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[Assistant] You know, I don't, I don't even know. Statistically, I know they're, they're down there a little bit as far as defending the pass. And I'll look at that number again. And the Giants with the weapons and Kedarius, Tony's emergence.


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[Assistant] You know, Galaday, Ross, who can fly, you know, Evan Ingram. It's, it's going to be a hard matchup with the Cowboys. I'm going to go with the Cowboys really just because of the Dak Prescott, you know, factor and them being at home. But I think it's a close game. I'm going to go 27-24.


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[Assistant] All boys are the second worst past events in football. That's all I just, I wanted to say. I knew it was down there, I just didn't know how far down.


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[Assistant] I like that. I like that. Is that it? No, that's not. It's through. The only way is through. Right? Uh, that's what they're, that's their new slogan. That's their new, you must protect this house. Uh, but I like that. You might be onto something there.


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[Assistant] I did not think the Chiefs were going to be favored by three. I did not. It makes sense, I just didn't think it.


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[Assistant] I do, I mean, hey, listen, we all know the Bills are probably playing a little bit better football. There's no doubt Bills defense, arguably the best in football. I think statistically it is the best in football. I mean, Sean McDermott and company got it going on that side of the ball, no doubt, but it's a game of matchups.


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[Assistant] And I don't think their defense necessarily matches up perfectly with this Kansas City offense, especially if Kansas City continues to


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[Assistant] Ride their assets or what, what their team is built for, which is offense. You have an overpowering offensive line that should be able to run the ball as long as you will run the ball against every defense in football. I mean, they got some guys that are road graders and move everybody.


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[Assistant] Eagles defensive front, I think a lot of them, I really do. I mean, they got tore up last week and.


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[Assistant] I think that compromises McDermott and Leslie Frazier's ability to kind of crowd the line of scrimmage and always drop people into the areas you're trying to attack in the passing game. I think they're going to have to take a little different approach. I would think any reason to be patient with that run game.


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[Assistant] You know, he could see the fruits of that labor last week with, it brought the Eagles up a little bit at times and they got to hit some shots down the field too.


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[Assistant] And then there, that's where I go, the bills, if there is a weakness to their defense, it's their cover people, their corners, not their safeties. They're great. The corners though. And that's where I worry about them.


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[Assistant] And, uh, so that, that scares me. You know, the Chief's defense, not good. I know that, but the Bill's offense not hitting on all cylinders right now. You know, I know they've gone 75 to nothing the last two weeks, but the offense hasn't executed at the level


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[Assistant] I'd like to see or what we saw last year. I think the bills need to trade for a receiver at some point before the trade deadline to go all in on Superbowl, but I'm going.


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[Assistant] I had it 31-28, so I'll change it and go 31- Oh, you got 31-30. Damn. I was gonna just say the same damn- You're allowed to take it too. Alright, I'm gonna go 31-30 Chiefs as well. I think they're gonna win a close football game here. Yeah, their offense will just make some plays and win it at the very end.


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[Assistant] I don't think they do. I think the Colts match up well with the Ravens in a lot of ways. Uhm, you know, I do think Carson went to the pass a game and found a little bit of a groove. It's not perfect yet.


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[Assistant] I keep thinking the run game's gonna come around, and we saw a little last week with the Colts offensive line.


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[Assistant] So I, I do think that they're, they're going to be a little bit more of a pain in the butt for the Ravens defense than maybe we expect. And the other thing is, is


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[Assistant] You know, the, the Colts are a team that's gonna play a lot of seven and eight guys at the line of scrimmage. They kind of try to scare you out of the run game with some of their defensive looks. You know, they do have speed in the front that I think plays into their favor as far as containing Lamar Jackson.


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[Assistant] Uhm, I wouldn't be shocked if the Colts like, upset the Ravens. I would not. But I don't have the guts to pick that. I don't. Not at this point. So I'm going Ravens 2420 here.


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[Assistant] I just don't know what to think. Like the Ravens to me are a little confusing. They are. It was a good win last week, but, you know, it's not dominant. The week before, you know, easily could have lost to Detroit. They're a little all over the place, but yeah, I mean, they just, they got a way about them. A way about them that the Colts don't have, you know.


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[Assistant] I mean, I want to go like chalk, like, oh, okay, I'm eight and four. So like, you know, kiss my butt. I don't know what to say. I'm best bet. So how about that? All right. Kiss my white chalky butt. All right. So here we go. Thank you for that. No problem. Our first one is I'm going to the saints. That's my first bet of best bet of the week. I do. I think the Bay, the saints are going to be pissed off with the way they played. I hope they


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[Assistant] Correct their defensive game plan, and I have no faith in Washington's defense.


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[Assistant] I have a feeling we might be on the same page here too. I'm going with the 49ers. I do. The desperation game, the way they match up with the Cardinals.


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[Assistant] You know, the Cardinals run defense does scare me against this group. You know, yeah, they're riding high four and oh, I just think that the 49ers match up very well with the Cardinals and I think they're going to be able to run the ball. So I'm going with the Cardinals five and a half too much for me.


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[Assistant] I don't know whether to go with the Panthers or the Giants. I, I, I want, there's, I wanna go with both, really.


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[Assistant] I'm gonna go with the panthers too. I'm gonna go with the panthers as, no no no, I'm changing. I'm going giants. That's the one I said I was gonna go with, I'm going with it. I will not be shocked if the giants pull off the upset. I'm going giants, screw the panthers one. I don't know why, I'm just a little scared there.


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[Assistant] Hi I'm Mike Tirico and thanks for watching. Make sure to hit subscribe for the latest news and highlights from NBC Sports.


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[Assistant] I'm butter, whole milk, whatever. Like, fat's good for you. Like, I just, you know, I don't know, I don't care. And yeah, I don't even, what was in, I can't believe it's not butter. That was margarine? That what it was? I mean, cause I know- Not butter. Not butter.


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[Assistant] Well no, and I picked a low scoring game. I just, I'm, I'm, I mean listen, you know, that's gambling there. I, I, I don't feel that bad. That pissed me off. I didn't win that.


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[Assistant] I was freaking embarrassed about my performance last week. I really am overthinking too much, trying to go out on a limb a little too much to catch up to you, and that's where you get your ass in trouble. Alright, so...


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[Assistant] Damn, I'm really am. I'm pissed off. I mean, I did not like that showing. Last year, I was incredible and straight up. I'm not even doing good and straight up. I mean, that's embarrassing.


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[Assistant] I mean, I think Pete will test a test. I had a strong ear last year, uh, straight up. Like, as good as anybody there is. This year, I'm crapola, and I'm pissed, and I'm coming for your ass right now. Here we go.


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[Assistant] Packers Cardinals. I'm still staying with the Cardinals. I am. You know, again, I, of course, respect the Packers and I know how dangerous they are with Aaron Rodgers. I mean, come on, you know, nobody defends him and loves him more than I do. I can't wait to watch him tonight.


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[Assistant] Man, even with a healthy Devontae Adams, I feel like they were overmatched in this football game.


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[Assistant] So he's not there. Alan Lazard not there.


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[Assistant] You know, you heard me say a lot today, like the Packers are good, we know that. I'm holding this conversation to Packers and the Super Bowl conversation type of, you know, bar we're setting here. Out of all the teams I look at that are legit Super Bowl contenders in the NSC, to me the Packers have the least amount of talent.


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[Assistant] They execute, they don't make mistakes, they wait for you to make your mistake, and that's how they kind of gain a possession to win the game that way. They never stopped Washington last week, not one time, as I discussed on the show today.


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[Assistant] Washington never punted, they screwed up a lot of situations in the red zone. I'm going Cardinals 31-23. They're well coached, they execute, and they have more talent. Period. Here we go Arizona.


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[Assistant] Uh, but either way. Okay, good. I like it. Hey listen, the one thing we talked about a little today that I do think it's a real thing.


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[Assistant] For the Packers to maybe win is the fact that, yeaah, now there is a little bit of the unexpected as far as what to expect out of the Green Bay offense. When you do have Devontae Adams in there, you know, yeaah, okay, we, you know, you got a little feel for how they're gonna attack.


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[Assistant] You know, now there is that angle, so, uh, either way, I know we're both pumped to watch this game tonight, that's for sure.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I'm going with the home team here. I just can't pick Carolina anymore. I can't do it.


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[Assistant] You know, I mean, I did a long breakdown on my podcast this week. I've talked about how Joe Brady, you know, people have caught up to the Joe Brady offense a little bit. But damn, I mean, Sam Donald's just not playing well either. Period.


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[Assistant] Is that what you call it? Yeah, that's what it's called, right? That's the name of the podcast, right? It's a good one. It's a good title. I thought you called it WTF Wednesday. I didn't know that you actually went Marshawn Lynch with. You know it. That's right. I got the green light there, but I don't trust Sam Donnell at all. Hey, I still think the Panthers defense is good.


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[Assistant] I do, I think they can give Matt Ryan and company some issues, but at the end of the day, I, I, and I think you'll get a last ditch effort from the Panthers here, but I'm still gonna pick Matt Ryan at home, you know, and that offense to just put up a few more points. I'm going 23.


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[Assistant] Well, I mean, listen, the bills on a bad day score 30 points. I mean, so that's like, okay, they're going to score 30. I mean, it's a bad day. It's like, oh, they were off today. They scored 31. They scored 28. I mean, that's really what it's come down to.


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[Assistant] So yeaah, I have not a lot of faith in the Miami football team right now. I mean, what's shocking in the defense is just even giving up too many big plays at this point.


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[Assistant] Yeaah, I mean, I think that, of course, Buffalo is gonna move the ball, make a lot of plays on that side of the ball. The other side is, Atua and company have been okay. They've been good on offense the last few weeks.


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[Assistant] But I still think it's just a little too predictable. That's to me, they're going to be the bottom line to where I think they'll struggle this week up in Buffalo. And it is a little cooler up here in the Northeast here, finally. We finally have hit fall. Um, and I just look at that and just go, no way the Dolphins. And if you break down the Dolphins, look, just, you know, again, people out there watch the game this week.


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[Assistant] Alright, every play is down the middle to Waddle and Gasecki. You don't think Sean McDermott is gonna not see that? 35-17 Bills. Uhm, they win this one easy.


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[Assistant] I'm gonna say yes, they do. I do think it's gonna be low scoring. I don't think it'll be pretty. You know, I'm gonna go 49ers 20 to 10. I'm sitting here looking at the over-under and going, the under, like, speaks to me a little bit. The Bears defense is still good. It is.


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[Assistant] Well, and I do think, again, the 49ers, there's not a great passing game to talk of.


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[Assistant] But, uh, I don't think they're going to be able to move the ball up and down the field in this Bears defense. And then ultimately, hey, the 49ers defense still got a lot of respect for them. And I mean, what, I don't have any respect for the Bears offense.


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[Assistant] You know, I mean, last week was an absolute debacle, an embarrassment, an embarrassment to what they even, the position they put Justin Fields in is just horrible. It's I think the worst offense in football. And that's why I'm going to go 49ers 20 to 10 in this one.


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[Assistant] Okay, well, I mean, hey, I like the Browns. I do. I'm going Browns 2117. Uh, I think my big thing is, again, I just don't have the faith.


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[Assistant] And the Pittsburgh Steelers offense quite yet, and even though the Browns defense, you know, isn't been awesome in every game, it is still talented as we talk about. They got difference makers on the defensive line.


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[Assistant] Uh, I don't know if Pittsburgh's gonna be able to consistently run the ball on Cleveland or anything that way. And of course, I think the Browns will be able to get a little pressure on Big Ben. You know? In Cleveland...


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[Assistant] Uh, I just think this is a week where Big Ben will do one or two dumb things and hurt the football team. And then on the other side, that's the marquee matchup. The Browns offense versus Steelers defense. We know those are two really good units.


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[Assistant] And I, you know, again, I'm going with the Browns there. I think the Browns have the best offensive line in football, the best run game design in football. Mike, here's one thing I'd like, I've been wanting to say, like the Browns, I wish they would


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[Assistant] When they run the ball two tight ends and they got, you know...


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[Assistant] Fake reverses and speed sweeps and pulling guards and all that. I mean, they're almost unstoppable. I want to be like, hey, just be the modern day Nebraska on offense. You know, just forget empty formations or anything like that.


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[Assistant] Always some sort of, sort of, even if you're gonna throw it, have some sort of play action or boot fake to go along with it. I love that part of their offense. I'm going Browns 21-17 at home. I think they're gonna pull it off.


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[Assistant] Yeah, one thing that jumped out about that last matchup with the Steelers, what we saw, just a quick thing, and your points are valid, I hear you there, definitely some things that scare me for sure, is just the fact of


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[Assistant] Pittsburgh doesn't have enough depth in their front seven. That's, that's ultimately what made me just go, you know what? I'm going to pick the Browns. I'm just a little scared of that, but your points are real and Pittsburgh is going to be pissed off. And then Mike Tomlin things going to make him pissed off, which is even going to filter down to the rest of the team to add a little more pissed off this to their team. So I hear that point for sure.


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[Assistant] They're just missing players. I don't come away, ever watch it from watching Detroit and go, man, they're poorly coached, they're stupid, that was a stupid game plan. No. On both sides of the ball, almost every week of the whole year I've gone, they really play almost to their maximum.


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[Assistant] But there's just not enough playmakers across the board. You know, I could see them giving the Eagles offensive issues, certainly. And I think they'll have moments of moving the ball a little bit, but like ultimately lack of playmakers plus Jared Goff means not winning a game. I don't know. That's just, I can't do it until I see it.


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[Assistant] And the Eagles, I gotta think they're a little pissed off and embarrassed by the way they played last week. They gotta change their style of defense a little. I got respect for the way they put a lot of pressure on their front.


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[Assistant] Baby, that is gonna be good. Come on, eagles, fly, eagles, fly. The other thing I was gonna say, I mean, first off,


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[Assistant] I mean, the Nick Sirianni thing, I gotta think he communicates a little bit better, maybe in more comfortable situations. I hope. I hope. I hope! Right, I know I've been around, like,


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[Assistant] I was around George W. Bush. I was fortunate to be around him a lot in my life. In small settings, he was a phenomenal communicator. For some reason, when he got in front of a microphone, he didn't sound that smart. It was odd. I mean, it really was. If it was you, me, and George Bush, you'd be like, damn, that's one of the smoothest dudes I've ever met. He's awesome.


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[Assistant] And then he'd get around a bunch of people and he'd go, wait, where the hell'd that guy just go? Uh, so maybe that's it, but I mean...


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[Assistant] Yeah, well, you got unfortunate. I mean, literally Dan Campbell brought out the kitchen and sing for that one and that, that, that kind of screwed you. They just kept possession of the ball with all those damn fake punts and, and field goals that screwed your bet. Your bet was in the right place. I mean, so that's what sucks about betting, but yeah, I'm going with them covering the spread. I mean, it's the same story every week with the Texans.


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[Assistant] The defense isn't bad. They'll keep the game and hang around for a little bit.


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[Assistant] You know, what was it last week? 5-0 at one point for a little while. I mean, they hung in there, but ultimately what happens is their offense has nothing. It's a rookie quarterback that's, yea, he's a rookie, plus he's not overly talented in any way.


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[Assistant] So they just, they melt, they fall apart, and I just think that's what'll happen again here. You know, it'll probably be 10-3 in the middle of the second quarter. But then, after that, it's night-night Texans go to bed, and I'm going Rams 34-13. I still, you know, they're one of the best teams in football.


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[Assistant] Uh, and uh, I like watching them play too. They're one of my favorite teams to watch right now.


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[Assistant] I'm going with the Colts. I am. I just think, yeaah. You know, I've been impressed for the last four weeks with the way the Colts are playing. Even in the loss against Baltimore. You know, we've talked about it a lot.


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[Assistant] I just think they got something going on the offensive side of the ball. I think Carson Wentz has finally settled in. Jonathan Taylor is a superstar running back.


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[Assistant] They, they really got a little bit of everything to offer on the offensive side of the ball. T. Y. Hilden, his health status.


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[Assistant] I don't know, Pete, if you could help me out there maybe before we get done with this whole conversation there.


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[Assistant] Uhm, I would be interested a little bit, but either way, I do love Frank Reich's game planning. It's aggressive on the offensive side of the ball.


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[Assistant] And, you know, their, their defense align has been kickin' some, kickin' some ass. It has. And the way they play defense with as many 8-man fronts, I, I think they can slow down the, the, uh, the Titans offense in that attack. I'm gonna go Colts 28-24.


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[Assistant] The starting quarterback for the Jets. I was actually surprised when I looked at it. I went just, it's only ten and a half. Like I, yup. I mean, I don't know. You know, again, the Jets defense, I got, I got, I still got respect for them.


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[Assistant] You know, yeaah, they lost control last week. Of course, Zach Wilson got hurt.


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[Assistant] I mean, Bill Belichick, I, I, you know, they kept the gas on the pedal. I think he's still sticking it to the jets for what they did, you know, to him 23 years ago or whatever. Gas on the pedal? Is that what I said? Pedal on the gas? Is that what I said? Gas on the pedal? I didn't even know that. Gas on the pedal.


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[Assistant] But the, the Bengals, I'm so, I'm just impressed with the football team. There's, there's nothing else to say. They're good everywhere. They're, they are good everywhere. They are here to stay. The defense, I, I just can't imagine the Jets moving the ball consistently at all versus Bengals defense.


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[Assistant] And then on the other side of the ball, there might be some stale points here and there. I mean, the Jets got some pride, but either way, I just, the Bengals are too talented and their offensive line is coming along. That's the other thing too.


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[Assistant] And man, if they get to this offensive running game going to where you really gotta respect it.


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[Assistant] They're gonna be almost unstoppable on the offensive side of the ball. I just think, you know, a little bit like what you just said with the Titans, like, I just think the Bengals are like, they're going like this. They're like, wait, we're figuring out how to win. We're battle tested. We got talent and I'm going 31-10 Bengals.


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[Assistant] Yeaah, this is a interesting matchup. I think the Patriots really match up well with the Chargers. I mean, again, there's a reason they blew them out 45-0 last year. And again, I know it's a different year and there's a lot of different players, but there's still a lot of same players too.


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[Assistant] You know, what I worry about for the chargers a little bit...


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[Assistant] Is the same old thing. I mean, their run defense is the worst in football. It's not even close. It's not like they've played like, you know, a bunch of running quarterbacks and had to deal with all of that. It's just basic run plays. They can't stop it.


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[Assistant] Pulling guard, 10 yards, boom. You know, toss, crack, sweep, 25 yards, boom.


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[Assistant] The, the, the Patriots have gotten healthier up front on the offensive line. They ran, they've run the ball two weeks in a row. Pretty damn well.


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[Assistant] And I think they found some ways to make some big plays in the passing game. You know, I just can't imagine they won't keep it close. And then of course, the Patriots defense is good.


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[Assistant] And I don't know if the Chargers offense can run the ball good enough to really make the Patriots not play pass all the time. I'm making this one of my little upsets of the week right here.


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[Assistant] I'm going with the Patriots. I'm gonna go Patriots 27-24 on the road. In totality, yeaah, I don't think they're a better team than the Chargers. But in this matchup, I think they are better. Uh, this is a tough one for me for the Chargers. That's why I'm gonna ride the Patriots. I think last week, uh, gave them a little bit more mojo.


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[Assistant] I'm taking the Jags! Well listen, I have a feeling you're going Jags. I do, and I understand it. I mean, the Jags are every bit as talented, if not more talented, than Seattle. I mean, that's plain and simple.


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[Assistant] And I mean, again, Seattle, you could take the team, other team off the field, and they'll be like, we're gonna just try to make it a one-score game. You know, what, there's nobody out there, so we just want the ball in the fourth quarter with a one-score game.


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[Assistant] Oh, well, I mean, they're, they're annoying Seattle. I don't know what to say it. You know, I don't, you know, I mean, Geno Smith.


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[Assistant] I wish he would improve his body language, I didn't love that the other night, but damn, they could help improve it too and do something. Open up the f-


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[Assistant] Offense Seattle. Like what the? Yeah, what the? It's almost like they go out of their way to go, wait, DK and Tyler Lockett are our best players. How can we cancel them out of the game plan and get into a one score game? I mean, it's unbelievable. It's unbelievable.


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[Assistant] I either, having said that, it's still in Seattle.


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[Assistant] Seattle, eh, yeaah, they, they still are a little bit more battle tested. I don't know, I kinda look at this as like, Jacksonville will find a way to mess this up. It's a rookie quarterback up in a tough spot. They do a lot of different crap on defense. So I'm gonna go Seattle 20-16, but I can totally see the logic of taking the Jaguars here.


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[Assistant] You know, again, the offense is too bleh for me. There's nothing there. I don't have any faith in Teddy Bridgewater at this point. I don't.


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[Assistant] Washington's defense has got it going a little bit. You know, they pressured Aaron Rodgers last week, a bunch.


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[Assistant] Uh, I, I, I think, you know, again, and it's not like the Broncos offense is that schematically creative.


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[Assistant] To where I just go, oh well, they'll be able to take advantage of some of the things Washington does on defense. No, I don't. And you know, what adds it to me too is the Broncos, you know, they haven't been pass protecting well. Teddy doesn't play well when he's not protected. And even when he is protected, he leaves a lot of plays to be had out there on the field. So I just can't get behind that.


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[Assistant] Now, you know, the other side of the ball, yeaah, Denver's defense is beat up. They are. I mean, they've been disappointing.


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[Assistant] You saw Cleveland run it down their throat last week. I think Washington will be able to run it good enough.


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[Assistant] And Heineken will make a few plays. And I think this is a week, yeaah, that Washington can pull off this type of victory and win it. I'm going to go Washington 27-24 on the road. And we got another disagreement.


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[Assistant] Match up well with the Bucks in a lot of areas. If the Saints passing game


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[Assistant] Was that a little bit of a better level, higher level, however you want to describe it? I'd give them a fighting chance here to pull off an upset. I would.


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[Assistant] You know, yeaah, at home, uh, you know, again, the Bucks, their biggest, I mean, we know Brady and the Weapons, but the other thing the Bucks really do to you is they maul you up front on both sides of the ball. You're not gonna maul the Saints. The Saints are right up there with them in the mauling department.


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[Assistant] And that allows them to be play pass coverage and do different things that way. As far as at least slowing down Brady and Company in the pass game. But I just can't get behind, you know, like you talked about, Jamus.


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[Assistant] The receivers, you know, there's just a lot of newness there on that offensive side of the ball. Drew Brees has discussed it a few times on Sunday Night Football 2.


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[Assistant] You know, yeaah, it's, it's receivers getting used to the system. It's a new tight end, you know, being asked a lot of in Jawan Johnson. So, uh, I think they hang around and are kind of a pain in the butt for the Bucks, but ultimately, I'm going Bucks.


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[Assistant] The same score you are, 27-17. I just saw you have that in the sheet there already.


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[Assistant] Oh yea, Under Armour has been great to me, great to us, we're happy to have him as a sponsor, but we are supported by Under Armour, and just like us, Under Armour wants to give you an edge, just like Florio and I are trying to give you a betting edge right now.


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[Assistant] They are focused on performing better and taking their game to the next level. Like Florio has been in his picks. He's been next level. I have not been. Everything from running shoes that propel you forward


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[Assistant] To hoop shoes that give you insane grip. They even make hoodies that reflect energy.


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[Assistant] We're just not about the end result, winning or glory. Under Armour is about the hard work, the dedication, the cycle of training, competing, and recovering.


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[Assistant] We give you advantages, but no shortcuts here. Gotta do the work. The only way is through.


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[Assistant] Okay, first off, I mean, again, we don't know the status of Dak Prescott doing this on a Thursday late morning, right? So, I'm, I'm picking it as an if, as if


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[Assistant] I think Dak Prescott's gonna play, alright? Uh, I think this is gonna be a really fun, interesting game.


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[Assistant] You know, the first thing I want to say is this is the most balanced offense the Cowboys have had to play all year.


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[Assistant] And their defense, again, it makes plays, it makes plays, but I don't know if it's necessarily gonna stone cold stop any great offenses in football.


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[Assistant] Yeah, they got to play the Bucs early on in the year, but the Bucs are pass heavy and we're pass heavy in that football game specifically. This one's a different animal a little bit. I think Minnesota's offense will make a lot of big plays on the Cowboys defense. I expect that.


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[Assistant] The problem is, I think the Cowboys are going to make a ton of big plays on Minnesota's defense as well. I mean, Minnesota's not great at stopping the run. The Cowboys are in the conversation for the best run team in football. And of course we know the weapons they got on the outside. Uh, I think it's going to be somewhat of a shootout.


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[Assistant] I'm gonna go with the Cowboys 35-31 basically in like one of those games where...


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[Assistant] They win because Minnesota had to settle for a field goal one drive and the Cowboys didn't. And that's where the difference of the game will be to me and I'm going Cowboys.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I mean, I agree with a lot of what you said there. Uhm, the one thing I'll say I think a little bit is,


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[Assistant] You know, I think the Giants match up with them a little bit, you know, in some areas. You know, I think the first thing I'll say is I think the Giants are pretty well coached on the defensive side.


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[Assistant] They play pretty smart coverages. They can break teams down pretty easily. You know, I always look at it and go, ooh, I, I, I like where, you know, they're at here. You know, again, it's not overly talented. I wish they had one more pass rusher, but a Z-Social Ahri is really coming along and starting to pop out on like a weekly basis.


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[Assistant] I think they're gonna hang around and be annoying. Now the one thing that I think will dictate that a little bit to me is just the status of


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[Assistant] Uh, the, the injuries on the Giants, on the offensive side of the ball. I think that's where I'm a little scared at. You know, I know that Saquon Berkley, Sterling Sheppard, Kenny Golladay, Kaderia Sturney are working with trainers. Uh, it's a race against time, so it sounds like they're 50-50.


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[Assistant] As far as who's gonna play. If some of those guys play, I think they can hang it around and keep it like a one score game. If not, they're gonna lose by...


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[Assistant] 17, something of that nature. I'm right now gonna say like we get a few of those guys in there. I'm going Chiefs 30 to 24.


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[Assistant] You know, if the Giants have a few weapons, they should be able to move the ball on Kansas City. I don't doubt that. And, you know, again, Kansas City, I don't think has a good enough defense line right now to really pressure Daniel Jones and company. I think that's what is a little scary to me. Uh, but either way, I'm going the Chiefs in a desperation type game.


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[Assistant] Michael Paul. Michael Paul. All right, Michael Paul, come on. Uncle Mike's picking the Packers, so let's crap all over him tonight when we get that lead from the Cardinals. Come on now, Michael Paul. You and me, baby. Here we go. All right, that sounds good. Man, that sounds awesome. I like the heaters thing. You're going to go cigar, cigar, drink.


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[Assistant] Cigar drink tonight? Yeaah, yeaah. Good, okay. Alright, good. You know me, I'll be daddy cigar and drinky drink too. Don't sit on the beanbag. Yeaah, I know. Seriously, my hip is finally feeling better. Alright, so that's good to know. Alright, uhm, I got four best bets.


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[Assistant] And I don't know where to go. I am tempted to take the 49ers Bears game under because I think it's going to be low scoring.


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[Assistant] But I'm gonna be a wimp and scare myself out of that. The first one I'm gonna go with is just, you know, the low-hanging fruit of every week. Really? I'm gonna go with the Rams. I am. Yeaah, I just, I don't think that's enough points.


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[Assistant] You know, I think, you know, again, the Texans, I admire their defense and their toughness and how they play, but


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[Assistant] You know, there's only so long they can hold, and again, I just think the Rams are too damn good, and there's nothing that's gonna scare their defense, and I just think they'll be able to play ultra aggressive and fly around the field. Uh, I got the Rams 34-13, that's my first best bet.


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[Assistant] I mean, I know I don't even wanna pick it cause I feel like you're gonna pick it too, but I'm going with the bangles. I am.


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[Assistant] 10 and a half? What? I don't know. Am I missing something? Did the bangles go out on a like a party binge and a crack cocaine binge this week? I don't know. I mean, I just don't understand that.


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[Assistant] One of the two. Something's going on. I don't know where that is, but yes, I'm going to go with the bangles. I think I, I feel like it's just the name, the bangles is like stopping people from totally buying in yet. Uh, but yeah, I'm going there a hundred percent. I agree with


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[Assistant] I don't think we are. We're definitely not gonna hit the slot machine here because I'm going the Patriots. You know, I got the Patriots as one of my, my upsets of the week. I think they match up well with the Chargers.


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[Assistant] At the very least, yeaah, I got them winning, but I do think five points is a little too much for me. I mean, I think even if the Chargers win, I'm envisioning like a 27-24, maybe 28-24 type of football game. So, Patriots are my third one.


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[Assistant] One pick that'll save our life and that's where we'll go back to the well and who are the Texans playing is what I go to every week right now. And I'll go to the Rams.


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[Assistant] Hi, I'm Mike Tirico and thanks for watching. Make sure to hit subscribe for the latest news and highlights from NBC Sports.


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[Assistant] I know the highlights. I know what you think about them. Know the storylines. It is such a fun challenge to have there being on Sunday because you sit down, you're in that giant room and eight games come on and the football fan in you is like,


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[Assistant] I've died and gone to heaven. This is such a cool way to spend a Sunday. But then the pro is like, I've got to have a comprehension of all these games and they're all going on at once. It's all spinning around. It's a real skill to try and figure out how to keep an eye on all eights.


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[Assistant] We have so many different ways to go, but I think one thing with all the unpredictability we had yesterday, the league certainly handed us a theme to follow there. Seven of the 12 games yesterday were won by the underdogs. Wow. Over half. And five of those underdogs


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[Assistant] We're on the road. So that's, let's begin and we don't really have a label here. We're gonna get to damn okay and give me the headlines and all that, but we're just gonna hit some games right off the bat.


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[Assistant] I think Pete, and you can correct me, I think Pete just hit me with, uh, home teams are 65 and 70 this year. That's, that's right, so I was right.


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[Assistant] That was nice of you to bring it up because we're gonna hit a big game where the road team pulled off an upset. Right. Titans beat the Rams by double digits. Let's begin with the graphic here. The Titans as underdogs in each of the last four weeks. I believe, yeaah. Four weeks in a row they've been underdogs.


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[Assistant] In four weeks in a row they've won. And big time wins, Bills, Chiefs, Colts, and now at the Rams. And we were, we were both excited last night to watch.


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[Assistant] I think for us, we always see it through a quarterback lens. Right. How's Ryan Tannehill gonna play? Sure. Without Derek Henry. Right. And he didn't have to do much because his defense was so good.


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[Assistant] I almost think as I watch more this year, it's really been a theme and we've talked about it quite a bit. I've heard you talk about it a lot.


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[Assistant] A best friend or a best way to go up against a really good quarterback isn't so much a wonderful pass rusher. It's great if you can have one. It's great if you can have three. But that confusion at the top of his drop is almost more valuable to a defense than someone who is just a phenomenal presence off the edge.


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[Assistant] They only had 69 rushing yards, their fewest in a win since 2012. Some of that was predictable without Derrick Henry, but some of it was just kind of the flow of the game and the way it went.


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[Assistant] Maybe on Wednesday we can hit this a little more, but I want to touch a little bit on the Bayard pick 6. Just cause I saw it last night, I went right to you. As much as I've watched football, it surprised me that a pick 6 to the sideline, it's usually either a corner


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[Assistant] That has squatted and jumped it. Right. Or it's a guy who lined up kind of close to the line of scrimmage and sprinted out to the flat and got it. Byard was the safety.


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[Assistant] Cause even Stafford over a decade in the league, there's no way he lined up there pre-snap and said, ah, I gotta worry about that safety cutting off this out route. Completely surprised him.


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[Assistant] I think that situation was fourth and goal from the four. Right. So, fourth and goal from the four.


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[Assistant] With as much time as there was left, I mean, field goal makes sense. It does. To get it to a 2-score game. Yes, a lot of time left. A lot of time left. Let's not be crazy there. One big picture thought with the Titans, and this might change next week, but right now in the AFC, that's the number one team at the halfway point. Is that misleading, or do you think it is the best team in the AFC?


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[Assistant] Uh, next big, big game we want to hit, and I'm glad that we're including this, or that we made it seconds in our lineup instead of third.


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[Assistant] And their best player, Kyler Murray, is also the most elusive, you know, right there with Lamar Jackson, but the most effective runner as a quarterback in the NFL. Yes. And the fact that he has come so far in how he calls the game and what the offense is about were


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[Assistant] Kyler Murray with that skill set can be out and they can bring in an older veteran who moves okay but not in a great way.


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[Assistant] And call the same game. Pretty much, exactly right. I sat here and listened to you kinda talk about rating Kyler Murray in your top ten, maybe even the top five for quarterbacks.


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[Assistant] And your yeah but was, I need, you need, Clif Kingsbury to call a better game plan. Yes, exactly right. Need to help him more, give him more weapons, more schemes. Right. And the fact that Colt can step in and just run the same offense.


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[Assistant] Uh, to me, kind of brings it full circle with what we've talked about here, uh, that he is helping that offense more. Yes. And that Colt can come in and do the same thing, run the same offense, even though he's a completely different kind of quarterback. Yeaah, no doubt.


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[Assistant] Turn the page to the 49ers now. Five losses in the last six games. They're 0-4 at home. I mean, nobody saw this coming. I want to bring in the...


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[Assistant] What is happening with this 49ers offense? It's not just one game. It's not just two games. This is a series of events, kinda like the Chiefs, that kinda makes you believe, is this who they are this year?


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[Assistant] I'm not looking to the standings right now, but I did this morning. I think they are tied with Seattle at the bottom of the NFC West. I think they're both three and five. Pete, does that sound?


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[Assistant] Okay, both three and five. Which one of those two teams, second half of the season, do you have more belief in right now that will come back and make a run at being significant mid to late December?


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[Assistant] What's the biggest thing you see in the Niners right now besides the potential and the Flash is a good place?


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[Assistant] Biggest reason you feel like that, like you would pick them over Seattle if you are going that way. Yeah. To be the team that separates there and you know, has a chance.


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[Assistant] I do. With seven teams making the playoffs, there is, I think, one team in the NFC with a losing record right now that will be playing in mid January. I think so.


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[Assistant] Let's move on to another game that created a lot of feeling, uh, a lot of different headlines and attention. Broncos beating the Cowboys.


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[Assistant] 30 to 16. This is a classic. It was not nearly that close. Late in the fourth quarter, it was 30 to nothing. Broncos over the Cowboys and all the stats, all the ways that you would measure a game that was complete.


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[Assistant] Domination. Let's take a look, Chris. And I think we have a number here. Cowboys offense, first seven games against what we saw yesterday. First seven games, number one in the league in yards gained. And my goodness, they were, they were horrible. I know the Denver defense is pretty darn good, but you know, a day later, how are you making sense of what you saw from the Cowboys yesterday?


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[Assistant] That says it all. He finished a little below 50%, which happens, but for an NFL quarterback of that caliber. Right. To be hit one out of three. Yes. I think they were like one for 11 at that time on third down. It was just a disaster.


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[Assistant] A question from at codyhamilton8 kind of fits right in there, Chris. How did the Cowboys get pushed around by a Denver offensive line that had to play seven different guys?


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[Assistant] I give a lot of credit to Denver for how that franchise felt during the week when they trade their most accomplished player, the one most associated with past success. They give him away for future draft picks for responding to that and coming out and playing with that kind of energy and that kind of production. Hats off, not just to one player, for that entire organization.


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[Assistant] For how they came out and responded against Dallas. What do you do with Denver and the AFC West where every single team


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[Assistant] Has five wins. I mean for a while it looked like they were fourth, but after that performance and looking down like, okay, they're all pretty similar, where do you put the Broncos?


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[Assistant] A disaster. Elsewhere in the AFC, disaster for Buffalo. Didn't score a touchdown. Number one scoring offense in the NFL. Not a single touchdown against Jacksonville. We will get to Buffalo and your thoughts on that, but let's start with a positive in that one.


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[Assistant] What leads the way for you with the Jaguars, it obviously can be Josh Allen, uh, but, you know, they deserve some kudos for coming up with a way to not just beat Buffalo, but to keep him out of the end.


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[Assistant] He was a leading rusher. The shocker! Top two running backs, nine attempts. Nine. They got nothing there. They're not trying.


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[Assistant] But even if it's not great, I mean, Josh Allen throwing it 47 times, 47 times, and your top 2 bags carrying it 9 times, I mean, you can, you can inside that building know, okay, we're not running the ball worth of shit, but at least try 15-20 times, it's going to make Josh


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[Assistant] Attempts are important. Patriots weren't getting anything out of their running game, but those top two backs still carried it a combined more than 20 times. They just keep it going. For less than 100 yards.


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[Assistant] Them losing? Those are their three losses. Yeaah, there we go. All 47 to 51 times. I mean that's a shit ton of passing attempts, even for somebody. Yeaah.


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[Assistant] That good. So I was listening to you last night on the show and you said that they're just expecting too much out of him. It's, it's either Josh Allen magic or it's not. Uh, it was up last night, went back and looked at that. I'm like, that kind of goes hand in hand with what you were saying last night. If he throws it 37 times instead of 47, you're still getting a lot out of this guy who's a wonderful quarterback, but you're not walking over to the line of, okay, that's too much.


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[Assistant] Who do you, uh, who do you like best here after a week where you can't really point at any of the top six candidates and say, he was awesome yesterday?


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[Assistant] Alright, so from gambling into damn okay, I think we have a little sound that goes along with this.


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[Assistant] And the Cleveland Browns have so many examples of damn okay. We have a number of ways we want to go here. Let's start with the, so many big plays they had yesterday and that win over the Bengals 41 to 16. The pick six that started the Bengals moving the ball, moving the ball early. All of a sudden Denzel Ward, bam, 99 yards.


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[Assistant] Hey Chris, can we get a damn okay for Greg Newsome and the Brown secondary for pretty much shutting down Jamar Chase without double teaming him. Five tackles, two passes defended for the Northwestern rookie. Per PFF, he allowed just four receptions, 46 yards on nine targets.


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[Assistant] Can you think of a quarterback that needed a big performance yesterday more than Baker Mayfield did?


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[Assistant] Yeah, uh, two interceptions, first time this season with two or more interceptions. He's been doing a terrific job taking care of the ball, but not yesterday.


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[Assistant] Damn! I mean, he, he looked like, and he can still do this. Oh, he can. He looked like the Matt Ryan of a few years ago, where he was in command, making good decisions, and putting the ball where it had to be.


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[Assistant] On a deep ball, if you're pushing it down the sideline, you usually throw it 45 or 50 yards. If you're driving it, you usually drive it to 18 or 20.


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[Assistant] It was only about 30 yards downfield. He threw it really high. Soft. A kind of a pass. You don't see that kind of arc on a pass that short very often. And the fact that he had that shot in his bag, I thought that was really cool. Beautiful.


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[Assistant] Man, that was well done. Thank you. And by the way, Falcons are five and five, I mean, I'm sorry, at five hundred now. They're fighting. They're there. Four and four. Yeah.


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[Assistant] Uhm, Under Armour, there's a little read here. Yeaah, I got it. It's kinda become a sneaky favorite part of the show. Yeaah, it's for you, you like it.


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[Assistant] Chiefs, even though it felt like a loss for Kansas City, to be honest, they beat Green Bay 13-7. Let's take a look at this Mahomes graphic. There are a lot of ways to show that they're struggling. Yards per attempt.


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[Assistant] Yesterday, four and a half yards per attempt. That's awful for any quarterback. Lowest of his career. His yards per attempt and yards per completion in the last four years have been going down a little bit each year. And this year it's just been going down drastically.


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[Assistant] Big time, and that's, I mean, we're focusing so much on the Homes, and his game does look totally different.


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[Assistant] It's, it's, it's by a couple standard deviations, not what it used to be. Not even close. But, this whole Hill and Kelsey thing where...


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[Assistant] How many times in the last two years have we sat here and like looked at their numbers combined and been like, oh my god, how did defense let them go for 17 combined catches for 250, which they did something like that all the time. You can't find that this year. And you know, maybe, maybe it's Mahomes not seeing it, throwing it well.


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[Assistant] But defenses aren't just playing, are paying, playing Patrick differently.


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[Assistant] Those two pass catchers are not producing at all. No.


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[Assistant] Clearly, he's in like, I mean, he's in a slump. He's in a slump. And like, the best baseball players, like Mike Trout can go 1 for 26 and you know at some point he's gonna come out and you know, be terrific again. Is he just in a slump? Like, is he 1 for 26 right now and for the next couple of months he's gonna be okay and snap out of it?


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[Assistant] How much of this falls on Andy Reid? Because I mean, it's easy to focus on Mahomes because it looks so much different. He's just not reacting at the top of his drop the way he used to, not throwing it the way he used to. But we've always given credit with Mahomes to Reid for being a wonderful play caller and schemer.


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[Assistant] Uhm, if you wanna give a quick preview to that, feel free, but I think that'd be fun to focus on that on Wednesday a little bit.


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[Assistant] Okay. Alright. Okay. Yeah. There should be an apostrophe in there.


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[Assistant] You're good. You're good. First thought, after watching him yesterday.


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[Assistant] Anytime you're watching a rookie who's, who's playing for the first time at that position, especially a first-rounder, because the expectations are so high, I always tell myself, okay, don't make any conclusions.


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[Assistant] Watch and play six or eight times before you say anything about what this guy is. But you always want to look for like some, not wow, but how the ball comes out, some moments where consistently good placement where you're like, okay, I can't wait to watch this guy play again.


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[Assistant] And you're comparing it to a Burrow or a Herbert or even like Russell Wilson 10 years ago, there were that many moments. No, there were more moments where you're like, oh, that's not supposed to be that way. There were more of those.


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[Assistant] You mentioned this game on the other side, the Vikings a little bit, but the Ravens finding a way again to win 34-31 in overtime. Lamar Jackson throws for 266 and he runs 21 times for 120.


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[Assistant] It was like the first half was kinda slow, the Vikings offense was rolling. Then they ran the kickback. And Baltimore seemed like they just weren't going to show up. And all of a sudden they win.


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[Assistant] And Night Shyamalan. Yes. I see ghosts. What was that? The Sixth Sense.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I mean. It just kept getting worse. The interceptions kept getting worse.


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[Assistant] Chargers got their mojo back as well in Philadelphia. Chargers beat the Eagles 27-24. Your headline is...


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[Assistant] Yeah, some pretty major concerns. I think we have a number here on Justin Herbert, what he did yesterday compared to the previous two games. He started throwing interceptions, three interceptions in those two losses, three touchdowns yesterday, no picks.


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[Assistant] 84%, I'm glad you brought up what Derek Carr did, I think he was around 90%. So I mean, doing against that defense, there has to be maybe a little bit of an asterisk next to it. Yea, definitely. But still. Too many soft zone coverages.


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[Assistant] Uhm, I don't want to call it the loser bowl. This is Dolphins beating the Texans 17-6.


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[Assistant] That was a wow. That competed with the Stafford getting spun around and the Carson Wentz going lefty.


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[Assistant] We should have a cutoff, like if there are combined like more than seven turnovers in the game, like that game doesn't get discussed.


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[Assistant] That was it. That was it. That was Give Me The Headlines presented by Hyundai. One more little topic to hit, Monday night.


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[Assistant] Bears? Steelers? Chris said Pittsburgh 20 to 17 in last Thursday's podcast. Are you going to come off that?


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[Assistant] Who's, who's struggling more, your picks or Patrick Mahomes? Uh, Mahomes, actually.


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[Assistant] I think that's it. That's it. That's it. That's a show. Yeah, there's a show. That's a show. Yeah, there it is. Should I FaceTime you like at dinner tonight? Cause I mean, you're gonna have to go like a few hours without me talking to you.


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[Assistant] Hi, I'm Mike Tirico and thanks for watching. Make sure to hit subscribe for the latest news and highlights from NBC Sports.


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[Assistant] Hi, I'm Mike Tirico and thanks for watching. Make sure to hit subscribe for the latest news and highlights from NBC Sports.


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[Assistant] Oh, that's right. Yeah, baby. It's Chris Sims on button presented by Under Armour. And yes, that is a basketball game you're listening to. And you may say, why? Why would I be listening to a basketball game on a football podcast? Because I am sitting next to Bobby big time.


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[Assistant] Ahman Fareed on the call, UMass vs. Rutgers. Hurt me, I always root for the New Jersey team. Alright, you know, root for Rutgers, sorry.


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[Assistant] Dude, kinda natural. You like the car? Kinda sounded good. Like you really did.


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[Assistant] Believe it to dad, the crap all over you. That's what he does. That's what they go. Alright, so wait, I got another question before we hit on our Thanksgiving weekend. We're gonna hit on every game of week 12. Great weekend. Hope everybody had a good Thanksgiving. Uhm, was, is it weird? You weren't there, right?


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[Assistant] Do you, do you find like it hard to create energy a little bit? Yes.


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[Assistant] I don't think it's, I think, I think you're correct. This is the first time. So man, you're listening. A lot of pressure here, right off the bat. Watching history.


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[Assistant] It has to be something Hollywood related, you know, movie, movie that doesn't live up to the expectations. So box office bomb. That's where we're going with the first one. Yeah. And that of course, it is talking about the Rams.


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[Assistant] You know, the star power they have and the duds they've been ever since they've acquired this star power. I mean, it's kind of crazy, right? It really is.


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[Assistant] You know, I mean the game starts out by what we've seen with the Rams the last few games before the break. Them kind of messing things up early and putting a team in a power position before you even get warmed up or get in the flow of the football game.


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[Assistant] You know, of course it starts off with Rashaun Gary, again, the guy I'm going to say for the third time in 24 hours, the best defensive player on the Packers football team. He's been that all year long. He's been amazing. He gets to strip sack fumble. Not, that's not Matthew Stafford fall, Whitworth.


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[Assistant] Uh, gets beat around the left edge. Next drive, now I go into, it's fourth and one on the 29 yard line. You know, so the Packers score touchdown, they're up seven nothing on a three play, six yard drive. Now, it's fourth and one on the 29 yard line.


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[Assistant] And again, I know it's aggressive. You're never wrong if you're aggressive this day and age in the NFL. Aggressive. Aggressive. The game just started and our guys don't even have a sweat yet, but we're being aggressive.


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[Assistant] And they go for it on fourth and one on the 29 yard line. I don't know. I mean, I don't love that. I don't.


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[Assistant] I understand that the Rams, and they, you know, have a cockiness about them, but okay, you missed that. Adrian Amos makes a great tackle, and yea, now you're down 10-0 on the road, in Green Bay. It's hard to win when you're down 10 points, double digits in Green Bay, in the Aaron Rodgers era, or the Brett Farbera.


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[Assistant] So, you know, I just look at it like, you know, mistakes, lack of big plays. I mean, to sum it all up, Stafford is off his game, he's been off his game. Even on completions the last three, four games. No, they did have a couple big plays. They did. No doubt.


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[Assistant] Yeah, well, it's, it's, it's the, it's a lack of consistency, I think, on that side of the ball right now. And lack of consistency with him throwing the football. Even in accuracy. You know, there's still, last three games, a number of completions, Ahmed, to kind of your pointers, where it's like, you know, hey, you used to be a big fan of his. I mean, you still are. He was your quarterback up at the Detroit Lions.


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[Assistant] Maybe not. Either way, I mean, I don't see anything wrong with the way he throws the football or anything like that, and that just has to get better. There's not enough consistency throughout every game, like lately, ever since they went all in Teddy KGB style.


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[Assistant] You know, and you know, it's twofold too because they look like they want to just be a passing football team. They don't look like they want to be the running team they were in the past.


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[Assistant] So if you're going to play that way, then yes, you know, execution, you can't make mistakes. Yeah. You can't fumble the football. Of course you can't throw pick sixes, but I think it's like both sides of the ball. This conversation goes to. Yeah. I mean, it's great that we saw OBJ get going.


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[Assistant] That definitely was good. You just talked about the Van Jefferson play.


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[Assistant] But, I'm still disappointed with the, the defense decided the ball as well, excuse me.


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[Assistant] That's what bothers me. That's what really does bother me more than anything is the absence of star players. Like you got all these guys.


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[Assistant] You know? Hey, Aaron Donald, of course, is still a force and unbelievable. Is he the slam dunk best defensive player in football like he was the last five years in the league? No, he's not. He's not that guy anymore. He's still...


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[Assistant] But I don't think he's the game wrecker he once was. Von Miller, we don't, I mean...


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[Assistant] Not much so far in his debut with the Rams. I mean, it's two games and, you know, there's a few plays where I go, oh, he got some pressure and that looked good, but there's nothing like that stands out.


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[Assistant] There's that. And then you know my other concerns with the back end. Like, I know, I think they matched up Jaylen Ramsey a few times yesterday in Devonte Adams.


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[Assistant] Yeah, the Rams defense has taken a step back from where it was last year underneath Brandon Staley. It has. You know, they just...


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[Assistant] Give up too many big plays, uh, or they just can't get off the field like we saw yesterday.


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[Assistant] You know, that's where it was. It was just a lot of slow deaths. They lack size in the middle of their defense. And I feel like right now teams are getting into a lot of third and threes every drive. It's what the 49ers did to them. You know, the Titans did that to them a little bit.


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[Assistant] And even the Packers yesterday, where it was always third and manageable for the most part. And, you know, and of course they converted, I think, the Packers, what, to fourth down plays as well. Uhm, so they're not playing good and they need to find a little new formula on both sides of the ball to kind of jump start the engine here.


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[Assistant] But at least they have a way of playing that they know fits them, and then they know how to execute that way of playing, like, precisely. You know, uh, run game, like, first off, impressive by the O-line. They're banged up.


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[Assistant] You know, they're not at 100%. They protected well for the most part of the day. I felt like as the Rams started the game off trying to get pressure with four, it didn't seem like it got home. And as the game went on, they started to go, okay, I guess we got to bring five. We're not getting there.


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[Assistant] So, you know, way to go Green Bay offensive line. Way to go like Matt LaFleur and Rodgers staying patient with the run once again. And then to me, like, Rodgers has got the greatest feel maybe in the history of football of like how to see the big picture of the game, you know.


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[Assistant] When I look at it that way, and of course I know Brady was amazing, but Brady also had people in his ear to help him that way. You know, Peyton Manning was amazing that way too. But Peyton was a little bit more, no, I'm just gonna attack, attack, attack. Rogers is like, he plays it conservative until he feels like,


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[Assistant] This is the moment. Now I gotta, I gotta put my toe on the edge a little bit, even if it does have COVID. Or it's broken. And that's when, that's where I respect him, you know, to


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[Assistant] They are like a little New England-y right now in my opinion. That's how I would say Green Bay plays football. Don't mess up. You don't score touchdowns. We execute. We stay on the field. We score a touchdown. Game seems even, but it's 7-3 us. You go down and kick a field goal.


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[Assistant] Feels even. It was a lot of work, but you gotta feel good. Okay, it's 7-6. We go down on a 12-play, 75-yard drive score touchdown. Game seems even, but it's 14-6 us. That's to me the way they play. It's, it's, it's really effective. It really is. And you gotta give them credit because they've, uh, they've seemed to have mastered it really for the most part.


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[Assistant] I mean, I would think so, yes, you're right. But the way the defense is playing, I mean, we're gonna get Jair Alexander back, I think at some point here soon, right Pete? So that's gonna be a big boost to their football team. The rookie Eric Stokes at the other corner position is phenomenal.


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[Assistant] And the biggest thing is Joe Barry. I mean, Joe Barry, the thing that's thinks for Green Bay and company, he's doing so good that he's going to be in the head coaching conversation. Period.


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[Assistant] I mean he is. Green Bay's defense went from being pretty good the last few years to


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[Assistant] Wow. It's hard to get big plays and it's hard to score on them and they don't ever seem to mess anything up on that side of the ball. And, uh, give them a lot of credit. Give Joe Barry a lot of credit.


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[Assistant] No, I think that's the thing. It's different. You know, in the years past, he's been able to go, well, okay, wait.


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[Assistant] That I can kind of play it that way and I'll find a few trick screens and reverses and that'll just give us enough big plays. Well, they're not that running team this year, you know, and I would like to see them get back to it a little bit. I really would. I think that that's he's too good of a play caller off of the run game to totally avoid it.


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[Assistant] The defense isn't playing as good as in your past, like you're, like you're talking about. So I think he feels like he's got to push the issue a little bit with his offense, but yeah, they got to do some reorganizing there in LA with how they approach the offensive side of the ball. And I think they got to find some different ways to do some things on the defensive side of the ball to be a hair more creative as well.


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[Assistant] Early in the year, I feel like they were staying patient with it. Then Darrell Henderson got a little banged up, and I think they were worried about his health, and I feel like from that point on, I wanna say it was like week three or four, where they kinda just said, okay,


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[Assistant] We don't know if we're gonna be able to depend on the run game and Henderson being healthy and all that. Let's just, we're a pass team. We got Matt Stafford, he's talented, let's go from there. Uhm, but then there's gotta be something like we always talk about.


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[Assistant] You know, takes, takes over for the run game. Then what's that gonna be?


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[Assistant] You know, expand the wide receiver, the wide receiver screen game then. They gotta do something there again to kinda...


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[Assistant] You know, make you defend the whole field, but, uh, the Packers, phenomenal. You know, that's all we can really say. Rodgers was on his game. I mean, really, I don't think he made one dicey decision the whole day yesterday. And when he needed to make a big play, whether it was to Randall Cobb, Devontae Adams, you know, in some moments where the game kind of got even,


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[Assistant] You always thought like, okay, can LA make a stop here and get this game close? And then it was boom, big pass play to Randall Cobb. Oh, and next drive. Okay, ooh, Rams are hanging in there. Can they make it close? Oh, boom, big pass play to Devonte Adams. They go down the score again. You just never got the feel that the Rams really had control of the momentum of the football game, in my opinion.


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[Assistant] He does. I mean, he's a locomotive. I think that's the good thing about the Tampa team. They got a lot of like, you know, lightning rod personalities who love football too. It's not just like me, me, me, me. It's like, yeah, I like me, but I like me winning with the team more. And I think that's what's kind of cool about them. And even, you know,


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[Assistant] They're, they're just a confidence about their football team. And listen.


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[Assistant] They were on the ropes as much as any team I saw yesterday. The game was 24 to 14. The Colts were outplaying them.


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[Assistant] You know, they go into the half, right? The, the Colts scored a touchdown right before the half. Uh, Carson Wentz and company have the fourth down, Sprint right option. He throws a great throw in the front edge. You didn't like that play. I hate that play. I hate that play.


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[Assistant] Oh my god. Let's, let's cut off the field and just give our quarterback basically one option to fit it into a, like a tight window. And I understand, like, people go, well, it worked. And I want to go, yeah, but I can show you


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[Assistant] Six other times it didn't work yesterday. Or the previous play it did not work and he could have thrown an interception. Right. So I'm just not a big fan of that play. I'm not. I'm never a fan of the that play on fourth and gotta have it or the fullback dive up the middle. Let's give it to the guy who never gets it on the biggest play of the game.


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[Assistant] You know, I mean, yeah, okay, and he's two feet from the line of scrimmage, and he can't get any momentum, and he just falls in a pile. Like that to me is the second dumbest fourth insure call. But either way, the Colts, I mean, had them on the ropes.


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[Assistant] And this is where the Buccaneers are dangerous. This is where, you know, you can out execute them and, and really, you know, outplay them to a degree, but their Jimmy's and their Joe's overcome your X's and your O's. I mean, that's where they're just, and Shaquille Barrett makes a strip sack fumble.


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[Assistant] On Carson Wentz and they're in field goal range on first and 10, I think around the 20 yard line going in. Game was never the same. Game was never the same. From that point on,


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[Assistant] The Buccaneers kinda took over, had the momentum, not that I wanna sit here and tell you that I thought they were gonna win 100%, but I don't know, you were watching, and I feel like when they made it 24-21, and now the next drive, Carson Wentz throws the interception on the post route to Michael Pittman Jr., Winfield makes that great play. Great play. I think, I think, we all in the room were like, well, the Bucs are gonna win.


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[Assistant] A little bit. They all played. They were the better team on the field yesterday. They did, but they just did not take advantage of their opportunities. Now, you know, this is a Colts thing though. We've seen this. You know, we saw in the Titans game a few weeks ago. We saw a Ravens game on Monday night where they kind of dominated and lost in overtime.


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[Assistant] Yeah, they're, they're one of those teams that's got to find a way in some of these key moments. Like when you got a team down or you got your foot on your, on their throat, uh, you know, you got to press a little harder and cut off the oxygen so they die.


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[Assistant] No, they took the right approach. They took the right approach yesterday.


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[Assistant] You know, they weren't gonna be able to run the ball with success, and right now the weakness of the Buccaneers is their pass defense, their secondary.


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[Assistant] You know, they move the ball pretty much at will on the Bucks throughout the day as far as in the pass game. You know, I know the Bucks made a few plays here and there, certainly.


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[Assistant] But like, never where you felt like they were smothered. Even on the interception to the post route to Michael Pittman Jr. It's one on one. It's a 6-3 quad receiver against a 5-10 safety. You take that shot. That's not like, oh, that's defensive dominance. They've smothered their offense, right? It's not. It's just another Jimmy and the Joe.


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[Assistant] Overcoming the X's and the O, the good play call and design. And that's what's scary about the Bucks. But yeaah, I do look at it a little bit more as the Colts outplayed them, and I don't want to say blew the game, but just didn't take their advantages to kind of really put the Bucks in a tough spot to go, woah.


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[Assistant] You know, can you really come back from 31 to 14 on the road halfway through the third quarter? Right. They had a chance to do that. They didn't. And, you know, the Bucks...


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[Assistant] So I have no problem with them not running the ball, the Colts, that's the first thing. The run game stats are a little misleading on both sides, they really are. You know, even Fournette, with, I know he had the four touchdowns, 100 yards, he had 47 of them in the last drive of the game too.


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[Assistant] Where they got like the cults a little bit and like, hey, we're, yeah, they're worried about letting up the big pass play and losing the game that way. And they gashed them.


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[Assistant] Uhm, so that jump, like, if they can stay a little more patient with the run and continue to, not no more patient, but just do what they do there, it's gonna open up their big pass plays. And the other thing that to me just makes a difference over the last two weeks, and I think we all see it, is Rob Gronkowski.


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[Assistant] Rob Gronkowski, when you add him to Godwin and Evans,


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[Assistant] And now you got Miller back, Scottie Miller, who got a big pass interference call that helped him go down and get a touchdown in the third quarter.


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[Assistant] You know, they just become very tough to defend everything that they have to offer. And then when they run the ball a little bit, then it's, oh no, linebackers get sucked up, there's Gronkowski running down the seam for a 30 yard gain, and that's when the Bucks are really tough.


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[Assistant] They can say, they can get, you know, Sean Murphy Bunting, who's just coming back, who's just been back, he's not playing his best yet. You know, I know Jamel Dean got hurt yesterday, and I don't think he came back.


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[Assistant] You know, and I think Carlton Davis is about to come back here sometime. I think he started practicing last week. When they get them back, I think you're going to see teams be smothered a little bit more to the way we were talking on the defensive side of the ball, uh, where, you know, it could be scary against that Bucks D.


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[Assistant] Which is also gives you a lot, I gotta give you a lot of credit there too. Because anytime we've had the bangles, we have our running joke of not your average Joe.


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[Assistant] You know, I look at the standings in the NFC right now and I look at the top six teams and, you know, let me just pull them up real quick. I know I said this to you last night, so this is no groundbreaking thing.


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[Assistant] Arizona, Green Bay, Tampa Bay, Dallas, the Ram, San Francisco, in my opinion can all win the Super Bowl in the NFC. You got, you got six teams that legitimately to me,


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[Assistant] I have very limited questions about, in fact, out of those six teams right now, I think I'd maybe question the Rams and Dallas' defense more than anything out of everything there, but you better watch out for the San Francisco 49ers because they got it rolling. You said it, their defense may be not like


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[Assistant] Dominant 2019 Super Bowl defense, but still really good. We're seeing them make plays on that side of the ball and the Shanahan Magic is, it's, it's watch out.


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[Assistant] I mean, the Fighting Shanahans are back as far as the creativity in the run game. It really started about five weeks ago against the Bears on the road where we started to see it get going. They lost the next week to Arizona because they got down a little early and they had to abandon the run a little bit. It was a weird game.


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[Assistant] You know, but after that, it's been domination on the run game. You know, and again, I think Shanahan, yes, the way he's using Deebo Samuel is really special. You know, that, you know, we talked about Kittle being healthy.


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[Assistant] To me, here's the, here's really the big story. Is, IU has become...


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[Assistant] A legitimate playmaker weight. We gotta have a little plan for this guy. Cause if we let him just catch the ball 20 yards in the middle of the field, it's going to be a 40 yard game. You know, he is really like.


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[Assistant] Upped his game the last few weeks with catches yards after the catch, some reverses and speed sweeps himself and


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[Assistant] Uhm, to me, yeah, Shanahan's got a little formula right now that's gonna be very tough to defend. It was almost like he was in a dog house, Ayuk there, in the beginning of the year. I think he was. I think he was. I think there was some stuff in training camp, I think he didn't, I don't know what it was, but I know there was talk of it just wasn't going the way they wanted. You know, and he probably wasn't performing as well, probably messed up some mental and physical things, and,


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[Assistant] You know, with a guy like Shanahan, not to say he's Belichick, but if he doesn't trust you and you're not in the trust tree, uh, yeaah, he's gonna make you earn that back before he just throws you back out there again.


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[Assistant] The X's and O's to me are a little special here because of course he's a wide receiver and he's an elite receiver, right? So you got him and Ayuk on the field and you think


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[Assistant] Wait, okay, it's, you know, it's, and then Kittle's on the field, and they have Wilson at tailback, and they might have Juszczyk at fullback, and you go, oh, okay, they're gonna, you know, get in some normal formations here, and throw the ball, it's gonna be 21 personnel. But what happens is it doesn't, it becomes, let me see if I can figure this out.


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[Assistant] Uh, it becomes 31 personnel. Uh, it does. That's what happens because now they put Debo at tailback. They have Jeff Wilson, you know, on the edge is like an H-back who's kind of playing fullback along with use check.


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[Assistant] And of course you got Kittle as the one tight end. So now you're wait, wait, we got in like a base defense, but now they're kind of like in a heavy run set personnel offense and they can block us here.


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[Assistant] And on top of that, even with their 21 or their 31 personnel we're talking about, it's a very fast 21 personnel.


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[Assistant] I mean, it's real speed all across the field to where teams don't really want to play base defense against the 49ers. They want to play nickel because they're like, man, they're just, there's a little too much speed in these big sets and he really compromises you there. And to me, that's where he's given them the schematical advantage. My bad for talking. No, no, no, no. That's good.


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[Assistant] We talk, I mean yeaah, Louisiana. We talk about them a little bit. Louisiana Tech? That's Louisiana Tech? No, no, it's not. Louisiana's a different school. It's just UL. UL?


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[Assistant] Take an advantage of what's there. That's the one thing. Like the one thing I like about him is, you know, yes, he should get you a little more than what's there, but he's got very good vision and he's got a vision and a power and explosiveness combination, like an explosiveness to where it's not going to be 60 yard touchdowns.


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[Assistant] Pretty good acceleration through the line to where a lot of good impressive 10 and 15 yards where he's just like, whoa, that was a blur going through the line.


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[Assistant] You know, he's big and strong enough too to get tough yards. Oh wait, there's a linebacker. He can run through the arm tackle or take him on shoulder to shoulder and still drive the pile forward. So he does deserve a lot of credit. Am I going to sit here and tell you I think he's Najee Harris? No.


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[Assistant] He's not Najee Harris. He's not, he's not, I'm not gonna say he's as talented as him, but he's very good. And then you add that to like what you talk about. A genius in the run game.


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[Assistant] One of the better offensive lines in football and like,


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[Assistant] It all came back at the same time. Kittle got healthy then, Trent Wilson came back, and Trent Williams got healthy. Ayuk wasn't popping yet. To me it's really like, to your point, yes, they were struggling without him, but like the stars aligned for the whole offense to kind of get them going again.


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[Assistant] That's a good question. You know, they just, I would say early in the year,


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[Assistant] You know, they played some good defenses. They just seemed to not be able to find their rhythm running the football. Uh, I don't know if it was necessarily that. I don't. I think it was more, I think the injuries on the offensive side of the ball.


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[Assistant] Yes, we just saw not the dominant run game, which then had to put a little bit more on Jimmy Garoppolo's plate. And not that he did bad, uhm, really, I mean, he played great in a Green Bay loss on a Sunday night game. You know, the Seattle Seahawks game, they lose the next week, but he got hurt in that football game. So, you know, he went through a little,


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[Assistant] Garoppolo has been good. I mean, he's been very consistent. You talk about the tight end, the two receivers. I mean, that's why I just say watch out. And no, Minnesota, again, I give them a lot of respect. I do. I never felt like yesterday watching that game that they were in the same class as the 49ers. I'm sorry. I don't mean to be disrespectful that way.


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[Assistant] I felt like the 49ers were this close to blowing the game out about three different times. Of course, Garoppolo threw a bad interception early that gave the Vikings a short field touchdown. Then, really after that,


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[Assistant] The Vikings only put two drives together the rest of the game. We have the kickoff return, you know, but that's what the Vikings are a little bit. They kind of like disappear for a while and then all of a sudden it's like,


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[Assistant] Justin Jefferson, 40 yards. Dalvin Cook, 20 yards. Adam Thielen, 25 yard touchdown. Three play, 85 yard drive. We're back. Uh, and to me it's hard to, to, to play and win consistently week in week out when, when you're that type of offense.


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[Assistant] Yes, they are. For my money, yes. I don't look at any team in the AFC right now.


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[Assistant] I just look at every team there and I go, okay, if they were playing New England this week, who would I take?


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[Assistant] And I look at the list and just go, I think I would take New England almost across the, I would against everybody. I do. You know, I got respect for Baltimore. I understand that. And Tennessee.


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[Assistant] You know, but I look at the Chiefs who, the Chiefs of the team I'm, I'm gonna say right now I think are in the conversation for the second best team in the AFC, even though it's not the prettiest, there's still a lot of positive there.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I think when you take everything that New England has to offer, uh, I am. I'm still gonna, I'm gonna stay there as the best team in the AFC. I've been saying that for the last two weeks. They're definitely the most consistent team and I think they are the best.


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[Assistant] Can maybe win a game or two, still be dangerous, sure.


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[Assistant] But go to the Super Bowl and win it, they gotta have them. They gotta. They're not gonna run through the AFC, you know, with the current state of the formula we're watching right now. I think the shock of the game was the fact that they ran the ball that way. Right. And Gash, New England, who, I mean, the last few weeks, I got a lot of respect for their run defense. I'm gonna be excited to watch that on film and kind of break it down.


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[Assistant] No, I, you know, to me, like, alright, there's two things at play there that I think jump out in my mind. One...


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[Assistant] Excuse me as I burp. Yea, right into the microphone too. Sorry, excuse me to everybody out there.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I tried to like just hold it in and swallow it and it still came out. It was like a reverse one. It was. It maybe came out more in your body. It came out of my nose a little bit, you know what I mean? It came out of your nose and found a way.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Only way is through your nose, presented by Under Armour. Chris Sims burps. Cheers. Good morning.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] No, no, we're talking about the question from, are you concerned about, and I wanted to say there's two things I think at play here. One is, I, I, I wanna say,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I'm going to watch some of these big runs and go, Bill, the Belichecks and company, we're playing to stop something else.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Playing the, okay, so what if they run for four yards on us right here?


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I'm more worried about them play action 20 yard crossing route. We're going to try to stop that when they get in these formations. So, that's what I do want to see.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Maybe overplaying the play action pass or the pass game a little bit to stop that. I think the other thing is, hey, Vrabel has great understanding of that defense and understands.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, I'm sure he told Todd Downing some things that Bill doesn't like in certain sets or formations that he doesn't like to defend in the running game.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] So I'm sure he can find a few clues that way too. But I would have a hard time thinking if they played them again that that would happen. I would. Uhm, and I think the encouraging thing is, okay, so they do that. They didn't really capitalize Tennessee with all those yards. And they were absolutely shut down in the pass game. So, hey, cool, yeaah, we got 200 yards rushing, but we got 93 passing.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And an interception and a lot of ugly moments where, yeaah, we got off the field on third downs because we couldn't get anything going that way. A little bit of a misleading score in 36 to 13, but I think scary in the fact that New England can...


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And not run the ball all that well, and they still can put a whoopin' on you? To me that's more like, watch out everybody in the AFC, watch out everybody in the NFL. That's to me what that win was yesterday. B plus game by the Patriots, they win by 23.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And they're the hottest team in football right now. Uh, yes, that's where I go back to my old saying of it seems like 2001 all over again.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Thank you. I appreciate that. I gotta have somebody have my back every now and then. So good. I'm glad to hear that. And thank you. Yeah. I mean, you know, again, I don't know if he's gonna end up being the best one.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, but damn is he good. And damn I don't see it going downward at any point. That's the thing too, I mean. And he even missed a pass, he had Hunter Henry. He missed a touchdown, right? That was a touchdown pass, right? He missed it, certainly. I mean that was probably his most egregious miss of the day. But again, I think it goes back to like, see this is where they're getting scary. You know, it's every week now.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, you see a handful of explosive pass plays and go, wow. You know, two weeks ago when they played the Falcons, he left some plays and some passes on the field. I don't know if he just went, wait, it's the Falcons, I'm going to be conservative. Maybe they told him to be that way.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] He kinda dropped back a few times, he just got the ball out of his hand, and I, you know, I was watching film going, damn, he had a 20 yard completion there, I don't know why he was so quick to get that out. Yesterday I felt like he was looking to strike, and he made a number of big throws, and you can just see the whole offense there in New England has a mojo about them.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, it's, I feel like everybody stopped thinking finally. They only, they all got a grasp of the playbook, what's expected of them. You know, you're seeing John U Smith pop out, the receivers all pop.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And of course he's playing really well, uh, but the game still, I want to make sure everybody knows this. It wasn't really 36 to 13. It really wasn't. It was the typical, you know, New England doesn't mess up. You mess up a lot. Hey, we had, it was 10 to 6.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Tannahill missed a wide open, probably was going to be a touchdown pass. If not, it's going to put them down at like the four or five yard line. They missed the field goal, you know. We're at 19-13.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Deontay Foreman breaks a big run and you're going, well, okay, this is going to be a fun game. J.C. Jackson runs him down, strips the ball out of his hand, right? It's 26 to 13 and the Titans are driving down and of course they're on the goal line.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And typical New England, it's just hard to get in the end zone against them and they get an interception on fourth and goal from the one yard line. You know, so again, I think the game is a little bit misleading, but still encouraging really for both teams, but more for the Patriots.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, like, how many times, yesterday I saw four roughing the passer, and I like to call them nothing the passer. This is something I've started with Florio. I like it. And, uh, I know there's a few NFL people that think it's perfect. I've gotten some good texts from some friends. Yes, it is perfect.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] There was like four horrible, five horrible calls yesterday, whereas, yeaah, it's like, you kissed the quarterback and we're throwing a penalty. And I hate that. So maybe we need to be graphic to toughen things up. That's what I was, my point.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] And it's like done. To me it is. Because their only chance was their defense playing at a Super Bowl level and keeping them in this. They're falling apart, their defense. They're falling apart. We saw little tidbits of this throughout the year.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] But here, the last four weeks, I mean it's, it couldn't be more underwhelming. I think the first time I went, uh-oh, was the second half of the Seattle Seahawks game on Sunday Night Football, I believe, where they couldn't stop Seattle running the football. Alex Collins and company and Geno Smith, they were going up and down the field on Pittsburgh. And that was the first time I went, man.