Richard Sherman reacts to the NFL headlines, including Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans saying that Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is the NFL MVP over Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen, Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce being unapologetic about beating the Jacksonville Jaguars despite it hurting their NFL Draft position, and Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell riling up his team ahead of their NFC Championship rematch against Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers. Also, Sherm reacts to Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers blowing out the New Orleans Saints, Packers RB Josh Jacobs and Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Barkley reinvigorating the running back market, and Cooper Rush and the Dallas Cowboys ending Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneer's NFL Playoff hopes.
#volume #herd
The volume.
Altable championship. That should always be the expectation. All right, man, ex you go ahead.
Welcome back to the Richard Sherman Podcast, presented by our friends and partners over at Brightling. They got me that Seattle Seahawk Brightling, Mitchell, nice and Shiny.
Couldn't wait till I know you're excited, Richard. I you're gonna be rocking at this Thursday. I mean, come on Thursday night football, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Brightling must be in attendance.
It has to be. And I'm gonna wear a Seattle Seahawks colored suit. I don't have a green turtleneck. That's the only thing that's holding me back. But I might be able to find a shirt. I'm working on it. I'm working on it, Mitchell. But let's get to let's get to the headlines from this week. Tomko Ryan says Lamar Jackson is definitely the MVP.
Sounds somewhat similar alert to what you were saying last night, Richard. Your thoughts here. Vegas still has Josh Allen as minus five point fifty, Lamar Jackson's a plus four hundred odds, Saquan at plus twelve hundred and my boy Jared Goff at twenty to one. But you still like Lamar Jackson and so does Jamika Ryans. What do you think of this take? Same thing I said yesterday. I think it's the accurate take. And people are saying I hate Josh Allen. Nothing's further from the truth. I love Josh Allen. I think he plays the game the right way. He elevates his team.
He plays hard, they win ball games like He's always competitive each and every year. He talks a little bit of smack, he plays behind his shoulder pads. I'm a Josh Allen fan, but the numbers are the number. If Lamar Jackson has forty six, forty seven touchdowns total in four interceptions and you tell me that's not an MVP season, just tow to a ward away at that point, Mitchell, because it doesn't make sense because on the flip side, and you got to talk to Buffalo fans about that, if Josh Allen had forty seven total touchdowns in four interceptions and didn't walk away with the MVP, they would be rioting at the league office in New York, and rightfully, so that's what I don't get. I don't even understand odds, but it is what it is. They'll probably give it to them, just like they gave it to Lamar last year when I thought he shouldn't get it. But Demiko's on the same page as meet. The tape looks like the tape looks and the numbers look like the numbers look.
Old, Richard.
I'm still holding off for my boy Jared Goff twenty to one odds. We'll see if he can get hot down the stretch some crucial games for them. It's getting to that point of the season, Richard, where teams at the bottom of the league are really jockeying for position in the NFL draft. And you know, fortunately or unfortunately, when a team wins that fan bases want to lose, fans kind of voice their opinions. And we saw it in Las Vegas this weekend. The Las Vegas Raiders beat the Jacksonville Jaggs and their win total to three on the season, and doing so, they go from number two in the draft to number six. Now the fan base was booing at the end of the game. Antonio Pierce didn't like this, and he said, we don't do this to lose. We don't do this for anybody's fantasy football team. We don't do this for anyone's draft projections. None of the shit matters to us. The only thing that matters is winning, and that's all we want to do. Richard bring us into the mind of an athlete, the mind of a competitor, because just us common fans often look too far ahead at what could be, what could be in the future. If you're on a team that's struggling, four or five wins and you know you're down and out, you talked about playing for pride. How much pride can you possibly play for? Are you really getting up for these games?
Yeah? And that's how he has to coach Mitchell.
He can't coach like he's like he's a you know, fifteen year veteran coach. He's had a lot of jobs. This is his first year coaching. First job. He has to coach to win every game. And I don't remember who it wasn't Lovey Smith with Houston, like who was the interim coach? And they wanted to lose every The fans wanted him to lose, and I think the older might have wanted him to lose. And they won, and he got pissed off that they win the last game of the season and they ended up with CJ.
Stroud instead of Bryce Young.
And sometimes sometimes that's how stuff is supposed to happen, and then everybody forgets about it. You know, they're so mad in the moment, they're so frustrated in the moment they were Houston fans were you know, oh my god, you're sabotaging us going out like when in reality that was a parting gift. You got c J. Stroud instead of Bryce Young. And look what the fates behold now? Is Bryce Young gonna develop into something he could?
CJ. Stroud is exactly what Houston needed and wanted. They got it.
They got their franchise quarterback, the future the franchised because Lovey Smith's team played hard and guess what, the football gods rewarded this team for doing things the right way. You can't do it any other way or it's not gonna work out. How you can't tank in the National Football League, I guess you can't. But there aren't many players, not veteran players, that are gonna go out there and be like, yeah, I'm gonna go out there and try to lose if you're built like that, you can't turn that back off.
Like that's a loser mentality.
And I talk to my son about stuff like this all the time because I'm like, hey, like you can't turn on and turn off like habits. Like, hey, if you how you do anything, it is how you do everything. So if you work hard all the time, you're gonna work hard. If you said, say, I'm just gonna stop working hard and then I'll start working hard later, like, Hey, we're not gonna win these games, We're just gonna try to lose these games. But then when next season starts, we're gonna start to trying to win again. Like you can't. It's a mentality, it's a work ethic, it's a it's a state of mind. Remember when you're Detroit Lions Metchell when they first started to build this culture, wouldn't they start doing at the end of that season a season that didn't really matter, they weren't winning.
Games, Richard.
The season that mattered most for this organization was when they went on the road two years ago and knocked off Aaron Rodgers.
They kicked him out of this division. They had nothing to play for.
The la Rams had gone in with Baker Mayfield and tried to bend your Seattle Seahawks, and Seattle ultimately pulled that game off in overtime. Detroit was on the Sunday night game with nothing to play for, but that game meant more to this fan base than anything because it kicks started what is now this massive momentum shift. For the first time in my life being a Detroit Lions fan, I wasn't looking on websites seeing our draft position after Week eight because these games finally mattered for once. I can sympathize with the Las Vegas Raiders fan base. They're thinking of dream scenario. They're thinking that Dion Sanders and Shador standards in Vegas. I mean, that's what a lot of these folks were definitely thinking of.
Look, if you're thinking that way and you want them in Vegas, then Mark Davis will find a way to do it. I don't think Mark Davis is gonna get rid of Antonio Pierce right now, but if he does, I'm sure Diann will be high on the list.
Dion says he's staying at Colorado. Do I believe that.
I think he can be persuaded to do other things, But I think right now he's creating and he's building a team to play for in Colorado next year. He just got his quarterback, got his young quarterback. He's continuing to build that culture. He's continuing to speak that way, recruit that way, get transfers in the portal that way. So everything points to him staring at Colorado. So if that's the case, he does want his sons in Las Vegas. And I understand the frustration of fans, and you want it both ways. You want your team to compete every week, but you also want him to lose when they's supposed to lose. It's not always gonna work out that way at the end of the day. Just count the record when the season ends, and look where you're drafting and make the best of it, and your team will make the best of it. Are there Jacksonville Jaguars going to take a quarterback?
I don't know. Maybe.
Are the New England Patriots going to take another quarterback? I don't know. Maybe I doubt it. The Giants are Are they going to take cam Ward or are they gonna take your door? Well, there'll be a quarterback left. Like let the stuff play out like it's supposed to, because when you do things the wrong way in football, it always comes to bite you in the end. You sit there and be like, oh, let's tank, let's tank, and you'll get the quarterback you're not supposed to get and think he's supposed to be something, and you'll end up with another bust and it'll be like you'll think back and take it all the way back to when you lost on purpose, and that's where it all began. So I agree with Antonio. Play to win, Richard. It's kind of an extend this topic a little bit further. We saw DJ Moore.
He was interviewed in the locker room pregame or prior in practice leading up to the game against the Lions, and one of the reporters asked some something along the lines of what are you looking forward to, and he said, vacation.
You've played in this league a number of years. Have have you ever been privy?
I mean, I guess you were on so many competitive teams, so you never were in total mailout seasons or games, But like, have you heard stories of other players just cashing it in late?
Yes?
I have.
My first year, my very first year in the National Football League, I started the last teen games of the season, so this was probably like my six or seventh start. We were still kind of in the playoff race. You know, we need some things to go our way. We need to win some games. We didn't end up winning, but there there was like a little bit of an argument and some confrontation from you know, our young players, our young naive players who just want to win.
We like, hey, we're balls to the wall, we're hair on fire.
We just want to win every game, play the best defense we can and get to these playoffs and trying to win a super Bowl. Like that's all we think about. Earl cam myself, Brandon Browner at the time know we got, we got good d line, we got and I'm not gonna put any names out there because I don't need to put anybody in a bad light. But the guy came up to us and we're like, we're like, yeah, man, we just got to do this to make the playoffs, and he's like playoffs, Like why would I want to make the playoffs? I take a plate pay cut in the playoffs. I take a play cut, a pay cut to play more games and harder games and games that matter more. And I make less money. I don't want to play in no playoffs, And mind was just like I couldn't believe when I was here, Like I'm in the National Football League, just my rookie year, and I'm playing my butt off, and the guy says, I don't want to make the playoffs because in reality, by the letter of the law, he's correct, Like he was making about three hundred and four hundred thousand a game in the playoffs in the first round, Mitchell, we make twenty thousand dollars twenty grand. Everybody unless you got like a bonus or something in your contract individually, the standard check that everybody receives twenty k our twenty twenty six and some change.
I gotta go.
Look, but that's before taxes, So it ends up being like thirteen thousand, which is money, you know what I mean. Like, let's not let's skot get out of hand here, but compared to three hundred grand, I mean, he's totally correct. You go from making three hundred grand regular season games, and then you go to the harder games, the games that matter, the games that everybody's watching and define your career and your legacy over and you're making thirteen thousand after tax fourteen. Whatever it is, didn't change it for me, Mitchell. They got rid of him the next year, they got rid of a lot of guys like him, and you had a lot of us left still trying to get to a championship and win it.
Yeah, I mean, that's gotta be things that obviously gms are trying to sniff out before signing a player drafting them. But holy cow, it's the most wonderful time of the year for getting in on all the hoops, football, and hockey action at DraftKings Sportsbook and the season of giving. We're being gifted college football and basketball, Pro football and bad basketball and pro hockey too. Almost twenty four to seven, So many games every day, so many opportunities to place your first bet. Try betting on something simple like picking a team to win. Go to the DraftKings Sports Book AP and place your bet now. And here's a gift for all new customers. Bet just five dollars to get one hundred and fifty dollars in bonus bets if your bet wins. Download the DraftKings Sports Book app and use code Richard. That's code Richard for new customers to get one hundred and fifty dollars in bonus bets if your bet wins when you bet just five bucks. Happy Holidays from DraftKings. The Crown is yours. Gambling problem call one eight hundred Gambler or visit www dot one eight hundred gambler dot net. In New York, call eight seven seven eight h Ope n Y or text h Ope n Y four six seven three six nine. In Connecticut, help us available for problem gambling Call eight eight eight seven eight nine seven to seven, seven to seven or visit CCPG. Please play responsibly on behalf of Boothill Casino and Resort licensee partner Golden Nugget Lake Charles twenty one plus. Age varies by jurisdiction, Void and Ontario se sportsbook dot DraftKings dot com, slash Football, terms for eligibility and deposit restrictions, terms and responsible gaming resources.
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Richard, let's talk a little bit about this upcoming weekends games. My Detroit Lions are looking for revenge. They're heading out to San Francisco. I know you are going to be rooting for the Niners, and I respect that, But we already talked about what left the forty nine ers have to play for. We already said they've got a lot of guys on the injury list throughout this week, already developing, so we'll see who in plays. But Dan Campbell is going on the road with the mission. He said, we are bringing everything we've got into this game, and we are playing and I don't care what it looks like and where it's at, or with this or with what We're going out to win this game out on the West Coast. Richard, I know you like Dan Campbell. I mean, how motivating is this guy to the Detroit Lions locker room, especially after all they went through. Richard, he was on local sports talk radio talking about this team getting back to its roots and eating molded bread. Everyone's getting so used to eating that filet here in Detroit and they forget that we used to survive on molded bread. That was his quote, and he got this old city riled up, rich and motivated. How does he do it? Have you seen anything like this from a coach in your playing days.
Well, not from my coach, but yeah, I've seen motivation in different ways.
You know.
Pete was a different way of motivating than Kyle Shanahan. Both of them got their teams to Super Bowls. Dan is doing it a different way. Dan seems like the kind of coach that would that would turn the hot water heater off in the building and just say it was adversity and say, hey, fellas, this is the adversity we got to deal with this week, and we can't complain, don't wind, don't anything, and his team's gonna respond to it, and all of a sudden, they're gonna be talking about how the world's against them and somebody cut their hot water off, but it didn't matter because they went out there and.
Practiced in the cold, and I love it.
I love it, Mitchell, because then they're gonna take this team Mitchell, and he's gonna take a team that's been eating steaks all season long and make them feel like they've been eating top ramen. And I love that because that's what a good coach can do. He can take a team that's really talented and continue to find ways to pull the right strings, to push the right button, to make guys feel frustrated, motivated. I'm sure he's gonna show them tap of the NFC Championship game from last season and how that game went, especially in the second half, and the things that went wrong, and the way this team celebrated the way they were feeling before and the way they felt after and try to get those feelings back. But the San Francisco forty nine's are in a much different place. I don't think they're gonna be as motivated. Obviously, they're gonna go out there and try to win this game, but they're really banged up. They don't have the horses, obviously, the offensive lines banged up, the defensive lines banged up, the secondary's banged up, and receiving corps been banged up. You saw the mistakes made. The running backs are all banged up. Grindo, it's out. They're down to their fifth and sixth is it fifth and six now? Running backs? But you know, it's the National Football League, and they'll go out there and they'll have to go put a put a good showing on and and try to play for pride because the Detroit Lions owe them nothing and owe them no quarter. And I don't think they're gonna be giving them any quarter. And so they haven't given anybody else any quarter. Mitchell, they're they're the team that will blow them out and go for two. And and I think San Francisco understands that they they gotta they gotta bring their hard hats, regardless of the circumstances, regardless of the situation, you know what's who's coming to town and what mindset they're coming with, so you gotta match that mentality or are you gonna go home embarrassed.
I'm gonna double down on the in the last topic here, Rich, would you be more upset if the Niners won this game and got their pride or lost this game and improve their draft position? Which one would you find as a bigger benefit for these Niners?
Right now?
It's always winning. Winning is always the bigger benefit. You know, draft is gonna happen, how it's gonna happen. You never know who's gonna be there. You never know how it's gonna play, or what players are gonna actually be good pros that were good college kids. So I don't I don't put a lot of stock into how these kids are ranked coming out. You know, if you look at the top tens of some of these drafts, you'll see some players that aren't even on rosters anymore. Two three years later and you were looking like, man, I can't I hope my team gets him, and oh my god, we missed out on him, and the guy you got instead of him ends up being All Pro and it's like, well, maybe we just lucked out. No, it happens how it's supposed to happen. So winning, winning is what I think they should play to do. It's gonna be a hard game for them to win. Detroit is a bully. They playing the game the right way. They're built the right way. So we talked about their deficiencies on the defensive side. That's the only thing that will give the San Francisco forty nine ers a chance, and that's just a puncher's chance. And if they can find a way to somehow get to the quarterback, get to Jared Golf, that'll give him a puncher's chance. But it's gonna be a tough game for them to win, as banged up as they are. But you know, this is the National Football League, and anything can happen. We just saw the New England Patriots take the Buffalo Bills to the wire. We saw the Browns beat Pittsburgh and the Baltimore Ravens, so anything had happened.
Certainly can well, Richard, we already talked about it yesterday. But this year's we've got football on Christmas, which is a Wednesday on Netflix. Like apparently Beyonce's performing at a halftime of the Houston Texans Ravens game, and Lamar Jackson wants to see it. He says he's never seen Beyonce perform, and that's it. It's at their game. So sorry, carbass, sorry fellas, I'm not even thinking about the lead. I'm just about seeing Beyonce for the first time, no disrespect. I mean, Richard, I know where you'd be if Beyonce's performing at halftime. Are you surprised by this at all from Lamar Jackson, the leader of the team.
Yeah, yeah, I'm pretty surprised. But you know, I understand what he's saying. But Lamar Jackson has a lot of money. He made a lot of money in this league. Beyonce has many concerts and she performs all over the globe. I'm sure there's a time Lamar Jackson can go see her when she's not performing at halftime while he's at work. But if his team allows it, if his coach allows it, if he's bawling out in the first half, has three four touchdowns and are double digits, I don't think anybody will have a problem with it. I think people will be like, man, he went out there, made a statement, watched Beyonce and walked away with a dub. It'll be legendary. And that's the stuff that makes sports fun. That's what makes sports amazing. That's what is inspiring and entertaining about these athletes in these scenarios. But tied or losing, I think you'll watch John Harball walking into the locker room.
Richard.
Let's get to some of these games here. We got a game to night Monday Night Football. Not a whole lot going on, the Green Bay Packers hosting the New Orleans Saints. This New Orleans Saints team is not the team we're used to seeing. They seemed to have lost their mojo. They have been riddled with injuries at key positions throughout the year. Green Bay took advantage. Green Bay is now eleven and four. We talked about it at length, but this NFC North is absolutely ridiculous. Two teams at thirteen and two and third place team with Green Bay at eleven and four, Richard, have you seen anything like this in a division being this dominant, at least when it pertains to the record.
I think we had one year when I was in Seattle where we were maybe thirteen and three. I think San Francisco might have been twelve and four, and then Arizona was like ten and seven or something, and they didn't make our six and they didn't make the playoffs that year because there were only six teams that made it at that time. Outside of that, I can't think of a time where it's been this this crazy, you know, I mean this many double digit win teams, uh, this closed late in the season. And obviously the league is doing a great job of having these matchups the way they are. I mean, even the Saturday matchups that we just had this weekend were incredible. Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, the Houston, Texas, Kansas City Chiefs, and all they doing, all they're doing on Christmas Day is flipping those matchups. So the Baltimore Ravens are playing the Texans, now the Chiefs are playing the Steelers. It's great December December football. And I'm sure the NBA is probably really frustrated because nobody's gonna be watching those NBA games because the best games you can watch are on on or in the NFL, and those games are gonna be really good. They're gonna have really monumental stakes, especially in the AFC. If if bought both Baltimore and Pittsburgh win, the end of the season is going to be up in the air who wins that division. If one of them loses, it's still gonna be meaningful at the end of the season.
But to talk about the.
New Orleans game, In this Green Bay game, green Bay looked really dominant. Lake Ford wanted to see how dominant they can be. All three phases. They looked dominant. Didn't turn the ball over on offense, didn't give up a sack, really efficient, Josh Jacobs ran the ball well. They were able to get the starters out and for most of the fourth quarter they were able to get some young guys in there and get some run. Our guy Keisha and Nixon friend of mine for end of the program. Uh, sack force fumble in the game that that you know had an impact, had really good coverage all game and starting to come into his own and and gonna I'm gonna be looking to get another payday soon from from one of these games, and just got one. But yeah, they look like a really formidable team. Their defense pitching a shutout. Uh, this is the National Football League, no matter how how easy you think the game is, how bad you think the team is. It's hard to pitch a shoutout. Jeff Hafley is doing an incredible job with this defense. Obviously they got an interception in the game. They could have had two. I thought our boy Xavier McKinney got another one right before the half on the Hell Mary, but couldn't get his other foot inbounds. They look like a really complete team, and I think that's what makes on a dangerous team in the playoffs is because they both sides of the ball. They're really complete. They don't have to depend on any one player or any one side of the football. They got a good d line, they got a really good linebacker play. They got some emerging stars. Cooper the the linebacker slash end or whatever. They got him listed as emerging as a really elite player both in the pass and run game. Rashaan Gary's having another good year. Xavier and mckelly, he's having an All Pro Pro Bowl year. We talked about Key Sean and the impact he's making both in the slot on end on the outside. Jay r Alexander when he gets healthy, he it has, you know, reputation speaks for herself been one of the elite playmakers. And again Jeff Haffley came in here and is making an incredible difference.
In his defense.
It seems like guys are starting to buy in more, starting to understand what he's what his mindset is. I think players relate to him. He's one of the better player coaches who listens to his players, who communicates with him throughout the week, has an open door policy, lets guys come in and out and really hear's their thoughts, and I think all the players have spoke to that.
It looks really good. They're a very unique team.
They've got no true number one wide out. They've got a bunch of guys that are high level number two receivers. It kind of reminds me a bit of when you were playing early on with the Seahawks and it was Doug, it was cursed, it was you know, Golden Tate. It was these guys that were, you know, trying to really prove their name in this league. The question I have for you pertains that Jordan Love. I mean, we've seen it. You know, granted, Green Bay's pulling away with this game, there's no reason to throw the football, but statistically speaking at a thirty four and out the blow. You didn't expect to see a stat line of sixteen for twenty eight and a touchdown and what easily could have been an interception as well. Do you think this version of Jordan Love can take Green Bay to the Promised Land, can take them out of the NFC and at least get them in the Super Bowl with a chance to bring home the trophy.
Yeah, Mitchell, I've seen it a lot of different ways, depending on how your team is and if your defense is playing well. We did it and our quarterback didn't need to do a ton, you know what I mean. He just needs to make sure he didn't turn the ball over. I think he had three total passing touchdowns in the entire playoffs. During our run to the Super Bowl and Super Bowl win. We had three games he had through three touchdown passes and we won the Super Bowl by what was it thirty five points? And so so yes, the formula can work, but you need elite defensive play. You need a great run game, and they have that. They have a bruising back and Josh Jacobs. They're drawing it a scheme that pits for him. He does a great job of wearing defenses down as they go. They get turnovers on defense. They found a way to be really sound. That secondary is flying around, Their coverages are moving, they're adjusting on the fly, They're trusting each other. You can see the chemistry, the camaraderie and special teams. They're they're opportunistic. They McManus is kicking the ball well. Whether it's in the code or in under great conditions, he's doing a great job. So yeah, you can get it done like this. You don't need the quarterback to throw for five hundred yards and five touchdowns necessarily to win you the ball game. You just have to avoid the turnovers. And that's gonna be the thing. And I think that's what Lafloor is preaching right now to Jordan love Is, Hey, this is where we need you at. It's almost like Hitch Mitchell, Hey, this is where you're at.
Mitchell. We don't need any of this, We just need you right here. Mitchell.
Just stay right here, Just stay right here. You don't do anything crazy. We got a chance. But it's when things start to go haywire and you start trying to get cute and you start to want to Hey, I want to show how talented I am mm hmm right here. Don't go anywhere but right here, Mitchell, And if they stay right here, back straight to the basics, and you'll they give themselves.
The best shot. Well they got they got in a game of the week.
Uh next week for sure as they go on the road, they can play the Minnesota Vikings with so much at stake. You know, both of these teams in terms of seeding potentially and in the division. I know you like the Minnesota Vikings, but these teams are very similar in makeup and how they've been playing through the season. Do you think Green Bay can go on the road and still a win from Minnesota?
No.
I think their best chance was to get them when they when they came to Lambo, Minnesota got away from earlier. They were able to roar back into the game and make it competitive and have had a chance to win it. I think it's going to be tougher than to go into Minnesota. It's a much tougher place to play than people give credit. It's a really tough place to play, and they're playing really good football. I think Seattle should have got him last week, you know, without a few mistakes, a few bunder blunders, a few mental errors. Uh, they could have won that game. But you got to give Minnesota and Sam Darnold a lot of credit. Kevin O'Connell the way he's drawing it up, they're really talented team. Uh, Brian Flores, the way this defense is playing. They have all the pieces in place. The gink the Kinkler, Metchell. The Kinkler is out here having a Pro Bowl type season, really fitting well in this defense.
Grenard is having a really great y natural over there. Rich It's just like he's the perfect fit for that Viking. Look, if he doesn't want to play for the team, maybe go be the mascot afterwards.
Richard, I don't know, he's the face of the franchise. The franchise, but they're they're doing. Aaron Jones is running the ball, well, they have a good chance. You know, they got to make sure the same things that apply to him. You can't turn the ball over, you can't be fumbling the ball if you're Aaron Jones. Defensively, it's it is a feast or famine kind of defense because you know, they put a lot of pressure and then they pop out into that cover too, or they bring to zero blitz and then they got to play zero and they disguise things and put Harrison Smith all these different places. Fits pretty much said you should assume it's covered two every time when they pop out, and if it's something else, then you throw the hot as if it's zero coverage.
But I think that's what Jordan Love has struggled with this season.
He struggled with it when we went to Detroit and we had that game against the Detroit Lions. That's what they did. That's how Aaron Glenn attacked him. He brought pressure consistently. And that's the thing that's been Jordan Love's achilles heel this season and a little bit of last season, is dealing with pressure in his face. And I think they're going to try to bring a lot of pressure this game. Obviously, that's what floor is, that's that's that's what he lives off of, you know, That's that's his mentality, that's his reputation, and I think that's what's gonna happen. And if Josh Jacobs continues to run the ball like he he's doing, He's going to continue to get awards and be up for all pros and be up for things like our Player in Prime Time, brought to you by our friends and partners over at Brightling.
Mitchell.
He's running the ball as well as anybody, obviously seventh in yards right now. But when you look at the every game the eye test, you see him go in and he's just bruising, bruising, never goes down from the first tackler. It's always two three guys breaking two three tackles each carry. He's a big reason why this team is having so much success. While the mentality has changed, they're much more of a bruising, physical team, and they can finish games. They can close games out, and he's been doing that. So obviously he deserves to be our Player in Prime Time this week, brought to you by Brightling. There are very few backs playing better than him. Obviously, Saquan and Derrick Henry have a case. We can't really talk about that.
You know what's wild about all three of those backs, Rich is they were given up on by their former team last year. You know, it's the three I was just gonna say this, The three guys you just mentioned all were giving up upon. I mean, it's it's the resurgence of the running back. Richard Dare I say the running back has made a comeback because you're seeing teams like the Lions that are spending high first round picks, like the Atlanta Falcons with Bijon Robinson, and now teams are starting to pay these guys more. It's wild to me, and it's you can kind of understand the trajectory of two teams. The Raiders give up on Josh Jacobs for absolutely no reason. It's not like he got paid a ridiculous amount of money. He got paid what he was worth and frankly, maybe a little bit below what he's worth. And then you look at Saquan in New York. I mean that might be a firewall offense. I know Jamarrow was was very very you know, it hit him hard when he realized that potentially lose Saquon. I know, what is it shown is that his name the GM with the Giants. He's new into his tenure. I know he's taking a couple of swings. You know, he got the d N from a burn from the Panthers and made a couple other moves in the draft. But I think not coming from not signing Saquon might ultimately result in the door closing on him. What do you think, Rich, I mean, the decisions like that, do you think you could get this GM another shot or you think he's gonna be on the hot seat because of the decision like that.
I think they'll give him another shot just because he says the right things. And sometimes if you look the right way, Mitchell, when you say the right things, you get time in this league, even though you make obvious and and and the worst part about this is that you could see it is that they were doing the hard knocks, and we got to see the behind the scenes stuff between him and Mara and the conversations between he and Saquon. It made it look ten times worse because you could clearly see Saquon wanted to be there and clearly see they didn't see the value that they had in him. And what was frustrating to me, It's not like you guys are paying a lot of people. It's not like you are an elite team that are paying all these crazy and you gotta really count the salary cap and Penny Pinch like he's your home run hitter, he's your franchise player, and you're valuing a quarterback who's unproven and should have never got that kind of money over a back that's been homegrown and been a superstar for you played hard, never never really you know, cheated at you never try to take take games off or give up on your team.
He wants to be in the city.
And you could see these franchises taking those dives that did this. Derrick Henry, what are the Tennessee Titans now in disarray? Las Vegas Raiders? What are they right now? In disarray?
Go on, New York Giants, they're gonna be picking number one in the draft.
Disarray got rid of the same quarterback they chose over Sakuon Barkley. That's why it's a fireball of fence, because what are you doing? It's clear and obvious, and it almost you gotta be blind or some kind of weird biased like I don't know if he's blackmailing or something to not see that. And if you can't see those obvious things, what makes you think that you're gonna see some obvious talent in the future, Like you can make great decisions in the future. So I would get rid of him, but they're not going to. He's gonna get another chance and another chance, and then once he gets fired from here, somebody else will give him another chance. And that's how the league works. Even though he made an awful decision, his thought process throughout the decision to get rid of sa Quon what's terrible. You disrespected the guy throughout the entire process and you felt like, ah, he's disposable nobody else. Hey, go out there and see what they're gonna give you, and then come back to us and we'll sign you for what we told you. We're gonna sign you for. You Like, that's not how you treat a guy like that. You say, hey, name your number, we'll do our best to match, and if we can't, I'm sorry, we've got to let you go.
But we gave you our best shot.
You're not paying anybody, so that's why he knew you could pay him what he needs to pay him. And now you're watching him have an MVP season for a division rival, Like that's what makes it a fireable offence. You watch your team win two games and then Mars watching the Philadelphia he goes in Takuon run for what appears to be two thousand yards.
This season a career year do.
You think they can even make eye contact at this point, Richard, because that's all I think about. I think mar is just watching Saquon run wild, and then the GM's coming in. I can't even imagine them in the same room and watching Saquon highlights in Philly. It's to see what he's doing and how he's elevated. That Philly offense is insane. And to let that talent walk out the door, it's mine numbing. Let's talk a little bit about the Dallas Cowboys. They're on a hot streak here. I did not see this coming. I don't know if you saw this coming. It looks like Cooper Rush has really settled in and found his pace. Unfortunately, it's too late in the season for them. They're already eliminating from the playoffs, but they're playing for that pride you talked about, Richard, How surprised are you with this Dallas Cowboy win. It comes at the cost of knocking the Bucks out of the playoffs for the time being and needing the Atlanta Falcons to lose at some point later in the sea. How big of a losses is for Tampa, Richard, And I was surprised you to see it come out in the win column for Dallas.
This is a devastating loss for Tampa because you know, I obviously they had a lot of momentum going. They were playing really good, seemed to be in control of the NFC South Atlanta seemed to be going and trending in the other direction with the way Kirk Cousins was playing and throwing the interceptions, and then it all falls apart, and it has.
To be disappointing.
Because it looked like at the end of that game they were going to rally and Baker Mayfield was going to come up with another miracle. He throws it to Rashad White on like a just a flip because he was he was in the grasp and about to get sacked. He was trying to avoid the sack, got the fallout, Rashard White broke a tackle and then Deran Bland makes an incredible play takes the ball from him and that's game. And that's that's the most frustrating thing, because I think he was going to drive him down the field and set him up for a game winning field goal. What they would made the field goal or not, I don't know, but it seemed like with the way Baker was playing, they were gonna have a chance at a game winning field goal. So if their season just went to is over because of a guy fumbling football, you know, in that situation, I'm sure it's going to be really devastating and disappointing, especially knowing the way that Bucky Irving had been playing, and he wasn't in a game at that time, and that might be their season. And that was a team that you know, you thought could be dangerous, you know, Bowls, and this Buccaneers team is always dangerous in the playoffs. And Atlanta is playing Pinnix now and he had a solid game obviously at the interception, should have had a touchdown, but Kyle Pitts dropped the football, and that calls the actual cause the interception because it was a ball in his hands and he just let it go. He seems disinterested in playing in the National Football League right now, but that's just my opinion. But yeah, the Cowboys are playing good football.
You know.
They they're a talented team, and when you came into this season, you thought they would be competing for the NFC East Cram.
They have enough talent.
You talked about how they paid Dak Prescott, how they paid Micah Parsons. You know, they had Treyvon Diggs who just went out for the knee surgery, says he's gonna be out eight months. But Deron Bland had the incredible season with all the.
Pick six is.
It's surprising because of how the season had been going. But you can see this team as playing for pride. Cooper Rush is finding his legs, Ceedee Lamb continues to have a really productive season, and it's good for them.
You know.
I think at the end of the season, it's gonna be another one of those things where they're gonna look up around draft time and they're gonna be picking at twenty one. They're gonna be like, what happened? I thought we had a bad year. It's like, not bad enough to pick low. But you know, it's a good win for them. They played the Philadelphia Eagles next week and we'll see if they can play with that same kind of intense ty, maybe you know, pull out an upset. Then the Bucks play the Carolina Panthers, who's who've been giving people a much better game. You know, they beat an Arizona Cardinals team that had a chance to still be competing for that last playoff spot, that last that NFC West Division title, and they really ended that dream right there. And I think you got to give teams like that a lot of credit that continue to play hard, that continue to show up.
Bryce Young is starting to develop.
You could see him taking the next step and the next step, So it's good for them.
Or let's go on to buy or sell. This one is a weird situation. It involves two of your favorite I guess quarterbacks, and Kirk Cousins and Aaron Rodgers, and your former team, the San Francisco forty nine Ers, Richard, with the state of the Niners and the Rock Purty situation looming. Buy er sell the forty nine Ers will sign Kirk Cousins or Aaron Rodgers this offseason.
I doubt it. I doubt it. I'll sell that. I don't think you.
I don't think the forty nine ers are going to sign either one of those because they won't back up Rock Purdy unless Kirk is willing to take that role, which I highly doubt out because he still believes he's a starter in this league and I'm sure there's a team out there that will need him to either mentor a young guy or be a bridge quarterback or something like that. He's probably reaching that point in his career, made enough money obviously, but still has the pride and you know, the ability to play at a high level. But that Achilles is gonna wear on you, you know what I mean, And it's really impacted his performance. Has impacted his physical abilities and his ability to push the ball down the field. And you can see that. You can see it from game one. You can see it in their run game. He's not the most mobile quarterback in the National Football League, but he's a lot more mobile than he has been. And you can see the differences when Michael Pennox is in there, you know, just casual pocket movement, you know, getting out of there a little bit sooner, you know, running for a few yards here and there, making negative plays positive plays. And that's something Kirk just couldn't do with that Achilles. And I understand that it takes a really long time for that to come back and snap back the way you expecting it to. And I never played quarterback in the National Football League, but I'm sure it affects his mechanics driving the ball down the field. It'll be better next season. But I don't see him or Aaron backing anybody up. So I think if Aaron's not in New York, I think he hangs them up. And I think if Kirk's not in Atlanta, another team will be calling him to have him at least compete for a starting job. Let me really think about it, Tennessee or team like that that just doesn't have the quarterback and doesn't have the draft position to really get the guy that can come in make an immediate impact.
It's just wild to me, and specifically the Atlanta Falcons organization. What in the world is the GM's decision making process with signing Kirk Cousins and then really reaching on Michael Panic's junior. He certainly looks like a hell of a quarterback and a steal at number eight. What goes through your mind is a GM, why in the world would you make that decision, especially now facing the reality of cutting Kirk and leaving millions and millions and dead money cap hit for the next two seasons.
Again, that's one of those concerning decisions that is kind of legacy defining in terms of, like with your team and they're going to be I'm sure Arthur Blank is going to be taking a real close look at what happens from here on because it essentially looks like they paid Kirk Cousins ninety million dollars for fourteen games, and it removes.
The benefit of drafting Michael Pennix and having them on a rookie contract. I mean, the financial benefit from having a rookie is gone now because you're still stuck with this cap hit from Kirk Cousins. It's one of those moves man. When it happened, I think it shocked everyone because you don't make it for a number of reasons, and the biggest being financial.
So I just I don't get it, man, And.
Like you said, I think this could be legacy defining for certainly this team. This this next one pains me, but it's it's an oncoming reality. Ben Johnson's one of the hottest names on the upcoming head coaching sir get He's the OCI for the Detroit Lions, and we see him get creative every single week. This week was the fake fumble touchdown pass to Samaporta. Betan Johnson will be the next head coach for the Chicago Bears by or.
So I can buy that.
I can buy that because they're They're probably the best job out there, unless the the Dallas Cowboys job comes up, and it appears that Jerry Jones is gonna stick with McCarthy, at least as he is. He hasn't fired him yet. The team is playing better. I think they're fom one over the last five so all indications point to him continuing as the Dallas Cowboys head coach, to I'm sure the chagrin of the Green I mean Dallas Cowboys fans. I don't think he wants to take the New Orleans Saints job. I think Doug Peterson is going to be gone, But if he's not, I don't think Jacksonville is really a pealing job. Depending on what they do in Las Vegas, still not better than the Chicago job. The New York position isn't better than the Chicago job either either.
One.
I don't think they get rid of Dave Bowl, but I don't think the Jets is going to be appealing to anybody. The way Woody Johnson treated Salah and treated that whole situation, and just their their GM coach dynamic, the way it was built wasn't something that would be acceptable to a lot of coaches. So I think Chicago is the only place that really makes sense for Ben Johnson. If he wants to be a head coach in this league, he'll have his pick up a litter. I think other coaches may be more desperate and may take one of these other jobs just because they you know, they won't have the pick of the litter. They will have to just take the job that allows them to be a head coach in the National Football League. But he'll get his pick, and I think the best pick out of all these jobs is probably going to be Chicago.
Moving on nonsports related, it's somewhat sports related, Richard. I know you're a big holiday guy. I know you love I know you love Harry Potter and dressing up for Halloween and all that stuff. But buy or sell Christmas is the best holiday.
Bye bye bye bye bye Metro. I have to buy it. It's not even close. It's not even what other holiday is even competing with Christmas. Halloween. I can eat candy anytime and dress up. I could wear Harry Potter stuff on a random Tuesday in March.
Fourth of July is nice and warm, dude, you're out on the lake, I mean Thanksgiving, you're eating a nice turkey with your family.
Fourth of July.
We want to honor the country and honor you know, everything that happened. But no, it's not Christmas. Christmas means so much more because it's bringing people together. You got the clay Christmas cartoons and shows, you got the Grinch, you got all the storytelling, all the pageantry around it, all the giving and receiving energy, just positive. You know, you got the song all I want for Christmas? Yas Mariah Carey is still making millions off the song, probably the best thing she's ever done in her life. Mariah, what a what a song? Christmas? Mitchell. Sometimes I catch myself in July listening to Christmas songs, and if I'm listening to songs from a holiday that's six months away, that's probably the best holiday.
And that's where I'm I don't know why that doesn't surprise me. Man.
I could just envision you right now driving down the road and listening to Mariah Carey on repeat, and it would not shock me one bit.
Richard.
Look, we talked about we got Christmas. Christmas Day football by your cell. The NFL playing on Christmas is awesome.
Bye bye. Sucks for the NBA, but you know we're football guys.
Here. Give it a movie game, movie game. Get hey.
I got advice for you, get better, and that's that. But Richard, you're gonna go and watch your Seattle Seahawks this Thursday, take on the Chicago Bears. It's time for our TNF preview, presented by Ryan Video. Richard, it's gonna be cold. I hope you better bring a scarf man, bring your bring your park up, bring whatever you got and you might want to wear.
I thought that negative three point five was the was was the weather.
It was the temperature for the game. I said.
I got a little concern. I said, yeah, I gotta go jump in a cold tub at some point.
Again, Richard, it's not it's not gonna be negative three and a half degrees, but it is a negative three and a half point spread in favor of your Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks must win to keep any hopes of the playoffs alive. Richard. The Bears have lost nine straight. They're struggling teams. Players on the team looked like they're checked out. But then again, you're playing on the road, You're going to a different time when you're playing in a very cold environment. What do you think the Seahawks this week on Thursday? You think they can come out with a win. Yeah, I think they will come out with a win. Their defense has been playing well. They played well last week except for a few bonehead plays, a few mental errors that doomed them at the end of the game. Obviously, but I think this will be a game. You know, they can help them feel better about themselves. It will help their d line feel better. You know, they should get a lot of pressure on his quarterback. I'm sure McDonald will put a lot of exotic looks in front of him, make them hold the ball even more than he already does. He's likely top three and most sacked quarterbacks in the league this year, so I expect that to continue.
So this is this is a stat pad game.
This is a game the Seattle Seahawks should be licking their chops to get after the quarterback. You know, get four or five, maybe seven eight sacks. Geno Smith having efficient game. This defense though, This defense still can play and they have some playmakers on defense. That's what makes them attractive team for head coaches because they do have a good defense and say have the pieces in place. Their offense is just played so badly, at least at the quarterback position. And I know the numbers sometimes look like he's played better than what it actually has been because he's protecting his passer rating by not throwing the ball away and getting rid of it and taking unnecessary sacks to protect his stats. But this has been a not great season for him because you got to let the ball go, you know. And at times people are like, oh, yeah, he's taking all these sacks. It's the ole line. But some of these sacks are four and five seconds into the playclock. And so when you hold the ball that long in the National Football League, that's an eternity and that's in his achilles heel. And that has been his achilles heel even through the process of evaluating him coming out of USC and Oklahoma.
Is he wants the huge play. He doesn't want to take the checkdown.
You know. It's like the NBA right now, and people are like, what's wrong with the NBA. It's like guys can't make layups or mid ranges, but they'll shoot fifty threes and make six and people will be like, yeah, he's an All Star. I was like, I don't want to see you miss forty four throws. I want to see you I'd rather see you make twenty five layups, you know what I mean, make fifteen mid ranges and shoot ten threes and make two like.
I'd be okay with that. But he's always looking for the.
Home run and at times the singles right there in front of him. And until he learns to take singles, he's not going to win consistently in this league. And whether you have a good defense and run game and all the things that you are necessary in terms of the formula for winning, until he learns to take the singles, well.
It's wild to think this is the final Thursday night football game of the season.
Richard. It's time flies, man.
I'm sure you've had some fun but on the road going to all these games, but this is the last one. So you guys have got to tune in. Make sure you check about seven o'clock Eastern time on Prime Video.
Check out Richard in the Gang. Richard.
One last thing, much anticipated Power rankings. Last week, the Detroit Lions spelled from the one spot I know Buffalo was hot Richard, this week's gonna be kind of a very interesting one because I think we might have a complete cluster and I can't wait for you to line these up.
What do you got for this week?
Well, we're gonna do it like we always do it.
Mitchell. Kansas City Chiefs number one, Mitchell.
They are still the top of the food chain until they're not. And they played well enough to win. Patrick Mahomes on a mom ankle or whatever, not bum ankle. He ran the ball pretty well. Their defense played well. Unfortunately Texans lost Tank Dale, but Kansas City Chiefs one. Detroit has to be two. I'll give them to Mitchell. I like it because Buffalo struggled with the Patriots, and I know Josh Allen said, hey, we're not showing everything we got. I've actually never heard of anything like that, at least said publicly in the National Football League, where somebody says we're just not showing stuff until the playoffs because we were we don't have a chance with the one seed. I've literally never heard anybody say that, but maybe they have. And since they said that, I'm going to go with Minnesota at three, and then I'll go Buffalo at four. The fifth spot is where it gets interesting. It gets very vexing. It's very vexing at five because on one hand, you want to put you know, the AFC North in there, Baltimore. So with Lamar and those guys did, there's a chance they could go in and win this week. They had a big win against Pittsburgh last week, so you can't put Pittsburgh there.
Do you put Green Bay there?
Dominant win over over the Saints, but you know there's a Saints and defense pitch to shut out m.
Philly.
I know that fan base for you to mention their name every once in a while as well, at least still twelve and three rich Ja they are contendered last week. That had a lot to do with probably why they lost that game. Assuming he's back, that team is going to be full health heading in the playoffs.
I do like it too.
I do like Philly with but but but and and Philly fans hate when I'm critical of them. You know, every team hates to hear the bad stuff about their team. You don't want you to just say, hey, they're gonna win the super Bowl, even if that's not true. But the five touchdowns Jalen Jayden Daniels threw on them thirty six points on a defense that's been playing elite football. That's where that's where the concern level is for me. Hmmm, Philadelphia, Philadelphia, off a loss, I do them in.
Off of them, They've still got a better record than Baltimore by two games, still got a better record than the Pittsburgh Steelers, who didn't play as well defensively.
You've mince me, Mitchell, I'll put Philadelphia in there, but grudgingly.
I like it, Man. I was interested to see how you unpack that one.
Richard.
Well, this concludes Week sixteen. We're on the week seventeen. It's gonna be awesome down the stretch. This next week is gonna be amazing. Cannot wait to flip on the TV on Christmas on Wednesday and Thursday, before tuning in this weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Richard, we continue onward. Please sign us off, my friend.
Well, thank you guys for joining us on this Christmas Eve's Eve. It's been another beautiful day for the Richard Sherman Podcast. I hope you guys have a wonderful Christmas Eve and a wonderful holiday with your family and friends. I hope you do a power rankings for Christmas songs, because number one has to be all I want for Christmas is you. Number two Silent Night by the Temptations. Number three rocking around the Christmas Street.
I don't know.
I don't know about that because I think Jackson five Santa Claus Is Coming to Town might be up there for me at three. If you haven't heard Chris Brown's This Christmas, It's got to be in there. Christmas is the best holiday. We can do this all day, but make sure you listen to a lot of holiday songs. Whatever you like to listen to. Watch Home Alone, watch The Grinch.
We love you.
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