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#19: Playoff Matchup previews · 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: It's the Playoffs. Everybody, Welcome to the wild Card Weekend.
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Speaker 2: Hold on Eric at Holme. Let me rephrase that the
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Speaker 2: Super wild Card Weekend edition of the NFL Power Ranking Show,
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Speaker 2: presented to you by energizer Ericas in Chicago. I am
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Speaker 2: here in our studios in Los Angeles, ERAIC. Happy playoffs
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Speaker 2: to you, and congratulations. I want a round of applause
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Speaker 2: here for you. Because your top fourteen teams are all
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Speaker 2: the playoff teams. You could have really mixed it up
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Speaker 2: and thrown at a team that didn't get in, like
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Speaker 2: the Seahawks maybe or the Jaguars, and put them in
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Speaker 2: your top fourteen. You didn't do it.
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Speaker 3: I thought about it.
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Speaker 4: I really did, but I actually thought about it going
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Speaker 4: into Week eighteen, but nobody really blew me away. I
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Speaker 4: would have done it the Saints, but Dennis Allen had
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Speaker 4: a little postgame issue.
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Speaker 3: I just couldn't do it after that.
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Speaker 2: Dennis Allen, as we tape this on Tuesdays, Tilly much
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Speaker 2: to the coach of the Saints, and he still his
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Speaker 2: ears are probably ringing. After Arthur Smith, who was subsequently fired.
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Speaker 2: Cust him out a little bit at midfield. All right,
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Speaker 2: scan the thing on the screen, the QR code on
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Speaker 2: the screen right there. Go to NFL dot com and
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Speaker 2: get Eric's updated power rankings. The Ravens of the Niners
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Speaker 2: do not move. They are one and two. The Cowboys
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Speaker 2: do the job in Washington and Ron Rivera's final game.
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Speaker 2: They do not move. They are three Bills up two
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Speaker 2: to four. Lion stain pat at five. Browns don't play
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Speaker 2: anybody lose in Cincinnati, go up one. Chiefs win in
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Speaker 2: La go up one. Dolphin's plummet like the temperatures in
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Speaker 2: Kansas City on Saturday, and go down four. Eh. We
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Speaker 2: don't need to talk about the Ravens and the Niners,
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Speaker 2: do we Okay, good, we skipped him. Eric. Let's talk
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Speaker 2: about the Dallas Cowboys. They are still number three. I
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Speaker 2: get it, they shouldn't be moving. But as you sit
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Speaker 2: here with plenty of people thinking the Packers are going
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Speaker 2: to win in Dallas this weekend, you really think they're
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Speaker 2: the third best team in football.
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Speaker 4: As I've said for several weeks now, I really feel
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Speaker 4: like you could argue the Ravens are on their own
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Speaker 4: level by themselves, But I think the Ravens and Niners.
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Speaker 4: I put them on one tier and three through about
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Speaker 4: ten or eleven. I would say, jumble them up in
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Speaker 4: a bag and roll them out there. Pick your favorite order. Look,
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Speaker 4: I mean, I get it why people are doubting the Cowboys.
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Speaker 4: There's certainly some holes you could poke in this team.
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Speaker 4: This matchup may not be that great. Green Bay rolling
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Speaker 4: in with a ton of confidence, Jordan Love playing some
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Speaker 4: of his best ball down the stretch, and you know
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Speaker 4: there's pressure on Dallas, not just McCarthy facing his old team,
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Speaker 4: but also Dan quayn. It could be his last game
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Speaker 4: with the club if they don't win. A lot of
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Speaker 4: head coaching interest once again in his services. So yeah,
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Speaker 4: I mean, there are a lot of arrows that point
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Speaker 4: in Green Bay's direction. But Dallas still does have that
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Speaker 4: sixteen game home winning streat. Couple of them mid close,
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Speaker 4: but they typically take care of business at home. And
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Speaker 4: I do feel like Dak Prescott his figure out last
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Speaker 4: year's issue and had a terrific season.
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Speaker 2: Let's not sugarcoat it. There are great storylines in every game,
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Speaker 2: great drama in every game. Well, when Jerry Jones says,
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Speaker 2: let's see how it goes in the postseason. I mean,
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Speaker 2: there's a chance this is Mike McCarthy's last game. Now.
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Speaker 2: I'm not predicting doom and gloom here, although I do
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Speaker 2: think the Packers can eat and win this game. But Eric,
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Speaker 2: imagine if the Packers win this game, Yeah, oh, there
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Speaker 2: could be profound impact on Dallas's situation.
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Speaker 4: Do they chase one of these big name coaches that
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Speaker 4: are rumored to be on the market possibly moving this
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Speaker 4: offseason now, Jim Harbabo, maybe Bill Belichick, who knows right,
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Speaker 4: anything is possible with Jerry Jones and the Cowboys. But
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Speaker 4: McCarthy has done a lot, especially this season, I think
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Speaker 4: to solidify as standing. But them in Philly, I would say,
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Speaker 4: are two teams that have to be you're awfully careful
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Speaker 4: in the playoffs.
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Speaker 2: And that game is the four thirty Eastern Time game,
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Speaker 2: a Fox game Sunday, the middle game on Super wild
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Speaker 2: Card weekend. On Sunday, Let's talk about the Bills here,
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Speaker 2: because Buffalo is the early kick on Sunday. They're at home.
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Speaker 2: They get the Steelers. They did the thing despite all
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Speaker 2: the Josh Allen first half turnovers in Miami, and they
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Speaker 2: are the two seed in the AFC. I'm gonna play
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Speaker 2: the hypothetical game, Eric, what if the Jaguars had won
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Speaker 2: earlier in the day, and what if the Dolphins had won?
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Speaker 2: Would the Bills be in your top fourteen? Missing the playoffs?
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Speaker 4: Yeah, that's probably the one team had they somehow not
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Speaker 4: made it, had the formula worked against them and they
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Speaker 4: didn't squeeze in, they were probably the one team that
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Speaker 4: I referenced the top that I would have considered putting
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Speaker 4: in there.
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Speaker 3: Now I've slow rolled them a little bit.
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Speaker 4: I'm not you know, some other power ranking artists out there,
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Speaker 4: we're putting them up at three, four, even two. I
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Speaker 4: saw at one point after their their late season push there,
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Speaker 4: I played it a little slower. But as time has
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Speaker 4: gone on, I've kind of grown to appreciate the fact
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Speaker 4: that you have to embrace the chaos a little bit
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Speaker 4: with them, right, you have to understand Josh Allen can
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Speaker 4: dig you in a hole and then dig.
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Speaker 3: Yourself out pretty quickly.
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Speaker 4: So, uh, it's it's not for everybody, but their style
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Speaker 4: can cause a lot of problems for opponents, and including
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Speaker 4: this weekend, starting with the Steelers.
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Speaker 2: You're with me, right, The Steelers aren't winning this game. Agree.
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Speaker 3: I have a hard time seeing that, Yeah, I really do.
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Speaker 2: I can't see the Steelers winning this game. They're they're
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Speaker 2: gonna go with Mason Rudolph, Okay, I mean they should
5:25
Speaker 2: imagine going back to July and hearing Mike Tomlin choosing
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Speaker 2: in the year the backup quarterback to go with his
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Speaker 2: number three quarterback in a playoff game on the road
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Speaker 2: wild card weekend. It is just nuts And TJ. Watt
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Speaker 2: is confirmed he is out for this game, week number
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Speaker 2: one of the postseason. We have the Lions at number five,
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Speaker 2: same as last week, and again the injuries are big here.
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Speaker 2: As of our tamping Tuesday afternoon. I am telling you
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Speaker 2: there is a chance somehow that Sam Laforta plays Sunday
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Speaker 2: night against the Rams.
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Speaker 4: Straight from the words from the mouth of Dan Campbell, right,
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Speaker 4: I mean obviously, and you're in your mouth too. I
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Speaker 4: mean everybody's saying, hey, there is a chance.
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Speaker 3: But I think they have to count on.
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Speaker 4: Life without him in this game and be pleasantly surprised
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Speaker 4: if he does play, He's not going to probably be
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Speaker 4: one hundred percent. Laporta, which was arguably one of the
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Speaker 4: two or three best tight ends in terms of catching
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Speaker 4: the ball this season. So that and Khalif Raymond their
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Speaker 4: their top punt returner, sneaky little weapon on offense. And
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Speaker 4: Jamison Williams has been banged up. He sat out last
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Speaker 4: week too, So what I don't know? I mean, I
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Speaker 4: I really you talked about the Packers going into Dallas.
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Speaker 4: I really think the Rams, even with their kicking issues,
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Speaker 4: come into this game with a lot of confidence. Detroit's
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Speaker 4: got to be awfully careful in this one. It's not
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Speaker 4: just a Laporta injury, but they're gonna have their hands
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Speaker 4: full in this one, and that injury timing isn't great
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Speaker 4: at all.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, speaking from a Rams perspective and full disclosure disclosure,
6:47
Speaker 2: I do get a paycheck from them in the preseason
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Speaker 2: doing their preseason games and television here in LA have
6:51
Speaker 2: done that for a long long time. I would rather
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Speaker 2: go to Detroit, knowing it is not an easy place
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Speaker 2: to play in any way at all, then go to Dallas,
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Speaker 2: a team that pasted the Rams six weeks ago before
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Speaker 2: they went on the run they're they're on right now.
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Speaker 2: This is I believe the first time in playoff history
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Speaker 2: we've had two quarterbacks facing their former teams in the
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Speaker 2: same game in the postseason, the fact that they were
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Speaker 2: traded for each other, the fact that Sean McVay soured
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Speaker 2: on Jared and traded him. He was just done with
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Speaker 2: him and got Stafford back, and then one and then
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Speaker 2: Jared has this resurrection here playing great for Brad Holmes
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Speaker 2: and Dan Campbell. You can't ask for anything better. You can't.
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Speaker 2: I mean, this is why we are here. And I
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Speaker 2: do think the Rams, with Kyerman Williams running as well
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Speaker 2: as he has been of late and the health of
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Speaker 2: their offensive line, have a really good shot at this one.
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Speaker 2: I also think the Browns have a good shot at
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Speaker 2: going into Houston eric and beating the Texans. You have
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Speaker 2: the Browns here at number six, You have the Texans
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Speaker 2: at number nine. Will reveal them a little bit later here.
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Speaker 2: But Cleveland, and this is big, is not gonna have
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Speaker 2: Dustin Hopkins, the Houston native and the best kicker from
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Speaker 2: my money in the NFL this year. Riley Patterson's going
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Speaker 2: to kick it. Oh yeah, by the way, c J.
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Speaker 2: Stroud's a quarterbacking well, which didn't happen on Christmas Eve.
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Speaker 3: Yeah, that tiny little detail does matter.
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Speaker 4: I mean, obviously, you look at the score and it
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Speaker 4: was what thirty six to seven with about twelve minutes
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Speaker 4: left or whatever, so you know, completely dominant performance on
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Speaker 4: the road by Cleveland. The Stroud factor absolutely played into
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Speaker 4: that one.
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Speaker 3: And he's so competitive.
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Speaker 4: We've seen in the last couple of weeks come back
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Speaker 4: from the concussion that caused him to miss two games, and.
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Speaker 3: You know, he's terrific. So he's been back in his
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Speaker 3: groove again.
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Speaker 4: I know he doesn't have his full cast of receivers,
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Speaker 4: but Eco Collins looked like a wide receiver one last week.
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Speaker 4: You know, they have some other complimentary guys who can
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Speaker 4: help out. I know it's a great defense that Cleveland has,
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Speaker 4: but I think Stroud will make a huge impact on
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Speaker 4: this game. The confidence with which he threw last week
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Speaker 4: against the Colts was tangible, and I think he'll go
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Speaker 4: into the playoffs with a atypical rookie perspective. He's a
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Speaker 4: season vet by this point as far as I'm in Cleveland.
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Speaker 2: Kevin Stefanski had the veterans on the team that have
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Speaker 2: been in the postseason, and many including Miles Garrett, were
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Speaker 2: on this team in twenty twenty when they won in
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Speaker 2: Pittsburgh in the COVID year or win a super Bowl
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Speaker 2: like Joe Flacco. Obviously we know what he did a
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Speaker 2: decade ago in New Orleans for the Ravens. Stand up
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Speaker 2: and speak to the team and explain. Because the Browns
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Speaker 2: mantra under Stefanski is one to oh every week. How
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Speaker 2: you translate one and oh every week into a playoff environment.
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Speaker 2: The Browns are an eleven win wild card team needing
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Speaker 2: to go on the road against a team they pasted
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Speaker 2: the night before Christmas. But this, as you said, is
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Speaker 2: a very very different team as it is a very
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Speaker 2: different team in Kansas City than we've seen in years past.
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Speaker 2: Eighth consecutive division title in the AFC West for Andy
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Speaker 2: Reid and Patrick Mahomes. But this team goes in as
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Speaker 2: the four seed or the three seed of Begger Pardon
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Speaker 2: against the six seed Dolphins, who are all kinds of
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Speaker 2: banged up. This is the seven against the eight in
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Speaker 2: your wild card power rankings. It's also a rematch eric
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Speaker 2: from a game in Germany in which two had a
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Speaker 2: chance at the end but they botched a shotgun snap
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Speaker 2: driving to try to tie a game.
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Speaker 4: Yeah, that was That was a strange and fun game
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Speaker 4: over in Frankfurt, and I think it told us a
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Speaker 4: lot about those teams. And you know, obviously they started
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Speaker 4: the season and got into the season with reputations of
10:30
Speaker 4: being these explosive.
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Speaker 3: You know, big play machines.
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Speaker 4: But as it worked out that way, especially recently, so
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Speaker 4: I'll be curious. You know, we talked about the Texans
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Speaker 4: and Browns having played previously. I'm wondering whether the Germany
10:43
Speaker 4: game between Miami and Kansas City actually may be closer
10:46
Speaker 4: to what we see on Sunday, which is, you know,
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Speaker 4: a one possession game, a close game, kind of a
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Speaker 4: lower scoring game that you know, one or two turnovers,
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Speaker 4: one or two crucial mistakes could end up tilting this thing.
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Speaker 4: And oh, by the way, there's the slightly wintry conditions
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Speaker 4: that are a little bit different from what Miami is
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Speaker 4: going to be experiencing in practice this week.
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Speaker 3: Yeah, that may affect the outcome someway slightly.
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Speaker 2: It was cold that day in Germany, by the way,
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Speaker 2: but we're talking to us in the forties, not in
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Speaker 2: the negative temperature range, and it might be with the Windshiel,
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Speaker 2: negative temperatures like below zero. English Andrew coming up Saturday
11:23
Speaker 2: evening exclusively on a frozen peacock like we're talking five
11:28
Speaker 2: degrees and five below with the wind. Mike McDaniel said,
11:33
Speaker 2: remember last year we won it colder, you're getting it buddy.
11:36
Speaker 2: Coming up next, What if I told you the Texans
11:38
Speaker 2: and Rams were top ten teams? No truly? Yeah, go
11:42
Speaker 2: back and put that headline in July. That's coming up
11:44
Speaker 2: on the Power Ranking Show presented by Energizer. You're watching
11:54
Speaker 2: to get a power ranking show. We are presented to
11:57
Speaker 2: you by Energizer. What a job Demiko Ryans and Nick
12:01
Speaker 2: Nick Cassario have done. CJ. Strat, I mean everyone there.
12:04
Speaker 2: Bobby Slock, the Houston Texans as we enter Super wild
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Speaker 2: Card weekend are the number nineteen this week on Eric
12:11
Speaker 2: at Holmes Power Rankings. Same goes for Lessened and Sean McVay.
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Speaker 2: The Rams are ten. The Eagles have plummeted two more spots.
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Speaker 2: They're out of the top ten at eleven. The Buccaneers,
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Speaker 2: the Packers, and the Pittsburgh Steelers round out. You're fourteen
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Speaker 2: playoff teams. I cannot wait, And you guys know I'm
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Speaker 2: a Browns fan, Eric. I cannot wait to see c. J. Stroud.
12:33
Speaker 2: As a Browns fan, I would have rather faced Jacksonville
12:37
Speaker 2: I would have rather faced Indianapolis teams. The Browns also
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Speaker 2: beat They beat the Texans with case Keenum. This is different.
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Speaker 3: I agree.
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Speaker 4: Yeah, I was saying to myself, I don't know which
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Speaker 4: scenario I'm rooting for because I don't really have a favorite.
12:53
Speaker 4: I don't I'm not a fan in this situation. But
12:55
Speaker 4: do I want Joe Flacko potentially to play the Ravens.
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Speaker 3: You know what a cool game that would be. I
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Speaker 3: just want to see more of Stroud. I'm selfish like that.
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Speaker 4: And we see here here hitting the Nico K last
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Speaker 4: week on the first play of the game. He was
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Speaker 4: in control from start to finish. I really think this
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Speaker 4: Browns defense hasn't you know, faced quite this kind of
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Speaker 4: challenge this year, but we know how good they are
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Speaker 4: on that side of the ball. Fascinating to see also
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Speaker 4: how Texans defense does and you know, didn't really have
13:20
Speaker 4: much luck in the secondary against Flacco last time out,
13:23
Speaker 4: and you know, have some injuries they're dealing with. But yeah,
13:26
Speaker 4: this is a This is a really interesting game. I
13:28
Speaker 4: think between these two teams. And Willie Anderson Junior has
13:31
Speaker 4: been great this season, but he's one of those players
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Speaker 4: dealing with injury right now, how much can they get
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Speaker 4: out of him in that pass rush?
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Speaker 2: It would also help him immensely. Of Jonathan Grenard, who
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Speaker 2: was injured in the Week sixteen win over the Brown
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Speaker 2: early left has not played since if he would be
13:45
Speaker 2: back for that pass rush as well. But as we
13:47
Speaker 2: see CJ here in the final minutes on Saturday evening
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Speaker 2: walking off the field knowing they get in, I'm thinking
13:53
Speaker 2: back to an interview I did with him a Super
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Speaker 2: Bowl week where I said, and it was the question,
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Speaker 2: de jore, then, CJ, are we going to see the
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Speaker 2: guy we saw in the college football playoff? Right? That
14:04
Speaker 2: guy against Georgia? That guy? When do we see that guy?
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Speaker 2: Can we get him in the NFL? It's like, yeah,
14:11
Speaker 2: I can do that, of course. That that is me.
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Speaker 2: It wasn't just an anomaly, man. I mean, forget about
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Speaker 2: the S two score. Like, we're getting the guy we
14:19
Speaker 2: saw in the playoff every single week and now this
14:22
Speaker 2: is the NFL playoffs. Yeah, yep, sign me up for
14:26
Speaker 2: that one, and sign me up for the Rams. As
14:27
Speaker 2: I mentioned earlier, the number ten team in your new rankings,
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Speaker 2: Eric going into Detroit to face old friend Jared Goff.
14:35
Speaker 2: You can't stay it up about the job that McVeigh,
14:38
Speaker 2: that less need, that Matthew Stafford, that Raheem Morris have
14:41
Speaker 2: done for this group this year.
14:43
Speaker 3: It's been a number of players obviously who've stepped up.
14:46
Speaker 4: You know, Kyraen Williams started great, thing, gets hurt, he's
14:48
Speaker 4: back in the line up playing terrific. You know, DeMarcus
14:51
Speaker 4: Robinson stepped up late in the season. Poka Nakua comes
14:54
Speaker 4: out of nowhere. You know, Cooper cut missed a big chunk.
14:57
Speaker 4: Stafford had an injury that derailed his season a little
14:59
Speaker 4: bit too. You know, the offensive line coming in this year,
15:02
Speaker 4: there were questions, so all these things, so are all
15:05
Speaker 4: the issues that face them. They found solutions for them.
15:08
Speaker 4: They've changed their identity a little bit with the run game.
15:11
Speaker 4: You know, they haven't stayed true to mcvay's character, but
15:14
Speaker 4: you know that's a testament to his coaching ability to say, hey,
15:17
Speaker 4: we'll do whatever it takes to win, and we'll put
15:19
Speaker 4: some of these unlikely characters.
15:22
Speaker 3: In roles that you know, other people might not have
15:24
Speaker 3: envisioned them in. But it's working. It's terrific.
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Speaker 4: I think they're going to stress the heck out of
15:28
Speaker 4: the Detroit secondary. You know, the Lions pass rush hasn't
15:31
Speaker 4: been that great unless it's Aden Hutchinson getting there.
15:34
Speaker 3: James Houston still not back.
15:36
Speaker 4: So if they give Stafford time, I really think he's
15:39
Speaker 4: gonna have a big game. And I think he has
15:41
Speaker 4: nothing to do with the fact that he used to
15:42
Speaker 4: play there, Although what greater motivation is there than, you know,
15:46
Speaker 4: to go back and show them what they've been missing.
15:48
Speaker 2: You know, there's been a lot written this year about
15:49
Speaker 2: Mike McDaniel and his play design and their fun offense,
15:53
Speaker 2: or maybe what Shane Stichen has done is a play
15:56
Speaker 2: small or with the run game in Indianapolis. Not enough
15:58
Speaker 2: has been written about how Sean McVay and again less
16:02
Speaker 2: need with the drafting of Steve Bobby lout of the
16:04
Speaker 2: trade Kevin Dotson right before the start of the season,
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Speaker 2: reworked that offensive line, changed from an outside zone team
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Speaker 2: to a power to a gap scheme run team, giving
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Speaker 2: the ball to Kyrin Williams and changing the face of
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Speaker 2: that offense. Of course, obviously Pooka and Aku and Matthew
16:19
Speaker 2: Stafford making side arm throws, but that is that is
16:23
Speaker 2: a great story there and there the number ten team
16:25
Speaker 2: also not a great story, but a fascinating one. The
16:28
Speaker 2: number eleven team in the rankings, they are the Philadelphia
16:31
Speaker 2: Eagles playing the twelve seed or the twelfth team in
16:34
Speaker 2: your rankings, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucks won the
16:38
Speaker 2: NFC South. The Eagles look just dead, Eric, I don't
16:42
Speaker 2: know how else to say it, respectfully.
16:44
Speaker 3: Fried burned out.
16:45
Speaker 2: I don't know what it is, but Friday Eagles.
16:48
Speaker 3: That yeah, exactly.
16:50
Speaker 4: I mean, after that overtime went over the Bills, I
16:53
Speaker 4: think it was, it was, everything really went downhill from there.
16:55
Speaker 4: You could see the stress that had built out from
16:58
Speaker 4: really the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl, all the
17:01
Speaker 4: offseason speculation, the high pating end of the season, every
17:04
Speaker 4: game year, you know, especially down the stretch, that really
17:07
Speaker 4: gauntlet of bit of a schedule they played, and it
17:10
Speaker 4: looks like it's just taking its toll on the roster.
17:12
Speaker 4: Everybody looks tired, angry, not happy with the situation. Now
17:17
Speaker 4: you've got to go on the road and maybe this
17:19
Speaker 4: helps him, I don't know, but you got to go
17:21
Speaker 4: on the road and play a Tampa team that lights
17:23
Speaker 4: some good football in December, turn their season around. Has
17:26
Speaker 4: you know, obviously plenty to play for if you're Baker
17:28
Speaker 4: Mayfield trying to get another contract, but yeah, this one
17:31
Speaker 4: I can't get a.
17:32
Speaker 3: Great feel for it.
17:33
Speaker 4: We'll Philly have that that second gear, that that that
17:36
Speaker 4: extra breath of life that we've been begging for them
17:39
Speaker 4: to take for six weeks now or are they completely done?
17:42
Speaker 3: I don't know what it is.
17:43
Speaker 2: That was Jalen's middle finger there right holding it up
17:46
Speaker 2: on Sunday that you know they had to pop back
17:48
Speaker 2: into place. Looked like baldy, right. I mean that to
17:51
Speaker 2: me is like the lasting image of this team down
17:53
Speaker 2: the stretch. And Jalen wasn't flicking off the crowd. He
17:56
Speaker 2: was showing his injury, right, But that just kind of
17:59
Speaker 2: sums up the Eagles the last six weeks. Kind of
18:02
Speaker 2: like middle finger. That means so many different things. Making
18:07
Speaker 2: power Moves to thirteen are the Green Bay Packers. Power
18:11
Speaker 2: Moves are presented by Energizer. This time in a win
18:15
Speaker 2: and in week eighteen they did the job there up
18:17
Speaker 2: three spots this week here and doing something they couldn't
18:23
Speaker 2: do last year with Aaron Rodgers.
18:25
Speaker 3: Yeah, or with Brett Farvan his first year of starting.
18:28
Speaker 4: Really, I mean you think about Rogers when he first
18:30
Speaker 4: got the role in two thousand and eight. Five years
18:33
Speaker 4: before that, what was a ninety two? Both guys had
18:36
Speaker 4: good first seasons.
18:37
Speaker 2: In Green Bay.
18:38
Speaker 3: None of them did what Love did, which is drag
18:40
Speaker 3: his team to the playoffs.
18:41
Speaker 4: They were six and eight. What were they even two
18:43
Speaker 4: and five at one point? I mean, things weren't looking great.
18:45
Speaker 4: But obviously he turned his season around the defense. You know,
18:49
Speaker 4: obviously we talked about Joe Barry for a few weeks.
18:51
Speaker 4: In the pressure he's faced, he got his group to play.
18:54
Speaker 4: I think their best performance of the season in a
18:56
Speaker 4: very hype game against the Chicago Bears.
18:59
Speaker 3: So if they can carry that over into the postseason,
19:02
Speaker 3: they're going to have a chance in Dallas. Loves playing great.
19:04
Speaker 3: The confidence is there.
19:06
Speaker 4: I can't wait to see what we get from this
19:08
Speaker 4: team because early in the year I had my doubts
19:10
Speaker 4: coming into the season. I think I had them twenty
19:12
Speaker 4: second or something like that. I've learned my lesson. They've
19:15
Speaker 4: they've out performed my expectations. But win here would take it.
19:19
Speaker 2: To a new level. I mean it's been a roller coaster.
19:21
Speaker 2: They look great, Love did week one, and then they
19:23
Speaker 2: couldn't keep that consistently, and then they kind of hit
19:26
Speaker 2: rock bottom and then they've built their way back up
19:30
Speaker 2: the last six weeks and here they are. I think
19:32
Speaker 2: they win in Dallas. Part of it is because I'm
19:34
Speaker 2: excited by Jordan Love. The other part of it is
19:36
Speaker 2: something in my gut tells me, much like Kyle Brant
19:39
Speaker 2: on GMFB, that the Cowboys are going to find a
19:41
Speaker 2: way to screw this up. And I'm sure I'm going
19:42
Speaker 2: to get the hate for the Cowboys fans on the
19:45
Speaker 2: social media's, which is why social media is here, just
19:48
Speaker 2: to get angry at people. So the Cowboys, the Packers
19:51
Speaker 2: right Green Bay is thirteen. The Pittsburgh Steelers Eric are fourteen,
19:56
Speaker 2: and they are willingly going with their number three quarterback
20:01
Speaker 2: in a playoff game because Mason Rudolph has look great
20:05
Speaker 2: these last couple of weeks.
20:07
Speaker 3: Sure has right and Week eighteen was an interesting test,
20:10
Speaker 3: but they had the horrible weather in Baltimore.
20:12
Speaker 4: We're expecting cold and rainy possibly in Buffalo as well,
20:16
Speaker 4: So you know, maybe that experience allows him to have
20:19
Speaker 4: a little bit better feel for the ball, a little
20:21
Speaker 4: bit better feel for the field conditions, even if they're different.
20:24
Speaker 4: Playing in bad weather one week I'm sure helps you
20:27
Speaker 4: the next so maybe they can gain an early edge there,
20:30
Speaker 4: but there are just so many things pointing against them
20:32
Speaker 4: in this game. Obviously, they had to keep their fingers
20:35
Speaker 4: crossed after winning just to hope they get in.
20:38
Speaker 3: You know, third string quarterback, no TJ.
20:40
Speaker 4: Watt, no offensive identity really until last couple of weeks.
20:44
Speaker 4: So even if that defense, the rest of it outside
20:47
Speaker 4: of Watt gets healthy and they have a better secondary situation,
20:51
Speaker 4: I'm just struggling to find ways for them to be
20:53
Speaker 4: able to beat Buffalo in Buffalo.
20:55
Speaker 2: Right, Yeah, I agree. I don't think they're going to
20:56
Speaker 2: do it. But again, another one of these, if I
20:58
Speaker 2: had told you back in August, if I told you
21:00
Speaker 2: back in August when the conversation was do we have
21:03
Speaker 2: a roster spot for Mason Rudolph, why do we need
21:06
Speaker 2: a third quarterback? Mike Tomlin would say, I need you
21:10
Speaker 2: and I want you to start on the road in
21:13
Speaker 2: the postseason ahead of the other two who are up
21:15
Speaker 2: and active and ready and healthy. Not Mitch Trubisky former
21:19
Speaker 2: Josh Allen understudy. Anyway, moving on the teams that didn't
21:24
Speaker 2: make the postseason, how do we rank them? That's coming
21:27
Speaker 2: up next on the NFL Power Ranking Show presented my Energizer.
21:38
Speaker 2: But wait, there's more the teams that didn't make the playoffs. Sorry.
21:42
Speaker 2: If this is any consolation, maybe it is NFL Power
21:44
Speaker 2: Ranking Show here presented to you by Energizer. The Saints
21:49
Speaker 2: are up two to fifteen, but they didn't make it.
21:50
Speaker 2: The Jaguars are down four, so to are the Colts
21:53
Speaker 2: they didn't make it. Sixteen and seventeen Bengals, Seahawks, and
21:57
Speaker 2: the Chicago Bears rounding out twenty and then at twenty
22:00
Speaker 2: one the Raiders, the Vikings, the Broncos, the Falcons, the Titans,
22:04
Speaker 2: and the New York Jets who come in at twenty six.
22:07
Speaker 2: And then the bottom here the Giants and the Cardinals
22:10
Speaker 2: and the Chargers. The Patriots are twenty the Commanders there
22:13
Speaker 2: are thirty rather the Patriots, thirty one for the Commanders,
22:15
Speaker 2: thirty two for the Panthers. The inverse draft order, although
22:19
Speaker 2: the Panthers do not have that pick, it belongs to
22:22
Speaker 2: the Bears. Time now for invest in the Future presented
22:26
Speaker 2: by Fidelity and the Future Right now. For the Saints,
22:30
Speaker 2: Eric as we tape here Tuesday, does include Dennis Allen
22:34
Speaker 2: at number fifteen, still their coach as.
22:36
Speaker 4: Far as we know, and obviously Week eighteen was a
22:39
Speaker 4: stranger scene and that they go out in the second
22:42
Speaker 4: half and absolutely.
22:43
Speaker 3: Pummel the Falcons.
22:45
Speaker 4: Arthur Smith, not at Allen after the game, has turned
22:48
Speaker 4: out to comments.
22:49
Speaker 3: Why he's definitely touched down, And it's funny.
22:53
Speaker 4: It almost felt like propect more poorly on on Allen
22:56
Speaker 4: than it did Jamis Winston.
22:57
Speaker 3: But this is a team that did play well down
22:59
Speaker 3: the stretch.
23:00
Speaker 4: I was kind of slow to give him their credit,
23:01
Speaker 4: but Derek Carr played some of his better ball down
23:04
Speaker 4: the stretch. They had a couple close losses in there
23:06
Speaker 4: that ultimately kicked him out of the playoffs.
23:08
Speaker 3: But it's hard to note what to make of this
23:10
Speaker 3: team going forward.
23:11
Speaker 4: It's hard to see a path to them excelling into
23:14
Speaker 4: that Super Bowl kind of category next year. But they
23:17
Speaker 4: did at least make strides down the stretch enough so
23:19
Speaker 4: to push him past the Jaguars. So I thought we're
23:21
Speaker 4: going to be in the playoffs not too.
23:23
Speaker 2: Long ago, because the Jaguars actually did the reverse. They
23:26
Speaker 2: lost five at a six down the stretch. They are
23:29
Speaker 2: number sixteen for you, Eric. The only game they won
23:32
Speaker 2: was with CJ. Bethard and then Monday night, the defensive
23:36
Speaker 2: staff gets blown out. Doug Peterson fires Mike Caldwell.
23:41
Speaker 3: Yeah, that was I'm sure a tough move, and you
23:44
Speaker 3: know a lot of the staff as well.
23:45
Speaker 4: But I mean, boy, I'd like to see some heat
23:48
Speaker 4: put on Trevor Lawrence. He was zero and five, the
23:50
Speaker 4: team was oh and five with him starting. And you know,
23:53
Speaker 4: Laurence certainly was playing through a couple of injuries this season.
23:56
Speaker 4: His toughness is on question, but his performance level in
24:00
Speaker 4: that critical year three he's now due for an extension
24:02
Speaker 4: or at least eligible for one. You know, left some
24:05
Speaker 4: questions for me. The second half of the season not
24:07
Speaker 4: nearly as good as the first. You saw it reflected
24:09
Speaker 4: in the team's record. And this team's got a little
24:12
Speaker 4: soul searched in to do, especially with his quarterback.
24:14
Speaker 2: Yeah, and this is the off season in which they
24:17
Speaker 2: can extend Trevor Lawrence, much like last year with Burrow
24:21
Speaker 2: and with Herbert. This is the year you're write the
24:23
Speaker 2: big check. I still think that he is the guy,
24:26
Speaker 2: but down the stretch it wasn't encouraging. He was banged
24:28
Speaker 2: up the ankle, the shoulder. Honestly at times. On Sunday
24:31
Speaker 2: it looked as if that arm he shouldn't have been
24:33
Speaker 2: out there, some of those throws who's fallen away from
24:36
Speaker 2: But listen, they went with them. He was their guy,
24:39
Speaker 2: and they couldn't get it done against an inspired Tennessee team.
24:42
Speaker 2: It had turned out to be Mike Frable's final game.
24:44
Speaker 2: We are here throughout the postseason. Everybody so scant the
24:48
Speaker 2: QR code, check out the Power Rankings, and we are
24:50
Speaker 2: here next week for divisional Route Brera get Home. I'm
24:54
Speaker 2: Andrews Sociliano enjoyed the playoffs. Everybody.
25:02
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