Latest / The Thunder Down Under Chargers Podcast / TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE! BATTERED, BRUISED & 0-4 | Chargers vs Seahawks Wk 4

Transcript

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE! BATTERED, BRUISED & 0-4 | Chargers vs Seahawks Wk 4 · The Thunder Down Under Chargers Podcast

0:02
Who's got it better than that? NO WAY! My goal
0:12
is not to break you, my goal is to make you harder
0:16
to break. Grab your lunchboxes and go attack
0:37
this day with an enthusiasm unknown to make cuts!
0:45
Places you'll go. There is fun to be done, there
0:49
are points to be scored, there are games to be
0:51
won, and the magical things you can do with that
0:54
ball will make you the winningest winner of all.
0:57
Fame! You'll be famous as famous can be, with
1:00
the whole wide world watching you win on TV.
1:03
Except when you don't, because sometimes you
1:06
won't. I'm afraid that sometimes you'll play
1:09
lonely games, too. Games you can't win because
1:12
you'll play against you. Los Angeles Chargers
1:16
fall to 0 -4 after a flag -filled frenzy at Lumen
1:20
Field. Shit! That was a little Dr. Zeus, I'm
1:24
Andy with me, Jack and Alistair, and you are
1:26
with us on the Thunderdown Under Chargers podcast.
1:30
Jack had feelings of Week 3, sort of s - We're
1:35
putting good teams on the, on the, on the ropes,
1:37
but we just get in our own way. Yeah. I'll, uh,
1:43
a steak, please. Thank you. Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh?
1:49
Whoa, what's going on? Oh, oh yeah. No, he's
1:51
got a job. Yeah. Anyway, sorry. Uh, for the audio
1:54
listeners, I was just, I was just giving my best
1:57
harbor impression because that was unacceptable
2:00
in a press conference to just completely trail
2:02
off. And then everyone's like, Does Mike McDaniel
2:05
have a job? Oh yeah. Everything's fine. Uh, and
2:07
also I'm going to leave my best work for the
2:09
second half of the podcast boys. So, uh, onto
2:11
you, Alistair, uh, just like the charges, I'm
2:13
not going to turn up for the first half. So it's
2:15
over to you. Good luck. But if you're Harbo,
2:18
Harbo, I better go get my vape from the corner
2:20
and be Mike McDaniel. Uh, Hey, Andy, with about
2:24
a minute and a half left in this game, we had
2:27
that little glimmer of hope. We thought we might
2:29
have to be doing a show nude. Cause we did promise,
2:32
we did promise the listeners. But alas, it was
2:38
not to be, and let's be real, had it happened,
2:41
it wouldn't really have been earned. Like the
2:44
Seahawks had no business losing that game. You
2:46
could even say they played the game in a certain
2:49
way to protect that lead that they might not
2:52
have. had the game been closer from earlier,
2:55
so there may be a bit of fool's gold in all of
2:57
that. Doesn't matter, the team's 0 -4, last time
3:00
we were 0 -4 was the Anthony Lin team back in
3:03
2017. The team then rallied, they almost made
3:06
the playoffs, but something tells me that that
3:08
might not be the tale of this team in 2026, Andy.
3:12
Yeah, well, we said it last week, the road keeps
3:14
getting harder and harder and we're two games
3:17
into a, well, what is facing a potential, what
3:22
could be an 0 -9? Really? Like we're playing
3:24
good opposition coming up. It's just the Texans
3:27
that are also winless, which is why this sport
3:30
is so wild and crazy. Uh, it's, I think it's
3:36
season over. I do. Um, I think that the way that
3:41
the team is just struggling to gel, uh, struggling
3:44
to find, maintain consistency and an identity
3:47
and the injuries are now becoming once again.
3:54
Just, just such a stab in the back of the legs.
3:58
So maybe I'm on Jack's side now. Am I going to
4:03
have to be the voice of hope for this show, Jack?
4:05
Am I going to have to be the one who reminds
4:07
everyone that the only team to make the playoffs
4:09
after starting 0 -4, we're in fact the 1992 San
4:14
Diego Chargers. They even won a playoff game
4:17
that year, Jack. I think you're speaking to Eric
4:19
and Terry's heart and actually probably 99 .7
4:23
% of our listeners, which ironically is about
4:25
the chances we have of not making the playoffs.
4:28
Yeah, correct. Uh, you know, uh, you too know
4:32
my feelings very well and all our offline chats
4:34
we've had this week, but I am with Andy as well.
4:36
I do believe it is now season over. Uh, and if
4:41
it wasn't for the seriousness of the offensive
4:43
line injuries, uh, Justin Herbert. Could be looking
4:47
and it's incredible to say this in week five
4:50
of twenty twenty six could be having the worst
4:52
offensive line in front of him. He has almost
4:55
had in his career I thought last year was it
4:59
was the last low but it looks like Slater is
5:01
going to be put on IR Joe Walt at this time recording
5:04
we haven't heard anything and it's going to be
5:07
a bunch of rookies and Cole Strange because it
5:10
looks like Trevor Penning also was out with a
5:12
concussion not that. To be honest, if Trevor
5:15
Penning was actually on that line, maybe it would
5:17
definitely be the worst offensive line in history.
5:20
But yeah, no, it is very, very sad. It's when
5:24
Cole Strange is the vet on your own. Oh, man.
5:27
And you got four of these. And I have now lost
5:30
all, I have lost faith in Mike McDaniel and Jim
5:33
Harbour Hortiz. And, and I said it to you both
5:37
and I'm saying this now and so everyone can hear.
5:41
Will not have any faith restored in this process
5:44
until the team wins a playoff game whether that's
5:47
next year because if you look at Harbaugh's record
5:52
and what's happened it's all fun and games in
5:54
the first couple of years there's winning he
5:56
turns teams around but when things get really
5:59
bad he just walks away because what happened
6:02
in San Fran all of a sudden the team started
6:04
to lose there was some tension eight night see
6:07
you later I'm going up to Michigan and making
6:09
them a powerhouse. So the reason why I say is
6:13
that Harbaugh himself, even though he's a very
6:15
experienced coach, I think he's in very uncharted
6:18
waters now. What is he going to do? How is he
6:21
going to bring this organization together? Because
6:24
I tell you what, there are some guys like Mac,
6:27
James, some veterans who are going to be asking
6:29
questions if the tank starts to happen. So Alistair,
6:33
that's where I'm at. the listeners you can agree
6:36
with me you can disagree with me but i have no
6:39
faith in in anything that's happening until i
6:42
see a playoff win i'll still support the team
6:44
i'll be really positive when we win and i'll
6:46
and i'll be constructive but i've now seen enough
6:49
from these charges for me to just go now even
6:53
those seasons where we're the last couple where
6:55
we're winning and we make the playoffs the playoff
6:57
performances have been so poor that's where i'm
7:00
at currently alistair. Just before you respond
7:04
Alistair, I will say I'm not out on Mike McDaniel.
7:08
I think four weeks is a short, very small sample
7:12
space. So it is a different complex kind of system,
7:18
the McDaniels. So I'm not totally out on it,
7:21
but the season's done. I think they're two mutually
7:24
exclusive things. And let me just clarify, when
7:27
I say I've lost faith, that doesn't mean we need
7:28
to fire Mike McDaniel. or Jim Harbaugh, right?
7:32
I'm, I'm not saying that, that I just don't have,
7:35
I don't, I've lost the trust in the process.
7:38
I would expect a CEO head coach to come in and
7:41
seamlessly fit a new guy in and a system. That's
7:44
what he's paid the big money to do. I now am
7:47
questioning that. I'm not saying that it can't
7:49
happen, but I now have to then go not everything
7:53
sunshine and rainbows, not everything's a couple
7:55
of slaps on Justin Herbert shoulders and he's
7:57
going to be the best quarterback. Because you
7:58
know what, Chad, sorry, I'm rambling, but shout
8:01
out Chris rim for asking really a really hard
8:03
question and going at Harbaugh and then Harbaugh
8:06
saying, I feel like that's offensive. You know
8:09
what? It's not. It's actually true. You said
8:11
you were going to go out there and protect him
8:13
and make sure he's okay. He's not, mate. It's,
8:16
it's, it's a, it's a, an absolute disaster from
8:19
the first four games of the season. I'm not saying
8:22
get rid of him. I'm not saying that I have just
8:23
lost faith in the process. And we've also got
8:26
a hundred million dollars there that we didn't
8:27
use. I've let that out. Thank you for both hearing
8:32
me and thank you for listening, but that's where
8:33
I'm at now. For the 20 listeners that we'll have
8:35
this week it's declining rapidly the more. No
8:38
come on let's go 1000 let's go 1500 tell your
8:40
friends tell your family listen to this we're
8:43
at our funniest when things are going badly.
8:45
You'll actually you'll listen to it a thousand
8:46
times by yourself just to get there. That's right
8:48
I'll get the few count up. Look you'd have to
8:51
be a bit simple to think it was all rainbows
8:54
and sunflowers at the moment and that things
8:56
are okay there appears to be some kind of disharmony
8:58
going on we don't want to call him out too often
9:01
because we don't love his content but Brady.
9:03
for Hoko and his show claims he's texting players
9:06
who are saying certain things that behind the
9:08
scenes there are problems. It appears that way
9:10
based on the broadcast when you see the sidelines,
9:13
when you see the general demeanor of players
9:16
on the team, especially some of the veteran players
9:18
or guys who just maybe don't look confident in
9:20
what they're doing. It also shows in how many
9:22
players are playing worse than they did last
9:25
year and the year before. That is an indictment
9:28
on the - coaching staff on the entire organization.
9:31
Jack, if your litmus test is when the team wins
9:33
a playoff game, I'll see you in 2035 after there's
9:36
been a sale of the team and just wholesale change.
9:39
So I don't know when that's coming, but I started
9:42
this week. Do you think that's what's required?
9:45
Something that's total. It's such a hard question.
9:49
And we have incomplete information. There are
9:51
clearly, there's clearly a long history of underperformance
9:54
and one constant, which is the ownership group.
9:56
We've said on this. show, we had seen what we
9:59
thought was meaningful change and investment
10:01
in facilities and great, you know, a good head
10:04
coach and signs that they were changing their
10:07
ways, maybe allowing more decision -making from
10:10
the GMs, those kinds of things, right? But I
10:14
mean, there's got to be, there's got to be still
10:16
something going wrong with how things are run
10:19
within the organization for there to be the same
10:21
issues in year three of every coaching regime.
10:24
I started this week. A bit more positive before
10:27
I'd watch the all 22 thinking tough game do take
10:32
a while to learn it look you were playing the
10:34
Super Bowl champs in Seattle and you lost by
10:36
score things could be worse we now come up with
10:39
some division games look. I think I've been trying
10:43
to convince myself of something that's just not
10:45
really true the whole point of Mike McDaniel
10:48
is the scheme is idiot proof the whole point
10:51
of the Shanahan scheme. Is that you look at every
10:55
time Shanahan said any quarterback you plop them
10:57
in and they play the best ball of their career
10:59
doesn't matter if it's Matt Schaub or Matt Ryan
11:01
or Brock Purdy or backup quarterbacks or tour
11:04
or Queen Newers. The idea is everyone's going
11:07
to be open and watch everyone plays as well as
11:09
they ever had. I could not believe some of the
11:12
shit I was watching on the old 22 today. I thought.
11:16
My Mike immediately I was thinking get some more
11:19
sloppy Joe's we made them extra sloppy for ya
11:24
I that there are dudes running around into the
11:27
same place clearly that they don't know that
11:30
playbook wrong that doesn't show up as much in
11:32
the broadcast a few things I'm watching on the
11:34
all 22 the one where Herbert tucked and ran is
11:37
cuz Trey Harrison I think it was Gadsden brand
11:39
the exact same route to the exact same spot and
11:42
her book the fuck. Is that and took it and all
11:46
guys like it just little wrinkles that don't
11:48
quite make sense like Darius Davis is your slot
11:51
receiver and Patrick Herbert's running a clear
11:53
out wheel route and of course Darius Davis gets
11:56
to his spot before Patrick Herbert can run the
11:59
clear out and so the corners still there and
12:01
that's why you almost had two DBs. tackle Darius
12:04
Davis as he called the ball. Guys running routes
12:07
that just don't make sense because they're kind
12:09
of getting in each other's space. That is not
12:12
what Mike McDaniel is supposed to be. And I know
12:15
now I've been rambling, but right to start the
12:18
game, we saw the team use a timeout after a first
12:21
down completion on the third offensive snap of
12:23
the game. We're not even going to talk about
12:26
Justin Herbert's interceptions. Those two were
12:27
just diabolical drop passes to Vidal, Kate Mitchell,
12:31
Lad McConkey would have put them in field goal
12:33
range. Herbert missing a throw to QJ for a touchdown,
12:37
penalties, Darius Davis Muff, but it's a joke.
12:42
It's an absolute joke. And we're only losing
12:45
these games. We're somehow losing these games
12:47
by seven points. Of course the other side of
12:50
the ball you've got you know a leverage penalty
12:52
on Tully you've got Justin a boy be with the
12:54
stupidest unnecessary roughness penalty ever
12:57
but somehow Andy how are we still in this gap
13:00
at these games despite playing so poorly so my
13:03
full circle before you jump in will be to say
13:06
when i will give up. Is at the by because we
13:10
are own for we now have two division games against
13:13
division opponents and those games matter most.
13:16
I have always been a bigger sample size kind
13:18
of guy with coaches and rookies. It's two years,
13:22
three years, new scheme. Four games is a little
13:25
bit small, but I'm not really seeing any signs
13:28
of improvement. So I'm not expecting it. Yeah.
13:32
Me sort of saying that I'm not out on McDaniel.
13:34
I'm still a bit. Confused you mentioned sort
13:37
of personnel like who are the right people running
13:41
the right routes? You know, they in the right
13:44
role offense. It's also the, just the read and
13:46
the feel of the game that has patches of like
13:50
greatness. And then it's just. Just tries to
13:54
be a little too tricky or, uh, yeah, the routes
13:57
aren't developing in the passing game struggling.
13:58
So we'll do something weird and then lose five
14:01
yards or do you calling an under center play
14:03
action deep pass just after Herbert's almost
14:05
broken his ankle and you're getting into twist
14:08
his body and he's getting sacked. Yeah. And then
14:11
a designed run or something like that. Uh, up
14:13
left guard after that. Uh, yeah, it's just a
14:17
bit, it's a bit off. So, um, I'm hoping to see
14:20
a correction and I feel like in the second half
14:23
before we don't want to get too far ahead of
14:25
myself, but in the second half when the charges
14:27
actually did show a bit of a spark on offense,
14:29
it kind of just let Justin Herbert revert back
14:32
to playing Justin Herbert football. He looked
14:37
physically looser, like in his throwing motion,
14:41
in his anticipation, like he can throw in anticipation,
14:45
the shot in the bucket to Trey Harris on the
14:49
left sideline beautiful throw that looked like
14:52
Herbert dropping a bomb the the interceptions
14:54
look like this forced robotic weird almost felt
14:59
like the action was different and he's just Not
15:03
reading the defense. It's it's bizarre but I
15:09
don't think that even answered your question,
15:10
but look, it's just it's a real it's just there's
15:14
a lot of Bits and pieces that sort of need to
15:17
come together, but I think maybe you're right.
15:19
Maybe, um, they can turn it around, but I just
15:23
don't think that with the roster looking the
15:26
way it's looking, unless everyone returns in
15:28
like, you know, week 11 or 12, uh, and is all
15:32
better. And we've got a full roster, a full healthy
15:35
roster that's actually never played a snap of
15:37
football together. And then we go through the
15:39
teething issues again and we're back to where
15:42
we started. It's a hard stretch of games ahead.
15:44
You hit the nail on the head. I said it to you
15:47
again with a stupid metaphor, but it kind of
15:49
looks like guys are sky lacking as NFL football
15:53
players. Like it's almost like they're thinking
15:55
too hard about the performance. And that leads
15:57
into my tangible moment last week, but it's just
16:01
peculiar. And you're right. Some of the piss
16:03
missiles that Herbert threw in the second half
16:05
was kind of getting back to it because it kind
16:07
of needed to, because there, you can't think
16:10
when you've got rookies in front of you, you
16:11
can't think when the offensive line, you just
16:13
got to call, okay, we just got to call this play.
16:15
These guys don't even know half the playbook.
16:18
You just got to go. I, I wonder Alistair, and
16:22
this is, you know, after, after hearing both
16:25
of you. I, and you'll talk about how the Shanahan
16:28
scheme is meant to make things easier. I wonder
16:31
if that's because the head coach is the, it creates
16:34
the product of that. The head coach is the kind
16:37
of the man at the top that has all of that control
16:40
and can go. I wonder that with Harbour sitting
16:44
there, McDaniel either can't do what he did it
16:48
in, um, In Miami didn't have the the total control
16:52
over essentially like what players to get and
16:55
how to do it how to do trainings how to teach
16:57
you know who's taking the the the meetings what's
17:00
going on here is just you know you think of McVeigh
17:03
total control freak you think of Shanahan total
17:05
control freak. I wonder if this game actually
17:09
needs the head coach to be the man who's actually
17:12
doing it not the offensive coordinator I'm sure
17:15
there are plenty of examples that are. that you
17:18
have a Shanahan scheme with an offensive coordinator
17:19
and a head coach. But I thought that vacant look
17:24
that I did at the start of the show was very
17:27
telling from Harbor at the end. It literally,
17:29
I have not seen that from him before. It was
17:31
sleepy Joe. It looked like he just went to another
17:34
place for a good two or three seconds. I'm wondering
17:38
what's going on. And again, we have little information.
17:42
We don't, you know, we don't know anything. We're
17:44
just prognosticating or pontificating. But yeah,
17:48
it's, it's just, there's this symbiosis that's
17:50
just not happening now. And offensively we had
17:53
guys tripping. Who, who was the guy that tripped
17:56
the, it was a Slater that tripped up on, um,
17:58
who was it? It was other Richie Ringgold. It
18:01
was Richie Ringgold. And it's just like, uh,
18:05
everything is just not right now. Everything
18:07
is just not right on offense. Yeah. Mike McDaniel
18:10
has tried to, to separate himself from the Shanahan
18:15
scheme. In areas the Shanahan schemes famous
18:18
for running very heavy under center play action
18:22
very heavy under center in general and lots of
18:26
tight ends McDaniel has kind of gone in the opposite
18:28
direction where they run the least under center
18:30
almost in the NFL he likes the quarterback in
18:33
the shotgun similar amounts of motion but then
18:35
a lot of pistol and a lot of two running backs
18:38
a lot of fullback play so. He's got his own variety
18:43
of the scheme I bet that we really do have a
18:46
confluence of problems and I put McDaniel right
18:50
here and I'm gonna since you know you've talked
18:52
about some of these things Jack I'm gonna get
18:54
you to do an exercise in a second but I think
18:57
McDaniel would also be thinking damn look. Kolar
19:01
and Joko, in Joko both pretty important to what
19:04
I want to do. They're out. Okay. Lad McConkey
19:06
so important. He's way more injured than everyone
19:09
realizes. He can barely practice out there. These
19:12
other guys, they're actually really bad at football.
19:14
Quentin Johnson is way worse than I thought it
19:16
was going to be. We've got this guy Rucci off
19:18
the street. We've got Herbert's younger brother.
19:20
We've had lots of injuries on the offensive line.
19:22
I thought we could get away with the guards,
19:24
but now, you know, our Seekers out and Alts out
19:26
and Slaters out and Pennings out and Pipkins
19:28
is out. So. There are some other things causing
19:33
problems here, but to, to my exercise, Jack,
19:36
how, if you had to apportion percentages of blame
19:39
just on the spot, I'm going to give you ownership
19:43
coaching, GM players and their execution and
19:50
injuries. So they're the five ownership coaching,
19:53
GM player execution injuries. Where are you kind
19:57
of ranking them? Maybe you don't need to give
20:00
a percentage, but if you had to choose who's,
20:02
who's to blame, spin the wheel. Yeah. It's really
20:05
hard. The hardest one there is the ownership.
20:08
I have no idea what's going on. The only thing
20:12
that I could go off that as evidence is Trey
20:13
Pipkins is still on the team. So listen, for
20:17
what I've seen, I'd like to think that if Mike
20:21
McDaniel and Jim Harbaugh, Mike McDaniel is getting
20:23
paid a lot of money as a coordinator. Jim Harbour
20:26
is one of the highest paid coaches in the league
20:29
and the, and the ownership has openly gone and
20:33
got these guys. Like if they, like, you don't
20:36
pay someone that amount of money, if you're not
20:37
going to try and improve something, cause you
20:39
don't, you go and hire an Anthony Lynn or a Mike
20:41
McCoy or whatever. So I'm actually going to put,
20:44
I'm actually going to put coaching at the top
20:46
because I do think this is my opinion. I don't
20:48
have not much to base it on. I think there's
20:50
been a failure at that top. Uh, And it's right
20:55
now I'm going to put Joe Hortiz and jamming second
20:58
because they had a chance to stop this happening.
21:03
Injuries always happen in the NFL. We always
21:05
seem to get hit hard. You still had a hundred
21:07
million dollars cap room. You had an opportunity
21:09
to make sure this was shored up and you didn't.
21:13
So I'm going to put that there. Uh, what were
21:15
the others? So I'll just, the players is like,
21:17
it's on the players to not throw picks and not
21:20
drop a million passes. That's not the cat coach
21:22
walking out and dropping the ball. Yeah, I know,
21:24
but I, yeah, I mean, I'll put players, then I'll
21:27
put injuries. And I mean, people would disagree
21:30
because some people have ownership at the top,
21:32
just through my process, elimination off the
21:34
spot. That's where I go. Um, and maybe I put,
21:37
uh, ownership down the bottom because I don't
21:39
really have much to sort of evidence to say that
21:42
they're not trying to do the best. Um, but Alistair
21:46
just saying this, so I'm going to throw some
21:48
percentages back at you really quickly. Um, that,
21:51
so Mike McDaniel, you're saying that he's, he's
21:52
trying to do all this stuff. He's trying to make
21:54
it simpler. Just a couple of offensive tendencies.
21:57
Uh, so currently play action is sitting at seventh
22:00
in the league. So we're 31, uh, almost 32 % pre
22:03
snap motion rate is still after the Seahawks
22:06
game sitting at six, 75, uh, 75 .8 % motion at
22:11
the snap is second in the league. So he's still
22:15
through four weeks. He hasn't stopped that. So
22:17
we are doing it second most in the league. And
22:20
then we're playing multiple running backs. That
22:22
to me is not simplifying. That to me is keeping
22:26
the scheme. If you do have all this motion, agree
22:28
or disagree. Yeah, I agree. I agree. I thought
22:32
the, there were some signs of them way too late,
22:36
but in the second half to start that second half,
22:40
they really incorporated some quick game screens,
22:44
get the ball out quickly, probably because Guys
22:47
on the offensive line were going down they should
22:49
have done that earlier in the game that's a good
22:51
way to attack quarters and I know like you you've
22:54
got to occasionally keep them honest but I thought
22:56
still the average depth of target was just too
22:58
high early on in the game that so they started
23:00
using check downs we saw this shovel pass touchdown
23:04
to come on even out so. That's your I feel like
23:07
what they need and they also started running
23:09
the ball a bit better in the third and fourth
23:10
quarter so hopefully there's enough on tape for
23:13
Mike McDaniel to say here's what worked in the
23:15
second half some of it was Herbert just. In Superman
23:18
hero mode which is when he kind of plays his
23:21
best football in some respects and others work
23:23
just getting the ball out quickly and being super
23:26
conservative in that respect because we just
23:28
can't trust the guys down the field Andy I want
23:32
you to jump in on the on how you'd rank those.
23:35
Causative factors as well but the only where
23:38
place i'm slightly different to jack and some
23:41
listeners really disagree with me on this i put
23:44
what is a little bit lower down and the reason
23:46
why is one. I don't know how much his approach
23:51
is kinda hamstrung by ownership because when
23:54
you say that they're 30th or 31st in cash spending
23:57
this year. I don't know if that's jam driven
24:00
or ownership driven and jam the gems kind of
24:03
having to work within the confines of the amount
24:05
of money that the Spanish family want to spend
24:08
on players and then why I'm sympathetic to what
24:11
is is I do think in a way he got everyone Mike
24:14
McDaniel wanted so here's our OC okay. Ingold,
24:19
strange, you like tight ends, Cola, Njoku, that's
24:22
where we're going to prioritize. And he's trading
24:24
down in the draft and picking up more players.
24:28
So I'm maybe less, I'm less on him, not to say
24:32
that he's without fault. He is, there's a lot
24:34
of money listeners that could have been spent
24:35
and wasn't. And some of the actual draft picks
24:38
and play acquisitions haven't worked out, but
24:40
that's maybe where I'm slightly different to
24:43
Jack. Yeah. I kind of, I say what Jack's saying,
24:47
but Not quite knowing how much the ownership
24:52
is involved. Um, but I also think that we would
24:57
be met with pretty fierce disagreement because
25:00
a strong theme is we need the Spanos to sell
25:04
the team. That is such a, that's a bloodline
25:07
through charges fandom at the current point in
25:10
time. So I have reason to believe that they are
25:16
frugal. We know that. Uh, they are cash poor
25:19
and that's the great paradox as to why they spent
25:24
all this money on Harbour and McDaniel. You know,
25:26
it's just, it's, and, and, uh, El Segundo the
25:30
bolt, it's kind of crazy. Um, it doesn't quite
25:34
make sense, but it's just, maybe it's just, it's
25:37
all just a show. Um, so I'm, I'm inclined to
25:41
probably put them a little bit higher. I do tend
25:44
to agree that Hortiz. I think you kind of have
25:48
the, the ownership up high or, and Hortys down
25:51
low or the other way around. It's how much you
25:54
think you believe the ownership hamstrings Hortys,
25:58
but I think I'd have ownership as second, uh,
26:04
coaching top ownership, player execution, Hortys
26:08
injuries. I don't think you can blame it on injuries.
26:10
That's that comes from further up, uh, to cover
26:14
for that. Ben Herbert. Mike McDaniel, man. He,
26:16
he was the free agent acquisition. It was Mike
26:19
McDaniel. Correct. They spent all their money
26:21
on him. He's the guy who's going to do more with
26:24
less like Ben Johnson and everyone else. But
26:28
Alistair, no. Alistair. So guess our ranking,
26:33
our NFL rank for total explosive play rate. Where
26:36
do you reckon the charge Mike McDaniel sits?
26:39
Uh, we would be 29th in the league. Negative.
26:44
So. We are ranked 10th in the league for total
26:48
explosive play rate. Guess what our EPA is per
26:53
drive offensively. 26th. So I don't have a ranking
27:01
there, but it's essentially near the bottom.
27:03
So we're negative 0 .85. So we're near the bottom
27:08
of offensive EPA per drive. So maybe this is
27:12
the Mike McDaniel experience. Boom or bust? It's
27:16
boom or bust, baby. It is extremely explosive
27:19
when it happens and it's exciting. But when it
27:22
comes to consistency and grinding out games of
27:25
football. Not gonna happen wait kiss kiss kiss
27:27
run in the ball on second down and every freaking
27:29
team knows it so goes for one yard or minus yardage
27:32
that's why. And there is and there is absolutely
27:35
not like you look at that and go because even
27:38
you like a person that watches a lot of football
27:40
we got on our explosive player I can't be that
27:42
high where where 10th and offense if it's right
27:45
run rushing explosive right with 13th passing
27:49
explosive right where 12th so overall 10th that's.
27:53
peculiar when, when you look at that stat and
27:55
then you look at the way that the team doesn't
27:57
matriculate the ball down the field. I thought
27:59
that was a fascination. Is this Mike? Is this
28:03
Mike? I don't know what he was like back in,
28:05
in Miami, but probably wouldn't have been too
28:07
dissimilar because they had a lot of Waddle and
28:08
Hill. Maybe they had high explosive, but the
28:11
down to down success rate is not too good because
28:13
of all the penalties and the motion and the guys
28:15
getting confused and trying to hit outside zone
28:18
or trying to get Trey Harris to throw a pass
28:20
to the quarterback out of bounds. Shit ass. Andy
28:28
question for you, mate, before we move on to
28:29
the defence. In fact, I'm going to throw two
28:32
at you back to back. Quick response. Would you
28:34
cut Darius Davis this week if you were the Chargers
28:36
GM? Ruthless. I'd want her so bad. Yes, Keaton
28:43
Mitchell. See you later, Darius. That was the
28:46
last straw. The bigger question and I'll invite
28:49
Jack in onto is the use of the running backs
28:52
of the moment. It was quite interesting. We had
28:54
25 snaps for Hampton, 26 for Keaton and 25 for
28:58
Vidal. It was a true like split at three ways.
29:01
How do you feel about that distribution after
29:03
watching this week's game? I think it was a good
29:07
balance as far as the run game went. I know the
29:11
argument is that you've spent a first round pick
29:14
on a running back. You ride that guy, but Yeah.
29:18
Where I've criticized McDaniel for not having
29:20
a feel of the game. I feel like in the run game,
29:23
it was like a lot better than the passing game
29:27
for his feel and his usage of them. Sometimes
29:29
Keaton Mitchell would get stung like well behind
29:32
the line and credit to the Seahawks defense.
29:36
They blew up a lot of rushing plays. Um, helps
29:39
when you're unblocked. Yeah. I think, uh, Emin
29:44
Worry must've been invisible to the charges offensive.
29:49
protectors because yeah, that guy just, he was
29:51
full hands in the ground and untouched crazy
29:55
stuff. Uh, or, or the charges didn't learn how
29:58
to use vowels or just don't how to read vowels.
30:01
That's, that's, that's why he was in real fortune
30:03
areas. Yeah. I'm going to disagree. Can I disagree
30:10
with you? Actually? Uh, yeah, I, I, I disagree
30:14
with. It has, it has a feel for it. What it screams
30:19
to me is I know better than you and I'm going
30:20
to try and trick you. And we're going to have
30:22
Kate Mitchell on the field. I'm actually going
30:23
to run this plan. I'm going to run on second
30:25
down with Kate Mitchell and I'm going to do this.
30:27
And then I'm going to give it to Hampton. I'm
30:29
going to try this. Like it's not working. Give
30:32
it like Kate Mitchell's been injury prone. I
30:36
guess you could say Hampton is, but give it to
30:38
your bell cow running back, smash him, smash
30:40
him, smash him, establish some sort of identity.
30:43
Because, you know, we talked about how it's this
30:46
boom or bust. I feel like he's using Kate Mitchell,
30:48
like boom or bust. And when you really, when
30:50
I really think about it, the Kate Mitchell good
30:52
looks really good. The Kate Mitchell bad looks
30:54
really bad. So that's, I actually, I actually
30:58
disagree. Um, and I don't think the field is
31:00
there at all. Uh, I think you should be running
31:03
a Marion Hampton and Hampton's going there. Guys,
31:05
you took me in the first round. Like you took
31:06
me as one of the top two running backs in the
31:08
draft and you're not even passing me the ball.
31:11
Like what's going on here guys? Fair, but like,
31:15
look what's happened to the offensive line and
31:17
the, like between the tackles run blocking. Hampton
31:20
is a straight kind of through the, through the
31:23
guts kind of operators, 220 pounds. And he's
31:26
hard to bring down, but he, unlike Vidal to a
31:31
lesser extent, but Mitchell in particular, they
31:33
identify the creases and they can change direction
31:35
and pick them. Hampton's. That's not the strength
31:39
of his game so you can't just kind of do the
31:44
same thing and run Hampton up the middle for
31:47
you know getting yourself into second and eleven
31:49
or second and eight and then you can't rely on
31:53
your play action game which is increasing and
31:55
I think it's beneficial to give Herbert a little
31:59
bit extra time he's got something like thirty
32:01
six hundredths of a second more time to throw
32:04
this week just gone. uh, when in play action.
32:08
So it's a little bit more time, a little bit
32:09
time for him to get the ball off, let it develop
32:12
a little bit more. But I will say, I don't think,
32:16
I know what you're saying, but this is like second
32:17
and eight though. Cause I, cause his, he was
32:19
going at five yards a clip and he had 34 yards
32:21
after contact. The guy is not getting clean running
32:24
holes and he's actually getting five yards per
32:27
time. So, and, and I just think with the Mitchell
32:29
stuff, it's like he's trying to get two, two,
32:32
three yards behind the line of scrimmage. That's
32:34
still a two yard game. So, yeah, yeah, but I
32:39
meant, yeah, but, but he's still going to fight.
32:41
He's had, he had nine carries for 45 yards from,
32:43
from, from what I could see. So yeah, I, I think
32:47
you've got to give it to your bell cow and Kimani
32:48
Vidal has just gone backwards. Um, I'm over the
32:51
Keaton Mitchell experiment only, unless it's,
32:53
it's part of a larger plan that is working and
32:56
you've got fear for the game. You can just off
32:57
Gaten Mitchell. Well, no, I'm not off him. I'm
33:00
just off of the way. And Kimani, he was okay.
33:04
No, no, no. I'm not. I'm saying what's happened
33:06
to him. Like give the ball to get, may perhaps
33:08
give the ball to him, but not try and be this.
33:11
I'm smarter than you. I'm trying to, cause you
33:12
get in your own head and that's what the players,
33:14
the whole tech, the whole offense looks like
33:16
they're in their own head, trying to outsmart
33:18
themselves and outsmart. I'm going to do this.
33:19
Just establish a fricking identity. Just do something
33:22
like actually just do something consistently
33:24
for a quarter. Like the identity is chameleon
33:27
at crap Jack. I find, I find being ranked second
33:31
in the NFL for. Motion during the snap to be
33:35
far more of an agitating statistic. Like if you,
33:40
that's part of the run game though. A lot of
33:42
that is in gold at the snap doing his banana
33:44
motion stuff. I know, but you were getting a
33:46
lot of like Ruchi in motion and that's a, that's
33:49
a disaster waiting to happen. You know, it's
33:51
like guys that barely know the in off the couch
33:54
and, uh, barely know the playbook and Seattle
33:57
gave up 14 penalties for a hundred and. 50 yards,
34:01
was it? And charges just went, Oh, this is like
34:03
the plus four turnover differential last week.
34:06
Hold my beer. We're going to have 16 for 130.
34:11
And sure. It was just, it was trigger finger
34:13
stuff, but I know there was, it was a rotating
34:17
door at offensive line, but my golly, you, you
34:19
mentioned the Aboigbe one. There was just some
34:21
seriously stupid shit in that, in, uh, in that
34:26
performance. And yeah, there were opportunities
34:29
and maybe those opportunities came because Seattle
34:31
kind of took the foot off the gas and became
34:33
a little bit more conservative to protect the
34:35
lead. There's a fair bit of truth in that, but
34:38
Chargers showed some spark and got a possession
34:41
with a minute and 30 left on the clock. And then
34:44
Logan Taylor launched Uchenna Nwosu into Justin
34:49
Herbert. And that was the game. So what do you
34:52
do? Chris O 'Leary though. Oh boy. Al, he's fluctuated
35:02
a little bit with his blitz rate so far this
35:06
year. It was back up around that 30 % mark. Do
35:08
you think he's found a sweet spot for it or do
35:10
you think he's just got a growing awareness and
35:12
feel for the game, the context, things like that?
35:16
What are you seeing with Chris O 'Leary's first
35:18
four games as an NFL defensive coordinator? We
35:23
said last week he's gotten better every... game
35:25
and maybe even every half. Well, this was better
35:28
again. It really was. They went into this game
35:31
missing doing James. They're still missing Delvin
35:33
Tomlinson. Like one guy's probably your most
35:35
important run defender on the first level. The
35:37
other guy's probably your most important run
35:39
defender on the second level and a real leader
35:42
on your defense. And what he's done really cleverly
35:45
he's got the guys to go back to playing their
35:47
quarters coverages really well. And then this
35:49
time he recognized that we can get after Sam
35:53
Darnold because He probably like he knows that
35:57
type of offense one of the criticisms is in a
36:00
passing game that I don't always have the short
36:02
options they do kind of hit intermediate and
36:04
deep chunks so if you do blitz and play man behind
36:07
it if you do send six at the right time there's
36:10
a damn good chance you'll get home and he was
36:12
doing some of those. pressure paths that McDonald
36:15
and Minter do you'll see them the same ones that
36:18
were being done by the Seahawks to the Patriots
36:20
in the Super Bowl when you see you've got a nickel
36:23
who's just waiting and as soon as he realizes
36:25
that he's free because there's been a motion
36:27
from a wide receiver he's going that's his trigger
36:29
and you're sending three guys through the one
36:32
gap or essentially or two guys through the big
36:34
gap and I thought his field to do it on that
36:37
last offensive snap of the game was just Unbelievable
36:41
it's third and eight they've just run the ball
36:43
for two yards he must have said like for him
36:46
to make that decision so quickly right. Okay
36:49
third and eight a minute forty five left what
36:51
are we gonna do here cover zero blitz we're running
36:53
this says it in the ear of the mic they all get
36:55
up on the line bang. Dean Leonard's on the field
36:58
tarheed stills covering and Troy die gets home
37:01
you get the ball back to Justin Herbert with
37:03
a chance to win you called it Andy only. Eight
37:07
blitz attempts in this game so it's not like
37:09
he overused it but he always did it on third
37:11
down and on those eight blitz attempts Sam Donald
37:14
one for seven six yards and a touchdown but that
37:19
was that one in the red zone so. Chris O 'Leary
37:22
he you've just shown yourself to very quickly
37:25
to be someone actually learns from his mistakes
37:27
Jack unlike what Mike McDaniel is doing on the
37:30
other side of the ball not finding an identity.
37:33
Chris O 'Leary is quickly realized I'm gonna
37:35
I'm gonna lose a job if I think I'm the smartest
37:37
person in the room I'm gonna go back to doing
37:39
stuff that has worked and that is tried and tested
37:42
with these players. Well some of these numbers
37:46
will suggest that through four weeks like some
37:49
of the stats I talked about with McDaniels offense
37:51
just Alistair guess what our where we rank in
37:55
terms of our pressure right as a as a as a defense
37:58
where do we rank in the NFL. Eleventh. Twelfth.
38:03
Very good very good very good very close guess
38:06
what our blitz where we rank in terms of our
38:08
blitz think think we're Andy what do you think
38:11
where we rank for our blitz right. I'm going
38:16
to say 21st. Again, very, very good. We're 22nd,
38:20
right? This is where things get really interesting.
38:22
Our pressure to sack rate - Sorry, just quickly.
38:25
These are both flukes. This is not pre -organized.
38:28
I know. You've done very well. We saw the notes.
38:32
But guess, our pressure to sack rate is, we're
38:35
18 .9%, almost 19%, which ranks us eighth. Our
38:38
sack rate is 7 .8, so we're seventh in the NFL.
38:42
But our average time to pressure, Alistair, guess
38:46
where that is? Our average time to pressure.
38:51
I think he's actually gone blank. Is he Andy?
38:54
What's our average time to pressure? He's pulled
38:55
a Jim Harbaugh. I couldn't tell you what our
38:57
average time to pressure in seconds would be,
39:00
but I would say it's down the bottom somewhere.
39:03
I would say 28th. It's 31st. So you're looking
39:08
at this, right? It's like we're seventh in sack
39:11
rate and eighth in pressure to sack. But so we,
39:14
we. I guess one of the groups we thought that
39:16
isn't getting a lot of, you know, isn't finishing
39:19
particularly well, but they're actually finishing
39:21
their pressures with sacks, right? Um, but the
39:24
thing is, it's just, it's perhaps not getting
39:26
there super quickly, which means Alistair that
39:28
ties into the fact that. The coverage is doing
39:31
a great, is doing a great, great job. And the
39:34
back is talking to the front and O 'Leary is
39:37
playing a scheme and coaching with the guys that
39:40
he's got. We don't have explosive edge rushes,
39:42
but what we do is we do have good communication
39:45
on the back end that allows those guys to get
39:47
home. So again, looking at those numbers, it's
39:50
fascinating to seeing the disparity, but when
39:53
you see the numbers and you go, okay, that actually
39:55
makes sense. Just as it does with Big Daniel,
39:58
who's all over the place. We can actually look
40:00
at these numbers and go, Hey, what is on the
40:02
field is actually making sense, Andy. And I thought,
40:05
um, I thought Mack and Tully were exceptional.
40:08
Mezador had a really, really good game. Um, and,
40:11
and I still think the fronts, the sort of the
40:12
F that that line is doing really well. Um, what
40:15
did you, did you see anything incredible or interesting
40:18
on the defense at all that you wanted to touch
40:20
on? Sometimes just quickly before you do Andy.
40:23
If he's going to be masquerading as numbers guy
40:25
from now on, on the show, I'm going to have to
40:27
start reading some poetry or Ernest Hemingway
40:29
or something. I'm not super happy about it. Just
40:31
letting you know. I did, I did the literature
40:33
to start the show. So you find your own, find
40:35
your own trick pal. We've been Mike McDaniel,
40:37
mate. We're just changing things up. Chameleons.
40:39
The patchwork quilt. Uh, I think sometimes on
40:44
the defense, Jack, the things you don't notice
40:46
are the best things. And, uh, we've spoken, Al
40:49
and I was speaking during. The viewing of the
40:52
game and that's the sort of underrated nature
40:54
of tarheed still and his coverage. Um, this season
40:59
so far, and I think, yeah, he was, he was, did
41:02
a pretty good job. What the Seahawks took advantage
41:05
of was, uh, our linebackers in coverage and,
41:09
uh, that sort of soft kind of, when they sort
41:11
of, they're, they're crossing routes into the,
41:14
well, they're being accredited with the majority
41:16
of the yards. Um, so. Cornerbacks are doing a
41:20
great job. Yeah. Tackling was a real weak point
41:25
for the team. You saw how the Seahawks get around
41:28
and how they hit and they stick. And there were
41:31
just way too many missed tackles allowed by the
41:35
Chargers defense. Cam Hart, big contributor in
41:40
that. Talk about build like Tarzan plays like
41:42
Jane. I mean, he's okay in coverage, but... There
41:46
are a few guy del Sean don't a before he got
41:49
injured if you look at the tackling efforts of
41:51
two of their three touchdowns Shahid was barely
41:54
touch you getting two three guys Yes, so it's
41:57
not like a perfect manual Wilson in almost untouched
42:01
as well Just the the two or three real blemishes
42:07
on the defense for the day I'd say that was it
42:10
Khalil Mack Khalil Mack is playing like an animal
42:12
and that terrifies me when you hear be traded
42:15
soon is about Trade block stuff I go well if
42:18
he's gone we're stuffed absolutely stuffed like
42:21
the way he's playing and touch would you be ripping
42:24
your hair out Andy you'd be ripping your hair
42:26
out because literally the short td draws well
42:29
they they were about twenty three yards twenty
42:31
yards and like. The defense kept Seattle to three
42:34
of 12 on third down, like, and, and we'll be
42:37
with five and 15. So they did their job. And
42:40
the only time that really, and there's the game
42:42
that those two short touchdowns and you go, well,
42:44
there's 14 points. Just, just like that. I mean,
42:48
Mac could be going, what, what, what, what are
42:51
you doing? Like we're doing our job here, guys.
42:54
And Mike McDonough is going, give it to Kate
42:56
Mitchell. Oh, that's thought of Justin Herbert
42:59
on touchdown. Oh, I got bracelets. He's done
43:05
it again. He's broken himself this time. He's
43:10
done it again. It just gets me so frustrated.
43:13
Like, it's just like, you're a coach, you know,
43:16
like consistency, communication, getting ready
43:19
preparation. That's one thing you can control.
43:22
Sorry. I'm emotional guys. I'm emotional. It's
43:27
fair enough, man. We have entered the season
43:31
expecting to get some of Heisenberg's blue crystal
43:34
and we've wound up with shitty chili pee. It
43:37
is totally okay for us and fans alike to be pissed
43:42
off at what we're watching every week. Good segway.
43:49
Say Heisenberg's crystal. It's mine. I'm Heisenberg.
43:55
What's left in the, on the defense or, I mean,
44:00
we don't need to talk anymore about special teams
44:03
and that muff punt, but, uh, golly, there's a
44:10
glimmer of hope, but, um, other than that, we'll,
44:15
like Jack said, we'll have to, the proof will
44:17
be in the pudding. We need to see the, the, the
44:19
walk be walked. All right. We would normally
44:24
do some games, but. or some awards rather, but
44:28
we're going to engage in some of the Twitter
44:32
reactions from a few of Jackie boys posts. So
44:36
I'm going to do a little buy sell, hold discerning,
44:41
uh, followers of our X page may have noticed
44:43
a difference in the tone of some of the tweets
44:45
on, uh, on Sunday, but it was the three of us
44:51
tweeting. Yep. Yep. Yep. See, Richard d 'Astur,
44:55
if you can see on the screen, guys on YouTube,
44:58
he's on the money with the Spanos family. Rick
45:03
Russ Jack, McDaniel finally dumped the timing
45:05
play nonsense halfway through the third and they
45:07
played better even with the decimated offensive
45:09
line. So let's see if they can turn that into
45:12
something the players can execute next week.
45:14
Harbaugh will have them up to play the chip.
45:17
The Broncos I think. The Broncos I think, yes.
45:20
I'll do the on the run correction. Thanks Russ.
45:24
Yeah i'll buy that i think the broncos are struggling
45:28
just as much as us in some ways when you look
45:30
at it but we'll leave that for a preview show
45:32
but now i reckon rick russ is true and i don't
45:35
know what happened at half time people are hypothesizing
45:38
that shane day was actually had a chat with mcdaniel
45:42
or say hey guys we just need to go back to this
45:44
but what herbert did was pretty incredible so
45:47
yeah let's just more of that. More of that, put
45:50
pressure on this Broncos day. So, uh, yeah, I'm
45:52
going to buy that Rick Russ. Thanks for, uh,
45:54
your thoughts. That's one. Um, Jay writes, you
45:59
enter into depression knowing you chose a senile
46:01
CEO head coach who doesn't even do the CEO -ing
46:05
well over the likes of Ben Johnson, while the
46:08
offensive line and pass catchers once again,
46:11
reek. Then you realize the Spanos won't fire
46:14
said head coach and you'll have to endure this
46:16
experience again next year I'm gonna say this
46:18
one out. I think we've learned enough to know
46:22
that The charges aren't gonna fire a head coach.
46:25
Oh, well, this is year three, but you know, it's
46:28
been two playoffs There's a lot of cash. There's
46:30
been a contract extension. I don't know how guaranteed
46:32
money works with coaching contracts But I cannot
46:38
see this happening. I cannot see Similarly, the
46:41
likes of Herbert being traded, they are just
46:44
catastrophic events for a franchise and then
46:48
a franchise like the Los Angeles Chargers, I
46:50
don't think could recover from these horrendous
46:54
blowups. So yes, we will have senility at the
46:58
helm in at least one more year to come, I think.
47:03
Ah, okay. Al, let's find one for you, mate. Oh,
47:10
this is an interesting one. That's a desperate.
47:12
Bit of desperation from a Ben lit LV. Fire Joe
47:17
Hortese ASAP. No excuse for going into the off
47:20
season with third highest cap. Nwosu killing
47:23
it. That's a reach. Not signing Ka13 and thinking
47:28
you can just roll with Latin QJ as your receivers.
47:30
Not getting any offensive line help. Fire him
47:32
ASAP. This season is on him and his compic priority.
47:40
Yeah, sorry, Ben lit LV. I'm going to throw that
47:42
take in the bin where it belongs. I am, I'm a
47:47
big one for allowing people to redeem themselves
47:50
if they've made some mistakes. And Joe Ortiz
47:53
is still learning how to be a GM. He had a philosophy.
47:56
A lot of it's the Baltimore philosophy. I'm really
47:59
interested to see how he learns from what is
48:02
looking like his first unsuccessful season. The
48:05
first two he's thinking playoffs, we're building,
48:07
we're building, stick with the approach. I want
48:10
to see if he can pivot before I decide to fire
48:13
the GM. So one more year, unless we go Owen 17.
48:17
All right. There's your, there's your little
48:19
out Ben. Thanks for the comment though. Jack
48:27
no alt and Slater again with a worse interior
48:31
offensive line it's a full tank and rebuild time
48:34
now it looks like we are stuck with two injury
48:37
prone offensive tackles. Big Daddy a. Big Daddy
48:42
a get some love on the show. Big Daddy a get
48:45
some love listen. The slider one was a tough
48:50
one but the joe walt one actually here slated
48:53
to blame funnily enough because he completely
48:55
misses em and worry em and worry jumps into the
48:59
air and literally. But faces joe walt and joe
49:03
walt walking away like just had his bell rung
49:06
that is a freaky freaky accident. But it always
49:12
seems, you know, injuries are one of those things
49:14
is like they tell you to play harder and play
49:16
harder and play harder. Like you're not playing
49:18
hard, go harder, go harder. That's generally
49:20
when you start to injure yourself. When you think
49:22
about you need to go hard and need to do well.
49:27
Is it a full, full tank and rebuild? Maybe not
49:31
just at the moment, but yeah, the off the interior
49:34
offensive line is worse than possibly what it
49:37
would have been last year. So. I don't know.
49:42
I really know what the take is there. I'm going
49:43
to hold it, I guess. Hold. Thanks. Big daddy.
49:47
Yeah. The injury prone offensive tackles things
49:49
really kind of eating away at me now. The only
49:52
place we can go forward. This is from Greg. I
49:54
think the team took some important strides. I'm
49:57
assuming against the Hawks as the game went on.
50:00
Herbert finally started to look like Herbert.
50:02
We have to stop the penalties though, that more
50:04
than anything felt like it killed us. This is
50:07
law. That's also true. I reckon. This is Greg
50:10
the optimist. I like a good optimist. We need
50:13
more of them. Well, it's true that the only place
50:17
the team can go is forward. It would be mind
50:19
boggling to go backwards. Does that mean the
50:22
team will win? I don't know. I also haven't seen
50:25
what we look like as a full game with the offensive
50:27
line that finished the game against the Seahawks.
50:31
But yeah, Greg, I think there's something to
50:33
Herbert. playing a little looser, maybe not copying
50:37
the same hits he did that, that sack he took
50:39
to it with a hit in the ribs was just awful.
50:42
He won't, he won't survive and the Broncos have
50:45
some deadly rushes. So I don't know, onwards
50:47
and upwards, Greg, stay positive, keep off X
50:50
with that kind of chirpiness. You'll, you'll
50:52
get slapped down pretty quickly. What do we do?
50:57
Nothing. Keep improving week by week. No changes.
51:01
If we, as fans have to go through this hell now
51:04
because Shanahan offenses get much better in
51:06
the second year, then let's keep it all. Grim
51:09
optimist does what it says on the tin. I tend
51:16
to as well, because I just don't think the team
51:18
is going to do anything. I just don't think they're
51:22
going to cut the, cut the sales down and just,
51:27
you know, fold up the mast and pack it in and
51:29
just float along for the rest of the year. I
51:31
think. they do believe in what they say with
51:34
continuing the fight and everything like that.
51:37
So I buy that one. Al very conservative by Adam
51:42
Gase he is bad luck everywhere he goes he has
51:46
a real problem. Yeah good call good call Justin
51:50
Dickey thank you very much I mean that there
51:53
are like as I said earlier their receivers running
51:55
to the same space on the field I didn't see Miami
51:58
doing that by process of deduction it is Adam
52:01
Gaines the past game coordinator so there also
52:04
needs to be some kind of firing or scapegoat
52:06
so yeah. Back to the bags, coach goes. Jack's
52:11
going to love me dishing him this one. Herbert
52:13
needs to dump the girl, Mando. This is the least
52:19
comfortable Jack's been on the podcast, I think.
52:22
Yeah. Well, no, he doesn't. Keep Madison. We
52:27
love you, Madison. We love you, Justin. They're
52:30
fine. They're fine. They're fine. I've got I've
52:38
got one down in the bottom that says oh and nine
52:40
is looming the other one says one and four next
52:42
week and I'm gonna buy from angel. It's a one
52:46
and four come on it's gotta be Andy I do want
52:50
to read one because there was a listener who
52:52
I said I would read his tweet out so the dude
52:55
and it's a good one because we talked about it
52:56
earlier without answering it and we won't ask
52:58
all of these answer all of these the dude I'll
53:00
respond to some of these on X but Jack. Trade
53:04
Mac or keep him. You were just saying how he
53:06
must be thinking what the hell's going on. What
53:08
would you do if you were the GM? Oh, if I was
53:15
the GM, I want to keep him, but I just don't
53:17
think I think Khalil Mack will want to go somewhere
53:20
where there's a hope to play playoffs. So why?
53:22
Let's say that this looks like a loss of a season.
53:24
He's out of contract at the end of the year,
53:26
right? If a team wants to give you a pick for
53:28
him, you're maybe doing a bit of that rebuilding
53:32
that Big Daddy Eric was starting to talk about
53:35
if you think you can't make the playoffs. Try
53:38
trading Mac. I don't see as a rebuild a 36 year
53:42
old edge Russia who's still playing in a very
53:43
high level. He's, he's almost like kind of one
53:46
of those mercenaries that you might get in free
53:50
agency anyway. And at, at 16 or 18 million dollars,
53:53
which is what has been playing on in 20 million
53:55
and the last couple of years. So, uh, I think
53:58
for the health of the locker room, when you have
53:59
a veteran and a, uh, an honored player like Khalil
54:04
Mack. I knew he was going there, Andy. Other
54:07
veterans want to look at other veterans going
54:09
to go, is this, is this GM going to treat me
54:11
right? So I think you do trade him. If he wants
54:13
to go, you definitely trade him. Absolutely.
54:16
Right. Okay. Let's say he doesn't want to get
54:18
traded and you're thinking about the future.
54:21
We can get an extra draft pick for this guy.
54:23
The Cleveland Browns are going to give us pick
54:24
four that can help us expedite our rebuild and
54:27
move on from the Mac era. If this guy has six
54:32
sacks by the buy. Uh, and is still playing incredibly
54:36
well. You go, you don't get traded. Do you want
54:38
to play again next year? Because we've been very,
54:41
we'd have you, that's that, that's where I go.
54:43
He hasn't, he hasn't shown any signs of slowing
54:46
down. Uh, well, I mean, it's, he's nowhere near
54:48
as explosive, but he can still set the edge.
54:50
Uh, and, you know, And he can still be true,
54:54
true, true, true. Oh, he buried Sam Donald skull
54:58
into the hallowed. I don't know how that wasn't
55:01
roughing or how sand down from that. That was
55:03
wild. He's a man possessed playing pissed off
55:06
because he's not getting the support from his
55:08
offense. That's for sure. So I'd keep him and
55:10
see if he wants to play again. Like I keep him
55:13
around because he's obviously a big leader as
55:14
well. But again, if he says he wants to go, that's
55:17
how I've stayed around for you guys. Like I thought
55:19
this was it time to go. Yep. Do the right thing.
55:23
Do the right thing, Joe. Did you want to read
55:29
anymore or was that the, that was the last one?
55:31
No, I thought that was, that was, that was the
55:32
last one. Very good. Jack, uh, what have you
55:36
got for us with your teachable moment? Okay.
55:40
Okay. Okay. Okay. Let's just get back to normal
55:43
here. Jim, Mike, welcome back to class. This
55:50
week we're moving away from educational theory
55:53
and doing a little film studies. Today, we're
55:56
talking about narrative structure. Most Hollywood
56:00
films, as you would know, we're in LA, follow
56:03
a fairly predictable structure. You establish
56:05
the characters, you introduce a problem, things
56:07
get worse and our heroes are pushed to their
56:10
lowest point. And then finally, we reach the
56:13
third act. The hero changes. They work out what
56:16
they were doing wrong. They start making the
56:19
right decisions. They rally and hopefully they
56:21
save the day. Now, gentlemen. That you would
56:25
agree I think Andy and Alistair that that is
56:27
great storytelling. It's a shit way to play football.
56:33
Because watching the charges against Seattle
56:35
felt like watching a movie where somebody forgot
56:37
that the audience had already figured out the
56:39
ending. The large parts of the game the offensive
56:42
lost we've talked about that then when the situation
56:45
became desperate suddenly there was urgency there
56:47
was a slight rhythm there was a heartbeat there
56:49
was a rally. You know, someone who remembered,
56:52
oh yeah, that's actually like Justin Herbert.
56:53
He can still play football, but here's your lesson
56:57
guys. You don't have to wait till the third act
57:00
to give you a protagonist agency in film. Sure.
57:05
We need complications. We need setbacks. We're
57:07
a Chargers franchise. We know what they are.
57:09
We need the hero to struggle because otherwise
57:11
there isn't much of a movie in football. I think
57:15
we need to skip all this now. We need to establish
57:18
what works from the opening scene, the opening
57:20
drive. You know, let Herbert be the hero on the
57:23
first drive of the game. Don't wait till the
57:25
last to make him the hero. You can make adjustments
57:29
before this dramatic stuff that happens at the
57:31
end. You know, we've said against Seattle, this
57:34
comeback was exciting, but unlike Hollywood,
57:37
unfortunately, Jim, Mike, you just don't get
57:40
points for narrative satisfaction. You just get
57:42
the loss. So this week, Jim and Mike. Stop writing
57:48
a comeback story. I quite like to watch a very
57:52
boring movie where the charges are good from
57:54
the opening scene. Class dismissed. Yeah. Nice,
58:01
mate. Nice. Well, snake in there. Jack's preening.
58:04
Jack's preening at the end is now the best part
58:07
of the teachable moment. Spot on, Jack. Just
58:12
needs time away from the mark after that intimacy.
58:15
Spot on indeed. Squeeze inside the hour tonight.
58:20
Thanks to all for tuning in and continuing to
58:23
ride with us throughout this season. We hope
58:25
it's cathartic, entertaining, a little bit lighthearted.
58:29
Try not to bring too much doom and gloom to what
58:31
we experience every Sunday afternoon. Anyway.
58:35
Come on, let's beat these Broncos. Let's beat
58:37
these Broncos. We'll be back, Jack and I, later
58:40
in the week to preview the week five bout against
58:44
Denver. Until then, take it easy. We'll see you
58:45
next time. Kingfiery has got Floyd turning, got
59:13
it!