NFL Week 13 Preview!!

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Yeah, I was going to say that's

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The Heed the Call Podcast

wishes you and your family a very happy Thanksgiving.

What?

I can't ever be sincere here?

F.

Oh, man.

Of course you can.

Yeah, happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

It's the Thanksgiving week full preview.

Heed the call.

Dan Hansis and Mark Sessler.

And yes, we previewed the actual Thanksgiving Day games

on our previous episode with Connor Orr.

But now we will dig into the rest of week 13

for football fans, for

family, for...

God and all three of his sons, Mark Sessler, Jesus, Marv, and Carl.

Well, yeah,

that is the, you're right.

You did some, you did some homework and you found out the name of the other two.

I want to do some homework.

This is the old, old, old New Testament.

It's like a deep, it's a deep cut.

I found it.

Yeah, a hidden book, a hidden book.

I want to do some homework because, you know, we gather before the show and, you know, discuss life and stuff.

And you've been on, you, you were, it's early in the morning when we tape this.

And I get it.

You know, in the morning, humans, especially Americans, we need our coffee.

And you were down here in the studio, but you were asking your beautiful significant other if she would bring you a cup of coffee.

And I wonder if we could just get an update on that or maybe hear the text.

Well, the problem.

Well, let's welcome in Money Mike Dugar and Jordan Rodrigue, of course, from the Athletic, who join us every Thursday.

And Jordan,

you know, because you are my direct connection here to the female existence, I thought you could help me send the text to my wife that wouldn't seem pushy or demeaning or kind of like it was expected.

And with your help, I came up with Emily, my dear colon.

I know you're probably already in the kitchen.

That was your move.

Ellipses, can you please bring me what I want?

M-dash, which is coffee, please, and thank you.

And that was sent now 11 minutes ago with nothing.

If I could do my mark impression, this is farcical in a hundred different ways.

Mike, teach me how to speak to

wives.

You're a newly.

It's fiction.

It's fiction.

Yeah, Dan.

I'm not off to a great start with my wife this morning.

I was woken up by being claimed that I did not change the baby before putting the baby to bed last night, and thus being the reason that the crib was filled with pee.

This was

false claim, by the way.

Yeah, that was only like an hour ago.

So, yeah, I'm not off to a good start either.

But I do have coffee, but I did have to make it myself.

Oof.

Okay.

All right.

A lot to to get into.

Very excited.

The NFL, Thanksgiving week.

Let's start where we always do.

No teams on by.

So let's keep moving.

Primetime games.

We'll start right here.

The Las Vegas Raiders.

This is Black Friday, remember.

The Las Vegas Raiders, number 32 in the Heed the Call Power Rankings, traveling to Arrowhead to face the number four Kansas City Chiefs, favored by 13.5 in this game.

And I guess the question I have, and Aiden O'Connell is starting for the Raiders, it looks like.

Garden Minshew is out for the year with

a broken collarbone, and Aiden O'Connell had a broken thumb, but it looks like he's trending toward playing as of this recording.

That shouldn't matter.

At Arrowhead, this should be a blowout, and yet the Chiefs don't blow out anybody.

In fact, Patrick Mahomes actually addressed that after the latest game in which the Chiefs were thought to be able to handily

destroy an opponent, and then it didn't work out the way against the Panthers, though they won.

Here's Pat after the game.

I mean, you always want to, you want to have some blowouts.

You want to be a little calmer in the fourth quarter.

But I've always said it can be a good thing as you get to the playoffs and later in the season.

Just knowing that you've been in those moments before.

Jordan, were you laughing at his voice?

It just surprised me.

Patrick Mahomes' voice.

It is.

We were waiting for the video to come in, and then the first part of it is a higher pitched that just sort of spooked me for a second.

I love Patrick Mahones' voice.

It's one of our great delights and joys in football.

But yeah, it's crazy, Dan.

They are on a 13-game win streak of one score games.

Their last, oh, he got the coffee.

Cheers.

Cheers.

Cheers.

La Hayam.

Go ahead.

Yeah, the Chiefs are on a 13-game win streak of one score games.

The last one score game they lost was actually actually in 2023 to the Raiders, which is wild.

And they're 8-0 in one possession games this year.

They keep finding these ways to win, and it's happening in strange fashion every week.

It's a backup kicker last week.

Now they're going to have a new kicker this week.

So, hey,

let's see what chaotic wonder lies in store for a weird Black Friday game.

The other thing is, it's not just one-score games.

After beating Carolina with the field goal, the walk-off field goal, they've won half their games this year on the final snap of the game, which is just unprecedented.

This is just unheard of.

And yet, you totally believe that they will.

But I do think this could be the one where they flex their muscles a little bit.

If you go back to week eight, and you know, Travis Kelsey has been up and down this year, but he had his second best game of the year against the Raiders.

He's productive against them.

And Patrick Mahomes, like, I think these divisional kind of nuggets matter.

His EPA against the Raiders over his career is at plus plus 158.5, which is better than any quarterback against any other team in the league over that period of time.

So they've got this team's number, and it's not hard to have the Raiders' number right now.

We've lost seven straight.

You know, you flip-flop between quarterbacks.

You finally had Gardner Minshew go out with the injury that we kind of believe the head coach was quietly thrilled about.

And here we go.

I don't know why this is, I don't know what they thought this Black Friday matchup was going to mean in late November.

I really don't.

But here we are, and it's not something that I am like.

The Raiders to me are the dullest football product on the earth at the moment.

And so it's, I struggle to figure out why I'll, whilst, my, my eyes will be glued to this.

How about this?

How about this, Mark?

Last Christmas, I believe, didn't the Raiders go to Arrowhead and beat the Chiefs?

That's why it probably will just come down to the fourth quarter again.

The Chiefs, the modern-day Chiefs,

are a team that almost guarantees a game that is going to be entertainment because they do not hit the accelerator until January.

And we all have to just get used to that.

And I don't, I'm not taking, I know some people, I see them slipping down power rankings, things like that.

They are doing the old Milton Burrel.

They're showing just enough and it's working.

So why change now?

They know what they're doing.

They're not like the 49ers who have burned themselves out and are a husk of them former selves from these playoff runs.

They know how to pace themselves.

And it's maddening, I understand.

That Milton Burrell joke could mean a lot of things.

By the way, Mark, you also were rooting for a gruesome quarterback injury that would end a season just a week too late on that one, I think.

So, bummer for you.

So sorry for you, Mark.

Yeah, sorry about that.

I'm rooting for it.

But I, again, I sense these things and they happen.

You're right about it a fortnight later.

How could one sense a quarterback being injured in the NFL?

This is Nastro Damas over here.

Nastra Damas over here now.

All right.

That's Alan Kirk.

By the way, Al's like, are you fing kidding me?

You're making me work on Friday after Thanksgiving?

I was going to be belly up at the steakhouse

all day.

And now you're dragging me

to goddamn Kansas City?

Al's not about it.

All right, let's move to Sunday night football.

And this is now, Money Mike, this is now starting to impact

the fan experience, the 49ers being a team that's been a bust this year, because on paper, this is thrilling.

This is beautiful.

This is the

San Francisco 49ers traveling to Orchard Park to face the Bills.

This is, or at least how the schedule makers saw it in September, a Super Bowl preview.

And yet, the number 17 49ers travel

to Western New York to face the number two Bills.

And We don't know the status of the quarterback right now with San Francisco, but they have injuries all over the field, and this feels like a potential buzzsaw for the Niners again, just like last week.

Do you agree?

Yeah, I think so.

The Niners, I think we talked about this last week.

Their whole run was kind of predicated on we have just better guys than you, you know, like blue chip, all-pro dudes.

And you flip on that game, you know, they had George Kittle.

I mean, they had McCaffrey actually had some of the blue chip dudes.

I think they were out, Bosa, Trent Williams,

and they just looked awful.

You know, in the macro, it's kind of interesting this year.

We're getting, you know, Tua and Brock Purdy are quarterbacks who put up a lot of numbers, but then they're kind of discredited a little bit because they're like playing with the Avengers on offense with wizardy, you know, play callers.

But you look at what's happened when their offenses haven't had them.

They look like they just literally cannot function.

You know, the Dolphins couldn't function without Tua.

And then who would they play?

Brandon Allen or something?

Like, he just looked like, oh my God, he looked awful.

The whole thing did.

But yeah, I'm worried about the Niners because also, even the dudes that are like their Avengers, so to speak, don't look like it you know McCaffrey doesn't look I watch McCaffrey a lot you know I know Jordan has too we can tell when dudes like him you know we've seen him a lot be him and he just doesn't look like that he just looks like a decent running back not like an otherworldly one which is what the niners need uh and we were talking about this before we recorded i don't know what's up with debo samuel like he just looks like he's going through the motions or something he doesn't look explosive uh doesn't touch the ball a lot either maybe that has to do with it but when those two aren't at the peak of their powers they're just they're not even just pedestrian like they can get beat the hell up like they did in green bay and i can't maybe someone else can but i can't think of a tougher road swing for a west coast team than like at green bay and at buffalo back to back like that is that that is brutal yeah here's a good tweet from uh ben solak on twitter um looking at christian mccaffrey's tracking data from next-gen stats he hasn't hit a top speed yet this season equal to his worst game from last season uh calf injury against against the commanders notwithstanding.

So yeah, he's not the same.

We were talking about it, how they got bullied last week, which was just strange to see.

The offensive line isn't open.

That was what made McCaffrey at his peak last year so

impossible.

Because not only did you have this incredible, versatile, talented back, he was going through big holes and he had a chance to get into open space and make guys miss, which he always does.

You're not seeing that.

Also, I'll add another player that we haven't really talked about, Jordan.

Fred Warner, who is one of the most talented defenders in the entire sport, came out like gangbusters.

I remember week one against the Jets.

He just tormented the Jets' offense, and that continued through September.

I think he hurt himself against New England, I believe, in week four.

And he has been a shell of himself as well.

And if you look at some of the pop the hood data around him, he has been a much less of an impact player.

So it's just like it's all the key areas of this team are just not in the right place.

And time, quite frankly, is running out.

Yeah,

the beat riders in

San Francisco, inclusive to our colleague Matt Barrows, who does great work, they're already talking about what kinds of things Kyle Shanahan might do next year, inclusive to a coordinator change on the defensive side.

sort of postulating that he's going to go after Jeff Ulbrich again.

They tried to previously and now may do that again.

They just seem like they're out of position a lot.

Injuries are, of course, a factor.

And then their front, I mean, even early in the season, you know that some of their guys up front, including like Leonard Floyd, are playing through injuries that they suffered like way earlier in the season that we kind of just forget about because so many other people get hurt afterward.

And the Bills just are already so tough, and they're rolling in the best way.

Josh Allen is starting to enter his magic months.

So he's 19 and 2 in the regular season in December and January since 2020.

So this this is, to Mike's point, this could not have, this could not be a worse two-game stretch to go to not be at full strength and to be depleted in the ways that the 49ers are.

And on the flip side, I want to give some credit.

We talk about Josh Allen.

We talk about the Bills and the offense and all of that.

But I think Sean McDermott is coaching his freaking ass off.

I think he has all year.

You really saw it before their buy, the way that they were mixing up different types of coverages.

And it was cool.

Bill Belichick had a nice breakdown of Sean McDermott and the way that he calls games.

He is in himself a tendency breaker.

The way that he mixes up man and zone coverage calls and the way that his players respond to that, it drives quarterbacks crazy because you can't predict what he's going to call.

And I just think that this dude's in his bag and had to be because their defense was the side of the ball other than their receivers group that was facing questions.

coming into the year after some injuries and some personnel that was missing for them or departed.

And I just think that if we're talking about, you know, coach of the year candidates and all of that, Sean McDermott should be up there in that conversation.

Now, he wouldn't be my pick right now, per se, but he should very much be in that conversation right now.

And I just think the Bills are going to just roll right over the 49ers.

I agree.

I think this is another boat race.

And I think this will,

I am not cashing out on the Niners.

I'm just not ready to do it.

But I believe this game will be seen as their rock bottom moment.

Yeah.

You know, Dan, I've been saying for a couple of weeks, and you guys know this, that like they're just, they have to wake up and they're right there.

They're ready to wake up.

We know this about them.

They always take, you know, or historically have recently taken their time and kind of gotten healthy and then started really becoming like this keg covered in knives rolling down a hill, right?

But they just haven't done that yet.

And the time to do it, in my opinion, was last week and to really make a statement, at least play Green Bay tight.

And they and they didn't.

You know, Brock Purdy is throwing lightly this week, but even with him back in the mix, he has not been playing well and neither have his receivers.

Teams Teams are playing more man coverage than ever against them because they don't respect their receiver.

So, this is a big problem.

There's a lot of changes, I think, coming this offseason.

They're like the NFC's Bengals.

Like, we're not willing to let go yet.

Yeah, but the Bengals, at least, like, are competitive and dangerous, and they lose these games in crushing manners, but they are very much a team that, like, oh, this makes sense that they're nearly winning these games.

The Niners right now look like you're poking them with a stick.

It's like, are you?

I don't think it's, I don't, I don't, I, I mean, if you diagnose what's happened to the Niners, they're, they're, they've lost all their key players at various points in the season.

Um, the thing that bothered me most about the Green Bay game, beyond Debo and like the lack of, you know, Trent Williams, it's like they, the penalties, they're just undisciplined.

And I think when you don't have your key guys in there, like the offensive line had a rash of pre-snap penalties.

There was a penalty that blew up a huge Debo kick return that would have changed that game.

And then they were completely gashed by a Matt LaFleur offense that they should understand how it works.

And so I, to me, I just like, I think they feel old to me.

I think the season is lost.

And you're right about the Matt Barrows situation.

It's like, it's already kind of like you're feeling about the offseason lingering, approaching, and that all the stories will come out about what the Niners plan to do to put this in the background because this is not a Shanahan type season.

The tropes are writing themselves the offseason.

Summer trope minicamp, Niners refreshed after lost 24.

Quotes will come out.

Christian McCaffrey, I was never healthy last year.

Like all that stuff.

And they'll be back.

I think they will be be back but this feels like maybe i'm not cashing out but it's i'm very close to being there personally and it's it sounds like you guys or mark you're ready to move on entirely and that's understandable last game on the island side of things the number 24 cleveland browns travel to mile high to face the number 10

and

just to be fair

and by the way my uh after my wife was nice enough to bring the coffee down she texted me don't use me for a bit.

I'll charge extra for that.

And then the emoji of someone painting their fingernails.

I don't know.

I love her.

What a queen.

Well, she doesn't listen to the show, so she won't know that we just did do that.

No, that's in fact, when she gave me that coffee, that's probably the most she's ever listened to the show.

That dialogue she caught in real time.

Anyway, yeah, the Broncos.

Kudos to the Broncos.

They're obviously ahead of schedule and all that stuff, as we've been talking about.

The fact that they're our number 10 team in in the power rankings of record really speaks to

the drop-off more, I think, in the NFL from the teams that are big-time teams to this big underbelly, but they're the best, I think, of the underbelly and trying to get out of that.

Personally, that's where I'm coming from.

I think they are in a very good place,

Money Mike, on Monday night against the Browns, who I try, I don't,

with the Browns, the modern Browns, I don't get caught up in these dramatic games that happen under the lights in Cleveland when all of a sudden in Cleveland, and mark all due respect, the snow's falling and there's a romance around the Browns.

What always happens after we all kind of fall for the Browns again and isn't this a great franchise and they're fans?

Then the next week they go on the road somewhere and get their asses kicked in and it's like, wait, what happened to the, when they were like a Disney movie?

Like this feels like Browns hangover game and the Broncos and Bone Nick's rolling.

Well, so here's the thing about sometimes the vision games just got to be thrown out the window.

They don't have much predictive power.

I feel like the AFC North is probably the best illustration of that.

Like those games are really just like, hey, man, this is particularly any given Sunday type of stuff.

Voodoo happens, weird things.

Jameis is now thrown into the AFC North, which just fumbles that all up.

So when Cleveland or any of these teams play in their division, I don't really use any of that to predict what will happen in the future.

You can apply some other game, other division games to that as well.

But I feel like that division, particularly when the weather gets cold, it's just smash-mouth old school football, and every other team is not playing that brand of ball.

You know, I think the last time you mentioned the Disney movie thing, last time people fell in love, or not fell in love, but were, oh, maybe the Browns got something.

I think it's when they beat the Ravens at the AFC North game.

And I think they got boat raced by the Chargers the very next week or something like that.

Like Jameis came back down to Earth.

So I do think history kind of repeating itself there where they kind of ride high

after a win in a division and then go to an AFC North team, or excuse me, AFC West team, and get beat up on.

I think there's a couple of key stats I was looking at when I watched the Broncos film.

God bless me.

That was not fun.

That was boring.

But

both teams really get after the quarterback.

Pressure rates are really high.

I think both teams are in the top three in pressure rate.

And you got Jameis.

Oh, you got Jameis.

He's due.

I feel like he's due.

Just like he was due.

I think in that Chargers game, he threw a bunch of picks.

I could see him just having a tough time.

The voodoo kind of wears off because he's not in the snow or he's not giving an amazing pregame speech or he's not playing in the AFC North.

So yeah,

I think, yeah, they turn into a pumpkin or whatever analogy you want to use just because I don't think you can't get too high on any AFC North game when trying to predict the future.

Mark, do you see where I'm coming from or am I off?

Or maybe it's more, I haven't checked the data, but it feels that that's how this usually plays out.

I don't think you're off, but this is a team that, look, they fluctuate.

They really do seem to not figure out.

They're not consistent, and that's, that makes them, you know, the predictive ability around them very tough.

But they have beaten the Ravens and Steelers in the past three weeks.

I think that matters.

I know it's division games, and you are right, Mike, about the AFC North.

Like, weird stuff goes down, but it's, you've got to have your act together to beat those two teams.

These are playoff teams.

And so the one thing that I see that's different with Jameison there, and you have Nick Chubb back, and it's not the Nick Chubb of old, but he's getting there week by week potentially, is that guys like Jerry Judy, who's now suddenly having a great season these guys their their year has changed with this quarterback in there and Jameis is a turnover worthy type quarterback there's a lot of plays that could have gone the other way but he's also kind of just fearless and I think that's been good for their wide receivers it's been good for David Njoku and that's the matter I think the other side of it is like when I watch Bo Nix and I agree that Raiders Broncos game was a snooze fest but Bo Nix made a couple of incredible throws in that game and Bo Nix is the real deal coached by a real deal coach coach and Sean Payton, like him or not.

And so it is going to be a big test for Cleveland's secondary, which has a lot of talent, but they've been very hot and cold.

I think playing in Denver, I mean, historically for Cleveland, playing in Denver has been a bit of a train wreck, but that's a tough place to go at night.

I do think this game will be very tight.

I don't think this is a wipeout for Cleveland.

I really think they battle them because I think guys like Miles Garrett, what I see is they're still fighting.

This isn't a team that gave up on their coach.

They've been through a lot.

They have battled.

I think Jameis, like the personality has changed the team a little bit.

The offense has opened up.

So I think it's a very fascinating game in the sense of like, how do these two teams battle each other?

How do they match up?

How does Kevin Stefanski handle this defense, this offense?

Like, I kind of can't wait to watch it.

Beyond the Browns part of this.

Well, no, am I wrong?

It's good.

It's a pretty incredible, like, it's a pretty incredibly strange matchup for this time of year.

Yeah, I really like it too, Mark.

And I would also say they didn't give up on each other.

I mean, I throw the coach out of it.

Like, they did not give up on each other.

Miles Garrett has made that very clear with how he plays.

Denzel Ward having quietly, like, one of the better seasons in the NFL.

He's first in pass breakups, and he allows quarterbacks to complete just 50% of their passes when he's the nearest defender per next gen.

So this is going to be fun too, Mark, to expand on your point as well.

Like, this is a cool foil game.

Like, you have this quarterback in Bonix who is extremely efficient.

He makes smart decisions.

He makes sound reads.

He does does not take a lot of negative plays.

He's with the head coach that they click.

They're working together very, very well.

And he can create out of structure where necessary as well.

But he's going to have to deal with Miles Garrett, who's just eating people alive right now and is very audibly focused on Defensive Player of the Year right now as well.

And you're also, again,

you're throwing to

risk with Denzel Ward.

On the other side, like you have Jameis, who for all of the speeches and the faith and all of that, like he does take a lot of risks.

And

the perfect foil for that is this Denver front that's playing very, very good.

And also, they've got a great defensive backfield led by Pat Sertain, who also should be in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation.

Who do you not want to take risks against?

Pat Sertain.

Like, it's just, it's a cool foil game for those reasons.

And it starts with these quarterbacks who play in very different ways and like sort of the counters that the defense provides against them.

I'm sorry, Mark.

This is going to be a bloodbath.

I promise you.

Circle back.

I know.

I like this.

Yeah, that sounds like a wager there.

Yeah, we might have to

figure out something.

Figure out something.

All right.

There you go.

Those are the island games.

When we get back, we will hit the games we cannot wait to watch.

You know, Dan, we had a softball team for years, and I touted myself as the manager, and it's because I couldn't see anything.

So it's like, who wants to put me at the plate?

So it's like time, it's like I'm an adult.

It's time to get glasses.

And I walked by Warby Parker here in LA and like got a great pair of glasses.

And I look up at trees now.

I can see the leaves.

I couldn't see anything before.

Warby Parker changed all that.

Mark, I get it.

And we would have loved to bat you clean up and had you at center field for that softball team.

Maybe if we find a time machine.

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All right, we're back.

All right, before we get into the games that we cannot wait to watch, a reminder that the NBA season is in full swing.

And Underdog has tons of fun ways to get off.

For fuck's sake.

Yeah, babe.

What's up?

The doctor told me there is a man outside who wants to speak to you about what happened.

A detective.

No, no.

Tell him.

Tell him I'm not able to.

I can't.

Terry, the police can help us.

What about the violence?

Don't even say it.

Don't you understand?

If they find out I'm here, if they find us, if they know how to get to me, baby, if that happens, we're already dead.

But the police are police, nothing.

They can't be trusted.

Everyone is in on the take.

What?

Excuse me.

Lisa, correct?

It's really important that we speak with you.

Gary isn't well.

He's not ready.

Ma'am, we're trying to help.

If you really want to help, get us out of this hospital before it's too late.

I don't understand.

Oh, you understand everything, detective.

Lisa, let's get out of here.

Where are you going?

Come back.

Call the lion.

And Underdog has tons of fun ways to get in on the action or

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audience

only.

That compelled me to sign up for Underdog's many services.

I am literally on the Underdog app right now.

Not even an ad.

I am.

I'm trying to put together my money mic pics for the week.

Lisa tried.

Lisa.

Terry.

Terry's alive.

I think that's a great start.

You know what?

As much as I'm flabbergasted by this continued intrusion of the show, There is something compelling to it all, and I am invested in Terry and Lisa's journey.

All right, let's get into it.

Jordan, get us going with the game of the week.

And this is an easy one.

It's the number three Philadelphia Eagles traveling to Baltimore to face the number five Ravens, laying three points a wood.

Let's get it.

I did get in the dock very early on this one.

I don't know how I'm going to possibly follow that ad read, but

this game is going to be awesome.

These are the things I love about this game in no particular order.

The showdown between top MVP candidates Lamar Jackson and Saquon Barkley, both of whom have fueled their teams to new heights with their best respective seasons so far.

Both, in my opinion, very deserving of the award.

We don't just get these two players, we also get the counterparts to their respective MVP campaigns.

Our king, Derrick Henry, the dynamic and powerful partner to Lamar Jackson and the Eagles offensive line, who set a record for yards created for Saquon before he even faced contact on Monday night when he set his career high.

A coach who leads with strategy, the ultra-collected and ageless John Harbaugh versus a coach who leads with the emotion he wears on his sleeve in Nick Siriani.

And when both are on, both work, just in different ways.

It's okay, Dan.

The way the Ravens called themselves out on their pass defense entering week 11, they allowed the second most pass plays of 20 yards or more in the NFL.

And Justin Herbert was among the most productive deep pass throwers despite his limited cast of receivers.

But the Ravens allowed no pass plays of 20 plus yards on Monday night.

And finally, and you know I have to say this, the way this Fangio

Eagles defense has come to life,

blending simple pressure looks with dynamic second act pressures that maximize their depth players, meaning they bait double teams on players like they know that Jalen Carter is going to occupy a ton of attention, and they bait the double team, and then the backside pressure wins.

Ah, smothering over routes again from simple pre-snap looks.

And that old bastard just keeps rolling all these years later.

Another game between two fierce dominant teams that starts in the the sunlight and journeys into the night in Baltimore.

Love it.

Cannot wait.

Beautiful.

Great setup.

I got balls.

I got big balls.

Love to see.

Great way to tag it.

Yes.

Excellent.

Excellent.

There's a little bit of a

the old unstoppable force meets the immovable object situation here.

And I know the Ravens have been a little bit more

hit or miss at times than the Eagles who have been dominant during the stretch.

But I just feel like

in this setting, Mark,

that the Ravens are going to do what they want on offense.

I don't see Fangio and the Eagles shutting them down in their building in primetime.

And if they do, I've already said I've come around on the Eagles.

I see them as one of the big four.

And if they take care of business here,

I cannot wait.

And you just cross your fingers that the Lions and Eagles stay healthy.

And when they meet again in the last week of January, because if they handle their business here, wow, that is a rubber stamp championship contender win.

Unlike the Niners-Bills matchup, I love where this is falling in the schedule because it's like the Eagles have rounded into this mighty, fierce power, and the Ravens are right there, too.

So it's kind of like two teams that want to bloody you on offense, and they can do it in different ways.

This kind of feels like an A.J.

Brown game to me, just based on the fact that, Jordan, you mentioned it, the Ravens have given up more explosive pass plays than any sets than any team in the league other than one.

And they're the most penalized team in the league.

So these are the weaknesses I see.

They're 29th in EPA against the pass.

And so you can move the ball on them in multiple ways.

And Saquon Barkley might be like, even if you're good against the run, I'm not sure that matters.

I just am not sure that matters.

And so I think the difference here, because I see two great offenses, is I think the Eagles' defense has made a big difference lately.

And you mentioned Jalen Carter.

He played 114 consecutive snaps between week 10 and

this past week.

And that's pretty unheard of for a player of his position.

I think he's just been this quiet, huge star for them.

And certain teams have found ways to slow down Lamar Jackson.

And when the Ravens lose, it's been to teams that know them well, like against the Browns.

And I wonder if Fongio and the Eagles can find a way to diagnose that.

It's an incredible matchup.

I really, I think that this sort of is probably going to help decide the MVP race, too.

It really might.

And it's these big games that happen in front of the national audience, the international audience.

So

it is the game of the week.

You got in the document early.

You made a nice pick there.

Thanks, Mark.

Yes, we'll watch it together.

And well, let's also, in fairness, deciding the MVP race.

Josh Allen's like, hey, what up, bro?

Well, that's fair because his game also will happen in front of a national audience.

But he's right.

Yeah.

Big game.

What do you think, Mike?

Yeah, I think Saquon and his MVP candidacy is a good reminder that we got to not focus on the definition of value sometimes when talking about it.

I get it.

It's in the definition of the award.

Saquon is not the most valuable player on the teams.

That is just not how football works.

It is almost always going to be your quarterback, but he definitely is their

identity, which is important because you look at the second half of the games, actually for both teams.

Both of these teams are at their best when their coordinator just kind of wakes up and realizes, oh, wait a minute.

I got an idea.

Let's give it to 26.

Or I think Henry's 22.

Like, all right, let's give it to 22 and we'll just put this baby away.

Whether they're blowing them out or they're behind, it's just how they define who they are in both instances.

In both cases, both teams have really good quarterbacks, guys who can play at an MVP level.

But when you look at what the running backs give to both of these offenses, like it's just undeniable.

You know, I actually like the Ravens in this one.

I don't have it in front of me, but I know Lamar's NFC record is bonkers.

It's a crazy, crazy, crazy stat.

Not to say that's totally predictive, but to Mark's point about the Ravens tending to lose to teams that know them, NFC teams usually don't know Lamar that well.

And it's just tough to corral him.

He's playing really, really well.

You can just kind of tell he wants this real bad.

Like he's playing like he lost the Super Bowl last year and wants to

get back.

So I like the Ravens at home.

I like how their defense is actually not as god-awful as it used to be.

They tightened some things up, playing with some more pride, cut some guys who just didn't belong on the team anymore.

So I like the Ravens and a tight win in this one, but I'm with you guys.

This is going to be a great game.

Lamar is, excuse me, Dan.

Lamar is 23-3, 23-3 against the NFC.

Yeah, he has Lamar is like, I would say, the NFL's current splits king.

Like, there's so many splits of it because he's played so fantastic the last couple of years.

Uh, like, they had that Monday night stat that he's what is he's like 18 touchdowns, no interceptions, and Monday night football, all that, all that good stuff.

The, yeah, it, it, I think it really does,

it's a good sign for Baltimore what they were able to do to the passing game of the Chargers on Monday night, holding Justin Herbert without a passing score, I think under 200 yards.

And that's major progress for a team that I think entered the game 32 and passed defense.

So if they, as you expect, the Ravens to do, start to figure some things out on defense and tighten that end of it up.

I like them.

I like them a lot.

Now, I don't know if I want to pick.

That's a tough one.

It's not an anti-Philly thing.

It's not an anti-philly thing, but I do, I like the Ravens by a field goal here.

So, money line, Mike.

You got a push?

Oh, okay.

There we go.

Which means.

It means the Ravens will win.

Wait, hold on, Jordan.

Do you know what a push is?

Like a shove or a push?

Is it a push for gambling?

Oh, yeah, for gambling, yeah.

I don't know what a push is.

You know what I like as an alternate reality sess dog that Jordan, remember at the end of Casino when De Niro has his own little sports book and he has all the monitors and the thick, like Coke Rim glasses.

He's an old man and he's just on a pad and paper, just running his own little sports book because he'll always be a hustler at heart.

Like, imagine Jordan, like we don't know, actually is that behind the scenes.

I think she is pulling the walls.

I'm an earnest journalist.

And, you know, who what?

I don't even think about gambling.

I just care about ball.

No.

What if there's a whole other thing going on?

It's not real.

I'm with you because I think that if Jordan uncovers something like in this world of football and sports that she's not aware of, she's going to go spend time on her own and dig into it.

So she's absolutely trying to snow us under with this, I don't know what a push is, I don't know what a money line is, I don't buy gumbling.

What's goombling?

It is a really good theory because that does sound like something I would do.

However, I genuinely don't know shit about gambling.

And I have never placed a sports bet in my life.

I never even played fantasy football for money.

We get your cover story.

It's airtight.

It checks out.

And you won't find nothing neither.

It checks out.

Like, it's bulletproof.

But we're just wondering.

We're just wondering.

That's all.

All right.

The game I can't wait.

I can't wait to watch the Pittsburgh Steelers

traveling to Cincinnati.

against the Bengals do or die game here.

This is an early game on Sunday, which I love.

And I'm going to be hopefully watching it

for we're going to do our draft

after this, Mark.

Right.

And I hope to get this game, put it that way, because

as I've said many times on the show, I love watching Joe Burrow play.

It's part of what's been frustrating to see him having just maybe the best season of his career set against the carnage of everything else around him.

If nothing else, they're kind of fascinating because they're weird, the Bengals this year.

Here's a quarterbacks coach.

Who knows the quarterback?

Here's a great question football head question who's the quarterbacks coach of the cincinnati bangles

jordan going through the tree the coaching tree this person got there they brought this person with them beautiful mind it's the guy with the spiked uh it's like he has white hair and it's spiked bowser

sting

don't bring up sting Mike's Mike's already got into a fight with his wife this morning.

I love Sting.

I love.

Oh, you don't hit him with a Sting penalty penalty drop.

I didn't mean to do that, Mike.

That ain't cool.

Quarterbacks coach Brad Cragthorpe said this of Burrow this week: the pocket movement and the pressure awareness and his ability to decisively work through progressions and find completions.

It feels like it has gone a level up this year, which is crazy to say.

I agree.

The tape of the eye test, it all backs that up.

But you got to win some games.

And Cincinnati, if they don't find a way to beat Pittsburgh,

they will not go to the playoffs.

And with that urgency,

Mark, I really, I'm going to die.

I'm going to die on the, what is it?

You die on the shield of Cincinnati one last time.

I like them a lot in this game.

I think they will play with urgency.

I think Burrow will play out of his mind, even against a great Pittsburgh defense.

And Cincinnati will be lived for another week.

I feel really good about this one, Mike.

Really good.

Three points they're getting here.

I'm not sure why.

I know, I get it.

I mean, I think it's a little bit irrational because it doesn't make sense for certain elements of the Cincinnati machine to be humming so well that it's just going to end with them going four and 13.

I just can't, I can't, I still can't get there in my mind.

That's why.

Well, I don't think the four and 13 or whatever, I think they actually still have a positive point differential at four and seven, which is pretty nuts.

I think it's a single-digit number, but still, that's that's pretty impressive being three games under.

The thing about the Bengals is, as fun fun as they are to watch, like definitely in comparison to that Raiders-Broncos game I watched, that really sucked.

But they're

they just, yeah, it's just the most recent thing I watched last night at like two in the morning.

I was just like, who are these guys?

The Raiders are definitely pulling AI-generated players on defense.

There's just no way on God screen earth, those are real people.

Anyway, the Bengals, they just keep finding ways to lose.

And I, those type of teams just stick out to me.

You know, even if you are a fun team and you have very good players, like it feels like some Chargers teams in the past, we've seen some Falcons teams like this.

The Ravens have been like this a little bit.

Though they find ways to win, they just smoke leads quite a bit.

Like, I just don't like those type of teams.

I can't ever feel confident about them.

When they win, I'm not surprised per se, but like, it just seems like it's always something with the Bengals finding a way to lose.

Whereas in this particular matchup, they have like the exact opposite.

team on the other side, a team that just finds ways to win however they need to.

That's just like Mike Tomlinson things.

Like, I can win with Duck Hodges.

I can win with Russell Wilson.

i can win with justin fields no tjy tjy no highsmith highsmith no minka minka like he just finds ways i was totally surprised to open my underdog app and see that the steelers were getting three i couldn't i'm hammering that this hammering actually i would push it a little bit take a half point and get uh steelers three and a half uh but yeah i just think when you're a team those two identities matter to me in this one there's some schematic stuff too um some of it favors the bengals some favors the steelers but when you just have a team like the steelers who just seem to just find a way to just grind games out however they need to in whatever conditions, I know they just lost in the snow, but like versus a team like the Bengals who are 4-7 largely because they keep finding ways to lose.

So yeah, I like Pittsburgh.

Yeah, I think that the culture of these two teams matters a lot.

I feel like the Steelers are a blood-in-the-water type team, and you can end Cincinnati's season right here.

And the one thing that I've noticed on the sideline the past couple of weeks is that Joe Burrow, for as well as he's playing, seems incredibly frustrated with the entire operation, with the team, with their faults.

You know, they've played 12 straight must-win games, it feels like.

They lose eight of them, and we keep forgiving them without looking or diagnosing why they're losing.

They've got a defense that is porous.

And I tell you right now, I think Pittsburgh, with their offense surging more than we would have ever expected, this is the kind of game that Pittsburgh can go in and absolutely end the campaign of the Cincinnati Bengals and put them in chaos.

Because I really think Burrow is about as frustrated as any quarterback in the league with what's happening around him.

He is frustrated, but it's not like it's affecting his play.

It might be making him better.

That's fine, but he's frustrated because for good reason.

And I think he feels kind of capsized on a team that can't support him.

Well, we played the sound after the game last week where he was just like, you could tell he was so exasperated, didn't let the kicker off the hook.

And I'm okay with that.

He's like an old school guy, like a Merino type.

He's just not going to suffer fools, Jordan.

Yeah, we wouldn't be angry about a quarterback firing people up,

you know, like if on a better team, you know, like we wouldn't be, this is, they're losing.

And he's having an MVP caliber season, not putting him in the race, but he's having an MVP caliber season that's, it's disappearing into like a black hole of shit.

Like they just, they, they have, I believe, the leading receiver in Jamar Chase, one of the leading quarterbacks in the league, the leading pass rusher in Trey Hendrickson, they're 4-7, and they're 0-6 against teams with a 500 record or better.

This is crazy to me what is happening with the Bengals this year.

And it's, to me, if you're, I mean, you got to look at top to bottom, every facet of that organization.

And, you know, I listened to you guys' show yesterday, last night, and Connor made some.

Did you like it?

Did you like it?

Was it good?

It was fine.

It was really good.

I love the show.

B-

But Connor, I think, made some really good points, and he's so plugged in on the coaching side of things.

And he made good really great points about the connectivity between Zach Taylor and his family with the ownership group and all of that, and how the ownership group does not like to spend money.

I get all of that, but your quarterback is having one of the best seasons of any quarterback in the league this year and one of the best seasons, if not the best season of his career.

And it's being wasted, but not just wasted in parody, wasted in atrocity

of what this losing season actually is.

They're not just even.

They're four and seven, and they're losing these games where he's having some of his best games of the season still are losses.

I love it.

I'm on an island here with Joe Burrow.

Two words, gang.

Positive regression.

If it doesn't make sense, it's because things are about to even out, and it starts on Sunday, baby.

Let's go, Sess Dog.

You want to bury him?

You want to write your C poems to the Steelers who you love so much now?

It ain't happening.

So you're on an island with Burrow.

You're also in a hive with Sam Darnold.

What other locations can we find you?

That's private.

That's a private question.

I won't tell you.

Do you know where Terry is?

Terry!

Terry!

I don't know what happens next in that saga, by the way.

No, we don't.

So

as I understand it, the idea is that Terry is in grave danger still, and the police can't be trusted.

And now Terry and Lisa are on the run,

but someone's looking for him.

And it's the 80s.

Is it the 80s?

Well, based on that phone.

Or the 90s.

Or the music.

It sounded, yeah, 87 to 91 sounds like the era we're in, potentially.

Got a touchdown phone.

I mean.

Oh, one last thing.

As if I couldn't get more confident about the 4-7 Cincinnati Bengals, Zach Taylor has cracked the code and figured out what's wrong.

Ping-pong tables back in the clubhouse, bitch.

Hit the sound.

Yeah, just creating energy in the locker room.

You know, it's December football now, and

need everyone to be at their best, need everyone to have energy when they walk in the building.

That creates some competitiveness.

Yes, Axe.

About all there is to it.

Yeah.

Eat it, sest dog.

They're just going back, forward.

Yeah,

a move you make, by the way, when you're trying to make sure that your players don't complain about you to the media after losses.

There we go.

Listen, all the cynicism around the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Bengals.

Not the Bengals.

The Bengals.

The Bungles.

The Bengals.

All right, next.

Mark, the game you can't wait to watch.

All right.

Well, here's where I'm going with this.

Arizona at Minnesota.

What?

I don't know, just the way you started that.

I think

you know that Arizona's been my pet team.

There's no doubt about that.

But it's kind of hard to find like a...

Shut your mouth!

So you want me to stop talking, Cardinals fan?

It's hard to find like a household name on this defense, on Arizona's defense, yet I think that Jonathan Gannon's done a great job at creating havoc.

There's been like 14 sacks over the past three games for them.

Mike, you were there.

You saw what they did last week with their pass rush.

And I do wonder, though, can they handle this Vikings attack?

You've got Justin Jefferson, we know that.

Jordan Addison, Aaron Jones, TJ Hawkinson back in the mix.

Last week against the Bears, Kevin O'Connell.

cooks up an attack that has a 300-yard passer, two 100-yard receivers, and a 100-yard rusher.

The first time the Vikings have done that since 2000, back when we were, you know, concerned with like the Y2K bug.

So, like, and what if they, and what did it, what did they do?

Speak of yourself.

I was concerned about it.

Well, I actually, you know, I worked at a newspaper and they made me stay

on New Year's Eve until like the clock struck, whatever,

just to see if the whole news were melted down.

I'm like, the one was like, what am I going to do?

And what story do you want me to write?

Like, please.

Anyways, like, I will say this.

I think that last week what happened, and it was a huge win for the Seahawks.

Like, that coaching staff, shutting down James Conner, and that rushing attack, that's how you pull the plug on the Cardinals.

And the Vikings have allowed in the last four games, 68 yards, 56, 33, and 78 yards on the ground.

They stopped the run.

And so I really want to see how this happens for the Cardinals.

And I really think it's an interesting clash of two team-building projects.

Monty Austin Forts Cardinals, Questio Dofo Mensas Vikings, two young new GMs who have done a great job so far.

This is like a football bombshell ready to ignite.

So I am excited to watch it.

The other way to pull the plug on the Arizona Cardinals is some say,

some throw it out there, Mark, that you get Mark Zessler behind them audibly.

And now we're going to see, because you were very a little bit defensive about it after the 16-6 loss last week.

But we can't, I know what you're trying to do.

You're building up the Vikings here.

No.

Cardinals got to win this game, Mark, or you're going to be facing more questions than Mike McDaniel about cold weather.

I find it intriguing that the Cardinals, who, you know, they had a chance to beat the Seahawks.

They lost.

They lost fair and square.

Of course, they had a chance.

I mean,

but we act like they were taken out by 14 touchdowns.

And like their record keeps them in a strange NFC West race.

But the Bengals could lose to Pittsburgh, and you're still telling us they're going to the AFC playoffs.

So it's like, you know, it's a tale of two cities.

It is.

It certainly is.

That music was great, by the way.

That's voodoo curse curse music.

I love that.

Yeah.

I like the voodoo curse.

I also like the Vikings in this.

This is another game I was up late watching, which was much better, again, than some of the other games.

Specifically, one game that you really hated.

Which one was that?

Yeah, man.

It was just...

God bless the Raiders, dog.

I'm not watching that game on Black Friday.

No way.

I'm going to spend time with my daughter.

Blackout Friday.

I'm not in the hive on the Sam Donald thing.

you guys know that.

But I do.

Come on.

I got to give him some love.

He made some really big-time throws, particularly in overtime.

That was really good.

Also, this was a game where you see, I really liked how they were able to kind of fight left-handed, so to speak, because they're already not a great short-yardage team when they run the ball statistically, I don't think.

And the Aaron Jones fumbled.

But obviously, their go-to is getting the ball to Justin Jefferson and Credit Eberflus, who he had a really good plan.

They were like all over Justin Jefferson.

I don't think he had a second or third catch till overtime, actually.

But you just saw how his gravity made everything happen.

Almost all the other big catches, including the touchdown to the tight end, whose name I forget, like all of it was because the defense was paying so much attention to Justin Jefferson, including TJ Hawkinson's big catch in overtime to set up the game winner.

That was a coverage bust.

So I bring that up to talk about like.

The Vikings, you know, I'm not super high on them, but I do like teams in November and December like that can do that fight left-handed thing.

Like, all right, the other team clearly has a plan for whatever you do well, right?

Whether that's play action, running the ball, whoever, getting the ball to a star player.

What do you do when they scheme, try to scheme that away?

Can you handle that?

And the answer, not just in that game, it seems to be yes.

You know, and credit, Kevin O'Connell, really good play caller.

And then on the Arizona side, I'm just not super high on them.

I've never really been high on their defense.

I still think it's just Buddha and some dudes.

Mark, I think their pass rush on Sunday against the Seahawks was more a function of the Seahawks being bad than the Arizona pass rush being good.

They just basically run a bunch of twists and stunts.

And once you figure that out, you'll be fine.

And you look at the Vikings front, they're really disciplined, really smart.

So I actually like the Vikings in this one.

I like them perhaps going away.

Sorry about your Cardinals, Mark.

That's okay.

Dan, you know, every week I try to drop just a little gemstone into the

hive, you know, just as you sit in the corner booth with your coffee sort of wafting steam and maybe slip a little bourbon in there as well.

So there's this thing called adjusted adjusted EPA that Ben Baldwin, who's this great analyst, runs a lot of some of the numbers that we see, the advanced analytical data that we see that gets basically aggregated by everybody else across the league.

He does an awesome job with fourth-down decision making, too.

But anyway, he has this thing called adjusted EPA.

And I'm sorry I'm reading off of my screen because I couldn't figure out on Blue Sky a way to get it onto my desktop because I'm technologically not very gifted.

Okay, so it is adjusted.

So it's, it's when you take EPA that we know, which Sam Darnold is about in the middle of the NFL quarterbacks right now in, and you adjust it for pass protection, receiver drops, dropped interceptions, luck on interceptable passes, fumble recoveries, and intercepted returns, and then also only give credit for expected yards after the catch.

So not like accidental missed tackle or arm tackle or whatever.

And also accounting for defenses faced.

Sam Darnold is sixth in that metric, whereas his regular EPA puts him in about half, like midway in quarterbacks in the NFL.

He ranks sixth in this metric based on all of those adjustments that I named.

So that's my little

highest.

I wasn't sure the way you were butter knifing it.

I was like, is this going to be an attack on the hive?

Or is this going to, but you did mention dropping gemstones into the hive, but I don't even know if that's healthy for a hive.

But yes, that makes sense.

I think Darnold has been a very good quarterback this year.

Has he been a great quarterback or an all-pro or outside the first couple weeks, an MVP candidate?

No.

But certainly, I think the best case scenario for Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings, and he is making himself a shit ton of money in free agency.

I wonder, I'm looking forward to seeing how that all breaks down.

I assume the Vikings are going to move on.

And speaking of which, they have

just one quarterback other than

the rookie under contract for next year.

Well, until this week, because they just picked up Danny Dimes, Daniel Jones, which was a nice sensibility match here.

They claimed him off,

or they just signed him outright, right?

Because he cleared waivers.

Right.

And Jones is,

yes, Justin.

Oh, gotcha.

Jones is exactly kind of in a similar...

career arc as Darnold was a couple years ago.

So landing with a good head coach and a smart offensive scheme is perfect for Jones, even if he doesn't see the field here.

And I know, Mike, you like this Schefter tweet, I believe you said before the show.

Daniel Jones wanted to spend the rest of this season with a playoff contender around a, quote, nurturing head coach such as Kevin O'Connell.

The Vikings met all qualifications.

Nurturing.

It sounds like they're getting married.

He wants to spend the rest of his life with someone who will treat him better.

And the season's not that much longer.

It's what like.

Suckling on the teeth of Kevin O'Connell.

He nurtured them to a playoff loss a couple years ago.

So sometimes that affects Texas.

Nourish me, mother.

What a weird tweet.

Yeah.

Weird one.

Weird one.

All right.

Let's see.

What else we got?

We got one more in the games we cannot wait to watch.

Yes, Mike.

Do I buy this?

This is a game Mike can't wait to watch.

I don't know.

Go ahead.

Sell it, money, Mike.

All right, I will do my best.

Sell job.

I got the Texans at the Jaguars.

This is, we'll see, a number 16 team Texans against the number 30 Jaguars in the power rankings of record.

This is my fault for getting in the dock a little late.

But I will say, I do like watching the Texans.

So that part of it, I can't wait to watch because I'm like trying to maybe, I guess, I don't know what the definition of a pet team is.

They would perhaps be mine.

I'm just waiting for them to figure it out.

And they just keep letting me down.

Like, whether they win or lose, I just come away with some of the games like, damn, you guys should be better.

You see, they're your Bengals.

Like, that's like, you expect more of them.

You got the the other Sting involved in this.

You got C.J.

Stroud.

There's a lot of stuff behaving well.

Yeah,

there's a lot of things to like about the Texans, but it's just not coming together, right?

Well, I think the actually that I was thinking about this earlier, the better comp for the current Bengals is probably whatever Deshaun Watson team.

He went nuts, but they won like four games.

I think maybe 2020.

That seems like a better comp

because he was on fire.

I think that's the year J.J.

Watt was like, dude, we wasted you.

You were killing.

That seems like the better comp for the the Bengals.

But this Houston team, they just like, this can't get right.

I just don't.

It's a few reasons.

I feel like a lot of it is the guys in the headsets.

Their scheme is kind of funky.

It puts a lot of faith in guys who shouldn't have faith put in them, particularly their safeties.

I think I texted this in our chat.

They have perhaps the worst safety pairing of any competent team.

Like whatever the Raiders are doing is bad, too.

And

the Ravens and Bengals were bad at safety for a little bit during the season as well.

But particularly of teams that are super relevant and are going to be in the playoffs, the Texans are just awful.

It's just take the over on any receiver playing the Texans pretty much every week.

And that they just put in bad spots to give, but

a touchdown to one of my hyphenated name brothers, Westbrook Akina, I think is how you say it.

But he just barbecued their safety on a bad call by the Texans.

And then on offense, man, I think I mentioned Bobby Slowckie last week or a show before that, man.

He is on fraud alert for me.

Like, he just seems like the other coordinators just have his number every week, whether it's an established coordinator or a guy who's only been doing it a little longer than Bobby, who's in year two over there.

He's just not giving CJ enough answers for a clearly just dysfunctional offensive line situation.

And then I think that's impacting CJ.

He's throwing like 2019 Josh Allen passes every week now.

Like he'll be on a heater like he was in the second half of that game.

And you're just like, CJ, you know, you play for the Texans, right?

Like, why would you throw the ball right to Kenneth Murray?

That's dumb.

You know, he just keeps doing that.

he did it against dallas too i think like he you can see he's just upstairs it's it's getting to him and i think that's a lot of it's the players too but i think it's a lot of the the guys who are supposed to give cj the answers to help him play better so the reason i can't wait to to watch this i want to see if they figure it out you know they had been winning before so perhaps it wasn't the wake-up call that it should have been but when you lose like they did to the titans and cj ran out of the back of the end zone like it was a very it was a bad loss they looked like the titans uh in that game that hopefully i'm hoping that was the wake-up call.

Like, guys, we kind of stink.

So let's get right.

So I'm hoping this is a get-right game for the Texans against the Jaguars, who are somehow still employing Doug Peterson.

Kind of surprised when I looked that up.

They might.

I think I have a Trevor Lawrence update.

I believe

he's practicing this.

He's practicing this.

Yeah, he is.

Trending toward a return to the lineup after missing a couple of weeks.

Hey, by the way,

you mentioned it, Michael Sean Dugar.

Is there like a hyphenate hive convention?

Do you guys ever gather just to talk hyphens?

And beyond that, what about people?

That would be like millions of people getting together.

It's not legit.

Yeah, like it's a big, like it's at the Indianapolis Convention Center.

It coincides with the Combine.

Like, you remember when you go through the corridors at the Combine, you're like,

oh, I thought this was only for the NFL, but then it's like the National Plumbers Union has a giant convention.

Yeah, and the giant cardboard cutout of the Pope.

Yeah, you got the Pope over there by the escalator.

It's a wild scene.

But I was going to say, what does the hyphenate community think about like a Johnny Come Lately hyphenate, like a Josh Hines-Allen?

Do you guys welcome him in or does he get turned away?

No, it's fine because not everyone's like, like me, I was born with a hyphenated name, but a lot of people don't get them until later because they get married or whatever, their step parent or whatever, and they want to show that love to them.

So that's fine.

I just keep, we don't, we don't see them.

How inclusive?

We see each other, though.

That's all.

We just see each other.

Just like I see my fellow Dreadlock brothers, you know, when they do their things, you know, I salute them.

I salute my fellow hyphenated guys, particularly if I find someone who has a hyphenated first name.

Those guys I do not come across very often.

So those guys we should probably meet.

So that's maybe

the convention then.

Okay, so Mark, we're going to eliminate the last name hyphens, first name hyphens.

Okay.

Mike, I could sense the depths of your disappointment in the Houston Texans in our group chat over the weekend because you called C.J.

Stroud by his full name on his birth certificate.

Sounds like it cost Mike a lot of money.

So

no, Coleridge did not, but I am.

Jordan's right.

I am very disappointed in him.

He's just, he's letting me down.

I do feel very disappointed.

That's why I call him by his first name, Coleridge.

Yeah.

And I also want to shout out Justin Graver because we've been sort of having this very passive-aggressive push-pull about the Texans without actually saying anything overtly about whether or not they're good or fake good.

And Justin, I'm ready to be with you over there, man.

They're fake good.

Hey, welcome in.

Welcome in.

Actually, Dan Mike had Tennessee plus eight in his Olson parlay last three-legged Olson last week.

So I don't know.

Old three-leg Olson parlay.

Yeah, we'll get to that in a bit.

All right.

There you go.

Those are the games I can't wait to watch.

Let's take a break.

And when we come back, we dive in and get greasy.

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audience only.

That's Cannonball.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Oh, oh, oh,

oh, oh,

oh.

All right, hit it, Justin.

All right, first game, Chargers at Falcons.

Atlanta is holding on to that NFC South lead by a thread, and they'll have their hands full this week with a gritty Chargers squad looking to bounce back.

J.K.

Dobbins will miss this one, but the Falcons have to find a way to pressure Justin Herbert.

Jordan, this is like a show-me game, I feel like, for the Falcons.

That's been a rough couple of weeks.

What do they got here against a very good Chargers team?

Yeah, so you guys know I've believed in this defense for the Chargers all season, but the last two games, they've allowed at least 30 points.

And Atlanta can throw the ball.

They can run the ball.

I think one thing that the Chargers do really have on their side as an advantage in this game is that we know Kirk Cousins cannot move.

A quarterback who will have to rely on arm angles and very limited in-pocket as well as out-of-pocket movement is going to be kind of an easier sitting duck to target with their pressure.

So I think that's you're going to look at a very aggressive pressure-heavy game from the Chargers and Jesse Minter because they have to get back on track.

And I think that's where it all starts is getting after Kirk.

If they can't, I do think that Kirk Cousins has the potential and understands, at least has seen enough football, understands his defense to know where some of the voids in how they play coverages are going to be.

And they, I think they absolutely have to pick themselves back up on off the mat.

Both of these teams are kind of in that position.

They're watching their various playoff chances get slimmer and slimmer and slimmer because other teams keep winning games.

So I think this is going to be a really sort of backs against the wall game for both of these teams.

J.K.

Dobbins has a sprained knee.

He is considered weak to weak for the Los Angeles Chargers.

So they're going to have to find a way to replace his production, and he's been valuable to that team.

Next.

Next game, Seahawks at Jets.

Seattle is another team in the thick of a tight division race.

Meanwhile, the Jets are, well, you know, sorry, sorry, Dan.

The Jets are the Jets.

But this is a big moment for Seattle to go out and show some real progress that they've been showing the past few weeks.

But in this one, take care of business against an inferior team.

Prove to us that this defense is legit and go get a win on the road.

Yeah, I could totally see Mike Geno

balling out here against his old team, a Jets defense that's in tatters, coming off a bye, but I don't think, I don't see that staff as being capable of diagnosing what's wrong, let alone fixing it.

So it sets up well for Seattle, but still, and you know this team better than anyone, Mike, they got to travel cross-country, play in the elements potentially, and take care of business.

If you're to take Seattle seriously, TCOB here, right?

Oh, yeah.

Yeah, for sure.

Also, look at mentioning traveling cross-country.

Jesus, looks like all the West Coast teams, teams, they just said, get out of here.

I think every team is far.

You got Atlanta, New Orleans, the Jets, and I think San Francisco's and Buffalo.

Jesus.

But yeah, I think Jesus Christ.

Yeah, the contrast between these two teams in terms of like when their seasons looked like they were on the brink, how did they respond?

You can just see the difference in leadership.

Like

both teams made a mid-season trade for a starter.

You know, they got Devontae Adams, Seahawks to Ernest Jones, but you just see where leadership matters.

Like the Seahawks have real leaders.

They were able to kind of turn their thing around.

Whether they make the playoffs or not, they're just not a dumpster fire.

It wouldn't have looked like they were on the brink of that type of situation when the Jets had a chance to potentially turn their season around.

There was a lot of finger pointing.

You know, you couldn't tell who was really in charge.

Was it Aaron Rodgers?

Was it the owner?

Is the owner in London?

Like, you just don't really know.

Who's supposed to be the adult in the room?

And just, I think that's what really stands out to me about both of these two teams and where their situations are.

A funky kind of stat that I learned while talking to Zach Rosenblatt, our Jets writer.

We interviewed him on the Seahawks man-to-man podcast this week.

So Geno's thrown a pick damn near every game.

He leads the league in interceptions with 12.

I think the Jets only have two picks, and neither of them are from Sauce or like DJ Reed or anyone you know.

I think they're from a guy who's not even in the lineup anymore.

So I do wonder if that's maybe a get-right situation for the Jets to take advantage of Geno there, who's just putting the ball in harm's way a lot more than he should.

I do like the Seahawks in this one, in a close one.

I think she liked the under as well.

I think both defenses are going to show some life on Sunday.

Yeah, the Jets' offense has been

pretty start and go this season, but they have not been helped out by the defense.

It does not make impact plays.

They don't have defensive scores.

Very rarely have they made the type of

turnover field flipping type play that would help the offense, which just compounds all the issues.

There you go.

So Seattle on the road, getting two points, and probably, it's sounding like the Jets won't have Brees Hall potentially, who popped up on the injury report here with a knee issue.

and it looks like it's a little touch-and-go if he'll play, which is another problem for Aaron Rodgers.

Next.

Next, Titans at Commanders,

Washington on a three-game losing streak as Cliff tries to navigate the back half of this season, which he has not done very successfully throughout his career.

Last week was a wacky, chaotic divisional matchup.

for both teams, Tennessee and Washington, but the Commanders need a bounce back game.

I don't know, man.

Am I getting crazy?

I feel like the Titans can hang in this one.

Mark, I think I agree with what Justin's saying.

What do you think?

Well, right now it feels like anyone could hang with Washington.

And we talked about like the Chargers being at a critical point in their season, the Falcons being at a critical point.

Like Washington feels like one of those teams.

And I hope this doesn't happen to him because they were a really good story where you get one of these every couple of years.

They start like seven and one and they finish like eight and nine.

And it's like, I hope that's not what's happening here.

And I kind of would, I like when narratives are blown up and I get the Cliff Kingsbury thing and I brought it up myself, but like I would like to see that not be the case for once because, you know, it's funny because what was I listening to?

Something where Steve Kaim, the forerunner GM of the Cardinals, was asked about Cliff Kingsbury.

And he's like, why is this happening?

to them.

And I understand that Steve Kaim is not maybe the most like beloved source on the planet.

But what he said was that Cliff Kingsbury comes into the season, into training camp with a batch of great new ideas.

And he unfurls them, and the team gets out on offense to a quick start because it's new, and no one's diagnosed it or seen it before.

But then when that starts to get picked up on tape, that he doesn't adjust.

And that's sort of been the problem in theory with Cliff Kingsbury.

It's like, you came in with a new quarterback, a new system, the whole thing was working.

And now we've got two months of tape on this quarterback.

And then he had a rib injury.

And I think that's not the issue now.

But it's just that what are you doing now to make the offense fresh?

What new new plays?

What new aspects?

What are you doing to confuse people?

And if you're not, you're going to get picked off.

And on the Titan side, like, you know how tape starts to come out during the week?

Like, and it's guys like Baldy and stuff, but like...

Justin, Tavandre Sweat, like, this is a gigantic front door sized individual who is a dominant player.

And I do think the Titans are the kind of team, I wouldn't call them a berserker, but if you get better quarterback play and you get guys like this defense and this defense playing this way, yes, they can pick off some teams.

And so I think this is a critical moment for Washington.

Absolutely critical.

And circling back to Washington, I know Kingsbury is an easy target, but I think Jaden Daniels has to play better as well.

I don't think he's playing at the same level he was as a passer,

especially.

All right, next up in the gravy boat, Justin Graveyear.

Can I just say before we move on, Devondre Sweat, second heaviest player in NFL history to record a sack?

Next game, Colts at Patriots.

Anthony Richardson and the Colts are still in the hunt, but what they're really hunting for here is some consistency.

Whether it's the drops, the penalties, some inaccurate throws, just, I don't care who you blame, if it's Richardson or the supporting cast, the entire operation feels jumbled.

Now they get the New England Patriots.

Is this team going to provide some resistance or a get-right opportunity for Indianapolis?

Jordan, I think the one thing that maybe me,

Connor, Mark, and James kind of skipped over was Shane Steichen, and whether he is still a likely bulletproof head coach.

I think Indianapolis has to close the season out well to keep him in the good graces of ownership.

I disagree.

I think the heat's more on the GM right now, actually, than it is on Shane Steichen.

I think you kind of had what you would expect to have happened right now when you marry a second-year head coach

who kind of just didn't even really install like fully his offense because they all always knew they weren't going to necessarily go with that quarterback that he had in this first season.

And then you pair him together with a very, very raw,

supremely talented, you know, over the next couple of years, like has all the gifts you could possibly want in a quarterback, but you pair him with a very supremely raw quarterback.

You already are of the understanding that that is just going to take some time.

I actually think the heat is more on Chris Ballard this season.

Josh Downs might not be able to play in this game.

He's dealing with the shoulder injury.

That's obviously significant.

Anthony Richardson is running a little bit more.

I think he had a season high last week, 61 yards on the ground.

That does help them out when he does that.

And it also helps mitigate some of the issues that they're having, which are very clear on tape and certainly in the statistics as well with their offensive line to the point where you have local reporters like Mike and I's a good friend.

and really one of the bright young rising journalists in this um in this field, James Boyd, asking about about whether they're going to

make any potential changes along their offensive line, potentially even benching healthy players.

Figure it out.

Figure it out.

Next.

Didn't mention Drake May.

How about that, Dan, until I just did.

All right.

Next.

Rams at Saints.

New Orleans has a renewal.

Does he want to do it, Mark?

Do we need to get the

vapec?

Justin is on acid right now, drop.

Where's Vapecan?

Your request shall be

granted.

Justin is on acid right now.

Justin has gone into a new corner of the universe.

Thanks, Mark.

Mark, we were getting into a nice flow in the gravy boat, and now it's like we've tumbled out.

Justin has been an asset to us, man.

Nickiness.

All right, next game.

Rams at Saints.

Man, New Orleans seems to have a renewed energy and sense of purpose under under interim head coach Darren Rizzi.

They've won two straight games after losing seven in a row.

The Rams got a little bit, I don't know, Vicfangioed last week.

But now both of these teams need a win to keep pace with the leaders in their respective divisions.

Oh, Jordan,

I texted you Monday night as that game was in its death rows.

I was like, ah, you know.

You know, this is a journalism.

I've studied journalism.

Once upon a time, I dreamed of, being a beat writer.

I always imagined myself as a baseball writer, but it never happened.

So I live vicariously through you guys, which I still think is like one of the coolest jobs in the world, just covering a team on a day-to-day basis.

But the downside of that is, yeah, going into a locker room when everybody's hella pissed after getting embarrassed on national television.

What's the vibe around the Rams after

a humbling loss in week 12?

Yeah, frustrated because the same issues keep coming up over over and over and over again.

Execution, moving the ball, a quarterback who can work out of structure, who's getting the ball downfield with explosive plays because this really young, bright defensive line,

they will be really cohesive and locked in together and rushing and defending the run as a group for like stretches of four games at a time.

And then all of a sudden, people just decide they're going to play hero ball and try to make the play, and it almost never works out for them.

So this is,

yeah, the butts are pretty tight over in Los Angeles right now.

What's interesting, though, is

you're pretty much seeing there's a formulaic way to stop this team,

get pressure on Matthew Stafford, force your offensive line to double team at least one player along the defensive front, and then make other guys win one-on-one matchups, get pressure on Matthew Stafford.

Because Cooper Cup, you know, Puka Nakua is still playing outstanding, but Cooper Cup, just to me, doesn't seem like he's moving as well as he used to.

And this whole offense feels slow, lethargic.

They can't sustain drives.

They get completely shut down if a defense can tee off on them.

So, yeah,

this is a problem.

Do you mean, just to be clear,

like the butts are tight, like sculpted buttocks like Swayze and Roadhouse?

Or do you mean, are you talking about like their buttholes are tight because things are, you know, is it a butthole?

Just dive in and tell us.

Just give me a two halves a butt or actually like the butthole.

Just clarify if you could.

No?

Okay.

Thick it up the guy's ass, which I've i've done there it is um so thank you justin um everyone's everyone is frustrated over there is what i would say

mark i thought it was a fair question justin is an asset to us man it was a fair question i think it's just clarification and you know jordan you're a very precise reporter so i think you know it was a follow-up question Maybe the journalist didn't like getting a question that was difficult to answer.

She asked the questions.

Let's look at it that way.

J-Rod.

Okay.

All right.

Anything else?

In the bowl.

Yes.

Absolute wagon.

A lot of ass jokes this segment, huh?

Last game.

Buccaneers at Panthers.

It wasn't a joke.

It was a real question.

Bryce Young was impressive last week, as was Baker Mayfield.

The Bucks are working their way back into the mix.

They're only one game back of Atlanta, and the Panthers have been competitive lately.

This actually feels like a mildly exciting NFC South matchup.

So snarky.

SusDog,

your thoughts on this NFC South affair?

I agree with our producer.

That's a drop.

Thank you.

Well, I will say this.

I covered the Panthers last week, and it was one of the more...

It made me happy to watch Bryce Young play the way he did.

It's just tough to see someone suffer the way that he was, and then just his entire persona and nucleus starts to change.

And, you know, he did this against Steve Spagnola.

And the Panthers are the only team beyond Buffalo and Cincinnati to put up 24-plus points.

He threw for 263 yards, no interceptions.

And I love the matchup that he can look across the field at Baker Mayfield, who also...

in his early career went through so many coaches, so many ups and downs, was disregarded by the team that picked him up, number one overall, overall and played lights out against the New York Giants and has played great all season.

So these are the perfect two people to speak, hug, talk after the game about what this career in the NFL is.

And I really do feel that what we saw from Bryce Young, and I'm talking about, I know people are going absolutely nuts on Twitter and showing all his throws, but like he's throwing the ball in a way that he never did as a rookie and did not early on this year.

So Carolina, they're out of it.

We get it, but they are an interesting team down the stretch because I think Dave Canalis has done it again.

He did it with Baker Mayfield.

He's now doing it with Bryce Young.

I don't want to completely say it's solved, but it's very hopeful.

It's hopeful you're getting the guy that you wanted.

He's still a very small-framed quarterback, and that will always concern me.

But he threw the ball with confidence.

He's playing with some zeal, and it reminds me in a way of like these two guys remind me of each other.

So I am very excited about this game.

I think this is a matchup that I would have never have watched four weeks ago.

Very nice.

Very nice.

Two short kings.

Love to see it.

Thrive.

That's right.

I think like Baker kind of opened the door for someone like Bryce Young to be picked where he was picked, height-wise.

All right, beautiful.

Do we need to take a break?

One more break.

All right, we'll take a break.

We'll be right back with Money Mike check-in and some fearless predictions.

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All right, we're back.

Okay.

What we try to do around here is make some money.

Make some money, make some money, make some money.

Money, Mike.

Had you do

in week 12, Justin.

Let's check in on.

Uh-oh, he's shaking his head.

What do we got here?

Not a good week.

It was not a good week.

There was a Greg Olson parlay last week.

Three-legger.

Titans plus eight.

That hit.

However, Patriots plus eight.

Raiders plus five and a half.

Mike thought the dogs were barking, but a couple of these dogs whimpered one for three on the parlay.

Damn.

It's unfortunate.

I love it.

It's unfortunate.

Oh man,

I earned the drop that time.

But it's unfortunate because, you know, I have a whole list of games.

You know, I pick every one and I send them to my dad.

And I just picked, I picked, I think I went off script when we did it last week because we were talking about underdogs instead of going with what I was going to go with.

Because I text Justin, I was like, which ones did I actually give you?

Because I had a whole list of ones that were hitting.

I'm looking at my notes app.

I'm like, okay, that hit.

I was like, damn, which ones did I actually give Justin?

Like, I have bears three and a half that I gave my dad.

That would have hit.

I had some other ones that were like very clearly going to hit buck spread.

But anyway, coulda, woulda, shoulda.

Let's bounce back.

All right, let's do it.

Let's have a better, let's have a better question.

Quick question, just to circle back on an earlier conversation.

What is a push?

Oh, damn.

We didn't.

So a push is just.

Sorry.

I thought you were going to circle back on the butts conversation, bummer.

Yes.

No, that's right.

You didn't mention.

No, I've already sent the crows after you for that, Dan.

Jordan, the push is just a tie.

So, like, if you take a game.

Why don't they just say that?

It's not as cool.

That's a great question.

You're right.

It's gatekeeping.

Yeah,

it's just a tie, though.

That's all.

So, like, the Raiders are getting plus 13.

If they lose by 13, it's a push.

Because it's right on the bottom.

That's a big number.

And that's why there's a lot of halves.

You see, like 0.5s to avoid that situation.

So when a team's like plus two and a a half, you can't lose by two and a half points.

So, the Chargers, I'm sure, will find a cover story for that at some point, you know, by the great Rodriguez.

What's up?

That is what that means.

Oh, that's a good question, though.

It's a good question.

She's cooking the books.

All right.

We're gonna, we're gonna roll with, we're gonna roll with some dogs again.

Rolling with some dogs again.

Because there were dogs that hit, just the wrong dogs that I picked.

So, we're gonna go with the way, Mike.

This is a song that was sent in by one of our viewers/slash listeners in honor of you.

Let's turn this up in our headphones.

John Altine.

All right.

Let's go with...

Wait, wait, one second.

I do like that.

You like that?

I like this a lot.

Look at John Ultine now.

Okay, go ahead, Mike.

All right, we're going to take two dogs.

We're gonna take two dogs and a spread.

This is gonna be our AFC North theme since I was talking about them earlier.

We're gonna take the Steelers.

I saw him getting three.

Whatever line you get it at, just take the spread.

Steelers are a little spread.

We'll take Browns plus five and a half and Ravens spread.

Right now, I see it at minus three.

So

take three AFC North teams this week in honor of Marks Browns.

That feels solid to me.

Well, don't say I didn't try to warn you about an hour ago.

That's all.

You were scared to take the Panthers.

They were fighting.

What do you mean?

I nailed my Panthers take last week.

If you go back and listen, I said, everyone, you know, people are saying it's going to be a blowout.

Not only is it going to be a blowout,

it's going to be like a three-point game.

And then you said, money line?

I said, no, I'm not going to say that.

I think Chiefs buy a field goal.

And it's exactly what happened.

They should have won.

Should have won.

Poor Bright.

Should have would have.

All right, there you go.

Before we say goodbye, by the way, when you nail your

picks that you send to your dad, you hit him up with a, you proud of me now, dad?

One of those.

He's always been proud, but what happens is he'll mention it when he comes to pick up my daughter sometime.

Like, thanks, son.

Want me some money this week?

Or something like that.

And that fills you with warmth, I'm sure.

Oh, yeah.

To put money in dad's pocket and show your prowess in your chosen field.

I mean,

that's a double hit.

Oh, yeah.

Very good.

Very good father-son.

Degenerate bonding.

All right.

Fearless predictions.

Let's check in how we did in week 12.

Mike, the four first-round wide receivers from the 2023 class will combine for 300-plus yards and at least three touchdowns.

It was so close.

Oh, my God.

What happened?

That was so.

So I think we got to 301.

301 yards, two

touchdowns.

Two touchdowns.

And I had two guys on the Monday night game.

Quentin Johnston gets a gold ball.

I couldn't catch a cold on Monday.

No, he was brutal.

He gets a gold ball in the first half.

That would have been a back shoulder touchdown it would have hit.

Oh, my.

And Zay Flowers got a goal end zone target, too.

Didn't he?

It was one touchdown off.

Didn't Quentin also get a crosser where

if he turns, there's actually a path to the end zone?

Or am I thinking of somebody else?

I thought he might have had another one that was brutal.

He would have had to really make some magic to score on the crosser, but the gold ball.

was.

Oh, my God.

Oh, that's frustrating.

The four first-round wide receivers combined for 301 yards, but also just three of them without Quentin Johnston combined for 301 yards.

Ufo.

Because he had zero yards.

All right,

the gravedigger.

At least three bottom 12 teams in the Heed the Call Power Rankings will win outright.

Good job.

Yeah, baby.

Browns, Cowboys, Titans.

And that is smart because it's very murky down there

in the NFL after the top 10.

So these things can happen.

I like that.

That was a good one.

Jordan, four teams beat opponents by 17 or more points.

Oh.

Five.

Five did it.

Five teams.

Good for you.

You guys made me go up one, and I still beat it by one.

And I love it.

That was edgy.

I like that.

I'm two in a row now.

Yes.

Ready for that.

Mark Sessler, the Browns beat the Steelers.

Good job, buddy.

What a nice Thursday

I like winning these things on Thursday night, which I've done a couple of times because you're just rolling.

As soon as I heard this when you made the, well, you weren't here last Thursday, but I was like, yes, I know what he's doing.

He's going to knock out his prediction so he doesn't have to think about it on Sunday and supper.

That's exactly right.

Yeah.

And Zuzzer, I'm on an epic losing streak here.

Multiple field goal attempts from 60-plus yards with at least one make.

I didn't see any, actually.

I didn't either.

I watched a bunch of the games and did not see anybody line up from 60.

So, yeah, bad spot, bad spot.

All right, let's go into our week 13 predictions.

I guess I'll get it started because I'm going to get it wrong.

So let's just get this one out of the way.

Justin, what did I even say?

I'm getting,

oh, yeah, it ties into,

and I'm

across the way from you guys on a couple of these games today.

I think this is going to be a big blowout week.

I think there's going to be, what did I say?

What was the number I said, Justin?

You said five games will be decided by 13 points or more.

Yeah, five.

That's a lot.

I feel like two of those are going to happen on Thanksgiving.

Yeah, I kind of cooked that in and thought, can I get a couple blowouts in Thanksgiving and then three for the rest of the week?

So five games separated by 13 or more points.

Let's see if I could break this losing streak.

What do you got, Jordan?

Why 13 points, by the way?

It's, you know, it's a good, fair question.

For some reason, right before I sent the text, I dropped it from 14 to 13 because I was like, I'm not going to lose this on an extra point miss.

I just have a feeling someone's going to screw me because this has happened to me three times.

So I'm covering myself.

And of course, now it will happen where someone misses an extra point and they'll win by 12.

I could see that, too.

So you did feel the fear and then change your prediction.

Oh, absolutely.

Ooh, wow.

I think I'm on like an eight-game losing streak.

So yeah, maybe that is a crisis of confidence coming through a little bit.

Nice pickup.

It's just interesting.

Like some people have been required to change predictions when they felt the fear

and tried to, you know, stave off said fear with their prediction.

Some people have been pressured by the group to change their predictions.

But like

some people just...

I've been fearless, and that's why I'm on an epic losing streak.

I always, always challenge myself, and it's, I think.

I think your losing streak can be attributed also to your belief in the Jets.

I think those are like three of those losses.

And some

just being a responsible journalist and asking questions, Dan, you know?

Well, like, like you with the butts, I will give you a no comment.

With the butts.

Okay, my take it up to Red's ass, which I've done

doing that twice.

My fearless prediction is stupid, Brick.

My fearless prediction is we will actually get a play caller change by taping next week.

This could be a coach who calls plays or a coordinator on either side of the ball.

There are

two specifically that could potentially, I think, take place, but maybe won't because of outward commitments ownership or the head coach has made to them.

So 49ers defensive staff or Brian Dable situation.

So kind of just see how that works.

Okay.

Mark.

Mark.

I'm doubling down.

Like, I want to keep riding this train.

So, I am going to be gruesome injuries or.

Nope.

The 3-8 Browns will go into Denver and not be blown out, Dan.

They are going to take out, straight up take out the Denver Broncos.

What?

That's fearless?

You don't think it is?

All right.

I have another one.

How about this?

No, I don't want to, I'm not the judge.

Well, no, I don't want to be.

It's like the Browns beating the Broncos is like a fearless prediction.

Well, my crazy.

I've seen how you've talked about them today, Dan.

It sounds a little bit different.

Yeah, but obviously I'm in the minority on that.

But is that you guys?

What do you guys, Mike and Jordan?

Is that a fearless prediction?

The Browns are not afraid of the family.

Well, Mark didn't speak up when I was giving you a hard time, Dan.

So I'm not going to speak up for Mark here.

So,

well, I don't like the spirit of this, though.

I can offer a different one.

I'll operate a different one because I had another one originally.

Is that one defense, one singular defense, will score three touchdowns?

Wait,

a defense will score three touchdowns in a game?

Yeah.

Wow, that is no.

That's the opposite.

I like it.

But it will have a ton of stuff.

I like it, though.

I mean, I'll even offer like just

an olive branch, Mark, because

I don't want to feel like I have pressured you.

I would give you two.

Mark, that's like the equivalent of getting a face tattoo after a breakup.

Daniel.

No, I want to keep it.

How about defense special teams?

Defense special teams combined for three touchdowns.

Okay.

That adds a little flavor to it.

Justin, have you recorded these multiple changes to the fearless prediction?

Yeah.

No, the whole thing is actually recording right now.

So I'll

be good to go.

Oh, shit.

Whoa.

Lou, bitchy answer there.

I love it.

You sassy bitch.

Mike.

Oh, all right.

My week 13 prediction in honor of Thanksgiving with a tribute to 1998 Randy Moss in his big game.

Oh, yeah.

On Thanksgiving, I will go.

There will be a player, a non-quarterback, to score three touchdowns in week 13.

And I added some juice to this because I didn't think it was that fearless, but hearing the rest of the picks, maybe I shouldn't.

But I'll do it anyway because I believe in myself.

Bird.

It'll be done by a non-quarterback who has not already done it this season.

So I will give you a list of who that eliminates so everyone knows.

That eliminates Saquon Barkley, Alvin Kamara, James Cook, Jawan Jennings, Kyron Williams, Ken Walker, Jamar Chase, Taysom Hill, somehow, Joe Mixon, and Josh Jacobs.

So I think that's 10 guys.

So we get a Randy Moss-esque performance this week.

I have a dead for someone who is not one of those guys.

That's very spicy.

I like that.

So first timer this week.

I always enjoy Money Mike's fearless predictions.

Always well thought out, and

they do it for me.

Finally, Justin.

Mine is: we get the highest total game score of the season in one of the games this week.

What is it currently?

Great question.

Didn't look.

By the way, that November 26th, 1998,

Vikings Cowboys game,

Vikings 46, Cowboys 36.

And yes, the greatest stat line ever.

Randy Moss 3 for 163 and 3.

Just.

That's awesome.

Come on, man.

Come on.

All right.

We good?

We got everything?

I think we did.

Happy Thanksgiving to everybody.

And just remember that

the Heed the Call podcast, there are no reverse gears in this tank.

We keep moving forward.

In fact, Thursday night, I believe, we're going to live stream our reaction to all three of the Thanksgiving games.

And then

come Sunday, you'll get a recap of Black Friday, that affair, and all the Sunday games, with, of course, on Patreon, mixed in the Friday draft show.

A lot of content.

Love it.

Mike,

Jordan, happy Thanksgiving.

You've been a,

we are very thankful, Mark and myself, for you.

Yes, we are.

Both and what you've given to this show in terms of your

being sincere right now.

In terms of your football knowledge and personalities, and it's been a fun ride with you.

So thank you.

I'd echo that.

Thank you.

It was very nice.

Thankful to be on the show.

Shout out to all my peoples who are either your family can't get to where you are, you can't get to where your family are, and you're having Thanksgiving in solo or just one other person.

Been there, done it in Pullman and in Idaho.

So

with your dog.

Shout out to all my people flying solo on the holidays.

I feel you, man.

Somebody's thinking of you.

Yeah, there you go.

Very nice.

All right.

Thanks, everybody.

Till next time, heed the call.

Heather is a nurse practitioner from United Healthcare.

We meet patients wherever they live.

During a house call, she found Jack had an issue.

Jack's blood pressure was dangerously high.

It was 217 over 110.

So they got Jack to the hospital and got him the help he needed.

He had had a stamp placed in his heart, preventing a massive heart attack.

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