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[Assistant] To pick, if you're basically gonna punt, cause that's what you're doing, you're punting. If you're gonna pick the favorite to win by seven, and they win by seven, okay, it's a push, that's what it is. If they win by seven, it's a push. It's a push.


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[Assistant] The Chargers are gonna win this game easily, or it's gonna be a close game the Raiders win. There's a lot of emotion that factors into this, when it's the last time the Raiders and Chargers get together in Oakland. It's the...


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] One of the last games, there's only four remaining for the Raiders in Oakland, and I think it will be a close game, and we know how the Chargers are this year in close games, they aren't getting it done in close games for the most part. I mean, they beat the Bears in a close game, thanks to a missed field goal.


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[Assistant] I like the Raiders in this one. It's a one score game. I'll go Raiders 24-17, although it doesn't matter since the Chargers are favored. I like the Raiders.


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[Assistant] And to answer your question, Brandon Mebane is questionable with a knee injury. Denzel Perryman, knee injury for the Chargers and for the Raiders. Offensive line issues to be concerned about. Trent Brown, right tackle, questionable with a knee. Center, Rodney Harrison, questionable with an ankle. Rodney Harrison coming


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] It's a dome team coming to Chicago. At some point, the Bears are gonna get their act together. They're turning the TVs off, so Mitch Trubisky doesn't have to hear people say how bad he is. At some point though,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] They're going to, to, to stumble into a formula that works. And I feel like getting the Lions there, and how many of these close losses can the Lions take before they just crater?


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[Assistant] I think this is going to be a real challenge for them to be focused. There may be an attitude that they think they're just going to show up and win this one because there's this belief that Bears are so bad. I like the Bears to finally turn it around, maybe find a little identity offensively, maybe work something that Mitchell Trubisky can do and, and also have the defense step up at home.


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[Assistant] I think they make a step in the right direction getting a three point victory, 2320 over the lines on Sunday.


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[Assistant] I believe there's a way that this falls that the Bengals surprise the Ravens because the Ravens now, after beating Seattle by 14 and beating the Patriots by 17, the Ravens may start to believe they're better than they are. And the Bengals have had two weeks to get ready for this game. Nobody knows what Ryan Finley's gonna do.


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[Assistant] AJ Green, who knows if he's going to play or not. On Wednesday, Coach Zach Taylor said he's going to play and then he didn't practice. So now AJ Green is back to being day to day.


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[Assistant] I just feel like NFL betters aren't comfortable with big point spreads. They aren't comfortable with


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Giving large margins, and I almost feel like there's this conspiracy theory among gamblers that the higher the points spread, it's, it's, it's a trap.


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[Assistant] Right? They want you to think that there's this huge margin.


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[Assistant] You take the underdog, cause you go, oh, it's a trap to give that many points. No, it's not. And I've been, hey, I tell you what, most of my best bets that have hit this year,


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[Assistant] Ravens get it done. And I think the Ravens also, this is their opportunity on a second pass through the schedule.


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[Assistant] Against the Bengals to right the wrong when they only won by six points at home. Yeah. And I think that the fact that it was a close game the last time around is all the ammunition that John Harbaugh needs to get the attention of his players and to get them to go in there and prove that they are much more than six points better than the Cincinnati Bengals.


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[Assistant] At the Rams, the 49ers and at the Bills for the Baltimore Ravens. They cannot afford to stumble here. They gotta get this one. This is money in the bank because the schedule gets a lot tougher and all the more reason. And again, I'm convinced.


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[Assistant] All you gotta do is go back and show his players the film of winning 23-17. And that should get the Ravens motivated to focus on this one, forget about what's coming, get this win and then move


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[Assistant] Well remember last week we both leaned with the Browns because we didn't want to roll the dice with Brandon Allen in his first start. My gut was telling me the Broncos could give them fits because that was one of those games where an immature team with a head coach who


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Isn't prepared and wasn't prepared for the job. It's the kind of game where you don't get your guys ready. You assume you're gonna go win and then you don't. This one's different. They see the bills coming. The desperation is there. At two and six, this is it for them. They have to win and win and win some more and I think the Browns...


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[Assistant] Even though I, I don't think they're gonna turn it around and I think they're probably gonna lose next Thursday night against the Steelers and that's gonna be the death blow for their season. They defer it by four days. They get a win over the Bills. The Bills are kind of a fraudulent six and two and I think Bills fans would admit it.


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[Assistant] They haven't been great. They haven't been dominant. Yes, they almost beat the Patriots, but their wins have not been against quality opponents. And I could see the Browns winning this one, keeping it simple.


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[Assistant] Kicking the offense in the ass and getting the Browns to their, their first home win of the season. They're 0-3 in Cleveland, so I think they get it done on Sunday, even though I still don't have faith in this team over the broader course of the season.


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[Assistant] You know what, now that I've caught you, this is the week I separate. This is Separation Sunday. Cause it sounds like we've already got three disagreements. So here we go.


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[Assistant] Well, remember when I said a few minutes ago in the context of the Ravens, uh, Bengals game that sometimes or usually these lines aren't big enough?


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[Assistant] I think this line's big enough and this line scares me because I could see in a rivalry game where the Falcons have two weeks to get ready and the desperation meter is all the way at 10 plus.


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[Assistant] I could see the Falcons giving the Saints who've had two weeks to get a little fat, a little happy, a little satisfied. I could see them catching the Saints flat-footed and keeping it close. I still think the Saints win, and I'm gonna go 34-17, so I'm also gonna pick the cover, but I don't feel nearly as strongly about it as I do


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[Assistant] These other games where the point spread is a little bit higher than it ordinarily would be. I think 13 is too much for this one. You know, and I think this is one of those where we assume the Falcons suck, we assume the Saints are great,


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[Assistant] Expect them to be better than they've been and keep it close and I'm still picking 3417. So maybe I need to revise my score. Maybe I need to pick the Falcons to cover. It's a big needle to thread. You know what? I'm gonna do that. Let me do that. It's 13 and a half.


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[Assistant] Let me go 30 to 17 saints over the falcons, so I'll take the falcons to cover, but the saints to win straight up. Oh wait a minute, wait a minute, the spread's 13, can we call it 13 and a half? Nope, we can't.


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[Assistant] This one's easy for me. This one's easy for me. You're going Giants, as am I. I'm going Giants. The Giants are the better team, and the Giants do not have the same degree of overall dysfunction that the Jets currently have. And you know, the Jets just feel like they're falling apart.


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[Assistant] I just, I think it's time for the Giants to win, and I don't know if they're gonna go on a run, but this is one that they should win, this is one that I think they will win.


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[Assistant] And, uh, and they're going to stick it in the Jets' faces that for now they've got the better of the two young quarterbacks. That Daniel Jones is going to show more promise and has shown more promise this year than what we've seen from Sam Darnold.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I got, uh, if I didn't say my score, I got 23-17 Giants over the Jets, so I don't feel as strongly as you do about the over. I do feel strongly the Giants will win the game.


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[Assistant] Yeah, you know, the Buccaneers haven't had a home game, a true home game in seven weeks. The Buccaneers have had games recently that they should have won. They should be three games better than they currently are.


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[Assistant] Bruce Arians has never had a four game losing streak as a head coach. He'd never had a three game losing streak as a head coach. I think there's going to be some animosity there toward the Cardinals, even though he retired a couple of years ago.


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[Assistant] I think it was more mutual than the retirement would suggest. And, and also remember when he went to coach the Buccaneers, the Cardinals showed up and said, hey, we want compensation. He's still under contract for us. And I think that's something that probably sticks in his craw as well because from his perspective, they weren't all that upset with him walking away.


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[Assistant] I like the Buccaneers to win this one. I love their pass offense. Mike Evans, Chris Godwin. You can take one away. When you take one away, the other one has a gigantic day. That's the way it's ping ponged all year long. Evans has been spectacular. Jameis Winston.


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[Assistant] Well, who knows about next year, but this is a great opportunity for Winston Arians, the passing game, the defense to do just enough against Kyler Murray. I like it. 26 to 17 Buccaneers over the Cardinals, even though the Buccaneers I think are too far removed from.


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[Assistant] Especially in the NFC, putting something together that would put them in playoff contention, they get to three and six. Three and six better reflects what kind of a team they are than two and seven would.


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[Assistant] 26-17, so I have the bucks straight up and covering. You have the bucks straight up, but the Cardinals covering the spread like they did last Thursday night when they disrupted your best bet of the week. Yes, they did.


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[Assistant] 27 to 17, whether it's Mahomes, whether it's Matt Moore, Andy Reid, genius.


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[Assistant] And, you know, I'd like to see him get a Super Bowl championship at some point during his career. I think he deserves it. He's been a great coach for the last 20 years.


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[Assistant] An underrated quarterback whisper, the original quarterback whisper. Everybody else wants to call himself quarterback whisper. Andy Reid is the one and he still does it as well as anyone. He can take any quarterback out there and get the absolute most out of him and make him look like a great player. He probably could have even done it with you, Chris. Thank you very much, you asshole. Okay. That's a compliment.


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[Assistant] You know, it really is amazing that Andy Reid and John Gruden have connections back to that Green Bay Packers coaching staff, even for a limited time.


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[Assistant] Because they have such different styles dealing with quarterbacks, right? Andy, there was a clip, uh, last week, you could see Andy Reid with Matt Moore and he was very encouraging and very positive and that's the message that comes through with John Gruden. He tried, I think John Gruden's idea is if I put them through hell,


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[Assistant] Every minute of their lives when they're not on the field, life is actually gonna be easier for them when they're on the field. You're right about that.


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[Assistant] Well first of all, first of all, can I just say this? Why in the hell is Dolphins Colts a four o'clock game? It's Indianapolis, right? Why?


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[Assistant] Or Indianapolis. Do you wanna, I mean, I guess if you're in Indianapolis, the cult is still alive, but if you're in Miami, do you want your, your network to be cluttered up with that game?


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[Assistant] No! I wanna watch the other games that are on it. Maybe the other games will be available. Panthers, Packers, Rams, Steelers. But, uh, it just seems odd that it would be there. I guess without that one, there would only be two, so they felt like they needed to have a third one.


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[Assistant] I like the Colts 20 to 17 because the Colts play down to the level of the competition we see almost every week. They barely beat the Broncos. They lost to the Steelers. This is a game they should win. This is a game they will win, but not by very many points because look, the Dolphins are better than the record suggests.


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[Assistant] They have some confidence, they've got some momentum after beating the Jets, and it could be Brian Hoyer, even if it's Jacoby Brissette. I think that the Dolphins are good enough to keep it close, and I think the Colts are bad enough to keep it close.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I don't have the Colts covering either. I, I, I think that, uh, I think that it's a trap. Ten and a half is definitely a trap. I just, I can't imagine them winning by more than a touchdown. I, I, they, they, that's not the way they roll, especially without T.Y. Helton, possibly without Jacoby Bussett. They win, but it's going to be close.


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[Assistant] And poor, poor Kristen has to be the one to bleep all of these.


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[Assistant] Alright, I like the Packers in this one. I think that the worst thing that could have happened to the Panthers last week was the Chargers kicking the shit out of the Packers. Because the Packers are going to be ready now. And I think anybody who walks into Lambeau Field this weekend, frozen or unfrozen Tundra, is going to lose. I've got Packers


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[Assistant] 28 to 14 in this one. They're going to rediscover the magic offensively that they had going all year long. Even if Devonte Adams can't play again, he said he's still not there yet. Look, if there's any doubt, just don't play him. You don't need him.


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[Assistant] The offense is fine without him, and I think Aaron Rodgers, the offensive line, led by David Bacchatiari, will be in position to...


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[Assistant] To fend, to fend off the Panthers, uh, defense, and I like the Packers 28-14.


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[Assistant] Yet again, picking the favorite to win straight up, but picking the underdog to cover. Gutsy move. And, uh, I disagree, but, uh, we'll see. And you got a couple over-unders you could choose from as your best bet since you're not doing very well picking teams.


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[Assistant] Well, I'll tell you what, I liked the Steelers last week against the Colts at home, and they probably shouldn't have won the game, but there's just something about


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[Assistant] The Steelers at home and what they have going now. Mike Tomlin called it the stench of September. That's now gone from 0 and 3 to 4 and 1. They're now 4 and 4. The weather is favorable.


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[Assistant] For the Rams, no rain, high of 51 on, on, uh, on Sunday. You know, we have to factor that in with Jared Goff because you get him out in the cold and he, and he, uh, he turtles a little bit. Yes, he does.


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[Assistant] But, but, and who knows, it may be in the 40s at game time, I haven't seen anything about the wind here, but, uh, you know, it's, I just like the Steelers. I don't need to use the weather as my shield for this pick. I like the Steelers in this one, even though they are 3.5 point underdogs.


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[Assistant] The Steelers have something special going on, even with Mason Rudolph at quarterback.


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[Assistant] James Connor practiced yesterday on a limited basis with that shorter injury, but even without it, there's just, it's the black and the gold.


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[Assistant] And they will find a way. And I feel like they are in that special zone that teams get in sometimes.


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[Assistant] Where they just find a way, and I see it lasting at least through the second Browns game.


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[Assistant] You want to hear something that is completely irrelevant but fascinating to me? Yeaah.


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[Assistant] The series between the Rams and the Steelers, which actually began in 1938 when it was the Cleveland Rams taking on the Pittsburgh Pirates. Okay, that's how far back these franchises go. Right. From 1938 through 1978, the Steelers were 1, 12, and 2 against the Rams.


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[Assistant] The, actually make that eight and three still good against the Rams franchise. I'm just fascinated by that. The Steelers won three in a row. Dating back to 2003, that was the last vestige of the greatest show-offs on turf that came into Pittsburgh in 133 to 21.


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[Assistant] But regardless, I like the Steelers in this one, and I didn't realize the history, but yea, at one point it was Cleveland-Pittsburgh, and it was the Pittsburgh Pirates for the first few years, and it became the Steelers and the Rams.


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[Assistant] It's later in the day. Whatever the high is, it's going to be cooling off. It definitely is. I was going to say that. I'm getting back to the, yeah, I'm getting back to the country club golf mindset here. That it may get a little on, and it may be 48 in Pittsburgh at the airport, but it'll be 43 at the three rivers and the wind will be whipping.


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[Assistant] Winds gusting, winds gusting up to 23 miles an hour during the game. Wow.


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[Assistant] As I told Paul Allen of KFAN and the voice of the Vikings on Tuesday, uhm, you watch Rocky 2 over and over and over again, the ending is always the same.


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[Assistant] Now, that's exactly what the Vikings are with Kirk Cousins at quarterback in prime time. It's always gonna end the same way. And the Vikings are Apollo Creed.


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[Assistant] And I don't know how, I don't know when, I don't know where, but there will be a moment.


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[Assistant] Of ignoring the stakes and ignoring the platform and he knows all the haters are gonna be watching and everybody's gonna be scrutinizing everything he does and it feels like a bigger deal and it's gonna be harder for him to perform in that setting. Case in point.


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[Assistant] We do this show, we do this podcast, we can do whatever the hell we want. We screw up, no big deal, you just keep moving. But, Sunday Night Football!


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[Assistant] Can't perform in those spots. And we've seen it over and over again. Cowboys 27, Vikings 17, and at some point,


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[Assistant] Kirk cousins will either make a big mistake or they won't trust him.


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[Assistant] To potentially make that big mistake like 3rd and 13 when the Vikings were up 23-20 and they dial up a draw play instead of letting him throw it down the field and maybe get a confidence building 15 yard gain and ice the game in the process. I, I just, I, I know what's going to happen. I don't know why I want to watch the game.


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[Assistant] I know what's gonna happen. Cowboys are gonna win, Vikings are gonna lose, and then they're gonna have to scratch and claw to try to get the 5 seed or the 6 seed, and maybe they won't even get that.


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[Assistant] I'll pack the Kirk Cousins jersey, and if they win Sunday night, I'll wear that stupid jersey on set with you for the show.


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[Assistant] Yeah, look, Kirk Cousins is 6-13 in prime time now, by virtue of the win two weeks ago against Washington, which was not by any means a blowout, and it was closer than it should have been, although he played well in that game.


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[Assistant] And they've got, Chris, after this one, they've got a Monday night game against the Seahawks, a Sunday night game against the Chargers, and a Monday night game, December 23, against the Green Bay Packers, which I think will be


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[Assistant] Win and keep your playoff hopes alive. Lose and you're done. And, uh, my, my son wants to go to that game and it's like you really don't want to put yourself through that two days before Christmas.


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[Assistant] And, and Chris, Chris, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy because they're aware of it, right? Yes, right. So, so it makes it harder to get that first one. It's the analogy I use from time to time of the little brother beating the big brother in ping pong. Until you beat the big brother once,


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[Assistant] It gets harder and harder to do it because that history of getting your ass kicked continues to creep back into your brain. And I said this on Paul Allen's show and I'm serious about it. Kirk Cousins needs to go find himself a sports psychologist who can talk him through not being so freaked out in those moments


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[Assistant] When it's a primetime game and it's an opportunity and you're too conscious of that instead of just focusing on


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[Assistant] What it is that you need to do, like you do when it's the Eagles or the Giants or the Lions or Washington. You gotta deliver it the same way when it's the Chiefs. And look, because everybody else in the division lost last week, everything is still there for the Vikings. This is still an opportunity, but again, I know, I know, I know how the movie ends. We'll split screen. Vikings, Cowboys.


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[Assistant] Rocky too, and just as Rocky's getting up off the mat to win, that's when the Cowboys will be celebrating their victory and Jerry Jones will be high-fiving and fist pumping and all the other stuff that he does when he gets a victory.


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[Assistant] Yeah, okay, make the field goal. No, don't make the field goal because there's still a chance to cover the five and a half points and it played out perfectly when the Seahawks got the touchdown in overtime. I think the Seahawks are gonna win this game straight up. I really do.


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[Assistant] And it's time. The 49ers aren't gonna run the table. They're gonna lose at some point. They got some tough games coming up. And we'll hear all the bullshit on the back end about how it's a good thing that we lost. It's never a good thing to lose. But you have to find a way to make it a positive so you can move forward. I just think it's time. And the Seahawks know this team very well.


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[Assistant] And uh, I, I, Russell Wilson, prime time, he's gonna step up in a big spot. They know the stadium, they're not gonna be intimidated. I think they've been anxious for this chance.


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[Assistant] To win the game with one of those scores that makes us say


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[Assistant] Hmm, what about these 49ers? I think it's gonna be 23 to 13 Seattle over San Francisco. Wow, wow!


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[Assistant] Alright, well, I, I just, there's something about the Seahawks, there's something about this matchup, there's something about this. And, and, and you know, again, it's one night.


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[Assistant] It's one night and, and I feel like it's fallen the 49ers way so many times this year. It's just time for it to not fall their way. I, this is not a team that's going to go undefeated. The loss is going to come at some point. I'm probably going to pick them to lose every week until they do lose.


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[Assistant] Because at some point they have to. I hope they just go ahead and lose this week so I can go back to picking them to win because one of the things we learned this year, you don't pick against the San Francisco 49ers because they will kick your ass if they do.


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[Assistant] I still like the Ravens to win this one and I like them to win it big enough to cover the nine and a half point spread. I don't think the spread reflects the difference between these two teams. Ryan Finley is the starting quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals. Lamar Jackson is the starting quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens. That alone.


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[Assistant] Well, you know, they let me down last week. I'm going to give your guy Aaron Rodgers a chance to redeem himself. I had the Packers as one of my best bets.


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[Assistant] Last week and they failed miserably. This week with the Panthers coming to town and the Packers pissed off about what transpired in LA. I like Aaron Rodgers to get everybody on the same page. Everybody pointed in the right direction. And I like the Packers to beat the Panthers by more than five and a half points. Again,


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[Assistant] Kyle Allen, all due respect versus Aaron Rodgers. There's your five and a half right there. I'd like the Packers to cover.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I, I tell you, I'm, the more I look at that weather forecast, the more I think about it, I, I believe in the Steelers. So I will be rooting for Pittsburgh aggressively. Sorry, Rams fans, but we just want to be right. We don't care about which team it is. We just want to be right. Which leads to my final pick of the week, Chris, because


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[Assistant] I'm bettin' with my brain, baby. The Dallas Cowboys giving the Vikings three points.


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[Assistant] I think the Dallas Cowboys are going to win by more than three, at least by seven. I've got them winning the game. I think by seven or by ten points. Either way, more than three. The Vikings are going to do what the Vikings always do in prime time, especially with Kirk Cousins at quarterback.


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[Assistant] I think that the Cowboys are going to win the game. I think they're the better team right now. And I'm going to cash my ticket. Cowboys minus three. Give me that.


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[Assistant] Yeah, that's a gutsy move because you never know what's gonna happen with the Tennessee Titans. The Titans are crazy.


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[Assistant] Now I, I will, does, I've got the Viking Salute to Service hoodie, so I'll wear that under the Cousins jersey.


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[Assistant] Yeah, if I felt like Michael was affecting the team and the success of the offense, I would for sure, uh, uh, move on. But, uh, at the same time, I feel like I'm still moving around. I'm still able to run, scramble, uh, throw. And, uh, I mean, we just, we just haven't executed a high enough, uh, high enough success rate as offense.


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[Assistant] And here's the weird thing, is that you dive into some things that are definitely borderline anywhere in this podcast. So if you're saying like, we can't even go that far. I know, I know, I know. Everyone's imagination is running wild right now.


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[Assistant] I like it. Can we start with some news? Sure. Because I heard you talk about this a little bit with Mike Florio earlier this morning. Right. Uh, but it is the big, the big news that, that looks like it's gonna happen. Cause there's often times you hear these rumors about, oh, they're gonna expand.


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[Assistant] Uh, the regular season, they're going to add a playoff team. You know, the guy might happen three years down the road. Right? No, this one could happen for next year. Yes, it could. So if you're not familiar with the news, here it is. Adam Schefter.


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[Assistant] Uh, wrote a story about, uh, the uh, current CBA proposal that the NFL owners are pushing for. He said the playoff field in this proposal would be expanded to seven teams for each conference.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] While the regular season would be increased to 17 games per team and the preseason shortened to three, uh, games per team. This is all according to sources from, uh, Adam Schefter.


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[Assistant] Uh, but that's the idea. They want to increase the number of regular season games. They want to increase the number of playoff games by increasing the number of playoff teams. So in this situation, the only buy would go to the number one seed in each conference.


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[Assistant] So, and I'm all for innovations and new things, and I think we need more of that, honestly, in sports, change up the rules a little bit, but...


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[Assistant] It seems like we have the perfect combination of the regular season mattering for the first two seeds in the league. I mean, that's a huge advantage. You don't have to play the first round. That's a huge advantage and I think it should go to the top two teams in each conference. So you have that and you lose half of that.


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[Assistant] And the second part is, I don't think, and we've looked through the list and you did it on Pro Football, the PFT Live.


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[Assistant] Uh, the teams that would have made it in this new situation that didn't make it in the previous years, there we see them last year, it would have been the Steelers at 8-8. Right. And you said you don't need to see Duck Hodges playing into playoffs. No.


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[Assistant] Uhm, it would have been the Rams at 9 and 7. Okay, maybe a little more interesting team. But all these teams going back to 2020, we have what? We have one 10-win team over on the AFC side. We have three over on the NFC side. Bears, Cardinals, Eagles a few years back, 2014 through 2012.


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[Assistant] They're just not that good. They're just not that good of teams. And it just seems like we have the perfect situation now for the NFL and the playoff system. I don't think you need to mess with.


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[Assistant] No buy for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. They would have played, not Ben Roethlisberger, but they would have played the Steelers. And then over here you got Aaron Rodgers playing, uh, Aaron Donald and, uh, the Rams.


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[Assistant] Uh, we, uh, wanted to get the homies reaction on this too, and so there are some tweets out there. Some reaction, this one coming from Paul Simon Duffy saying,


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[Assistant] You'll have, uh, 13 and 3 or 14 and 2 teams playing on the same weekend as 7 and 9 teams. Seems like too much of an advantage to the 1 seed compared to the 2 and 3 seed. So they echoed exactly what you said right there. Now I would say that


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[Assistant] You know, I'm not totally against giving more of an advantage to the, to the one seed because you've earned it, right? But you're right in the case that say you got that because of a tiebreaker of your opponent's record.


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[Assistant] They win that probably nine times out of ten, but guess what? The one time it didn't happen, the Chiefs came back and win the Super Bowl.


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[Assistant] Yeah, so it scares me. It scares me. That does scare me. It does. Uhm, are there other tweets out there? I know we've got...


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[Assistant] They're not a playoff team, but then you match them up in Baltimore, right? Against the Ravens. And they shouldn't even be there? They're gonna have a chance in that game. You know what I mean? It's like we saw with Baltimore lost to Tennessee, we didn't think that was gonna happen. No, I mean, you're right, we didn't think that would happen. They're still gonna have a chance in that game.


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[Assistant] Yeah, that's, that's there. Move it like two, that's almost like three extra.


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[Assistant] The reason football is so popular is because it is so infrequent. Right. And you get only 16 times in the regular season to go watch your team eight times at home. Yeah. And it's special. Yes. And I think that is why NFL has got its place in the sports hierarchy right now of the unquestioned number one.


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[Assistant] We got one more tweet. Do we have the one from Scott Walker? What up Scott Walker? What up Scott Dubb? I thought that was an interesting point here because a lot of the tweets were, I feel like the reaction to this has been,


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[Assistant] By adding the two teams, you're going back to what it was prior to 2002, so basically 43%. So it's really not that big of a change. And he compares it to college football where he says only 3% of the teams get into the playoffs like it is in college football right now.


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[Assistant] So I mean, that is an interesting counterpoint. Yeaah. You know, we kind of had around 43% before and this just brings it back to those norms, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Yeaah. And so I think that that's what a lot of people are saying.


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[Assistant] 63% of the people who voted in your football talk poll said that they should keep it at 6, which is actually lower than I thought it would be. 17% said 7 is good, and then 19% want to go full 8 right now.


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[Assistant] So what does it, what does it do for the Saints here? Cause I mean, they had a lot of, a lot of options. They could have gone, you know, Teddy Bridgewater, he filled in great form last year. Seems like now he's probably on the way out.


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[Assistant] You know, they like Taysom Hill, but Sean Payton hasn't made him the starting quarterback yet. And so you wondered what his role on the Saints would be. So how does this all change what's going on in New Orleans?


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[Assistant] Alright, so Drewbree is coming back. Saints are loaded. They should be in the mix once again next year. They might almost be.


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[Assistant] That, uh, that were huge for their teams, so we want to know. We want to kind of take a quick look, a preview. Now we don't know where players are going, who's getting franchised, all this stuff, so we're having to look into our crystal ball a little bit more than maybe we'd like to at this point in the podcast.


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[Assistant] Uhm, but let's start with uhm, who is this year's Shaq Barrett? Who is it going to be in 2020, a former backup who breaks out as a starter on a new team? Who will be Shaq Barrett?


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[Assistant] Who came on strong at the end of the year. I like it. A name that you might not be familiar with. Ooh, I probably am not. Kamalei Correa. Ooh, okay. Linebacker for Baltimore. Sure. Was playing about 30% of the snaps beginning of the year. That's a good one, Ahmed. Came on strong in the playoffs. Yes, he did. Just 25 years old, second round pick out of Boise State.


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[Assistant] Who will be this year's Ryan Tannehill? A backup quarterback who becomes the starter by the end of the year.


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[Assistant] Tyron Matthew, veteran leader who helps turn around a bad defender.


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[Assistant] Dupree from Pittsburgh. Okay, I'm with you there. Seems like kind of a leader-ish guy, although I don't really know him personally. Yep. Uhm, and as far as a guy who could turn around to defense, Dante Fowler. Yeah. The Rams. Yeah. Levin Sachs last year signed that one year deal with the Rams. Yep.


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[Assistant] Who will be this year's Zedarius Smith? Zuh, Zuh, Zedarius. An under the radar player who becomes a star on a new team. Alright. Who will that be?


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[Assistant] I have one more. Anthony Harris from the Vikings. Undrafted out of Virginia. Spent all five years in Minnesota. Started 14 games this past year. That was a career high, so maybe it's his upward trajectory for...


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[Assistant] Who will be this year's D. Ford or Frank Clark? A tag in trade kinda guy. Tag in trade. This one was the hardest one for me.


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[Assistant] It'll be interesting to see. I mean, I don't really know. I was looking up who might be franchise tag in the decisions that teams have to make. Right. And the Cowboys have decisions with Dak and Amari Cooper. Right. The Titans have decisions with Tana Hill.


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[Assistant] I-I don't know who could get tagged and traded. I think the conversation of who's gonna get tagged, an Austin Hooper guy, uh, tight end in Atlanta, is another guy that could get.


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[Assistant] Uh, one more name of the guy I love. My guy. My West Michigan homie. Matthew Judon. From the Ravens. Yeah, I think that could very well be. They might tag him. I don't know if they'll trade him.


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[Assistant] And this one's not a total shock, because I think there have been some rumors out there about it, about Sammy Watkins with the Chiefs. They got Hardman back there, Demarcus Robinson's a free agent, but they could bring him back. You got Tyreek Hill, you got that big cap number, it might be hard to trade Sammy Watkins. Yea, that'll be the big thing, is the number. There might be teams out there that weren't desperate enough.


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[Assistant] Okay. He's my one player. Maybe he's not a mid-tier, but I mean, mid-tier quarterback, right? He is. I, I am all on board for Jameis Winston going somewhere in 2020 and dominating. I mean, it would be great. I would love to see that. It would be great. I would love to see that. You think it's unlikely, but I would love to see, you don't even think it's likely that, er, it's not a slam dunk, he has a starting job next year, right? I'm not sure.


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[Assistant] No, we've gone down this road before. I don't know. I don't know what you do with yourself at night. I watched research for this podcast here.


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[Assistant] Uhm, okay, uhm, I wanna get into our top five. Oh, I know you do. I've been itching to do that. I've been trying to move you through this thing super fast so we can get to that.


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[Assistant] There are some other podcasts out there. You know, we're living in a world now where there are podcasts bringing up all over the place, all the time. And there's one popping up here from people that you know you're very familiar with.


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[Assistant] Michael and Pele. That's, that's gonna be a bound. It's gonna be entertaining. You know, it's gonna be entertaining. You know, it's gonna be a fun time.


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[Assistant] And you say they get along now. I was like, I don't know if I'd get... We'll see after about 10 episodes, you know, where it takes the relationship.


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[Assistant] Let's do it. The, we did the top five worst. So I guess the bottom five NFL helmets. Much controversy for that. So now we do the top helmets. This is where we heap praise on teams for the great looking helmets. Although I bet there will be controversy still with our list.


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[Assistant] So Ben Lovejoy had not even thought about it. Up until the moment he saw you talking so passionately about it that we showed on the NHL Live.


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[Assistant] You ready? On this list, top five. Number five, I hope this is on your list as well because I think they're cool. The rams. The rams helmet with the horns. It is cool. I think it's unique and they have multiple color horns and I like them all, kind of. I like the white on the blue helmet. Yep. I like the, kind of the gold, yellowish horns. Sure. And, uh, yeaah, the gold and the yellow. I hear you there.


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[Assistant] Number four, this is gonna, this could be controversial, but it's uh, Washington Redskins. Oh! A lot of controversy with the logo and everything and should they change it? Probably should do that, but as far as a aesthetic look and a classic helmet, it's one of the more recognizable ones out there.


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[Assistant] It looks cool to me. Number three, their biggest rival, the Dallas Cowboys. I have them at three. There's a lot of people in Dallas though, even though they're in the top five, they're probably very upset with this ranking, but it's a classic helmet. I think it's very good. I just think there are two that are better than it. And the number two helmet. Yep.


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[Assistant] With like the red spear going through its head. Whatever that is. Iconic is a little...


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[Assistant] And number one, the number one helmet out there, according to Ahmed Farid, is the Minnesota Viking. What? The purple matte. I love matte helmets. What? The matte helmet is my favorite. I love, don't give me shiny, give me matte.


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[Assistant] And that's what they've done and purple is awesome in sports. I think purple is a great team color and the horn is just cool. The horn is iconic. The horn is iconic. I like the matte.


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[Assistant] So here's the old logo of like a steel company. Is that right, Pete? We're gonna show, show, and look at how similar they are. So that's where they got the logo.


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[Assistant] So apparently, and I learned about this today too from Pete, that's what they think. It's not necessarily...


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[Assistant] No, Pete's saying it's 100%, but I don't think it's 100%.


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[Assistant] So that's what many, many people think that that's what the logo came from, but I don't think they ever paid them, so they never admitted it fully. Oh yeaah, okay.


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[Assistant] The G is unique enough to where you feel like, okay, that's, that's the Packers. It is. When I see that, I'm on board with the yellow. I think that's it's because you have so many teams out there that are blue, you know, and white, even black now is kind of getting popular. That's different. I'll get, I'll give you that. Not in my top five, but I'll give you, I'll give you the Packers.


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[Assistant] But I'm willing to, you know, Bills, you've rattled me a little bit on the Bills. I'll admit that. You rattled me with them. But the Vikings, I'm not wavering on. They are my number one, no doubt, best helmet in football.


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[Assistant] I'm okay with the, I'm okay with the sparkles. There's some sparkly, glittery, glittery helmets that I've done. If done tastefully, I can get behind. Yeah, I hear ya. Uhm, but yeah. I don't know.


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[Assistant] Keep it simple. This is what I tell you, if you want to get one of the best helmets out there, just have a tradition of 100 years of playing football. There you go. Or just start winning.


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[Assistant] I think they're gonna like mine. Mine was a little unusual, so I think they're gonna like mine. Sure. You just went with the history. I did. If you've been around 100 years, you got on Christmas Top 5.


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[Assistant] My photo, my photo's eight years old and I look like I was eight years old in that photo. You, we have to keep yours though, I mean it really is, it's like you're, you're not the evil Roger Goodell, you're Roger Goodell's evil twin. You're like the brother, the brother that, that like lives in California that they just send money to, that's who you are.


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[Assistant] Yes, I do, and I think that they recognize that there's no reason to keep him healthy if there isn't a next week. He is a very potent runner. He ran a lot more as a rookie. He was a lot more effective as a rookie.


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[Assistant] And part of it is you gotta keep the guys safe, but when it's time to win or go home,


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[Assistant] You use everything you can and I think his running ability will make him more dangerous as a passer and vice versa. And now's the time to go for it. There is no next week and I do think we'll see more of Josh Allen running the football. So I go over 34 and a half rushing yards.


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[Assistant] Well, you know, we talked about this earlier today on PFT Live and this is one of those games where I've gone back and forth and back and forth and back and forth and I could make a very strong case for the Bills to win. You could argue the Bills are the better team. You could argue that the Bills would have won the division easily if they were assigned to the AFC South.


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[Assistant] With the Texans where Deshaun Watson had no playoff experience against an Andrew Luck.


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[Assistant] That, that I feel like he holds himself back at times because he's yet to slide into, and tell me if this is crazy.


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[Assistant] You gotta have that swagger, that confidence that borders on delusion, that you're the man, that you're the guy, that you are gonna go out there and you're gonna will that team to victory and get on my back and let's go. I feel like he's still kinda doe-eyed.


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[Assistant] When he gets into those big spots, and that's one of the reasons why they don't have a signature win, and I don't know that that's gonna change on Saturday. I think that's more of a long-term off-season project to get Josh Allen to realize he's the man, because he is, but he's the last one to realize it. Your thoughts on that effort to psychoanalyze Josh Allen.


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[Assistant] Where Antonio Brown didn't veto a trade from the Steelers to the Bills. Remember that was the first team that was linked to him. Now, there's no reason to think it wasn't going to go off the rails for Brown the way it did, but that's the kind of guy they need. They need somebody who becomes the focal point of the offense, ideally the passing game.


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[Assistant] Who opens up everything else for the John Browns and the Cole Beesleys of the world. And we'll see. It's not like those guys are out there. It's not like they're readily available. Although Odo Beckham Jr. could be, but that's the kind of presence they need in that offense to get the most out of Josh Allen.


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[Assistant] There is going to be the key there and he was limited in practice yesterday with that groin injury that was supposed to be a two or three week thing.


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[Assistant] The Patriots, how they weren't able to go man up on those guys because they're too good across the board. You gotta play them zone and it gives them more opportunities to get open and make things happen, so.


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[Assistant] I think that Fuller really will be a key ingredient and we'll see whether or not he's available to play come Saturday.


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[Assistant] Let me ask you this first. Do you think that the Bills will put Trudevius White, Andre Hopkins, wherever he goes, will they be forced into zone? I guess it all depends on whether or not Will Fuller plays. I think so.


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[Assistant] I'm happy to make the pick. And, uh, you know, I have doubted the Texans at times this year because they are woefully inconsistent.


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[Assistant] This is a game where they know what's at stake. They have more playoff experience, especially at quarterback than a year ago. And I really, I really took to heart the comments that we played on PFT live from Deshaun Watson about how different it was in the playoffs for him last year and how much he learned from that experience when they lost it home to the Colts. And, and, uh, I, I, even though


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[Assistant] Houston Texans victory, 20 to 17 is the score that I select. It may be even lower scoring than that. It may be 17-14 or 13-10 or 16-13, but I'll go 20 points to the winner, maybe with a late


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[Assistant] Uh, field goal for the Texans to win the game by three and advance to the next round where if the Patriots beat the Titans, the Texans go to Baltimore and get shredded by the Ravens. But, uh, what the hell, at least they got to the divisional round. Something we may not have expected the Texans to do heading into the season.


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[Assistant] Well, no, no, because whatever it was you said earlier, it took two or three tries to get it right. I can't remember what it was now.


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[Assistant] We always should, because the Terminator isn't dead until it is truly and completely and decisively dead. And I think the Patriots won us.


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[Assistant] I think they thrive in these settings of single elimination. I am nervous about that belief though because I, I am convinced that Mike Raible, the head coach of the Tennessee Titans is


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[Assistant] Is well aware of how to go about getting inside the mind of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady and confusing and confounding. And we've seen that with some of the former Belichick assistants who are like Brian Flores this past weekend. It was essentially a playoff game for the Patriots win and you avoid the wild card round altogether and they found a way to lose the game.


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[Assistant] But the moment, the magnitude, the fact that Tom Brady knows that each of these games is quite possibly the last game he'll play in New England or ever, depending upon what he decides to do next year, it's just one of those where


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[Assistant] They're begging us to pick against them and if I'm gonna be wrong, I'm gonna be wrong because I believed in the Terminator and I believe that the Patriots aren't dead until, you know, you do the thing here where you check the pulse and you really make sure you put a, you put a mirror over the mouth.


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[Assistant] Uh, and even then, even then, there's a chance the body's gonna pop up out of the casket. I think you gotta shove it straight into the, into the, what is that thing? Furnace. And cremate it. And even then there's a chance the ashes come back together. This is all very morbid. But, I'm not, I can't and I won't.


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[Assistant] They get the point. I can't and I won't pick against the New England Patriots. And I kinda hope they do lose so I don't go through this again next week when they would be playing the Chiefs and I'll be saying the same damn thing. But I can't pick against the Patriots. I cannot do it. It's a trap and I'm not stepping into it.


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[Assistant] Well, I am, I'm going, I'm going a little mixed bag here. I'm doing the Chris Sims needle thread, although it's not a tiny little needle, but it's not like a 13 point, it's five and a half points. I think it's 2320 Patriots, late field goal.


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[Assistant] By, who's the, who's even their kicker now? Steve Mickemeyer? I think it's Nick Foulkes still, right? He's been gone, he's back.


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[Assistant] I think it's going to be a late field goal to win the game for the New England Patriots. They advance past the Titans. The Titans give them everything they can handle, but these are the Patriots. And I think Bill Belichick always holds back a few tricks or comes up with a few new ones. I think the Patriots advance to the next round and they win the game at home against the Tennessee Titans.


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[Assistant] Okay, I mean, I don't disagree with anything you're saying, but it's the playoffs. If this is a regular season game, fine. You take the Titans, and uh, you shoot your shot, and they have a good chance of winning, and off we go.


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[Assistant] But, but, but, you know what the narrative is with the Titans? When they are the better team, what do they tend to do? They lose! They lose when they're the better team. Right. So I, I just, I cannot and will not. I refuse to. I would rather be wrong a hundred out of a hundred times. Taking the Patriots.


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[Assistant] Then being wrong once, taking, then being right once, taking, I don't, I don't want to do it. I can't do it. I don't want to be wrong.


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[Assistant] By, by, by giving the appropriate credence


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[Assistant] I have learned from my mistakes, and I'm not gonna get caught up in this, well this matchup is better than that, and this team's better than that, and this guy's better than this guy. It doesn't matter when you're in a single elimination setting. I'll take Tom Brady over Ryan Tannehill any day of the week. I don't care that Ryan Tannehill was 117.5 in passer rating this year. We haven't seen him ever


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[Assistant] In a playoff game and Tom Brady has probably started more playoff games in his career than Ryan Tannehill has started regular season games in the past four years combined.


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[Assistant] I'm glad, I'm glad you are. Yes I am. Because we will, we will on Monday morning, uh, and I think I will be with you on Monday morning, you will hear it from me. Yep, don't you worry.


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[Assistant] 25 for 38, 198 passing yards, no touchdowns, 2 picks, passer rating of 56-7, 3 rushing attempts, 11 yards and a touchdown. Here's what's amazing though.


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[Assistant] You were by far the better quarterback that day because Mark Brunel threw 15 passes.


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[Assistant] Yeah, look, I, I am very realistic, and, and, and we have fun with it, and I let you poke fun at me about it, and, you know, obviously we all got into this business because there was a team that we rooted for when we were kids, and I was a huge Vikings fan. Once I got into the business, it really has changed, Chris. You have no idea. You have no idea.


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[Assistant] What would I, what I was once like, trust me. Uhm, and, and I, I'm a realist, if nothing else. And the chances of the Vikings winning this game, in my mind, are incredibly slim. No matter what Paul Allen tries to put on Twitter or texts me to get me to believe the Vikings have a chance here. And look, they have a better chance than they did


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[Assistant] Last Monday night against the Packers because Dalvin Cook is going to play. The Vikings had absolutely no rushing attack. They were one dimensional. When they're one dimensional passing attack, they're dead. It isn't a passing attack. It's a, it's a passing.


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[Assistant] Uh, nothing. It's, it's, it's miserable. They can't do anything if they don't have Dalvin Cook moving the chains. He'll play, whether he moves the chains remains to be seen. But even then, I just don't see...


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[Assistant] The Vikings on that day walking into that environment against that team with Sean Payton, salty about the way the last two playoffs have gone.


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[Assistant] Pissed off about the end of the Seattle game, the failure to overturn, the defensive pass interference non-call and allow Seattle to win the division and give the Saints a bye. They shouldn't even be playing this weekend.


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[Assistant] Sean Payton knows how to drop the plays that will pick apart the Vikings defense. The Vikings defense not as good as it's been in recent years. I fear that this is going to be the kind of win by the Saints that will cause the Vikings to go back to the drawing board and ask themselves, what are we really doing here?


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[Assistant] And do we need to make major changes on both sides of the ball and in the front office and coaching staff? I think that's how bad it could be.


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[Assistant] I'm looking at 27 to 10 Saints over the Vikings and, uh, it could be worse than that by the time it's all said and done. And I, and I'm realistic about it. I think, I think the Saints will develop a lead early.


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[Assistant] Uh, to the point where they won't be worried about the Vikings running game. And, uh, I think the Saints just systematically pull away and they qualify for next week and a trip to Lambeau Field, which should be one hell of a game to end the divisional round weekend.


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[Assistant] It's got to be, I mean the only way it works is if the running game is operating at a level that has the defense on its heels so Kirk Cousins can do a quick drop. You can't do a 5 or a 7 step drop if you're Kirk Cousins.


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[Assistant] Quick drop, quick decision, get rid of the football. That's when he operates at his best. And then you throw in the play action and the bootlegs. And, uh, and it all...


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[Assistant] Hinges on the ability to run the football, and even if they can run the football.


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[Assistant] Kirk Cousins has to find his way into that zone. He needs to lose the hyper awareness of the moment. We've seen it time and again. Big moments, big spots, 0-1, all time in the playoffs. He's lost late regular season games that were essentially playoff games twice against teams that had nothing to play for.


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[Assistant] Uh, he's 0-9 all time on Monday nights. He's got a very bad record in other prime time games. Yeah, you know, they, they won a couple of prime time games this year, but against Washington and Dallas, who cares?


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[Assistant] They, they had that Monday night game against the Packers when the division was still up in the air, and they just, they, eh, cousins.


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[Assistant] This is the kind of game where when it's all said and done there isn't going to be a next week for Kirk Cousins to change the narrative. If he does not have a decent game on Sunday, I think that


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[Assistant] You have to have the conversation, what the hell do you do with the last year of this guy's contract? And, uh, it's back to where we were week four in the aftermath of that debacle against the Bears. What do they do? Do they do a Brock Osweiler hot potato deal where you give them to somebody else and you give them a draft pick to take the contract off your books? Do you pay part of the money like the


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[Assistant] Can, can put, it's like every other year is a decent year, but then you get to the playoffs and are they really good enough to advance? And we thought they were. Yeah, about a month ago. Until we saw that, until we saw that week 16 game against the Packers and I think we both kind of came to the conclusion, offensively, defensively, they're just not good enough.


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[Assistant] I don't want to completely slam the door on the possibility of the Vikings stunning the Saints, but to do it, I mean, at a minimum, the run game has to be there.


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[Assistant] Kirk Cousins has to be able to not freak out.


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[Assistant] And I feel like there's gotta be somebody who just plays out of his mind. It can't just be those two. It's gotta be some-


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[Assistant] Ridiculous game from Stefan Diggs or Adam Thielen is okay or something happens in special teams. I just feel like the dominoes are far more complicated and convoluted for the Vikings. And I think one of the key ingredients is going to be somebody just like absolutely waking up and having a game that makes us say, where in the hell was that guy hiding all year long?


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[Assistant] I have all week. Remember on Monday we did our initial lean and we both said the Eagles and I flipped to the Seahawks. I'm back to the Eagles. I go to the Seahawks. I go to the Eagles and I'll probably change my mind four more times between now and Sunday when we make our final picks prior to the kickoff of the game on football night in America. Uh, I, I, I look at the Eagles and we talked about this earlier today on PFT live. Yes, they've won four in a row, but who have they beaten?


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[Assistant] They've beaten the three other teams from the worst division in football and one of them they've beaten twice and they were down by 14 to the Giants. Something happened at halftime that unleashed the monster that was able to come back and win in overtime.


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[Assistant] Then beat Washington in a back and forth game that was much closer than the final score, the 10 point margin, I think it was 37-27 or something like that would suggest there was that back door cover on the, on the final play of the game. And then the Cowboys went like,


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[Assistant] You know, we talked earlier about the Bills. Well, they beat the Cowboys on Thanksgiving. That was a lot bigger deal at the time than it is now. The Vikings had a Sunday night win in Dallas. That was a lot bigger deal at the time than it is now. Beating the Cowboys week 16.


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[Assistant] Is it really a big deal? So I, I look at the two teams. Who's more prepared for the moment? Who is the better team? And you can delve into the matchups more, uh, more effectively than I can. I just look at the big picture here and I say this is a Seahawks team that has plenty of guys with playoff experience, especially at the key spots like quarterback. And, and this is a team that


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[Assistant] I could see them get on a roll. I could see them get a little salty. And you throw in the injuries for the Eagles, and yes, Carson Wentz has been phenomenal the last month of the season, but Zach Ertz's


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[Assistant] availability is in question. Miles Sanders, one of the fringe candidates for rookie of the year who's done a great job.


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[Assistant] Uh, with Jordan Howard out. He's got an ankle injury that may keep him from going on Sunday. Just too many questions about who's actually going to be available offensively. You've got Brandon Brooks.


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[Assistant] Pro Bowl guard out for the year now. Right guard position is vacated. Lane Johnson has an ankle injury. Who knows how healthy he's going to be. And, uh, it's just, it's got the makings of being a long day for the offense. And then is the defense good enough to take away the things the Seahawks want to do? And you, you nailed it during PFT Live. Just dare them to run.


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[Assistant] Take away the downfield passing game and dare them to run the football, whether it's Travis Homer, Marshawn Lynch, Robert Turbin.


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[Assistant] I just believe in the Seahawks a little bit more. I got it 27-20 Seattle and uh, I think they advance and I think we see them play the 49ers. We get a rematch. I hope we get a rematch of the uh, 49ers Seahawks in the divisional round.


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[Assistant] And then we get a rematch of 49ers Saints in the championship round. That would be a dream NFC playoff field.


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[Assistant] Yeah, and you know, Jadavia and Clowny is gonna be the wild card in all of this. I don't know.


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[Assistant] What we're gonna see from him. I don't know how healthy he's ultimately going to be. Right. Uh, he's got that sports hernia. He hasn't been nearly as dominant as he was on that Monday night back in November against the 49ers.


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[Assistant] But you know, this is it, this is the time to lay it all out there, and if you're ever gonna find a way to get it together, now's the time to do it. And you got Dwayne Brown, who's got the, uh, the knee injury, maybe he's able to come back, I don't know. Uh, Marshawn Lynch, now that he's,


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[Assistant] With more playoff experience. I've selected Deshaun Watson over Josh Allen.


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[Assistant] Tom Brady over Ryan Tannehill, Drew Brees over Kirk Cousins, and now Russell Wilson over Carson Wentz. And I really do think that it's a factor.


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[Assistant] In the postseason and you know, we've seen low seeds climb the ladder, but the difference between the Vikings at six and the Seahawks at five is quarterback. And I think the key ingredient to a wild card doing well in the postseason is a quarterback who can play at a high level and who doesn't freak out under the bright lights. And I don't think Russell Wilson is going to freak out.


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[Assistant] Well, we should set this up since it becomes a standalone video that we're doing the best bets, right? Is that what we're doing? Is it best bets time?


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[Assistant] Two this week, we're doing two next week. I presume we'll only do one for conference championship round and will we do any for the Super Bowl? Well of course we will.


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[Assistant] And every time I've gone, Bill's game under, I think, as a best bet, I've prevailed. So why stop now? Bill's Texans under 43.5 points. I've got 20 to 17 and even that, I think, is a little charitable.


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[Assistant] But picking the other team to cover as a best bet. And I'm tempted to do it with the titans getting five and a half. Because I think five and a half is too much, even though I think the Patriots will win the game by three. But I'm not gonna do it. I don't think I'd be comfortable, uh,


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[Assistant] You know, that weird kind of feeling. Hey, I want the Patriots to win, but not by more than five and a half points. I don't like that. I don't like that. So I'm going with the Seahawks. Giving one and a half. I am, as you would say. I'm going with them. I am. One and a half points.


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[Assistant] Give the one and a half points to the Philadelphia Eagles. Take the Seahawks to win the game. They'll win by at least three. I've got them winning by seven and, uh, Seattle. Russell Wilson, come through for me. Russell Wilson, I have faith in you when no one else does, especially Chris Sims. Get it done. Let's go. Seahawks win and cover the one and a half point spread.


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[Assistant] I'm surprised you're doing it though, because even though they scored 26 total points the first time they played, the, the, you know, the Eagles have been in some higher scoring games of late.


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[Assistant] Yeah, a titan is like a really large, like it's their mythical figure, the titans. They were the, you know, like something with Greek mythology or something like that. But let me tell ya, the terminator always kills the titan in the end. The titan turns his back on the terminator he thinks is dead, and the terminator kills him.


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[Assistant] What? That's right. I'm 39 and still learning. 48, buddy. Yep. Can you believe I'm a father of a 13 year old? No, I'm still learning on the job. Both of us.


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[Assistant] But, let alone being, yeah, I mean, we'll get into that game, okay? I mean, he was unbelievable with some of the plays he made. Uh, Odell, the Browns get a win. Julio, the Falcons get a win. That was the shocker of the weekend, of course. Uhm, and then,


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[Assistant] Oh, Aaron Rodgers. Who? I'll say. We'll get into that too. I wasn't like blown away by the Packers performance yesterday altogether. Save it. Yep, I will. I'll save it for the podcast. So, I made some executive decisions. How to call an audible, okay? Twitter, you know, we always put the games out there. They wanted


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[Assistant] And we got to a new one, we got to a new one. So yeaah, I wanted to dive into that Falcon Saints game, because to me that was the most shocking outcome of the day. Nothing even...


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[Assistant] Like, that the Falcons kept it close, or that it was a close game and the Falcons just eked it out. I mean, the Falcons kind of dominated the game. Which was, yea, they did, you're right. And, uh, that's why we're gonna hit that in the deep dive. Uh, we're gonna also hit Chief's Titans. That was a really fun game to watch. Got some good things there. And, uh, the first thing we're gonna get to is, give me the headline. There we go.


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[Assistant] Wait, the 70s called. They want your sweatshirt back, by the way. Oh, come on, man! No? No, I like it. I just had to give you shit about something. I mean, come on.


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[Assistant] That is a total west coast. Did you get that in Denver, Colorado? Or did you get that in LA somewhere? In LA. LA, okay. I was gonna say, it's one of the two. Right. One of the two. Aviator Nation. You like it. Yeah. You would love the store. Right. Alright. I don't. You got a good style. Completely your vibe. I'm down with your style. Yes. I'm down with your style. We need to improve your sneaker game, but other than that, you're good.


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[Assistant] You know, I just, that's for you. You know me, I'm a Nike whore. That's what I like to wear.


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[Assistant] His performances on Sunday and Monday night football and really you know what I should do at some point go back and look at all those games and just see like were they the better team on the field more than times and not just in my memory I want to say no they weren't they weren't supposed to win the games anyways but I just think it's another thing this Vikings football team


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[Assistant] Uh, they're different than last year, of course. And I'm not so sure, I don't feel like they're a little bit more dangerous maybe even than the team that went to the NFC Championship two years ago. Yeaah, I know that's a bold statement because they were damn good. Yeaah, they were. Uhm, but I just think I look at it for two ways there.


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[Assistant] The running back they got right now, he wasn't there that NFC Championship year, and he's special. Yes. Right, I mean.


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[Assistant] And the Dallas defense is talented, fast, you know, there's a lot of things they'll like there, but that's why I say that aspect of it. And then playing off of him and their aggressive passing game off of that.


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[Assistant] Uh, and let's not forget, I mean, Mr. Kirk Cousins, oh, he doesn't perform in prime time. You know, Adam Thielen wasn't out there either last night, okay? So there's another guy, I mean, you could argue that


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[Assistant] He's the second best player on their offense behind Dalvin Cook. So that's me.


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[Assistant] Yeah, well, yeah, I don't, you know, just thinking of the game in general, other than the, maybe the fade down the right sideline where Diggs made the great catch and came back and got his hand underneath it where they originally called it incomplete, uh, and then overturned it, which was crazy to begin with that it was called incomplete. I mean, I don't, I don't know. The refs are overwhelmed right now, but we'll get into that another time. Um, yeah, I mean,


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[Assistant] Uh, he did not try to make magic happen. I think he didn't need to. Exactly right. He hit crossers. You know, Laquan Treadwell's had a nice second breath of fresh air here with, with Thielen out. He's kind of pops up here and there. They're using the two tight end sets very nicely. And, you know, the biggest thing is,


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[Assistant] You know, your defense, we know that's pretty good, but you know, I know you and I have talked about this a lot. And again, I'm big into offenses that make you defend the whole field. And although the Vikings, I'm not going to sit here and tell you that the 49ers or the Ravens or they're not going to put, they do make you defend the whole field.


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[Assistant] Because cousins will pull the trigger on the deep ball, like you said. He'll, they got a lot of crossing routes off the play actions and boots that they hit. Then you talk about the run game and then you talk about the boots. Oh, he's throwing it back across the field on the screen pass to Dalvin Cook.


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[Assistant] You know, again, that's not the most complex formula ever, but it's still a good formula to make defenses go, ooh, we can't cheat this part of the field because they attack everywhere. And to me, that is one of the big keys for a really good offense.


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[Assistant] And, uh, I think that's what they got going right now. I mean, hey, him running for 97 yards. You know, that little fucker Madison behind him. I mean, he's like Dalvin Cook 2.0 basically almost. I mean, they're, they got some guys that,


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[Assistant] I ever since that Bears game, he has been great. I mean, he is, he has a little bit of a almost like this, like total focus, the world look in his face to me ever since then. And hey, I know last week against Kansas city where they lost, like, yeah, it wasn't his best game, but I didn't come away from that game going, Oh, they lost because of her cousins. We talked about this last week.


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[Assistant] Well, it's bad luck for them. I love those uniforms, right? I do. I like- I'm just so used to seeing the white.


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[Assistant] Well, I mean, I know when my dad, when I was growing up, the Giants, when they played home against the Dallas Cowboys, the Giants would wear all white because they were going to make the Cowboys wear those blue. Uh, that used to be a thing in the NFC, in the NFC East. The Redskins used to do the same thing to the Cowboys. They'd wear their white jersey at home to make the Cowboys wear blue. The weird thing about last night is they wore the white pants with it.


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[Assistant] It was not the silver. It wasn't silver? No, it was like a, it was a white. It was a little different look altogether. Cowboys though, let's just flat out just get to this, okay? They're disappointing. I don't know what other way to say it.


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[Assistant] You know, the offense is dangerous and exciting, but they're not dominating the, they did not dominate the line of scrimmage in the run game. I'll go back to what you've heard me say about Ezekiel Elliott for the last three or four weeks. Hey, he's really good.


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[Assistant] I mean, that's just to name a few. I don't think he's in that upper echelon right now. And you know what? I give him credit because I heard him during the week. He kind of admitted he's not playing to that level. Which I do give anybody credit when they kind of call themselves out and are honest with the public. Instead of just being like, what are you talking about? I'm still the best running back in the game. At least he kept it real there.


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[Assistant] Opening drive touchdowns by the Minnesota Vikings. The Dallas is in the hole right off the bat. Okay. They come back.


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[Assistant] You know, they kind of take, they kind of get momentum back on their side. 14-14. Okay, you look good. Sorry. Well, they let a field goal drive before the half.


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[Assistant] Then in the second half it starts, it's another field goal drive. You know, Dallas goes down and score, then it's a 13 play drive after that, and it's 28-21, and that Dallas defense got worn out.


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[Assistant] And it's uhm, you know, you've heard me rant about the Dallas defense. I think. It's just they gotta do more. They got to do more. They are not gonna beat the really good teams in the NFC or the NFL with play harder. That's my new thing. Let me raise my hand over here.


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[Assistant] Let me ask you. Yeah, I don't know. I mean, there's things that are concerning to me a little bit about their game. Of course, you know, I don't love their defense, right? You know, hey, you know, let's just go with this.


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[Assistant] Kyle Allen, you know, in the third quarter, I think it was the third quarter, maybe, maybe second there. I mean, they fumble a ball on second one. He fumbles the center exchange snap. Huge moment. You know, that led to Green Bay getting points. In fact, that led to a touchdown.


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[Assistant] Right? So that was at midfield. That was the second quarter. Sorry, just so I get my facts straight here. Uhm, so that was huge. Uh, Kyle Allen, they drive down again, you know, later on in the game. Throws an interception in the back of the end zone.


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[Assistant] You know, there's those, those moments. Hey, the, the, the roughing the passer call on Aaron Rodgers on third and 13 backed up on his own ends. I mean, Carolina's gonna get the ball at the 50 yard line at least before the half for a chance to score points there.


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[Assistant] Uhm, Green Bay had chances to put them away, but I can also sit there and go, Carolina had chances to take control of the game at times. What'd you think of the final play? The final play, I have no issue with that final play. I mean, they're, they're, they gave it to their best player, and against a defense that's not very good at stopping the interior run in general.


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[Assistant] They just, they made a good play. I mean, that's all there is to it, more than, more than not. But, my last thing, and we'll move on. Yep.


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[Assistant] Man, that guy's open down the field. This guy's open too. In the end zone at least. There might have been, and there was a few in the middle of the field too where I saw some crossers or some people working across the middle where, you know, hey,


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[Assistant] He tries to play too careful and perfect at times, would just be my assessment.


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[Assistant] Yeah, he plays, he tries to play, and you know, he can get away with it most times because he's Aaron Rodgers and then he goes, oh, okay, we're down, let me put the pedal back on the metal and I'll push the envelope a little bit.


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[Assistant] I just worry again, I'm not holding Green Bay to the standard of can you beat the five and four Panthers, I'm holding them to the standard of you're gonna beat the Saints, the 49ers, and if you get to the Super Bowl, the Patriots, and those type of teams, he's gonna have to take advantage of all those completions or incompletions or the ones he missed in general.


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[Assistant] Definitely. I mean, that was a Steel City ass whooping right there. Just as far as just, you know, beating a offense up. I mean, that... What happened to that offense? Well...


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[Assistant] Todd Girlie's not the same, and it's getting to the point where it doesn't look like he's ever gonna be the same.


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[Assistant] In terms of their own standard. In their own standard, exactly right. There's been runs and even runs yesterday where I just went, man the old Todd Gurley would have ripped off 60 or 70 yards right there. And instead it was a 15 yard gain.


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[Assistant] Yes, it is. Then, it's him coupled with the O-line. Because the O-line is not good either. And again, their team, the last few years, I know we all want to give the quarterback credit.


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[Assistant] It was all about the run game and Todd Gurley. That's where they got you.


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[Assistant] It was run the ball left with Gurley. Run the ball right with Gurley. Oh, you're getting too aggressive there and stopping the outside zone with backside pursuit. Oh, here comes a speed sweep to Robert Woods. Oh.


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[Assistant] Okay, now we go fake speed sweep, you know, you've heard me say this, fake speed sweep, fake Todd Gurley, play action pass, guy over the middle open. Oh, fake speed sweep, fake Todd Gurley, screen to Todd Gurley, or screen to the tight end.


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[Assistant] Or screen to the wide receiver. They weren't like reinventing the wheel, but because they could dominate you in the run game, and then McVay is smart enough to watch the game and go, ooh, you know, they're starting to get antsy with this, so I'm gonna call that to keep them honest. Ooh, they're getting antsy with that, I'm gonna call this to keep them honest.


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[Assistant] But when there's no run game, there's not enough. McVeigh has to reinvent himself.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I mean, Cooks does that to a degree, but yes, it's not like he's a superstar like Mike Evans or Odell where teams are going, oh, we have to double him. Right. No, you're exactly right about that. That might be the next thing they need to do.


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[Assistant] Now, it is, it's always of course better when Cooks is there, that helps everybody else, it's just one other option and mismatch through the day, like gosh, gotta cover Cooper Woods and Cooks, you know, every pass play and all that, but still,


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[Assistant] With that old line getting beat up the way it is, and then the simplicity of McVeigh's offense, he's gonna have to kind of reinvent how he attacks teams. I really think he's gotta go back to the drawing board, because they're not gonna win with this formula. You know, they might beat the Bears next week, but it's gonna be ugly.


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[Assistant] They're not going to do it with offense and like, oh, here's 30 points a game and golf throwing them the ball all around. No, there, there's, there's issues there. And let's not forget, their defense played phenomenal too. I mean, the Rams defense played phenomenal.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I'm gonna watch this one for sure. This is another game. Pits, I mean, the Green Bay and the Steeler game, I am watching on film for Wednesday. That's 100% because I want to watch it.


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[Assistant] So it is doing something. The Steelers front seven, you could, you could certainly argue that they're one of the, they're definitely top five in football. I mean, definitely. The two edge guys are Beasts, Watt and Dupree.


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[Assistant] Cam Heyward's a beast in the middle, Tyson a little alluge, Yvonne Hargrave, Devin Bush, you know, Williams, uh, 98 at middle linebacker, they got speed and physicality. They have a little creativity with what they do up front, okay. The guys in the back end,


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[Assistant] Are all smart, good football players. And Minka Fitzpatrick's put them over the edge. Yeah, go ahead and apologize. Yeah, I have. I apologize today. I'll apologize again right now. I was wrong about that trade because I wasn't a fan of it.


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[Assistant] I was thinking of all the fans. Oh, it was me too. When it first happened, I was, I was not cool with it. But Minka Fitzpatrick, I mean, Rodney Harrison said last night, I think he might be the MVP of football as far as defense is concerned. I get it. He's up there, incredible instincts, really knows how to play the game. And the biggest thing is he's playing the position he's meant to play.


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[Assistant] That's really, you know, in Miami, they were trying to get the best 11 on the field and because of that, they sacrificed him. Oh, he's a top 20 pick. We can make him a nickel or a strong safety, but that's not what he was and you weren't getting the best out of him. Mike Tomlin and company are getting the best out of him.


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[Assistant] They definitely have, and they, you know, scheme fit, all of those things. Pittsburgh has a mold of the type of players they like, you know, especially on defense, you better be a tough


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[Assistant] Badass. Right? Who's willing to tackle. You don't care if you're a corner or not.


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[Assistant] Like they expect their corners to tackle on pit spirits. They, they are a little different that way. That's why sometimes they lack in coverage because they're like, well, we like our corners to tackle. Yeah, well, he can tackle, but he's not that great in man to man. But, uh, either way, Mike Tomlin.


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[Assistant] It's one of the best coaching jobs of his career to this point. Because that offense is not special. They've invented nine million ways to throw the ball four yards with Mason Rudolph. And, uh, that's that. But that was a remarkable win for them. And they're a pain in the ass.


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[Assistant] He's not. I mean, actually, we got a way bigger Mike T here at NBC. Okay. Way bigger. Sorry, Mike Tomlin. I like you a lot, but our Mike T is kind of important and that's Mike Turrico. His podcast every Sunday night, Turrico, Tony, Rodney, Florio. They recap the day. Uh, so many good points. I mean,


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[Assistant] You know, we're doing highlights and doing a million different things, so they get to unveil some other thoughts, which I think is worth the listen. Lamar Jackson, Aaron Rodgers interviews in that feed, that's worth checking out.


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[Assistant] Yeah, okay, so, I mean, first off, the first drive of the game, it was, you were like, oh, here come the Saints, right down the field. Boom, boom, boom. They get down there.


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[Assistant] They have a little special design play for Alvin Kamara. He kind of slips. Drew Bees doesn't know what to do. They end up kicking a field goal.


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[Assistant] But really after that point, I mean, it was tough sledding. Yeah. Now, uh, and here's the play. I mean, we did a little thing on social media today, but this was the play here. They got a third in, third in goal from the three and it's a, you know, we're going to fake the toss sweep to Kamara as he's in motion because they run this play, but he stops and puts the brakes on.


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[Assistant] Right? Drew's under center. Drew's under center. On the left hash. Exactly. Full back to his left just a little bit. They're gonna fake like they're gonna run the toss sweep to Alvin Camaro who's coming in that speed sweep motion and then he stops and goes back.


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[Assistant] Now, the play is designed for Kamara. Kamara and Kamara only. He kinda slips, and now Drew Brees is like, oh crap, he's slipped, what do I do? Because we don't really have any routes really called. This was a one play,


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[Assistant] One player design, and this was just for this. Now, I don't know if he scores. Deion Jones was not totally fooled here. You can see him out there, but Alvin Kamara one on one in that space is a dangerous proposition for even the greatest linebackers. Right. I know. So that was a huge moment. They leave three on the field. Going from there.


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[Assistant] I guess the thing I would say is, gotta give Dan Quinn and the Falcons credit. Did some different things on defense. Not like where I went, oh, they reinvented themselves. What was different? But, three man pressures. A lot of that, yeaah. A lot of that, okay.


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[Assistant] Not only the coverages, but even the few blitzes here and there where I went, man, I haven't seen the Falcons run that blitz all year long. And I do think that threw the Saints off of rhythm to a degree.


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[Assistant] They kept people all over Kamara and Michael Thomas on short passing rounds.


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[Assistant] I think the short passing game beat them, and they weren't gonna let, like, the Sean Payton, he dials up two or three, like, F you plays a game.


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[Assistant] And they did a good job stopping them, whether it's a screen or the old, you know, we're booting to the right and gonna throw backside to the tight end, who's kind of slipped through and gone out that way. The play we see just about everybody run every week. Baker Mayfield hit Jarvis Landry on the last drive on that play again. Kyle Shanahan invented that.


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[Assistant] I think that's the big thing. More than anything, they took away the short passing, they took away the short passing game, but more than like to what you said, there's nothing to back them up.


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[Assistant] And you're right, or like on TV, I watched that game and went, man, you know, Atlanta looks like they're getting pressure.


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[Assistant] More times than not, I came away watching film going, ooh, that's good coverage. They're running out Camaro on the half-back option, and they're playing Tampa too, and they got two guys all over them. They weren't gonna let him beat them. You know, so between, I think stopping some of those go-to five to eight yard passes that the Saints are magical at,


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[Assistant] And then, when they did complete some of those, man, did they tackle. Yea, they did. There was no, like, no Camaro, break it, and oh, I caught a five yard ball, but went into a 20 yard gain because I broke two tackles or one tackle. Same with Michael Thomas. They caught the ball, they were kind of down right there, and that kept them in manageable situations and having to play that way.


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[Assistant] It's one of the shocking things of the game. And I don't know if you saw my notes, but one of the things I wrote is I went, I just, I just can't believe it. The Saints have gotten like pass happy for some reason.


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[Assistant] And we'll get five, but it'll turn into twelve because Michael will break his tackle. We'll get another five and Camaro will break his tackle here and there. We'll do that, but like the Falcons between the three-man rush, what I call blitz change, right? Blitz change is like,


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[Assistant] Two guys drop out, but two guys blitz. So it ends up being a four man pressure, but you're still dropping back as a quarterback going like, wait, am I, am I protected? Oh, okay, okay. Oh wait, they're over here now. So those are little wrinkles that I haven't seen them do. And a few of the different blitzes I talked about. Plus you said it earlier, the Saints don't have a game breaker. You know, Teddy Ginn,


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[Assistant] Okay, he's not the Teddy Ginn from like seven or eight years ago. You wouldn't count Thomas's one? No, he is not a game breaker. He is a possession receiver. He is tough as hell. He's gonna catch contested balls.


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[Assistant] He is not a game breaker in the sense where I'm worried about Michael Thomas catching a slant and going 60 yards with it. No, that's not gonna happen. He's gonna beat you up over the middle. If he gets one on one on the outside, he's gonna catch a back shoulder. But he's not gonna beat you just like with sheer speed down the field. That's not his game. And I think that's a little bit.


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[Assistant] And this is, this is about the time of the year last year when this started to rear its ugly head. It's like teams started to realize, wait, wait.


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[Assistant] Well yeaah, I think it was like the, the cowboys in that game, first off, were, uh, those linebackers and everything, that they were allowed to take some of those short passes away. They, you know, Michael Thomas, Camaro, they couldn't get involved in that game to make plays like that. And they had the corners on the outside to kinda go, okay, well we'll leave them on an island, we're not worried about them.


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[Assistant] 45 Jones are made to stop that type of attack. And I really think, you know, just, you know, even some of those three man rushes, they crowded the middle of the field. It was almost like we dare you to throw it deep and outside the numbers. Go ahead.


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[Assistant] And I think that's really all that, you know, at the end of the game, when it got to 20-9, like Grady, Jared, and them, they did, they started to kick ass up front.


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[Assistant] Uhm, but I really think the short passes, the stopping the fuck you plays, which I called them, and then the stopping of the Michael Thomas...


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[Assistant] Kamara, you know, just dissection short passing game over and over and over was a big thing of the game. And listen, people are gonna look at this and go, well Michael Thomas said 13 for 152.


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[Assistant] Michael Thomas had 52 on the last drive when the game was over.


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[Assistant] Drew Brees had 78 yards passing when the game was over. It's the non-competitive part of the game. I don't even count those stats. To me, as an evaluator, I'm looking and going, no, the game's over now. This is all bullshit stats. It's great. At the end of the year, everybody's gonna forget about really what happened the other day. They're gonna go, oh, Drew played pretty good. He was 287, 287 yards.


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[Assistant] No, it was the, it was not their best game, the, the Saints-O line, and I would bet you that a lot of those pressures in that percentage are fourth quarter, where like, like you said, in the first two or three quarters, I wasn't sitting there, I was kind of taking it back on film going, man, they're actually not getting after Breeze quite the way I thought.