What's Wright - NFL Week 7 Reaction: Chiefs & 49ers suffer first loss, Dak DEALING, Campbell gambles, Lamar letdown

0:03 Welcome in What's Driving the Grid episode 520. This episode of What's Driving the Grid is presented to you by Boost Mobile. Sorry for the slight delay today. There were a slight technical glitch on my end, but it is all taken care of. Demanze, how are you doing this morning?

0:21 I'm doing good. I'm doing good. Weird weekend, but how are you, Puffs?

0:26 Well, are you saying weird weekend because on my end? Because I'm not going to win $ 21 million?

0:30 Yeah. Your end, my end, division, all that stuff.

0:35 Oh, yeah. Listen, the Ravens, we'll get to the Ravens. They're a pretty good team. The two-thirds of the time, their quarterback plays. But when he doesn't, they can get beat. My team went from a game where if they won, they would be universally hailed as the best team in the league, but they lost. And so now, evidently, they're just total frauds. Just no good. We'll get into that.

1:01 And yes, I did go with the Jets in Survivor. So I am out. There are only a few hundred people left. I understood the risks when I did it. I... thought the path was best by doing that, and I thought the Cowboys, who were my second choice, had a real shot of losing last night. It was extra salt in the wound, the Cowboys dominating the way they did, given the Jets lost the exact way, of course, they would lose, which is Miami coming off a bye, hadn't quit on the coach yet, great opportunity for a win, one bad Geno turnover, and Jets can't get any stops.

1:46 So I was feeling... really down DeMondse. And I thought that, you know, the survivor loss plus the Chiefs getting crushed, I thought I probably had the worst weekend of anyone in sports media. And then I wake up this morning and I'm like, at least I know what percent means.

2:17 Way to walk us there.

2:19 I mean, oh my God. I mean, listen, I am, that is, just real quick, and if you don't know what I'm talking about, God bless you. I, you know how sometimes, I don't know if you guys ever did this, but like to fall asleep, you try, I used to try to like conceptualize like the universe and Because like your mind can't wrap itself around the idea of something never ending. Like you can't something that's truly endless. Your mind can't grasp the concept of something going on forever.

3:00 And just like thinking about that would help me, you know, kind of calm my mind down to fall asleep. That's how I feel about my mind can't comprehend the idea of not knowing. That percent means out of 100. And I can't. Dude, God bless you, man. But you're on there debating with Mina Kimes. She went to Yale, bro.

3:33 She's winning Jeopardy.

3:35 And you don't know that if something happens 10% of the time, that means you're telling your producer, yeah, he has a 4% interception rate, but how can I explain that to the audience in a way they understand?

3:51 And your producer's like, I think they understand. Like, what do you mean?

3:57 It's like, well, what is that?

3:58 I can't. I can't. And here's the other thing. We're in sports.

4:03 Yeah.

4:04 Percentages are a huge part of the discourse. This guy shoots 55% from the field. This guy, this fourth down conversion, you go for it 92% of the time. I am flabbergasted.

4:21 Should that have got airs?

4:23 Well, that's the other thing. But he volunteered it. He came out and he was like, you guys won't believe what happened to me today. I am. So you know what? I made me this more. I was like, you know what? Losing out on a chance of 21 million, not that bad. So is what it is. Let's get right to the show.

4:47 Straight to voicemail brought to you by Boost Mobile. brutal week for the Thunder. J-Dub and Case and Wallace both likely done for the year. J-Dub almost assuredly, Case and Wallace likely as well. The Valkyries take a 3-2 lead in the WNBA Finals. Game 6 is going to be played literally at 1230 in the afternoon on the Sci-Fi Network.

5:11 That's a true story. It's not only going to be on the sci-fi network, but it is going to be on at 1230 in the afternoon. WNBA leadership continues to just bathe themselves in glory.

5:24 Also.

5:25 I might have put a little jinx on Angel Reese after saying she was on the precipice of a championship and a finals MVP, back-to-back losses, back-to-back tough games. I expect Atlanta to win game six. I think the league assuredly wants them to win game six because if the Valkyries win the title, they're going to have to award it on the practice court. because they have to clear out the arena for the Hawks game that night, and it's going to be aired right after a Mystery Science Theater episode. I can't believe it. So hopefully we get a game seven, and it could be epic, but a couple straight really good games by the Valkyries and a couple tough games by the Dream and by Angel Reese, who have been so good, and Jalen Brown really leaning

6:15 into this beef with jason tatum saying there's no beef but there are lamb chops and some gravy i don't love it i i i personally don't think jason did anything wrong here maybe i'm wrong.

6:29 Go ahead yeah i think uh jaylen brown was responding to the whole the rant that jason tatum went on about not knowing that he was getting traded i think that jason tatum should have came out and said that hey man they did call me that was one of my favorite conversations ever And it had nothing to do with you getting traded. It was just the vibes for whatever reason that day.

6:47 They were just great. I think that he owed him no explanation.

6:52 I'm just saying, like, the way you came out and said that, you know, this is my favorite season. And what was the, you know, what was the factor there? Your running mate was not playing. I just think that Jason Tatum owed no explanation. And Jalen Brown has made it extremely messy at this point.

7:07 Well, yeah, I don't know. I mean, Jalen, I think is going to, I think Jalen's going to lean into this storyline and I don't necessarily listen. He feels done wrong by Boston and he has every right. If he wants to feel that way, he feels like, well, so that's the, so that's my issue. My issue is I feel like his beef should be with the Celtics if they're.

7:33 And again, I don't even, I think the Celtics made a bad trade. But I don't blame them for deciding we want to trade Jalen Brown. They had flirted with trading Jalen Brown multiple times over the years. But that, to me, beef is with the organization. If Jalen Brown feels like Jason Tatum forced their hand into trading him, that's not what I believe is the case. And I just feel like it's misplaced frustration. And I personally, maybe I'm biased here, I think Tatum has more of a reason to be a little upset with the public comments from Jalen than Jalen has with public comments about Tatum.

8:13 Jason Tatum kept it cool. He kept it cool.

8:15 That's how it feels to me. But listen, little NBA drama is never bad. Two of the Eastern Conference contenders, that's fine. All right. Week seven in the NFL. Let's go to Sunday night football and an absolute beatdown.

8:31 So you kind of had this loss circled on the calendar, but probably didn't think it would have been this bad. They held Mahomes down and they definitely held Kenneth Walker down. And they honestly might have held the Chiefs to the lowest amount of points that Patrick Mahomes ever had in his career.

8:44 How are you feeling after this one?

8:46 Listen, this is a game Kansas City, I said all week, it's a game Kansas City was supposed to lose. Now I did have the Chiefs plus two and a half as part of Nick's picks. But we explained that that's just Mahomes as an underdog was 13-1-1 against the spread. It was an auto fire. But there were a lot of reasons to believe the Chiefs would lose that game and a lot of ways they could have lost the game that would not have been concerning. Getting annihilated like that, losing 20-3, and it wasn't actually that close. because the darn old pick in the end zone right before halftime allowed the Chiefs to stay in it longer than they actually probably deserved to, that's always concerning. There have been

9:39 five games in Patrick Mahomes' career where they got blown out. Five where they have lost by more than two scores. Two Super Bowls. And then two games in the middle of the 2021 season. So in the last five years. playoffs and regular season combined, the Chiefs have been blown out once. The Super Bowl against Philadelphia. That's it. They got blown out in the Super Bowl in... February of 2021, they got blown out in week five against the Titans in 2021. They got blown out in week seven against the Bills in 2021. They got blown out in the Super Bowl in February of... Gosh, so this is... In 25.

10:40 And they got blown out against Seattle Sunday night. So... Let's talk about how and why, what's fixable, what's not. Because that was an old school ass whooping. And Seattle looked like a different caliber of team. Now, before I even get into that, I do want to address what I said off the top. I think some of the reaction to this loss has been histrionic and ridiculous. I do not... Going into the game, I don't think a team should ever, unless they suffer catastrophic injury within the game, be in a position where if they win this game, they are clearly the best team in the NFL. And if they lose the game, they are clearly frauds or have major issues across the board. I think that is a little too reactionary. And some of the Chiefs fans

11:49 freaking out and panicking about this loss, I think is a touch too much. With that said, some red flags that we were seeing throughout the year that were exacerbated in this game that I think are worth discussing. The first one is obviously the wide receiver room. There were questions at wide receiver going into the season. You then lose Tyquan Thornton for the year with an ankle injury.

12:22 Rasheed Rice is out temporarily. And Xavier Worthy, after a couple positive steps in the right direction, took a bunch of steps back in this game. So it was a concern going into the year. One of your key components is out for the year. Another one of your key components in Worthy has been one of the least productive, high-volume receivers in the league. And you saw the very rare moment of Mahomes getting very upset on the field with him, which you just never see. And that is...

13:04 And then you have Rice, who is coming back. And I think will be back this week. So what does that mean for Kansas City? Probably got to trade for a receiver. The receivers that people are bringing up, I'm not, I, some are realistic, some are not. The one that I keep seeing people connect to the Chiefs to Monzae is Brian Thomas Jr. I also love the idea of that.

13:39 It would be stunning to me if the Jags help the Chiefs. The Jags are trying to win the AFC. The Jags are, some would consider right now, I think most people's power rankings in the AFC probably have the Bills 1, Chiefs 2, Jags 3, or Bills 1, Jags 2, Chiefs 3. It would be very odd if the Jags help the Chiefs address their biggest issue. So while I like the idea of Brian Thomas Jr., I don't think he's realistic.

14:16 So non-continuing AFC or NFC?

14:20 Well, I think that is correct. So people have brought up, and I've brought up, George Pickens because the Cowboys are likely not re-signing him after this season. Because the Cowboys won last night and because they're the favorites in that division, because nobody actually believes in the Giants, it would appear, I don't think George Pickens is actually going to be available.

14:48 So then you go, so I think those guys you can almost cross off. I brought up yesterday, and to me it's worth a phone call to inquire about, Garrett Wilson, who seems frustrated with the Jets. The Jets are obviously in a rebuild. They're a rookie receiver. who had a big play in his first game, then missed a bunch of games, and then came back last week and was good for them, and then was outstanding in the loss to the Dolphins, Omar Cooper Jr., they have him. Would they be willing to move off Garrett Wilson? If so...

15:39 That is the caliber of player I would trade a first round pick for. And probably a little bit more. Now the Jets just signed him to an extension. So is he actually available? And then after that, after those three names, Brian Thomas, George Pickens, who I don't think are available, and Garrett Wilson, who I think it's unlikely he's available, you then are talking about a totally different tier of player. You're talking about Jerry Judy. You're talking about Devon Vele. You're talking about Dontavion Wicks. Those types of guys. You're talking about Stefan Diggs. that level of player.

16:31 And while they would help, I don't know that those are life changers or world changers for the Chiefs.

16:39 Change the vibes.

16:41 Yeah, maybe. And maybe Mahomes just needs someone that can, you know, get open against man coverage. And again, this was... This looked worse than it actually was because Rice wasn't there and because of the team you were playing. But they obviously need one additional receiver. We thought going into the year it was going to be Tyree Kill. Tyree Kill because of his never-ending off-field alleged criminal acts, and I only call them alleged because I think I almost have to, but It's pretty clear Tyreek Hill off the field is a menace, to say the least. I think people are worried that if a team signs him, he snap gets suspended. So he might be off the board.

17:35 So they need to address it. They have time, but they need to address it. That is something that can't be addressed in-house. The other stuff... Well, one other thing that we need to... Maybe it's addressed in-house and maybe it's a problem this year like it was last year. Are they going to be able to get a pass rush?

18:00 They had four sacks in week one against Denver. They had four sacks mostly in garbage time against the Chargers. They have zero sacks in their other four games. And Sam Darnold had all the time in the world on third and long 3rd and 7, 3rd and 9, 3rd and 10 on Sunday night to carve up what is an excellent chief secondary because no one could get home. Now, the hope there is that your two young top 40 defensive linemen, R. Mason Thomas and Peter Woods, as rookies, that they continue to ascend throughout the year. Your hope also is your aging future Hall of Famer Chris Jones starts to have more of an impact later in the year.

18:56 But I don't think there is help on the way for the D-line. I think that they are going to have to manufacture pressure via Spag's Blitzes, and they're going to have to hope the young players improve, and their $ 40 million a year D-tackle Chris Jones plays better. So that's going to have to be done in-house. And then...

19:19 The offensive line is what it is. You happen to be in this game without Jalen Moore because he had a concussion. You've been without your starting left tackle all year, and you're playing this Seahawks front, so it's going to look ugly. But Jalen Moore will be back, and then we'll see on Josh Simmons. So do you want to get into that, and then we'll talk more about the game.

19:47 Oh word out there is uh he's been coming into team meetings or not coming to team meetings but causing problems at team meetings what's what's going on.

19:55 There so this is so listen here is the josh simmons timeline best as i understand it he had an issue with his back pop up in august it seemed like the team thought it was a very short-term issue. That's why they didn't put him on IR. It was, for Josh, a longer-term issue. I think it is absolutely fair to say that caused some major frustration within the team.

20:33 Because if they thought he was going to be out a month, they would have put him on IR because They did not, and then he was out a month. Andy, as he always does, publicly supported him, said he's dealing with a bulging disc in his back. He's working to get back. Going into the Chiefs' first game after the bye, the Chargers game, for the first time all year, Josh Simmons practiced. It was in a limited capacity. He was ramping up, was the idea. And he wasn't going to play that Chargers game, but they were hoping, I think, that he was going to be ready to play in the Seattle game. Then, on Wednesday of the Seattle, last Wednesday, in the team meeting before practice, he had his feet up on the desk, and the fact that this got

21:31 leaked means... I think this is a shot across the bow from the Chiefs to Josh and his camp. He had his feet up on the desk before the meeting. Andy told him not to. His response was, I need to because my back hurts. Patrick then evidently got quite upset, which is noteworthy. And Patrick and Andy kicked him out of the team meeting. He then went home, and then after that, the Chiefs put him on IR, which means we'll see in a month, get that back better. This has been a confusing and ugly situation for a player that I called going into the year, DeMondsey, the second most important player on the team.

22:30 Problem after problem after problem.

22:35 He fell in the draft because of concerns about health. He then was healthy last year, but then left the team for three weeks somewhat mysteriously. They protected him on it. He then came back, played great when he was out there, then got very unlucky, got his wrist broken by a teammate trying to chip block, help him, hit him in the wrist. I think it was Kareem Hunt. That's just unlucky.

22:58 That's not on him. and then this mysterious back issue that has not healed the way they had hoped, and he clearly has not conducted himself the way they would have hoped. I am, and Khalil Benson, an undrafted free agent, has stepped in for him and been better than you would expect an undrafted free agent left tackle to be, but by every metric has been one of the worst pass-blocking left tackles in the league. It has been a huge deficit for the team that they have been overcoming.

23:32 And now he's out a month, and we'll see. My guess would be, if he does not, when he's off IR after Week 11, come back and play, that his time with Kansas City could just be a waste. I'm not writing him off yet, and his talent. Is so undeniable at such an important position, but that is ugly. Now, I'm also not, in that regard, going to make excuses. When Jalen Moore comes back, the Chiefs will be in a situation where they have a good left guard, a great center, a very good right guard, a fine right tackle. and a left tackle that they got to work around. That happens. That's the NFL. That's not a reason for a season to not go the way you wanted it to go, but it is a huge loss because they were relying on it. So they're

24:37 not going to address the offensive line via the trade market like, Jalen Moore will be back from concussion, and then we'll see. So there is the situation of the team. I still feel like they're the best team ever. top to bottom in the AFC. I think that even though the Bills right now have a better offense, the Bills' defense is so much worse than Kansas City's, and I don't trust Jacksonville or Denver more than I trust the Chiefs.

25:04 The Bengals are an interesting one that we got to keep our eye on. So I think the panic is overrated. And I think the revisionist history on how Patrick had been playing prior to this game has been ludicrous and embarrassing. Patrick, prior to the Seahawks game, was having, by any metric, an outstanding season. Fresh off an ACL tear with a, let's call it, beleaguered receiver room. He was averaging 270 yards per game. had 10 touchdowns, three turnovers, a 103 rating, more than eight yards per attempt, completing 67% of his passes.

25:52 He then had one of, if not the worst game of his career against Seattle, and everybody is trying to recreate the season he'd been having up to this point. That's ridiculous. And then, so I am not, Panicked about Kansas city. I'm not even that worried about Kansas city, but I do think if they're going to win the super bowl, they need to add another weapon. We'll see if they do. Um, that's what I'm worried about. So that one I'm worried about, but And I took a little bit of a shot at him yesterday. They got aggregated.

26:37 I didn't expect it to, but it was a throwaway line. I said his kicking production has declined since his activism's increased. It's factually true. And folks wondering, Nick, would you have made that comment if you agreed with his activism? I don't know. Was it a bit of a cheap shot? Maybe. Do I find his activism and some of his non-football opinions to be repugnant? Sure, I do. We did a whole thing live from Trentage when he gave that first speech.

27:16 I don't even know if you were... It doesn't need to be wives. Right, when he did that whole thing. I've been on the record. About my feelings. That shouldn't be news to anybody. You swallowed and dealt with it. When he was one of the best kickers in the league. It's a little more annoying. When the guy is just missing all these kicks. It just flatly is. You can call me a hypocrite for it. I don't really give a shit. It's how I feel. But you can't cut it.

27:45 You just can't. You can't cut him. There's not high-quality kickers unemployed. There's only like 20 good kickers. You just hope he can get back to being one of them. Go ahead.

28:05 Do you think it would be worth it for me, after work, to go to a field with a.

28:10 Buddy and just have a little place kick and just practice kicks for 30 minutes a day and just try to hit field goals?

28:18 You can do that until you're like 50, I feel like.

28:22 Yeah, but I think you've missed the window. Am I killing you? No, I just think you need to have been doing it since you were like seven. Listen, that would be an interesting test.

28:37 I want to at least get some kicks up. Because you didn't.

28:40 Even play soccer is the thing.

28:43 I played peewee football for like two years.

28:47 As easy as you make it sound, There would be a lot of people doing that. You are a truly, I'm not just saying this for the audience. I mean, Demanze is a truly brilliant natural athlete. Yeah, but there are a lot of excellent natural athletes that are working. I'm not saying this applies to you. Working jobs they hate.

29:15 And if it was as simple as half hour a day in the field and I can go play in the NFL, I think they would have done it. And so, no, I don't. And especially because you don't have a background in soccer or in anything like that. So, no, I don't think you could do it. I am interested in what the test would look like. I think it would be a fun YouTube series. 100%. of having never kicked a field goal too. Can you consistently make 40 yarders or something? But point is this, I wouldn't cut Harrison Butker.

29:50 I just don't think you want to get on the hamster wheel of bringing in this kicker that just got caught. And so now his first kick with you, he knows if I miss, my career might be over. Like, what I do know about Butker is he's not going to be nervous. Like, in a big spot in the playoffs, if he misses, it's just going to be because he stinks, not because the moment got to him. And so, but it is a concern. Like, they are no longer automatic, you know, automatic for us. Once you get inside 50.

30:26 And so that is what is odd is in the preseason. I think he had a 69 yarder. And then in this game, he was short from 59, 58. So that, that I didn't love, but it just is what it is. Um, the, is it a dome or is it like retractable roof? I don't remember. What was that? Daniel, say it again. Um, Okay, that's what I thought. It's like some open air. Listen, that is a real concern, but I wouldn't cut it.

31:06 I just think you just roll with them at this point. There's not great kickers available. If they wanted to, this would be very aggressive and an interesting use of resources, and I don't think they would do it. If they wanted to trade... Like the Colts kicker, Spencer Schrader. No, like a team that's out of it. I would be open to that. But I'm not trying to get in the bringing in this kicker off waivers type of thing.

31:34 That I'm not into. Too long didn't read version is this. Then we'll move on to the other games. I think the Chiefs are absolutely fine. I think they get their tackle back. They get Rasheed Rice back. You're not playing the best defense in the entire NFL. The panic, it was so unbelievable. The Chiefs went into that Seahawks game, the number one offense in football from a yards perspective.

31:57 They have one game where admittedly, again, Chiefs fans aren't used to getting blown out. We hadn't been blown out in the regular season in five years. And the sky's falling. It was a bad game against a desperate Seattle team. I'm not panicked about it. But they're obviously not a... Yeah, well, that's the other thing. We thought we were talking about Kenneth Walker being motivated. Seattle's defense was pretty damn motivated to not let Kenneth Walker beat them. And good for them, man.

32:27 They had to have that game. I said all week they had to have that game. Now, with that said, DeMonte, I'll be singing a different tune come Monday if they lose to Denver. the Denver game is the pivot point of the season. If they beat Denver, they essentially lock the division before we get to Halloween, or I guess that's not accurate. That would be the day after Halloween. Um, and you, sorry, I don't know. It sounds like there's somebody on a motorcycle right outside here. I got to soundproof this room at some point. I got to do a better job. Um, I mean, I'm right off the street.

33:13 This is where we used to make Demanze sleep. So there's... Listen, that's just going to be there for a minute. My apologies. That is very annoying. I apologize to the listeners. Is that guy really going to keep doing that?

33:32 He's revving it. I don't know.

33:35 What is going on? Maybe he's done. Hopefully. Yeah. You beat Denver. You have the tiebreaker. You're 6-1. They're 5-3. They are de facto three games back. So that is in as strong a position as you can possibly be in. You lose to Denver. The tiebreaker is now neutral. You'll have split with them. And it'll probably come down to, assuming both Denver and Kansas City win their other divisional games, it'll come down to AFC record. It gets quite messy.

34:18 And you're going to be in a fight all season long to win the division. And so that is, to me, the real, like, next week is the biggest game of the year for Kansas City. You win it. And you are talking about fighting with the Bills, the Bengals, the Jags for the one seed, you know, path in the playoffs, all of it. You lose it, and you're talking about fighting with Denver all year long to win the division when you have a much, much more difficult schedule than them the rest of the way. That's the deal for Kansas City. That's where we're at. We will now get to the rest of... the NFL, including the curious case once again of Lamar Jackson and his injuries. However, before we do that, let me talk to you guys about

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36:35 Let's go to the NFC East.

36:37 The Cowboys got into a shootout last night with Tanner McKee and the Eagles. Ran it all over them, threw it all over them. But it was a shootout and it was kind of close until they pulled away late there.

36:49 The Cowboys real or is this a problem being that Tanner McKee was in the game?

36:56 I mean, the Cowboys are going to be in the race for the division all year. I think that it's pretty clear that division now... Philly is just dead. I thought Philly might have a glimpse of life. I thought Philly, you know what, let me talk about Philly first for a second, Demonte. One of the more disappointing units this season, the Texans defense is getting all the headlines of a defense we thought was going to be great. that has flatly not been. The Eagles defense is right alongside them as what the hell is going on. The Eagles defense is not missing Jalen Hurts. The Eagles defense, it did not have a future Hall of Fame lineman retire and then trade another one. The Eagles defense is I thought

38:02 was going to be potentially the best defense in the entire NFL. And they haven't played one excellent game this year. Not one. And so that is wildly disappointing. And seeing the Cowboys, who haven't been able to run the ball on anyone, run for 204 last night on them is outrageous. So that's why, like Tanner McKee was actually fine yesterday.

38:35 The Eagles' offense was not great because you are playing Dallas, who has a bad defense, but the Eagles' offense was fine. They were not the issue. The issue was the Eagles' defense looked like some of the worst defenses that we've seen play the Cowboys. And that just can't happen. So that's why I think Philly is finished. They've now lost five straight. It took a Jalen Hurts last-second comeback against the Titans for them not to right now be one of the very worst teams in the league. I think they're finished, and I think there were scenarios, Domonze, where Sirianni would survive a terrible season. I don't know that there are scenarios where he survives... a 7, 8, 9 game losing streak.

39:33 Well, you were saying that the defense didn't lose Jalen Hurts, but they kind of do, right? He's on their team. Do you think that there's a little bit of a Jalen Hurts is done, season's over?

39:45 That's what it seemed like. It seemed like it sapped their spirit. But that's part of being a pro, man. Like part of being a pro is, you know, it'd be one thing. Sometimes you see this. You see this very often with teams with terrible quarterbacks. You would see it with the Browns the last few years. Defense plays great for three quarters. And then come the fourth quarter, once again, the offense goes three and out. Once again, they have to get a stop, stay in the game.

40:22 And they relent late. That, to me, is different. The Eagles' defense didn't show up from snap one yesterday. The Eagles' defense should have. Hey, we're going to get 21. Can you hold Dallas under that? And they put up no resistance. So I think the Eagles are dead. I think the Commanders are dead. The Giants have to be taken seriously.

40:58 By the way, the coaching brain trust that Lamar and the Ravens were done with. Todd Munkin has his team first in the AFC North, and John Harbaugh has his team first in the NFC East. Not great.

41:11 It's embarrassing.

41:12 It's embarrassing.

41:13 It's embarrassing at this point.

41:15 And so the Giants, I don't know what to make of, and I know we're not getting to the Cowboys, but it's an NFC East conversation, so I'll get to the Cowboys. I don't know what to make of J.J. McCarthy's first game. He looked excellent. If he is excellent, it is a career-altering catastrophe for a lot of people in Minnesota. Because right now, Minnesota, the only reason people don't believe in the only remaining undefeated team is because we're like, ah, Kyler's not playing well. The offense struggles to get to 17 points. And if you had J.J. McCarthy, who you moved on from Sam Darnold because you believed in him so much, and then this offseason you were like, just get him out of the building. Fifth round pick, don't care.

42:14 That's a catastrophe. Like a real catastrophe for Minnesota. And it's, by the way, while it's a catastrophe for Minnesota, if you are the GM of any of the following teams, I am also very nervous about JJ playing well and my owner calling me up and being like, so why weren't we in on that? If you're the GM of the Jets or the Browns or the Dolphins or the Cardinals or even the Steelers, any team that has no long-term quarterback in place, it's like if this guy was a first-round pick, anyone in the league could have had him.

43:01 And we didn't want him, but the real team would be bad for is obviously the Vikings. But on the Giants, that's a great win. Harbaugh benches Scadaboo, and then Scadaboo responds with the best game of his career. They now get the... They're on a bye, and then off a bye, they get the falling apart Eagles... And then the commanders that Thursday, like they legit could be 6-2-1.

43:34 You think they could have won last week if they would have just had J.J.

43:37 Out the whole time?

43:40 Well, I mean, it's interesting. Yeah, I mean, it's certainly interesting. And the offense this year, you know, it's last even without J.J. The offense after that Titans win. The last few weeks, 36 points, 27 points, 27 points, 27 points. The offense moving the ball. So the Giants are legit as far as an NFC East contender. And the Cowboys are an elite offense. that for a couple weeks there against the Bucks and the Eagles didn't look like an elite offense, but for the last few years has always looked like an elite offense when Dak's out there, and a defense that's really going to struggle. So I actually think Cowboys-Giants can be an interesting divisional race. I no longer think eight wins will win the division. You would

44:46 hope the Cowboys can build on some level of success. They haven't had back-to-back wins all year. Their next two games are the Cardinals and the Colts. And that Dax, Seedy, and Pickens can, you know, live up to their salaries and reputations and make Cowboys-Giants in Week 17 a game that's for the division. Like, that is... that that's where I'm at on Dallas. And then the one other thing that I want to mention, because we've talked about a bunch of these teams, I am ready. I don't know if you are to Monza. I am ready to officially write off. No, no, no, no. I don't care about them right now. The Texans.

45:35 Oh, geez.

45:36 Yeah. I mean, I'm just ready to write off the Texans. And that is like, That defense is not the same. That was an egregious loss. There has now been four games this year that all the defense needed was a stop at the end and they win the game and they couldn't get one. And I just think they're finished.

46:01 I think that the AFC South is the Jags and the Jags alone.

46:05 With D'Amico Ryans being a defensive coach, is that kind of like a.

46:10 It's a bad look. Yeah, I mean, now, this is his fourth year. His first three years, they made the playoffs and won a playoff game every year. So I think he has a bigger margin for error than that. But it is a bad look for him because it is his thing. All right, before we get to your Ravens, a little breaking news from Sham Sharania. Kawhi Leonard. is expected to miss a period of weeks due to swelling in his left knee, sources tell ESPN. MRI on Leonard's knee showed no structural damage, but sides will use the shorter term to ramp him up after the stoppages during the season. So during the off season, pardon me. Yeah, this is one of the reasons I did not quite understand so much of the optimism surrounding the Raptors this

47:06 offseason was there seemed to be far more like everyone when they were talking about the Sixers totally fairly was like yeah but Embiid's health and that was an absolutely fair concerning critique but the thing with the Sixers was even if they lose Embiid They have top 15, maybe top 10 player Tyrese Maxey, top 20 player Jalen Brown, wherever you slide LeBron in, and Vijay Edgecumbe. If the Raptors lose Kawhi... It's Scottie Barnes and co. And it's just not good enough. Listen, now you can be like, well, last year they had a good season without Kawhi. Yes, but they had Brandon Ingram there. They had some of those pieces. They traded away for Kawhi. And last year they were paper tigers anyway. And Kawhi is as big

48:09 of an injury risk as anyone in the league. And so, you know, it's a bummer, but it's not unexpected. But this also means, man, Eastern Conference, I think the Knicks will be fine. They're 0-3. They're going to be fine. But it's the Knicks and the Sixers and then everybody else. Just flatly. Cleveland has rallied after their catastrophic loss that they suffered in the Sixers home opener. And the Heat looks super shaky. You know, the Pacers are interesting as they continue. But it's the Knicks and the Sixers and then everybody else. All right, Demanze, we've waited long enough.

48:56 In fact, you know what? We're going to wait one more moment. I'm going to tell you guys about my friends at SeatGeek and this NFL season, which is off to an amazing start. A ton of great games coming up. NBA as well, by the way, which is why I want to give a shout out to the sponsor of today's video, SeatGeek. With over 35 million downloads, SeatGeek is the number one rated ticketing app. There are more than 70,000 events listed on SeatGeek, concerts, sports, festivals, and more.

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50:42 This game was like night and day. The beginning was looking very beautiful. Tyler Huntley was going to do a divisional. And the second half, they just came in and pulled out the belt. Jamar Chase, I guess, told the guys to take the game seriously, and they came out and destroyed us.

50:55 Yeah, it's just a rough look. It's our same problems.

51:01 So... Listen, the Ravens blow double-digit leads unlike any other team I've seen. That is what it is. And evidently, it's not a Harbaugh problem. I can't even say it's a Lamar problem because he hasn't been there the last two weeks.

51:15 It was the offense and the defense. Correct.

51:20 The defense just fell apart entirely. It absolutely fell apart entirely. 35 second-half points is, you know, that's 50% of the game. So that means they were on pace to allow 70. You know how I know that? Because 50% is half of 100. How much did they allow in a quarter? Because that's 25% of the game. Do you guys think those are correlated? That 25 cents is called a quarter because it's a quarter of a dollar? I got to think about it. I've got a niece who just started pre-K.

52:05 Maybe I should ask her class if they can crack that Rubik's Cube for me.

52:13 Dan Orlovsky, every year at the end of this one.

52:17 I hadn't even mentioned his name yet. The audience didn't know that's who I was talking about. No, I'm just kidding. That's DeMonday's beef now. Awful announcing. That's DeMonday's media beef. Not mine. I just want everyone to know it. I'm not a vet, you guys. I apologize. No, I'm just kidding. You're fine. I'm just kidding. Listen, he's a good guy.

52:38 Everybody loves him. And amazingly, that might not have been, I haven't followed this other piece of it, but that might not have been the most embarrassing moment on that show yesterday. But that's neither here nor there. Let's talk about the Ravens. yes, the defense fell apart at the end. And Derrick Henry has not looked quite as good without Lamar.

53:03 You know, give Derrick Henry a big, wide berth to believe he's going to, you know, get back to being Derrick Henry because he's Derrick Henry. And I, you know, my watch ended on doubting Derrick Henry a couple years ago. The Lamar injury stuff is bizarre and people have to not be afraid to talk about it. I said it on the show yesterday that it feels awkward and uncomfortable because I didn't play any sports at any high level past high school. And even in high school, I didn't play at a very high level. I wear makeup on television.

53:45 I'm not going like, I'm not in the business of questioning anyone's toughness. particularly NFL players. But I am in the business of saying what is on everyone's mind, which is why is Lamar the only player in the league whose injuries are a mystery to his own team? Why in 2021, when Lamar Jackson sprained his ankle, did the coach say, He might be back this week without missing a game. And then Lamar missed the remainder of the season.

54:28 And then after the year, the coach said, Lamar told me, I think I'll be back this week, if not definitely the next week, but then missed a month. And then the next year, when Lamar Jackson hurt his knee, did the coach say, The week he heard it come out and say, the good thing is it's not a season-ending type of knee. And then it ended Lamar's season. And then last year, when Lamar hurt his ankle... And they were coming out of the bye. And the coach said, was asked why he has optimism. They'll turn things around.

55:11 And he said, well, our quarterback will be back. And then the quarterback was not back. And then this year when Lamar hurt his ankle and the reporting is it was not a high ankle sprain. Again, maybe the reporting is wrong, but that's what the reporting was. And the team called him not week to week. They didn't do what, you know what happened when A.J. Brown got a high ankle sprain to Monza? They put him on IR. Out a month. Hopefully you're back after four weeks. No questions.

55:47 The Ravens didn't even rule Lamar out for the first game after the injury. They called him day to day. And then he missed the first game. Then he missed the second game. Then he practiced going into the third game. And then Tracy Wolfson, and then Lamar tells us it's a high ankle at the podium, says it's about a pain tolerance issue, but luckily he has until Sunday to see if it gets better. He told us that on Friday, but then Saturday he gets ruled out, and Sunday Tracy Wolfson reports it came as a shock to the Ravens.

56:26 It's bizarre. And I understand it is. An uncomfortable topic. But it is bizarre. And that is not me being a hater. That is not me being unfair. That is not me being a Mahomes guy. I got no problem with Lamar. The guy. None. I have no reason to have a problem with him. I've been critical of, I've been very critical of two things about Lamar Jackson, and I'm just stone right on both of them. One, he has been up to this point an unreliable, to say the least, playoff performer. Put that in a separate bucket.

57:12 Peyton Manning was the same way. It happens. And he is... It's not only that injury prone is now a fair label, but cloudy, bizarre communication or total lack of communication with the team about his own status. And here's the thing that's so crazy to Monze. In the last six years, two years, Lamar's been fully healthy. He's been the first team All-Pro quarterback both years. He won an MVP one of the years, could have won it the other year.

57:58 But that's in the last six. And in the other four, three of those years were full-on derailed by his injuries, all of which seemed to surprise the team, the seriousness of them. And then this year, we'll see. It's a really weird situation that nobody seems to be able to get their arms around. That's your guy. Do you think I'm being unfair? If you do, you can tell me.

58:30 Well, I would like to say like he needs to like, I don't know if it's he's saying it's a high uncle spring.

58:36 Sounds like there's conflicting reports.

58:38 I would say that he needs to play in this next game is like, where are we at at this point? But I can't say that he needs to play in it because it's not for sure. what it is exactly what's.

58:49 Going on with him. Um, I know AJ Brown is back. Uh, I mean, he obviously got hurt a couple of weeks after, but.

58:58 But I listen, every injury is different, but it is really weird. It is incredibly odd to suffer an injury that the team does not instantly rule you out for the next game on that ends up making you miss three games. And we're not sure about the fourth. And here's the other thing. Your guy's game this week is against Buffalo. It's a huge game. But then you play Thursday against Jacksonville. So I don't know if he's playing.

59:37 I know that I think it's fair to expect him to try to give it a go.

59:42 Yeah, I think he'll play.

59:46 I would hope so, but it seemed like they thought and the bookmakers thought and the team thought he was going to play this past week. I don't want to totally ignore, and we're short on time now, the winning team. But the Bengals are now officially in take them seriously category. Burrow has put up identical stats to the numbers he put up two years ago when he came in fourth in MVP voting, even though they missed the playoffs. If he is playing at that level, because the first few weeks of the year, Burrow was just mediocre. The last two weeks, he has eight touchdown passes, no turnovers. If Burrow's back to playing at that level, with their obviously improved defense, they are, for the first time in five years,

1:00:34 an actual AFC contender. And I will take Cincinnati seriously. Like, they have my attention. All right, let's talk Detroit and Green Bay.

1:00:47 So the Lions won a game without scoring 30, but the word is on the street that the Green Bay's kicker might have saved Dan Campbell going for it on fourth and one on their own 24-yard line.

1:00:58 Five minutes left. What did you think about this one?

1:01:01 So I want to talk about the decision because I think this is a very unique spot that my gut reaction was different once I actually thought about it. So I think Dan Campbell going for that fourth and one on his own 24 would have been the wrong decision. in almost every game situation except for the one he found himself in. And here's why. If the strength of your team is your offense, which the Lions obviously it is, there is a very unique period of an NFL game where a lot of your team normal decision-making changes dramatically.

1:02:00 And that, DeMondsey, is with between four to six minutes left. And with between four to six minutes left, if you are tied or trailing, what changes there is The worst thing you can do is give your opponent the ball and a long field ahead of them. Because it opens up the possibility that you never get the ball back in the hands of the strength of your team. So by going for that fourth and one on his own 25, the reason I support it, given, the personnel on the Lions, and given how they're built, and given the fact that the game was tied, the reason I support it is because if you get it, you have the opportunity to methodically go down the field and kick a game-winning field goal.

1:03:15 And if you don't get it, DeMondse, you guarantee you are getting the ball back. Because you can't run out five minutes, If you're Green Bay with only 25 yards of field, there's not enough first downs available to you. So I think going for that would have been outrageous with eight minutes left because with eight minutes left, you know, punt it away. Even if they drive the field, we are going to get the ball back. I think it would have been outrageous to go for it with two minutes left because if you don't get it, um, then Green Bay can all of a sudden run it down and you never get the ball back. They're already in field goal range. But with five minutes left, if you decide to punt there and Green Bay picks up three, four,

1:04:15 five first downs on a methodical drive that starts with them pinned back at their own 10, you just lose without ever getting the ball back. Now, Am I certain that's what was going through Dan Campbell's head? No. Do I think it's possible Dan Campbell's like, we're going for it because we're going to fucking get it? I believe in my guys. Probably. But it is, there have been, you know, back when the Chiefs were all offense, no defense, the only scenario I dreaded was the other team getting the ball with like four and a half minutes left.

1:04:56 And a long way to go. So I actually think that was a fine decision. Also, shout out to Detroit's defense for showing a little bit of metal. And shout out to Green Bay's defense for showing a little... Green Bay's defense, holding Detroit to 20 is pretty good. Like, I think both of these are good teams. I think the, you know, six best teams in the NFC... are the Niners Seahawks and the four NFC North teams. And one of those six by math, at least one of them, but I think it will just be exactly one won't make the playoffs. And if the Rams fight their way back into it, then two of those six won't make the playoffs because the South and the East is going to get a team. Um, but I think both of these teams are beat what I would call B list

1:05:47 conference contenders.

1:05:49 Um, Are you done with Green Bay?

1:05:52 No, that's what I'm saying. I think Green Bay is fine. I thought Green Bay, you know, had some drop passes, had some rough calls go against them. But I thought their defense, which had been good the previous three weeks, was good again. All right, let's quickly get to these other games. But first. Let me talk to you guys about my friends at Boost Mobile. You notice how everything keeps going up. Rents going up. Streaming services going up.

1:06:16 Favorite burrito spot suddenly thinks salsa should cost extra. It's outrageous. Not with Boost Mobile. With Boost Mobile, you and your phone bill don't have to play the will this go up soon game. Why? Because Boost Mobile has a limited talk, text, and data plan at a price that will never go up. In fact, the same price you pay for life. So switch now for unlimited wireless at a price that will never go up. Only at Boost Mobile. After 30 gigs, customers may experience lower speeds. Customers will pay $ 25 per month as long as they remain active on the Boost Unlimited plan. All right, let's talk about these other games quickly, Devonze.

1:06:50 The injuries have caught up to the Niners. They lost one to the Falcons. Kind of saw this one as a trap game spot for them. Do you think that their.

1:06:57 Super Bowl bubble has burst, or do you think they're still in it and they'll get back?

1:07:01 No. Listen, I think that they're, we'll see what health situation they're in by the end of the year. But this was a game that I said I thought they would lose. I thought that Atlanta plus two and a half was that, you know, it was one of my picks this week. Atlanta with Pennix, Atlanta's been pretty good.

1:07:20 Like just flatly. They're not a great team, but they've been pretty good. And the Niners were down so many guys in the receiving core that it wasn't shocking that Purdy all of a sudden came back down to earth a bit. And the Tampa Bay, by annihilating Carolina Demanze, got themselves right back in it. Go ahead.

1:07:43 They did that to Carolina with Baker throwing six for 67 yards.

1:07:47 I know it was crazy. It was a weird game. Uh, they had a two point, they had a blocked extra point that went for two on their own. They had great, you know, they were forcing turnovers. Bryce had a really, really tough game and the NFC South is just going to come like the NFC South right now. You have the three wind Panthers, the three wind Falcons, the two wind bucks and the saints who are probably one of the three worst teams in the league are a game out of first place. Like that division is just going to be a mess all year, but shout out to Baker for coming back. It's not like he looked great as you just mentioned, but the team annihilated Carolina and they kept their season alive. Um, all right. So we've

1:08:28 already talked a little bit about survivor. I picked the jets. I, I, I have only myself to blame. And from the very beginning of the game, I knew I was in trouble and it, you know, it is what it is. I don't want to talk about it anymore. I, the, I am now just going to be anti-sweating my picks the rest of the way to where to, I try to feel better about the circumstance. Like, so I'll just tell the audience now, had I stayed alive, my pick this week was going to be Cincinnati. And I had mapped it all out, and I will really torture myself now and see how I do, like if I would have survived.

1:09:12 If we live in a world where I picked the Cowboys, which were my second choice, and they are off the board, Cincinnati would have been this week. And then double pick weeks are coming up. We'll see if I had a path. And if I do, it'll hurt even more. But now I'm just hoping that a different loss comes in. But it is what it is. All right, let's do the quick hitters.

1:09:32 Chicago defeats New England 30-24 Thursday night.

1:09:36 Listen, this feels like it was a month ago. Caleb was brilliant. Like, the story of that game was Caleb. And... Drake May was pretty good. He made the one big mistake, but he was pretty good. But the story of that game was Caleb. What do you want to say to Monza? I can see something.

1:09:52 I think Caleb Williams is probably going to end up being the greatest quarterback ever, man.

1:09:56 Wow!

1:09:57 What a take late in the show. Greatest quarterback ever. I mean, he has the skill set.

1:10:05 Would you not say he's like Patrick Mahomes, but more mobile? He's more mobile.

1:10:12 He's definitely faster. He's definitely faster than Patrick. I think there are some things about Patrick that are unique to Patrick. But as far as Caleb's physical traits, I mean, this is why he was on Mahomes Mountain as a college sophomore. Listen, Caleb was unbelievable. And we'll talk more about the Bears on Thursday. All right, next game.

1:10:36 Minnesota over Indy 16-10.

1:10:40 Yeah, Vikings stay undefeated. The offense still has major questions. And it's so funny. If Minnesota were to trade for Kirk Cousins, I think I might pick them to win the NFC. Honestly, God. Like, if they just got solid quarterback play, I think Kyler's been really bad. Our resident Vikings fan. I don't know. Was that Paul that typed that in? That he just spit out his coffee. I'm telling you, I think I would. I think I would.

1:11:12 The defense is that good, and Cousins has actually been good this year. Next.

1:11:16 Same score. Pittsburgh defeats New Orleans 16-10.

1:11:18 Yeah, this wasn't kind of an ugly Paris game early Sunday morning. Steelers just finding ways to win. They're 5-2. The defense is good. Rodgers is doing just enough. He moves up to No. 3 on the career passing touchdown leaderboard. And the Steeler wins are bad for the Ravens. Yeah. And I think the Browns are going to come back down to earth. I'm not as sure the Steelers are. Really?

1:11:53 Not the other way?

1:11:54 Well. I just, I think the Steelers, because Rodgers is better than Deshaun, and so even though Rodgers is limited, he can still make some throws. And the AFC playoff picture, Demondsey, at this point, it's nine teams for eight spots. The nine teams are Jacksonville, which is basically locked, if you ask me, because the division they're in. So it's kind of eight teams for six spots because the AFC South is getting one of them. It's going to be Jacksonville.

1:12:26 So it's the following eight teams for six spots. Buffalo and New England, Kansas City and Denver, and all four AFC North teams. Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Baltimore. Cleveland is the one I am least confident in, but there's still one other team that has to fall off. Maybe it's New England.

1:12:47 Um.

1:12:48 But Baltimore needs Lamar back, and they need to start winning games. Next.

1:12:52 Rams defeat Vegas 35-21.

1:12:53 Yeah, they stabilize themselves. Vegas' defense has just been a catastrophe all year. The Rams, I said it. They have to go 4-0 going into their bye. They're a quarter of the way through, which, believe it or not, is 25%, which is 25 out of 100 times. They do it again. They'll be 50% of the way through. One more time, they'll be 75% of the way through. And if they complete it four for four, they will be 100% of the way through. And believe it or not, they can't be more than 100% of the way through because it is out of 100. Next.

1:13:30 It was a Denver over the Cardinals, 30-16.

1:13:35 This gets back to the thing that I've been annoyed with. With every player who's playing bad is not necessarily hurt. Folks were like, oh, Bo Nix's ankle isn't right. That's what's going on. Dude, I just watched him run for 70 yards. His ankle didn't all of a sudden get better. He just wasn't playing well. He played much better in this game. And now, Broncos game of the year, Chiefs game of the year, coming up Sunday in Denver.

1:14:00 Next.

1:14:01 Cleveland over Tennessee, 27-24. This was a game.

1:14:04 Listen, another game where Deshaun and the Cleveland offense is bad for three quarters, and then they're just great at the end. Like, I think he has five game-winning drives, and Cleveland's now 5-2, and the Titans, I mean, they were up 14-0, and it never mattered. All right, great job to Monze. Great thank you to Polymarket, to SeatGeek, to Boost. Thank you to Blue Duck and to the great folks at The Volume, and thank you to folks who have the confidence and self-assurance to volunteer on national television.

1:14:40 I didn't know what percentages meant. Talk to you guys on Thursday. See you on Cowherd in about an hour.

1:14:45 What's right.