PodcastFrom NFL: The Insiders
The NFL Report: Lamar Jackson Questionable Against Bengals + Saints vs Steelers in France Preview
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
24 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Oct 23, 2026
Published
Fri, October 23, 2026
22
Player insights
17
Players mentioned
Topics
Kenneth Walker IIILamar JacksonMike EvansPuka NacuaBaker MayfieldBreece HallCaleb WilliamsCole KmetDak PrescottDrake MayeGeorge KittleJosh JacobsPatrick MahomesRhamondre Stevenson
Player analysis
Player insights
Baker Mayfield
PositiveInjury1:45
Baker Mayfield will return Sunday after a three-week absence following a dislocated thumb in Week 3. He's been practicing with a specially made glove on his right hand with a pad on the back to prevent the thumb from bending backwards again, which should help the Buccaneers' offense get a boost.
Insight pageBreece Hall
NegativeInjury19:12
Breece Hall is questionable heading into his team's matchup, creating uncertainty around his availability for fantasy purposes.
Insight pageCaleb Williams
PositiveProjection3:12
Caleb Williams delivered strong passing production in the Bears' win, throwing for 308 yards and two touchdowns, including a 21-yard strike to Rome Odunze and another 21-yard completion two plays later, showcasing efficient downfield accuracy.
Insight pageCole Kmet
NegativeInjury3:48
Cole Kmet was placed on injured reserve with his season over, representing a significant loss for the Bears offense after the team's recent three-game winning streak.
Insight pageDak Prescott
PositiveMatchup21:27
Dak Prescott is favored over Tanner McKee in the Monday night matchup. The speaker trusts Prescott more as a quarterback and believes the Cowboys offense is supposed to be explosive and capable of putting up points, though they failed to do so against Green Bay. The Cowboys are favored by one point despite playing in Philadelphia.
Insight pageDrake Maye
PositiveProjection2:39
Drake Maye continued an offensive tear in Thursday night action, throwing three total touchdowns in the Patriots win over Chicago, demonstrating sustained high-volume passing production and efficiency.
Insight pageGeorge Kittle
PositiveMatchup23:30
George Kittle is highlighted for National Tight Ends Day, with the speaker suggesting he might find the end zone against Atlanta. The speaker notes that tight ends are more valuable and dynamic than ever, and Kittle is specifically called out as someone who makes National Tight Ends Day interesting.
Insight pageJosh Jacobs
PositiveRole24:09
Josh Jacobs has been removed from the commissioner's exempt list and is on track to play against the Lions. The speaker emphasizes that Green Bay needs to run the game and that Jacobs would help them tremendously coming out of the backfield.
Insight pageKenneth Walker III
PositiveMatchup5:15
Kenneth Walker faces a revenge game against his former Seattle Seahawks squad; the Chiefs are expected to handle Seattle's elite defense and come out on top, with Walker's balanced offensive role reducing the burden on Patrick Mahomes against the Seahawks' strong defensive unit.
Insight pagePositiveUsage5:15
Kenneth Walker has been essential to the Chiefs' offensive balance, accumulating 665 rushing yards in one fewer game than the entire Seattle Seahawks backfield total this season, demonstrating his critical role in preventing the offense from over-relying on Patrick Mahomes' arm.
Insight pagePositiveUsage5:41
Kenneth Walker has 665 rushing yards through the season in one fewer game than the entire Seattle Seahawks backfield total this season, demonstrating his essential role in balancing the Chiefs offense and reducing reliance on Patrick Mahomes; he has zero fumbles on the season, a significant advantage over Seahawks running backs who have combined for six fumbles with four lost.
Insight pageLamar Jackson
NegativeInjury0:52
Lamar Jackson reported he was in a lot of pain coming off his ankle injury and couldn't run last week, but told reporters he's heading in the right direction. There's disagreement on the injury type: Ian Rappaport reported it wasn't a high ankle sprain, but Jackson's staff told him it was a high ankle sprain. Jackson said he still has a grace period before determining his status for Sunday against Cincinnati.
Insight pageNegativeInjury18:54
Lamar Jackson remains questionable with an ankle injury heading into the Ravens matchup. The speaker notes uncertainty about his availability but is rolling with Baltimore despite the injury concern.
Insight pageMike Evans
NegativeInjury1:25
Mike Evans left Monday night's game at the end of the first half after aggravating his Achilles injury, which he's been dealing with. He's out for the game in Atlanta, hurting the 49ers' bid to stay perfect on the season.
Insight pageNegativeInjury19:43
Mike Evans is out for the upcoming matchup, removing him from fantasy consideration for this week.
Insight pagePatrick Mahomes
PositiveProjection4:00
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are positioned as the best team in the AFC, with Mahomes continuing to lead an offense that balances his passing production with strong run support, making them a premier team in power rankings at second overall.
Insight pagePuka Nacua
NegativeInjury0:43
Puka Nacua suffered a calf injury, which is not good news for a Rams squad that's already struggling.
Insight pageNegativeInjury19:22
Puka Nacua is questionable with a calf injury. The speaker indicates he will likely have to play in the Raiders matchup despite the injury concern, suggesting limited availability or reduced role.
Insight pageRhamondre Stevenson
PositiveUsage2:39
Stevenson delivered explosive production in Thursday night action against Chicago, recording five catches for 93 yards and a touchdown, including a 48-yard touchdown reception from Drake Maye that showcased his receiving upside in the Patriots offense.
Insight pageRome Odunze
PositiveUsage3:12
Rome Odunze was a featured target in the Bears' win, recording consecutive 21-yard receptions from Caleb Williams, demonstrating his role as a primary downfield option in the Chicago offense.
Insight pageSam Darnold
NegativeProjection4:00
Sam Darnold has struggled with ball security this season, matching his touchdown passes (7) with interceptions (7), creating a critical vulnerability against the Kansas City defense's aggressive scheme that attacks offenses and forces turnovers.
Insight pageTanner McKee
NegativeRole21:27
Tanner McKee is starting for Philadelphia against Dallas on Monday night. The speaker notes he had a strong showing in the loss to Carolina last week, looking better than his only prior regular season appearance, though the speaker still trusts Dak Prescott more as a quarterback.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. Alright, we got some international French flair on our radar.
0:05An exclusive interview with Roger Goodell, who's got some news about a potential NFL game in an Asian city that has never hosted a regular season game before.
0:13The Ravens coming off a loss without their two-time MVP.
0:15Lamar Jackson, he spoke to reporters today. Hear what the quarterback is saying about his ankle injury and his status for Sunday against Cincinnati.
0:22And there are some absolutely ginormous Week 7 games.
0:24What to make of Sam Darnold vs Mahomes? And can Jordan Love keep his Packers hot against a Lions team that absolutely needs a win?
0:31And welcome to a brand new edition of NFL Report.
0:34I'm Mike Hamm. My buddy Nick Schuch is going to be joining me in just a bit.
0:39We'll go through some of these significant games on the Week 7 slate.
0:43Some also significant injury news to wide receiver Pukin Nkul.
0:45We got that coming up in just a few moments, not to mention Roger Goodell, an exclusive interview you do not want to make.
0:52But headlines, that's how we kick things off. First, Lamar Jackson, I missed the last two games of the Ravens.
0:58Well, they're hosting the Bengals on Sunday. Here's the good news.
1:01Out on that practice field told reporters he was in a lot of pain coming off that injury and couldn't actually run last week.
1:07He wasn't done talking. I'm heading in the right direction.
1:10I can't call it right now, you know, I still got a grace period.
1:14So we'll see, man, hopefully. But I feel like I'm heading in the right direction right now.
1:19I think it was reported that this isn't a high ankle sprain.
1:22It's not a low ankle sprain. I mean, is it the deltoid medial sprain?
1:26I thought it was a high ankle sprain. So I don't know who said that.
1:30Rappaport said it wasn't a high ankle sprain. And Rappaport said that?
1:33He part of the training staff. So we can't go off Ian Rappaport, you know, he's just reporting.
1:38Somebody probably told him that too, though, so can't blame him.
1:41But no, man, my staff told me it was a high ankle sprain.
1:45So we going with what Adrian told me. I'm not going with Ian told me.
1:49I'm just being honest. Something tells me Adrian's following on social media not as big as Ian Rappaport.
1:54Meanwhile, some news regarding this Rams squad poking to a calf injury.
1:58That is not a good thing for a Rams team that's struggling right now.
2:01Trent McDuffie did not practice today. Listed as questionable.
2:04Nate Landman out with a concussion. Keep in mind, Kobe Turner already on IR.
2:08This is the walking wounded in a matchup against the Raiders.
2:11More on that game with Nick Shook coming up in just a minute here.
2:15We've heard the story before. Niners, another star that's dealing with an injury.
2:18Mike Evans left Monday night's game at the end of the first half aggravating the Achilles that he's been dealing with that injury.
2:25He's out for the game in Atlanta. Certainly not good news from a San Francisco perspective as they continue to try to stay perfect on the year.
2:32Not so perfect. The Tampa Bay Bucs sent out one in five.
2:36A huge divisional game against the Panthers. Baker Mayfield will return Sunday after a three week absence.
2:40Remember, he had dislocated that thumb in week number three.
2:43He's been practicing with a specially made glove on the right hand.
2:46That's got a pad on the back so that the thumb won't bend backwards again.
2:51That would be a win when you're dealing with some injuries like he is.
2:54Boy, that offense certainly could use a boost. Meanwhile, some Thursday night football action for you.
2:59Here we go. Fans in Chicago. First game that they've had in the city since Mike Dicka's passing.
3:04Pick things up here. With a little explosive play, Drake made a remandry Stevenson 48 yards to the house.
3:09Stevenson had five catches, 93 yards and a touchdown.
3:12Drake Maye, by the way, just in case you're wondering, continue on that offensive tear.
3:16Three total touchdowns in this one. Fourth quarter. It's a third and nine here.
3:20Need a big play. Caleb delivering it. How about that strike?
3:23Rome Odunze for 21. Roman actually have another 21 yard catch two plays later.
3:27Can't lift her for through a 308 in this one and two touchdowns.
3:30That would set up this. Skyro Santos from 56.
3:33Woo. That's a distance boy. Could have backed that up.
3:36Couple more yards. And I think that still would have been good.
3:39An important win for the Iceman and the Chicago Bears team.
3:42And been a red hot Pat squad of keep in mind they had won three consecutive games, but there was some bad news from Chicago perspective.
3:49Cole commit on the injured reserve season is over.
3:52That is not a good thing. And also Roger Goodell lifting the suspension of Montez Sweat reinstated after a two game absence.
3:58So they'll have to navigate some of those issues as well.
4:01Looking forward to this one. Patrick Mahomes. You can make the case Chiefs right now.
4:05Best team in the AFC Sam Donald. Well, he's had some issues.
4:08This must see television. Donald as many touchdown passes as interception so far this season.
4:13That's seven and seven. Sam knows he's got to protect that football against a Kansas City defense ready to pin their ears back.
4:19I stand up here every week and I feel like I say, you know, their their schemes really good and they play
4:25really well in that scheme and they play fast.
4:28But I think that last part is the most impressive part to me is they play really fast.
4:33And, you know, I think a lot of times like they attack offenses and they don't allow the offense to attack them.
4:39And I think that's that's a hallmark of a great defense.
4:42So we're going to be ready and have a great plan.
4:45I hope that is the case because this is Seattle team that would love to get in the win column column and
4:51get it done and make a kind of a statement here against the Kansas City squad.
4:55Nick Schoker NFL dot com is with me right now.
4:58Also, the guy that puts together power rankings, which by the way, you can catch on Tuesday.
5:03I mean, this is just pretty going through all the teams.
5:06I keep this with me every single week because I like to know where you have your team swatted, slotted.
5:11Actually, Kansas City, by the way, second overall team in your rankings.
5:15Seattle sits at 10. This is probably the best opportunity, though, for Kansas City to really show they're one of the premier teams.
5:21Yeah, definitely. It's definitely one of their best tests of the season so far.
5:25And it's also a really good test of can the Seahawks overcome their own challenges that drop them almost out of the
5:31top 10 entirely in the power rankings. But I don't think it's going to go the Seahawks way.
5:36I know this isn't our pick segment, but I think that the Chiefs have the advantage here.
5:41And it all starts with the former Seahawk Kenneth Walker, who has 665 rushing yards so far, which is more than the
5:47entire Seattle Seahawks backfield total this season in one fewer game.
5:50That's how good he's been for the Chiefs. He's been so essential to balancing out this offense that it's not overly relying
5:56on Patrick Mahomes and against a defense like the dark side defense in Seattle.
6:00I think that this is going to be such a challenge for them that the Chiefs aren't really going to have to
6:06worry too much about that elite defense. Again, though, it'll be one of their biggest tests of this year.
6:11I expect the Chiefs to continue to be excellent and come out on top.
6:15A little bit of a revenge game right now for Kenneth Walker against his former squad.
6:20No fumbles on the season for Walker has been a game changer for that team's offense.
6:24Just for context, the Seahawks, they're running backs combining for six fumbles and they've lost four of them.
6:29That's not good news. More from you on some of these week seven games still to come here on NFL Report.
6:35The Saints, meanwhile, have been practicing in Versailles, France.
6:38It just sounds good all week ahead of this big matchup against the Steelers in Paris.
6:42For what it's worth, Steelers got there today. NFL Dailies, Greg Rosenthal, Jourdan Rodrigue there for the game and they caught up with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
6:49We are here with Commissioner Roger Goodell about two feet away from me.
6:53We're in a hotel room in Paris. This is a little surreal, Jordan.
6:57I cannot believe we're in Paris. I'm sure it hasn't quite even sunk in for you yet, but watching the Saints take
7:03such advantage of this opportunity where they have the marketing rights and flying in here and seeing how, I mean, the Eiffel Tower and everything there is.
7:10What has this been like for you and how have the Saints really embraced this opportunity?
7:15Well, they're the perfect team here because of their connection, obviously, to France.
7:18And they take such great pride in that. And I think that's that part of the culture and that connection is going to be wonderful for this event.
7:26But having the Steelers here, too, is pretty cool.
7:29They're a global brand and obviously have a lot of fans on a worldwide basis.
7:33And that's good. It's going to be a great football game, which is what counts, too.
7:37Yeah, I never expected to be here in Paris covering an NFL game.
7:41But we have a huge international audience. About 35% of our listeners are overseas.
7:45And well, after today, we'll make it 40%. Try to make it a little more like I've been coming here for about a decade in terms of Europe.
7:53It was London. And that got me thinking, like, how important is the international TV rights and the media rights when it
7:59comes to trying to grow this game? Well, they're all important, whether it's your partnerships in the media or sponsorships or frankly, playing the games.
8:06But they all have to be coordinated. They all have to work together.
8:09But ultimately, as you know, even in the States, it's the media partners are the ones that give you the greatest access to the fans, ultimately.
8:16And and you all do that, right? You get to learn a lot more about the game, the players, the strategy, what's happening in the league.
8:24So media partnerships are really critical to us. And we look for the best media partners as many as we can and
8:30have that global reach and to be able to to be able to give fans the best experience possible, whatever platform they want to watch on.
8:37Yeah. And Roger Goodell admitted right before we got on here, NFL Daily listener and viewer.
8:41So thank you so much for that. I'm working on that 40 percent for you, too, even though I don't count as an international one.
8:48Yeah, I want to hear what your favorite segments are later.
8:51We'll be. Peter O'Reilly, your colleague said this week, you know, they are looking for potentially 10 international games next season.
8:57That's the maximum allowed under the CBA wondering if you want to help us out and give a little exclusive of maybe where some of them could be.
9:05And ideally, like Tokyo, because I'll have a free place to stay there with my in-laws very close to the old NFL offices.
9:11Is that right? You want to go, you know, reopen.
9:14You're ahead of us. That would be fun. Listen, Tokyo is clearly on on our list, whether it's next year or the
9:20year after it's coming at some point in the near future.
9:23As we continue to look at, we're going to focus, continue to focus on our priority markets, which a lot of them they've been in.
9:30But there are other cities this year. We went to Rio rather than Sao Paulo.
9:34Australia was off the charts on a Friday morning at 1030 to have a hundred thousand people in the stadium was it was just incredible experience for us.
9:42So I think it's opened up new opportunities for us.
9:45The travel is something we think we can manage and do it without impacting negatively on the teams.
9:50So each of these we learn something from and we benefit.
9:53And we also, I think, open those other doors.
9:56So we're we're playing and I'm playing global. That's where we're going.
9:59Hold in. You do that. Take us with you.
10:01Roger, I love flag football, so I can't let you get out of here without a flag football question.
10:07Yeah, me too. So enjoying watching the growth stateside and internationally of the sport.
10:11It's fascinating. LA 28 obviously coming up, too. And what have been the catalyst for that growth in your mind?
10:16Some of the keys to that expansion as much as we've seen.
10:19Well, you know, the thing that I probably get the greatest benefit from, and I guess it's a reward, is watching young people play our sport.
10:27Because there's so many great things you get from playing the sport.
10:30It's it's the competence. It's the ability to compete.
10:33It's the ability to come through resilience and teamwork is so important in our game, as you know.
10:38And to as a father of two girls, to see young women playing our sport, it's even more rewarding because I think
10:44it is particularly during those more difficult years for all of us and growing up.
10:48It gives you that ability to sort of understand yourself a little better and give yourself self confidence.
10:53So I think it's a future of sports because we are seeing men and women compete and we're seeing them compete together
10:59in some cases in flag football, which has been fun to watch also.
11:03So it's accessible. And it's I think it's a way for kids to really, truly understand about this game, but more importantly, themselves.
11:09So I wanted to thank you, Roger Goodell. You don't know this.
11:12We're birthday buddies. We are both. Is that right?
11:15February. I don't think the same year, though. Not the same year.
11:18February. You might be surprised by that. Oh, really?
11:21I don't think so. On our old podcast, we used to joke Chris Wessling, our late friend, great podcaster.
11:26We all shared February 19th. We used to say the three most important people in the NFL really holding up myself, Chris and you.
11:33So I appreciate you putting me in that group.
11:35Now he's got his name on our studio. But speaking for him, we thank you for holding up your end of the bargain.
11:41Thank you. I'll do my best. And now that I know I have that kind of pressure.
11:46So a great conversation there. And I think about what could happen, at least with that game in Tokyo.
11:51I think there's a lot of buzz inside our office about who would like to go.
11:56Raise your hand. I'll raise mine as well. Let's focus in on this matchup, Phil, that we have in Paris.
12:01We've got a Steelers squad matching up, obviously, against the Saints.
12:04Take me through this. Aaron Rodgers had said this off of the win against the Bucs.
12:09He said this is a transformative win that can change the trajectory of our season.
12:13They came back to win that game. How do they win this one?
12:17I think they have to follow suit with what they did well in the second half of this win over Tampa, which
12:23is be willing to adjust within the flow of the game, accept that the things that you like to do most are
12:29not working against this given opponent, and then turn towards something else.
12:32What they did in that game was adjusting to the short pass.
12:36After Aaron Rodgers had held onto the ball longer than he did last season, he'd taken more deep shots than he did
12:42last season, they decided we're taking the short game the rest of the way home all the way to victory.
12:47He was 11 of 15 in the fourth quarter for 87 yards and a touchdown.
12:51Just 9.5% of his 35 pass attempts in that game were over 10 air yards, so they just took the short game.
12:58You can do that against this Saints defense as well, and then you let your defense get after Tyler Shuck and the New Orleans offense.
13:04Yeah, it's kind of remarkable, man, the way that we were thinking about this Saints team offensively to start the season and how things are cool.
13:12I know they just picked up a win, but the reality is I think there's still more questions than answers regarding this New Orleans team.
13:19Jordan Love and the Packers, they've won three straight games.
13:21Remember, they started one and two, getting a Lions team who they swept a season ago.
13:26Detroit coming off the bye. They get this one at home.
13:29Dan Campbell gave us the scouting report on this Packers team.
13:32That whole team is trended. I mentioned this. These last two weeks, they've really, you know, taken off and the defense is dangerous, man.
13:39I mentioned they play as one unit. That's what you see.
13:42They play as one unit. This will be a big challenge, you know, but I mentioned this earlier.
13:47We're looking forward to this. I mean, this is as good as it gets, man.
13:51You know, you're getting a team in your division that's playing as good as anybody in the NFL right now.
13:56And we got a chance to get them. Explain to me how you pick against that dude and his team.
14:02That's a hard time because I'd run through a brick wall for Dan Campbell.
14:06100%. But I am picking against him. I'm picking the Packers because in this matchup, it is a divisional game.
14:11It's an opportunity for the Lions to kind of climb back into the discussion.
14:15We've kind of left them out of it because of the Vikings and the Bears and the Packers latest hot run.
14:21But in this game, I trust one defense more than the other.
14:24And that is the Green Bay Packers defense. It's an opportunistic unit.
14:28It's a secondary that loves to get after the football in the air.
14:31It's not just Xavier McKinney. It's Evan Williams. You can continue to go down the list.
14:36Braden Cisse. They're all making plays. The Lions defense has had one good game and it was against the lowly Arizona Cardinals.
14:42So I know the Lions are able to put up a lot of points.
14:46So are the Packers. I give the edge to the cheese heads.
14:49All right. I'm not totally against you on this one, but keep in mind Green Bay.
14:54You should talk about this team's defense. Last three opponents, Tampa Bay, Chicago, and Dallas.
14:58That was a Tampa Bay team without Baker. No Caleb.
15:01The Dallas win. That is impressive. Most impressive. No question.
15:03All three of those opponents under 14 points or fewer.
15:06So there's something to what's cooking right now. But coming off of by at home in a divisional game, that to me would scare me just a bit.
15:14By the way, Josh Jacobs, if you want some more reinforcements to your argument on track to play in this game.
15:20And if they can get the running game going, they'll be a much better team.
15:24Yeah. Just once again, one of those matchups that really has our attention.
15:28Another one. By the way, we've been going back and forth on some of these games.
15:32Normally we agree on a lot of them. It's another one that we're disagreeing on.
15:36How about this Ram squad in real trouble right now?
15:39Consider what we thought this team was going to be there two and four on the year.
15:44Just for context, the Rams did make the playoffs in 2024 when they started one and four.
15:48And by the way, that stretch also included a loss to the Cardinals.
15:52They're banged up at the rating MVP, Matthew Stafford.
15:54This dude has got his mind right. Every year is different.
15:58Every game is different. You know, you can't sit there and go because we did X, we're going to do Y.
16:03But we obviously know what it takes to win football games.
16:06We have enough guys on this roster that know what it takes to win.
16:10And you know, that starts today, right? We can't sit there and look big picture and go, okay, we have X amount of games left.
16:17These guys are doing that, whatever. Like that's not the mindset at all around here.
16:21It's how can we be as good as we can day in and day out?
16:26How can we go compete every single day so that Sunday when we turn the tape on, we're proud of how we
16:32competed, how we played, how we went about our business, and live with the results.
16:36And I think that's the mindset of this group.
16:38You know, and if we do that, I think we're going to like the results more often than we don't.
16:44I don't want to put words in your mouth.
16:46I'm not saying that you think the Raiders are a better team, but just because they're healthier.
16:51Oh, you're wrong. Okay. I mean, they're banged up.
16:54The Rams right now are not healthy and that is abundantly clear.
16:57But to me, you still like this Vegas squad who, by the way, the teams that they're beating are not exactly world beaters.
17:03I think the combined record is like two and 15.
17:06That is their combined record. And you're right. And that's a very good case against why you would want to take the Raiders in this game.
17:13But I am taking the Raiders because I don't know if you noticed in that clip of Matthew Stafford there, it sounded
17:19like it was a little bit of that torrential random downpour we got in the L.A.
17:24area on Wednesday and Thursday, right? It's pouring on the Rams when it comes to injuries, when it comes to all the adversity.
17:30They can't stop the downpour. And they've lost a number of key guys.
17:34Puka Takua and Trent McDuffie are questionable for this game, but you lost Devonta Adams.
17:38You still don't have Miles Garrett. Nate Landon, who's been very crucial in this defense.
17:42He's not going to play on Sunday because he's out due to a concussion.
17:46We're on the Raiders side. Yes, Kobe Turner. I mean, it continues.
17:49They exited their last game with a number of injuries that could be devastating to lesser teams.
17:54They're still a good football team. But the Raiders have one thing in their pocket that is at their advantage.
18:00They can put up points. They're sixth in offensive points per game at 27 per game.
18:04Yes, their three wins were against teams that are combined two and 15.
18:08That was Miami, the Chargers and the Saints. Their losses, though, were really respectable losses.
18:12You know, it's Kansas City. It's New England. It's Buffalo.
18:15Only one of those games were they not competitive in it.
18:18They've been entertaining five games with 26 plus points scored.
18:21They've also allowed 27 plus points in the last four games.
18:24But if we look at the Rams right now, how did they lose that game to the Cardinals last week?
18:29They lost to a Cardinals team that didn't find the end zone the entire afternoon.
18:33All field goals off the foot of Chad Ryland.
18:36That is a sign to me that this is a Rams team that admitted they lack identity and overall haven't really found
18:42some sort of rhythm that can carry them from one week to the next.
18:46So against an exciting and high powered Raiders team, I like what Vegas is bringing out there.
18:51Don't we say to ourselves if you are inside that Rams locker room, this is as much of a must win.
18:56I mean, the percentage is there's only so much time left in the in the regular season two and four in this
19:03division with the Niners who are perfect right now in a Seattle team.
19:06Let's be honest, still one of the better teams in the NFL.
19:09This is a winnable game that they have to get.
19:12I have been in a building like this. The 2019 Browns where the expectations were sky high and they were not a good football team.
19:19It really starts to build and wear on you after a while.
19:23They got to turn it around. It's feeling heavy right now for this Rams squad.
19:27By the way, you talk about that rain pour.
19:29I'm from the Northeast. You would have thought I was melting in the rain.
19:33Oh, yeah, just get you get used to it here.
19:36Early game picks. This normally it's usually one to two, maybe three games that we disagree on.
19:41There's actually quite a few here overall for the slate.
19:43We obviously disagree on what's going to happen in Paris, not to mention the the Ravens.
19:48I was like, well, is Lamar playing? You said no, no, no conditions here.
19:52You just got you just got to roll with it.
19:54I'm rolling with Baltimore on this one. Detroit at home.
19:57I like that. And then Chief Seahawks Sunday Night Football.
20:00That's must see television, man. We're on the opposite ends.
20:03Absolutely. And I'm glad we covered it already. But I really feel really good about this Chiefs team.
20:08This is probably the best Chiefs team we've seen in the last five or seven years.
20:12By the way, same sort of rationale on the Rams.
20:15Seattle got to figure it out. Hold on to the football.
20:18No more turnovers. All right. NFL plus premium. I talk about this every single show.
20:22And for good reason, because you can get NFL Red Zone.
20:25You can watch every touchdown every Sunday afternoon during the regular season.
20:29We got game replays for you and you can track advanced analytics powered by next gen stats with NFL Pro.
20:34You can sign up today at plus.nfl.com slash fast terms and conditions apply.
20:38I mean, if you're not, I mean, I'm like glued to the NFL plus app.
20:42I know I work in the league. Yeah. I mean, CJ Stroud cut ups from his great game against Jacksonville.
20:48How do you not love that? Sign me up for it.
20:51That's why I actually have it injuries for you.
20:53We talked about this earlier. Lamar Jackson still questionable with the ankle injury.
20:57Brees Hall also questionable. And Puka, it sounds like he's going to have to go according to Nick because he's picking the Raiders.
21:03He's questionable with that calf injury. But Mike Evans, obviously one of those headliner stories.
21:07He is out for that matchup. Meanwhile, I'm thinking about the Monday night matchup between Dallas and Philadelphia.
21:12Two teams, two and four expectations were to win this division.
21:15I don't know who I trust more in this game.
21:18It almost feels like whoever's healthier maybe has the advantage.
21:21Yeah. Who do you trust less? You know, when it comes to quarterback, at least like I kind of lean toward trusting Dak Prescott more than Tanner McKee.
21:29No offense to Tanner McKee, who I thought had a pretty strong showing in that loss to Carolina last week.
21:34All things considered, he looked better than he did in his only regular season appearance last week.
21:39But when I look at these two teams, I think about a low ceiling Eagles offense right now against a bad Cowboys defense.
21:45Well, that kind of cancels each other out. So what do we have left?
21:49We have this Cowboys offense that's supposed to be explosive.
21:52That's supposed to be capable of putting a ton of points on the board and wasn't able to against Green Bay.
21:58Can they do it against this Eagles defense, which remains the Eagles strength?
22:01I'm not sure. But when it comes to this rivalry, things get weird.
22:05Usually Dallas is very good at home in this rivalry.
22:08They're playing this game in Philadelphia. So that makes it a little weirder.
22:11I'm still siding with the Cowboys by only one point.
22:14Yeah, I'm with you here. I mean, it does.
22:17It's felt like feast or famine for this Dallas Cowboys offense at times, which to me is a worrisome ingredient.
22:22You talk about what could happen on a Monday night matchup.
22:25But you're right this game in Philadelphia. Who knows?
22:28Maybe Nick Sirianni has got something they could pull out of that bag of tricks are going to need it in a big way.
22:34Keep in mind, you know, it's significant, man. We've got some quick hits for you and some news.
22:39And I say it's significant because anytime you talk about Patrick Sertan maybe playing.
22:43That's what you want to hear if you're a Denver fan questionable with the ankle injury ahead of that matchup against Arizona.
22:49Limited participant in practice, including what transpired today. All right, Josh Jacobs.
22:53I name checked this a little bit earlier when we were talking about Green Bay and Detroit on track to play against the Lions.
22:59He was removed off the commissioner's exempt list. This according to Matt LaFleur.
23:03My God, they need to run a game. He would help them tremendously coming outside of that backfield.
23:08And also, and I know you were excited about this.
23:11It's a national holiday, national tight ends day. It's maybe the biggest thing that the NFL does.
23:16But you want to pay some homage to those guys.
23:18The biggest thing. I mean, we have some other initiatives.
23:21I think salute to service. Crucial catch. Yes. National tight ends day as a fun day.
23:26It's it's one that's inspired by George Kittle. It's been spread throughout.
23:29There's also tight. I knew the offseason totally tight ends are in vogue right now.
23:33They've never been more valuable in football and they've never been more dynamic and versatile.
23:37You know, you think back to some of the greats of past years.
23:41They were the only guy that was capable of blocking and passing.
23:44Now everybody can block and catch and make big plays.
23:47So we'll celebrate them this even if it feels like sweetest day to me.
23:51We're still going to celebrate. Well, I told you this off air national tight ends.
23:55They feels like Valentine's Day in the sense of it's like not really like a real real holiday, but it's one that
24:01we all acknowledge and have to celebrate for one reason or another.
24:04One of those. And by the way, the tight ends, especially because it's Kittle, like you want it to be fun.
24:10And George always makes it interesting. Something tells me he might find the end zone in Atlanta on national tight ends day.
24:16We'll see you on Sunday for game day preview.
24:19Thanks for watching. This is an I heart podcast guaranteed human.
