Latest / NFL Power Rankings / #18: Red-hot Jaguars soar to No. 3, while 49ers replace Bills in top five

Transcript

#18: Red-hot Jaguars soar to No. 3, while 49ers replace Bills in top five · NFL Power Rankings

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: partnership with iHeartRadio.
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: Welcome to a brand new edition of NFL Power Rankings,
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: analysis of all thirty two teams available on NFL dot Com.
• 0:17
  Speaker 3: Mike im and Eric at home with you and Eric.
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: I know every single week we go through some of
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: these significant teams in the NFL, and occasionally you'll take
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: some key on social media for your rankings. I would
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: just encourage everyone, if there's one week to lay off
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: of Eric, it would be this week. Happy belated birthday
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: my friend.
• 0:33
  Speaker 4: Yeah, thank you. I appreciate that. Maybe one week, that's
• 0:35
  Speaker 4: all I ask for. I'm not asking pretty huge gift
• 0:37
  Speaker 4: like that. So I very much appreciate and thank you
• 0:40
  Speaker 4: guys for being so kind all season a long.
• 0:42
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, well I have. Has everyone been really kind?
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: I think most people, but I know some people are
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: always like, hey, Eric, my team should be ranked a
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: little bit higher.
• 0:51
  Speaker 3: Here's the beauty of it.
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: We'll just find out where these teams stack up and
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: we'll get to a super Bowl.
• 0:55
  Speaker 3: Let's get to the rankings.
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: One through eight, top teams in the league. The sitting
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: at number one could be the NFC's number one seed, the.
• 1:04
  Speaker 3: Patreont it's this squad.
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: I'm curious what Eric thanks about this team sealing the
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: jag not mistaken, this might be the highest ranking that
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: I have ever seen. Maxonville sitting at number three, the
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: Broncos at four, the Niners at five. We got a
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: Buffalo team that's dropped three spots into that sixth position,
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: the Chicago Bears fall one spot to seven, and the
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: Texans sitting at number eight. We will talk about all
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: of these teams that we start from a Seattle perspective here,
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: just Dominic, can this team be once we get to
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: the postseason, considering their defense, considering now that they could
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: be a one seed because we are set up Saturday
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: for an epic showdown.
• 1:39
  Speaker 4: Yeah, if they win that, I'll feel a lot better
• 1:41
  Speaker 4: about their chances. There's still some warts, right, It's sort
• 1:44
  Speaker 4: of typical for the season. Our number one team has
• 1:46
  Speaker 4: some some major questions that ask to face. Specifically with
• 1:49
  Speaker 4: the turnovers there were, there could have been more than
• 1:52
  Speaker 4: that what they had on Sunday again against the Panthers,
• 1:55
  Speaker 4: still and multiple scores still ended up taking care of business.
• 1:58
  Speaker 4: That's how much explosiveness they offer as a football team.
• 2:01
  Speaker 4: But a little worried about the offense right over, second
• 2:05
  Speaker 4: most in the league, so that's certainly something they have
• 2:08
  Speaker 4: to cut down on. And this is obviously a big
• 2:09
  Speaker 4: game against the Niners. They're gonna have to be a
• 2:11
  Speaker 4: little sharper on both sides of the ball. But when
• 2:14
  Speaker 4: they get the run game going, that really portends good
• 2:17
  Speaker 4: things for them. Sam Darnell plays a little more freely,
• 2:20
  Speaker 4: and that defense, like it's been since the buy can
• 2:22
  Speaker 4: really shut people out and get after.
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: You love this matchup because we've got the stellar defense,
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: we got a surging offense, and the Niners we'll talk
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: about and certainly.
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: A ton on the line. With the one seed in
• 2:33
  Speaker 3: the NFC still in play.
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: Taking a closer look at the odds to win the AFC,
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: and you can see the Denver Broncos right now still
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: your favorites.
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: The Bill's not far behind.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: I think there's some love that's brewing for this Patriots
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: team and a Jacksonville squad that, at least in my mind,
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: is really scary, and the Houston Texans, both the Jags
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: and the Texans with odds of plus five point fifty.
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: The point is these are not huge discrepancy in terms
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: of some of these numbers. So when we focus in
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: on this Patriots team, Eric, I look at this team
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: as certainly a chance to get there, but I also
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: see Drake May as potentially the league MVP, which is
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: wild considering what we thought about this squad heading into
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: the year.
• 3:11
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, certainly, the way he and the Patriots
• 3:13
  Speaker 4: started the season first two or three games not so great.
• 3:16
  Speaker 4: Everything since then has been pretty tremendous. In what we
• 3:18
  Speaker 4: saw against the Jets, Granted it's the Jets, they had
• 3:22
  Speaker 4: an interception all year, but Drake May was going to
• 3:24
  Speaker 4: complete control sitting on the bench with more than twenty
• 3:27
  Speaker 4: minutes to go because it was such a blowout, and
• 3:29
  Speaker 4: with Stafford struggling against the Falcons, maybe this shifts the tide.
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: Maybe we put too much weight in the late season games,
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: but he's been fantastic doing with his legs and his arm.
• 3:38
  Speaker 4: Stefan Diggs has been big. We'll see about his future too,
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: A little bit of question shot him. But they're getting
• 3:43
  Speaker 4: healthier on the offensive line, They're getting some help back
• 3:45
  Speaker 4: on defense, Robert Spallane, certainly Milton Williams is going to
• 3:49
  Speaker 4: help out a lot. But I still worry about who
• 3:51
  Speaker 4: their first round matchup could be. I mean, you face
• 3:54
  Speaker 4: a hot quarterback like a Josh Allen or a Herbert
• 3:57
  Speaker 4: or somebody.
• 3:58
  Speaker 5: You know, that could be pretty tough for them.
• 3:59
  Speaker 4: So May's got to be spectacular throughout and continue this
• 4:03
  Speaker 4: in the playoffs otherwise you know there may be a
• 4:05
  Speaker 4: ceiling to what they can do.
• 4:07
  Speaker 3: Yeah, those margins real thin in the AFC.
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: Really, just all these playoff teams keeping miss still a
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: squad that's got an opportunity to be a one seed
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: need Denver to go and lose against a Chargers team
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: that's not going to be playing Justin Herbert.
• 4:19
  Speaker 3: More on that in just a moment.
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: Meanwhile, we got a Jags team that has moved up
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: a couple spots right now.
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: Are you with me? The ceiling is a super Bowl
• 4:27
  Speaker 3: win for this team.
• 4:28
  Speaker 4: In this AFC field right now, where you know it
• 4:30
  Speaker 4: doesn't have Patrick Mahomes, it doesn't have some of the
• 4:33
  Speaker 4: usual suspects in there. The weakness on this side is
• 4:35
  Speaker 4: a little more palpable than on the NFC side.
• 4:38
  Speaker 5: Why not the Jags? Look, look what they've done since
• 4:40
  Speaker 5: the bye week.
• 4:41
  Speaker 4: They've been absolutely fantastic, eight and one, averaging almost thirty
• 4:44
  Speaker 4: two points per game, Trevor Lawrence playing with confidence, Parker
• 4:47
  Speaker 4: Washington and Jacoby Myers have come up huge with no
• 4:50
  Speaker 4: Travis Hunter etn. Has been a factor in virtually every
• 4:53
  Speaker 4: single game. Very opportunistic defense, a lot like the Chicago Bears.
• 4:57
  Speaker 4: They turn you over, they get extra possessions. That's really
• 5:00
  Speaker 4: something they're good at. And also six and two at home,
• 5:03
  Speaker 4: six and two on the road pretty nice as well.
• 5:06
  Speaker 5: Played a harder schedule.
• 5:07
  Speaker 4: Than I think Denver, New England, so they've really tested themselves.
• 5:10
  Speaker 4: I don't know what's going to happen if they face
• 5:11
  Speaker 4: a hot quarterback. The pass rush is getting a little
• 5:14
  Speaker 4: bit better. Top five run defense, There's a lot of
• 5:17
  Speaker 4: elements I like. And you have a kicker who can
• 5:19
  Speaker 4: usually make it from anywhere on the field almost so
• 5:23
  Speaker 4: they've got all the ingredients you want. I think some
• 5:25
  Speaker 4: of the biases really can the Jaguars go from the
• 5:28
  Speaker 4: terrible team they were last year to potentially a super
• 5:30
  Speaker 4: Bowl team this year. I'm saying watch them play. Look
• 5:32
  Speaker 4: at what happened the last half of the season. They've
• 5:35
  Speaker 4: played as well as almost anybody.
• 5:37
  Speaker 3: Since that week ate by.
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: The wins just continue to stack up They're one of
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: the more prolific offenses in the NFL over thirty points
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: per game in that span. And you're right, this is
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: a small market team who just figures out ways to
• 5:49
  Speaker 2: get it done. I like throwing out that phrase there
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: because Liamkulin keeps talking it up. In one of our colleagues,
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: Eric Steve Whitch keeps saying, yeah, it might be a
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: small market team, but last time I check, London not
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: a small city. He calls them the international team with
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: all these international games that they.
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: Have gone and played. But this is in a really.
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: Impressive year from a Jaguars perspective. And part of the
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: reason why this narrative has looked the way that it
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: has is because they got to win against the Denver
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: Broncos in Denver, and yet this is a bow Nicks
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: led squad that took care business.
• 6:19
  Speaker 3: I know they beat the Chiefs. Is there concern though?
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: The way that game looked, not having a fully healthy
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: Kansas City squad that makes you pause here about what
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: this team could be.
• 6:29
  Speaker 4: You know, we saw three long drives from them. We
• 6:31
  Speaker 4: saw them kind of control the clock, didn't finish off
• 6:34
  Speaker 4: the first few, finally kind of got in the end
• 6:35
  Speaker 4: zone and took control of the game. There's a lot
• 6:37
  Speaker 4: of emotion in the air. Possibly Travis Kelty's last home game.
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: So you know, Chiefs obviously wanted to try to put
• 6:42
  Speaker 4: a bow on a bad season, but I don't put
• 6:45
  Speaker 4: too much stock into it. It was a little bit
• 6:47
  Speaker 4: more of a struggle than I.
• 6:48
  Speaker 5: Had hoped for.
• 6:49
  Speaker 4: And then when you said, like you said, go back
• 6:50
  Speaker 4: to the Jacksonville game. You know, the middle of that
• 6:53
  Speaker 4: game was completely controlled by the Jaguars. So whether this
• 6:57
  Speaker 4: team has super Bowl potential or not, I'm not sure.
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: But they can get that path to the super Bowl
• 7:01
  Speaker 4: with the home field advantage, that's going to be huge.
• 7:04
  Speaker 4: Their defense, it's usually plays great there. Bow Knicks has
• 7:06
  Speaker 4: done a lot of good things this season. If they
• 7:08
  Speaker 4: can get any semblance of a consistent run game, I
• 7:11
  Speaker 4: think that's going to help them out a ton, but
• 7:13
  Speaker 4: still gonna end up falling on Nix a lot.
• 7:15
  Speaker 5: They like to throw the ball.
• 7:16
  Speaker 4: This a Sean Payton offense, and you know when he
• 7:18
  Speaker 4: uses his leg it's kind of like he did against
• 7:20
  Speaker 4: the Chiefs more than what he used to seeing lately,
• 7:23
  Speaker 4: good things happen. I'm saying, let's little hang out it's
• 7:25
  Speaker 4: the playoffs, babe. We're on the on the verge of
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: this thing.
• 7:27
  Speaker 5: Let bow Knicks.
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: Cook if they don't get the one seed at nine
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: to four, but if they do have to go on
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: the road here in the postseason, does that change the
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: calculus about how how that path looks to.
• 7:37
  Speaker 3: Get to a super Bowl? For you?
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: Do they think they're good enough to get that done
• 7:41
  Speaker 2: with road wins?
• 7:42
  Speaker 4: They've had some big wins this year on the road.
• 7:43
  Speaker 4: They've they've faced the top, but not.
• 7:45
  Speaker 5: As tough as Jacksonville, So we'll see. Yeah.
• 7:47
  Speaker 4: I think that obviously kind of hinders things a little bit,
• 7:49
  Speaker 4: but like you said, they're in the driver's seat. If
• 7:52
  Speaker 4: they get it, feel better about their chances.
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: Let's focus in on the San Francisco forty nine ers
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: sitting at number five.
• 7:58
  Speaker 3: Rock Parties.
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: Play has been nothing short of phenomenal over the last
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: couple of weeks, and they have a guy that could
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: be your offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey.
• 8:05
  Speaker 3: And yes they are still.
• 8:06
  Speaker 2: In play depending on what happens against the Seahawks, right
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: and seed in the NFC. I get concerned about this
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: team's defense. I like the teams that are maybe the
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: entire package.
• 8:16
  Speaker 3: But am I wrong here?
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: Like is San Francisco is still one of the more
• 8:20
  Speaker 2: dangerous teams if they're on seed.
• 8:21
  Speaker 3: I don't know how you make an argument against.
• 8:23
  Speaker 5: Them, right exactly.
• 8:25
  Speaker 4: I mean, if you have a team capable of putting
• 8:27
  Speaker 4: thirty five up without a problem, right, hanging forty two
• 8:30
  Speaker 4: on the Bears after spotting them the seven to nothing lead,
• 8:32
  Speaker 4: no kiddle in that game. You know other guys missing
• 8:35
  Speaker 4: as well, So you know Trent Williams getting hurt early
• 8:38
  Speaker 4: in the game and not coming back, no.
• 8:39
  Speaker 5: Problem for them.
• 8:40
  Speaker 4: That's that's how spectacular party was. That's how great CMC
• 8:44
  Speaker 4: was as well. So you know when Perdy returned to
• 8:46
  Speaker 4: the lineup, there was this doubt, Hey, is mac Jones
• 8:48
  Speaker 4: the better option? Well, I think we've answered that now.
• 8:50
  Speaker 4: He's been fantastic and they do have two quarterbacks in
• 8:53
  Speaker 4: case there is an injury.
• 8:54
  Speaker 5: So there's a lot to like about that side of
• 8:56
  Speaker 5: the ball.
• 8:57
  Speaker 4: Your defensive concerns like I have, I think are legitimate,
• 9:01
  Speaker 4: but they've had some terrific games against lesser offenses it recently,
• 9:04
  Speaker 4: so it's built some confidence up.
• 9:06
  Speaker 5: Look at the.
• 9:06
  Speaker 4: Carolina game, I think that was a big one. For
• 9:08
  Speaker 4: Robert Sala and his defense, and they're not going to
• 9:11
  Speaker 4: shut people down. But if they can hold them under
• 9:13
  Speaker 4: twenty four points, they're in terrific shape. And I think
• 9:16
  Speaker 4: that's what you worry about, is them having to face
• 9:19
  Speaker 4: the Rams again, a really hot offense or something to
• 9:21
  Speaker 4: the Bears again that could maybe change the calculus a
• 9:24
  Speaker 4: little bit. But to your point, you get a bunch
• 9:27
  Speaker 4: of home games, you're in good shape there and this
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: offense keeps rolling. Who's to say they can't be playing
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: in Santa Clair possibly for a Super Bowl?
• 9:35
  Speaker 3: Absolutely wild.
• 9:35
  Speaker 2: If you watch Rock Perdy's press conferences these last couple
• 9:38
  Speaker 2: of weeks, here keeps talking about how Kyle Shanahan sort
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: of set them up for this, not only the success,
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: but saying, hey, like this roster's a little bit different.
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: You know, it's not going to be as easy, and
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: it hasn't been. But they're on the precipice right now
• 9:50
  Speaker 2: of a one seed in the NFC. You also used
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: some confident to describe them. How confident should Buffalo be
• 9:57
  Speaker 2: heading into the playoffs.
• 9:58
  Speaker 5: I don't know.
• 9:59
  Speaker 4: On the one hand, as we've talked about this, AFC
• 10:01
  Speaker 4: field feels wide open. The Bills are likely to have
• 10:04
  Speaker 4: the best store, you know, depending on how you define
• 10:06
  Speaker 4: at the second best quarterback on that side of field.
• 10:09
  Speaker 4: I think there's a lot to be encouraged by after
• 10:10
  Speaker 4: watching their defense gamely hold on against the Eagles and
• 10:14
  Speaker 4: give them a chance to win that game. But for me,
• 10:17
  Speaker 4: it's about finding all three units to work in the
• 10:20
  Speaker 4: same game, right, Having this offense, defense, and special teams
• 10:23
  Speaker 4: all functioning on a good or better level in a
• 10:26
  Speaker 4: single game. It just hasn't happened often enough for my liking.
• 10:29
  Speaker 4: So I'm not really a big play call complainer guy.
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: But Joe Brady had kind of a strange game for me.
• 10:35
  Speaker 4: You know, Allen was trying to push the issue a
• 10:37
  Speaker 4: little bit, force things at times. Okay, it ended up
• 10:40
  Speaker 4: putting them in a position to where they could have
• 10:41
  Speaker 4: won the game, just missed the play. I have no
• 10:43
  Speaker 4: problem with the two point call, So this isn't a loss. Again,
• 10:46
  Speaker 4: this isn't a thing where I'm saying they're one two
• 10:49
  Speaker 4: point play away from being you know, five spots better.
• 10:52
  Speaker 4: But again, it's about playoff positioning, losing the division, you know,
• 10:56
  Speaker 4: seeding it to the New England Patriots, and having to
• 10:58
  Speaker 4: go the hard route which could mean a third matchup
• 11:01
  Speaker 4: in New England, you know, another tough road to the
• 11:04
  Speaker 4: to the postseason. So there is talented as anybody, especially
• 11:09
  Speaker 4: with Allen at the Helm, but I still worry about
• 11:12
  Speaker 4: the synchronicity of this team offense, defense, special teams all
• 11:15
  Speaker 4: playing well at the same time.
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: I'm actually glad that you bring up the seating here
• 11:19
  Speaker 2: because I think when it as it pertains to the
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: Chicago Bears, I can story a path in my head
• 11:23
  Speaker 2: where seating doesn't matter because of their ability to win
• 11:26
  Speaker 2: some of these close games and Caleb's playmaking in the
• 11:29
  Speaker 2: last two minutes of the game, and I know they
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: fill short against the Niners, and then there's a part
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: of me that says, no, no, no, let's go through Soliverfield,
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: like that is really truly the path there. How much
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: is seating in your mind as you assess the squad?
• 11:41
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, obviously you just sort of think about
• 11:43
  Speaker 4: the first round game could tell us a lot about
• 11:45
  Speaker 4: what they're going to look like, right, possible rematch versus
• 11:48
  Speaker 4: Green Bay team that's played them twice tough this year.
• 11:51
  Speaker 4: I know green Bay sort of being counted out in
• 11:53
  Speaker 4: some respects, but you know that could be a tough matchup.
• 11:55
  Speaker 4: What about having to play the Rams in the first
• 11:57
  Speaker 4: round again, even with them losing a couple games recently,
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: you still say that is a tough tough matchup. So yeah,
• 12:04
  Speaker 4: we'll have to say see how it all shakes out.
• 12:06
  Speaker 4: And I'm sure they're not going to be griping about
• 12:08
  Speaker 4: two versus three or whatnot. But I think the biggest
• 12:11
  Speaker 4: thing right now is getting the defense to a place
• 12:13
  Speaker 4: where it's not relying on those takeaways every single game,
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: where it has the ability to stop people and pressure
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: the quarterback and contain better upfront. That really concerns me
• 12:22
  Speaker 4: a little bit. Got to get a little healthier receiver too.
• 12:24
  Speaker 4: I mean, they did great things with Luther Burden, Colson Lovelin,
• 12:28
  Speaker 4: jod A Walker stepping up. But I think for this
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: team to be, you know, close to full strength, you
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: got to have Roma Dunesday and Dj Moore playing as
• 12:36
  Speaker 4: close to full health as possible. Caleb has been great,
• 12:39
  Speaker 4: Ben Jonson has been his bag. It's been fun to
• 12:41
  Speaker 4: watch this offense home. They're leaning on rookies, they're leaning
• 12:44
  Speaker 4: on the new guys a lot. It's been a great
• 12:46
  Speaker 4: season in Chicago. I could see you know, a first
• 12:49
  Speaker 4: round loss or I could see a run all the
• 12:51
  Speaker 4: way to the super Bowl. That's kind of the range
• 12:53
  Speaker 4: of outcomes that that's possible for Steam right now.
• 12:56
  Speaker 2: Yeah, And to be fair, Eric, I think there's a
• 12:58
  Speaker 2: couple teams that are in that conversation as well, where
• 13:01
  Speaker 2: you wouldn't be surprised to lose early and then you go, oh, yeah,
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: it makes sense that they got to a super Bowl.
• 13:05
  Speaker 2: In fact, I think our next team would fit the
• 13:07
  Speaker 2: bill to describe that. That team is the Houston Texans,
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: who move up a couple spots here. You know, for
• 13:13
  Speaker 2: a few weeks we used the phrase the team that
• 13:14
  Speaker 2: no one wants to play, and I think a lot
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: of that had to stand with their defense. And I
• 13:18
  Speaker 2: know CJ looked a little bit better here against the Chargers,
• 13:21
  Speaker 2: and he threw for a couple of long touchdowns. I'm
• 13:24
  Speaker 2: still concerned though about this team's offense in the postseason.
• 13:27
  Speaker 3: Are you with me?
• 13:27
  Speaker 5: Yeah, no doubt.
• 13:29
  Speaker 4: Right during the schemed portion of the play calling early
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: in the game, CJ was fantastic, right, help him get
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: out to that quick lead. A couple of big plays
• 13:36
  Speaker 4: in the passing game. You also have to look at
• 13:38
  Speaker 4: what he did in quarters two through four, ten out
• 13:41
  Speaker 4: of twenty passing less than one hundred yards, zero tds,
• 13:44
  Speaker 4: two interceptions. So not saying they were trying to give
• 13:47
  Speaker 4: the game away, but there was a lot of meat
• 13:49
  Speaker 4: left on that bone, and that worries me a little bit.
• 13:52
  Speaker 4: With a run game that can do. You know, justin
• 13:56
  Speaker 4: Herbert was trying his best to get the charge back in.
• 13:58
  Speaker 5: This one, almost did it.
• 13:59
  Speaker 4: Houston's defense is fantastic. We know what they're capable of.
• 14:02
  Speaker 4: They can shut down virtually anyone on here. But that's
• 14:06
  Speaker 4: straight games where they've scored twenty points on offense. So
• 14:09
  Speaker 4: you know, even if it's some of the help has
• 14:11
  Speaker 4: come from the D and field position and all that takeaways,
• 14:15
  Speaker 4: you still got to give cub been able to give
• 14:17
  Speaker 4: you kind of a floor offensively, that's been pretty solid,
• 14:20
  Speaker 4: and with their defense rarely letting people score more than
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: twenty against them, it still looks like a pretty pretty
• 14:26
  Speaker 4: good formula to me.
• 14:27
  Speaker 5: But I'm with you, there's just still some doubt.
• 14:29
  Speaker 4: Lingering in my head even if they are in that
• 14:31
  Speaker 4: quote unquote dangerous category.
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah, you know it's interesting too, because you're right, like,
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: it doesn't matter how the point's come, whether it's a
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: Derek Singly pick six or DJ Stroud long touchdown, throw
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: points or points, and that's going to help you go
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: and get a win. But as far as like the
• 14:44
  Speaker 2: team that no wants to play in the AFC, I
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: think it's a double check mark from a Jacksonville Jaguars
• 14:49
  Speaker 2: perspective for me, and that conversation has certainly shifted over
• 14:52
  Speaker 2: the last couple of weeks.
• 14:53
  Speaker 3: But Eric, there's more to come here on power rankings.
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: You know, there was a time where we felt like
• 14:57
  Speaker 2: the Rams were the best team in the NFL. They're
• 15:00
  Speaker 2: not even sitting in your top eight. We got an
• 15:02
  Speaker 2: Eagles team that's also glooming as well. We'll take you
• 15:05
  Speaker 2: through some of those squads and where they sit. Coming
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: up next, I'll back here on power rankings.
• 15:12
  Speaker 3: Eric's teams nine through sixteen.
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: I cannot believe we were talking about the Rams on
• 15:16
  Speaker 2: the outside of the top eight, but that's exactly where
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: they are. After losing out Monday Night Football, the Eagles
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: move up a spot. They're sitting at ten. The Chargers
• 15:23
  Speaker 2: will not be playing justin Herbert's against the Denver Broncos,
• 15:27
  Speaker 2: giving him a little bit of arrest before the postseason,
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: the Packers continue to a free fall three consecutive losses.
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: The Steelers and Ravens playing for a playoff spot, as
• 15:35
  Speaker 2: are the Carolina Panthers, who sit at number fifteen, and
• 15:38
  Speaker 2: then we got the Minnesota Vikings at sixteen. All right,
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: let's focus in on this RAMS spot. They move a
• 15:44
  Speaker 2: one position down.
• 15:45
  Speaker 3: All right.
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: You lose on the road against Seattle, it is what
• 15:47
  Speaker 2: it is to lose against the Falcons. I think creates
• 15:51
  Speaker 2: a little bit of concern. Are you worried about three picks?
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: I mean, MVP conversation aside Right now, I'm thinking about
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: where this RAMS team will kind of run they legitimately
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: can make once the playoffs come around.
• 16:03
  Speaker 5: Yeah sure. I mean you could look at this and say, hey,
• 16:05
  Speaker 5: you know Raheem Morris, no.
• 16:07
  Speaker 4: Stafford practice against them for multiple seasons, probably knew some
• 16:10
  Speaker 4: tells and some things that would get him off track.
• 16:13
  Speaker 5: But still to have his worst game of the.
• 16:15
  Speaker 4: Season, even without DeVante Adams, even with DJ Humphrey struggling
• 16:20
  Speaker 4: at left tackle replacing a Laric Jackson, even with Blake
• 16:23
  Speaker 4: Krham hurt in that game, and you know, all those
• 16:25
  Speaker 4: things are factors, but the defense missing tackles early in
• 16:28
  Speaker 4: the game.
• 16:29
  Speaker 5: This long b genreun obviously stung them pretty badly. I
• 16:32
  Speaker 5: guess my biggest concerns are still on the defensive side
• 16:34
  Speaker 5: of the ball.
• 16:35
  Speaker 4: That's you know, there was some pressure there on Kirk Cousins,
• 16:38
  Speaker 4: couldn't quite get home secondaries.
• 16:40
  Speaker 5: Really miss Quinton Lake now for for several games.
• 16:42
  Speaker 4: So there's a few incomplete pieces right now that have
• 16:45
  Speaker 4: me worried about this team's potential. I really digged them
• 16:48
  Speaker 4: last week for the loss of Seattle given the seating
• 16:52
  Speaker 4: consequences of that, but didn't kill him too much, only
• 16:55
  Speaker 4: the one spot down. But like you said, from one
• 16:57
  Speaker 4: to nine, I still think they're a Super Bowl contender,
• 16:59
  Speaker 4: but they have a lot to show up for now
• 17:01
  Speaker 4: in these last in this last game of the season obviously,
• 17:03
  Speaker 4: and then out who they play. It's gonna be a
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: tough first round matchup.
• 17:07
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 17:07
  Speaker 2: I think the same can be said about the Philadelphia Eagles,
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: who right now said at number ten on your power rankings.
• 17:12
  Speaker 2: Philly to me has got a similar profile as Houston defense.
• 17:16
  Speaker 3: I feel really good about especially over these last couple
• 17:18
  Speaker 3: of weeks.
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: I don't know if we've seen at all like the
• 17:22
  Speaker 2: peak of this offense and the peak of their powers
• 17:24
  Speaker 2: from this offense.
• 17:25
  Speaker 4: Yet second game this season, Hurts has gone oh for
• 17:29
  Speaker 4: seven in the second half passing and they've won both.
• 17:31
  Speaker 5: Amazing to hear, but I'm not sure if that's a
• 17:33
  Speaker 5: good thing or a bad thing.
• 17:34
  Speaker 4: Like you said, the offensive potential has been held in
• 17:37
  Speaker 4: check pretty much and defense has been pretty much smothering
• 17:40
  Speaker 4: since the buy pretty fantastic for the most part. Had
• 17:43
  Speaker 4: the blocked extra point that kind of changed the math
• 17:45
  Speaker 4: in that game against last week against Buffalo, so you know, look,
• 17:49
  Speaker 4: they haven't really faced a ton of playoff caliber teams
• 17:52
  Speaker 4: had beaten them in the last half of the season,
• 17:54
  Speaker 4: only that one against Green Bay prior to this one
• 17:56
  Speaker 4: in Buffalo. But if you look all their toughest offensive games,
• 18:00
  Speaker 4: they've come versus those playoff type teams or teams that
• 18:03
  Speaker 4: were in contention until recently. So you know, if they
• 18:06
  Speaker 4: beat the Rams in a thriller earlier this season, still
• 18:08
  Speaker 4: likely facing a tough NFC West opponent when they come
• 18:11
  Speaker 4: to the playoffs.
• 18:11
  Speaker 5: And I don't know. Obviously they won it last year.
• 18:14
  Speaker 4: They got hot at the right time, but I don't
• 18:16
  Speaker 4: know if I see the same firepower and offense and
• 18:18
  Speaker 4: maybe the same quite caliber of defense. I mean, it's
• 18:22
  Speaker 4: really really good. Is it exceptional the way that the
• 18:24
  Speaker 4: Eagles were at the end of last year. I don't know,
• 18:27
  Speaker 4: still have a little bit of lingering doubt about their potential.
• 18:30
  Speaker 2: It's kind of wild man because the roster looks eurally
• 18:33
  Speaker 2: similar to the last year's I know, else don't.
• 18:36
  Speaker 3: The results are just not there.
• 18:38
  Speaker 2: Meanwhile, when we're talking about this postseason, I know we've
• 18:40
  Speaker 2: kind of mentioned how deep the runs could be. There's
• 18:43
  Speaker 2: two teams, excuse me, four teams for two spots that
• 18:45
  Speaker 2: are still just hoping a punch of ticket into the
• 18:47
  Speaker 2: playoffs AFC North winner.
• 18:49
  Speaker 3: They will get there.
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: It's the Steelers at home against the Baltimore Ravens team.
• 18:53
  Speaker 2: Still a little unsure right now about Lamar Jackson's status.
• 18:57
  Speaker 3: Who's winning this game?
• 18:59
  Speaker 5: Great question. I mean, look, the Steelers had an opportunity.
• 19:02
  Speaker 5: They missed it.
• 19:02
  Speaker 4: Granted it is a good Browns defense, but this was
• 19:05
  Speaker 4: a pretty disappointing result. We know they beat him a
• 19:07
  Speaker 4: few weeks back. I know they're capable of beating them.
• 19:10
  Speaker 4: Is Lamar gonna play, that's the big question. How effective
• 19:13
  Speaker 4: is he going to be? I think if he plays
• 19:15
  Speaker 4: and I think he's going to give it a chance.
• 19:17
  Speaker 4: Baltimore's obviously got to feel good about their opportunity here,
• 19:20
  Speaker 4: but I still feel like there's there's some untapped reserves.
• 19:24
  Speaker 4: They really did miss DK Metcalf that was a problem
• 19:26
  Speaker 4: on Sunday. They now have a week to kind of
• 19:29
  Speaker 4: game plan and say, hey, what can we do offensively
• 19:31
  Speaker 4: without him? I think they'll find a way, but it's
• 19:34
  Speaker 4: not gonna be easy. And I don't feel great about
• 19:36
  Speaker 4: either team right now, so I'll kind of weekly go
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: with the Steelers picking this one, but I certainly could
• 19:42
  Speaker 4: see Baltimore pulling it out.
• 19:43
  Speaker 2: Yeah, going with the home team, which I can understand,
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: although Derek Henry sitting there going what about me.
• 19:48
  Speaker 5: With over two hundred Yeah, don't forget.
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: Yeah, seriously, there's something that tells me like, hey, he
• 19:53
  Speaker 2: try to tackle that dude at that size and that
• 19:55
  Speaker 2: weather not exactly a fun task. I mentioned four teams
• 19:59
  Speaker 2: for two spots. The other two teams that are viving
• 20:01
  Speaker 2: for NFC South Winter, we got a Panthers team that's
• 20:04
  Speaker 2: been really a roller coaster, and I don't think that
• 20:06
  Speaker 2: that's been the case for the Bucks because this has
• 20:08
  Speaker 2: been what feels like a straight line down. Just feel
• 20:11
  Speaker 2: more confident in Carolina. Is that the easier pick in
• 20:14
  Speaker 2: this game?
• 20:14
  Speaker 5: That's kind of where I am right.
• 20:16
  Speaker 4: I'm not going to say that Bryce Young is gonna
• 20:17
  Speaker 4: have a good game or this or that, but you know,
• 20:19
  Speaker 4: he's been up or down, but he's capable of delivering
• 20:22
  Speaker 4: those those late game winning drives.
• 20:24
  Speaker 5: We saw in the first half of the season.
• 20:26
  Speaker 4: Baker Mayfield was the guy on the on the kind
• 20:28
  Speaker 4: of the receiving end or the winning end of those
• 20:30
  Speaker 4: game winning drives. Just haven't seen that magic from Mayfield.
• 20:33
  Speaker 4: More mistakes down the stretch. Tampa Bay's defense has had
• 20:37
  Speaker 4: some you know, major leakage. That's been a really big problem.
• 20:40
  Speaker 4: You know, just getting Mike Evans back and getting this
• 20:42
  Speaker 4: receiver crew healthy hasn't really helped.
• 20:44
  Speaker 5: Them as much as you would hope. And it just.
• 20:47
  Speaker 4: Worries me that they're a little careless with the football
• 20:49
  Speaker 4: at times, and Baker just seems beat up.
• 20:51
  Speaker 3: Man.
• 20:52
  Speaker 4: He's a he's a great quarterback. He's had a great season,
• 20:54
  Speaker 4: but he's been up against it. If the Carolina Panthers
• 20:56
  Speaker 4: can get any pressure and really kind of affect his day,
• 20:59
  Speaker 4: I think they have a good chance to win. Plus
• 21:01
  Speaker 4: they have the option of the Atlanta Falcons winning their
• 21:04
  Speaker 4: game and getting.
• 21:05
  Speaker 5: Them in even if they don't win.
• 21:06
  Speaker 4: So that's a bizarre little twist that kind of gives
• 21:08
  Speaker 4: me a little added boost if I pick Carolina.
• 21:11
  Speaker 3: Yeah, just wild here.
• 21:13
  Speaker 2: By the way, speaking of Baker, I wouldn't be surprised
• 21:15
  Speaker 2: if I don't know when their season ends, and maybe
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: it's this week, maybe.
• 21:18
  Speaker 3: It's in a couple weeks.
• 21:19
  Speaker 2: If they get to the postseason, I would not be
• 21:21
  Speaker 2: shocked if we're hearing some news about Baker not being
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: completely healthy, and I know most guys aren't at this
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: point of the year, but this just looks weird to me. Carolina,
• 21:29
  Speaker 2: of course, just beat the squad a couple weeks ago,
• 21:31
  Speaker 2: Razor Thin March and twenty three to twenty.
• 21:33
  Speaker 3: More to come here.
• 21:34
  Speaker 2: On power rankings, you name check the Atlanta Falcons. They
• 21:37
  Speaker 2: got a Monday Night win. Where do they sit in
• 21:39
  Speaker 2: the rankings? And don't look now, but the Saints continue
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: to find ways.
• 21:42
  Speaker 3: To get victories. Suere did they sit? The answer to
• 21:45
  Speaker 3: that is coming up next.
• 21:49
  Speaker 2: I'm back here on power rankings. We got Eric's team
• 21:51
  Speaker 2: seventeen through twenty four. The Detroit Lions. They dropped two
• 21:56
  Speaker 2: spots or sitting at eight and eight on the season.
• 21:58
  Speaker 2: Explain what happened here? Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Bucks at eighteen,
• 22:01
  Speaker 2: the Colts at nineteen. We got a Dallas Cowboys team
• 22:04
  Speaker 2: that sits twenty. The Falcons move up a spot because
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: of a win on Monday Night Football to twenty one. Cincinnati,
• 22:10
  Speaker 2: the Saints, and the Miami Dolphins at twenty two, twenty three,
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: and twenty four. I want to love up the atl here.
• 22:17
  Speaker 2: B John Robinson is one of the most electric players
• 22:19
  Speaker 2: that we have in the NFL. They got wins against
• 22:21
  Speaker 2: the Rams and the Bills at home. Explain to me
• 22:23
  Speaker 2: why they're sitting outside of the top twenty in the
• 22:27
  Speaker 2: NFL with this type of talent.
• 22:28
  Speaker 5: Well, they lost the Jets a month ago. That's been
• 22:31
  Speaker 5: the confusing part is.
• 22:32
  Speaker 4: Some of these losses have been absolutely horrific, and you
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: say to yourself, how was this team four and nine
• 22:37
  Speaker 4: at one point in December and when they have games
• 22:40
  Speaker 4: like this on Monday Night.
• 22:41
  Speaker 5: Still had to hang on.
• 22:42
  Speaker 4: But their talent suggests that next year, if things go right,
• 22:45
  Speaker 4: maybe they are a real threat in the NFC South.
• 22:47
  Speaker 5: But man, so far, this year.
• 22:49
  Speaker 4: It's just been frustrating to watch them have the high
• 22:52
  Speaker 4: highs and the low lows.
• 22:54
  Speaker 2: You know, at this point of the season, Raki sometimes
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: look for positives for the teams that are at the
• 22:58
  Speaker 2: bottom of the rankings, and I think the Saints have
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: a couple of those. Don't look now, but Tyler Shuck
• 23:03
  Speaker 2: is starting to play some really inspired football and they've
• 23:05
  Speaker 2: won four consecutive games. How much are you buying this
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: team with momentum heading into the net into next season, being.
• 23:11
  Speaker 4: Have to feel great getting the you know they're possible
• 23:14
  Speaker 4: to quarterback of the future with the fiftieth pick, and
• 23:16
  Speaker 4: you're right, Shuck. They were patient with him. Spencer Ratlers
• 23:18
  Speaker 4: started the year. Chase Young has been a great addition too,
• 23:21
  Speaker 4: so the couple of offseason moves signing him long term. But really,
• 23:24
  Speaker 4: Shuck sort of proving that he could be a pocket
• 23:26
  Speaker 4: passer too. He's not just a guy who can use
• 23:28
  Speaker 4: his legs and move around.
• 23:29
  Speaker 5: He's look good. I'm excited to see what he brings
• 23:31
  Speaker 5: next year.
• 23:32
  Speaker 2: He has Chris Olave Alave helping a lot of fantasy owners. Meanwhile,
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: the rest of the rankings, they can't City Chiefs wow
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: at twenty five, the Commander's twenty six. We got a
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: Cleveland Browns team at twenty seven, still looming that sack
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: record for Miles Garrett at twenty eight. It's the Titans,
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: a Cardinals team that can't seem to get out of
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: their own way. At twenty nine, that phrase could be
• 23:51
  Speaker 2: used for the Giants, who don't have the number one
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: overall pick. It's the Jets of thirty one and the
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: Raiders at thirty two. It's always funny because I think
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: Giants fans are sitting there going, why can't we win
• 24:01
  Speaker 2: some of the games that we're supposed to win and
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: the ones that were almost okay losing we figure out
• 24:05
  Speaker 2: a way to get the W doesn't make any sense
• 24:06
  Speaker 2: to me.
• 24:07
  Speaker 3: Eric, Happy New Year and happy belated birthday.
• 24:15
  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: partnership with iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.