. And so that's exactly what happened. Perfect football game.

14:36Derrik Klassen: We're really glad you went. We're very happy you called in. And I'm positive you're going to go rewatch this as you're like winding down activity for the night.

14:46Robert Mays: Our joke now as we get older is every time we hear like a banging dance song when we're out, like either at dinner or something, it's like, you want to go out now? You want to go out? And so that's what we have a joke about with each other. So you want to go out? You want to go like hit the town right now? We're not going to do that. just to be very clear. So. All right, man. You guys do your thing. I'll talk to you later. We'll talk to you later. See ya. See ya. Football season has arrived and with the U.S. Bank Smartly Visa Signature Card, you earn an unlimited 2 % cash back on every purchase, including at the stadium or at home, watching on a brand new TV.

15:17Robert Mays: Score big with unlimited 2 % cash back on every purchase. Visit usbank.com slash smartlycard to learn more. The creditor and issuer of this card is U.S. Bank National Association, Pursue it to a license from Visa USA, Inc. Some restrictions may apply.

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16:24Derrik Klassen: well shit i feel like we we just covered everything in like a breathless 10 minutes but i guess i'll reiterate this and i mean we just outlined all of it but like you know cairo santos hits the kick of his career uh roma dunze and colson loveland we just talked about it. Like they had these redemption arcs in this game. It's not to, it's not to undermine any of the contributions that anybody else made here, but these two quarterbacks just put on a show, man. And like, that's what you want from a game like this. And it, it felt meaningful that it happened. And yeah, like, I don't, I don't know what it means in the big, big picture, but this is, this is the future of the league on display in an Island game.

17:09Derrik Klassen: And I think the

17:09Dave Helman: future is going to be okay exactly like and again like these guys did cool stuff last year where the explosive plays chucking it down feel like may was the best downfield door basically in the nfl last year everything caleb williams was doing in terms of the explosive play it was as cool as it could get this was the first time not necessarily the first time we've seen sprinkles of it this year but really watching these two go head to head and it just looking like these dudes were 30 years old and they'd been here before and they'd done this shit before it was i already highlighted all the stuff with Caleb just in terms of how I felt like he was commanding the offense, how I felt like he was commanding the pocket, which to me was really impressive.

17:47Dave Helman: And then Drake may same thing. Like early on, I think it was a lot of I'm just going to bail and we're going to get out of here. I thought as the game went on, they started to change their protection stuff. And there were moments where you could see him like preemptively moving in the pocket as soon as he took the snap, knowing what we have blocked up, what we don't, where's the pressure going to come from? It gets him a half second of extra time and he's able to make a throw. And then I thought one of my favorite plays that he made, there was four minutes left in the third quarter. He's sitting there checking the protection to his left side, basically telling the tight end and the running back where to go.

18:19Dave Helman: We're going to full slide the other way. And he just throws a bomb to the tight end over Devin Bush for a touchdown. And it's like, that looks like real deal veteran quarterback stuff. And oh, yeah, also these two are like the most talented guys in the league outside of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. That was I can't get over how excited I was watching those two do that.

18:39Derrik Klassen: It was a phenomenal football game. Caleb had like six throws in this game that I can't wait to go watch from the end zone angle when it becomes available. But the thing that might stick with me the longest, honestly, is Drake just dunking. I think it was Dylan Thienemann into the earth before he hit Hunter Henry on that little crosser. You know, like I think like Thienemann came free on a blitz and he's just like, no, sir, that is not happening right now. Just incredibly impressive stuff. We hit on the Caleb sack, which I mean, it's indefensible. And honestly, that that was a perfect example of, you know, coaches talk about this with players all the time where I was sitting on the couch with Carmen.

19:18Derrik Klassen: And I was just like, no, no, you can't do this. What are you? You cannot kick this from 58 yards. Santos just showed you what he looked like from 53. This is a terrible idea. Oh, and it it rippled the net from 58. Never mind. So good on Ben Johnson for trusting him, I guess. I think it's funny that the Bears spent a fourth round pick on a punter and like that didn't cross their mind in that moment. Like maybe Torrey Taylor can cough and corner this thing, but it worked out.

19:46Dave Helman: It worked out. I was honestly stunned by that, too, because I was I was talking to Keegan Abdu a little bit before before when Caleb took that sack and it dropped them from a 72 percent make percentage to 28 percent. Like probably in terms of probability for the field goal. So like and like 50 percent in that moment is a ton, especially when like, you know, we can say this all the time. You can't always predict it, but it just felt like with the way those two quarterbacks playing when the Patriots got the ball back again, they were going to drive and make it a game and like really make it like take it down to the last play.

20:19So the fact that they made it a two score game was like it just this game delivered in every single way, man.

20:25Dave Helman: So like I am glad, like you said to earlier, I'm glad we don't have to do discourse over that moment. It is undeniably like a dumb young quarterback thing to have done. The other 50 plays in this game, I think, exonerate him from from that.

20:38Derrik Klassen: I'd be curious for your take on the Drake interception. It was like it's beyond obvious that the Pats, they had a look that they liked with Eli Raritan having like a speed advantage down the seam. They try. I mean, they tried it twice. One was an explosive touchdown. The other was a really ugly looking interception. But I don't know if I hate the decision. I think I just hate the throw.

21:01Dave Helman: I think it was just a bad ball. Like, like I think that I think if you think you can get this ball, the seam route over the linebacker and away from the post safety, because he's holding the safety with his eyes like to the left hand side and he's trying to throw that seam down the right. I think he just if you're going to throw that ball, this is a thing that like I think quarterback the best quarterbacks are really good at. It's no way you're going to miss if you're going to miss. And in that scenario, well, if you miss low and inside and the linebacker carries it really, really well. So like credit to him, obviously.

21:31Dave Helman: But if you miss low and inside, there's going to be a linebacker there. If you miss high and outside, ball just goes outside of the back of the end zone. And it's really not the biggest thing in the world. And so that to me is just like you got to know where to put that ball. But I didn't mind the decision. And like, I really don't think he made many other bad decisions in this game. That was just in terms of the ball placement, a pretty rare miss from him, I thought.

21:51Derrik Klassen: A couple other things I want to hit on. I mentioned it. I thought, you know, maybe statistically, you're going against Caleb Williams. So statistically, I don't know how gaudy it's going to look. But I mean, the Pats did get to Caleb three times, including on that big sack that could have ruined the game for Chicago. I just, I think the Pats front is so physically impressive. Like, I already mentioned Gabe Ackes. I know he had, his roughing penalty is one of the stupidest things that happened in this game. It helped move the bears from their own 30 to the plus 33 on one snap, like just an unacceptable penalty considering Caleb had let go of the ball a full two seconds before he hit him.

22:32Derrik Klassen: But for the most part, a really exciting young player. And I just, I think this Patriots front has just more to it than it did last year.

22:42Dave Helman: I mean, I couldn't agree more. Like I think dream on Jones, it has been playing really well for them. Gabe Ackes has been really good. obviously we knew the D tackle play could be really good. Like their front, I think, is playing at a really high level. And that's the thing. Caleb obviously played really well in this game, but this was not like a, you know, him getting to sit back in some cozy pockets. They pressured him a good amount and he was just making a lot of plays. You know, the Robert mentioned it, the the crosser that Loveland dropped, the deep one. Caleb is getting his head torn off on that play and he just stands there and looks down the barrel of the gun and makes the throw.

23:15Dave Helman: And I just thought But he had so many moments like that. I think when he was deciding to get out of the pocket and his I don't remember exactly when this happened. I don't know if I have it in my notes, but do you remember the scramble he had where he like stepped up, bent back to his left and like lost yardage like two yards in the pocket and skirted all the way out the left side of the pocket? I was like, how many people can move like that?

23:35Derrik Klassen: Actually, you're talking about the third and two like right at the start of the second half. Yes. Yeah, that sounds right. So, so much crazy shit happened down the stretch of this game that it's like buried in my notes. But the Bears, if I was trying to explain to somebody why Caleb Williams is special and good and awesome, the Bears first scoring drive of the third quarter is like all you really need to watch. Because on third and two early in the drive, he ran 30 yards to pick up five and just outran the defense loop through the backfield. Just a ridiculous, like a stupid play unless you're as athletic as Caleb Williams.

24:14Derrik Klassen: And then a couple snaps later, they get a holding call that backs them up to like, I think it was like second and 12. And he just steps up into the pocket and fires a dart to Colson Loveland. Yeah, like you mentioned for 22 yards. And then on the touchdown to Loveland, he boots out and kind of like jumps and throws against them the momentum of his own body and gets the throw to Loveland quickly enough that Loveland has time to turn up field and get and break tackles and get into the end zone. instead of just getting caught by the pursuit. So like in six snaps, he made three plays that just not very many people in the world are making.

24:52Derrik Klassen: And it's just the perfect like thumbnail of who he is as a player.

24:58Dave Helman: I'm so glad you brought that up, too, because I tweeted. I know and I know Loveland had some some other frustrating plays in this game, but that drive to me. I was like, that's when I thought Colson Loveland might be the best one of the best tight ends in the in the league coming into the season. And I was like, it's that drive where he just big boy, somebody down the seam. And then two plays later, you're in the red zone and he just shakes a guy and then like barrels through two more to get into the end zone. So I do think that's the other thing, too, that like I think really impressed me about this Bears team is that even when they have the penalties and Loveland is having drops and Rome has his moments.

25:31Dave Helman: I said just the resilience of such a young team is startling to me. Like I just usually with these young teams, you have so many starts and fits and they'll let these moments snowball away from them. And I just think that it's such a credit to the coach that Ben Johnson is. It's such a credit to the resilience of these young players. I just they're a team that the more they it sounds dumb, but like the more they play football, the more you get to see them together. I'm just like, yeah, man, like I buy what this is going to be at like the highest level.

26:00Derrik Klassen: I'll give the Pats a little bit of credit here, too. Like, show me a game. And obviously you don't want this. It's sloppy football. Show me a game where the offenses are digging themselves into this many holes and getting out of them. And I'll say they probably have good quarterbacks. They probably have really good quarterbacks because on the Patriots touchdown drive to cut it to 21, 20, 27, 21, the Eli Raritan touchdown, Morgan Moses had a holding call that backed them up after a successful conversion on that, on that drive. and then Eli Raritan himself false started putting them into a first and 15 and they just effortlessly dug out of it like half a dozen times in this game both of these teams really did it and that's all the indicator you need that these quarterbacks were on a heater tonight

26:47Dave Helman: that's that's the other thing we've done a lot of and we've talked about how good Drake May was but we've talked a lot about like how good the Bears are how good this team is this to me felt like you know we mentioned it felt like a playoff game this to me was like Houston versus Jacksonville where I was like somebody had to lose that game. But both of these teams have like make a run sort of stuff to them like that. I just thought what I was watching for these teams. I think those I think the Jaguars are like a higher quality team. And I think that the absolute peaks of Houston's defense with the way C.J.

27:17Dave Helman: Stroud is playing is maybe a little bit higher than these teams. But I don't know, man, these teams still these teams both feel to me like very obvious playoff candidates to me.

27:25Derrik Klassen: Playoff candidate for sure. I mean, the Bears are now not like the Bears are now five and two.

27:30Dave Helman: And I mean, obviously necessary, like NFC contenders is maybe like a tad strong, but like I they feel to me like they will get to the playoffs as 10 or 11 win teams and it will not feel fake at all.

27:40Derrik Klassen: So let's let's let's touch on the other side of this. It reminds me of our season preview of the Bears where we spoke glowingly about them for 15 minutes because we weren't talking about the defense. And I thought the defense acquitted itself. Well, at times in this game, particularly in the early going, like they mentioned it. on the halftime show before the Patriots started getting more tight ends on the field, they couldn't do anything. And obviously their offensive line is compromised by injury. And I'm sure that had something to do with it, but the bears defense was getting after it for a little bit.

28:13Derrik Klassen: Kyler Gordon had another really nice game after what he did against Atlanta, but like the hail Mary is completely ridiculous. And there were plenty of other moments where I was like, I don't know how seriously I'm supposed to take this. And this is the part where I think we need to say the name Jalen Johnson.

28:31Dave Helman: rough night dude it's been a rough season rough yeah he does not look like himself yeah at this stage like i know that he's a rookie and he's up and down but like malik muhammad is like their best outside corner right now i think and he got banged up in this game yep which and so like if there is something to be concerned about it is like the defense is still up and down i will say though like you know we've talked about this a little bit before i don't think the defense is good. Obviously, they have some personnel deficiencies. The pass rush is not great unless they're blitzing heavy. The DBs are still extremely up and down.

29:06Dave Helman: There is something about it, though. If you can just get into the playoffs with a play caller like this, I'm like, I don't know, man, you can do some stuff like they almost beat the Rams last year because of the shit that they were throwing at Matthew Stafford. And that Rams team was insane.

29:19Derrik Klassen: I mean, Mays has been saying it as a bit for most of the season, but their third down numbers continue to look pretty good, Like they're finding ways to get offenses off the field. They did it several times on this, in this game. I just, I don't know, man. And maybe, maybe I'm letting the, the fail Mary loom too large in my mind, but like that, that shit can't happen. I mean, you think about it. They came out of half and went right down the field and scored a touchdown. You could be put like, you could be in a blowout if, if you don't give up the most ridiculous touchdown I've seen this season.

29:53Derrik Klassen: And yeah, I mean, Jalen Johnson was rough on that play. Thineman like took out his own guy hunting for a tackle on that play. Jalen Johnson had a turndown on Drake May. And I know, I know that they'll throw flags at you for hitting a quarterback, but like he, his effort to tackle Drake May on a scramble in the second quarter, like personally offended me. It took me like 10 minutes to move past it. And so some of that stuff combined with like not having like a real deal game changer at edge rusher. I thought Austin Booker continues to play really well, in my opinion. But I don't know. The numbers say that it's pretty good, but I'm not I'm not all the way sold on this on this defense.

30:40Derrik Klassen: And then I really would like it if Kyle Monunga could get back. Cole Komet got hurt in this game. and I'm like, OK, like this, this offense can be a wagon, but can you trust it to hum at the level you need it to to overcome this defense all the way through?

30:57Dave Helman: Because of the run game stuff, I'm a little worried, but honestly, what we said at the top of the show, too, like if the passing game is just going to be more consistent, maybe the run game doesn't have to be dominant for this thing to be what they want it to be like. That was obviously the formula last year. But if they're making up enough of that ground with the passing game being consistent. I don't know, man. I kind of still believe that even if the math of how they're getting there is changing a little bit, I do still believe that they can be like a top five offense and have games like this against what I think we both agree is like a very, very good New England defense.

31:30Dave Helman: And like if you can score 30 on defenses like this, like you've got a shot in just about every game.

31:35Derrik Klassen: And you know what? Even with a couple of embarrassing moments, I mean, New England scored 24 points and really other than like the Carolina game. And well, excuse me, I wouldn't want to leave out the Packer game. The Packer game was pretty brutal, but like for how down I was on the Bears defense heading into the year, like you can get by with this, like for them, for the most part, I don't know what that means for like how deep they can go into the postseason, but I do have to give them credit that it looks better than I probably would have given them credit for in August. I think that's fair.

32:12Dave Helman: it's them and the lions kind of came into the season with the same formula in theory at them and the cowboys really the lions the cowboys and like the bangles and all them came into the same came into the season with the same formula the bears are look a lot better at it than the lions or i think the cowboys do that is like at least unequivocally true it's like some amount of success

32:32Derrik Klassen: right unequivocally true although i guess you could argue like the lions are getting brian branch back soon. The Cowboys have a host of guys hopefully coming back from injury at some point. I don't know what the Bears reinforcement is other than if they can just continue to win on third downs, I guess. And maybe the Bears reinforcement is Kyle Manunga getting back and reducing this running game. I don't know who it would be.

32:57Dave Helman: I would have to sit here and think about it a little bit. But like if if the Bears really think they've got it in the offense is what we think it is, they should poke around for some defenders before the trade deadline that they should they should

33:07Derrik Klassen: take a look or two warts and all these are these are great problems to have the Chicago Bears are five and two just uh just a great night for ball man I don't know is there anything else we need

33:21Dave Helman: to hit I don't think anything just one last reminder that to me watch watching this game I think for the last. When did Lamar Jackson and Mahomes come on like 2018, 2019? Since since that moment, it has felt like Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen were this three headed monster of something totally different. And Drake May and Caleb are not to that level yet. But watching this game, I was like, man, I really think that they can be those guys. And so we'll see how it develops over the next couple of years. But I really was like, they have that gear to them.

33:57Derrik Klassen: Like I said, it's it's hard to project that stuff out too far in the future. But at the very least, like I agree with you. And even if we can't predict the future, like I want you to be right. I hope you're right. Like just because like I want as much. Somebody's got to carry the torch after those guys. And I want as and they're not done yet. They still have five years, you know, until it's really over. But you know what I mean? I want as much of that as I can possibly get. I'm signing up to watch that every single time. So here's hoping it's the first of many for both of these guys. Like you said, even if they're not going to play each other that often, just if they're doing that on a regular basis, we're in good hands.

34:35All right.

34:36Derrik Klassen: That's all we got for a banger of a week seven Thursday night game. We got plenty more content coming your way. Loaded week seven preview coming to the podcast feed and YouTube. We talk Chiefs Seahawks in detail. We talk Bengals Ravens. We talk Packers Lions. Speaking of the NFC North Niners Falcons. Plenty of other stuff I'm forgetting about because it's 11 o 'clock on Thursday night, but really looking forward to a loaded week seven. We appreciate you all so much and we'll talk to you next time.

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