Latest / NFL Power Rankings / #17: Seahawks reclaim No. 1 spot, while Jaguars hit top 5; Rams plummet

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#17: Seahawks reclaim No. 1 spot, while Jaguars hit top 5; Rams plummet · NFL Power Rankings

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  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
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  Speaker 1: partnership with iHeartRadio.
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  Speaker 2: Welcome to a brand new edition of NFL Power Rankings.
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  Speaker 2: Mikey Aman Eric at home with you.
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  Speaker 3: For a complete.
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  Speaker 2: Analysis of all of Eric's teams one through thirty two,
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  Speaker 2: All you have to do is check out NFL dot
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  Speaker 2: com and Eric before we get to the rankings, because
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  Speaker 2: we got a new number one here rankings. Aside, this
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  Speaker 2: playoff race has been absolutely wild. It's got to be
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  Speaker 2: so much fun for you to try to figure out
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  Speaker 2: and handicap who's actually going to punch a ticket to
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  Speaker 2: the postseason.
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  Speaker 4: It is and what's interesting, Minke, because it's more about
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  Speaker 4: we kind of know who's going to get in the
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  Speaker 4: dance this year, right, There's still some things to figure
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  Speaker 4: out in the NFC South. Couple teams with some long
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  Speaker 4: odds to get in, but the positioning everything could change
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  Speaker 4: in a moment's notice. One game, one loss, one win,
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  Speaker 4: could really shake everything up. Just look at the Rams,
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  Speaker 4: look at Denver. We'll get into all these teams, but
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  Speaker 4: everything's still up for grabs.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah. The NFC West alone is just really compelling because
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  Speaker 2: he got three teams that are all in the mix
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  Speaker 2: for the number one seed in the NFC.
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  Speaker 3: I Chicago fans, trust me, I get it. You're also
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  Speaker 3: as well.
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  Speaker 2: The point is, it really is going to get crazy
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  Speaker 2: here the rankings one through eight.
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  Speaker 3: I see a large mover at the bottom.
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  Speaker 2: There. We got Seattle, now you're new number one. We
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  Speaker 2: got the Patriots following them, the Bills who just figure
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  Speaker 2: out ways to.
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  Speaker 3: Get it done.
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  Speaker 2: The Broncos I think we all felt really good about
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  Speaker 2: but they lose that game to Jacksonville. So the Jags
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  Speaker 2: now at five, the Bears at six, Niners move up
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  Speaker 2: a spot after a Monday night win to seven, and
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  Speaker 2: we got the Rams a free fall to the eighth position.
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  Speaker 3: We'll talk about them in just a moment.
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  Speaker 2: All right, you got Seattle as the number one team.
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  Speaker 2: Break this down for me, because you go and get
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  Speaker 2: a win when you are trailing, they're at home.
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  Speaker 3: I think the questions around Sam Darnold's.
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  Speaker 2: Need to be sort of silenced here because it's show me,
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  Speaker 2: not tell me.
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  Speaker 3: He showed everyone he can win a clutch game.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, let's obviously point out the fact he threw a
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  Speaker 4: couple of picks that look to put them in a
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  Speaker 4: position where they were going to lose this game because
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  Speaker 4: we're not looking good. And then all of a sudden,
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  Speaker 4: he cranked it up with one of his best stretches
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  Speaker 4: of the season, of really of his career.
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  Speaker 5: So it was important to get this.
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  Speaker 4: This punt return touchdown where she shied, in my mind, kind.
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  Speaker 5: Of flipped the game. Gave Seattle a chance.
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  Speaker 4: But look at Darnold dialed in, making some tough throws
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  Speaker 4: in small windows, the touchdowns, the two point conversions, really
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  Speaker 4: was in command there at the end.
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  Speaker 5: Look is this a career defining performance.
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  Speaker 4: We'll see He's still got the playoff demons to get
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  Speaker 4: off his back.
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  Speaker 5: He's got a lot more work to do.
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  Speaker 4: But you know, I felt a little dirty moving them
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  Speaker 4: up after giving up five hundred and eighty one yards
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  Speaker 4: and three turnovers.
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  Speaker 5: None for the Rams.
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  Speaker 4: There are a lot of sketchy moments in this game,
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  Speaker 4: but Seattle's found.
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  Speaker 5: A way to endure in these situations.
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  Speaker 4: They do have a mental toughness and a grit and
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  Speaker 4: firepower and all three elements of the game that you
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  Speaker 4: can't overlook.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, two two point conversions late in this game, we
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  Speaker 2: were I don't know if the Rams come up with
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  Speaker 2: one of them, I don't know if you drop them
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  Speaker 2: all the way down to where you did, which is
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  Speaker 2: that eighth prision, it is kind of crazy, I know you.
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  Speaker 2: It sounds like you were hesitating putting Seattle in that
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  Speaker 2: one spot. You got the New England Patriots right now,
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  Speaker 2: right behind him at number two. Was there a conversation
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  Speaker 2: mentally in your head that said, you know what, getting
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  Speaker 2: a win against a Ravens team, an opportunity to clinch
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  Speaker 2: the AFC East in Week seventeen against the Jets, could
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  Speaker 2: they have been your number one?
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  Speaker 5: It could have been right now.
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  Speaker 4: You don't really want to get too deep into the
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  Speaker 4: conversations my head, trust me, Mike and Ugly up there.
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  Speaker 4: Especially this season, everything's been sort of mixed up and
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  Speaker 4: we don't really know who's great, who's good, who's solid
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  Speaker 4: and all that. But look the way Drake may played
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  Speaker 4: in the fourth quarter, especially with no Travon Henderson out there,
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  Speaker 4: you know, two offensive linemen out just kept delivering haymaker
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  Speaker 4: after haymaker and really performing at a high level. Granted,
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  Speaker 4: no Lamar Jackson, so it was a little easier. On
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  Speaker 4: the other side of the ball. Defense was up against
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  Speaker 4: it earlier, but the Patriots did get enough stops eventually,
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  Speaker 4: and look, they're gonna get Milton Williams back, They're gonna
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  Speaker 4: get will Campbell back and other players as well. So
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  Speaker 4: I am confident they're going to be a little more
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  Speaker 4: fortified in the lines of scrimmage. But Mike if Rable
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  Speaker 4: has this team believing and they find ways to win
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  Speaker 4: even if you know, the cards aren't all perfect, So
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  Speaker 4: got to give them credit for that. Obviously, this year's
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  Speaker 4: been sort of the year the double digit come back,
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  Speaker 4: and you know they were the latest to do it
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  Speaker 4: on Sunday night, a huge victory.
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  Speaker 2: Now we'll talk more about the Ravens and the predicament
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  Speaker 2: that they find themselves in. Coming up here on power
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  Speaker 2: rankings once again, this is a Patriots scene that clinched
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  Speaker 2: their first playoff birth since twenty twenty one, which is
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  Speaker 2: just wild. Moving on to number four right now, we've
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  Speaker 2: got to Denver Broncos Team Eric. I think this is
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  Speaker 2: more of a function of the Jags being better than
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  Speaker 2: we thought as opposed to Denver struggling. And trust me,
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  Speaker 2: there were some struggles on the defensive side because Jacksonville
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  Speaker 2: obviously had their way on the offensive side of things.
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  Speaker 2: Give it up thirty four points. This Denver defense, How
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  Speaker 2: concerned are you that?
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  Speaker 3: I don't know.
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  Speaker 2: I'm like, maybe there is a little bit of an
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  Speaker 2: issue here, or do we just say, hey, tip the
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  Speaker 2: cap and give respect to Trevor Lawrence.
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  Speaker 5: Yeah.
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  Speaker 4: I think all season long we've sort of relied on
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  Speaker 4: the fact, hey, look, Denver has a top five defense.
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  Speaker 4: They can play like the best unit in the NFL
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  Speaker 4: on any given day, but that it wasn't the case.
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  Speaker 5: Played well early, played well late, but.
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  Speaker 4: Everything in between was all Jacksonville, all with these making
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  Speaker 4: big plays in the past game sixty one yard at
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  Speaker 4: a Parker, Washington's longest play the Broncos, who'd given up
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  Speaker 4: this season, so it was just shocking to see that.
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  Speaker 4: And then offensively, obviously kind of the self inflicted air
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  Speaker 4: is the poor exchange. They're kind of a gift fumble
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  Speaker 4: from bow Nixon company. Not enough consistency and not none
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  Speaker 4: of that fourth quarter magic that has kind of defined
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  Speaker 4: their season. So you know, again, they lost, or they'd
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  Speaker 4: won eleven in a row, they lose one game. It
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  Speaker 4: did happen at home, but it felt like to me
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  Speaker 4: a divisional round playoff game, and the fact that they
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  Speaker 4: didn't stack up and didn't have enough answers at the
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  Speaker 4: end of the game. Was a little bit surprising. They
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  Speaker 4: had opportunities but couldn't cash in on them. So just
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  Speaker 4: sort of a brief pumping of the breaks on the
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  Speaker 4: Broncos still think they have a viable club, but you know,
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  Speaker 4: should serve as kind of a wake up call a
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  Speaker 4: little bit.
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  Speaker 2: Okay, So I got to imagine once the show hits
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  Speaker 2: air and it gets released on social media and people
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  Speaker 2: start dissecting your right, They're going to say, well, Eric,
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  Speaker 2: you got a Broncos team sitting at number four, the
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  Speaker 2: team that just beat them on their home turf is
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  Speaker 2: Jacksonville at five, why not flip flop them.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, it's a good case, I mean to be made
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  Speaker 4: for Jacksonville. The way they're playing right now, obviously, it's
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  Speaker 4: been really impressive. You know, I think a lot of
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  Speaker 4: people have kind of slow played them a little.
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  Speaker 5: Wanting to see that big victory. Well you got it
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  Speaker 5: on Sunday.
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  Speaker 4: And look, Trevor Lawrence, you can you can say whatever
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  Speaker 4: you want about him. I think he's playing at a
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  Speaker 4: level at or perhaps even a little above what we
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  Speaker 4: saw down the stretch in the twenty twenty two season.
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  Speaker 4: That was the year they had that big comeback against
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  Speaker 4: the Charters in the playoffs, gave the Chiefs a game
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  Speaker 4: the next week in the postseason. We thought it was
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  Speaker 4: a franchise on the rise. It's taken now three years
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  Speaker 4: to get back to this point, and Lawrence has faced
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  Speaker 4: plenty of criticism along the way. But you know, even
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  Speaker 4: with Travis Hunter out, they found weapons in the past game.
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  Speaker 4: You know, Brian Thomas has sort of come back into
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  Speaker 4: the full little bit, but more Parker Washington, more Jacobe Myers.
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  Speaker 4: They don't have to run the ball to have success.
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  Speaker 4: And when Lawrence is making these kinds of plays, they're dangerous. Man.
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  Speaker 4: So yeah, used to say they can't win a Super Bowl.
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  Speaker 4: I think the Broncos overall resume is a little bit stronger,
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  Speaker 4: and that's why I didn't flip the two. But hey,
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  Speaker 4: I understand the criticism and folks cannot update their personal
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  Speaker 4: rankings that way because it wouldn't shock me if it
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  Speaker 4: ends up that way.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm with you, and I think you described it
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  Speaker 2: really well the total body of work. The reality is
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  Speaker 2: it is more impressive from a Broncos side of things,
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  Speaker 2: But the Jags right now, you talk about peaking at.
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  Speaker 3: The right time in the season.
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  Speaker 2: They look the part, and I think once the playoffs begin,
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  Speaker 2: the Jacksonville Jagos are, you know, maybe on the short
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  Speaker 2: list of teams that you don't want to play. And
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  Speaker 2: I would have made the case for the Easton Texans,
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  Speaker 2: but after what we saw this past week, I don't.
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  Speaker 2: I think the Jags might be that squad. Keeping My
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  Speaker 2: Jags say go on the road and they take on
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  Speaker 2: a colts team that needs a whole lot of help
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  Speaker 2: to find the playoffs. Take a closer look at the
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  Speaker 2: odds to win the NFC.
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  Speaker 3: Here we got the Rams.
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  Speaker 2: Still the favorite at plus two to fifty, not far behind,
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  Speaker 2: or the Seattle Seahawks a plus three ten, the Eagles,
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  Speaker 2: the Niners, Hackers, and the Chicago Bears in that order
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  Speaker 2: to go and win. I'm almost surprised here Chicago is
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  Speaker 2: at plus eight hundred right now when you consider some
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  Speaker 2: of the wins that they have gotten. Now they match
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  Speaker 2: up against the San Francisco team on Sunday Night Football,
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  Speaker 2: a meaningful matchup for both of these squads because both
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  Speaker 2: teams right now in play for a number one seed
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  Speaker 2: in the NFC. Can you imagine by the way. If
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  Speaker 2: the Bears are a one seed and the road to
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  Speaker 2: Super Bowl goes through Chicago, like that would be insane
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  Speaker 2: because we always talk about weather games of what this
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  Speaker 2: could mean. But sell me on Chicago right now. Are
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  Speaker 2: you buying them as a real Super Bowl contender?
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  Speaker 4: Well, listen, when they find themselves down at two minutes
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  Speaker 4: to go, the other teams should be very, very very
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  Speaker 4: scared because that's when they're at their best kind of
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  Speaker 4: you know, finding a way. Obviously being a little talk
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  Speaker 4: in cheek here, but Caleb Williams the Iceman, He's earned
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  Speaker 4: that nickname with some clutch performances. There is no better
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  Speaker 4: scene from last week than him slipping his hands into
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  Speaker 4: the handwarm before DJ Moore even caught that bomb, make
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  Speaker 4: a throw, slip the hand in more catches the touchdown.
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  Speaker 4: That's how cool this guy is, and that's how clutch
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  Speaker 4: this team has become. So you know, it's rare for
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  Speaker 4: teams to have this quality. They're plus twenty one in turnovers,
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  Speaker 4: you know, minus three and the four losses and plus
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  Speaker 4: twenty four and the eleven wins, so it gives you
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  Speaker 4: a rope. They're able to get those extra possessions and
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  Speaker 4: have those extra opportunities to win games.
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  Speaker 5: Still needed about nine.
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  Speaker 4: Big things to happen against Green Bay to pull it off.
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  Speaker 4: That's why I didn't bump them up. All nine hit
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: they hit the inside straight. Not everybody can get that.
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  Speaker 4: Won't always work out that way. But again, this Bear's
• 9:35
  Speaker 4: team kind of like we said with the Jaguars, where
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  Speaker 4: you got to stop disrespecting him. You have to realize
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  Speaker 4: that this team finds a way to win. And Ben
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  Speaker 4: Johnson has instilled incredible confidence in this club right now.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, we'll talk more about the Green Bay Packers coming
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  Speaker 2: up in just a bit here on power rankings, because
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  Speaker 2: I think they're worth a conversation with Jordan Love also
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: going down and you mentioned what this Bears team needed.
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  Speaker 3: They needed to.
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  Speaker 2: Figure out Malik Willis, who I thought actually played some
• 9:56
  Speaker 2: good football keeping my Bears. Yeah, Niners Sunday night football,
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  Speaker 2: So keeping my fifth best odds right now for the
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: Chicago Bears to win the NFC speaking, and this ninersquat
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  Speaker 2: one spot right behind them at number seven. I don't
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: know if well, I I was about to say, if
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  Speaker 2: there's another guy that should be in front of Kyle
• 10:13
  Speaker 2: Shanahan for coach of the year and actually right off
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: the top of the dome. I can name some other
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  Speaker 2: guys that should be in that mix. The point is
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: navigating some of these injuries. They have done a remarkable job.
• 10:22
  Speaker 2: They're right in the thick of this rock party, looking
• 10:25
  Speaker 2: like the old rock party here, not the one that
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: was a little inconsistent coming off with that turf toe.
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: Just how dangerous is this team?
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, that offense is an absolute buzz saw. You know,
• 10:34
  Speaker 4: when they're on, they're at their best. And I think
• 10:36
  Speaker 4: Sunday night was our Monday night. I should say it
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  Speaker 4: was as close as we've seen them at perfection. So
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  Speaker 4: put up forty one points without Ricky Piersoll and other players.
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  Speaker 4: I mean, we'll see if the George Kittle injury ends
• 10:47
  Speaker 4: up being anything serious, but hey, he had a big night,
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  Speaker 4: and obviously other guys. Tanja stepped in as well.
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  Speaker 5: You know, the.
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  Speaker 4: Defense still has its warts, right when we've seen them
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  Speaker 4: kind of play those upper tier offenses, they've had their issues.
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  Speaker 4: You know, Philip Rivers did throw for some yards against them,
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  Speaker 4: did keep it close, almost match them score for score,
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  Speaker 4: but perty was on career night. Five touchdown passes did
• 11:08
  Speaker 4: open the door slightly late with that pick, but you know,
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  Speaker 4: that was one of the few possessions which they came
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  Speaker 4: up empty. So you know, again, this season sort of
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  Speaker 4: seems to be about respect right in. The Niners usually
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  Speaker 4: get it, but they're in this position where the injuries
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  Speaker 4: people sort of have this impression of them like there's
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  Speaker 4: there's a ceiling to what they can do. I'm guilty
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  Speaker 4: of that too, and I've said that all season long.
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  Speaker 4: I just don't know if this defense is good enough.
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  Speaker 4: If they can play as well as they did against
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  Speaker 4: the Carolina Panthers defensively a few weeks back, that's the
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  Speaker 4: kind of team that absolutely can make some Super Bowl
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  Speaker 4: tight noise.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I think to your point. I watched the press
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: conference when it was over from brock Perty He had
• 11:43
  Speaker 2: some significant things to say about the expectations for this
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: season and the real conversations Kyle Shanahan had with this
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: team that they were going to have to gut things out.
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: It didn't look necessarily rosterized with some of the turnover
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: and some of the injuries like previous Niners teams.
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  Speaker 3: But it doesn't matter.
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: It's a brand new year, and you know, getting hot
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: at the right time might be the case for them,
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: because I don't know if they are as complete, let's say,
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: as the Rams, for example, in this division, who seem
• 12:09
  Speaker 2: like they have it on both sides of the football.
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  Speaker 2: Let's focus in on Sean mcvay's team. Here they go
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  Speaker 2: and they lose against a Seattle squad. To me, I'm
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: just not that worried about them now. I know they're
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: still in the mix for a one seed.
• 12:23
  Speaker 3: I don't know.
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  Speaker 2: I know we've flashed the odds before. I feel like
• 12:25
  Speaker 2: they're still the best team in the NFC.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, and I want to explain this ranking carefully, right,
• 12:31
  Speaker 4: I mean, I have to set this up so people
• 12:32
  Speaker 4: aren't saying, why did you drop them seven points?
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  Speaker 5: If they make one more stop, they win that game.
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  Speaker 2: Right.
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  Speaker 5: I completely understand that on the.
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  Speaker 4: Road in a short week, they played very well for
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  Speaker 4: most of that game. But their path could be a
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: lot harder right now. They could be they're currently the
• 12:46
  Speaker 4: sixth seed, which is kind of amazing. Could play at
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  Speaker 4: Philly at Carolina, two places that they've lost games this year.
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  Speaker 5: Again, I'm with you. I think the Rams still have
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  Speaker 5: the firepower.
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  Speaker 4: And you know, my ranking the last several weeks them
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  Speaker 4: at number one has reflected that I think they have
• 13:00
  Speaker 4: the ability to go win.
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  Speaker 5: A Super Bowl.
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  Speaker 4: Well coached, MVP quarterback, you know, all these different elements
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  Speaker 4: of pass rush.
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  Speaker 5: I think they've got the ingredients.
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  Speaker 4: The firing of special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn, though, tells
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  Speaker 4: me there's a real concern, right they made some mistakes
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  Speaker 4: in that facet at the end of that game helped
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  Speaker 4: kind of sort of get the ball rolling for Seattle
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  Speaker 4: to come back. Is that going to change everything? Would
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  Speaker 4: they have fired him had they won the game?
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  Speaker 5: Right?
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  Speaker 4: These are all questions that I have swirling around in
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  Speaker 4: my head. So a little bit of internal strife right
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  Speaker 4: now and a loss that really crippled them in the standings.
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  Speaker 4: That's why the big knockdown. They absolutely are one of
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  Speaker 4: the teams and I don't think there's much separating one
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  Speaker 4: through eight or even deeper than that.
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  Speaker 5: Right now.
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  Speaker 4: They're one of the teams that can win at all.
• 13:40
  Speaker 4: But the cracks are just starting to show a little bit,
• 13:43
  Speaker 4: and you know, it's sort of reflected and where they're
• 13:45
  Speaker 4: going to end up in the rankings if the forty
• 13:48
  Speaker 4: nine ers the Seahawks continue winning.
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: I will say this over the next two weeks, these
• 13:53
  Speaker 2: of games, they get Atlanta and then they get Arizona.
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: You compare that to what Seattle's dealing with with, the
• 13:58
  Speaker 2: Niners are dealing with with, the Chicago Bears are dealing with.
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: Like I think there's still a path right now for.
• 14:02
  Speaker 2: This team to continue to rise, not just the NFC
• 14:05
  Speaker 2: standings to try to solidify a number one seed, but
• 14:08
  Speaker 2: also on your list of the top thirty two teams.
• 14:11
  Speaker 3: As we I second the power rankings.
• 14:13
  Speaker 2: Speaking of this list, Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers, they
• 14:17
  Speaker 2: keep finding ways to get it done. An important win
• 14:19
  Speaker 2: against the Lions in a wild finish. I think it
• 14:22
  Speaker 2: might be time to start giving some respect to Rogers
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: and this Pittsburgh team.
• 14:26
  Speaker 3: Where do they land on the rankings? That's next, Hey,
• 14:31
  Speaker 3: back here on power rankings. Eric's teams nine through sixteen.
• 14:34
  Speaker 3: The Chargers locked.
• 14:36
  Speaker 2: Up that postseason spots, sitting at number nine in Texas.
• 14:38
  Speaker 2: We'll talk about them in just a moment, finding a
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: way to get it done. It's the Eagles the Packers
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: who fall three spots to twelve.
• 14:44
  Speaker 3: The Steelers have won.
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: Three straight at thirteen Carolina, maybe maybe winning that division.
• 14:51
  Speaker 3: And then they got the Lions and the Baltimore.
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: Ravens at fifteen and sixteen, still stretching one to try
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: to find a way to make it into the playoffs.
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: The Houston Texans. You know, a week ago, Eric, we're
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: having these conversations. I'm thinking, Hey, they might be the
• 15:03
  Speaker 2: team that no one in the a he really wants
• 15:05
  Speaker 2: to play because of that team's defense. Offense looked like
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: it started to get it going, but the Raiders almost
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: beat him. What's the panic right now around this team?
• 15:13
  Speaker 5: Yeah, it's hard to figure exactly where they fit in.
• 15:15
  Speaker 4: Obviously like they'd been a hot team coming into this game,
• 15:18
  Speaker 4: but this was a strange one. The Raiders gave plenty
• 15:21
  Speaker 4: of good effort in this one and could have beaten
• 15:23
  Speaker 4: them with a few more plays. So surprising to see
• 15:25
  Speaker 4: them get beat, especially by Ashton genty both through the
• 15:28
  Speaker 4: air and on the ground. You know, this was a
• 15:30
  Speaker 4: defense that sort of pride it itself as one of
• 15:32
  Speaker 4: the best, if not the best unit in the league,
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: and the offense didn't score a touchdown until till midway
• 15:38
  Speaker 4: through the fourth quarter.
• 15:39
  Speaker 5: Had to have it too, right.
• 15:40
  Speaker 4: This was a game that was far too close for comforts.
• 15:42
  Speaker 4: You know, Look, teams are allowed hiccups this time of year.
• 15:45
  Speaker 4: The Raiders have played well against the Broncos. They beat
• 15:47
  Speaker 4: the Patriots way back in Week one. So on the
• 15:50
  Speaker 4: other side, you think, look what Kansas City did to
• 15:52
  Speaker 4: this team.
• 15:53
  Speaker 5: Look what the Eagles did to the Raiders a few
• 15:55
  Speaker 5: weeks ago.
• 15:56
  Speaker 4: Surprising that they moved the balls efficiently as they did,
• 15:59
  Speaker 4: and surprising their offense couldn't come up with more answers, So.
• 16:02
  Speaker 5: Willing to give him a pass.
• 16:03
  Speaker 4: Didn't drop him this week, But you know, kind of
• 16:06
  Speaker 4: holding my breath just a little bit on them.
• 16:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah, Texans Chargers on Saturday on NFL Network at so
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: Far Stadium right across from our studio, should be a
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: really good one. Packers dropped three spots. Now, Jordan Love
• 16:16
  Speaker 2: in this game. What am I supposed to make of
• 16:18
  Speaker 2: this team?
• 16:19
  Speaker 4: Hard to know, right, We've got to figure out Jordan
• 16:20
  Speaker 4: Love's status. Like you said earlier, I thought Malik Willis
• 16:23
  Speaker 4: did enough to win, played a pretty good game. That
• 16:25
  Speaker 4: fumbled exchange in overtime was obviously a tough blow. But
• 16:28
  Speaker 4: think about all the things that had to happen for
• 16:30
  Speaker 4: them to lose. Not only losing Love in this game,
• 16:33
  Speaker 4: the Bears hitting field goals, into the win, all that stuff,
• 16:36
  Speaker 4: but the face mask on third and twenty, the on
• 16:38
  Speaker 4: size kick, the bomb at the end of the game.
• 16:41
  Speaker 4: Right had to hit on every single one of them,
• 16:44
  Speaker 4: So certainly some bad luck involved. The Packers looked like
• 16:46
  Speaker 4: the better team for the first fifties five minutes of
• 16:49
  Speaker 4: this game, whatever it was, but reminiscent of that playoff
• 16:53
  Speaker 4: lost several years ago in Seattle.
• 16:54
  Speaker 5: Now we need to find out more on Love and
• 16:56
  Speaker 5: we need to.
• 16:57
  Speaker 4: Find out if they're locked in, if they're going to
• 16:58
  Speaker 4: be able to be in this playoff field and be
• 17:00
  Speaker 4: any kind of force and possibly win a game. All
• 17:03
  Speaker 4: the questions we had about and where hey, could this
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: win be a super Bowl team a few weeks ago.
• 17:08
  Speaker 4: Now the question is do they have any kind of
• 17:10
  Speaker 4: playoff legs whatsoever? I'm still asking that right now after
• 17:14
  Speaker 4: in kind of an unknown status at this moment.
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: Yeah, they get a Ravens team, so it's two injured quarterbacks.
• 17:18
  Speaker 2: We'll talk about Baltimore coming up in just a minute
• 17:21
  Speaker 2: with Lamar Jackson in that back injury. But we got
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: a Steelers team that quite frankly, Eric I think they
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: deserve to win this division, especially with their recent play.
• 17:30
  Speaker 5: I do too. Yeah, wild game in Detroit.
• 17:33
  Speaker 4: Obviously, it took some a couple of calls at the
• 17:36
  Speaker 4: end of the game and that went in their favor.
• 17:37
  Speaker 4: But when you saw the running back duo of Kenneth
• 17:39
  Speaker 4: Gagwell and Jalen Warren, both guys were outstanding. They got
• 17:43
  Speaker 4: the safety here, the blitz was really working defensively, really
• 17:47
  Speaker 4: took out the Lions run games. So they did a
• 17:49
  Speaker 4: lot of good things. You know, obviously a little too
• 17:51
  Speaker 4: close for comfort there at the end. They're going to
• 17:53
  Speaker 4: have to sharpen up a little bit in some of
• 17:55
  Speaker 4: the situational ball. But you know, Aaron Rodgers had played
• 17:58
  Speaker 4: a clean game. He's been mostly very good this season.
• 18:01
  Speaker 4: I think you have to give them their praise for
• 18:03
  Speaker 4: being not only rallying from all the fire Tomlin Chance
• 18:08
  Speaker 4: we heard a couple of weeks ago, but just playing
• 18:09
  Speaker 4: better football than what the Ravens have since then. So,
• 18:12
  Speaker 4: you know, Kenneth Gainwell, I don't know if you can
• 18:14
  Speaker 4: understate how big a play that was at the end
• 18:16
  Speaker 4: of the half there, and what a play. I mean,
• 18:18
  Speaker 4: He's got wide receiver hands and running back skills, so
• 18:21
  Speaker 4: you know, two weapons in the backfield heading into the playoffs.
• 18:23
  Speaker 5: That's a pretty good thing to have right now.
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: Yeah, the Steelers there on the road, they get a
• 18:27
  Speaker 2: Cleveland Browns team where Miles Garrett is just licking his
• 18:30
  Speaker 2: chaps right now, steering down a sack record. Aaron Rodgers
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: could be on the wrong side of that one, Eric,
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: I want to focus in on team number fourteen, the
• 18:37
  Speaker 2: Panthers on your rankings.
• 18:38
  Speaker 3: They move up four spots.
• 18:40
  Speaker 2: Let's just say there's a world that exists where they
• 18:42
  Speaker 2: find a way to go and win this division.
• 18:44
  Speaker 3: They good enough to get a win in the.
• 18:46
  Speaker 4: Postseason, absolutely. I mean, look, if you see them at
• 18:49
  Speaker 4: their worst, you'd say no. But if you see them
• 18:51
  Speaker 4: in games like this where they really played good, solid
• 18:54
  Speaker 4: football at the right times end of the both halves,
• 18:57
  Speaker 4: they were very good. This touchdown kind of helped get
• 18:59
  Speaker 4: them back in it. Ted McMillan had been a little
• 19:01
  Speaker 4: bit quiet lately. Bryce Young, he's been terrific and six
• 19:05
  Speaker 4: game winning drives in the fourth quarter of this season.
• 19:07
  Speaker 5: Twelve for his career.
• 19:08
  Speaker 4: Notes, We're starting to kind of develop a reputation as
• 19:11
  Speaker 4: a closer, as a guy who can, you know, come
• 19:13
  Speaker 4: through in the clutch and play better than maybe his
• 19:15
  Speaker 4: stats would indicate and then the defense would.
• 19:18
  Speaker 5: They have to have a turnover at the end of
• 19:19
  Speaker 5: the game.
• 19:20
  Speaker 4: You know, Lathan Ransom was sort of the goat last
• 19:23
  Speaker 4: week against New Orleans with that penalty, ends up being
• 19:25
  Speaker 4: the hero this week.
• 19:26
  Speaker 5: So it's been a wild ride at this point.
• 19:28
  Speaker 4: They still have that Week eighteen game looming a lot
• 19:31
  Speaker 4: to figure out still, but Carolina landed the first blow
• 19:34
  Speaker 4: and we're seeing this Tampa team really kind of struggle lately.
• 19:37
  Speaker 4: So I think you have to think the momentums on
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: their side, even if you know some of the metrics
• 19:41
  Speaker 4: end up favoring Tampa just slightly.
• 19:43
  Speaker 2: Ginormous matchup for Carolina as they take on Seattle, Boy,
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: that would be another statement when they are got one
• 19:49
  Speaker 2: against the Rams, by the way, and a win against
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: the Packers in Green Bay earlier this season, the Lions
• 19:53
  Speaker 2: at fifteen, I looked at they're the walking wounded on
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: the defensive side.
• 19:58
  Speaker 3: That to me is explaining some of these issues that
• 20:00
  Speaker 3: we are seeing.
• 20:01
  Speaker 4: Yeah, two years in a row, we've seen that side
• 20:03
  Speaker 4: of the ball really crippled by injuries. Obviously, they tried
• 20:06
  Speaker 4: their best. The run game got taken away. Jamiir Gibbs
• 20:08
  Speaker 4: was having a rough time as a runner. You know,
• 20:10
  Speaker 4: they threw the ball pretty efficiently and then these wild
• 20:13
  Speaker 4: plays at the end. That's the spirit of the Lions
• 20:16
  Speaker 4: that we've seen the last three plus years, but wasn't
• 20:18
  Speaker 4: enough for victory. You know, they all the numbers suggest
• 20:22
  Speaker 4: they should be better than they are right now. Obviously
• 20:24
  Speaker 4: they've had, you know, all these one score losses since
• 20:27
  Speaker 4: the buy has really crippled them. Back to back losses
• 20:29
  Speaker 4: for the first time in a couple of years now,
• 20:31
  Speaker 4: that's pretty incredible. Speaks to their their officient in this
• 20:34
  Speaker 4: in the last couple couple of years. But boy, it's
• 20:37
  Speaker 4: been a struggle rate lately and this is the kind
• 20:40
  Speaker 4: of game that they've been losing. So look, I don't
• 20:42
  Speaker 4: think their super Bowl window is closed if we're talking
• 20:44
  Speaker 4: about twenty twenty six. Still think they can get back
• 20:47
  Speaker 4: if they get a little more depth and a little
• 20:48
  Speaker 4: more luck on the on the defensive side. But hard
• 20:51
  Speaker 4: not to think they missed that opportunity a couple years
• 20:54
  Speaker 4: ago in the NFC Championship game, up twenty four to seven,
• 20:56
  Speaker 4: looking pretty good, unable to win that game. You know,
• 20:59
  Speaker 4: it's been a little bit of a decline since then,
• 21:01
  Speaker 4: and a lot more heartbreak.
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the same can be said. By the
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: way we'll see Lions and Vikings on Christmas Day. I
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: think the same could be said though for the team
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: behind them, and that is the Baltimore Ravens. I think
• 21:11
  Speaker 2: this season couldn't have gone worse for him. I don't
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: think they're getting into the playoffs right now. Lamar Jackson's
• 21:16
  Speaker 2: got the back injury as well. We'll see what his
• 21:18
  Speaker 2: status is going to be for Saturday's game against the Packers.
• 21:21
  Speaker 3: But are you ready to stick a fork in them?
• 21:22
  Speaker 5: You need a Christmas miracle, I think at this point
• 21:24
  Speaker 5: to get in.
• 21:25
  Speaker 4: So, yeah, season is not over, but it's feeling that
• 21:27
  Speaker 4: way and it doesn't sound too serious for Lamar, but
• 21:30
  Speaker 4: just another injury to add to the list, and you
• 21:32
  Speaker 4: start thinking about long term longevity. You start thinking about
• 21:35
  Speaker 4: is John Harbaugh going to be here next year? All
• 21:37
  Speaker 4: these questions pretty emblematic loss. I think of the season promising,
• 21:41
  Speaker 4: but never quite how you imagined it would turn out
• 21:43
  Speaker 4: in the end.
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: Meanwhile, when we're talking about postseason positioning and Baltimore is
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: going to be a little bit of tough sledding to
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: go and find that spot from a Tampa Bay Bucks perspective.
• 21:53
  Speaker 2: I know we talked about the Carolina Panthers, but coming
• 21:55
  Speaker 2: up on power rankings will show you exactly where the
• 21:58
  Speaker 2: Bucks sit and do they make the postseason? My lord,
• 22:01
  Speaker 2: they had a completely healthy wide receiving corps. Felt like
• 22:05
  Speaker 2: things would start to take off for him for the
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: last few weeks, but offensively there have been some struggles.
• 22:09
  Speaker 2: Eric will try to solve some of those issues. I'll
• 22:21
  Speaker 2: back here on power rankings. Check in on team number
• 22:24
  Speaker 2: seventeen through twenty four. The colts Man Philip Rivers is
• 22:27
  Speaker 2: looking like a superhero out there. I still can't believe
• 22:29
  Speaker 2: at forty four he's looked this good after not playing
• 22:32
  Speaker 2: for five years. But they did drop that game against
• 22:35
  Speaker 2: the San Francisco forty nine ers on Monday Night.
• 22:37
  Speaker 3: The Bucks at eighteen, we'll talk about them in a second.
• 22:39
  Speaker 2: The Vikings at nineteen, the Dallas Cowboys valiant effort in
• 22:45
  Speaker 2: a loss at twenty. We got the Chiefs in twenty one. Wow,
• 22:48
  Speaker 2: the Falcons at twenty two, Bengals at twenty three, and
• 22:51
  Speaker 2: the New Orleans States at number twenty four.
• 22:54
  Speaker 3: The Bucks they a playoff team or not?
• 22:56
  Speaker 4: I mean they can they can take care of business
• 22:58
  Speaker 4: of Week eighteen and make this thing clean. Obviously can't
• 23:00
  Speaker 4: afford a loss in Miami this coming week. But what
• 23:03
  Speaker 4: have we seen from the Bucks in the last you know,
• 23:05
  Speaker 4: really since the buye you know, the Patriots and Bill's
• 23:07
  Speaker 4: loss has kind of exposed some things. And defensively, Baker
• 23:10
  Speaker 4: Mayfield has not played his best ball. The offensive line
• 23:14
  Speaker 4: is an issue run game, they don't always stick with it.
• 23:16
  Speaker 4: So right now I'm thinking it's Carolina just based on
• 23:20
  Speaker 4: what we saw Sunday and what we've seen in the
• 23:22
  Speaker 4: last month, month and a half.
• 23:23
  Speaker 5: So you know, Baker's play has tailed off, and I
• 23:25
  Speaker 5: think he should be called out for it.
• 23:27
  Speaker 4: It's not all on him, but you know, he's the
• 23:29
  Speaker 4: guy that makes this thing happen, all those comebacks earlier
• 23:31
  Speaker 4: this year. I don't think it's going to be in
• 23:33
  Speaker 4: the cards down the stretch.
• 23:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we talked about him as a potential MVP week
• 23:37
  Speaker 2: six seven or so, and it just has gone the
• 23:39
  Speaker 2: complete opposite way, especially when you consider some of these
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: wide receivers coming back healthy. I thought it was going
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: to turn in a positive direction for Todd Bowles as
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: squad still an opportunity to get there. Rest of the rankings,
• 23:50
  Speaker 2: the Miami Dolphins at twenty five, the Washington Commanders at
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: twenty six, Arizona at twenty seven. We got a Titan
• 23:56
  Speaker 2: squad moving up three spots to twenty eight. The Cleveland
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: Browns must see television because of their defensive play, more specifically,
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: Miles Garrett the Jets at thirty, Giants at thirty one.
• 24:06
  Speaker 2: We've got the Raiders surrounding things out at thirty two.
• 24:09
  Speaker 2: Is there a world that exists where the gem Man
• 24:10
  Speaker 2: get the number one overall? Pick the answers, Yes, enjoy
• 24:13
  Speaker 2: the holidays.
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: partnership with iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.