Drive10.12.26Hr2: Around the NFL Week 5

0:04 You're tuned to The Drive on your 24-7 home of the black and gold.

0:08 Steelers Nation Radio.

0:28 Good evening, Steelers Nation. How we doing? Well, that's good.

0:30 Us too.

0:31 Hour number two of The Drive here on this Victory Monday episode. Matt, isn't winning just more fun?

0:37 Absolutely.

0:38 Can I just say that to you? It's a lot more fun winning than it is losing. I've been working in sports for a long time, and sometimes that just gets dropped right in your lap.

0:48 It really does.

0:50 I'm not as... I'm not as invested in the down by down, the snap by snap. I'm not pulling my hair out and screaming and drinking a beer and waving my terrible towel like I was through such a large portion of my life.

1:01 Smashing Red Bull cans.

1:02 Smashing Red Bull cans like somebody in a certain organization might have been doing. But it's still, when you suffer kind of a gut punch... drag you down low man that sucks loss in cleveland and you have to live with it for 10 days instead of six days man you go and you win by 12 points and you play well not perfect but you play well in a lot of facets.

1:27 Yeah there's a lot of encouraging stuff happened to you.

1:31 You win the game i think in pretty convincing fashion and i'm i'm always reminded i'm like this is this is a lot more fun than than losing.

1:38 It's funny you brought that up because we didn't like rehearse this or anyone rehearse anything but During the broadcast, they made it clear two or three times that from the start of the 2005 season until kickoff yesterday, the Steelers have played the most one-score games in the league. And as we know, they're not 50-50 propositions. The stats people tell you that. I don't believe that. There's a reason Brady and Ben and those guys win more than they lose. But they can kind of go either way.

2:07 And we know McCarthy's harped on this since he's been here. He understands the importance of it, not just because he's coaching the team that has played in that, but that's what the league wants. And sometimes you leave and we get together Monday, and deep down I'm like, I'm not sure the Steelers were the better team, but they got the win. And there's definitely times where the opposite is true.

2:27 They probably should have won that game. And I'm sure a lot of times against the Steelers, especially during the Tomlin era, when Watt would do something crazy in the fourth quarter, they'd block a punt and be like, we had them the whole time. How did we not win that game?

2:40 And on Colton Nation radio, they're like, how did we lose that game? Right.

2:43 But it's just, it is so much better. Sometimes it is a coin flip result, but when it ends up heads and you called heads, yeah, baby.

2:50 I have these conversations with my buddies who are still, you know, the way I would be if I wasn't doing this decked out in black and gold on Sunday, living and dying with every snap. And they're always like, dude, I don't know how you do your job. I wouldn't be able to do it. And I'm like, well, yeah, that's part of the job. You can't sit there and just be a fan and screaming and yelling and emotional and reacting.

3:09 There's no cheering in the press box. There's no cheering in the booth.

3:12 You're on to the next thing, the next play, the next whatever element of your job that you have to do.

3:17 And when you do that- Doesn't mean we don't want them to win.

3:19 No, and that's where I was going with it.

3:20 Yeah, yeah.

3:21 I've been, listen, Matt, I'm still 35 years old, so I'm not young anymore, but I'm not quite old yet either. I think I'm kind of in that in-between stage of life. I, though, did three seasons with the Eagles. This is now my ninth season with the Steelers.

3:35 Yeah.

3:35 So that's 12 years.

3:36 You're a vet.

3:37 I also did two years with the hockey team before the Eagles. So this is my 14th year of working for or around or for a sports team. And in some ways, I don't know if jaded is the right word because I still love it when I rock up to the stadium every Sunday or, you know. But your emotional detachment kind of gets peeled back a little bit every year.

4:00 It has to.

4:00 Because it's a job.

4:01 If you're going to be an analyst, you have to. You're right.

4:03 It's a job. And you're right, especially if you want to do this part of the job.

4:07 Absolutely. You can't just be like, they suck or they're winning the Super Bowl.

4:11 But there are some times the Steelers win that game. The sun ends up coming out and it ends up being a beautiful afternoon after pouring for hours and hours.

4:19 Oh yeah.

4:20 The great Missy Matthews brings me up a dozen wings from the locker room post game. I almost sent you a picture. You should have seen this blue cheese. Oh, chunky. Some nice Missy. Missy.

4:31 Now I know.

4:31 Missy got me the dozen Buffalo wings with a side of blue cheese. I mean, she knows her buddy. And I'm sitting there, you know, Pursuit and Charlie are doing the post game show. I'm producing, but I'm sitting there. I'm eating my wings, looking out into the field. There's all the grounds crews doing their thing, by the way, huge shout out to the grounds crew. My goodness. That's like, sure, man played there Saturday. And then it rained for about 57 hours up until kickoff on Sunday.

4:56 It couldn't have rained harder for me walking to my car to the pre-pre-game show at 9.

5:00 It was unbelievable. Yeah, you parked about a half an hour before I did. It was unbelievable when I was walking into that stadium.

5:07 It got much nicer, but boy, it was pouring.

5:09 And so a big shout out to the grounds crew. But I'm sitting there and I'm like, you know, this is what it's all about. This is why you want to work in sports. You got to enjoy these moments. And that was an enjoyable game yesterday on the North Shore for sure.

5:22 And folks, I probably have never said this, but I'm sure you can imagine. over my time of sitting in my lazy boy, taking notes as a professional, but in my alone, in my, I am at the TV too. You know what I mean? Like what on earth are you doing? Go for it. Run the ball.

5:40 And Rob and Max and I are like, what.

5:42 The hell was that?

5:43 Right.

5:44 I did the same thing as everybody else.

5:46 Somebody on kickoff.

5:47 Who is this team? You know, what are you doing? Go for it. What do you, I mean, I'm like everybody else.

5:53 But it is. It's nice to have those reminders from time to time of like, man, this actually is when things go well and you win. This is a lot of fun. This is why we do it. This is why you put up with the losses. Everyone who I think works in sports, whether it's even something like you and I do where we're kind of on the perimeter or if you're Mike McCarthy and you're right in the center of it.

6:12 It was different the year like I worked for the Browns. Yes. Because it's... You were more detached than that.

6:18 Correct.

6:18 You know what I mean?

6:19 Way more detached.

6:19 Let alone, I mean, and then the coaching staff's even closer and the players are even closer.

6:23 I mean, you know, but I think those people that are.

6:24 When you go to the building every day, I think.

6:26 Those people that are really in the inner circle, they'll tell you the losses sting more than the winds feel good. That's something you always hear from coaches. You always hear from players.

6:36 And you have to worry about your family and your job and your career.

6:39 Even people like Tom Brady who have seven rings on their finger.

6:42 Oh, Jordan will always say that.

6:43 Jordan will be like, man, that year against the Orlando Magic that we lost to Shaq and Penny and those guys, we really let that one get away.

6:50 The great, great ones hate losing more than they love winning.

6:54 Exactly right.

6:54 That's absolutely true.

6:55 And I think even from a fan and a media perspective, that can be true as well. The losses sting more than the wins feel good. But you still, you got to have those moments where you kind of sit back and you go, man, that was a lot of fun. That was a good win. That's why we do this.

7:10 Yeah, agreed. And I think, I hope everyone has that feeling throughout the week. And what's kind of interesting, and we will mention this stuff tomorrow, I keep bringing it up, but there's more and more hope for the future too. It's not just like, well, Cam played great and Rodgers played great and Watt played great and nobody else did and they're all going to be gone in a year or two. You know, like there's, foundation growing here too.

7:34 There sure is. There sure is. And that's a lot to be excited about. And I want to piggyback on that a little bit tomorrow when we have a little more time. But Matt, let's run the gambit here. Talk about week five, almost in the books. We do have a fun one tonight on Monday Night Football.

7:48 It should be a blast, yeah.

7:49 We'll give a final thought and prediction on that before we get out of here. Bills, Rams. I feel like I've said this a couple times already this season, but could certainly be a Super Bowl matchup.

7:58 Oh, it could be. Many people probably pick that as their Super Bowl matchup.

8:01 Um, that'll be the game tonight in a good Monday night contest. But before we get there, Matt, the first, uh, the, the breakfast, the English breakfast that we were all treated to Sunday morning was a pretty wild one as it man for a long time, looked like Jacksonville was going to win that game.

8:17 I had a hard time watching because I was doing the show with Tom, and then I was in the car ride home, but still, I got the gist of it.

8:22 But of course, I think everyone saw how it ended. Seven seconds left. The Eagles take the lead. They kick the ball off with seven seconds left. A nice return for the Jags to one second left on the clock. Cam Little comes out, bangs a long-distance field goal, and Jacksonville steals one from the jaws of defeat from Philadelphia there, and We talked about how weird that plane ride out to London probably was for the Eagles when you get on that plane and there's no Lane Johnson and there's no Cam Juergens and all of a sudden Saquon's hurt, Devontae Smith's hurt, and is our season falling apart? I bet you that plane ride home was a lot more difficult for me.

8:58 It had to be. And I sold the Eagles short. I thought, this is going to be over at halftime.

9:04 I told you, I was like, I got some pride in that locker room, man.

9:07 But they have nothing around Hurts. They're playing with backups to backups, et cetera, et cetera.

9:12 But.

9:13 D-lines travel. And I think people are a little ahead of their skis on Jacksonville, too. Like, that's the best team in the league. Their O-line is nowhere close to the best, you know, half of the league. And the Philly D-line gave them a lot of problems, and they had a lot of penalties early. I can't remember what stance Rob just took on this, but I'm always kicking that ball off. Because you want the clock to start.

9:35 I mean, that's the whole key.

9:36 But even though with the backdrop, and again, I know you didn't watch the whole thing. We had it on in the booth and we're just sitting there.

9:42 I didn't watch all the other returns.

9:43 Was it one after another? It was like the Colts, but even worse.

9:47 Okay.

9:47 I mean, they returned it, I think.

9:48 Well, then that's a different case.

9:49 They had two or three big returns before that.

9:52 Okay. That's a little bit different.

9:54 And the real cardinal sin was I think they could have, they ran the clock down to like 11 seconds. before they kicked their field goal. I think they could have ran it down to like six.

10:03 See, those are the kind of things you can't ever screw up. The Belichicks of the world always did those things.

10:08 In hindsight, it's very easy to say, man, if we just did this differently, but that's the minutia. Those are the margins that decide games in the NFL on Sundays.

10:16 One more play.

10:16 That's it.

10:17 Right, exactly.

10:18 That game was the definition of one more play.

10:20 And we could have this conversation. It's come up a million times, but it was true in every, all so many games. It goes back to our average starting field position stuff. I'm harping on these kickers like little that can hit them from the parking lot. You're never out of it.

10:33 Never, never in a one in a, in a, in a three point or less game. You're never out of it.

10:38 One of my best friends who's extremely knowledgeable. The game, he could sit here and chat with us. I mean, He brings it up all the time. He's like, kicking's too good.

10:44 It's too good.

10:45 It's too good right now. The league has to make it harder on these guys somehow. I completely agree. Maybe they need to narrow the goalposts a little. I don't know.

10:52 Something.

10:52 Change the balls. I don't know, but they are too good.

10:55 They're way too good. Big shout-out to Cam Little, though. Did you see what he did at his post-game press conference?

11:00 No.

11:01 Rocked up in a Manchester United jersey. That's my guy right there. Cam Little got a new fan.

11:06 Glory, glory.

11:07 Man United. Matt, in what was maybe the most surprising result of the weekend, not necessarily because they won, but because of how they won. The Packers, 31. The Bears, 7. A rout at Lambeau Field. Christian Watson, Unreal Day. Jordan Love, Unreal Day.

11:22 Watson's playing like an all-pro.

11:23 Like an all-pro.

11:24 Yeah.

11:24 And I... You know, I think you you do this more than me. You stood by Trevor Lawrence even when a lot of people were selling their stock. You've stood by Drake May and CJ Stroud.

11:34 Oh, yeah.

11:34 People are selling their stock.

11:36 Both of them are back, by the way.

11:37 I think you and I all year had been banging the drum for how quietly good Jordan Love had been with absolutely no help around him.

11:45 Oh, yeah.

11:46 My goodness, was he outstanding. 25 of 31.

11:48 Talk about a big game hunter and chucking it.

11:51 Over 360 yards, multiple touchdowns. I think if you would have told me the Packers beat the Bears at home, that wouldn't have been a shocker. But in that fashion, that's a statement win for Green Bay, and they're not going anywhere anytime soon.

12:04 It's not fair to both these games to lump them together, but I think Patriots over Raiders and Packers over Bears are very, very similar, and it's the very short answer. The quarterbacks were awesome. Yeah. May was back to looking like an MVP. That's two weeks in a row. Love, you laid it out perfectly, was the best player on the field, throwing to the next best players on the field and tearing them up.

12:27 I've been so impressed with him this season.

12:28 Oh, man. He's very, very legit. Now, the Bears, without Caleb, have to play a certain way.

12:35 No doubt.

12:35 And they got down early. And all of a sudden, you can't run the ball and possess it for 40 minutes with backup quarterbacks. So they started playing left-handed right off the bat, and that was a problem for them. Raiders might have came back to earth a little. A little bit. I think that's who May is. I think that's who Love is.

12:52 Let's talk about that Patriots-Raiders game. And yeah, Matt, I think you and I both picked New England to win, but we thought the Raiders could keep it close.

12:59 I picked the Raiders to win. I was like, you're going to give me three and a half. I just didn't trust the Patriots. Their defense is playing great, and May is legit.

13:06 You would have needed 30 to cover on that one, Matt, as the Patriots 45-17 roll over the Raiders.

13:13 I don't have much more to add to it, but he's doing that without much in terms of weapons around him. Williams, the left tackle, got hurt. Lomu came in and played well. He had a ton of time to throw. I don't know if New England's back to being a real contender, but the quarterback is.

13:30 And, yeah, reports of their early season demise greatly exaggerated. Yeah.

13:35 Rabel knows how to win this league, too.

13:37 Folks, that's why you can't start making ultimate judgments until week five, week six, around this time.

13:43 I mean, it seems like the Chargers, we can.

13:44 Yes, no doubt.

13:46 The Texans, I'm not sure we can.

13:47 The Titans, we definitely can.

13:49 They're really hideous.

13:50 The Texans get off the mat, and they get a much-needed win, also in convincing fashion, 26-3 in Music City.

13:58 Should we talk about Harrison here? Sure. I mean, I can't remember a trade where we didn't know where he was going.

14:03 That was weird.

14:05 Why do we have to be a secret for a day?

14:07 No clue. That was very weird. And it's almost like the Adam Schefters and the Rappaports and the people that are reporting that stuff, you know they know the details. Yeah, yeah.

14:14 And it kind of leaked out that we think the Texans are the leader in the clubhouse. There were talks, but.

14:19 Anyway. I don't know.

14:20 I don't think we have to break the game down much.

14:22 That one would be like, I'm hearing the Williamson's are pregnant, but it'll be confirmed tomorrow with a pregnancy test. Like, what do you mean?

14:30 What do you mean? You're either pregnant or you're not.

14:32 You're either making a trade.

14:33 Or you're not. Unless there was a stipulation that if we don't beat the Texans, we're not sending you the second round pick.

14:40 Maybe Houston was like, if we're 0-5, we're not making a deal.

14:43 We think we're going to win. We like our chances.

14:45 Now that's a good point by you. Maybe. But then again, couldn't Adam Schefter put that in? Hey, there's parameters of a deal with Houston. They're waiting until Monday or Sunday night to finalize.

14:54 Or maybe the conversation was, if we lose this game, we'll give you the 2,028 seconds like the Steelers and Eagles got. And if we win the game, you can have this year's. Okay. Whatever.

15:07 Whatever. But the Texans needed that one and they got it. And now they're getting some help on the way.

15:11 I just want to talk about the Texans a little bit. I don't think, well, first off, I'm the Cardinals and an 0-4 team offers me a second round pick for Marvin Harrison.

15:19 Great. All day.

15:20 All day. I'm not going to resign him. He's probably fourth in the pecking order of our skill guys. Wilson's well ahead of him at this point. McBride and Love are way ahead of him. So, bye. I also think they never treated him properly. I mean, I think he's had a really weird, I'm not defending him, but I think he's had a really weird football life. He grew up as Marvin Harrison's kid with money. and a ton of ability, and then you go to Ohio State, and it's easy, and then you tell me.

15:48 You've got all the best facilities at every thing. At Ohio State, you ask them to jump. They say, how high? What can we do for you to make you better? We've got all the money in the world. You need this. You need that. You need this trainer, that trainer, this extra machine. We got you. And it was probably like that for him growing.

16:00 Up, too.

16:01 I'm sure.

16:01 Not his fault. He wasn't the lower-class kid who had to go to the playground.

16:07 Antonio Brown, homeless for a while.

16:08 Had to go to the playground to do pull-ups or whatever.

16:11 Marvin Harrison, Jr.

16:12 Yes. You know, probably had all the state of the art equipment in his basement.

16:15 Right.

16:16 And then he tells the league, I don't want to run a 40. Okay. We'll still make you the fourth pick in the draft. It doesn't matter. Then he kind of goes to the worst organizational league and they're like, we think you're an on the ball X cause you're big. That's never what he was. And that's why I think he's got a chance to never live up to a top five hype or daddy or any of that stuff.

16:36 But Nico is going to be the on the ball X like nobody's business. Knoll is going to be the move around slot, smaller guy. And Harrison can be a Z that they put in motion and don't have to like beat one-on-one coverage all the time. I think it's gonna be really good for him. Stroud has played so much better than people realize.

16:56 I completely agree.

16:57 He is an easy sign at this point.

16:59 He's an easy, give him the.

17:00 Yes, they just can't run the ball. They haven't run the ball for five years. And I think they're just like.

17:05 And their defense wasn't, it took, they got, they took a little while to get going.

17:09 Absolutely. And I think the head coach is like, all right, I'm taking over the defense. I know how good that can be. Stroud. We're not even running anymore. I'm going to get you another weapon. I'm gonna get your buddy from Ohio state and we're going to chuck it all over the field. And frankly, we may all lose our jobs since we're 0-4, so giving up the pick doesn't break my heart, even though it's an overpay. We're all in.

17:30 Yes.

17:31 And then you win.

17:32 They won comfortably. They get the Z receiver to compliment their X and their Y.

17:37 And if Nico gets hurt, it's not the end of the world. He gets hurt a lot.

17:40 That's a good call. And so the Texans, certainly not out of the woods by any means, but they got the win that they desperately needed. The Titans fall to 0-5. And they could, they're really bad. They could be staring down that first over.

17:51 I'm starting to really worry about Cam Ward's future too.

17:54 I'm telling you. And again, Matt, this is just the sports romantic in me, but I know I mentioned this to you. I think it was last week. We're playing in the last ever game at Nissan stadium in early January. Yeah. I'm worried the crowd it's going to be 70% full and it's going to be 60% Steelers fans.

18:10 Oh yeah.

18:10 Like in that, It's a miserable environment. It's a miserable environment.

18:14 And you're the second pick in the draft, and you're like, should we take Jeremiah Smith or should we take Arch?

18:18 It's a fan base that hasn't had a lot to cheer about for a long time. It's a fan base that also cares a lot more about Saturday football in the SEC than they do Sunday football in the NFL.

18:25 It's not a patient organization. It's not a stalwart organization. It's a tough place to operate.

18:30 I know Nissan Stadium is not Lambeau Field, but it's going to go out with a real whimper, man. And the sports romantic in me, that's kind of sad.

18:38 What's Ward played? 21 games as an NFL player? layer he's had three head coaches already not great and probably on his fourth before long.

18:48 Not great i'm still not out on him but.

18:51 No but he looks terrible it looks he they look terrible everything's terrible.

18:55 They're seeing ghosts there in music city Matt, one thing that we did nail from this weekend was Bengals, Dolphins.

19:03 I thought Miami would play them tighter. I took the fins with the points.

19:06 Well, then you pushed.

19:07 Oh, yeah, we did push. Okay.

19:09 I think we both did because we said this will be a game that Cincinnati will never really be in danger of losing, but they've got a lot of injuries. Miami in that 90-degree weather is always tough. And you could see the Dolphins kind of backdoor and scoring some points at the end, and they do that. They have a 14-point fourth quarter to lose by seven, 31-24.

19:31 At this point, there aren't what kind of wins? Moral victories or whatever. They're not going to win it. They're not going to beat hardly anybody. But if you can hang around and be competitive until the end, that's a step one.

19:43 I don't think they're Titans bad.

19:44 No. Again, I've been laughing. The Dolphins should be 32 in these power ranks. I think it's the Titans.

19:50 I think it's the Titans. Maybe the Dolphins should be like 29-30, which isn't much better.

19:53 No.

19:54 They're probably the least talented team.

19:56 Yes.

19:56 I agree with you on that. But they're certainly playing much better than the Titans. And probably the Chargers at this point, too.

20:03 And the Chargers have nothing.

20:04 Matt, perhaps the most surprising 5-0 team is the Vikings. They go down to New Orleans.

20:09 I think they won nine in a row, I said, or ten in a row. I'm going back to last year.

20:12 It's really impressive.

20:13 Yeah.

20:14 I think Kevin O'Connell does not get enough credit when you talk about the kind of upper echelon of coaches in the NFL.

20:20 Any quarterback not named McCarthy has done really well there.

20:23 23-13, they scored ten unanswered fourth-quarter points to win by ten points. in New Orleans. The Saints now all of a sudden 1-4. What idiot picked them to win the division?

20:32 Yeah, Atlanta looks noticeably better than the Saints, as does Carolina, coming off a bye. Saints are in trouble. Some injuries hurt their case, too.

20:40 No doubt, but 1-4 is tough. They're 0-3 at home, and that's like, they always have such an advantage there. They're one of those few... let's be honest they're one of the few non-northern or midwest teams that actually has a really good home field advantage big time a lot of those southern markets it's just not the same culture the weather's nicer yeah they don't care as much about their football teams as we do because.

21:03 They're or their sec team they care.

21:05 Much more about their college football teams.

21:07 Lsu went down yes they did i bet matt's kids had some fun on saturday night field yep i was.

21:16 Telling you when you came in i was like if If they don't look back on that as one of their most favorite nights of their college experience, they didn't do Saturday night right.

21:23 By the looks of things, I think they did just fine.

21:26 Your son was on the field post game.

21:27 Wasn't he?

21:28 He was.

21:29 I love it. I'm still not 100% in on the Vikings, though.

21:33 Not as a Super Bowl contender.

21:35 I don't think they're one of the best five teams in the league.

21:37 No, I don't either.

21:37 When we do power ranks tomorrow. But you've got to respect what they've accomplished.

21:41 They strike me as the team that could knock off a San Francisco or Seattle or Rams if they got them on the right day and played well in the playoffs.

21:51 And they certainly could be hosting that game.

21:53 Absolutely.

21:53 They may win that division. That's a tough place to play, too. Kyler's starting to take a little step, too. Yeah, that's promising.

21:59 He looked much better. 24 of 30, 230 yards. I think he scrambled quite a bit, too. Didn't win the game, but he made the plays that he had.

22:06 Yeah, Jefferson was back.

22:08 Yes. The Jets, Matt, speaking of another dramatic conclusion, and the Browns kicking themselves.

22:13 This ended up being a lot better game than people realize. A lot of weather, too, though.

22:16 The weather was crazy. It was some of the weather we thought that we were going to get into kickoff in Pittsburgh that fortunately kind of died down right around kickoff. But the Jets, they beat the Browns 10 points in the fourth quarter to win 17-12. Would have really.

22:30 Liked to have seen the Ravens and Browns lose.

22:32 Right, dude.

22:34 Yeah, the Ravens won.

22:35 Thanks for nothing, Atlanta.

22:39 This was the game that was on red zone the least. It was going on during the Steeler game. I don't have a lot of nuggets from it, to be honest with you. I think Concepcion got hurt.

22:49 Oh, Mika Fitzpatrick blew Casey Concepcion up.

22:53 Which I saw some people, which I 100% agree with. Like, if that happens... In most eras, it's like, that's a great hit.

22:58 It was a great hit. I know Browns fans have PTSD because the Minka-Nick Chubb thing.

23:04 Yeah, yeah.

23:04 Which we could sit here and argue about all day if that was dirty or not. This was not dirty. This was a football play.

23:10 Blast him, right.

23:12 He destroyed a vulnerable receiver. That's been football for 100 years.

23:16 I'm not sure either one of these teams is a bottom feeder, but there's stuff to build on here. Again, I don't know a whole lot that happened even in this game.

23:23 What happened was another win for Eugene Cyril Smith III. Matt, what happened in Landover, Maryland was U-G-L-Y between the Commanders and the Giants. Looked like the Commanders were going to win this one comfortably. This can't happen.

23:37 This can't happen in high school or junior high.

23:39 Giants score 14 unanswered in the fourth quarter to tie it. Giants have an opportunity to win Cam Scadaboo fumbles. Commanders have an opportunity to win. Jaden Daniels is unaware of the situation.

23:52 Let's a clockwork on.

23:53 Let's a clockwork.

23:54 Instead of throwing the.

23:55 Ball away in easy field goal range, I think it would have been a 38, 39, 40 yard or something like that. It's 101. You're right. That can't happen.

24:04 It's nursery school stuff.

24:04 That can't happen in a high school football game.

24:06 No. That gets coaches fired in high school, let alone at this level. We go on and on about whose fault it is. It's everybody's fault.

24:14 Yeah.

24:14 How can... Not everyone be aware of this situation or ever allow it to happen.

24:18 And what's sad for that for him is I thought Jaden Daniels played really well.

24:22 That doesn't say. Just looking at the game, I thought Daniels made a huge difference.

24:27 He looked like that guy that we saw his rookie season for the first time in a long time.

24:31 It was good to see him and May and Love and some of these dudes, Stroud, that's like, oh, quarterback plays down. You're not really paying attention. Winston actually played a little bit better. He did.

24:41 Neighbors was unbelievable.

24:41 And I was going to say Neighbors and Likely.

24:43 Did you see the guy that kept showing them in the end zone? There was a Giants fan in the end zone that had this big banner that said, Love Thy Neighbors.

24:50 Yeah, I did see that.

24:51 They kept cutting to it every time he made a catch.

24:55 So, yeah, this game kind of epitomizes this division.

24:58 Yes, that's very well said.

25:00 This division frustrates me to no end. I thought there'd be two pretty darn good teams and two rising teams.

25:06 No, you try to lose it. No, you win the game.

25:08 Yeah, I don't think anybody's good in this division.

25:10 I don't either. It could be a last year NFC South. It could be an 8-9 team that ends up winning, or an 8-8-1 team that wins that division.

25:18 Yeah, and has to host Seattle in round one.

25:20 Good luck.

25:21 Yeah.

25:22 Man, both of those teams kicking themselves, but I think especially the Commanders for the way that that went.

25:27 Oh, because they should have at least been tried a easy field goal to win it. Yes.

25:32 Giants missed a field goal, then Scadaboo fumbled. I mean, just both of those teams. But at least they got a tie out of it. That was a comedy of errors there in overtime by both of those teams.

25:45 Like, I would bump both of those down in the power ranks.

25:47 Agreed. And the weather was not great. It was pouring down rain, but that doesn't excuse those mental mistakes.

25:52 No.

25:53 Matt, Chargers fall to 0-5 as they lose to the Broncos, score 13 unanswered points to come back and win 23-17. And it is officially late, early. Oh, it's over.

26:06 The bar is closed.

26:07 Closing time.

26:09 They were playing with a lot of backups. I mean, they're going to be trading Khalil Mack. My takeaway, though, wasn't Charger related. I'm not sure the Broncos are that good either. Like, as bad off as the Chargers are, I felt like Denver should have just destroyed them from the start. I'm not sure about the Knicks situation there.

26:27 I don't know that Denver is a contender that I thought there'd be. They're still having a hard time getting the ball to waddle consistently. I don't know what that plan's all about. They don't run the ball great. I don't know.

26:39 They have not looked like the team, them and the Texans, both. No, right. I'd say other than Buffalo, those two were the most popular, maybe Baltimore too, but most popular AFC picks and the Broncos and the Texans have not looked the part.

26:52 No. I'm not happy with my Broncos to win the West.

26:56 The good news for Denver, though, is they're 3-2.

26:58 Yeah, they can figure it out.

27:00 There's still a lot of football left. Houston.

27:02 I'm not sure about Nick.

27:04 I'm not sure. He has really struggled. Just 123 yards passing.

27:08 Against that team.

27:09 Matt, the Lions did Lion things. They put up a ton of points. They go down to Arizona and win pretty comfortably 45-21. I thought Arizona would keep it a little bit closer.

27:18 Me too.

27:18 But the Lions, man, they just.

27:20 Juggernaut on offense right now.

27:21 They can score anywhere.

27:22 Gibbs is putting up touchdowns left and right.

27:25 And 24 points in the second quarter.

27:27 Second quarter.

27:28 They had 24 points in a quarter.

27:29 Yes.

27:30 That's unbelievable.

27:31 That's unbelievable. Their offense is really, really humming. Maybe it's enough to overcome a bad defense. Big picture.

27:38 I don't know.

27:39 They should be in the market for trading for somebody.

27:40 I was going to say, in terms of Super Bowl window, I don't know if the Lions.

27:44 I don't either.

27:44 But I still think they could win that division. I still think they could.

27:47 Win that division.

27:48 Yeah.

27:48 Goff's playing really well, too.

27:51 Matt, a really good one in Seattle, another game where it felt like both of these teams had a lot of opportunities to win it nine times, Ferris Bueller?

28:00 Yeah.

28:01 Nine turnovers, but the 49ers end up pulling it out 32-29.

28:06 First time Purdy's been sacked or really pressured.

28:10 He did not look good.

28:11 No, neither quarterback I thought was comfortable all day. They both really relied on their No. 1 receiver. It was great to see Mike Evans. I mean, he hasn't really dropped off at all. I mean, he's an amazing story.

28:21 He really is.

28:22 And this is an off-season conversation, but he's one of the best receivers that ever lived. Not like, oh, he's a Hall of Famer. He might be the fifth best receiver. He's like in Larry Fitzgerald land in terms of career.

28:34 He is one of the more underrated players in NFL history.

28:37 NFL history. Smith and Jake was an utter superstar as well. They both relied on their number one receiver.

28:42 Unbelievable.

28:43 But Niners have more. They at least have Kittle and McCaffrey, and I thought their defense got off their darn old pretty well. Seattle's really lacking in weapons not named JSN.

28:53 Boy, are they.

28:53 But that was a battle.

28:55 They're another who could be hitting the trade market here.

28:57 Yeah, they should be in the market.

29:00 And then last but certainly not least, Matt, thanks a lot for nothing, Atlanta. That one goes to overtime last night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Ravens score, and then the Ravens intercept to a Tonga Viola. See, I'm pronouncing it right now, even way after the fact that we don't have to preview or talk about the Falcons anymore. Tunga Viola.

29:20 He was in such a brutal situation.

29:21 It's a brutal situation, but that's a brutal interception that he threw to Kyle Hamilton.

29:24 I don't know if he'll be in the league next year, let alone be in any kind of starting conversation.

29:29 The Ravens did a good job of bottling up Bijon.

29:32 Yeah, but both backs were fun to watch as always. London was great. First off, Venga moving to center. I can see why the Steelers loved him. I hate that the Ravens got him. I love Max, don't get me wrong, but we adored him on draft coverage and he's been every bit as good. Now he's going to go back to guard. Just wanted to throw that out there because of his name we brought up a lot. Unfortunately, he's in the wrong city. Um, panics though, there's so much better with him and he's so much fun to watch.

30:07 And I think he's can be a good quarterback, but he doesn't move well at all. He takes so many hits. He gets hurt all the time. He might've broken ribs again. I know, you know, like just when you're excited about him, it always seems, he seems to always pull the rug out from under you. And a lot of it's just cause he can't defend himself at this level.

30:27 It's a tough way to live.

30:28 Yeah.

30:28 And he wouldn't be the first one that we've seen along those lines in the NFL, but it is always a bummer when it feels like there's something there. You just can't stay on the field. The best ability is availability.

30:38 They reminded me on the broadcast last night, he ran in the four fours at his pro day. That sounds so made up because he doesn't move like, Oh, he's had a million knees injuries, even many before that.

30:51 Supposedly running on the water there in Seattle with the downhill. I don't know.

30:55 I mean, he's, He's less mobile than Rodgers. I mean, he really is. And he's an old school 80s Drew Bledsoe drop back and chuck it and get hit in the face. And that's so fun to watch. But you're going to get destroyed.

31:10 Destroyed.

31:12 Destroyed.

31:13 Maybe Washington has one of those fast tracks like Ohio State does that you always tell us about. That ends our Week 5 look around. That ends maybe the longest segment.

31:22 In Drive history. I say, was that the longest segment in Drive history?

31:24 Oh, buddy, we'll have two more. They'll be a little bit shorter, but we still have two more segments to go when we return. I shouldn't even say final thoughts on yesterday because we'll continue talking about it more tomorrow, but some additional thoughts on yesterday. We'll also get to some of your questions, comments, concerns, and reactions before we get out of here. Yuler and Williamson, it's The Drive, Steelers Nation Radio on the Steelers Audio Network.

31:47 And now a word from our sponsor, Bud Light. There's nothing better than the clean, crisp... There's nothing better than the clean, crisp. Uh, what if we just got out of here and grabbed some Bud Lights? But man, we're on air for four more hours.

32:03 I'll figure it out.

32:04 Sounds good to me. Anything for the clean, crisp taste of Bud Light.

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32:17 I used to have cable internet, but I'm a 100% kind of fan, so I switched to Verizon Fios. It's 100% fiber internet that's super reliable. So I streamed 100% of the NFL draft live with ultra low lag. And after what went down in the first round, still getting video calls from my best friend, rubbing it in that he called all the picks.

32:34 I told you they were building their own line. I win the bet.

32:37 Get 100% fiber internet with Verizon Fios, because when it comes to your team, it's 100% or nothing. Call 1-833-VERIZON to switch today.

32:44 Get that hot dog costume ready.

32:46 Bruh.

32:51 You're tuned to The Drive on your 24-7 home of the black and gold.

32:55 Steelers Nation Radio. down the homestretch here on the drive and we've got uh two shorter segments to round us out today after we had a beefy one here in hour number two to get us started you'll have that sometimes this time of year matt williamson hey get rolling let's uh let's hit on some questions comments concerns and reactions here uh adam says solid win yesterday fellas my question is should be we should we be concerned about our secondary and special teams feels like overall the arrow is pointing up for the steelers but some concern in those two regards I think that's a fair question.

33:49 It is a fair question. We also haven't mentioned Mike McCarthy's press conference yet. I mean, that just happened a few hours ago or an hour and a half ago.

33:57 That's true.

33:58 It's funny.

33:58 It's always a lot going on here on a Monday.

34:00 There is. So, yes, I think you should be concerned about both.

34:04 He did. One of the first things that he talked about today in his press conference, by the way, was that they needed to be better on special teams moving forward. We'll talk some more tomorrow. Let's talk more rookie class and let's talk more some Mike McCarthy specifics today.

34:16 And we have injuries to discuss and things like that, too. And obviously that'll influence what's going on. And Landon Roberts and a couple of little couple nuggets, you know, we'll get to. I am worried about the secondary just in terms of talent and experience and no Elliott at the moment. But I do think he can at least that's looming out there that he'll come back. I also am a Dean fan, and he'll come back.

34:44 Just getting those two back would be a big help.

34:46 Yeah, and the Colts and Tampa aren't the— we' ll get into the Bucs, but they're not the most daunting obstacles.

34:52 They're not the Cincinnati Bengals.

34:54 Right.

34:55 And Spears, Jennings, and Everett, I think, are gaining a lot of valuable experience. And I definitely think that there will be resources dedicated to the secondary and the offseason, whether that's a safety and a corner or who knows. But, yeah, I think Patrick Graham's doing a really good job with not the best ingredients right there. And that's not a position that's to the O-line level, but it's right behind in terms of communication and playing together goes a long way.

35:25 That's why I keep bringing up Elliott because I think he can be the quarterback on that side of the ball.

35:29 He's the point guard back there.

35:31 Yeah, the mind of it all. But I also, when he said that, or whoever this tweeter was.

35:35 Adam. Adam.

35:40 A lot of your guys on special teams are secondary members too. You know, like does this go hand in hand? I don't know. And frankly, I'm not going to break down their special teams woes. And I don't know enough about punt coverage and kickoff coverage to do it. I've never been trained or put the time into it. There's only so many hours in the day, but as we talked about Rob and it's to me more important now than it was five years ago, 10 years ago, it's one of my themes of the season, starting average field position and giving up, punt and kickoff i'm talking about field goals and things that'll work itself out it's more important now than ever it just really is with the rules and how good kickers are and how the game

36:20 is played if i'm giving you five yards closer to the goal line than i'm starting at the course of a game let alone the course of a season that's really hard.

36:31 Yes it needs to get better It definitely does.

36:33 You said McCarthy addressed that really early.

36:35 McCarthy, one of the first things he said in his press conference today was how special teams had to get better. We'll dig into that a little bit more tomorrow.

36:41 I do want to look into the yardage and stuff that you guys both brought up. It seems like a lot.

36:46 It was a lot.

36:46 Yeah.

36:48 Tim says, five Steelers games down. In all five games, the team that won the time of possession battle lost the game. What's your over-under on how long that streak can continue?

36:58 1.5 games anomaly over under 1.5 games until that streak ends. Now that's not, there are some indicators of wins and losses, explosive rate, et cetera, et cetera. Time possession. Isn't always one, you know, because if I score quick and I just put up a lot of points because I'm so explosive and Warren's busting 80 yard runs and things like that, I'm not going to possess the football, but I also just don't want my defense out there and extended stretch, you know? And Steelers overall have been okay with special teams.

37:31 I think they're still over 30 minutes. They were 28 yesterday.

37:35 28 yesterday. Ian says, gentlemen, happy Victory Monday. Lots of great stuff yesterday, but is the lack of pass rush concerning? I feel like it hasn't been effective, especially these past two weeks. Daniel Jones averaged 2.68 seconds time to pass.

37:49 A little concerning.

37:51 Yeah, we talked about that a little bit in the first hour of the show.

37:55 Yeah.

37:56 And again, you're nitpicking.

37:58 Right. But if you but it should be your bread and butter, it should.

38:01 Be your bread and butter. And it's Matt and I make this joke almost every offseason. It's like the birthright of Steeler Nation.

38:06 Yeah.

38:06 To be first or top three or four or five in the league in sacks.

38:10 Every year, putting quarterbacks on their back.

38:12 And and we know, as Matt said, nobody in the league, no offense in the league game plans around that more than they do for the Steelers. But you still got to be able to affect games.

38:22 It's kind of like some of the conversations we've had about some of these quarterbacks around the league. Are you worried about Drake May? Are you worried about Love? Blah, blah, blah, blah. And deep down, the answer is no. There's a couple stretch here that isn't going how I think they will. And there is a stretch right now. And I think when the 17-game regular season ends, we might look at these two or three games and be like, boy, that was kind of a down point for the Steeler pass rush.

38:46 But they still ended up. fourth in the league in sacks, and third in the league in pressure rate and all those type of things. Because I'm not worried. You know what I mean? Like, the secondary could go, the wide receiver position with one more injury or, you know, it could be like, I don't think the defensive front, unless they get crushed by injuries.

39:06 Of course. Especially getting Harmon back here in a couple weeks.

39:08 Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm not worried about that group. I think they're really good players that are overcoming some obstacles but should have better results.

39:18 Andre says, love the W. Offense had a good formula, physical and tight end focused. Side note that you guys will appreciate. I got spanked in fantasy. I scored 191. points this week, but my opponent had Drake may and the jets defense 60 plus points each.

39:36 Wow.

39:38 You can't kill yourself over that.

39:39 You can't.

39:39 You can fire your defensive coordinator. That's about all you can do.

39:42 I was up against Jameer Gibbs last week, and he had a million points. I ended up losing by five or six, unfortunately.

39:49 Everyone has one of those every year.

39:51 Unfortunately, it happens. Last one before we go to break. 300 Pounder tweets us. A wolf would have liked that name. Love this defensive line.

40:01 Nice.

40:03 I agree. I want them to be a little more disruptive.

40:05 People haven't been bragging about the defensive line as much.

40:07 I tell you what, though. Matt, it's the oldest football analysis in the book. We joke about it. But so much of winning and losing football still matters upon running the football yourself and stopping the opposition's run game.

40:20 That was the biggest theme of yesterday.

40:22 As great as these quarterbacks and wide receivers and defensive backs are, and as important as that is, without a doubt, in modern NFL, that was the theme yesterday. And while they didn't get after Daniel Jones and do some other things as much as we liked, they stopped the run at the point of attack, and that's job number one.

40:37 And I'm sure in the defensive team meetings, and I would sit in the back sometimes of Pitt and watch them, on the whiteboard, stop Taylor. Then big gap, big gap. Okay, now we've got to limit after the catch, and we've got to get after this, and then technique stuff. They accomplished job number one. Yep. And we said this on Friday.

40:57 If they accomplish that goal, they'll probably win. That's what they did.

41:01 They sure did. One more segment to go. We'll hit on a few more of these before we get out of here. On the other side, you'll learn Williamson. It's the drive Steelers nation radio on the Steelers audio network.

41:14 And now a word from our sponsor, Bud Light. There's nothing better than the clean crisp. There's nothing better than the clean crisp. Uh, what if we just got out of here and grab some Bud Lights? But man, we're on air for four more hours.

41:29 I'll figure it out.

41:30 Sounds good to me. Anything for the clean, crisp taste of Bud Light.

41:35 Stock up now. Bud Light.

41:37 Easy to drink, easy to enjoy. Enjoy responsibly. Copyright 2026 Anheuser-Busch Bud Light Beer, St.

41:42 Louis, Missouri.

41:43 I used to have cable internet, but I'm a 100% kind of fan, so I switched to Verizon Fios. It's 100% fiber internet that's super reliable. So I streamed 100% of the NFL draft live with ultra low lag.

41:53 And after what went down in.

41:54 The first round, still getting video calls from my best friend, rubbing it in that he called all the picks.

42:00 I told you they were building their own line. I win the bet.

42:03 Get 100% fiber internet with Verizon Fios, because when it comes to your team, it's 100% or nothing. Call 1-833-VERIZON to switch today.

42:10 Get that hot dog costume ready.

42:12 Bruh. You're tuned to The Drive on your 24-7 home of the black and gold.

42:26 Steelers Nation Radio.

42:35 Down the homestretch here, Matt. And before we get to a Monday night thought to get us out of here, let's hit on a couple more of these questions, comments, concerns, and reactions. Matt says, great show as always. Let's say the Steelers draft in the 18 to 22 range.

42:49 Wow, talking draft after a win.

42:51 All right.

42:52 Would you give up that pick and a second? uh day pick for either cam ward or justin herbert or would you trade up for a qb in this year's draft or would you stay put and take a flyer on someone like norris sellers that's a loaded question.

43:04 There man man that's a loaded question i'll tell you this.

43:06 Right now i'm not giving up multiple picks for cam ward or justin herbert right now um i think they're two and they're two wildly different situations herbert maybe.

43:15 I'll give you anything you want for herbert still see.

43:17 I but i would be like if they're if they're trying to get rid of him i want him for pennies on the dollar you get what i'm saying.

43:22 Yeah because he is going to be 60 million a year whatever his contract is too but he's a rare player that has a rare resume already but like in a rough situation i'm not i wish i knew his personality better yeah because like coming out of oregon some people one of the knocks where he's not a killer um not that he's a bad guy at all but like People don't flock to him in the locker room.

43:45 These are just reports. Sure, sure. Like others. But I bet they do when they win and he gets this kind of.

43:50 Reputation when you lose. He said the same thing about Trevor Lawrence, too.

43:52 Right, exactly.

43:52 And he's having some success now.

43:54 Today in a bubble, not knowing how the rest of the season goes, I'll give you just about anything you want for Herbert. And reclimate him, have Aller learn behind him or whatever. That doesn't even change my life. Ward at this point, though, I'm not giving him my first round pick for Ward. And I love them coming out.

44:10 I just wonder if he's been ruined. And I don't think Tennessee would need much to move off of him, especially if they're picking first or second.

44:17 I think Matt knows that I've been a fan of Sellers for a long time.

44:20 Yeah, yeah, yeah.

44:21 I'll tell you this right now, other Matt, my co-host, is that if you tell me right now that they could get him in the 18 to 22 range, I might go ahead and do that.

44:31 I don't think Jerry knows we do video. If you're watching.

44:34 On video, old Jerry Dulac sneaking his head in here.

44:38 He probably thinks we're rude because I want to say, hey, what's up, man? Yeah.

44:40 Jerry, we're in the middle of a segment. I'm not talking during your backswing, Dulac, when you're out there on the golf course. I would probably trade the 21st pick for Sellers right now.

44:51 I'd have to study him a lot more, but he might be the most talented quarterback we talk about. I mean, just in terms of gifts. And the people I trust have all said, It's those around him. It's not him.

45:03 I'd love to see him on Texas or Ohio State. John says, looks like the Steelers might have found a dude in Gabe Rubio.

45:10 He's definitely part of my rookie conversation tomorrow. We're going to talk about him more tomorrow.

45:16 Annie says, happy Victory Monday. Feels like the Steelers chose to focus on successfully neutralizing Taylor versus pressuring Jones. Good choice, IMO. Hey, it worked out, Annie. Ideally, you'd like to see him do both, but... It's also, you got to pick your poison sometimes.

45:31 You got to remember, I mean, the game plan is a team effort of how do you win the game. And step one has to be all hands on deck to get a great running back on the ground, consistently not ripping you apart. He had one run that was like 20 yards, but other than that, I think they were all like four or under.

45:47 Yeah.

45:47 I mean, it was a consistent effort of, you know, and if you have to get off the ball slower on a wet turf and not rush the passer as much and play the run first, so be it, you know?

45:59 Chris says, I hate injuries, but are the football gods talking to the Steelers with Dowdle and Pittman going down and what we've seen from Warren and Bernard?

46:10 It's funny. You and I talked briefly about this as the week went on, but I spent a lot of time with Tom and the pregame show talking about, and this is going to lead to tomorrow's conversation, Spears, Jennings, Everett, and Bernard in terms of, I really got really positive as the two hours went on of the football gods might be opening the window for these young players to step up.

46:37 Yeah.

46:37 And they all stepped keys for tomorrow that they all are stepping up more than I expected. It's kind of, it's kind of exciting.

46:44 We'll dig into that plenty tomorrow, Matt. We got like 30 seconds tonight at SoFi stadium.

46:49 Yeah.

46:49 My favorite in the national football league. The Rams are three and a half point favorites over the bills.

46:54 I'm taking the Bills just because this is not science at all. I just think Josh Allen's due for one of those. Holy cow, he's the best player. It's been a couple weeks. It's a primetime game, rested with an extra day rest. It has nothing to do with anyone else in this game. I just think Josh Allen's going to remind us that, holy smokes, he put up 60 points in fantasy and had three touchdowns on the ground and three through the air kind of a performance.

47:18 The only thing, though, is Matt Stafford might be up to remind people who he is as well, too. I'm really looking forward to this one. I think with that number three and a half, I think I would take the points with Buffalo. Two and a half, I don't know. Three and a half, I think I'll take them. We'll talk about that tomorrow. We'll talk about the rookie class tomorrow.

47:32 We'll talk about a whole bunch. Mike McCarthy's press conference tomorrow. Still plenty to get into on what will be a very eventful week, but that will do it for us today. Thanks to Rob King for joining us in hour number one. Thanks to Mr. TV, Tyler V, intrepid video producer of The Drive. For Matt Williamson, I'm Wes Shuler. Take care, everybody.

47:50 We will talk to you tomorrow. As always, you know where to find us. It's on your 24-7 home of the black and gold. Steelers Nation Radio on the Steelers Audio Network.