Commanders-Bengals & Jaguars-Bills Recap + QB Change in the Desert?

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On with the show,

the Heed the Call podcast

would like to solve the puzzle.

7:30 8 Prime Time, Say Jack.

It ain't.

You know, Mark,

back in 2011,

our second year working together at the NFL, I remember writing a story on the website about Mike Shanahan, then the Washington head coach, who said that he would

stake his reputation on Rex Grossman and John Beck as his quarterbacks.

Here's the quote, I believe in them.

And I've been doing this for a long time.

And I put my reputation on these guys that they can play.

It was a ludicrous statement, Mark, proven as such when Grossman and Beck went on to stink out the joint in that 5-11 season for the then Redskins.

Humbled,

well, this is a Shanahan we're talking about.

Definitely not humbled.

But undeterred, Washington made a blockbuster trade the following spring and landed Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin the third with the second overall pick.

RG3, of course, has a remarkable rookie season.

Who could forget?

I think maybe his first touchdown, that long bomb, that long touchdown run early in the season where he just got outside the edge and just shot down the sideline.

He ended up throwing over 20 touchdown passes, ran for eight more, one offensive rookie of the year, even though it was Andrew Luck's rookie year two.

And we know, Mark, how that ended up with RG3.

He gets injured.

Mike Shanahan shoulders some blame about the downfall of RG3's career, him even playing with an ACL injury that year and was never the same.

And it's been wilderness ever since for the Washington football team, which makes tonight, Mark,

so notable and potentially game-changing for that organization.

What I love about this is that we didn't discuss this prior to the show.

And I wrote a note that

the last time that I've saw, like, I watched a rookie quarterback kind of change my feeling about rookie quarterbacks and the league and specifically this team was RG3.

And I recall the time on Thanksgiving where I got tagged with a Detroit Lions game where Nadamek and Sue stomped the groin of Matt Schaub.

And then I ran to the airport to get on a plane, but during that airport stay, you know, you have a beer or two, I watched RG3

light up the Dallas Cowboys.

Well, I was covering that game.

And that was the whole point that you were midday,

you know, not stuck because we love doing what we do, but like you were

on Thanksgiving, it's very kind of stuck.

You're kind of stuck.

And you were kind of stuck.

And I was like, I'm glad I'm not Dan right now.

And like, you know, we can feel that way back and forth.

But like the look on Jerry Jones's face recalled another night when I believe they played the Giants on Monday night football.

And the Shanahans hit RG3.

They hit him all training camp.

You didn't know what was going to happen until I believe they played the Saints, if I'm not mistaken, in the opening game of his career.

And suddenly he was unleashed.

And it was like, wait a minute, what is happening?

This player is unleashed on us.

They did not tell us what they were doing on offense.

And that Monday night game that I point out, the Giants, linebacker specifically, had no idea what to do with the pistol, which was not an NFL thing.

I know it's a Jordan thing now, but it was not an NFL thing then until it suddenly was.

And he burst on the scene, beguiling defenses.

And tonight does recall that to some degree because what Jaden Daniels is doing, what he did tonight for a team that's been in the wilderness for so very, very long from ownership on down,

was remarkable, and it stands out as one of the biggest stories of the entire season.

Hit the music, Justin.

Yes, it was the game the Washington football fans have been waiting for, yeah, for 12 years.

Rookie Jaden Daniels, the number two overall pick.

Yes, another number two overall pick for this franchise.

Another bright shining hope throws for two touchdowns, ran for a score, 21 to 23 for 254 yards.

And the commander shocked the Bengals.

I mean, there's no other way around it.

38 to 33.

And yeah, Mark, Daniels is the story because, well, there's two big stories here.

It's what the hell happened to the Cincinnati Bengals now 0-3

and facing a a lot of questions this week and a season that was supposed to be

getting right after the frustrations of the Burrow injury year last year, but instead they're facing down the idea of being irrelevant before the leaves even change.

But for the Commanders, the Daniels' performance in this game, every time.

Every time they needed a big play, this kid was making big plays, and he's not doing it alone, and you got to give credit.

And I know that's not something anybody expected to do this year ever again, but what Cliff Kingsbury did in this game, this offense did not punt.

This offense was locked in.

And when the game was on the line in the fourth quarter, and

Washington had a chance to either play it a little conservative and try to get another field goal and get and get the

lead back to, I believe they were up five, right?

So get the lead back up to eight, or go for the jugular.

And what happens?

Daniels drops back and drops it in the bucket, 27 yards

to Terry McLaurin.

Good to see you again, Terry, to ice the game.

That was unbelievable.

This is a quarterback that's 61 for 76 over two weeks or over three weeks and is 21 for 23 tonight.

And

Cliff Kingsbury, run out of the NFL to some degree, has done a good job coaching him.

And in general, like Jaden Daniels, I feel that there's an energy around a lot of these rookie quarterbacks, and we've seen it where it's just the moment's too big, and you realize they need another 15 to 20 starts to get into a place where they can kind of be in their own skin.

He's already there.

He's calm.

There's an in-control demeanor to him.

And, you know, they went out last week against the Giants and author non-stop scoring drives.

They were field goals, but he's producing points.

And tonight, they put up three touchdown drives in a a row for the first time since 2015.

He's got the arm.

He's incredibly smart on third down.

He can use his legs.

He beguiled Cincinnati to the point where their pass rush, which is one of their strengths with Trey Hendrickson, was nullified until late in the game.

And he's putting the heat on a Bengals coaching staff with Lou Onarumo that on the Thursday show, and I wasn't wrong, said that this is a coach that can find a way to match up with quarterbacks and shut them down.

And they were completely outmatched tonight.

And it's kind of crazy because if you,

and we'll get to the Bengals, but they actually statistically were really, really efficient tonight.

It just didn't look like it because of what Washington and Jaden Daniels were able to do drive after drive.

They kept going for the throat.

Yeah, and I think that's what really stood out to me.

Obviously, the athleticism

was next level.

There was a moment in the game where Daniels on another kind of big play in the third quarter juked a linebacker out of his shoes on the way to the first down.

And just in general, like going back to the game clinching touchdown to McLaurin, you know, that was on an otherwise, you know, sterling day for Cliff Kingsbury.

That felt a little bit jumbled, the situation there where

the play clock was winding down.

There was obviously some miscommunications going on.

And Daniels is the quarterback, as a rookie playing in his third game, you could easily imagine that leading to either a false start or the play clock expires.

Instead, he gets things calmed down to not just get the playoff, but then throw just a beautiful rainbow touch pass exactly where it needs to be.

So that type of poise is very unusual.

So if you have, for a player with this little experience, so if you have a kid that is not afraid of the moment, a lot of people were watching it.

And when you combine poise with the athleticism he has, and then then sensing, obviously,

a flair for the dramatic, we're cooking with something now, Washington.

So this is

a really huge story now.

And we just talked about it on the Sunday show,

how Malik Neighbors had that big game for the Giants, and he's off to this great start.

And maybe the offensive rookie of the year is not going to be a quarterback as it typically is.

The gravedigger in our preseason predictions did go with Daniels.

And Justin, I believe you cited his ability to run the football and accumulate stats that would really help him in this type of situation.

But it might even go beyond compiling nice numbers.

Like Washington could be a team if this guy's going to be a dog like this week after week.

Gravedigger.

Yeah, I mentioned on the Sunday night recap that Malik Neighbors had likely overtaken Daniels as the favorite.

And in fact, I looked up the odds after we taped.

And instead of doing it while we were taping to have the most up-to-date information, I waited till after the show.

But in fact, neighbors did surpass Daniels as of this morning

for the favorite.

But right now, I'm looking at the odds, and Jaden Daniels is back at the top

as the favorite.

So I do think, like, the rushing yards, I mean, that was something I said because that's like what voters love to see a stuffed stat sheet.

But if this Washington team can win eight or more games, then I feel like he's going to maybe lock up the award.

Yeah, I mean, it's now it's

obviously he is in position to do that.

And why don't we turn now, Mark, to the Cincinnati side of things, where

just an absolute disaster for this team at home, in primetime.

You get T.

Higgins back.

Jamar Chase and Burrow hook up for a long touchdown immediately to start the game.

The celebration is on in Cincinnati.

And for the defense to have the night that it had tonight, and Lu Annarumo and Zach Taylor, obviously shoulder blame, as do the players, of course.

That is unbelievable to get beat in this spot and a harsh wake-up call for a team that considered itself a Super Bowl contender entering the year.

It is.

It's kind of

these losses on these island games, and I know that there were multiple islands tonight, and we can get into that later, but

to lose the way they did and to have a rookie kind of break out and shine is one of the worst losses for a fan base.

Like, I hate when that happens to my team.

We know that feeling, but this is an offense that scored on seven possessions, four touchdowns, two field goals, and there was a missed field goal.

So they were in position to score.

So neither team punted.

There were no punts and no turnovers for the first time in a game since 1940.

That stat is going wild, and now that's not breaking news at this point, but that's kind of insane.

So it just does this, like, it tells us that Joe Burrow isn't done.

The offense isn't done.

This was a bit of a car crash in a different way.

I still think, I don't know why with the Bengals, it feels like the friend that has

a major personal problem.

And maybe I'm that friend to some people, but it's like they've got issues where you've got to kind of hold their hand and just assume that they'll get there at some point.

And it's like, we keep telling each other, like the Bengals, they'll get there.

Like tonight was another night where they're almost there, but they'll be there at some point.

And they're very dangerous.

And we love Joe Burrow.

And it's like,

it wasn't on Joe Burrow tonight.

I thought it was like the connection with Jamar Chase was extremely promising.

But they are on offense a little bit of a, we're going to beat you with our star wide receiver and star quarterback.

And if that doesn't work, uh-oh, right?

Like, it's kind of got to be that.

And T.

Higgins is back in the mix to some degree, but it's like, if that's not working, they're not the Chiefs and they're not these other teams that kind of, even the Bills tonight, we'll get to it, like find a way to beat you in so many different fashions.

Like, they do not.

They're going to beat you through the air with their star players.

They were competitive on offense, but it's to me the defense is a concern to me.

I mean, they were more than competitive.

The Bengals outgained Washington by 80 yards.

They had 1.1 more yards per play.

They averaged 6.2 yards per carry.

They did not turn the ball over, as we said, passed for 312 yards, but none of it mattered because the defense was that bad.

I mean, the defense had to make one goddamn stop in this game in the second half and could not do it, could not get off the field.

So, you know, every team has these bad days.

Every defense has a bad day, and you kind of live with it, and they're not as bad as they they look tonight.

But when you start 0-2, the level of urgency is through the roof.

And for the defense to lay an egg at that level, now it puts them in a spot where they're in deep trouble.

Like, I mean,

obviously, the history backs these things up.

I'll say this.

I'm stepping back from on some level being bullish about Cincinnati, but I still don't think they're done.

And

I look at their schedule.

They go to Carolina next week, and who knows?

You know, Andy Dalton revenge game, you know, that you never know what could happen now.

They might be a juggernaut.

Then they have home against the Ravens, at Giants, at the Browns.

I mean, the pathway just to get back into contention is there, but it does,

it has to shake the confidence of everyone that sports that team.

And behind the scenes in that locker room, shit, we just got buried by this rookie in a game in our building in primetime that we needed, we might not be so good after all.

And that is, as the season spins forward, we're going to now have to see whether the Bengals are actually worth a damn.

Well, and you know, and this is why I love Gravedigger.

He's, he, he, while we're doing this, he, he drums up these incredible numbers, but they're 0-3.

And so you go back to 1990.

I was a junior in high school.

And I'm not saying 1890, but 1990.

Just 2.5% of teams that started 0-3 made the playoffs.

Like, you can't just keep,

we don't just keep incubating you and growing you out of the crib and waiting for the Bengals to do the thing where a child finally crawls out of the crib and you find them on the carpet and it's cute, even though they're not hurt.

It's like, no, you've got to find, this was the game that, like, a couple weeks ago, you think, like, oh, they'll slay Washington.

I think most people thought they would have beaten Washington by 15, 20 points tonight.

This is why I don't bet, by the way.

I mean, I love because you're going to be.

I love having fun on underdog, but

why would you ever get involved when these things can happen?

Everything was pointing to Cincinnati taking care of business, but the league and the teams are so close together and

performances like the Daniels, we've seen it in the past.

These things can happen, and it happened again.

The only thing I'd say, though, is that there was some...

evidence that Daniels was this guy tonight.

Not to this degree and not in this fashion against a team that we thought was a Super Bowl team, but his performance against the Giants and what he's done in general, this is an accurate quarterback that leads the league in first down rushes.

Like he's generated more first downs with his legs.

He's been incredibly accurate.

He doesn't turn the ball over.

And if that's the case, you've got a chance against any team.

And when Cincinnati's pass rush completely disappears tonight,

it's the perfect setting.

And this is not a great commander's offensive line.

I mean, they were fine tonight, but it's like...

Daniels is going to be that guy that suddenly changes what we think about an entire organization.

Like, hope is this, like, airship, this air dirigible now for a team that we thought, well, maybe next year or the year after, but suddenly they're here.

And it's like the Browns thought, oh, Washington's a win on their schedule.

The Bengals thought that.

It's like, not at this point.

Like, this team is rough.

And, like, they lead, they are at the top of the NFC East right now.

And I just want to see what happens.

I love football for that reason.

It's like a team we weren't even talking about, or if we were, we were slashing them verbally.

Here they are.

And just to

not put any cold water on it, this will be a memorable game regardless for Washington's fans because it will either be the night that Jaden Daniels announced that he was the next star in the NFL or this is the high point of his career.

Like, you never know.

But, like, for one night,

this was

the promise of something potentially special.

And that's pretty dark, but

you're saying not be like he'll never be successful.

You know, we're about to talk about Trevor Lawrence.

Like, you never know how these guys develop or don't develop.

But what you always have was that Monday night in Cincinnati when we had this amazing time at the house because Jaden Daniels just tore the Bengals apart limb from limb in their own buildings.

I mean, you have him running like a dive bar in like northwest

D.C.

about 12 years from now.

So

let's see how this turns out.

JD's Tavern.

All right.

One last thing, because it was great on the tell, guys.

I love this.

Like, I love, I love having a chip on your shoulder.

I find so much

of my drive comes from sticking it to people who doubted us or crossed us or I felt, you know, what you have to rise above what people thought of you or believed you could be or couldn't be.

Well, Jaden Daniels was a star at LSU, but he admitted and acknowledged, and they talked about it on the telecast, that he lived in the long shadow of Joe Burrow, who is a legend down by the bayou and had, you know, know, that famous championship season where he was smoking the cigar in the Superdome and everything.

Guy is a living legend for that fan base.

Well,

Mr.

Daniels stepped out of that shadow and into the spotlight tonight.

So pretty freaking awesome.

Can I add like

a Trent squared note here?

Left tackle Trent Brown for the Bengals.

Don't like that.

Injured.

But then Jaden Daniels' first touchdown ever is to, and this is a Michael, this is a Mike DeGar shout-out, is to offensive tackle Trent Scott.

So two big men named Trent diverge this evening on that fork in the road.

We'll see what happens.

I kind of like my clothes better, but that was cool, too.

Factual, but all right.

Good Trent update.

Good Trent update.

All right.

Let's now move to the other Monday night game, the

real primetime game.

Even if it it wasn't the real story, well, yeah, there are big storylines coming out of Bills v.

Jaguars, too.

Let's start, though, with some comments you heard from Shad Khan, owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars, prior to the start of this season.

Winning now is the expectation.

Make no mistake, this is the best team assembled by the Jacksonville Jaguars ever.

Best players, best coaches, but most importantly, let's prove it by winning now.

Let's prove it by winning now.

How about later?

How about we win later?

Like October, maybe?

Sure.

Is that okay, Boss?

Down the road.

Down the road.

Eventually, we'll win.

Ah, game.

The Buffalo Bills had no interest in the Jaguars getting on their feet this season in their building.

And

the Bengals take note.

This is how you deal with someone that comes into your house with the lights up.

47 to 10.

The Bills drop a hammer on the Jags.

The Bills improve to 3-0.

The Jags drop to 0-3.

And Mark, Josh Allen was an absolute dynamo.

If we're talking about offensive rookie of the year favorite now being Jaden Daniels, we also saw the MVP favorite in action in Josh Allen, who threw four touchdown passes in the first half alone, and the Bills scored on each of their first five drives and then just rolled to the finish line with an easy, easy win.

So, you know, talk about narratives that get busted up, Mark.

All the talk about the Bills and did the window close and this is the weakest Bills team yet.

All bunch of bullshit.

And Josh Allen, speaking of guys with chips on their shoulder and

draw from this idea of being doubted, I think that's cooking a little bit here in this fantastic start for the Bills.

I mean, I'm one of those people, like dating back to

the season.

No,

I was down on the Bills.

I thought that they were in a bit of a restructure.

I'm not going to call it a rebuild, but I didn't love the roster going into the season.

I didn't like the energy around the team.

I didn't like it last season.

And I just, I got annoyed with people that just ticketed them for the, you know, the AFC playoffs or title game, especially.

I think tonight is a huge victory for Sean McDermott, especially on defense, and we'll get to that, but just the Sean McDermott model, Brandon Bean, for the fact that they put together a team that, and I mentioned it before, it kind of reminds me on some level about the way that I think about the Chiefs, where it's like, you thought that they lack star power, but they've found a way three weeks into the season to use a lot of different guys in a lot of different ways.

Shakir, James Cook, like Kinkade, like Josh Allen is already in sync with all of them.

And to look at these numbers, because a lot of it has to do with the defense, too, that is missing a couple guys, but you got Von Miller stepping up at halftime, because I viewed this game over at halftime.

Tell me if I'm being too, you know, cavalier there, but they had 288 yards to 70.

It was 34 to 3 at halftime, so I don't think that you were really on a.

Obviously, I'm not alone thinking that, but it was just the ability to drop that kind of a hammer on a team that a couple of weeks ago you would have thought has quality players, has a quality quarterback, and when you can take an opponent and put them into an absolute corner of darkness the way that they have with the terrible Jacksonville Jaguars right now and a quarterback and Trevor Lawrence where Dan, like, I'm like, what is happening with this person's career?

His career is falling apart before our eyes, and it's attached to a coach, a Super Bowl-winning coach that was hired to turn him into an A-plus higher echelon starter, and everything is spinning into complete chaos.

Yeah, I think the Jaguars have lost eight straight games now dating back

to last year,

and

Lawrence,

you know, he just got that huge contract,

and it's not really a hindsight 2020 thing.

I kept on hearing that, oh, Lawrence has to get paid next, and he'll get paid.

And I just kept thinking to myself, like, is

so what is the level that you have to get to as a quarterback to get the contract that puts you in the top five of all players in the league?

And Trevor Lawrence, to me, simply hasn't done enough to earn that beyond being the number one overall pick and looking the part.

And he certainly has had moments in his career,

the playoff comeback, obviously chief among them a couple seasons ago.

But there's also been a lot of evidence that he is not the generational player

that they thought they were getting.

And yet, and this maybe speaks organizationally

to some issues, and that Shad Khan

speech that you heard to the players before the season and Tony Khan making a spectacle of himself during the draft with the neck brace and doing the bit for the Wrestling Federation.

Like,

I mean, how seriously should we take this?

But I hear you.

I'm just saying, like, but it's all of like a larger piece of how seriously should we take this franchise because it almost, especially when you just look at the results and the way Trevor Lawrence is playing, he played poorly in this game, and he has not had a good year so far,

that

they just make decisions based on an image of what they believe they have and what they can be rather than what they actually are.

And that's not going to work in our league.

And you saw that in this game.

This team was totally unprepared.

In addition to the defense not being able to get a single stop on Josh Allen in the first half, they put up 70 yards.

So, in a game that right before the game started, I think it was Dan Orlofsky on the ESPN coverage had a comment where he said, like, this, I think this is the biggest start of Trevor Lawrence's career.

And the first thing I scoffed, and I said, oh my God, these guys are so annoying.

That's so lame.

And then I was thinking about it.

I was like, hmm.

Maybe I see what he's talking about because this is a player that is now under

contract for a huge amount of money.

They're in in a big spot on the road in week three at 0-2,

and they are looking to get their whole fortunes turned around, and you needed him to lead them.

And instead, he shrunk while the other quarterback across the sideline absolutely balled out.

So it's a terrible look for Lawrence, a terrible look for the Jags.

And you just wonder what's next there.

And you wonder if some butts are getting hot because Khan is now being embarrassed, Mark, by the performance of the team that he thought was so excellent.

Oh, I think butts are hot.

I think this is, as Connor Orris mentioned, a job that someone else would want because they think they can fix what they see that is clearly broken.

He's got the second worst completion percentage in the league

at a time when, compared to years ago,

you'd have players like now at this point, everyone is like 68 to 70 percent or more completion percentage, and he's not connecting with his wide receivers.

Like the moment tonight that I thought was just like a sports moment more than just a Trevor Lawrence moment.

But they have a chance.

They're fighting for oxygen.

They're trying to get back in the game.

He overthrows Brian Thomas Jr., who's one of the bright spots on this team.

And I really think this is someone they can build around right into the arms of DeMar Hamlin, who goes 19 yards with it

into Jacksonville territory.

I mean, To have that happen on primetime after everything else, not couched on some early game on Sunday, but tonight in front of everyone,

it was a crescendoing moment for the Bills and also, I think, for the Jaguars, like the complete dark mirror opposite of like, what is happening to this franchise?

We are falling apart.

We're falling apart.

And I think that hot butts is

kind at this point.

I'm boiling butts.

Butts are boiling, Dan.

Boiling butts.

That is disgusting, but potentially accurate.

Yeah, you're referring to, so it's 20-3

with four minutes and 13 seconds to play in the second quarter.

So this was really the last chance for Jacksonville to stay in the game.

And Brian Thomas, wide open, and Lawrence just airmails him.

And last year, I think a lot of, you could call it excuses or just explanations.

But I think in general, people that watch the game and think that Lawrence is a big-time quarterback were quick to kind of wave away how bad he was last year because he was hurt and he was playing through an injury and he probably should have shut it down sooner.

But there's nowhere to hide now.

I mean, the performance that he had in this game and in general, the start to his season is that of a very average quarterback that is being paid like a superstar.

The Hamlin story is so great, by the way, because obviously

it wasn't so long ago that he was laying on the turf of that stadium

dying.

His heart had stopped, and the staff there saved his life with some quick actions.

And then he comes back, and it's pretty gutsy to me and still insane.

All due respect, Mark, to Joe Flacco and and the Cleveland Browns that DeMar Hamlin didn't win comeback player of the year last year.

But anyway, that's beside the point.

He gets the interception.

The fact that he came back to play football is a miracle.

Here is Hamlin after the game speaking into an iPhone.

Could be an Android.

Probably an iPhone.

It was Mafia, what up?

It's three.

Monday Night Football, you was good to me this time.

I appreciate it.

Go Bills, man.

We got another one.

3-0.

That's an understatement.

Monday Night Football, you were good to me this time.

Yeah, I think, I mean, you know, because he's in good spirits.

Yeah, I thought there was an interesting tweet that Trevor Lawrence is the only NFL quarterback who's thrown an interception to someone who died.

So, and I mean, you know, we can make a joke of that now, but like, what a, it's kind of crazy that all of you.

I wouldn't say.

And I, you know what, Mark Sessler made that decision, and that's where you could send the letters.

What's that, P.O.

Box?

I will provide it up at the end of the show.

Yes, I hope to hear everyone's outrage about that.

But, But, I mean, that's where we're at at this point.

What an insane, like, that was the worst deficit in the first half the Jaguars have ever had.

I mean, like, for Shad Khan to say this is the best team we've ever assembled, like, he's like, what did he say?

Hear me now or take it.

He's an example of owners are best to be seen, but not heard.

Shadows.

They have an important role.

Yeah.

They sign the checks.

Shadows and wallets.

Shadows and wallets.

You don't have to talk.

Yeah.

You don't have to talk.

And speaking of, we weren't allowed to say this on the old show.

No.

Owners, you don't need to talk.

And it's probably better if you don't.

Yeah, and it's like, you know, that wasn't in a small scrum with two reporters or a private one-on-one.

It was like in front of the entire team.

And, you know, it would shake the confidence of the person running the entire organization if their assessment is what it was.

All right.

Last word we'll give to Doug Peterson.

Here's what he had to say about the disaster for the Jaguars.

I'll tell you this.

No one's going to feel sorry for us, right?

I mean,

this is who we are right now, and it's not very good, right?

And we have to be honest, you know, with ourselves, and I've got to be honest with myself, and

just keep plugging away.

As for the Bills, Mark, they are 3-0, and they have a quarterback playing out of his mind, and I cannot wait till next Monday night because we get Bills at Ravens.

spicy.

Spicy.

But

another double Monday night though.

Titans at Dolphins was.

Right, because they're shoving Titans-Dolphins on us, too.

So maybe we, you know.

Why are they doing this?

I mean, I know why, I guess.

Why are they doing this?

Do they even have to play the Titans-Dolphins game?

Like, if they didn't play that game, right, and they just do a coin flip to decide who gets W and who gets L, is anyone going to complain?

I won't.

And I'm a Titans fan.

That also, just in terms of where we're at, is

one of the worst prime time games

in a long, long time.

Well, okay, I think it's a Sajak on Monday.

I think it's another Sayjack game.

Don't hit us with that Sajak game and think you're going to fool us.

All right.

Anything else?

Yes, the Jaguars night is only getting worse because they're, according to Rap Sheets, stuck on the tarmac and will not be able to depart Buffalo until

after 1 a.m.

Oh,

see,

See, Gravedigger, your team is horrendous, but you're not alone.

So are the Jaguars, but they're trapped in western New York.

So things could always be worse.

One of my favorite tweets of the night was: the AFC South has completed the arc.

They went from the worst division in football to a division with four exciting young quarterbacks back to the worst division in football in a three-week timeframe.

So quick.

I made that exact point, I think, of the week one recap that this could be a really spicy, fun quarterback division.

after watching Tony Richardson yesterday and Lawrence today and you know we got Mason Rudolph we're staring down the barrel of Mason Rudolph in Nashville my ron

all right let's take a break and we'll hit some news

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audience only.

All right, we are back.

All right, Mark.

Now we must pivot to the news.

Must.

We talk about news because we've chosen to do, you know, this is our careers.

This is what we've chosen to do with our adult lives, Dan.

Or did it choose us?

You know what I mean, man?

Yeah.

Yes, Justin.

I just want to issue a correction.

You know, sometimes publications or news organizations issue a correction if they have something wrong.

Just a quick correction to issue.

You said the Jaguars have lost eight straight games.

Also, yes, I'm going to keep saying Jaguars.

I don't care.

The Jags have not lost eight straight games dating back to last year.

So

you said that earlier last segment.

Trevor Lawrence has lost

eight straight starts, but they didn't win the game that he was out for.

Listen, there's so much depressing shit going on in the AFC South.

It's hard to keep track of it all.

And I'm doing my best.

So somebody lost eight in a row, but it wasn't the Jaguars because they lost.

They won a meeting list game in week 17, you're saying, but they, but the quarterback,

the

quote-unquote franchise quarterback has lost eight straight starts.

Right.

Not a meetingless game.

They were fighting for a playoff spot.

Well, I'll issue another correction, Mark.

How about we don't give Trevor Lawrence a massive historic contract?

Oh, that would be if you can make bank corrections.

What I really love the most is, you know, like when you're out in public with friends and like your partner corrects you in front of like not only your guy friends, but their significant other, and probably randos that think that they could be a better partner to your partner.

Like, it's great to have Justin fill that role right here on our show.

Like, just it's that similar feeling of like, I'm gonna jump in here and let hundreds of thousands of people know that you were incorrect about a fact that I'm looking at on the internet while you're trying to freeball verbally to

that.

Yeah.

You know,

uplift.

It's beautiful.

That's a good point.

You know, when my wife and I, we have a little bit of a lingo for that situation where it'll be like,

you know, I'll go, hey, babe, home team.

Home team.

That's perfect.

Yeah.

And it's, you know, and it's, it's sharp enough and it's authoritarian enough, I think, too.

I think.

I don't even need to explain to the audience what that means.

Just like, babe, home team.

And she goes, yeah.

But sometimes she has to say it to me also.

But actually, no more, I have to say it to her.

Equality.

Like, we're equal.

Like, like men and women are, they're very equal.

So,

well, that's one way to look at it.

I, some may say that women are better than men, but you don't say that.

I do.

All right, let's hit the news.

I'm getting there.

We needed it back, you know, because I believe some people is on suicide watch,

Lamar, man.

Come on, man.

Don't speak flippantly about that.

It's 2024.

All right, let's get to the news.

Let's start.

I thought it was actually funny.

Let's start with the Raiders.

This is also funny.

Antonio Pierce

is obviously in his first full season as head coach of the Raiders.

He took over after doing well as the interim coach last season.

The Raiders had a great win in week two, in which Gardner Minshew played very well and made a bunch of big throws and kind of played like Gardner Minshew, the good version that you expect.

Things didn't go as well in an ugly loss to the Panthers.

On Sunday, a stunning loss, really, considering everything that was going on around the Panthers before that game, Minshew ends up on the bench in favor of Aiden O'Connell

for the fourth quarter of that game.

And on Monday, the reporters ask the head coach, is a change of quarterback possible?

Here's what he had to say.

What did you see from Aiden in his limited spot duty there?

I know you talked yesterday about just giving him a shot to see what he could do, but is there any chance whatsoever that that gives you pause going forward?

Well, I just think, you know, you look at how the game went.

We're down by two scores or so.

Let Aiden come in, see what he could do with the offense, move it.

We're just trying to look for a spark.

Could that mean anything going forward, or is it still Garner's still the guy?

I think we got to give it the players and just evaluate everything from yesterday first.

Mark, I don't understand.

I'm just, I don't want to pile on, and everybody that's listening to the show show knows I'm already, I've had my doubts about Pierce since the beginning, but you know, they beat the Ravens on the road a week ago, Sunday, and

Minshew was great.

He was nails down the stretch, and he was connecting with Devontae Adams.

He's not a star quarterback, but he's obviously someone that can be proficient

when playing the game under control.

How is Antonio Pierce now, after one loss, all of a sudden acting like he didn't know what he had in the first place with Minshew.

Like, this seems like a coach who is way, way too

given to change on a whim, and that's not how it works.

And I have very, my doubts continue to mount here.

I guess I'll just leave it at that.

Yeah, I mean, he didn't, you know, I think it's like, I would imagine the change isn't going to come now.

Rappaport, Ian Rappaport said that it's not definitively happening at this point.

I don't know why you go here, though.

I'm with you on this.

You kind of knew what you, this is like one of the most obvious subplots of the 2024 season.

We were going to come to a juncture where Antonio Pierce is going to waffle between Aiden O'Connell and Gardner Minshew.

You are the organization.

You are the coach.

You are the front office that went into the season with two guys that you're not building your future around.

I don't know why you move off of Minshew or even verbally, even conceptually like considerate to reporters.

You're coming off the wind two weeks ago.

This wasn't a good Sunday.

He is sixth in yardage, fifth in completion percentage, twelfth in yards per attempt.

That's pretty good compared to some of the quarterback play we're seeing early on in this weird season.

Like, why are we even toying with this?

You've got to deal with your locker room, too.

I don't know why if you're pierced, that you're even entertaining this.

You stick with the guy until it gets so bad that there's nothing else you can do.

Just to clarify on the Rapsheet reporting, he wrote on Twitter, the Raiders are sticking with Minchu.

Sources say, so no Aiden O'Connell just yet.

So, yeah, Minshew will be on the field, but I don't know.

It feels to me that Pierce is probably now itching to make that switch and be careful what you wish for.

And don't be surprised if we get a flip-flop where we see these guys going back and forth.

I just,

my feeling about the way Pierce is presenting here is overly reactionary, which is the worst thing you want from a head coach.

Like, Like, fans are allowed to be that way.

But when your coach is that way, that makes me nervous.

And I think it should make Raiders fans novice.

All right, in other news.

Speaking of quarterback news, let's talk some injury news.

Sam Darnold coming off four touchdown passes for the Vikings and that blowout of the Texans.

He got his knee rolled up on in that game.

He had that knee checked out today, and there was no structural damage.

It's a bone bruise, so he's expected to be part of the build-up and practice this week, and full speed ahead in his big comeback season.

The Chargers are not so lucky.

Justin Herbert obviously aggravated that high ankle sprain.

So, we're going to see what that means.

I'd be very surprised if we see Herbert next week, and who knows beyond that.

They also lose offensive tackle Rashawn Slater to a strain peck.

Their rookie tackle, left tackle Joe Ald has a sprained MCL, and both will miss some time.

And also safety Derwin James, he will miss one game.

Suspension, though, not an injury, for repeatedly breaking player safety rules.

When you do that, they start, they put an eye on you, Mark, and then you hit a certain number of infractions or eye in the sky fails in the view of the league, and they come to get you.

So they came and took a game check, and they lose their big-time safety.

And yeah, go ahead.

Well, the game check doesn't affect us.

These are all key players.

Like, Joe Walt is taller than some, you know, lean twos and TPs that you'd find in the woods, in old school woods.

And, like, he's very,

he's been awesome for them.

They're a grinded-out type of team.

You take away two tackles, potentially, and Justin Herbert.

Not loving that.

I love even at 50 years old, Mark, you continue to surprise me with your awe and wonder for how big offensive linemen are.

Joe Walt is a little bit more.

It comes up a lot more than one would expect on an NFL podcast that we've done like 1,700 podcasts.

It's still something that sticks with you.

It's like I have an uncle, my uncle Stu, that whenever he sees fireworks, he cries.

It just gets him emotional.

And that's what I'm, for you, I would imagine when you see an offensive lineman and you see all six foot seven, 320 of them, a tear runs down the cheek.

Yeah, because I'm not sure that, you know, 40 years from now, these humans will be able to do this job because it's like those people right now are being weaned on, like, you know, video screens at age six.

They're not like, there's like, oh, it was a corn-fed boy from Iowa.

Like, no one's corn-fed at this point.

No one's doing farm work.

Like, they're on screens, they're gaming.

So, it's like, I'm not sure where I'm not sure offensive linemen exist to this degree

a couple decades from now.

How about that?

What an ominous postscript there from the sess dog in a big spot.

All right.

In other news, the Niners, I mean, this is, I do not like this.

I mean, let's head to Germany,

Head into Germany for an injury update.

Never something that you want.

Christian McCaffrey is seeing a specialist

in Germany to look at his troublesome Achilles issue that he's dealing with.

We will figure out what's wrong with your Achilles.

That's probably a conversation he's having right now.

Yes.

But ominous, speaking of ominous,

that doesn't sound great.

Jordan Mason obviously is filled in well for McCaffrey, but the Niners need their dude, the reigning offensive player of the year.

Also, Javon Hargrave is out for the year, a season-ending triceps injury.

And Brock Purdy, who, by the way, played damn well.

Yes, he did.

Completely lost in the Rams comeback and another Niners collapse there on Sunday at SoFi.

But Purdy played great in that game.

He is day-to-day with back tightness, but hopefully he'll be all good.

That's what's happening in the news.

I like the idea of going to Europe to have your body looked at.

I think that's what I'm saying.

See, the way you say it, though, there's something almost,

I don't know.

It's a maintenance scenario, and I think it's a very good thing.

You're a sex addiction, you got a problem with sex?

You're addicted to sex?

The sex addiction or something?

The two of you trying to come from that angle is concerning to me because I think it's like there's a long storied history of traveling across the ocean to have the best possible care.

Oh, yeah.

I'm sure, Mark.

Where do you like to go?

Amsterdam?

You know, like I'm not even going to entertain the question.

This is a sports analysis podcast.

That's what I'm talking about is

athleticism in sports.

All right.

By the way.

We're going to smoke your weed.

By the way, this is obviously just the beginning of another week for Heed the Call.

Connor Orr will be back with us Wednesday morning.

We'll preview Giants, Cowboys, and

have some fun with Connor.

Then we'll have the Thursday preview show with Jordan and Mike, TNF recap later that night.

And you get a little double header from Heed the Call.

And of course, the Sunday night flagship program with Connor and Gravedigger.

And also, do not forget that Heed the Call has a Patreon offshoot, patreon.com slash Heed the Call.

And you can get the Friday morning

draft of the games we will cover.

We have a lot of fun doing that.

Also, you have the latest throwback podcast exclusive now to the Patreon where we looked at the 2009 VMAs coming up later this week.

I think Rolling Thunder is making its debut, Mark.

Is that correct?

I believe it is.

Oh my goodness.

Yeah, no, it's going to be a nice surprise.

I also have a newsletter that will appear at some point.

You know, that's crept up on me during the busy NFL season, so I'll be working on that as the midnight oil burns.

Maybe hire like an intern to help me write part of that.

But that's going to be released as a surprise.

Usually when people hire someone to ghost write their content, the whole idea is not to share with the audience that it's ghostwritten, but now the cat's out of the bag, thus lowering potentially the value

of the article itself.

But

what's done is done.

It cannot be edited.

Justin, anything else?

Yeah, you know, you mentioned the throwback podcast, looking at the VMAs.

And I just wanted to say on my drive back from Vegas, late, late Saturday night/slash early, early Sunday morning, driving back from Vegas at 2 a.m., four-hour drive, deliriously tired.

The thing that got us home while I was driving was listening to the Throwback Podcast, starting with that episode.

And it is a great listen.

Highly encouraged.

Highly recommend it.

Thank you, Justin.

You know, it crossed my mind.

You mentioned that on Sunday night before we taped.

You said, hey, I'm driving back from the desert.

We were listening to Throwback Pod, and then you mentioned that you had done like a Britney episode.

So we found that and listened to that.

But, Mark, he didn't mention like we enjoyed it.

He just mentioned that he listened to it, and I was like,

did he not like it?

But now I have the proof.

He now has followed up with a comment that they enjoyed it.

So now I feel much better about that.

Justin, can I just give you a piece of advice?

When you discuss anything regarding Dan's activities, accomplishments, artistic endeavors, or personality.

Be very thorough.

Be very thorough because he's spent the last day plus, that was more than a day, of experiencing enjoyment.

He was thinking about, he was parsing your comments, and I could tell they were complimentary.

Something about Dan did not

allow it to go to that place.

Obviously, if we listened to the entire podcast and then went back in the archives and found another one to keep listening to you guys, and I was like,

you cracked the door open just enough where the doubt had flooded into my room and into my thoughts.

But now I'm so happy to hear that.

And maybe you, the listening audience, will also enjoy the Throwback Podcast with Bob Kestron and I.

So thank you, Justin.

It's very nice of you.

Of course.

All right.

That's it.

See you on Wednesday.

Congratulations to Commanders fans,

Jaguars fans.

Sorry about your bad look.

Till next time, heed the call.