NFL Cover Zero: Dart Start, Injury impact, and the best games of Week 4!

00:00:06
Speaker 1: NFL Covers Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin is a production of the NFL and iHeart podcast. It is NFL Covers Zero the Wednesday episode between week three and four. I'm Matt Jones, still in Cape Town, South Africa, although I leave tomorrow for a safari in Kruger National Park. It is it is Heritage Day here in South Africa, which is like the day everyone celebrates wherever they're from. So all across the city people are dressed up in like their native garb, and there's food on the streets and it's a big party. And I said, you know what, though, the people of the NFL still need their football talked about.

00:00:57
Speaker 2: So I'm in my hotel room to do it with you, Drew and Billy. Drew. Nice to see him, Man, you as well.

00:01:03
Speaker 3: I'm wondering with all this you have going on down there, do you just like polightly dismiss yourself so you can go up to your hotel room and do an NFL show?

00:01:10
Speaker 2: Are you?

00:01:10
Speaker 1: Like?

00:01:10
Speaker 3: Yes? So these big environments that have to step away so.

00:01:13
Speaker 2: People don't know.

00:01:14
Speaker 1: I'm on a I was on a fellowship, now I'm on a group solo tour, So everybody on there doesn't know each other. With eight women, it's eight women, me and our god. Who's a guy named Lee who has listened Drew to every episode of this show.

00:01:33
Speaker 2: Oh nice chan Lee.

00:01:34
Speaker 1: He has to he has to drive back and forth every day from his house to the hotel to meet us, and he listens and then he comments on all of our jokes. So like, first of all, everywhere I go and Drew in South Africa, I tell people to listen to this show. So today I got the guy who gave us our tour at the winery, I got him to subscribe. I got my taxi driver tonight to subscribe.

00:01:58
Speaker 2: I got the dude who's.

00:01:59
Speaker 1: Trying to fix my cell phone and not succeeding. He is subscribing. I'd like to say hi to all of those folks, Lee, Jason, and Paconga, thank you all.

00:02:11
Speaker 2: Very much for listening.

00:02:13
Speaker 1: Probably right now, Drew, we have at least four South African listeners.

00:02:17
Speaker 3: There's a lot of good NFL shows out there with great hosts, but how many put feet to dirt and get out there internationally and try to expand the reach of their own show like you're doing right now.

00:02:25
Speaker 2: That's right. I don't know. I think all of them were willing to accept.

00:02:29
Speaker 1: Maybe the taxi driver who I was just like, no, you want to five star rating, then you need to subscribe. Also, my cell phone still does not work. It's not going to work for the rest of the trip. It is. I don't know what happened. I mean, and cell phones here literally costs. I think I said this last week thirty five hundred dollars, so I can't make myself do it. But it has been weird, like just being completely disconnected from the world. I mean disconnected. I have access to a computer when I'm in my hotel room, but otherwise drew no ability to know what's happening, including no ability to get a car, which means I have to plan like it's nineteen eighty five everywhere I go.

00:03:10
Speaker 2: To make sure I have a way to get back.

00:03:12
Speaker 3: Well, it did look like you posted a picture of an animal. Did you borrow someone's phone and log in, or did you get a camera and actually take it to the hotel and scan it and upload it through the hotel computer to your Instagram.

00:03:23
Speaker 1: I took other I said, I need to have a couple things like I can't come home from Africa with not one picture.

00:03:30
Speaker 2: It's true like that, that's basically what we are.

00:03:34
Speaker 1: I've seen some of the most beautiful things in the world, and Drew, I don't have any pictures of any of them. Like, We're going to go on this safari and I'm going to see like lions and drafts and elephants, and you're not.

00:03:45
Speaker 2: You're not going to see one picture.

00:03:47
Speaker 3: Just taking a lot of mental notes out there.

00:03:49
Speaker 2: It's all just gonna be up here in my mind.

00:03:52
Speaker 1: So a couple of times I've asked people if I can use their camera, take the picture and text it to me, just so I act like I have some remembrance of me being here.

00:04:01
Speaker 3: Well, I'm sure there is a good part of being disconnected there. It probably helps you enjoy it a little bit more. Good for you.

00:04:07
Speaker 1: Fund and a seventy five year old tortoise today, which was nice. I saw. I've like stood on mountains where it's very windy. I saw penguins. It's been it's been very exciting, and uh, Drew, I do seriously, I highly recommend South Africa without question. The most beautiful views I've ever seen in my life are here.

00:04:34
Speaker 3: Well, I'm drawing pictures of the views in my mind based on your descriptions. So since you can't actually show me, how do you find out this tortoise is seventy five years old?

00:04:42
Speaker 2: Is that?

00:04:42
Speaker 3: Is that just some people know answer a conversation.

00:04:45
Speaker 1: Actually, that's a good point. The guy who led the bike towards just told me. But he could have said any age, because how am I going to argue with him? And I don't even know how he knows. He looked to be only like twenty seven, so I'm not sure how. He certainly hasn't been around for his whole life. So that's a good question. I I that may be completely made up. Well, I mean, at least you're having fun. I did want to know if I don't know how that comes about you. You're the tourists there were there. It looks like was there a penguin?

00:05:10
Speaker 2: Yeah?

00:05:11
Speaker 3: I was. They felt like mosted a penguin or something.

00:05:13
Speaker 1: They call them jackass penguins because they know abreut.

00:05:18
Speaker 3: Each other in shopping carts.

00:05:21
Speaker 2: That's exciting. They hit each other in the project.

00:05:24
Speaker 1: No, they they're called jackass penguins because they got a really annoying like that's that's my penguin. But they yell apparently when they're in mating season. It's really really loud. I don't think they were in it right now. But I will say this, the people in my group really like penguins.

00:05:41
Speaker 3: If they see a penguin, they just scream and shriek and they get really excited.

00:05:46
Speaker 1: I don't have anything that moves me like the penguins move at least one or two with the women in my group. But it's nice to see people happy about stuff.

00:05:53
Speaker 3: Yeah, and how's your carrying that stuff animal around? Still got that with you?

00:05:58
Speaker 1: Still got that thing it's very deep in the suitcase. Still got that. And well and last thing today, you know me pretty well? And like so today they said we're gonna ride e bikes all around vineyards and drink wine. And that's a sentence that has no words in it that I enjoy. All right, So, I mean, I don't really like wine. Vineyards to me look like just fields. And I hadn't been on an e bike ever, like ever in my life. I've been on bikes, but I did. This whole e bike revolution just passed me by, and I kind of loved it. Though the e bikes. I think you're gonna start. I think I'm gonna start being an e bike guy because you can go really fast and not have to work very hard, and like you get the wind in your in your hair, and I think that you're gonna have to start referring to me as Matt e bike.

00:06:58
Speaker 3: You're gonna come back being an e biker gang around town wearing all the gear, rolling your pants leg up on the left side like they do on the way to work.

00:07:06
Speaker 1: They have e bikes and they have an e bike Tour de France. If so, I'm in, are.

00:07:11
Speaker 3: You gonna come back and also be into wine too?

00:07:13
Speaker 1: You're gonna be bouncing down the local Okay, so just all these people they do the thing where they swirl the glass and they smell it, you know what I mean. And they're like and the I don't know what any of that is. I just go, do you have a coke zero? And can I pour it in my pocket?

00:07:32
Speaker 3: And as long as I get my wine bottle too.

00:07:34
Speaker 2: I pour it on my phone.

00:07:37
Speaker 1: No, they have, ay, they and by the way vineyards. I don't think they think it's very high class.

00:07:43
Speaker 2: When you ask for a coke zero at the vineyard. They don't. They don't look at that too kindly.

00:07:48
Speaker 3: I'll be honest, let's get your branching out, even if it's just is an e bike.

00:07:53
Speaker 2: Well, but I am a huge fan of this place.

00:07:55
Speaker 1: And then when you when we do this show Sunday, I will have maybe seen a big Safari wildlife. Now, well, I've been gone a lot of stuff. Stuff has happened on you seen the NFL. We went off the air before the Monday night game between the Ravens and the Lions. I couldn't sleep very well that night, so I woke up at five am and I thought, wait a minute, I bet that football game is still going on. So I watched the end of it, and the Ravens my pick to potentially win the Super Bowl. They can't stop anyone via the pass. Their secondary is awful. And now a big loss, two big loss in a row. And you got the Chiefs this week. What's happened to Baltimore?

00:08:41
Speaker 2: Yeah?

00:08:41
Speaker 3: And I gotta eat some crow here on this podcast. After that lost to the Bills. I believe I even raised my voice a little that Derek Henry doesn't fumble that was a one off, won't happen? Again three games in a row. Three games in a row. That is so uncharacteristic him. I've watched him his whole career at Tennessee. I think he had fifteen fumbles in eight seasons. I lowered that actually, and then he gets to Baltimore to contender here and not just it's been three or one in each week for the three They've been at huge points in the game. They were down four driving against Detroit to to potentially take the lead there, and to see him do it again, it's got me scratching my head, like, oh, no, King Henry, has he got a case of the fumbles that might linger even longer?

00:09:19
Speaker 1: Well, I mean he also said that he's like analyzed the tape so that he but he's in his head. He doesn't know why it's happening. Now, that's bad when you get in your head on stuff, right, like if you're if you're trying to, you know, hit a note when you're seeing or like if you're missing five footers in golf, it makes you do it more. Do you think if he's in his head he fumbles the ball even more?

00:09:42
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean it's you can get the yips in anything. It doesn't just have to be athletics, so something could be mental like that. And to see him loose his cool on the sideline where he smashed his helmet, that just all of that is so uncharacteristic of Derrick Henry, who had been so good last season for them, and he's still great obviously, but this is this is a new side of him we haven't really seen before.

00:10:02
Speaker 1: Yeah, well he'll that game. We'll talk about it when we're previewing. The week that Ravens Chiefs game is a massive game for both teams and Dan Campbell, you know, Week one, they look, they look terrible. Everybody writes off the Lions, and I think at this point, if you looked at their schedule and who they were playing, the fact that they were playing the Packers, the Bears, and the Ravens, and you had told him at the beginning, you'll get through that, you'll be two and one. A couple of the wins will be very impressive. I think they would have taken it drew so ultimately the Week one every year there's an overreaction.

00:10:33
Speaker 2: Maybe it'll be.

00:10:33
Speaker 1: The Lion's bad performance against the Packers.

00:10:36
Speaker 3: I think it will. One of they scored like eighty points in the two games since then, so they've really figured it out. And he's just I'm not a Lions guy. They're fine, but Dan Campbell is fun to watch and they're going forward on fourth down and that character and.

00:10:49
Speaker 2: They go for it from like the yes team.

00:10:50
Speaker 3: Yeah absolutely, I mean they are a fun team in the NFL is better when they're good. So I'm glad that looks to be a one off game in Week one when they lost so bad.

00:10:58
Speaker 2: I love dudes that go for it on their own fifteen. I mean, that is insanity.

00:11:04
Speaker 1: And I think Dan Campbell, I've said for a long time he reminds me of the gym teacher on Beavis butt Head. He's got that energy and I think, you know, I can see why guys really like him.

00:11:15
Speaker 2: Now. Some other sort of headlines from the week.

00:11:18
Speaker 1: Jackson Dart we wondered when this would happen named the starter for the Giants, and not only named the starter Drew.

00:11:26
Speaker 2: Brian day Ball says, we'll start all season.

00:11:29
Speaker 1: I don't know if Brian dave Ball will be there to make that decision all season, but do you agree with the decision to start even then? If you are do you just say, well, he's got it, We're gonna let him go through the year.

00:11:39
Speaker 3: It's tough. It seems like a desperation move. I mean, Dave All's putting his job on the line. Maybe the GM two handed it to him, and you know, if it doesn't work out, then you go back, you go out, and you make a new hire, and that guy wants his own quarterback. And it's kind of the never ending cycle. Your Bears have done it a little bit of that over the years. But at the same time, Russell Wilson just doesn't look like he's got it. They're at the I know they weren't ever really in it last week, but even down in the red zone, he's throwing it off the upright, he threw one in the tunnel. Well, he had the great game against the Cowboys, but I think that's it. I didn't see well, he was towing all over the place. He had a good game against the Cowboys. I think that says a lot more about the Cowboys than Russell Wilson. And even though it's desperate, going to Dart, I think you have to do it, and Russell, time's going and gone, and I think if.

00:12:21
Speaker 1: You're going to go to him. You have to let him go the whole year because he's good. I mean, every rookie outside of one or two has bad moments and they're not gonna make the playoffs, so you might as well have him go. The worst scenario you could do is be two and seven and then bench him, and then he loses his confidence and you're not doing anything. I think day Ball, I actually think it was a pretty mature decision to say he'll play the rest of the year, because again, the incentive for day Ball would be to to try to win some games, and if he's playing really bad. I mean, at this point, day Ball and the GM Joe Shane, their time in New York is going to depend on Jackson Dart being good, right. I mean that it's like mister ole miss Pratt party. Your whole career is going to be based on how he does it. Just it's just how it.

00:13:10
Speaker 3: Is, and it's looking like it's not gonna work out in any whoever it is. But would you rather go out watching Russell Wilson at the end of his career and your your career is attached to that, or at least hand it off to the kid with some swagger where the fans will at least get into it a little bit. Whatever he proves to be on the field. Just Wilson's just so uninspiring right now, and you at least have a shiny new toy that go out there and see what he has and hope for the best.

00:13:34
Speaker 1: Do we think Jackson Dart dates a pop star or celebrity before the end of the season.

00:13:40
Speaker 2: I mean, it's kind of becoming the thing. And he's got that.

00:13:44
Speaker 3: He's in New York, he's got the locks, he's got the arm like he's he which pop stars he date?

00:13:50
Speaker 1: Now, what's the one? Tate McCrae. I'm gonna tell you no, I'm putting my money on Tate McCrae. That's a person.

00:13:56
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:13:57
Speaker 3: Did you see He asked for Eli's help getting in a reservation at a popular restaurant in New York, and Eli said, I'll help you with football. I'm not helping you there until you've made it. You get your own reservations. So Darts, oh really, yeah, Dark, it's called for Charles. It's a it's a very popular restaurant and even the starting quarter the now starting quarterback of the Giants couldn't get in, So maybe he hadden up to that a list girlfriend just yet if he still needs help getting into.

00:14:21
Speaker 2: Wait a minute, what's the day? What's the name of the restaurant?

00:14:23
Speaker 3: For Charles?

00:14:25
Speaker 2: For Charles, the number four is what? What's what makes that's really popular? Good?

00:14:29
Speaker 3: It's one of them. I've tried to get it, like you, you cannot. They tried to get in. Wait minute, you couldn't. No, no, no, I mean they released like every day, they release a certain amount that morning, and I've gotten on and tried to be one of the people to get it. There's just no getting in there unless you know somebody. It's impossible, like I've gotten.

00:14:46
Speaker 1: Since it's this restaurant, Since Jackson Dark can't get in, Andrew Franklin can't get in, I need to know what's so good about it, So Billy, you get some information on for Charles. I have to learn about why this place everybody needs to get in so much you I wouldn't even help. They've made it illegal now. I think to do secondary reservations like you used to be able to. You could get them and then sell them on a third party website, and now that's illegal. That's how much people want the reservation process to have integrity.

00:15:19
Speaker 3: We nerd out on restaurant, we plan trips on if we can get a reservation. And so I'm battling. I've never gotten one of any of these places, but I'm in the crowd battling and looking at the secondary. It's ridiculous.

00:15:29
Speaker 2: Those places are that good though, Like are you do you?

00:15:33
Speaker 1: Is it just you want to be there because it's the place to be genuinely got the food is worth doing.

00:15:39
Speaker 3: The one time I made it into one, it was spectacular. It was like the best meal I've ever had, But it was to win in the lottery to get into it. I had to get up in the morning. It's like getting concert tickets to get into a restaurant to overpay for their food. It is out of hand.

00:15:52
Speaker 1: Yeah, I did that one time of some friends. We were in Porto, Portugal, and they got one of those places.

00:15:59
Speaker 2: And it just felt like a lot.

00:16:00
Speaker 1: Like people were coming up to me and they were like wiping my face off in between courses me massages, and I was like, I don't know, man, I feel like if I had a really good chicken sand which this would be the same.

00:16:12
Speaker 3: But oh, you know we're both dood with Hello at the street carts our favorite I do.

00:16:16
Speaker 1: Look take me in New York. Uh, fifty second street streetcar. What is it that some guys? Three guys, other guys.

00:16:24
Speaker 3: Yeah, fifty third and six right outside the Hilton. Hello, guys, just full hellow guys. That's that's all I want. I don't need four Charles chefs. Kiss, Billy. What do we know about it? Uh? The food is really good, and there's a part of that.

00:16:38
Speaker 2: Thank you, that was good news. Thank you for that information.

00:16:41
Speaker 3: I'm not done.

00:16:41
Speaker 4: And and part of it is that it's hard to get a reservation. There's a wow factor to actually getting a reservation there. And that's that's all I got. So good food and hard to get a reservation so far.

00:16:54
Speaker 1: All right, nice job, Billy, you really you really brought a lot to there. Are There are four injuries that are important in the NFL this week.

00:17:10
Speaker 2: You tell me which of these is going to make more have a bigger impact.

00:17:14
Speaker 1: Nick Bosa out for the year for the forty nine Ers, Naji Harris out for a significant amount of time for the Chargers, James Connor out for the year for Arizona, and then Ceedee lamb is going to be out for six weeks for the Cowboys.

00:17:27
Speaker 2: Those are four big names.

00:17:28
Speaker 1: Those are four names that have all at various points in their career been you know, contended for Offensive Player of the Year. Wait when, in Bosa's case, was defensive player of the year. Who's the biggest loss?

00:17:43
Speaker 3: I kind of want to say Harris, just because I think of the bunch, they're the biggest contenders.

00:17:47
Speaker 2: I mean, the others are going to play a lot, not Bosa.

00:17:50
Speaker 3: We've both shared our feelings and what we think that team multiply is. I mean, if it's truly what they mean to their team, Yeah, that is the biggest. But I think the one that could actually impact, you know, a team making a run would be the Chargers. Even though he in the name of Bosa, but I just don't know that the forty nine Ers are going to be as good with or without him. And I know, you know, Najia Harrison the biggest name on that list, But I think the Chargers are the best team on that list, So I think them have Do you think the Chargers are real? I really do. I don't think the Brazil game was a fluke. Herbert seems to have taken a big step forward, and losing anything on that offense could hold them back a little bit.

00:18:24
Speaker 1: There was an NFL maybe it was maybe it was on the Athletic or is either NFL dot com where they're where there are? They are every week polling NFL coaches and asking to rank the quarterbacks in football, which feels like not a week to week thing that it feels like the list shouldn't change that much.

00:18:45
Speaker 2: But I have to tell you here's what I found very surprising.

00:18:47
Speaker 1: The top three are Alan Lamar Mahomes and they've been the top three for a long time. Number four on the list this week was justin Herbert. Do you think that's I mean that that feels very high to me, But do you think that's right?

00:19:04
Speaker 3: It's hard to argue against it with he's already done this year and he's always had that potential and getting him with hardball and then the start that they're off to, I wouldn't bet again against him at this point. I still think that that conference is gonna be Bill's Ravens and probably not even dropping the Chiefs down. But I think the Chargers are knocking on joining that conversation right now and could by the end of the year being that mix.

00:19:26
Speaker 1: The other thing that shocked me is okay, so that was for Jalen Hurst was five. Take a guess who number six was. I want you, I want you to think about who do NFL coaches believe is the sixth best quarterback? And by the way, I'm gonna give you a hit, it was not Joe Burrow because he's hurt. He's on the list, but I guess he had drop because of that. So who do you think is the sixth best quarterback?

00:19:50
Speaker 2: Are we doing?

00:19:50
Speaker 3: Just what they've done for three weeks?

00:19:52
Speaker 1: Like this is the ranking of they said who is who are the best quarterbacks in the NFL?

00:19:56
Speaker 2: How they do it? I guess you'd have to ask the coaches? But what what do you what are you thinking?

00:20:00
Speaker 1: All right?

00:20:01
Speaker 3: Let me cover who we've said again already just real quick.

00:20:04
Speaker 1: Alan Lamar Mahomes Hear Herbert, Jayleen Hurts, Jordan Love.

00:20:12
Speaker 3: Jordan Love was like eight, okay, maker, Yeah, Baker Mayfield.

00:20:16
Speaker 2: Baker Mayfield was six. Wow.

00:20:19
Speaker 1: Can you believe we live in a world where this is not fans, this is NFL coaches are ranking Baker Mayfield six.

00:20:27
Speaker 2: That really shocked me. Yeah.

00:20:29
Speaker 3: We mentioned this on our last podcast, A guy that's career was gone, and this week I wouldn't have had him that hide surprising, but he's calling out the coordinator that fired him after games. He's we've got the moment with Gardner Johnson who just got cut where he's gonna a guy's face. I mean he has found absolute new life and has been looking good for them. So yeah, I guess it does make sense to me. I didn't have that. Guess.

00:20:52
Speaker 1: By the way, if I were to have asked Billy for more information on that, he would have told me that Justin Herbert placed for the Chargers and Baker Mayfield is ranked sixth.

00:21:01
Speaker 2: But did you get any more on the restaurant.

00:21:03
Speaker 3: Oh no, we've moved on from that.

00:21:05
Speaker 2: I am okay. The NFL talk, well, you pretty much like completed it.

00:21:11
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think you got the depleted it all.

00:21:26
Speaker 2: I'm gonna give you my stat of the week, drip all right.

00:21:28
Speaker 1: Stat of the week The Buffalo Bills have either have either won or tied on the turnover turnover margin in the game, So whether they've either had more takeaways or they've tied for twenty five straight games.

00:21:47
Speaker 2: That's an NFL record.

00:21:49
Speaker 1: Twenty five straight times they have either produced more like they've either taken away more turnovers, or they've had the same as their opponent. That is an unbelievable statistic and is one that you know sometimes turnover margin chain especially fumbles year like year to year, there's a regression to the mean.

00:22:10
Speaker 3: Twenty five straight is absolutely crazy. I would have guessed that the highest streak would be like ten games, eleven games, maybe twelve teams into doubling that because, as you said, you can have the best defense of all time or the best offensive protecting the ball, but eventually there's just a little bit of luck involved. As how you would think would get broken into the league.

00:22:31
Speaker 1: When he came to the league, he was kind of known as like a gunslinger who would make dumb decisions. Twenty five straight past the record last game. But I'm with you. If you had told me to guess what the all time record was, I would have said twelve or something like that. Twenty five is ridiculous and it's probably a big reason why they've been so good. Do you think, though there is a potential regression to the mean there at some point the fact that.

00:22:58
Speaker 3: I'm so shocked that it's how I would think so. And they play in so many meaningful games, and you're in those games because you're not turning it over. But that just seems like a ridiculous stet.

00:23:07
Speaker 2: It does to me.

00:23:08
Speaker 1: I that was one that was a wow, a wow of I know Drew's gonna be happy when he hears this.

00:23:16
Speaker 2: You're Titans coach.

00:23:17
Speaker 1: Callahan has given his play calling duties to the quarterback coach. He says he needs to be more focused during games on the overall big picture of the game.

00:23:28
Speaker 2: Do you agree with that decision?

00:23:30
Speaker 3: I agree that he needs to be a lot more focused on the overall big picture. My next question is just who is taking over the basic level in game management responsibilities now because he has proven he can't do it that either, I'm ready for him to give all of his duties to all the other people and then he can go send in the crowd with his fans because he has no business being our head coach. But I am glad of this. I think the quarterback coach will be better. No, absolutely not the whole operation.

00:23:57
Speaker 2: The whole I don't know his name.

00:24:00
Speaker 3: The whole operation is a joke. Just yesterday, we trade one of the few bright spots on defense, a cornerback. It's a second year guy, Brownlee Junior. He's from Louisville. Even I like him. He's from Louisville. Trade him for a six round pick, where you would try to use that pick to get a guy like him, It's like one of the few players out there trying. We just dealt him for on down the road. The fire sales about to start. I'm going to watch them, but it is a horrendous operation that is even worse than I even imagine they could have been.

00:24:29
Speaker 2: This year.

00:24:30
Speaker 1: We're gonna get a little later to our Survivor League picks. And I nearly picked the Texans against the Titans, just because I believe so little in the Titans. I didn't because it's conference game or division game. But yeah, they're awful. I do think going down to the quarterback coach though, that's usually just some dude, you know. Sometimes it's future offensive coordinators, but sometimes it's just a quarterback. But I feel like, I guess, do you not have an OC? Was he BOC as well? He must have been. You don't skip over the ocean.

00:25:02
Speaker 3: Well, Brian Callahan It goes back to the when we hired Brian Callahan. Everyone was like, wait, he didn't even really call plays for the Bengals, Like what are we doing here? Like he kind of lucked into a system that Taylor calls the place and then he had Joe Burrow. I mean, what an easy job where you're not calling plays and Joe Burrow's your quarterback. So I didn't even know how we ended up with Callahan in the first place, but I'm shocked he made it four weeks that it is is the play caller. Bou Heart Degree is the quarterbacks coach. By the way, who bow Heart agree?

00:25:31
Speaker 1: I don't know that's not a person. You made that name up. Listen to who is Bowldart point. I'm to give Billy a chance to redeem it. So because his his thing about the restaurant was not the best Billy, as we do this next story, I want you to give me good information about bou Heart Degree. Can you do that? We are on it all right while he's doing that. Uh, you know, I don't have a phone, so I don't have access to my text machine, but I do have access to Instagram. It's the only form of communication with the outside world that I have got a question on there and I wanted to read it. And by the way, we'll start taking more questions on the text machine. Somebody wrote and asked, Matt do you I know you like the Manning cast? Does Drew like the Manning Cast? I love it? My wife thinks they talk too much. I mean, ultimately, if the cast is the two of them talking, they do need to talk.

00:26:28
Speaker 2: Are you a fan of the Manning Cast? You know?

00:26:30
Speaker 3: I was when it first came out. I would pick it over over the regular broadcast, and I enjoyed it. But I kind of just over time, leaned gradually with each each Monday night into the regular broadcast, and now I almost don't even check on it at all, so I get back to Bucket Aigman just kind of or naturally. Though it's not like I'm like, I don't enjoy the Manning Cast. I just kind of that's just when I turn it on ESPN and stays there. But I do enjoy the clips. Like the other day, I guess I don't even know why he was saying the number sixty seven, but ELI did the TikTok six seventh thing. I still don't really know what that means, because I'm forty.

00:27:04
Speaker 2: I don't know what that means.

00:27:05
Speaker 1: You know.

00:27:05
Speaker 3: I turned and show it to my wife and then she's talking about it, so they, I mean, they still see even though I don't know what that means. They're still you know, trying to be hip and got to look at talking about other things. But I just naturally kind of go towards the original.

00:27:18
Speaker 1: I really like it, but sometimes I think I'm the only person watching it, like the only person. I sometimes think it's me and Archie are the only two people watching it, because something will happen on it, Like one time they talked through like two plays, and so I took to Twitter with outrage. This was during week one and go, I love you Mannings, but show the game and no one responded, like no one. It was like no one else or maybe I got my own broadcast, but no one. No one responded, and I thought, and then I went and looked. The numbers for the ratings are actually really not very good. But I don't understand why people do why people don't like it. I learn a lot from watching them, and.

00:28:00
Speaker 3: Now that you mention and I did enjoy it, I haven't even watched all this year. My favorite thing, and I hope they still do it is when Peyton gets so mad that they're not doing what he thinks they should do, or a guy misses a throw, you could just get it's here scoffing or his breath and knowing a great ones like frustrated. That's my favorite part of the Manning broadcast seasons.

00:28:17
Speaker 1: I like my Mom because he roots for everyone, like like Peyton wants every quarterback to complete every pass, and he ends up being like my mom when she watches a game where she cheers for both teams, you know, hoping everyone succeeds.

00:28:33
Speaker 2: That's kind of how Peyton is during those games.

00:28:35
Speaker 3: I wasn't planning to bring this up, but my favorite kind of secondary thing that we've seen this season and we should have mentioned on Sunday was the CBS flashback to the seventies last Sunday was pretty awesome on their mark. See it was a good yeah, I mean the whole set it looked like we went back in time. You know, they're wearing the big collars and the bell bottoms and half the crew is bald, but you know they got the big wigs on. Even the sideline reporters of the actual games were wearing seventies outfits.

00:29:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, oh that's cool.

00:29:01
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean JJ White had big old glasses on. So that was one of the cool things I've seen from around the NFL lately. And you know, I wish I could have seen Manny cast is good too. But I did. I love the NFL today last Sunday.

00:29:13
Speaker 1: With the fat old people on it, like did they bring back britt Mussburger?

00:29:16
Speaker 3: And they brought bread back. Breah was on the set. He was a surprise on the morning so fiftieth anniversary. But that was one of the cooler things I've seen of all the you know, secondary entertainment stuff.

00:29:26
Speaker 1: A woman on this trip, her last name is O'Brien, and she was she was saying to me, she was talking about her dad and she was like, my dad Pad O'Brien. And I was like, and I'm going, oh, like the sports announcer, and she just looked at me. No, well, first excuse me. First of all, she says, my dad paddle'brian. I go oh, and she goes, I've heard it all. And I was like, oh, like the sports announcer, and she goes, I don't know what that means. I didn't realize that apparently in Ireland every bar is like called padd O'Brien. But I was bringing up mustache padd O'Brien from CBS. She her dad's name is pad O'Brien Drew and she had never heard of the sports caster paddlebrien. That made me feel sad for padd O'Brien, the sportscaster. You got a man who shares your name and his daughter still doesn't know you exist, and he did all the sport.

00:30:23
Speaker 2: What do you like?

00:30:23
Speaker 3: Final four NFL legend here? You thought you were.

00:30:26
Speaker 2: Walking I'm also hosted. Did he also access Hollywood?

00:30:30
Speaker 3: One of those yeah, inside something or other one of those gossip shows. Yeah, you think you're walking right into her knowing what that is. No, just a bar in Island.

00:30:38
Speaker 1: No, she just knew there were bars in Ireland named padd O'Brien. So I really was like, are we to the point like in thirty years, are people gonna be like John Madden? You mean the guy that makes shoes and purses, Like, is that what it's gonna be?

00:30:53
Speaker 3: I think that's Steve, But yeah, yeah, they could get.

00:30:55
Speaker 2: To know that's what I'm saying, like, they won't even know.

00:30:58
Speaker 3: It'll be sad there balls called Terry Bradshaw's out there. Yeah, we're all gonna be forgot and it's just a matter of win. Okay, Now, let's see if Billy can redeem himself. Tell me about the quarterback coach. Yeah, meet bo heart agree.

00:31:12
Speaker 4: He was a quarterback at the University of Tennessee from two thousand and three to two thousand and six. Only appeared in one game until he quit the team to switch to play tennis from the University of Tennessee.

00:31:22
Speaker 3: That's that's my play caller.

00:31:24
Speaker 2: That's my play caller. No he did, yeah, oh, yes, he quit the team.

00:31:30
Speaker 3: It is yep.

00:31:31
Speaker 4: I only played in one game as a quarterback at UT fight up, then joined as a student assistant as a coach as coach for twelve years since then was the quarterbacks coach for the Raiders. Two years ago. He was asked what his philosophy as a play caller is. He said, protect the ball and score points.

00:31:50
Speaker 2: That's a good philosophy.

00:31:51
Speaker 1: So they hired him, I believe drew because Michael Chang was not available.

00:31:57
Speaker 2: Yeah. Jim Currier, Jim Currier was busy with heart. Agree.

00:32:01
Speaker 3: I was hoping they'd go a little younger and get some John Isner from the SEC. But no, not him either, Billy. I didn't know that fact. But you just made my Titans fandom get even lower. I keep saying the bottom cam being lower, and we keep making it including you redeemed yourself. You redeem yourself.

00:32:16
Speaker 2: For the rest.

00:32:17
Speaker 3: We're going to take you to for Charles to celebrate that was.

00:32:22
Speaker 2: That was great.

00:32:22
Speaker 1: Now on Sunday we have our first Europe game, which is really good for me because that will be a game I can actually watch because I'm on That's a timeframe that works for me. It's in Dublin and it's the Vikings and the Steelers, and I gotta to give a shout out to the Athletic that had a great story today about the logistics of the Vikings going to Dublin, and I want to give you some factshitter.

00:32:48
Speaker 2: So the Vikings are playing two straight games in London.

00:32:50
Speaker 1: Did you know that they're playing one in Dublin and the next Sunday they're playing in London. So they're basically doing the whole the whole island. Let me give you some minute. They are bringing thirty seven thousand pounds of gear. Thirty seven thousand pounds of gear. They had to send some of the gear by cargo ship and put it on the ship two and a half months ago, and they only found out today that it had gotten to port.

00:33:22
Speaker 3: I was just gonna ask sure.

00:33:24
Speaker 2: They were not sure.

00:33:25
Speaker 3: I was just gonna ask you do they have to use a literal ship to get I mean, you can't throw that in a cargo plane. So they did ship it n to months ago.

00:33:33
Speaker 2: The uniforms and some of the other stuff was on plane.

00:33:36
Speaker 1: But I guess I don't know what all you'd need to have a football practice, like, I don't know, machines and all that.

00:33:42
Speaker 2: All those things they had to send by cargo ship.

00:33:45
Speaker 1: They sent it two and a half months ago, and they said, had the I think the quote in one of the articles was, had the water's been choppy.

00:33:52
Speaker 2: It might not have gotten there in time for the game.

00:33:54
Speaker 3: But thankfully the seas were calm and they were able to get seas. We're looking out for the NFL, you know, the biggest sport. Imagine if they did get over there and they're looking around, just welp. The ship didn't make it so we're just gonna go with what we have.

00:34:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, So they got the cargo ship. They also had to plan for the course of this trip. You know, you can't just go over there and eat fish and chips, right, you got to have They are taking a lot of their meals, seven thousand meals for one hundred and ninety five people, So they have to find a way to get seven thousand meals for one hundred and ninety five people.

00:34:31
Speaker 2: That's got to be a hard thing, right. Yeah.

00:34:33
Speaker 3: Now, I heard a football player that's played in this game in the past talking about because Irish just their even their beef is different, like grass fed. So you're not just bringing over the things you like. I mean, they're bringing over everything. They're not trusting to get any of it over there because they don't want to mess with their diet and what they've been on for solo.

00:34:51
Speaker 1: Isn't grass fed beef though better, Like, why would you bring our nasty process beef.

00:34:55
Speaker 3: I guess when you're a professional athlete and you've got these these diets you're on, they're following it to an exact science. So they're bringing over everything you can think of, and not even trusting what's local.

00:35:06
Speaker 1: Think about how hard the logistics have to be for those meals. Though, like today on our wine bike tour, the logistics were a little off. They had the woman sitting next to me at we just had to share a plate. They just brought a plate. They set it between us and said you two do this like a lady in the train. It had enough food, It had enough food for two people, but rather than put it on two different plates, they're just like here and you all have to eat it to get.

00:35:36
Speaker 3: So do you think Aaron Rodgers and DK met food? Do you think Aaron Rodgers and DK metcalf for sharing a plate Sunday morning before the game.

00:35:43
Speaker 2: They share a plate.

00:35:46
Speaker 1: They have to share one cup of tea between the two of them for the game and this one. I also thought it was interesting when they see you don't think about these logistics when you land in an airport.

00:35:57
Speaker 2: What's the first thing you have to do when you get to a foreign country go through customs.

00:36:01
Speaker 1: You have to go through customs, but think about how long that could take and what if there's a long line. So they have a special arrangement with the Irish government where they have a locked box of one hundred and ninety five passports that the moment they load off the plane will be taken by box, unlocked and unsealed, and all passports will be checked. By the time the players get there, they will all be able to go through as a group the one hundred and ninety five passport locked box.

00:36:33
Speaker 3: I don't like that, I think. Listen, I've been to Ireland. You obviously travel a lot. Part of the experience is waiting that long line. I love the NFL and I'm excited about this game, but they can weigh with everyone else.

00:36:43
Speaker 2: It's part of the experience. That's my question for you.

00:36:46
Speaker 1: Do you think the Minnesota Vikings and they're traveling secretaries and trainers should be able to bypass customs that you and me, average Joe have to go through. That seems like favoritism by the Irish government.

00:37:01
Speaker 3: I think so too. I'm glad they're hosting this game. I'll be up ready to watch it nine to twenty five. But they can get in the back of the line and go through, and they can go rental, and they can go rent a car that they thought would be automatic and it turns out to be manual, just like I did. They can pull out in front of Enterprise and almost get t boned because you're not used to looking the right way, just like I did.

00:37:22
Speaker 2: Oh, I did it.

00:37:23
Speaker 3: The moment I landed, they're waving at me at Enterprise as I turn into the wrong lane and almost got t boned. So I think the Steelers should have to go through that entire process just like everyone else. It's the experience.

00:37:35
Speaker 1: Carson Wentz is no better than me. He should have to do the exact same things that I do. I really I love this article because I love thinking about logistics. I don't know if you saw. You know the United Nations is meeting in New York. And this is not to get political. It's logistics, I guess, because it's in New York. The American president, you know, it shuts down whenever he goes anywhere. But the French president was on the street Macrone where it got shut down, and there's video if he got out of the car and he's like can I go, and they're like no, the President's going, and he looks at the officer and he's like, I'm the French President and the officer looks at him like whatever, buddy, Sure you are bow, just shut up and get your pizza a manual.

00:38:26
Speaker 3: It's an away game. I agree with it.

00:38:28
Speaker 5: That's exactly right. It's an away game and that makes it difficult. So anyway, I like those those facts, all.

00:38:50
Speaker 2: Right, before we get to games this week.

00:38:52
Speaker 1: I always like when Billy he gives us some news that maybe we didn't cover in the headlines.

00:38:57
Speaker 2: It's Billy's quick hitters. Billy, what's first.

00:39:00
Speaker 3: Yeah.

00:39:00
Speaker 4: The NFL today announced the one hundred and twenty eight Modern era players that are nominated for the twenty twenty six Pro Football Hall of Fame class. There are thirteen first year eligibility players. I'm going to run through this list. They have to pick three to five Modern era players for the class. You tell me which one of these first year eligibility guys might make that list. Where three quarterbacks Drew Brees, Philip Rivers, and Alex Smith. There is wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Greg Olsen, the tight end Jason Whitten, as well running back Frank Gore and Lashawn McCoy. Offensive lineman David DeCastro and Marquise Pouncy, defensive lineman Gino Atkins and Jarell Casey and linebacker Thomas Davis.

00:39:42
Speaker 1: There's a lot of guys on that list that I could see getting in. All right, let's do the slam Ducks. So you said Drew Brees, Yes, he's in. Larry Fitzgerald is it?

00:39:55
Speaker 3: Absolutely, And.

00:39:57
Speaker 1: Philip Rivers is in eventually and probably first team, but he'll be in.

00:40:05
Speaker 2: Who is iv Greg Olsen? What about Greg Olsen?

00:40:09
Speaker 3: Well, he had Jason Witten, Jason wittenhead of Greg in before Greg. Yeah, and then you had one more. I hate to make you go over it again.

00:40:17
Speaker 4: There's a running back Frank Gore and Lashawn McCoy.

00:40:21
Speaker 1: Go. Yeah, those are my numbers. Yeah, Frank Gore's numbers are like through the roof. So you're saying Frank Gore, Jason Witten, Drew Brees, Drew Brees, and Larry Fitzgerald Definitely, Philip Rivers and Greg Olsen if not this year at some point.

00:40:36
Speaker 2: And then I don't know about the other guys.

00:40:38
Speaker 1: I'd have to I'm sure one of them makes perfect sense, but I don't know their stats.

00:40:42
Speaker 3: Well, I hope they put Lashan McCoy in because my friends rudely interrupted him at dinner one time and asked him for a photo and it was Awkwards. Still haunts me about it. Don't do that man's eating. I hope he gets an equal payback as the Hall of Fame. Yeah, that still haunts me. You know, sometimes things happen. They're not that important. No one else thinks about him again, but it lives in your head. That's one of them.

00:41:04
Speaker 2: From there.

00:41:05
Speaker 3: He he's got a good case though.

00:41:08
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's nothing worse than coming up to some to some celebrity that you want to talk to and realizing you're annoying them. That's that's that's a low feeling, especially if you really like look up to the person.

00:41:21
Speaker 2: That's that's a tough feeling.

00:41:23
Speaker 3: One of them was wearing an Eagles jersey and one was wearing a Bills jersey, so it was somewhat appropriate. It was at a sports bar, but it was still still awkward to do. But I think I think he's a close He's second tier, but he's close to the first tier for me.

00:41:35
Speaker 2: All right, what's next?

00:41:37
Speaker 3: Another stat for you here?

00:41:39
Speaker 4: How about some NFL stats through three weeks the passing, rushing, and receiving leaders, along with the Super Bowl favorite. On gambling sites, I will give you that now. Justin Herbert had eight hundred and sixty passing yards so far. Jonathan Taylor leads the league in rushing with three hundred and thirty eight yards and Pooka Nakua with three hundred and thirty three receiving yards. Jonathan Taylor and Puka Nakula we'll play each other this week as it's Colts versus Rams, and the Bills are the plus four hundred Super Bowl favorite after start three and oh.

00:42:07
Speaker 1: Yeah, I would definitely put the Bills as the favorite. Pooka Nakua baffles me. I mean, Jonathan Taylor is a physical like freak of nature, but Pooka Nakula looks like you drew and yet is still able to lead the NFL and receiving it is one of the more First of all, I give a.

00:42:24
Speaker 3: Lot of that credit, uh to the coach right to uh what's it? Well, McVeigh.

00:42:30
Speaker 2: My name is Jimmy McBay Sean McVay.

00:42:33
Speaker 1: He is brilliant when it comes to this stuff, and like he did it with Cooper Cup and now he does it with with Pooka Nikoua. But Jonathan Taylor, to me is the epitome of what a running back should be. And then Pooka Nakua is just a guy, and yet those are the two leaders.

00:42:48
Speaker 3: Yeah, Taylor's not that surprising, especially since he's already played the Titans pad those stats a little bit. But Pooka Nakulah was a late draft pick. What is he out of byu?

00:42:57
Speaker 2: By?

00:42:57
Speaker 3: Not a guy at the combine? That's just you know, shattering records. But as you throw it anywhere near him, those hands are catching it. And what is the beginning? Was third year and he's doing this. He's been a huge piece for them, and it cates a huge surprise too. I think most people are being honest. They'd never heard of him until he had his breakout season a couple of years ago. Yeah, well I like that information, Billy.

00:43:20
Speaker 2: What's next?

00:43:21
Speaker 4: We've been talking about the return of Micah Parsons to Dallas. He gave a quote to reporters the other day saying it would be painful to sack dek Prescott in his return to Dallas. He went on to say, that's my guy. He was always like a good mentor to me. But you know how it is. He always told me if I ever faced him that it'll be a great matchup, So I'm excited to see what Sunday brings itself.

00:43:41
Speaker 1: I think it'll be that painful. I mean, I think he'll he'll just sack him. I feel like the Packers are going to win this game by forty five points. I mean, they're going to want to do it for Michael Parsons. If he gets a sack, the place is going to be absolutely electric. And the game is in Dallas, right, so it's a return. Do you think he gets If you were a Dallas Cowboys fan, We've talked about this over the years, would you give him a round of applause?

00:44:06
Speaker 3: If I'm a fan, yes, because I'm upset. But I saw Jerry said. They're not going to do anything to recognize him. No videos, no welcome backs, no pats on the back. He's baby.

00:44:16
Speaker 2: That's poor form.

00:44:17
Speaker 3: It's tough. He wasn't there to be like a true legend. He wasn't there that long, even though he was the best defensive player in the NFL. I honestly lean a little bit on Jerry's side here, but I know the fans are going to give him a roar, and I certainly would too. Jerry's still He's still lost that chess match at least in PR so I can see why he's not going to lean in and recognize him, but the fans are going to rupt.

00:44:42
Speaker 1: I think I would not give it to him. He wasn't there that long. He's still in the prime of his career. But you should one day, even though he only played there a few years. If you're the fans, I think you have to because it's not his faulty left right. I mean, it's kind of his fault, but it's not I put more of it on Jerry Jones.

00:45:00
Speaker 2: But do you think he will.

00:45:00
Speaker 3: Get a Yeah, they love him, they're still upset he's gone. I think he'll get a round. And plus Haick, come my cheer when he sacks Deck and he's definitely sacking Deck. That's happening.

00:45:09
Speaker 2: Oh if he sacks Dak, oh cheer day.

00:45:10
Speaker 1: That's a that's a low moment for for Cowboys, like ownership, et cetera. If he gets if he gets a cheer for sacking Dack's that's tough.

00:45:21
Speaker 3: I feel bad for Dak. He's actually having a good year. He leads the NFL and completions, you know, There's always been questions marks about him since he had that contract, but he's finally looking good and that defense is so bad the Cowboys aren't going anywhere. But Dak actually isn't the problem this year. But that won't be talked about much because I don't think they're going to be very good, especially CD's banged up. But Dak has answered the bill so far on his end.

00:45:43
Speaker 2: What's next, Billy? Last one?

00:45:44
Speaker 3: All right?

00:45:44
Speaker 4: One more, and this comes from my Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They signed a four hundred and forty nine pound defensive tackle, Desmond Watson too their practice squad. This week they take on the Philadelphia Eagles, known for the tush push. Maybe this could be the secret sauce to stopping that. This is somebody that was on their practice squad for a while but he could not lose weight. He was over four hundred and sixty five pounds, now down to four forty nine, and the Bucks have resigned.

00:46:08
Speaker 1: Him Zelt for forty nine. I like the idea of bringing a player to stop one play. You basically sign a guy with the notion of there'll be one game that we might need to play you one play. My question is do you think it will matter, Like, like, would it matter if you just put a dude that's that big to try to stop it?

00:46:34
Speaker 3: I don't think so. And you know he was in some other training camps or at least won this season. Just the word around him was just too big and was not putting in anywhere, just couldn't do anything. I guess it's a reach. They're going to try it, but I just don't know that this guy's cut out for the NFL. I don't know if you remember being Kentucky guys. He played at Florida and they made a bunch of him when Kentucky played him. I mean, he truly is gigantic when you see him out, he is massive. I mean, but just I don't I don't think he's possibly. You can be massive, though, and still.

00:47:07
Speaker 1: Still be really really athletic, Like what was the guy in Green Bay the defensive tackle that was so good he ran that fumble back once there you go bj Raji. But then you also have dudes that are just huge, So like I'm a wrestling guy, Vader, Big Van Vader.

00:47:25
Speaker 2: He was huge but also very athletic.

00:47:28
Speaker 1: But then there was a dude like Bastien booger who was just huge and didn't add anything to the to the mix. A little off topic, good Vader fact. Did you know Vader would not wash his singlet so that he would sort of he would initiate new wrestlers by wrestling them and not washing his singlet, and thus they would have to His finishing move was he would fall on you and sit on your on your chest, and he would.

00:48:01
Speaker 3: Do that as a way to sort of say, welcome to the big league. That's that's found. I can even I'm getting a sense that's just in his reomability that I don't want you, gotta look out.

00:48:11
Speaker 2: For you if you know what you know what his outfit was?

00:48:13
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, oh yeah, I remember vaderback If.

00:48:15
Speaker 1: Those you are listening google Vight Big Van Vader look at that outfit and think they said he would like not wash it for weeks to save it up for the moment.

00:48:25
Speaker 3: That's disgusting. I know there's little tricks like that. Heck, people probably do stuff in football that's out of bounds. Did you wash your damn close Vader?

00:48:35
Speaker 2: Yeah. Ryan Lemon does that on our show, and not as a.

00:48:38
Speaker 3: Way, not as a way of doing an of initiating anybody.

00:48:45
Speaker 1: All right, let's talk for a second about some big games this week. I'm gonna give you the five that stick out to me. You mentioned the Packers and the Cowboys. Uh, that's Sunday Night football. I think we hit that the Ravens and the Chiefs. Both teams are one and two. This is this a loser leaves town game? Or are both okay even if they lose.

00:49:04
Speaker 3: I think the Ravens are more okay with the loss than the Chiefs. But neither one of them are in a great spot, being one in three. And that's even hard to comprehend if you had told me that a month ago. With on the Ravens end, we've already mentioned my boy Derek Henry can't hang onto the ball, but also Lamar got sacks seven times on Monday Night football. It's not just their defense giving up points. And then with the Chiefs, we had another Kelsey Andy Reid chess bump. This time Andy got a little more leverage and I think it was Andy.

00:49:32
Speaker 2: What do you think about that? What did you think about that one?

00:49:34
Speaker 1: And this is two weeks in a row, and you know Travis Kelsey, he needs to be good for the team, but he also needs to worry about his image. I mean, he is marrying America's sweetheart. You cannot keep fighting with your coach. After the game, they're like, oh, we're good, But then Travis wasn't in the locker room, he laughed.

00:49:51
Speaker 2: I mean, that's two weeks in a row. That starts to be a thing, right, Yeah.

00:49:55
Speaker 3: And when they did it before, they were fine, And I'm sure they are good. That's just their competitive nature happens on sidelines all the time. But on top of him not running his route deep enough again his teammate hurt in the first game, or the bad turnover two weeks ago, and now you're arguing, I mean, it's only week four, and we have several examples of we can ask like, is the Chiefs Kingdom crumbling here a little bit? It just doesn't seem like this smooth operation and everything going like it had been for many years, when one of your star players and the best tight ends ever seems to be part of the issues that have happened so far.

00:50:29
Speaker 1: It's interesting both these dudes, any Reid and Travis Kelcey both come off as like really nice guys that people like, but they're also both really fiery, like really they get really angry, both of them. It's just an interesting dichotomy. To me, I think they'll probably be fine. I'm kind of with you. I think both these teams can be okay if they lose. But to me, it's a bigger game for the Chiefs. Right you're playing, you're playing at home. You lost to the Eagles at home. You had those games, you know, basically two out of three weeks.

00:51:04
Speaker 2: I think you got to get one of them.

00:51:05
Speaker 1: You got to prove the people that you are an actual contender. I think they got to win this one. We'll see if they do. Colts and Rams. Colts are three and zero playing in lazy. Any chance they go four.

00:51:19
Speaker 3: And Oh listen, I'm done. I made fun of the Colts in our preseason predictions. I've gotten all my Colts jokes off. I'm done not doing anymore. They've shut me up a week after week. I would think the Rams win this. But as far as being the least bit surprised if the Colts pulled off, not at all. Consider me a Daniel Jones believer, and I can't believe I'm saying that out loud. They have looked so good. Even if you know last week was against Tennessee. The fact that they didn't even punt till the second quarter of week three is insane. So of course they're going to be in this game. But I think being at home for the Rams, they'll win, but the Colts will be in it for sure.

00:51:55
Speaker 1: Without having a phone or being in a country where it's legal to bet, it's gonna be hard for me to place a wager on this game. But if I could, I've bet a whole lot on the Rams. I think this is the Cults come to Jesus moment. I think they're still going to be good the rest of the year, but I think they're going to get a beat down in La. I don't know what the spread is. Probably I'm gonna guess it's like or is it for we're about to go see? I was gonna say six and a half. I would load up either one of those spreads. I would load up on the Rams. By the way, when I went for the second time today to try to get my phone fixed, the guy goes so first I went Monday and they said to me the iPhone place was like, we cannot use official technology to fix this.

00:52:47
Speaker 2: And I was like, what do you mean.

00:52:48
Speaker 1: They're like, Apple will not let us try to fix this with official technology.

00:52:52
Speaker 3: And then the guy goes, but there are people out there who will use unofficial technology.

00:52:58
Speaker 1: Sounds safe, Like I don't really know what that means. And I said, well, hypothetically, where are these people?

00:53:06
Speaker 2: And he was like downstairs. So I walk downstairs, look at the guy. He looks at the phone.

00:53:11
Speaker 1: He was like, can't fix this with Apple, but I have things I can fix it with. And I was like, all right, how much are those things? And he said something that was basically like three hundred fifty dollars US dollars. But that's like twenty five hundred or whatever. You know, It's like it's a huge amount, not twenty five, but it's a huge amount.

00:53:33
Speaker 4: Ran.

00:53:35
Speaker 1: So I come in today for him to do it. I hand him the phone and he says and he hands it to the guy and he goes go work on it. And the guy goes in the parking lot. He goes in the parking lot like we're in a store, Drew. He leaves the store and he goes to the parking lot.

00:53:54
Speaker 3: I can't have that on camera.

00:53:58
Speaker 2: There's a part of me.

00:53:59
Speaker 1: It's like, I'm never gonna see this man again, you know what I mean, Like, this guy's gone, and I'm starting to think, all right, how do I cancel everything that I have?

00:54:11
Speaker 2: Comes back an hour later, hands me the phone.

00:54:13
Speaker 1: He said, unofficial technology does not fix this, and so it's not gonna work.

00:54:19
Speaker 2: But I'm I think it is amazing.

00:54:21
Speaker 1: They say in South Africa, they're like, there's the economy, and then there's the economy. Apparently some of the economy takes place in the mall parking lot, because he went in his car and he started working.

00:54:34
Speaker 3: On after what we know about your trip so far from these shows, I have an image of him going to his van and there's just a bunch of baboons sitting in the back with screwdrivers. And that's how they fix things in South Africa. I like the US trusted them with whatever. I mean, they could have taken your information.

00:54:53
Speaker 1: Well okay, so I thought about that, and I was most of my information would require other things than what they had.

00:55:01
Speaker 2: Right, They just had a knife.

00:55:03
Speaker 3: All they had was a pocket knife.

00:55:04
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I just I looked at him and when he said he was going in the parking lot, he looked at me like, this is where this occurs is in the parking lot. We don't do these repairs in public spaces.

00:55:18
Speaker 3: It kind of reminds me of like the early nineties when the cable guy would come over and be like, you know, we have a package that's oh yeah books. If you want to you just give him fifty dollars and you're like, there is a hole.

00:55:29
Speaker 2: Get those channels that are that are blurred out.

00:55:32
Speaker 3: There is a whole different angle to this business I'm running. It's it kind of seems like the same thing. We'll keep our secret between.

00:55:38
Speaker 2: Us, all right.

00:55:39
Speaker 1: So he's not able to get it to work, and when it's over, he goes, I'm sorry, man. And this guy had been nice to me to do. That was the thing I said. He said, is there anything else I can do for you? I said, well, I can't get home because I don't I don't have an uber, right, And they kind of tell you, like be careful with the cabs, like get an uber. And he goes and he looks at me and he goes, well, I can order you an uber. And I said, well, how will I pay? And they have a thing here. I don't think we do this in America, where you can order an uber online but then pay with cash.

00:56:13
Speaker 2: Can we do that in America?

00:56:15
Speaker 3: I don't think so.

00:56:16
Speaker 2: I don't think.

00:56:18
Speaker 3: So.

00:56:18
Speaker 2: He orders it.

00:56:19
Speaker 1: He gives me the look, which I've learned is the universal South African look for tip me, like, that's a universal there's a look just trust me. You know, you don't even have to put your hand down. There's just a look like, all right, here we go. So I tip it, go up and meet the car, get in the car. Guy goes, where are you going? I tell you where I'm going. He immediately cancels the uber ride and it just tells me to payment catch Well.

00:56:46
Speaker 3: You know, he didn't want to be on the hook for whatever you were doing. I mean, you don't want a car.

00:56:50
Speaker 2: There at that point.

00:56:51
Speaker 1: But then you realize when the car pulls off, there's now no record I'm in this car, right, I was on the cell phone guy's account, and now this guy's canceled the ride. He brought me here. But there was a moment where I was like, this is the moment I disappeared, and there's not gonna be a whole lot I can do about it.

00:57:10
Speaker 3: You living dangerously down there, you're gonna come back with a bad boy image of just down there and taking all these risks.

00:57:17
Speaker 1: Well, it is interesting because it's a different like, it's a different it's a different thing, you know. I mean, they just tell you, they're just like, don't go out at night without getting in a car. And so last you know, two nights ago, I went to dinner. I had to walk two blocks and there were people everywhere. But there was a part of me and be like they said not to go out without a car. I'm not getting a car for two blocks. I'm gonna do it, but I'm walking around like all right, watch out. So I mean, it's just a different place. Finally, the only matchup of three and oero teams this week Eagles Bucks. I feel like we've said this about Eagles games for the last few weeks. This could be a game where playoff seeding matters who you got in Tampa Bay.

00:58:04
Speaker 3: I'm not just doing this because here, but if the Eagles are gonna lose, this is one I'm working happening out.

00:58:10
Speaker 2: Of games left on their schedule.

00:58:13
Speaker 3: When I mean, they can't run the table. They got to lose somewhere. So I'm gonna go Bucks here, Bucks, even though both teams have needed some miraculous comebacks to even be a defeated Bucks, especially at all three games. But even the Cowboys were beating up on the Eagles early and in Week one. But I'm gonna I'm gonna side with Baker Mayfield at home here. Rookie wide receiver has been amazing. Baker has just been shrugging things off early in games. When he gets that fourth quarter, he's locking in and getting the win. I know it's an upset pick here. Eagles are like a four point favorite, but give me the Bucks to pull this off at home because the Eagles have to lose somewhere.

00:58:48
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean this is this is uh, this is one where I like the Eagles. I'd say that, what are the Eagles like three and a half? Four?

00:58:57
Speaker 2: Is that what you said?

00:58:57
Speaker 3: I think it was ready for Yeah, so I like the Eagles to to cover that.

00:59:02
Speaker 1: But you know, this could be a Baker Mayfield's six best quarter back in the NFL. Apparently here's the chance for him to show it. All right, So now in our contest, time to do our survivor league right now. You know, obviously we didn't get to do. We didn't get to pick it last week because of because of the circumstances, so we.

00:59:23
Speaker 3: Does one of all time. Probably, Yeah, well, somebody would be out for sure.

00:59:29
Speaker 1: There's there's no doubt that at least one person would have been out.

00:59:34
Speaker 2: Hang on a second, Billy, let me find.

00:59:36
Speaker 6: The sheet that's got I have it. If you need it, I got it. Okay, here we go. So, Drew, I have taken the Broncos and the Ravens. You have taken the Commanders and the Cowboys. That Cowboys pick looks pretty good to have that one out of the way. Billy's taking the Jaguars and the Cardinals. Pretty good spots. Now, Billy, you get to go first. What is going to be What is going to be your pick?

00:59:58
Speaker 3: I'll go with the lock of the week.

01:00:00
Speaker 4: If be Buffalo at home versus the Saints, I don't even have to think about it.

01:00:05
Speaker 2: See, I mean, you're gonna win.

01:00:08
Speaker 1: I want to save the Bills for another time, let like pick another team when they play the Saints. But I mean you're guaranteeing to win, because there is absolutely no way, Drew that the Bills are gonna lose to the worst team in football.

01:00:22
Speaker 3: So that's yeah, let's say that there's no way that could possibly have an absolutely no way that could happen.

01:00:29
Speaker 1: Yeah, no, it's not happen. That's a good one. I'm gonna so now it's my turn. I'm gonna take the Lions over the Browns. The Lions I think are are hitting their stride. Brown's got a big upset last week. I don't think they do it two weeks in a row. They're on the road, So I'm gonna take the Lions. So that means, Drew, you can't pick the Commanders, the Cowboys, the Lions, or the Bills.

01:00:52
Speaker 2: Who would you like to take?

01:00:53
Speaker 3: I had pre ranked my teams before the show, and I had the Lions as my pick. So good call there. I really liked that one. Plus, they're gonna get into some divisional games where you're not gonna want to pick them. So I'm gonna pivot and my number two is the Charge versus the Giants. Chargers are on the road, but Jackson Dart getting his first start, Giants being zering three, Chargers three and zero. I'll roll the dice with a road team there.

01:01:16
Speaker 2: I mean, I think that's the obvious pick.

01:01:18
Speaker 1: What worries me about that one for you is the Chargers are basically they play all road games, and then what if there's some Jackson Dart first game magic that happens, Sometimes the crowd's probably gonna be big because people are gonna want to be at the first Jackson Dart game.

01:01:34
Speaker 2: So that's through my only worry. Chargers are a lot better.

01:01:37
Speaker 1: But the Giants, you know, their defense has been competitive, so that's Does that worry you at all a little bit?

01:01:43
Speaker 3: I loved the Lions pick. I'm with you. I didn't want to touch the bills to keep them, so I you know, I'm down to my second option. My other that I was considering as a tighter spread, but Patriots at home against the Panthers. Panthers coming off of thirty and oh shutout, I know it would be rolling the dice. But of the Patriots versus the Chargers, those are the two I was considering, and I'm going Chargers.

01:02:03
Speaker 2: You were thinking about taking the Patriots in that one.

01:02:05
Speaker 3: Against the Panthers at home. I love home teams in this, but I'm going round.

01:02:10
Speaker 2: It would have been I think that would have been a very very gutsy right.

01:02:15
Speaker 3: Well, Denver's in the mix. Of those are the big spreads, though after that you're mostly three and four point spreads across the board. So those are the obvious ones. But I'm gonna I'm gonna trust Herbert versus Dart and hiss rookie debut.

01:02:27
Speaker 1: All right, So now we it goes for our player. This is for our touchdown league.

01:02:33
Speaker 2: I have one.

01:02:33
Speaker 1: All three of us have one point. We've each gotten one. You all last week both got yours. You got Jonathan Taylor and Jamar Chase. I did not get Lamar, so I did not get a point. But it's one to one. I get to go first. In these I'm trying to get teams that are going to score a lot of points and try to take a player that has a good chance of doing it. So I'm gonna take I'm gonna go with the Bill Saints. I'm gonna take James Cook as the running back. Is gonna what was why you laughing?

01:03:02
Speaker 2: Again?

01:03:02
Speaker 3: I power ranked my picks. He was my number one pick. So you had my game and my touchdown score, but no good pick. Keep going.

01:03:08
Speaker 1: I'm gonna take James Cook as my running back. Now that means Drew you can't take Majoku or Jamar Chase.

01:03:13
Speaker 2: You have taken.

01:03:15
Speaker 1: You could take anyone else you like, but you got to get either a quarterback or a wide receiver.

01:03:20
Speaker 3: I'm absolutely prepared. I'm going wide receiver, Nico Collins. It's very simple for me, Nico Collins. They play the Titans, and if you want to find the end zone, play the Titans. So give me Nico Collins.

01:03:32
Speaker 1: With the text taking Nico Collins, that's an interesting pick.

01:03:36
Speaker 3: Well, I mean, you know, my FID you can't our listeners can't see it. But I'm rocking Titans gear. I just I've seen this movie before, so give.

01:03:44
Speaker 1: Me all right now, Billy, you've picked McCaffrey and Jonathan Taylor, but you have to pick a quarterback.

01:03:49
Speaker 2: So what quarterback are you taking?

01:03:50
Speaker 3: Right?

01:03:51
Speaker 4: So we're looking for a rushing touchdown here. The guy with rushing touchdown was included in rushing packages before. He was just named the starter. Give me Jackson Dart to run one ins.

01:04:03
Speaker 1: You're not gonna take Josh Allen Lamar Jalen Hurts.

01:04:06
Speaker 2: You're gonna take Jackson Dart.

01:04:08
Speaker 3: I think it's it's it's gonna be.

01:04:10
Speaker 2: This is the this is the worst pick.

01:04:12
Speaker 4: Not a push push situation, but this guy is going to be handling the rock Tyrone.

01:04:16
Speaker 1: Tracy's out between like the Jalen Hurts, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson or maybe the three best rushing touchdown a lot quarterbacks of all time, and you're gonna skip all three of them and go with Jackson.

01:04:30
Speaker 3: I only do things a little different here on covers. Here, I've got to look up the odds. It's got to be some good, good odds. I'm pulling it up.

01:04:37
Speaker 2: I can't plus two sixty five.

01:04:40
Speaker 3: There you go, Bill like it plus two sixty five for a little dark bet that myself. Actually I'm not, but I'll root for.

01:04:45
Speaker 1: You that I'm seriously, that's the worst pick I've ever seen. You're picking Jackson? Why not just out of curiosity? Why not pick Josh Allen against the Saint Uh.

01:04:55
Speaker 3: He may be out of there by the time halftime rolls around, but to get out of there about halftime, you gotta be about forties and that's usually takes scoring a lot of touchdowns to get in there. So it's not like, but there.

01:05:06
Speaker 1: Is an argument, I guess there is an argument that why would you risk running Josh Allen in a game like that, and.

01:05:12
Speaker 3: You've already picked the cook. Cook's gonna get three himself. So if he's looking that way.

01:05:17
Speaker 1: All right, all right, fair enough, I will I will accept.

01:05:22
Speaker 3: I'm parlaying these.

01:05:23
Speaker 1: I'm doing Hart Jack all right, So you want to do Jackson, Dark, Nico Collins, James Cook.

01:05:29
Speaker 3: Yeah, And there is a little bit because Dark ran in college, there is a little bit of I'm overwhelmed. I'm I'm gonna do what I know to do. I'm gonna talk and run.

01:05:35
Speaker 2: It's true. That's a really good point.

01:05:37
Speaker 1: Maybe you want to give him confidence at the one or two yard line getting my touchdown, talking me into.

01:05:42
Speaker 3: It over there, Bill no Tyrone, Tracy.

01:05:44
Speaker 2: All right, all right, well there you go. All right, Well, thank you all very much.

01:05:49
Speaker 1: Let me give a big shout out to my South African listeners. Lee, you're doing a great job as a tour guide. I don't know if any of the eight women on my trip or listen if they know. If they did, I'm sure they didn't get to the end. But I hope you all had fun at the Heritage Festival tonight. And then to my guy Kyle, who led the bike toward today and has given me a love of e bikes.

01:06:14
Speaker 2: Do your thing.

01:06:15
Speaker 3: I told him that we're going to make him a podcast host sometime on Wine in South Africa. We'll keep spreading the word of Cover zero to internationally for us while you're out there.

01:06:27
Speaker 1: On Sunday, I will be at Kruger National Park in the middle of a safari. The chances of me getting good internet there are probably not the greatest, but cross your fingers that we will be back for week four tomorrow night.

01:06:43
Speaker 2: Tell your friends, subscribe, like write reviews. We'll see you later.

01:06:55
Speaker 1: NFL Covers Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin is a production of the NFL and iHeart Podcast. For more podcasts from iHeart Radio is the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get it your podcast