# The Insiders Podcast: Rams cut kicker Harrison Mevis after MNF loss + Lamar Jackson optimistic to return Sunday

An episode of [NFL: The Insiders](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1543090622), 14 Oct 2026, 43 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/0414225e-5167-477f-9f83-ae390070e4d2/008bec33-ab12-40d4-b4ed-b4e3000b35f8/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=3e412703-0644-468e-9001-ae390070e4db

Rhett Lewis is joined by NFL Insiders Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo, Judy Battista and Jeff Darlington to talk about the latest headlines. Rams cut kicker Harrison Mevis after missing 2 field goals in MNF loss against the Bills. Rams sign kicker Blake Grupe to replace him. Ravens QB Lamar Jackson (ankle) status is optimistic for Sunday against the Browns. Bears QB Caleb Williams (hamstring) missed last 3 games and is trending in the right direction for Sunday against the Falcons. Falcons QB Michael Penix Jr. (rib) is not considered serious and could play Sunday against the Bears. Bucs QB Baker Mayfield (thumb) is pushing to return Sunday against the Steelers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:09] Speaker 1: Ahead on the Insiders, an epic finish to Week 5
[0:11] Speaker 1: on Monday Night Football, how the Rams regroup. Returning to
[0:15] Speaker 1: the lineup, Caleb Williams and Lamar Jackson. Progress reports on
[0:19] Speaker 1: the way and mounting losses for some teams. Kicking off
[0:22] Speaker 1: an early edition of the Coaching Carousel Conversations.
[0:27] Speaker 2: All that is on the way, I think.
[0:29] Speaker 1: We would all take another couple of possessions from the
[0:31] Speaker 1: Bills and the Rams. We do have some fallout from
[0:35] Speaker 1: the finale to Week 5 that we'll get to as
[0:37] Speaker 1: we welcome you to the Insiders on this Tuesday presented
[0:40] Speaker 1: by Progressive Insurance.
[0:42] Speaker 2: Rhett Lewis, Jeff Darlington, Mike Garofalo.
[0:45] Speaker 1: Ian Rappaport, Judy Batista as we take you back to
[0:48] Speaker 1: how things finished up from SoFi Stadium. And it was
[0:53] Speaker 1: James Cook breaking the 27-27 tie, but leaving Matthew Stafford
[0:58] Speaker 1: some time. He expertly guides the Rams all the way
[1:01] Speaker 1: down the field. Puka Nakua with a first down on
[1:04] Speaker 1: second and five. And now inside the five, Kyron Williams
[1:09] Speaker 1: had a big catch on third down, and he finishes.
[1:11] Speaker 2: Off this touchdown drive.
[1:14] Speaker 1: In the end zone, they kick the extra point, and
[1:17] Speaker 1: we are headed to overtime. Matthew Stafford, Josh Allen, the
[1:23] Speaker 1: last two MVPs.
[1:24] Speaker 2: In the NFL. Some respect at the coin toss.
[1:27] Speaker 1: Bills get the ball first, and Nate Landman, who had
[1:29] Speaker 1: already punched out the ball from the grasp of James
[1:33] Speaker 1: Cook earlier in the game, does it again. This time,
[1:36] Speaker 1: the Rams recover and feel like they have a shot
[1:39] Speaker 1: now to win it. For the win, Harrison Nevis from
[1:42] Speaker 1: 48 yards out, no sir. Greg Russo, all six foot
[1:48] Speaker 1: six inches of his frame, getting a finger on the
[1:51] Speaker 1: football and giving James Cook and the Bills a new
[1:56] Speaker 1: lease on life. And Josh Allen, more than happy. to
[2:00] Speaker 1: take advantage here he goes for 19 already getting them
[2:02] Speaker 1: inside field goal range for Tyler Bass inside the.
[2:05] Speaker 2: 40 that another 13 yards to.
[2:07] Speaker 1: Set up a 45 yard attempt and Tyler Bass puts
[2:12] Speaker 1: it through and Josh Allen with the first overtime victory
[2:19] Speaker 1: of his career 37-34 Bills go to 4-1 Rams.
[2:21] Speaker 2: Fall to 2-3 And it was a tough night for
[2:27] Speaker 2: Harrison Mevis.
[2:28] Speaker 1: Missed that field goal, missed the game winner after it
[2:31] Speaker 1: got blocked, missed more field goals than any kicker in
[2:34] Speaker 1: the league thus far, and is no longer the Rams kicker.
[2:38] Speaker 1: Released today as the Rams signed Blake Grupe off the
[2:40] Speaker 1: Jets practice squad. And now we will check in with
[2:44] Speaker 1: Ian Rappaport on this move. Felt like, look, the block
[2:47] Speaker 1: in a vacuum is a hard one, obviously, but this
[2:49] Speaker 1: felt like it was an accumulation of energy A lot
[2:53] Speaker 1: of things that have gone wrong with the field goal
[2:54] Speaker 1: unit there in Harrison Mevis' time in LA.
[2:59] Speaker 3: Yeah, that's a fair summation right there. Sean McVay saying
[3:01] Speaker 3: after the game, the special teams unit, not just the block,
[3:05] Speaker 3: but the entire special teams unit in general, just not
[3:07] Speaker 3: good enough and really threw some of the blame for
[3:10] Speaker 3: this pretty stunning loss on that group.
[3:13] Speaker 2: Now, you're right.
[3:13] Speaker 3: Harrison Nevis, not the only reason that the Rams lost.
[3:16] Speaker 3: The block was not all on him, and they actually
[3:18] Speaker 3: tried a couple different methods of getting him back in
[3:21] Speaker 3: the groove. They took him off kickoffs, and yesterday put
[3:23] Speaker 3: him back on kickoffs. Either way, It was simply not working.
[3:28] Speaker 3: So as part, Judy, to improve these special teams unit,
[3:31] Speaker 3: which no doubt the Rams had needed to do, but
[3:34] Speaker 3: also in a way to send a message to a
[3:36] Speaker 3: team that if you do not perform on game day,
[3:39] Speaker 3: that you are simply not going to be on this team.
[3:41] Speaker 3: The highest of expectations of what follows the Rams. Some
[3:45] Speaker 3: of the reason for the loss was a dramatic block,
[3:48] Speaker 3: which again was not Nevis's fault. He gets, he becomes
[3:52] Speaker 3: essentially the fall guy and the entire locker room is
[3:55] Speaker 3: has been put on notice.
[3:58] Speaker 4: Well, it's fine to change out the kicker. They had
[4:01] Speaker 4: other special teams issues. Also, the opening kickoff was returned
[4:05] Speaker 4: 70 yards, so they had some coverage issues there. This
[4:08] Speaker 4: has been an ongoing issue for the Rams over the
[4:12] Speaker 4: last few years, trouble on special teams. They have lost
[4:15] Speaker 4: five games in the last two seasons because of special
[4:19] Speaker 4: teams gaffes. Talking to people around the league, one person
[4:22] Speaker 4: said to me, when you have a team full of superstars,
[4:25] Speaker 4: you are not allocating resources to maybe a difference maker
[4:29] Speaker 4: on your special teams unit. And that's fine. You can
[4:32] Speaker 4: construct your roster that way. But you've got to find
[4:35] Speaker 4: another way to emphasize how important special teams is. Maybe
[4:38] Speaker 4: spend more time in practice on it. Spend more time
[4:41] Speaker 4: in training camp on it. allocate resources somewhere else. You've
[4:46] Speaker 4: got to send the signal to the team that it
[4:48] Speaker 4: is still an important part of the game. I go
[4:50] Speaker 4: back to Joe DiCamillis, the former special teams coordinator for
[4:54] Speaker 4: the Rams. When he left the Rams and went to
[4:56] Speaker 4: coach in college football, he said, I wanted to be
[4:58] Speaker 4: back someplace where special teams was emphasized. Certainly, the Rams
[5:03] Speaker 4: are trying to fix what has bothered them for.
[5:06] Speaker 3: The last few seasons.
[5:07] Speaker 4: They did bring in a new special teams coordinator. They
[5:10] Speaker 4: did sign two special teams specific players this offseason. Now
[5:15] Speaker 4: they are changing out the kicker. What they've got to
[5:17] Speaker 4: hope is that they get it right and that by
[5:19] Speaker 4: the time they get it right, it does not cost
[5:21] Speaker 4: them more games.
[5:23] Speaker 5: Special teams being a part of the Rams problems right now.
[5:25] Speaker 2: The other thing is.
[5:26] Speaker 5: You got to come out of the gate stronger during
[5:28] Speaker 5: these games. I mean, they've been better in the second half.
[5:30] Speaker 5: That's the good news. The problem is they've been sluggish
[5:34] Speaker 5: in the first half, sort of like they were last
[5:36] Speaker 5: night and like they were against the Eagles and they
[5:37] Speaker 5: were having to rely on these comebacks. And That's going
[5:40] Speaker 5: to be the difference, that fine line between winning and losing.
[5:42] Speaker 5: And look, there was high expectations for this team that
[5:46] Speaker 5: they were not only going to win a lot of games,
[5:47] Speaker 5: but they were going to win a lot of games
[5:48] Speaker 5: handily because of all the additions.
[5:51] Speaker 2: Aaron Donald joining.
[5:52] Speaker 5: An already good defense coming back.
[5:55] Speaker 2: Miles Garrett as well. We'll see him. in the near
[5:57] Speaker 2: future return.
[5:58] Speaker 5: Plus that guy, Matthew Stafford, coming back as MVP with
[6:01] Speaker 5: all the firepower they have on offense. They just haven't
[6:03] Speaker 5: looked like that. Now, they're still working. Sean McVay's still
[6:07] Speaker 5: got to get these guys to understand that despite what
[6:10] Speaker 5: the likes of us said coming into the season, it's
[6:12] Speaker 5: still about earning it. It's still about going out and improving.
[6:15] Speaker 2: And they have been good. They just haven't been great.
[6:18] Speaker 5: So this is going to be a challenge for him
[6:19] Speaker 5: to make sure that he gets them to understand the
[6:23] Speaker 5: difference between good and great. Jeff, going to be working
[6:25] Speaker 5: for it.
[6:27] Speaker 6: Yeah, Mike, you mentioned the fine line at the beginning
[6:30] Speaker 6: of that, and that goes both ways. And I think
[6:31] Speaker 6: the thing for me, Rhett, at the beginning of this,
[6:33] Speaker 6: you mentioned the stat that for Josh Allen, this is
[6:36] Speaker 6: the first overtime win of his career, but it's even
[6:39] Speaker 6: deeper than that. He was 0-7 in overtimes, three of
[6:42] Speaker 6: which came in the postseason. I mean, that is a
[6:44] Speaker 6: huge monkey to get off of his back in this situation.
[6:47] Speaker 6: So I think from that aspect of it, it kind
[6:50] Speaker 6: of shows Josh Allen that, hey, maybe things can go
[6:53] Speaker 6: your way. The thing that I continue, you see him
[6:55] Speaker 6: running here 121 rushing yards. That is awesome when we
[7:00] Speaker 6: look at it in a vacuum.
[7:01] Speaker 2: But as we know from.
[7:02] Speaker 6: This Bills team, it has to be more than Josh Allen. Yes,
[7:05] Speaker 6: it is worth recognizing that they needed that blocked kick.
[7:09] Speaker 6: To get them to this point, they need to be
[7:12] Speaker 6: able to rely on more than Josh Allen. And it
[7:14] Speaker 6: does help that this is the first overtime win that
[7:17] Speaker 6: he gets. It does kind of shift that momentum in
[7:20] Speaker 6: his direction. But it's got to be more than Josh.
[7:23] Speaker 6: And right now, it's still all Josh.
[7:25] Speaker 1: And then there was this situation at the end of
[7:29] Speaker 1: the game, after the game. Some words being shared between
[7:32] Speaker 1: Aleric Jackson and Bradley Chubb. Jackson approaches Chubb. with a
[7:37] Speaker 1: few other players and staff members kind of standing nearby.
[7:40] Speaker 1: Then comes the punch from Jackson. And so now, after
[7:45] Speaker 1: all this has caught on tape, Aleric Jackson has officially
[7:49] Speaker 1: been suspended two games for punching Bradley Chubb in that
[7:54] Speaker 1: moment there. So he will miss the Cardinals' week six
[7:58] Speaker 1: game here against the Rams, week six game against the
[8:02] Speaker 1: Cardinals here at home, and then the following week in
[8:03] Speaker 1: Vegas against the Raiders. Lamar Jackson unable to suit up
[8:07] Speaker 1: Sunday night, so Snoop Huntley helped guide the Ravens to
[8:11] Speaker 1: a win over the Falcons. But things are looking good
[8:14] Speaker 1: for Jackson to return from the ankle injury this week
[8:16] Speaker 1: against the Browns. And what do they need to do
[8:18] Speaker 1: to know Lamar is good to go?
[8:23] Speaker 3: My understanding is they are hopeful that Lamar Jackson is
[8:25] Speaker 3: good to go. Didn't practice at all last week. And
[8:27] Speaker 3: I think a lot of us, including me, by the way,
[8:29] Speaker 3: assumed that he was pretty far away from being out there.
[8:32] Speaker 3: Sounds like he was closer to playing than maybe we
[8:35] Speaker 3: had realized. I do expect Lamar Jackson to be out
[8:38] Speaker 3: on the field tomorrow, working his way back. from what
[8:41] Speaker 3: is a relatively odd type of ankle sprain. We've seen
[8:44] Speaker 3: several instances of Lamar Jackson over the last couple years
[8:48] Speaker 3: taking a little bit longer to recover than one might think.
[8:51] Speaker 3: It has been a storyline for him through the last
[8:54] Speaker 3: several years. My understanding is he was extremely diligent inside
[8:58] Speaker 3: the facility. This time he has been working like crazy
[9:01] Speaker 3: to get back. There's a pretty good chance that Lamar
[9:04] Speaker 3: is on the field this weekend for the Ravens, Jeff.
[9:09] Speaker 6: When you get big wins like that without your starting quarterback, though,
[9:12] Speaker 6: I mean, it almost feels like it's worth two because
[9:14] Speaker 6: you almost go into these games feeling like, OK, if
[9:17] Speaker 6: we can play well here, if we can grab a
[9:19] Speaker 6: win here and there until Lamar gets back.
[9:22] Speaker 2: You know, so be it.
[9:23] Speaker 6: And this game, I think, was a huge statement, not
[9:25] Speaker 6: merely because they got a win with the backup quarterback,
[9:28] Speaker 6: but because they did it against a team that felt
[9:30] Speaker 6: like they had a ton of momentum coming out of
[9:32] Speaker 6: their previous week. The Falcons have looked really good.
[9:35] Speaker 1: But for the Ravens to.
[9:36] Speaker 6: Go out there and show what a complete team that
[9:38] Speaker 6: they are, I think that sends a huge message to
[9:41] Speaker 6: the rest of the league.
[9:42] Speaker 2: And it also affords them the ability.
[9:44] Speaker 6: I'm not saying that they're going to make a decision
[9:47] Speaker 6: on Lamar's health based on the success or failures of Huntley.
[9:52] Speaker 2: But you do feel in the back of your mind like, hey, we're.
[9:54] Speaker 6: Going to be okay. And I think that's important for
[9:56] Speaker 6: this Ravens team.
[9:57] Speaker 2: No question.
[9:58] Speaker 1: And for the Bears … Caleb Williams has missed the
[10:01] Speaker 1: last three games and coming off their first loss without.
[10:04] Speaker 2: Him this week to the Packers.
[10:06] Speaker 1: Case Keenum and Tyson Bajent have both seen time in Williams' absence. Mike,
[10:10] Speaker 1: how close are we getting to Caleb Williams returning to
[10:14] Speaker 1: his position as the starting quarterback?
[10:16] Speaker 5: Close rep might be downright imminent here and I reported
[10:19] Speaker 5: on Sunday that Caleb Williams is pushing to return to
[10:23] Speaker 5: the playing field and that might run counter to some
[10:26] Speaker 5: memes and some videos and some pictures that some folks
[10:29] Speaker 5: had some fun with thinking that he was a little dramatic.
[10:32] Speaker 5: with this injury, but look, it's a three-week injury. That's
[10:35] Speaker 5: about the time we thought he might come back. He
[10:38] Speaker 5: got that practice in last week, felt good, and was
[10:41] Speaker 5: really telling the team, I think I can push this
[10:43] Speaker 5: even farther and have a realistic shot. It sounds like
[10:45] Speaker 5: they are in agreement with that. We've got to see
[10:47] Speaker 5: how the week goes. We're always going to put that
[10:49] Speaker 5: out there when it comes to hamstring injuries of the
[10:52] Speaker 5: sort where something can be tweaked, but I know that
[10:54] Speaker 5: there is optimism that Caleb Williams is on the right
[10:56] Speaker 5: track and could be back on the field pumping his fists.
[11:00] Speaker 5: While running onto the field, not being taken off on
[11:02] Speaker 5: a cart. Okay.
[11:05] Speaker 2: Exactly.
[11:05] Speaker 6: Enthusiastically.
[11:06] Speaker 7: Yeah.
[11:07] Speaker 6: And by, by the way, I think that, you know,
[11:09] Speaker 6: we talk about all these other things about the thin
[11:11] Speaker 6: line and the recovery window. This is a team now
[11:13] Speaker 6: that's saying we need him back as soon as we
[11:15] Speaker 6: can get him. And Ben Johnson made it clear. Like
[11:17] Speaker 6: it looks like it could be Atlanta or shortly after
[11:20] Speaker 6: the problem is shortly after is really shortly after it's
[11:23] Speaker 6: a quick turnaround when they play the Patriots on Thursday.
[11:26] Speaker 6: So it's not like they're getting the extra week out
[11:28] Speaker 6: of it, but yeah, man, this bears team, they need
[11:30] Speaker 6: them pumping that fist.
[11:31] Speaker 1: I'm like, All right, knee recovery kept Michael Penix out
[11:35] Speaker 1: for the first two games of the season. And after
[11:37] Speaker 1: a stellar two-game stretch in his return, Penix unable to
[11:40] Speaker 1: finish on Sunday night with a rib injury. But Ian,
[11:43] Speaker 1: sounds like there is some optimism that this won't keep
[11:45] Speaker 1: him from playing again this Sunday versus the Bears.
[11:49] Speaker 2: What more do you know on that front?
[11:52] Speaker 3: Michael Penix is considered day-to-day with that rib injury. Go
[11:55] Speaker 3: back to the last game. Remember, he was balling. They
[11:58] Speaker 3: were in overtime. He thought he was going to be
[11:59] Speaker 3: able to come back. Then there was just a long
[12:01] Speaker 3: roadway into the sideline. It tightened up, got cold. He
[12:04] Speaker 3: was not able to get out there, which is why
[12:06] Speaker 3: Tua Tagovailoa came on and eventually lost the game. with
[12:09] Speaker 3: that interception, but the hope immediately afterward for Michael Penix
[12:12] Speaker 3: was that he would be out on the field. It's
[12:14] Speaker 3: considered day-to-day. Tests basically confirmed what everyone had thought, and
[12:19] Speaker 3: if he is able to go out there and practice tomorrow,
[12:20] Speaker 3: it sounds like there's a pretty good chance that he
[12:23] Speaker 3: is able to do. Expect Michael Penix Jr. to start,
[12:27] Speaker 3: to be back in the lineup, and continue the really,
[12:30] Speaker 3: really strong play that he has shown since he's been healthy.
[12:34] Speaker 1: Well, the Tampa Bay Bucs got a win on Thursday
[12:36] Speaker 1: in Baker Mayfield's absence. And this week, we kind of
[12:39] Speaker 1: marked the very short end of that injury timeline for
[12:42] Speaker 1: Baker after suffering the thumb injury back in week three
[12:45] Speaker 1: against the Vikings. Mayfield pushing to make his return this
[12:48] Speaker 1: Sunday versus the Steelers. Mike Garofalo, how realistic is Baker's
[12:52] Speaker 1: plan to get back on the field?
[12:54] Speaker 5: Yeah, Baker, like Caleb Williams, wants to get back on
[12:57] Speaker 5: the field as soon as possible. Jaden Daniels, throw him
[12:59] Speaker 5: in there as well. There was a thought that maybe
[13:01] Speaker 5: he could wait another week, but he worked his way back.
[13:02] Speaker 2: So sometimes you can force the.
[13:05] Speaker 5: Issue, talk your way into it, but at some point
[13:08] Speaker 5: the injury is going to speak for itself. Now, if
[13:10] Speaker 5: he's back on the practice field in some capacity this week,
[13:12] Speaker 5: I wouldn't be surprised. But this is on the earlier
[13:15] Speaker 5: side of the window that we thought it was going
[13:17] Speaker 5: to be three weeks plus overtime. potentially for Baker Mayfield
[13:20] Speaker 5: to return. So he's going to have to make some
[13:22] Speaker 5: significant progress to convince the Buccaneers that he can be
[13:26] Speaker 5: out there this Sunday against the Steelers instead of Jaden Daniels.
[13:28] Speaker 5: We'll keep an eye on it, but if he's not
[13:30] Speaker 5: playing this week, I wouldn't be shocked yet.
[13:33] Speaker 6: Yeah, it doesn't feel quite like the Ravens situation with
[13:36] Speaker 6: Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley where it's like you get
[13:39] Speaker 6: that win and you feel like this has a balanced team.
[13:40] Speaker 6: I think the Bucs are coming out of that saying like,
[13:43] Speaker 6: I mean, that's unbelievable. We just beat the Cowboys. And
[13:46] Speaker 6: I think Todd Bowles said it best. Like when you
[13:47] Speaker 6: have a young quarterback, you've got to lean on your
[13:49] Speaker 6: ground game. You're going to live and die by that
[13:51] Speaker 6: ground game. And Bucky Irvin basically said, fine, let's do it.
[13:55] Speaker 6: And I think a lot of us need to remember
[13:57] Speaker 6: Bucky Irvin is a premier running back in the NFL.
[14:00] Speaker 6: a top-tier running back who doesn't necessarily get spoken in
[14:04] Speaker 6: the same vein as some of the bigger names like
[14:06] Speaker 6: Christian McCaffrey and Derrick Henry. But this is a dude
[14:09] Speaker 6: who put this team on his shoulders and said, we're
[14:12] Speaker 6: going to win this game. And you see those numbers
[14:13] Speaker 6: right there. If they can keep that going, they're going
[14:16] Speaker 6: to be effective. But I can tell you right now
[14:18] Speaker 6: that every team saw exactly what the Bucs did there.
[14:21] Speaker 6: And until they get Baker Mayfield back, they're going to say,
[14:23] Speaker 6: we are going to stop Bucky Irving and make the
[14:26] Speaker 6: rookie win with his arm.
[14:28] Speaker 1: All right, Jeff, a lot more to come here on
[14:29] Speaker 1: this edition of the Insiders. For some teams, the optimism
[14:32] Speaker 1: of a new season has quickly turned to thoughts of
[14:35] Speaker 1: next season. Word around the league on whether next season
[14:38] Speaker 1: is even a reality for some coaches. Plus, Bo Nix
[14:41] Speaker 1: of the Broncos scored early in their matchup against the
[14:45] Speaker 1: Chargers and then came alive late to hold on for
[14:48] Speaker 1: what was their third win of the season. And no
[14:51] Speaker 1: time to waste with Thursday night football coming down the pipe.
[15:00] Speaker 2: Okay, tonight at 8 p.m.
[15:02] Speaker 1: Eastern on ABC and streaming on Disney +, Dancing with
[15:04] Speaker 1: the Stars returns with a first-ever NFL-themed night where each
[15:08] Speaker 1: couple will recreate an iconic Super Bowl halftime performance. Right
[15:13] Speaker 1: after the conclusion of The Insiders, turn it over to
[15:15] Speaker 1: ABC or stream it on Disney +.
[15:19] Speaker 2: And then, of course, we're going to the Super Bowl,
[15:21] Speaker 2: and you can too.
[15:22] Speaker 1: Enter for a chance to win four tickets to Super
[15:24] Speaker 1: Bowl 61 and a three-night vacation to Disneyland Resort to
[15:27] Speaker 1: watch the Super Bowl champion cavalcade.
[15:29] Speaker 2: Scan the QR code.
[15:30] Speaker 1: On your screen right now or visit ESPN.com slash S-B-L-X-I
[15:35] Speaker 1: to learn more.
[15:38] Speaker 2: Speaking of the Super Bowl, we got a Super Bowl.
[15:40] Speaker 1: Matchup for you on Thursday Night Football. Broncos and Seahawks.
[15:45] Speaker 1: Remember that Super Bowl 48, of course. And, well, the Broncos' offense,
[15:48] Speaker 1: not nearly as prolific as it was in that season.
[15:51] Speaker 1: They did find a way to win their third of
[15:56] Speaker 1: the season. This last week did score in the first half.
[15:59] Speaker 1: which feels like some progress. Omar Ruiz joining us now
[16:03] Speaker 1: live from the Broncos facility there in Denver and kind
[16:05] Speaker 1: of getting a sense here for where things go now.
[16:08] Speaker 1: Sean Payton, back to calling the plays. Omar, what are
[16:10] Speaker 1: the Broncos saying about those continued efforts to get.
[16:13] Speaker 2: This offense on track?
[16:17] Speaker 7: Yeah, Rhett, Sean Payton, a lot of talk. about wanting
[16:20] Speaker 7: Bo Nix to let it rip. He said there is
[16:22] Speaker 7: a balance between minimizing risks while also trying to make
[16:26] Speaker 7: plays downfield, even when that play appears to be covered,
[16:30] Speaker 7: like scrambling. Until Nix is able to find a throw
[16:34] Speaker 7: to make that happen. As for taking back play calling duties.
[16:38] Speaker 7: I asked Sean Payton if it was like riding a bike.
[16:40] Speaker 7: Or if he felt like he got some rust off
[16:43] Speaker 7: against the Chargers on Sunday.
[16:44] Speaker 2: He said a little bit of both. Had to get
[16:45] Speaker 2: used to a little bit of subtle changes in terminology.
[16:48] Speaker 2: And then he also said this.
[16:52] Speaker 8: I wish it was like riding a bike. Because my
[16:55] Speaker 8: memories of riding bikes was always carefree. relaxing. So I don't,
[17:03] Speaker 8: I don't, I wouldn't use that necessarily, but you do
[17:09] Speaker 8: get used to how fast everything goes, especially when you
[17:11] Speaker 8: go from college to the NFL and the clock is
[17:14] Speaker 8: much quicker.
[17:15] Speaker 9: It's not easy.
[17:16] Speaker 5: It's really not.
[17:16] Speaker 8: It's, it's tough.
[17:18] Speaker 9: It's, It's a mental battle, and that's kind of where
[17:21] Speaker 9: I find myself sometimes in a season like this where
[17:25] Speaker 9: it's not as good as you want it to look,
[17:27] Speaker 9: but you're winning, and you're playing tough teams, and you've
[17:30] Speaker 9: gotten close against a few more tough teams, and you
[17:34] Speaker 9: know there's going to be tough teams down the road.
[17:35] Speaker 9: So it's all about taking it one game at a time,
[17:39] Speaker 9: and at the end of the day, just finding ways
[17:42] Speaker 9: to win and then learning from your losses.
[17:48] Speaker 7: As for those big injuries to the Broncos secondary, Riley Moss,
[17:51] Speaker 7: who's nursing a ribs injury, was a limited participant in
[17:56] Speaker 7: practice for a second straight day. He missed Sunday's game
[17:59] Speaker 7: against the Chargers, of course, as did Patrick Sertan, who
[18:02] Speaker 7: did not practice today for the second day in a
[18:05] Speaker 7: row as he continues to nurse an ankle injury. And
[18:08] Speaker 7: Talanoa Hufunga, who also was injured with an ankle injury
[18:13] Speaker 7: on Sunday, also did not practice for the second day
[18:15] Speaker 7: in a row. So key injuries to watch, Rhett.
[18:18] Speaker 2: As we head into Thursday.
[18:19] Speaker 1: Yeah, and on the Seahawks side, Jackson Smith and Jigba
[18:21] Speaker 1: limited in practice for the second straight day for the
[18:23] Speaker 1: Seahawks as well. Omar, thanks very much. Okay, so once
[18:27] Speaker 1: we get past Thursday night, we'll get to London Sunday morning,
[18:31] Speaker 1: 9.30 a.m.
[18:32] Speaker 2: Eastern time. Texans fresh off their first win of the season.
[18:36] Speaker 1: Going to battle the Jaguars from London, a game you
[18:38] Speaker 1: can catch live right here on NFL Network and on
[18:41] Speaker 1: the ESPN. Judy, a lot made of D'Amico Ryan's decision
[18:45] Speaker 1: to take over play calling on the defensive side for
[18:48] Speaker 1: Houston seemed to work in week five, getting their first win.
[18:52] Speaker 1: How do they kind of continue that trend here moving
[18:54] Speaker 1: forward against a very good Jacksonville Jaguars offense?
[18:59] Speaker 4: Well, it did seem to work. They held the Titans
[19:02] Speaker 4: to three points. Cam Ward was sacked four times. They
[19:05] Speaker 4: were getting a lot of pressure. They had them in
[19:07] Speaker 4: third and long constantly. They just couldn't get anything going
[19:12] Speaker 4: on the offense. So yes, the defense of the Texans
[19:15] Speaker 4: certainly looked much more effective than it has in the
[19:17] Speaker 4: early games. Now, of course, the obvious question is, is
[19:20] Speaker 4: that a function of D'Amico Ryan's taking over play calling?
[19:23] Speaker 4: Or is it a function of the fact that the
[19:24] Speaker 4: Titans have been struggling on offense all season? We're certainly
[19:27] Speaker 4: going to get A much better read on this when
[19:30] Speaker 4: they face the Jaguars. In London this weekend, the Jaguars
[19:33] Speaker 4: have been very successful so far. They're going to have
[19:35] Speaker 4: to get pressure on Trevor Lawrence and disrupt him. They're
[19:38] Speaker 4: going to have to be able to stop the run.
[19:40] Speaker 4: Those are things they had been struggling with early in
[19:43] Speaker 4: the season. We'll see if they can do it against
[19:46] Speaker 4: the Jaguars. Certainly, they have a huge opportunity here. If
[19:50] Speaker 4: they can disrupt Trevor Lawrence, and they have had really
[19:53] Speaker 4: good pass rushers, even though the defense hasn't been playing well,
[19:56] Speaker 4: if they can win this game against the Jaguars, they're
[19:59] Speaker 4: right back in the mix in the division despite the
[20:02] Speaker 4: 0-4 start. So, huge opening here for the Texans. And
[20:06] Speaker 4: the Jaguars, Ian, are a little bit banged up going
[20:08] Speaker 4: into this game.
[20:11] Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean, the fact that Will Anderson's playing, like,
[20:13] Speaker 3: maybe the best defensive end in the NFL, it's great
[20:15] Speaker 3: for the Houston Texans. Not great for the team that
[20:18] Speaker 3: they are facing, Jacksonville Jaguars. Not going to have Anton Harrison.
[20:21] Speaker 3: They're really, really good and sturdy starting left tackle. He
[20:25] Speaker 3: has been placed on injured reserve earlier today. My understanding
[20:29] Speaker 3: is he is going to have knee surgery when he
[20:31] Speaker 3: returns from London. when he gets back to the state.
[20:33] Speaker 3: So what's going to happen in this knee surgery is
[20:36] Speaker 3: the doctor is going to go in and then decide
[20:38] Speaker 3: during the surgery how long he is going to be
[20:41] Speaker 3: out and basically what procedure they're going to do. If
[20:42] Speaker 3: they just trim, my understanding is it's a meniscus, so
[20:46] Speaker 3: if they just trim the meniscus, then he's out probably
[20:48] Speaker 3: a couple weeks, maybe four weeks or so. If it
[20:50] Speaker 3: needs a full repair, reconstruction, then he is out months,
[20:55] Speaker 3: likely out the rest of the regular season. So a
[20:57] Speaker 3: lot rides on this surgery once he returns from London.
[21:02] Speaker 2: Okay, Ian, thanks very much.
[21:03] Speaker 1: Struggles of a season can compound week over week. Mismanagement
[21:06] Speaker 1: in key areas with the game on the line can
[21:08] Speaker 1: add to an equation of uneasiness when it comes to
[21:10] Speaker 1: job security. And as the losses pile up, are some
[21:14] Speaker 1: teams already considering a reset at head coach?
[21:18] Speaker 2: That is next.
[21:21] Speaker 5: This is going to be a battle between the two
[21:23] Speaker 5: heavyweights in the West.
[21:25] Speaker 2: JSM makes a man miss. Touchdown, Seahawks! Brock drops back.
[21:31] Speaker 5: Throws, caught, and the 49ers take the lead back.
[21:35] Speaker 2: Darnold steps up, throws, and it's caught. Cooper Cupp dives
[21:38] Speaker 2: shy of the line again. 49ers take over.
[21:42] Speaker 7: San Francisco improves to 5-0 and now have a stranglehold on.
[21:47] Speaker 3: The NFC West.
[21:50] Speaker 1: No quarterback better than Brock Purdy in the fourth quarter
[21:53] Speaker 1: this season. Tops at QBR, passing touchdown to interception ratio
[21:58] Speaker 1: has not been sacked, has not given the ball away,
[22:01] Speaker 1: and a big reason why the.
[22:03] Speaker 2: 49ers were able to go eight plays, 43.
[22:05] Speaker 1: Yards in five minutes of time to let Eddie Pinheiro
[22:09] Speaker 1: kick a 44-yard field goal that would serve as the
[22:11] Speaker 1: game winner, 32-29 Seahawks.
[22:15] Speaker 2: Fall Niners remain undefeated.
[22:17] Speaker 1: On the flip side of well-managed end-of-game drives was this
[22:21] Speaker 1: in overtime from the Commanders. Absolutely zero urgency as the
[22:25] Speaker 1: clock ran down on second and eight with no timeouts,
[22:28] Speaker 1: needing to spike the ball just to get a field
[22:29] Speaker 1: goal opportunity for the win. And the clock simply runs
[22:35] Speaker 1: out on the Commanders and the frustrations. Evidence from Dan
[22:40] Speaker 1: Quinn and likely everyone inside that commander's organization as you
[22:45] Speaker 1: look at their fourth quarter defense this season. At or
[22:50] Speaker 1: near the bottom in so many key categories, points per
[22:53] Speaker 1: game allowed. Opponents' third down percentage. They're staying on the
[22:58] Speaker 1: field on average. drives in the fourth quarter and now
[23:03] Speaker 1: Mike Garofalo back here with us Mike that was a
[23:05] Speaker 1: tough scene obviously in overtime there for Dan Quinn commander
[23:08] Speaker 1: squander an opportunity to win it over in overtime look
[23:10] Speaker 1: lost unprepared the opposite of urgent now Quinn took accountability
[23:14] Speaker 1: there but how does this play out for him inside that.
[23:18] Speaker 5: Building We're going to find out, and we're going to
[23:20] Speaker 5: find out in a hurry because this is a tough
[23:22] Speaker 5: game coming up for them against the 49ers this coming Monday.
[23:25] Speaker 5: It is followed by a bye, and we always look
[23:27] Speaker 5: to Thursday night games and bye weeks for potential head
[23:31] Speaker 5: coaching changes. Look, we came into this season, and there
[23:33] Speaker 5: were a lot of changes on the coaching staff. The
[23:35] Speaker 5: next change after that is usually the head coach. We
[23:39] Speaker 5: were clear about Dan Quinn needing to have results this
[23:42] Speaker 5: upcoming season to continue in 2027 as the coach of
[23:46] Speaker 5: the Commanders. Now the question is, could something happen in season?
[23:49] Speaker 5: And some of those answers inside that locker room were
[23:51] Speaker 5: a little bit questionable.
[23:52] Speaker 2: It was like, ask DQ.
[23:54] Speaker 5: And some folks say no comment with some of the
[23:57] Speaker 5: ones that were reported there. So Dan Quinn's got to
[23:59] Speaker 5: get these guys by the bootstraps. He's got an extra
[24:01] Speaker 5: day because of the Monday night game. But then you
[24:03] Speaker 5: got that bye week after, and there's a lot of folks, Judy,
[24:05] Speaker 5: around the league that are now talking about the potential.
[24:08] Speaker 5: Could this be an opening for a coaching change? We
[24:11] Speaker 5: don't know what the result of the game is going
[24:13] Speaker 5: to be. And if it's, let's say, a close loss,
[24:14] Speaker 5: maybe does he hang on? But if it's a blowout,
[24:16] Speaker 5: then some of this drumbeat is going to get a.
[24:18] Speaker 2: Little bit louder.
[24:21] Speaker 4: Two things from talking to different people around the league.
[24:24] Speaker 4: One is most people seem to think that the original
[24:26] Speaker 4: play call was intended to be a pass to the
[24:29] Speaker 4: left sideline. Jaden Daniels decided to do something else. And,
[24:33] Speaker 4: of course, the most damning part of all of it
[24:35] Speaker 4: is that it's clear that nobody on the offense knew
[24:38] Speaker 4: what the game situation was. And that, of course, goes
[24:41] Speaker 4: directly to coaching, not just to Dan Quinn, but to
[24:43] Speaker 4: the entire coaching staff. Somebody needed to be communicating to
[24:47] Speaker 4: the offense what the situation was. Then I talked to
[24:50] Speaker 4: another executive who has dealt with a lot of owners.
[24:53] Speaker 4: And he said to me, there are some losses that
[24:56] Speaker 4: linger longer in owners' minds than others. And this is
[25:00] Speaker 4: that kind of loss. He said, this is the kind
[25:02] Speaker 4: of loss that is very, very difficult to come back
[25:04] Speaker 4: from unless you take a team on a deep run.
[25:07] Speaker 4: He said, it's really hard for an owner to get
[25:10] Speaker 4: past a humiliating loss like that to a division rival.
[25:14] Speaker 4: Keep all of that in mind. Everybody around the league
[25:17] Speaker 4: that I have talked to feels bad. Everybody likes Dan Quinn.
[25:21] Speaker 4: They like him. They think he's a great defensive coach.
[25:24] Speaker 4: But this was just something that nobody could understand how
[25:27] Speaker 4: this could happen on Dan Quinn's watch. And they're also
[25:29] Speaker 4: not sure that any coach, any coach could survive it.
[25:33] Speaker 1: Okay, more trouble for a potential, more potential trouble for
[25:38] Speaker 1: a head coach with Jim Harbaugh and his Chargers. Now
[25:40] Speaker 1: 0-5 this season, last place in the AFC West. They're
[25:43] Speaker 1: giving the ball away more than any team in the league.
[25:46] Speaker 1: They gave up 13 fourth-quarter points to the Denver Broncos
[25:50] Speaker 1: at home on Sunday. leading to their fifth straight loss, 23-17,
[25:56] Speaker 1: 0-5 on the season. And it's gone real bad, real
[26:02] Speaker 1: quick here. Any sense that Jim Harbaugh could be in
[26:05] Speaker 1: some trouble?
[26:08] Speaker 3: But my understanding is Jim Harbaugh is not in trouble
[26:11] Speaker 3: as of right now. There's nothing imminent. I don't get
[26:13] Speaker 3: the sense inside the building that this is something they're
[26:16] Speaker 3: weighing or discussing or expecting. They think this is a
[26:19] Speaker 3: talented team. They think this is a team that can win.
[26:22] Speaker 3: And they do believe in this coaching staff, the entirety
[26:24] Speaker 3: of the staff, as one that can get things done.
[26:27] Speaker 3: That said, if these struggles continue, if they continue to
[26:30] Speaker 3: look like a fully unprepared team, then of course changes
[26:33] Speaker 3: would have to be considered. I just don't get the
[26:35] Speaker 3: sense that there's anything being considered right now. And one
[26:38] Speaker 3: of the more interesting parts of this is that Mike
[26:40] Speaker 3: McDaniel's offense, which they had such high hopes for, really
[26:44] Speaker 3: hasn't delivered yet.
[26:45] Speaker 4: At all.
[26:46] Speaker 3: And if that continues to be the case, they do
[26:48] Speaker 3: have someone inside the building who has been a really
[26:51] Speaker 3: successful offensive coordinator in Adam Gase. And I know people
[26:54] Speaker 3: sort of roll their eyes. He had, at some point,
[26:56] Speaker 3: the highest scoring offense in NFL history.
[26:58] Speaker 2: Pretty good coach.
[26:59] Speaker 3: So if they do end up making a move, that
[27:01] Speaker 3: would be someone who could step in. But Mike, they
[27:03] Speaker 3: don't seem like they're anywhere close to that inside the
[27:06] Speaker 3: Chargers building.
[27:08] Speaker 5: No, and Jim Harbaugh's had a chance to sort of
[27:11] Speaker 5: rally the troops, at least via his press conferences, and
[27:14] Speaker 5: it just doesn't seem like that same fire from Harbaugh,
[27:17] Speaker 5: which is why some folks are looking at it and say,
[27:20] Speaker 5: is this a guy that we could be potentially talking
[27:23] Speaker 5: about as we get toward the end of the season,
[27:25] Speaker 5: into the end of the season? as a potential coaching
[27:28] Speaker 5: change i i don't know i mean jim harbaugh throughout
[27:31] Speaker 5: his time as the head coach of the 49ers into
[27:33] Speaker 5: michigan he had that fire he had that energy and
[27:35] Speaker 5: that energy seems to have been zapped this year at
[27:37] Speaker 5: a time where this team badly needs it so can
[27:40] Speaker 5: jim harbaugh find a way to energize not only himself
[27:43] Speaker 5: but this entire locker room and find a way to
[27:45] Speaker 5: scrape some wins together jeff get this somehow moving in
[27:48] Speaker 5: the right direction because right now they seem listless and
[27:50] Speaker 5: so does he.
[27:53] Speaker 6: I think when you look across the coaching landscape, it's
[27:55] Speaker 6: always really interesting because the perceptions before the season do
[28:00] Speaker 6: kind of play its part in how we feel now.
[28:02] Speaker 6: For instance, Ian saying that, you know, it doesn't feel
[28:04] Speaker 6: like Harbaugh is necessarily in the hot seat based on
[28:06] Speaker 6: the people he's talking to. You look at two guys
[28:08] Speaker 6: like Todd Bowles and Aaron Glenn. They sort of came
[28:11] Speaker 6: into the season slightly on the hot seat, at least
[28:13] Speaker 6: the very warm seat. And suddenly, though, this is where
[28:16] Speaker 6: you kind of have to take pause because as much
[28:19] Speaker 6: as it felt like it was destined for inevitable firings
[28:22] Speaker 6: for both of those guys at some point, then they
[28:24] Speaker 6: go win two games. One beats the Browns, one beats
[28:26] Speaker 6: the Cowboys. So we are at this weird time of
[28:29] Speaker 6: the season when it feels like. you're starting to draw
[28:31] Speaker 6: some conclusions. And the second you do, it gets flipped
[28:34] Speaker 6: on its head. So I think it's important to be
[28:37] Speaker 6: especially patient at this time of year. But it's pretty
[28:40] Speaker 6: crazy when we're looking across the league, seeing backup quarterbacks,
[28:43] Speaker 6: we're seeing coaches on the hot seat, and we're really
[28:46] Speaker 6: through five games. And it's incredible how much has already happened.
[28:52] Speaker 4: Well, this is very much a week-to-week lead. And in
[28:54] Speaker 4: the case of those two that you just mentioned, Bowles
[28:58] Speaker 4: and Aaron Glenn, they both came out with victories. Their
[29:01] Speaker 4: teams looked a lot better. And because of their divisions
[29:04] Speaker 4: they're in, they're not that far out of the race.
[29:07] Speaker 4: So if they can piece, especially the Bucs in the
[29:09] Speaker 4: NFC South, which is always open, if they can piece
[29:13] Speaker 4: together a few wins here, they are right back in
[29:15] Speaker 4: the mix in their division race and certainly potentially in
[29:18] Speaker 4: a wildcard race. So hold everything. It's only week five.
[29:22] Speaker 4: We'll get to the hot seat later in the season.
[29:25] Speaker 2: Things heating up, certainly in Philadelphia, after another Eagles loss.
[29:28] Speaker 2: Good news, though. Big Dom says they're going to get
[29:31] Speaker 2: things fixed. How remains the question.
[29:33] Speaker 1: Well, getting some key players like Saquon Barkley and Devontae
[29:36] Speaker 1: Smith back healthy would be a start.
[29:38] Speaker 2: Updates on that front when we come back.
[29:43] Speaker 1: All right, a couple of big games in the national
[29:45] Speaker 1: spotlight here as we kick off week six.
[29:47] Speaker 2: In the Sunday of week six from London, Texans, Jaguars,
[29:50] Speaker 2: AFC South battle live on NFL Network.
[29:52] Speaker 1: And we wrap up week six in Santa Clara with
[29:55] Speaker 1: the Commanders visiting the Niners as they try to stay undefeated.
[29:59] Speaker 1: Monday Night Football, 8 p.m. Eastern time on ABC ESPN.
[30:03] Speaker 1: and on the ESPN app. All right, so the Eagles
[30:06] Speaker 1: did not fare well in London, although Jake Elliott kicked
[30:10] Speaker 1: a field goal near the end of regulation.
[30:12] Speaker 2: I stress near.
[30:14] Speaker 1: That put the Eagles up by one. They left eight
[30:18] Speaker 1: seconds on the clock. They kicked to Amir Abdullah. Amir
[30:21] Speaker 1: Abdullah with 53 yards on the return and with one
[30:25] Speaker 1: second left on the clock. Cam Little Big Leg from
[30:31] Speaker 1: 57 breaking the hearts of the Eagles and sending them
[30:36] Speaker 1: back across the Atlantic Ocean with their third loss of
[30:40] Speaker 1: the season. Mike Garofalo back here. Well, look, it would
[30:43] Speaker 1: help as the Eagles try to get things back on
[30:45] Speaker 1: track to get some of their stars back. Saquon Barkley,
[30:47] Speaker 1: Devontae Smith missed that game in London. What's the status
[30:51] Speaker 1: on their recoveries?
[30:52] Speaker 5: They've got a shot, and it sounds like the Eagles
[30:54] Speaker 5: are expecting one at least back, if not both, for
[30:58] Speaker 5: Devontae Smith and Saquon Barkley. That is a great indication
[31:02] Speaker 5: because these are the two most important offensive weapons available
[31:05] Speaker 5: for Jalen Hurts. Now, just like I told you with
[31:08] Speaker 5: Caleb Williams, when we get to these hamstrings, we've got
[31:10] Speaker 5: to see because just a little slip... here or there,
[31:13] Speaker 5: and all of a sudden the guy tweaks it. So
[31:14] Speaker 5: we've got to see how.
[31:15] Speaker 2: It goes throughout the week.
[31:17] Speaker 5: But at the very least, the Eagles have some optimism
[31:20] Speaker 5: heading into the work week that they are going to
[31:23] Speaker 5: get back some of this huge offensive firepower via Saquon
[31:27] Speaker 5: Barkley and or Devontae Smithy.
[31:31] Speaker 3: You talk about expectations, Mike. There's no way that we
[31:33] Speaker 3: came into the season believing this was a game where
[31:35] Speaker 3: we expected this to be either a shootout or exciting,
[31:39] Speaker 3: and then the Carolina Panthers started playing some offense. We
[31:42] Speaker 3: thought the defense was going to be okay. They built
[31:45] Speaker 3: it up a bunch in the offseason. That really was
[31:47] Speaker 3: the focus. They all hope Bryce Young takes a little
[31:50] Speaker 3: bit of a step. He leads the NFL in passing,
[31:52] Speaker 3: and that is about as big a step as you
[31:54] Speaker 3: can get. And consider the fact Eagles aren't the only
[31:56] Speaker 3: ones getting healthy. Carolina Panthers are getting healthy at the
[31:58] Speaker 3: receiver position as well. This is a sneaky, really, really
[32:03] Speaker 3: challenging game for the Eagles. Jaguars were kind of similar.
[32:06] Speaker 3: Jaguars are really good. Stress them on all different sides.
[32:10] Speaker 3: The Carolina Panthers are going to do the same. Can
[32:12] Speaker 3: they stop? the Bryce Young passing attack is a very,
[32:16] Speaker 3: very real question now.
[32:17] Speaker 1: Yeah, Bryce Young leading the NFL with 317 passing yards
[32:21] Speaker 1: per game this season. Michael Parsons, torn ACL week 15
[32:25] Speaker 1: last season, of course, has not played yet this season,
[32:28] Speaker 1: has not practiced yet as his recovery continues and will
[32:33] Speaker 1: not play against his former team, the Cowboys, which had
[32:35] Speaker 1: Kind of been a loose target for Parsons himself to
[32:39] Speaker 1: get back from this injury. And what does Michael Parsons
[32:43] Speaker 1: have to do to get back onto the practice field
[32:45] Speaker 1: and work his way back into a game situation here
[32:47] Speaker 1: for the Packers?
[32:50] Speaker 3: Michael Parsons has to meet the benchmarks that Green Bay
[32:53] Speaker 3: Packers doctors have set in order for them to believe
[32:56] Speaker 3: that his knee is fully healthy. Now, it wasn't just
[32:59] Speaker 3: an ACL. It was an ACL and a meniscus. And
[33:01] Speaker 3: the Packers are one of the most conservative medical staffs
[33:04] Speaker 3: in the NFL. Obviously, they know about football and care
[33:06] Speaker 3: about football. They care about medical much more. These are
[33:09] Speaker 3: all medical decisions for the Green Bay Packers, the kind
[33:12] Speaker 3: of thing that the football side really doesn't influence. So
[33:16] Speaker 3: if the doctors don't feel like Micah Parsons is ready,
[33:19] Speaker 3: they really don't care if he's playing the Cowboys this
[33:22] Speaker 3: week or whoever next week. The hope is sooner rather
[33:25] Speaker 3: than later. Perhaps next week he'll be practicing. And they
[33:28] Speaker 3: want him, when he is on the field, Judy, to
[33:31] Speaker 3: be 100% and ready, and he's just not yet.
[33:36] Speaker 4: Well, I think we were all hoping for that reunion.
[33:38] Speaker 4: But what the Cowboys are really hoping for is a
[33:41] Speaker 4: better defense. And to that end, they are bringing in
[33:44] Speaker 4: veteran defensive coordinator Mike Pettin.
[33:47] Speaker 2: To join the staff.
[33:48] Speaker 4: Now, this is being positioned as him being there to
[33:52] Speaker 4: be a sounding board for defensive coordinator Christian Parker. But
[33:55] Speaker 4: it's hard to look at this as anything as maybe
[33:58] Speaker 4: usurping some of his authority as a defensive coordinator. The
[34:01] Speaker 4: defense has just struggled terribly. After they lost the game
[34:05] Speaker 4: to the Bucs, of course, an undrafted rookie, they ran
[34:10] Speaker 4: on them all night long. Jerry Jones said he felt
[34:13] Speaker 4: like the defense was back where it started. That was
[34:16] Speaker 4: a pretty bad indication for where the defense is. So
[34:20] Speaker 4: Mike Pettin is coming in. We will see if that
[34:22] Speaker 4: improves the defense. There is really only one way for
[34:25] Speaker 4: it to go at this point.
[34:26] Speaker 2: Okay, Judy, much more to get to as we continue
[34:28] Speaker 2: on the Insiders.
[34:29] Speaker 1: I won't sing ABBA, but could there be something in
[34:32] Speaker 1: the air on a future night for the Las Vegas
[34:36] Speaker 1: Raiders and Fernando Mendoza after.
[34:38] Speaker 2: Making his debut last week?
[34:40] Speaker 8: That's next.
[34:42] Speaker 2: Just wait and see. This was a 13-7 game at
[34:48] Speaker 2: the half.
[34:48] Speaker 1: We saw 35 fourth quarter points in this game.
[34:53] Speaker 2: We are going to overtime.
[34:54] Speaker 5: I know my name. Are you ready?
[34:58] Speaker 2: This time ball comes out.
[35:00] Speaker 3: His second fumble of the night.
[35:03] Speaker 2: Make way cause I'm coming.
[35:05] Speaker 6: Game winning drive is blocked.
[35:07] Speaker 4: Make way cause I'm coming.
[35:14] Speaker 2: It is good sends the Bills out of SoFi with
[35:19] Speaker 2: an overtime win Epic finish on Monday night. Bills get
[35:25] Speaker 2: their fourth win.
[35:25] Speaker 1: Time for good coverage presented by Progressive Insurance. Josh Allen
[35:29] Speaker 1: dominating the Rams with his legs on Monday night, rushing
[35:32] Speaker 1: for 121 yards and a score. Allen running for 91
[35:37] Speaker 1: of those 121 yards in the fourth quarter and overtime alone.
[35:41] Speaker 1: Clutch when his team needed it the most. That ranks second,
[35:44] Speaker 1: by the way, by a quarterback in a fourth quarter
[35:47] Speaker 1: plus overtime since 2000, trailing only Mike Vicks, 94 rushing
[35:54] Speaker 1: yards in a game where he helped beat the Giants
[35:57] Speaker 1: back in 2010. All right, Ian, the Bills are staying
[36:01] Speaker 1: out west here as they get set to battle the
[36:03] Speaker 1: Raiders in Las Vegas. Raiders got blown out by the
[36:08] Speaker 1: Patriots in Foxborough. We did see Fernando Mendoza make his
[36:11] Speaker 1: NFL debut, not necessarily because Kirk Cousins was playing poorly.
[36:15] Speaker 1: They gave up over 500 yards of offense to the
[36:17] Speaker 1: New England Patriots, but Mendoza played well. Is there any
[36:21] Speaker 1: sense that we could be seeing more of Mendoza down
[36:23] Speaker 1: the line?
[36:27] Speaker 3: Eventually, you hope to see a lot of Las Vegas Raiders.
[36:30] Speaker 3: It just doesn't seem like it's in the near future,
[36:32] Speaker 3: and especially, Rhett, you being the proud Indiana alum that
[36:36] Speaker 3: you are. I know you're the one that pushed for
[36:38] Speaker 3: this question.
[36:39] Speaker 2: I know you're the one.
[36:40] Speaker 3: That pushed for this topic. It's fine. You're a homer
[36:43] Speaker 3: for our guy, Fernando. I saw you guys having the
[36:46] Speaker 3: bromance when we were in Las Vegas for training camp.
[36:49] Speaker 3: It's all fine. I just don't get the sense, Judy,
[36:52] Speaker 3: that it's going to come anytime soon. And the Las
[36:53] Speaker 3: Vegas Raiders, reality is, are good enough right now where
[36:57] Speaker 3: they don't need to force anything. Kirk Cousins is playing
[37:00] Speaker 3: well enough where Mendoza can just play when they need
[37:03] Speaker 3: him to in short spurts before they eventually turn it
[37:08] Speaker 3: over to him for good.
[37:10] Speaker 4: Well, and as Rhett himself just said, Kirk Cousins is
[37:13] Speaker 4: not necessarily playing poorly, and he's really got a chance
[37:16] Speaker 4: for a rebound game this week against the Bills, who
[37:19] Speaker 4: are winning games and scoring a lot of points, and
[37:22] Speaker 4: Josh Allen puts on the Superman cape. But they're not
[37:24] Speaker 4: doing such a great job stopping opposing passers, and they
[37:28] Speaker 4: haven't really since week one. I was at their game
[37:30] Speaker 4: against the Texans. They are getting shredded by opposing passers.
[37:33] Speaker 4: They give up a lot of passing yards. They give
[37:35] Speaker 4: up a lot of points. So certainly this is an
[37:38] Speaker 4: opportunity for For the Raiders and Kirk Cousins to bounce
[37:41] Speaker 4: back and maybe keep Fernando Mendoza, I'm sorry, Rhett, on
[37:44] Speaker 4: the bench for a little while longer.
[37:46] Speaker 2: It's all good.
[37:48] Speaker 1: Let's continue looking at another matchup here this week. Patriots,
[37:51] Speaker 1: who just got that win over the Raiders, getting set
[37:53] Speaker 1: to battle the Jets here in Week 6. And Drake
[37:55] Speaker 1: Bay is starting to play here Week 4.
[37:59] Speaker 2: 37 points per game. QB rating first as well.
[38:04] Speaker 1: Offensive touchdowns most in the league in the last two weeks.
[38:08] Speaker 1: Mike Garofalo, he's doing all of this without A.J. Brown
[38:11] Speaker 1: in the lineup, which could change here soon.
[38:15] Speaker 5: Well, yeah, it can change, but you make that note
[38:18] Speaker 5: because when Drake May was struggling, we were asking people,
[38:20] Speaker 5: what's wrong with Drake May? And they said, nothing's wrong
[38:22] Speaker 5: with Drake May. He's just making some decisions during the
[38:25] Speaker 5: game that aren't the best, and he's been fine during
[38:28] Speaker 5: the week. And hey, don't forget, he's doing this without A.J. Brown. Well,
[38:32] Speaker 5: now that excuse is gone because he's played better without him,
[38:35] Speaker 5: which is a great thing because when you add a
[38:37] Speaker 5: really good player back into the mix, you hope not
[38:40] Speaker 5: only is Drake Mayer going to continue to play as
[38:41] Speaker 5: well as he has, he may play even better because
[38:44] Speaker 5: they built so much around what A.J. Brown does in
[38:47] Speaker 5: this offense and his ability to run with the football
[38:50] Speaker 5: after a catch. So a lot of the quick stuff
[38:52] Speaker 5: that they tried to complete here... With A.J. Brown adding
[38:55] Speaker 5: more on top of that, that's going to be another
[38:56] Speaker 5: element of their offense, Ian, that they didn't have last year.
[38:59] Speaker 5: So the hope is now you've got Drake May on
[39:00] Speaker 5: the right path. Now you've got A.J. Brown healthy potentially
[39:03] Speaker 5: this week. And this offense could get to a new
[39:06] Speaker 5: level that we really haven't seen at all since Drake
[39:08] Speaker 5: May has taken over.
[39:11] Speaker 3: It would be awfully quick for A.J. Brown. Anything's possible
[39:13] Speaker 3: would be a great surprise for the New England Patriots. Meanwhile,
[39:16] Speaker 3: going to play likely for the next couple weeks without
[39:19] Speaker 3: a couple of their really, really good players. Travion Henderson,
[39:23] Speaker 3: their standout running back dealing with a high ankle sprain,
[39:25] Speaker 3: his colleague Adam Schefter reported. So they have a game
[39:28] Speaker 3: this Sunday. Then they got the Thursday game. I would
[39:30] Speaker 3: expect him to miss both. That is not great there,
[39:33] Speaker 3: although Ramondre Stevenson has certainly played well enough. And then
[39:36] Speaker 3: tackle Will Campbell, MCL sprain in his knee, also week
[39:40] Speaker 3: to week. We'll get at the potential missing both of
[39:42] Speaker 3: those games, Judy. So yes, the Patriots still shorthanded.
[39:48] Speaker 4: Well, the loss of Will Campbell is the one to
[39:50] Speaker 4: really keep an eye on because David Bailey, the rookie
[39:53] Speaker 4: pass rusher for the New York Jets, absolutely blew up
[39:56] Speaker 4: the Cleveland Browns offense last weekend. He is poised to
[40:00] Speaker 4: do it now. Big breakout performance for him. Three sacks
[40:04] Speaker 4: against the Browns. All kinds of pressures, all kinds of
[40:07] Speaker 4: quarterback hits. And Aaron Glenn made the point of saying
[40:10] Speaker 4: he's also stopping the run really well, too, which is
[40:12] Speaker 4: not something that anybody is even looking for him to
[40:14] Speaker 4: do necessarily. So big breakout performance for For David Bailey,
[40:18] Speaker 4: the Patriots are going to have to account for him,
[40:20] Speaker 4: especially with Will Campbell.
[40:21] Speaker 3: Out of the game.
[40:23] Speaker 1: Okay, a lot more to get to here on this
[40:25] Speaker 1: Tuesday edition of the Insiders. James Winston and the Giants
[40:29] Speaker 1: finding a.
[40:29] Speaker 2: Way to not lose. It was a tie against the Commanders.
[40:33] Speaker 1: We'll get into what's next there for the Giants, plus
[40:36] Speaker 1: some news on a Bears edge rusher out.
[40:39] Speaker 2: For a couple of weeks. That's next.
[40:43] Speaker 1: All right, some news out of Chicago today as the Bears'
[40:47] Speaker 1: top edge, Dr.
[40:47] Speaker 2: Montez, swept two sacks already this season.
[40:49] Speaker 1: Well, now he's suspended for two games for violating the
[40:52] Speaker 1: NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances.
[40:55] Speaker 2: Bears 3-2.
[40:56] Speaker 1: They've got to travel to Atlanta this week, and then
[40:59] Speaker 1: in Week 7, we'll battle the New England Patriots at home.
[41:04] Speaker 1: New York Giants will take on the Saints this week
[41:07] Speaker 1: at Jameis Winston, connecting on 33 of 54 passes for
[41:11] Speaker 1: over 300 yards and a trio of touchdowns in a tie.
[41:16] Speaker 2: But considering how things.
[41:17] Speaker 1: Worked out over time, feel a lot better about that
[41:19] Speaker 1: tie for the New York Giants. What's working for them
[41:22] Speaker 1: right now with Jameis at the helm on offense, Judy?
[41:26] Speaker 4: Well, what worked for them against the Commanders, at least
[41:28] Speaker 4: in the second half of the game, was they went
[41:30] Speaker 4: more up-tempo. They were running no huddle.
[41:33] Speaker 3: Now, this was out of necessity.
[41:34] Speaker 4: The offense was really in a slog in the first half,
[41:37] Speaker 4: not getting anywhere. And ever since Jackson Dart went down,
[41:40] Speaker 4: the Giants have wanted to be a run-first team, really
[41:43] Speaker 4: pound the run. It just hasn't worked out that way
[41:46] Speaker 4: as much as they had hoped. But what did work
[41:48] Speaker 4: out was the up-tempo stuff. And John Harbaugh, in talking
[41:51] Speaker 4: to reporters yesterday, said yesterday they probably need to do
[41:55] Speaker 4: more of that with Jameis, and that means putting the
[41:57] Speaker 4: ball in Jameis' hands. He was spreading the ball around, though,
[41:59] Speaker 4: to Malik Neighbors and Isaiah Likely. That's their two best
[42:02] Speaker 4: playmakers right now. I would expect to see a little
[42:05] Speaker 4: bit more up-tempo stuff from the Giants going forward.
[42:09] Speaker 1: Well, any kind of positive tempo would be good. for
[42:14] Speaker 1: the Tennessee Titans. Cam Ward, just three touchdowns, matched with
[42:18] Speaker 1: three interceptions, 187 total yards this last week on a
[42:22] Speaker 1: loss to the Texans. Second time they've been under 200
[42:24] Speaker 1: total yards on offense, only team in the league to
[42:27] Speaker 1: have that distinction. Any sense that patience is wearing thin
[42:30] Speaker 1: on Cam Ward as a starter there in Tennessee?
[42:32] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:32] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:32] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:33] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope. Nope.
[42:33] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:34] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:34] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:34] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:34] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:35] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:35] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:35] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:35] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:35] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:36] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:36] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:36] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:37] Speaker 9: Nope. Nope.
[42:37] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:37] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:37] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:37] Speaker 4: Nope. Nope.
[42:38] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:38] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:38] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:38] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:38] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:39] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:39] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:39] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:39] Speaker 2: Nope.
[42:39] Speaker 4: Nope. Nope. Nope.
[42:40] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:40] Speaker 4: Nope. Nope.
[42:41] Speaker 2: Nope. Nope. Nope.
[42:42] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:43] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:44] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:44] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:44] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:44] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:44] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:45] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:45] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:46] Speaker 2: Nope.
[42:46] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:46] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:46] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:46] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:47] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:47] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:47] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:48] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope.
[42:49] Speaker 7: Nope.
[42:49] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:49] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:49] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:50] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:51] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:51] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:51] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:51] Speaker 5: Nope.
[42:51] Speaker 2: Nope.
[42:52] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope.
[42:52] Speaker 9: Nope.
[42:52] Speaker 5: Nope. Nope.
[42:52] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:53] Speaker 6: Nope.
[42:53] Speaker 3: Nope. Nope. Nope.
[42:53] Speaker 8: Nope.
[42:54] Speaker 3: Nope.
[42:54] Speaker 4: Nope.
[42:54] Speaker 2: Nope. All right. Losses continue to mount. 0-5.
[43:03] Speaker 1: Trying to figure it out are the Tennessee Titans with
[43:06] Speaker 1: Cam Ward at the helm. They will travel to Indianapolis
[43:09] Speaker 1: this week to battle Colts.
[43:12] Speaker 2: Thank you, friends.
[43:12] Speaker 1: Great to be back here with you for another episode
[43:14] Speaker 1: of The Insiders. We are right back here tomorrow, 7
[43:17] Speaker 1: o'clock Eastern time.
[43:18] Speaker 3: Tune in.
[43:19] Speaker 2: We'll see you.

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