Latest / NFL Power Rankings / #11: Are Bears Legitimate?

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#11: Are Bears Legitimate? · 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 week eleven edition of Power Rankings along
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  Speaker 2: with Eric at Home, My Damn with you. If you
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  Speaker 2: want a complete list of all thirty two teams and
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  Speaker 2: Eric's analysis on all those squads, all you have to
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  Speaker 2: do is check out NFL dot com. Eric. I make
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  Speaker 2: reference to this every single week. I finished their post
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  Speaker 2: game show on NFL Network on Monday nights. I get home,
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  Speaker 2: I'm sitting in bed, and then I go through your
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  Speaker 2: column because I get a sneak preview before everyone else.
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  Speaker 2: And I'm curious because some of those top teams that
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  Speaker 2: may make sense where you're slotting them, But was there
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  Speaker 2: one team that was sort of difficult for you to
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  Speaker 2: put into that specific spot.
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  Speaker 3: I would say the Buffalo Bills.
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  Speaker 4: They're a tricky team to figure out, you know, coming
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  Speaker 4: off the win over the Chiefs and then losing on
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  Speaker 4: Sunday so dramatically to the Dolphins.
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  Speaker 3: Hard to know what you're getting week to week. And
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  Speaker 3: in the big picture, they're.
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  Speaker 4: Swimming upstream fighting the Patriots right now. They're a wildcard team.
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  Speaker 4: At best, it looks like.
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  Speaker 2: Fighting the Patriots words that I did not think would
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  Speaker 2: be spoken this season. Let's find out where the Bills
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  Speaker 2: are not in the top eight, which means if you're
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  Speaker 2: part of Bill's mafia, you just got to wait a
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  Speaker 2: smidge here. But check this out. At the top, Seattle
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  Speaker 2: Los Angeles, a great game coming up this week. This
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  Speaker 2: is gonna be musty television. They sit one into the
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  Speaker 2: Colts with the win in Berlin at number three. The
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  Speaker 2: Eagles somehow survive some dramatic moments at Lambo. There for
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  Speaker 2: the Lions dominant in this over the weekend at five,
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  Speaker 2: the Patriots at six, Kansas City dropping a spot to seven.
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  Speaker 2: You got the Denver Broncos sitting at number eight. All right,
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  Speaker 2: let's start with the number one team, and that is Seattle.
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  Speaker 2: I don't know if there is a more dominant team
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  Speaker 2: on both offense and defense here. And I think the
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  Speaker 2: the amazing thing about this is Eric. When I think
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  Speaker 2: about Seattle in previous years, it's good defense and run
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  Speaker 2: the football. I don't know if that's the case. Sam
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  Speaker 2: Darnold continues to air it out. I know there wasn't
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  Speaker 2: a ton of throwers here, but this offense has looked
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  Speaker 2: so darn impressive with him at the helm.
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  Speaker 4: Absolutely, they are a vertical passing team, and I understand
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  Speaker 4: they have those two backs, you know, Walker and Sharbona
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  Speaker 4: are a big part of what they do. But they
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  Speaker 4: close games out, they throw early to try to get leads,
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  Speaker 4: and they can.
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  Speaker 3: Do it very well.
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  Speaker 4: I mean, we talk about all the MVP candidate Sam
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  Speaker 4: Darnold with the big game Sunday might be able to
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  Speaker 4: end to that conversation. So look, I mean slightly tougher schedule,
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  Speaker 4: you know, five road games left for them, but I.
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  Speaker 3: Still believe in this team.
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  Speaker 4: They do have their hiccups, right you look at the
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  Speaker 4: Texans game, you look at Sunday, they kind of let
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  Speaker 4: the Cardinals get back in it. But you're right about
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  Speaker 4: that defense causing havoc up front and the offense doing
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  Speaker 4: the same thing essentially, So a lot of firepower, and
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  Speaker 4: I think they're a really talented team, maybe a little
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  Speaker 4: bit of a shaky one, but still my top team
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  Speaker 4: for a second straight week.
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  Speaker 2: Actually think it may make a really good point if
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  Speaker 2: he balls out on Sunday against the Rams. Something tells
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  Speaker 2: me that this dude is probably going to be the
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  Speaker 2: leader in the pack in terms of that MVP conversation,
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  Speaker 2: I mentioned the Rams. Let's tack a holistic view of
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  Speaker 2: this division Time for future champions, presented by FanDuel. Here
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  Speaker 2: are the odds to win the NFC. The Rams right
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  Speaker 2: now at this point are the favorite of plus three ten,
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  Speaker 2: the Eagles not far behind, plus three fifty, the line
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  Speaker 2: Ins not far behind, and then you got Seattle at
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  Speaker 2: plus four ninety. So the division really significant, and then
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  Speaker 2: the conference as a whole. We're talking about two of
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  Speaker 2: the premier teams sitting in this NFC West. How am
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  Speaker 2: I supposed to assess this Rams team? You slided them
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  Speaker 2: number two right now. I think it's rinse and repeat
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  Speaker 2: right on what the analysis could be from a Seattle perspective.
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  Speaker 2: There's some wrinkles that we're seeing from Sean McVay. This
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  Speaker 2: thirteen personnel. We're seeing all these tight ends that are
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  Speaker 2: out there. I mean, this is really impressive, and I
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  Speaker 2: thought it was a nice win against the Niners.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, great coaching from Sean McVay in the sense of
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  Speaker 4: going way against his direction that he's always been in,
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  Speaker 4: which is to never have thirteen personnel on the field.
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  Speaker 4: That's three tight ends, one running back, one receiver. But
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  Speaker 4: it's worked very, very well the plast four or five games.
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  Speaker 4: Again way out of character, but you got to look
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  Speaker 4: at the talent you have on your team, and you
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  Speaker 4: know with Pukuinakua missing time and DeVante Adams had to
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  Speaker 4: leave the game late, you know those guys are great,
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  Speaker 4: but you could also lean on these three tight ends
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  Speaker 4: who also helped in a big way to help them
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  Speaker 4: overcome the forty nine ers. So get out to a
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  Speaker 4: big take the Niners best punch in the middle of
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  Speaker 4: the game, and then really flex at games in. Still
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  Speaker 4: want to see a little bit more defensively from them.
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  Speaker 4: I know that pass rush is great. Maybe some more
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  Speaker 4: tackling or some more takeaways, a little better tackling, but
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  Speaker 4: still a lot of firepower on this Rams team. Obviously,
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  Speaker 4: this game is gonna have a huge say not only
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  Speaker 4: on the MVP race with Stafford and Darnold and also
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  Speaker 4: the conference pecking order, but the division as well. And
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  Speaker 4: you know, the loser could end up being the five seed.
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  Speaker 4: So that's a pretty big drop.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah. On NFL dot Com, your article with these rankings,
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  Speaker 2: you had a great statut regarding both of these teams,
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  Speaker 2: the Seahawks and the Rams. Neither one of them have
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  Speaker 2: trailed since week number six. Yeah, mind blowing. They've been
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  Speaker 2: that good so far this season. All right, let's check
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  Speaker 2: in on the number four team. That's the Philadelphia the Eagles.
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  Speaker 2: They survive at Lambeau. I don't even know what to
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  Speaker 2: make like, I can't even imagine living in the city
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  Speaker 2: of Philadelphia right now listening to talk radio on what
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  Speaker 2: we saw. It's a time out late in the game,
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  Speaker 2: fourth and six, and you're thinking yourself, Yeah, they're gonna
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  Speaker 2: go on punt. They don't. They air it out at
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  Speaker 2: the thirty five, and that actually gave Green Bay an
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  Speaker 2: opportunity to come back and win this one. But look,
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  Speaker 2: they survive. Should I be concerned about their offense right now?
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  Speaker 4: I've been wringing my hands over this too. Right, the
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  Speaker 4: Eagles are not as explosive, They're not as consistent. Taquon
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  Speaker 4: Barkley hasn't had the same running lanes he did a
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  Speaker 4: year ago, and so all of this has led me
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  Speaker 4: to think maybe they're not the same caliber team. But
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  Speaker 4: they're leaning into the ugly. They excel amid the ugliness,
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  Speaker 4: and they don't mind playing one of these games. Some teams,
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  Speaker 4: you know, want to avoid this type of thing, they
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  Speaker 4: seem to relish it, so I'm with you. I wish
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  Speaker 4: Nick Sirianni was a little more aggressive early in the game.
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  Speaker 4: They didn't take a lot of those deep shots on
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  Speaker 4: third and long, and then late in the game throwing
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  Speaker 4: the ball, you know, not trying to drain clock, but
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  Speaker 4: trying to put the Packers away with a touchdown a
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  Speaker 4: couple times, both the last two possessions.
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  Speaker 3: So you know, a little questionable game management there.
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  Speaker 4: But you know, I really like the fact that their
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  Speaker 4: defense can still take over games. They still have DeVante
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  Speaker 4: Smith and aj Brown as those big targets, and they
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  Speaker 4: find a way to.
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  Speaker 3: Get it done. That's why they're so high on my
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  Speaker 3: list still, and I believe in them.
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  Speaker 2: You know, we'll find out where the Packers sit in
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  Speaker 2: your power rankings. But I think there is some costs
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  Speaker 2: for concern right now. It's one thing to go and
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  Speaker 2: lose to the Eagles at home, but when you couple
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  Speaker 2: that with what I saw offensively with Jordan Love and
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  Speaker 2: in fact that they lost to Carolina the other week,
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  Speaker 2: that worries me a little bit. One team, I'm not
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  Speaker 2: all that concerned about your number five team, the Lions
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  Speaker 2: rolling the commanders here. A lot has been made of
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  Speaker 2: play calling. How do you view what Dan Campbell is
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  Speaker 2: doing right now, especially with his team's offense.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, I know, there was obviously a little mini controversy
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  Speaker 4: over sort of stripping the play calling dues from John Morton,
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  Speaker 4: first year play caller, of course, replaced Ben Johnson, who's
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  Speaker 4: now in Chicago. But look, Dan Campbell's doing what he
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  Speaker 4: thinks is best for his team. The last three games
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  Speaker 4: prior to this one seem to lack a little bit
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  Speaker 4: of explosion. You know, Jamir Gibbs wasn't always as productive,
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  Speaker 4: and I think he's really kind of the lynch pin
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  Speaker 4: of this offense. I love Jamison Williams, love David Montgomery, Laporta,
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  Speaker 4: you know, Mont's Monross, Saint Bron all these guys are great.
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  Speaker 4: But to me, they're really really get rolling when Jim
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  Speaker 4: Gibbs is touching the ball and getting his hands in
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  Speaker 4: space like this. You saw the big production in that one,
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  Speaker 4: three touchdowns, had a monster game. Yeah, Jaw is good,
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  Speaker 4: trust me on this one. He's He's really the difference.
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  Speaker 3: So I think Dan just wanted to take a little control.
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  Speaker 4: He still set us a collaborative issue or effort, I
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  Speaker 4: should say, and I believe him. I think Dan just
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  Speaker 4: wanted to have his hands on it and kind of
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  Speaker 4: get them back into a little bit more of that
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  Speaker 4: explosive rhythm that we saw so much of the last
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  Speaker 4: couple of years. Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: Look, this is a huge Sunday night matchup. In fact,
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  Speaker 2: when I knew that the matchup was coming out, I
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  Speaker 2: was like, Oh, is this the Monday night game? And
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  Speaker 2: obviously it's not. But we have Detroit on the road
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  Speaker 2: in Philadelphia. I think we learned a lot about both
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  Speaker 2: of these teams coming off of this game. If Eagles,
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  Speaker 2: if Philly doesn't look good and they lose, Eric, I
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  Speaker 2: think the door is open for you to drop them
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  Speaker 2: pretty significantly. Look, a win is a win and in
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  Speaker 2: the words of Ben Johnson, never apologized for when that's
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  Speaker 2: what he's been telling his Chicago bank.
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  Speaker 3: And we take all suggestions here to Mike.
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  Speaker 2: So yeah, I try to stay you know, the Neutrot
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  Speaker 2: Switzerland party on this show. Excited to talk about this team.
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  Speaker 2: It's time for power Moves and it is presented by
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  Speaker 2: energizer team I'm referring to at number six. It is
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  Speaker 2: the New England Patriots that move up five spots. People
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  Speaker 2: talk about their schedule, they're going to say, hey, it's
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  Speaker 2: not tough. They've beaten the Bills. Say what you want
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  Speaker 2: coming off of that loss that they just had against
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  Speaker 2: Miami to go and win on the road against a
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  Speaker 2: good Tampa Bay team the way that they did. Remember
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  Speaker 2: Todd Bowles, the squad's coming off of a in the
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  Speaker 2: way Drake May played. I'm actually a believer right now
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  Speaker 2: in this team. I think they make a run.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, they're all of a sudden, really scary, right and
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  Speaker 4: like you, I wanted to see another big time victory,
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  Speaker 4: especially on the road. They're five and zero away from
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  Speaker 4: home right now. They've been terrific in those settings. Drake
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  Speaker 4: May with some really tight window throws. This one was
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  Speaker 4: big obviously to Diggs. You know there were so many
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  Speaker 4: plays where he made left a few yards on the
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  Speaker 4: field too, you know, through the interception that kind of
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  Speaker 4: opened the door late. But Patriots defense had a big
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  Speaker 4: stop this fourth down, Mike, I mean fourth and goal
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  Speaker 4: right before the half.
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  Speaker 3: You saw him.
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  Speaker 4: They take a knee on first down, drained some clock
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  Speaker 4: and then that clutch throw and then Henderson, Travion Henderson
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  Speaker 4: with the big game as well. He ripped a huge
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  Speaker 4: touchdown run to give them a twenty one to ten
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  Speaker 4: lead early in the third.
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  Speaker 3: So the vertical.
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  Speaker 4: Passing game, the home run hitting in the backfield, and
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  Speaker 4: a defense that's getting some key stops here. Most teams
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  Speaker 4: don't run up the gut against Tampa Bay with much success.
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  Speaker 4: But Travon Henderson was a massive reason for their success,
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  Speaker 4: and Mike just their their offseason. Look at the acquisitions
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  Speaker 4: they made, Milton Williams and those guys on defense, the
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  Speaker 4: rookie class, Henderson, will Campbell, everybody else on offense. It's
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  Speaker 4: been a lot of hits and that's why they're doing
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  Speaker 4: as well as they are.
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  Speaker 2: I'm actually glad that you brought up that touchdown throw.
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  Speaker 2: In my mind, I think there's something to be said
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  Speaker 2: for the confidence level of this team and their confidence
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  Speaker 2: and a young quarterback in Drake May on a fourth
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  Speaker 2: down to not run and let your quarterback make that
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  Speaker 2: throw to me. That's Mike Rabele letting his team know
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  Speaker 2: we have the dude that we believe in. And I
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  Speaker 2: don't know, three weeks ago, Drake May was floated for
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  Speaker 2: like the NBA conversation, I'm like, aah, we need to
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  Speaker 2: pump the brakes. Todd Bowle is a really good football coach,
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  Speaker 2: great defensive mind. This to me like I think Drake
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  Speaker 2: May has thrust himself into this conversation. I can't wait
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  Speaker 2: to see over the next couple weeks to get the Jets.
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  Speaker 2: You know, there's an opportunity for them to roll off
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  Speaker 2: about three consecutive wins here the way the schedule has
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  Speaker 2: lined up. The Broncos speaking of like complete teams, I
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  Speaker 2: was feeling that way and now I'm kind of hedging
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  Speaker 2: a little bit. A win's a win. We will take it.
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  Speaker 2: But they're not looking super dominant. You got him sitting
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  Speaker 2: right now in your eighth position. Talk me through the
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  Speaker 2: rationale here.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, still not high enough for Broncos fans that who
• 10:39
  Speaker 4: are chirping at me this morning.
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  Speaker 3: But we'll get to them.
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  Speaker 4: I mean, obviously, you know, you look at the inconsistencies offensively,
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  Speaker 4: and you know, for some games it's been, hey, the
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  Speaker 4: first three quarters, nothing happens, and then we light it
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  Speaker 4: up in the fourth. But watching that's Thursday game, you know,
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  Speaker 4: they seemed to almost get worse as time went on.
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  Speaker 4: As the game went on, you saw you know, some
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  Speaker 4: some hero ball plays like this from Nicks, and you know,
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  Speaker 4: I always feel like he's better playing within structure. You know,
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  Speaker 4: Sean Payton calling the place and him going with the
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  Speaker 4: open reads, but they just weren't there. And you know JK.
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  Speaker 4: Dobbins gets a little banged up at the end of
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  Speaker 4: that game too. How much they trust R. J. Harvey,
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  Speaker 4: So that and the pre snap penalties they're driving me nuts.
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  Speaker 4: But this team has the potential when Patrick Sutan is
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  Speaker 4: back and if that offense kicks another gear, they could
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  Speaker 4: be right up there with some of the best.
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  Speaker 3: We just haven't seen it every single week.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, you feel good about them heading into this matchup
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  Speaker 2: against Kansas City, another great game.
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  Speaker 4: They're underdogs at home, and I think I like that
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  Speaker 4: spot for them. Right there's still the hunted in this
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  Speaker 4: in this kitchen, as there said, the hunters in this situation,
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  Speaker 4: So I think they have a good chance and they've
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  Speaker 4: played the Chiefs tough.
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  Speaker 2: I don't love the matchup for him just because of
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  Speaker 2: the timing of this from Mcansas or from a Broncos
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  Speaker 2: perspective against.
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  Speaker 3: Kansas bye week yep.
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  Speaker 2: But if look, Denver has made other quarterbacks uncomfortable and
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  Speaker 2: that's been a little bit of an achilles heel this
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  Speaker 2: season for Patrick Mahomes. If you can look, I not
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  Speaker 2: know always the easiest thing, but when he's been pressured
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  Speaker 2: this season, you can see just some issues that he
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: has had. Meanwhile, speaking of some really good teams in
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  Speaker 2: the AFC, don't look now, but it looks like Lamar
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  Speaker 2: in company they are ready to make a significant run
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  Speaker 2: for the postseason. They started one in five, it's now
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  Speaker 2: three consecutive wins. Where does Eric have them in his rankings?
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  Speaker 2: The answer to that is coming up next. We'll back
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  Speaker 2: here on power rankings. Taking a closer look at Eric's squad,
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: sitting nine through sixteen. Remember the fullest and analysis on
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: each team NFL dot com. The Bills drop five spots. Ooh,
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: that loss against Miami down in South Beach costly for them.
• 12:34
  Speaker 2: The Bucks also fall two spots to number ten. It's
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: the Chargers at eleven. They move up three spots following
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: that win against the Steelers. The Packers they fall two
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  Speaker 2: spots at twelve, the Niners at thirteen, the Steelers at fourteen.
• 12:46
  Speaker 2: The Ravens move up one spot. They're sitting just one
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  Speaker 2: win away from five hundred, and then the Chicago Bears
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  Speaker 2: moving up a spot six and three, the sixteenth ranked
• 12:55
  Speaker 2: team Buffalo. What am I supposed to do with this team? Eric,
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  Speaker 2: I'm a little concerned right now. One thing to lose,
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  Speaker 2: Like you lose to the Patriots. I feel like the
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  Speaker 2: Patriots are good team. Like, hey, it is what it is.
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  Speaker 2: I'm watching Josh Allen warm up down in South Beach.
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  Speaker 2: I'm like, hey, these dudes are going to handle Miami.
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  Speaker 2: I get down after game day preview down to our
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  Speaker 2: wardrobe room. Mooch's standing there and he's like, yo, the
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  Speaker 2: Dolphins are already on top seven and nothing like this
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  Speaker 2: is concerning to me.
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  Speaker 4: Absolutely, And the concerns are in really all three phases.
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  Speaker 4: Certainly on defense, you know, losing a couple of key
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  Speaker 4: guys at Oliver Michael Hoyt. Secondary still seems a little
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  Speaker 4: thin offensively, Sunday turnovers, you know, Josh Allen trying to
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  Speaker 4: do too much fumbles here, that was a big play,
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  Speaker 4: you know, right when momentums seem to be switching a
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  Speaker 4: little bit. The other thing I'm noticing too is him
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  Speaker 4: dropping back and not seeing open receivers, just waiting and
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  Speaker 4: waiting and taking hits or making bad throws, but when
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  Speaker 4: you're giving up these big runs to an explosive offense,
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  Speaker 4: that's really frustrating. It also has to be frustrating for
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  Speaker 4: Brandon Bean at the trade deadline, not able to get
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  Speaker 4: a deal done for Jalen Wattle and then see the
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  Speaker 4: dude on the other side of the field killing you
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  Speaker 4: over and over again. So yeah, their need of a
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  Speaker 4: separating wide receiver of some kind. Dalton k k got
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  Speaker 4: hurt Sunday and not having enough stoppers on defenses all
• 14:14
  Speaker 4: of a sudden making them a big problem.
• 14:16
  Speaker 2: Eric, you're brave man. I got to tell you, I
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: don't know if i'd sign up for this job to
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: do power rankings because you've got a Buffalo team that
• 14:22
  Speaker 2: one week can beat Kansas City and I feel good
• 14:23
  Speaker 2: about it. Then they lose to Miami and you're supposed
• 14:26
  Speaker 2: to tell me how good this team is, Like, welcome
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: to the NFL, where we really don't know anything. At
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: number eleven, I'm still trying to figure out what I
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: know about this Chargers team. There's a sense of resiliency
• 14:36
  Speaker 2: around the squad, especially we've become sure because of some
• 14:38
  Speaker 2: of these injuries on the offensive line. I thought the
• 14:41
  Speaker 2: most impressive thing was that defense made Aaron Rodgers look
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: so uncomfortable in this game.
• 14:47
  Speaker 3: Absolutely right right from the get go too.
• 14:49
  Speaker 4: You know, they did have that fairly decent drive early,
• 14:51
  Speaker 4: but Khalil Mack with his second career safety on that
• 14:54
  Speaker 4: play getting stuffs in the hole. You know, I thought
• 14:57
  Speaker 4: that the linebacker play in the secondary play was very strong,
• 15:01
  Speaker 4: not letting dk Metcalf beat him, not letting Warren beat him,
• 15:04
  Speaker 4: really making life on Rogers, you know, tough and harassing
• 15:08
  Speaker 4: him most of the game.
• 15:09
  Speaker 3: So I'm with you.
• 15:10
  Speaker 4: I think the limitations of this offensive line are clear.
• 15:13
  Speaker 3: It's worrisome.
• 15:15
  Speaker 4: But obviously if they can make this kind of havoc
• 15:17
  Speaker 4: with their defense and make these these game changing place
• 15:20
  Speaker 4: and put the ball in justin Herbert's hands, good things
• 15:22
  Speaker 4: often do happen. I still like the way he's playing
• 15:25
  Speaker 4: this season. Some people are down on him. Getting Lad
• 15:27
  Speaker 4: mcconkee more involved has been huge, you know. Obviously Ronde
• 15:31
  Speaker 4: Gassen before he left that game, has been a big
• 15:33
  Speaker 4: factor lately too, Camani vay Dale, etc. Yeah, the old
• 15:37
  Speaker 4: line kind of keeps holding me back a little. But
• 15:39
  Speaker 4: with their weapons and with that defense and Cameron Dicker
• 15:42
  Speaker 4: a kicker. They've got a chance to win a lot
• 15:44
  Speaker 4: of football games, and they have so far seven to three.
• 15:46
  Speaker 4: They're in good shape right now.
• 15:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, we're talking about injuries, and I think
• 15:50
  Speaker 2: the San Francisco forty nine ers on the short list
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: of one of the more banged up teams we're seeing
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: in the NFL. No shame in losing to the Rams,
• 15:57
  Speaker 2: Like I get it. I think the Rams they sit
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: number two in your power rankings. You can make a
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: case they're one or two in the NFL. I don't
• 16:03
  Speaker 2: know how they overcome some of these on the defensive side.
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: Maybe they get brock Party back. I feel like we've
• 16:07
  Speaker 2: been waiting now a couple weeks here, But is it
• 16:09
  Speaker 2: as simple as just pointing to the injuries on defense?
• 16:12
  Speaker 2: Is the reason that they've been dropping some of these
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: games for out of their last seven.
• 16:15
  Speaker 4: Yeah, probably even more serious than like the Chargers zero
• 16:18
  Speaker 4: line problems. I mean, you lose Bosa, you lose Warner,
• 16:21
  Speaker 4: you lose mikeel Williams.
• 16:23
  Speaker 3: I mean, what can you do with that? Right?
• 16:24
  Speaker 4: They invested so much in those three guys alone on
• 16:27
  Speaker 4: the defensive side of the ball. Really kind of the
• 16:29
  Speaker 4: you know, the three lynchpins of this defense or three
• 16:31
  Speaker 4: of the lynch pins, and not able to stop the
• 16:34
  Speaker 4: Rams really at all. Had that one decent stretch in
• 16:36
  Speaker 4: the middle of the game when they made it interesting.
• 16:38
  Speaker 4: But still I think the defensive limitations.
• 16:41
  Speaker 3: You could talk all you.
• 16:41
  Speaker 4: Want about Mac Jones versus brock Party, and we certainly
• 16:44
  Speaker 4: will quarterback discussions. They're always going to attract a lot
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: of years. But to me, it's the defensive limitations right
• 16:51
  Speaker 4: now they're going to hold this team back. The schedule
• 16:53
  Speaker 4: is favorable, but the NFC West is really tough, and
• 16:55
  Speaker 4: they've got two teams ahead of them playing very well
• 16:58
  Speaker 4: right now. So a tough tough situation to be in.
• 17:02
  Speaker 4: Even as competitive as they've been, and they played hard.
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: Mac played really well Sunday just wasn't enough.
• 17:07
  Speaker 2: Yeah, Eric, you know the Baltimore Ravens when they sat
• 17:10
  Speaker 2: one in five, you and I were worried, but I
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: think we both felt like, hey, there's a run that
• 17:15
  Speaker 2: could potentially happen if they got healthy. They are getting healthy.
• 17:18
  Speaker 2: They've won three straight and now all of a sudden
• 17:20
  Speaker 2: they are four and five, the Steelers ahead of them
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: in the division. Still games to be played between those
• 17:24
  Speaker 2: two squads are sitting at five and four. That was
• 17:27
  Speaker 2: a hard fought win against Minnesota, another team that I
• 17:29
  Speaker 2: think was sort of on the come here, Like I
• 17:31
  Speaker 2: feel good about this Ravens team. Am I crazy? Sure?
• 17:34
  Speaker 3: Absolutely?
• 17:35
  Speaker 4: Now, did Minnesota make some some questionable decisions of this
• 17:37
  Speaker 4: game with how much they threw it and some of
• 17:39
  Speaker 4: the situational calls. Sure, but you know, after the Ravens
• 17:43
  Speaker 4: were kind of settling for field goals early, they made
• 17:46
  Speaker 4: big plays on defense and made sure they got their
• 17:48
  Speaker 4: hands on a lot of these passes. You know, Malachi
• 17:51
  Speaker 4: Stark's two straight games with an interception, he's been big.
• 17:53
  Speaker 4: You're right, the defensive improvements for me have been with
• 17:56
  Speaker 4: the starkest difference. Sure, having Lamar Jackson back is obviously
• 17:59
  Speaker 4: a big one, but four straight games now they've held
• 18:03
  Speaker 4: their opponent under twenty point.
• 18:05
  Speaker 3: That's massive, Right.
• 18:06
  Speaker 4: We know that the Ravens are capable of scoring twenty
• 18:08
  Speaker 4: points most games with a healthy Lamar Jackson and with
• 18:11
  Speaker 4: Derrick Henry kind of settling back in a little bit.
• 18:13
  Speaker 4: So you know that right there is the formula. The
• 18:16
  Speaker 4: Steelers have to be very worried after their loss. The
• 18:19
  Speaker 4: margin is shrunk, They're gonna face each other pretty soon
• 18:22
  Speaker 4: about a month, and we'll find out who the supreme
• 18:25
  Speaker 4: team is in that division. But right now, with all
• 18:27
  Speaker 4: the momentum in Baltimore's corner, who say they're not the
• 18:30
  Speaker 4: ones that come in and scare the heck out of everybody?
• 18:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah, no, I'm with you there, And they get a
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: matchup in the division against Cleveland team who in week
• 18:36
  Speaker 2: two they absolutely throttled. That's when we were like, oh, yeah,
• 18:40
  Speaker 2: the Ravens are they'll be all right, and then obviously
• 18:42
  Speaker 2: got the injury bug in a meaningful way. So we'll
• 18:45
  Speaker 2: find out where they're going to sit next week, assuming
• 18:47
  Speaker 2: a win. On your power rankings, look at me, I'm
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: already given them another w to get back to five
• 18:52
  Speaker 2: hundred at sixteen. It's the Chicago Bears. If you would
• 18:55
  Speaker 2: have told me at one point in that third quarter, hey,
• 18:58
  Speaker 2: Brian daball his days are numbered, Chicago's going to win
• 19:01
  Speaker 2: this game, I would have said, you're crazy. That's exactly though.
• 19:04
  Speaker 2: What happened here? Is this a smoke screen? Are you
• 19:07
  Speaker 2: buying this team? Are they? Are they legit?
• 19:10
  Speaker 4: The Bears have some things about them that are very exciting.
• 19:12
  Speaker 4: Caleb Williams look his development. I mean, you know, escaping
• 19:16
  Speaker 4: from how many sacks on Sunday, whirling around, really wearing
• 19:19
  Speaker 4: out that Giant's pass rush was a huge factor that
• 19:22
  Speaker 4: it didn't really result in many points until the final
• 19:25
  Speaker 4: four or five minutes. But you got to give him
• 19:28
  Speaker 4: his stripes in this one. They were up against it,
• 19:30
  Speaker 4: down ten points very late in this game, Williams played
• 19:33
  Speaker 4: with some great composure, made this exceptional run to the
• 19:37
  Speaker 4: corner of the end zone. You know, these are the
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: kind of plays that they made him the number one
• 19:41
  Speaker 4: pick to get out of him, right, I mean, this
• 19:42
  Speaker 4: is this is what you're looking for. I think Ben
• 19:44
  Speaker 4: Johnson's got to be thrilled with that that killer instinct
• 19:47
  Speaker 4: he's really seen out of Caleb in these late game situations.
• 19:50
  Speaker 4: But you know, I still worry about the defense a
• 19:53
  Speaker 4: little bit. They haven't always gotten their playmakers involved every
• 19:56
  Speaker 4: single game, so there's still some things to clean up
• 19:59
  Speaker 4: offensive line, et cetera.
• 20:00
  Speaker 3: But for right now, the Bears are very very interesting.
• 20:03
  Speaker 2: Yeah, look at that touchdown that we showed as he's
• 20:05
  Speaker 2: scampering down that sideline. I'm like, yo, Gillob's got better
• 20:08
  Speaker 2: wheels than you think. Like that was actually an impressive
• 20:11
  Speaker 2: run by the way, just looking at the remaining schedule
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: at Minnesota, Pittsburgh, at Philadelphia, A Green Bay, Cleveland, Green
• 20:17
  Speaker 2: Bay again, at San Francisco and Detroit. I don't think
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: they're going to be sending where they are by the
• 20:22
  Speaker 2: end of the season. I'm just saying, And I don't
• 20:24
  Speaker 2: think it goes like the better way. I don't. We'll
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: find out. We'll find out. I sound like a hater.
• 20:28
  Speaker 2: I swear. It's like two weeks in a row here
• 20:29
  Speaker 2: on this show. It sounds like I'm a big cater.
• 20:31
  Speaker 2: I swear. I'm just trying to look at this thing objectively.
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: Still the come of youre on Power Rankings, we have
• 20:35
  Speaker 2: the team of the Week, a dramatic move late in
• 20:40
  Speaker 2: a game, Demiko and company getting it done. Where did
• 20:43
  Speaker 2: the Texans sit after being down nineteen late? The answer
• 20:47
  Speaker 2: to that is coming up next. Back here on Power Rankings,
• 20:50
  Speaker 2: Eric's teams that sid seventeen through twenty four. It's the
• 20:53
  Speaker 2: Houston TEXANSO we'll talk about in just a moment. The
• 20:55
  Speaker 2: Jags fall three spots to eighteen Carolina at nineteen. The
• 21:00
  Speaker 2: Vikings not sure what to make of this season. At twenty,
• 21:02
  Speaker 2: the Atlanta Falcons. Not sure what to make of the
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: performances the entire season. At twenty one, the Cardinals get throttled.
• 21:08
  Speaker 2: They are sitting at twenty two, the Cowboys twenty three,
• 21:11
  Speaker 2: and the Miami Dolphins moving up five spots after you
• 21:14
  Speaker 2: take out the Buffalo Bills now at twenty four. Tome
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: for Team of the Week. It is presented by Truest.
• 21:20
  Speaker 2: Let's focus in at team number seventeen. You're down twenty
• 21:23
  Speaker 2: nine to ten, you score twenty six points in the
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: fourth quarter, twenty six to nothing. Run here, I'm ready
• 21:29
  Speaker 2: and it's Davis Mills. Like hat tip respect for I
• 21:32
  Speaker 2: used the term resiliency for another team earlier on the show.
• 21:35
  Speaker 2: I think that it directly applies to what we saw
• 21:38
  Speaker 2: from Demiico Ryans a squad.
• 21:39
  Speaker 4: Oh he saved the season, right, wasn't great until he
• 21:42
  Speaker 4: had to be. Those last three drives were incredible. And
• 21:45
  Speaker 4: you know there's three and six and one and two
• 21:47
  Speaker 4: in the division with a loss here, and that's a
• 21:49
  Speaker 4: massive drop to where they are at four and five,
• 21:52
  Speaker 4: two and one in the division. So we'll see about
• 21:54
  Speaker 4: c J. Stroud can he come back? But Davis Mills
• 21:56
  Speaker 4: great pinch hitting and wait till the end, but did
• 22:00
  Speaker 4: his job in the Texas defense finish it.
• 22:02
  Speaker 2: Off better late and never number twenty one. It's the
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: Atlanta Falcons. What am I supposed to do with this squad?
• 22:09
  Speaker 2: I mean, you go and take out Buffore and I
• 22:11
  Speaker 2: feel good about you, Like, I don't know if like
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: we're just not seeing complete games. Like at moments it's
• 22:16
  Speaker 2: the offense that look good. At other times it's the
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: defense that looks good. It doesn't feel like I'm getting
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: a complete package here.
• 22:22
  Speaker 3: Yeah, the pass rush has stepped up.
• 22:24
  Speaker 4: We know they can make some plays in the secondary,
• 22:26
  Speaker 4: but Jonathan Taylor, the tackling the run fits this was
• 22:29
  Speaker 4: a problem.
• 22:29
  Speaker 3: You know, this was a consistent issues. The one guy
• 22:31
  Speaker 3: who was.
• 22:32
  Speaker 4: Really kind of beating them all game but couldn't get
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: anything done on that side. And in that regard, but
• 22:37
  Speaker 4: also Michael Pennix too have been a little disappointed some
• 22:40
  Speaker 4: of the third down misses, some of the problems connecting
• 22:42
  Speaker 4: with his receivers as playmakers. They built this offense for
• 22:45
  Speaker 4: him to thrive and it just hasn't been that way
• 22:47
  Speaker 4: so far, at least not in the last four games.
• 22:49
  Speaker 4: So they've got to get better offensively. And also learn
• 22:52
  Speaker 4: how to stop the run.
• 22:53
  Speaker 2: Yeah, four consecutive losses. They match up now against Carolina
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: at number twenty four. It's a Dolphins team going to Madrid.
• 22:59
  Speaker 2: They will match up against Washington, a game that can
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: be seen on NFL Network and NFL Plus. All Right,
• 23:05
  Speaker 2: they changed in and Phillips, it feels like it's, you
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: know a little bit of a reset here, and then
• 23:09
  Speaker 2: you go and beat the Buffalo Bills. Like I don't know, like,
• 23:13
  Speaker 2: can they make a little run here? Can we strain
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: together some wins?
• 23:16
  Speaker 3: I think they have to write.
• 23:17
  Speaker 4: I mean, they've already seen changes in the front office,
• 23:19
  Speaker 4: They've been scouts and GM fired, and you know this
• 23:22
  Speaker 4: is going to be a big test, I think in
• 23:24
  Speaker 4: a marquee game, and then also the rest of the season.
• 23:26
  Speaker 4: You know, can they have more performances like this? And
• 23:29
  Speaker 4: why didn't they come early in the year? But still
• 23:31
  Speaker 4: look pretty explosive against Buffalo and be fascinated to see
• 23:35
  Speaker 4: if they can keep going.
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: Yeah. By the way, Jalen Phillips looked tremendous Monday night
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: in the Philadelphia uniform. Here we go teams twenty five
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: through thirty two, the Bengals, the Commanders, the Giants with
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: a new coach at twenty seven, the Raiders at twenty eight.
• 23:47
  Speaker 2: The Jets move up a spot at twenty nine. It's
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: the Browns, the Saints, and the Tennessee Titans at number
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: thirty two. By the way, real quick here, Brian day Ball.
• 23:56
  Speaker 2: Good move, bad move for the Giants.
• 23:59
  Speaker 3: Look they got a very attractive job.
• 24:01
  Speaker 4: I think with Dart, Malik, Davis, Stataboo, all these guys, Thomas,
• 24:05
  Speaker 4: somebody's gonna want that job.
• 24:06
  Speaker 3: So we'll see. I don't know if it's the right
• 24:07
  Speaker 3: move or not.
• 24:08
  Speaker 2: Let the search begin. Thanks so much for watch.
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in
• 24:13
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• 24:17
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