The Big 6 in 60
The Cowboys Avoid An Upset From The Giants | The Big 6 in 60
[MUSIC PLAYING] It's the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Nah, not quite. What's up? Sell my car and carvana. It's just not quite the right time. Crazy coincidence. I just sold my car to carvana. What? I told you about it two days ago. When you know, you know. You know? I'm even dropping it off at one of those sweet car vending machines and getting paid today. That's a good deal. Oh, great deal. Come on, what's your heart saying? You're right. When you know? You know. Sold. Whether you're looking to sell your car right now or just whenever feels right, go to carvana.com and sell your car the convenient way. Terms and conditions apply. The Dallas Cowboys got a gritty road win against the New York Giants the week before. Their starting quarterback leaves them midweek, midseason. Georgia and Alabama will face off in one of the biggest games of the year. Is Illinois for real? They get a big test in Happy Valley. What the bills need the dude to deal with them? What the San Francisco 49ers have to do to beat the New England Patriots? The Lockdown Podcast Network presents The Big Six in 60. The six biggest national sports stories from the local experts of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Get the real story. Why it matters? What's next? Who wins the big game and more? All in 60 minutes. The Big Six in 60 starts now with the biggest story in sports. The Dallas Cowboys got a gritty road win against the New York Giants the week for. You are locked on Cowboys. You're daily Dallas Cowboys podcast. Later, the Cowboys got a nice gritty road win. And I'm just checking that the sky is not falling again, which is what I was worried about what happened if you lose this game. We talked about this on Wednesday's show that they really needed an ugly, close game where they can grind it, win out, and win it at the end. It's not sexy. This was not a perfect game by any means. But in all honesty, this is exactly what they needed to move forward. Yeah, I mean, we talked about the fact that this is a team that just hasn't played in a lot of close games, right? And when they have, they haven't had a lot of success lately. This isn't the same team that maybe like that 2019 team or some of those other teams that had played better close games. I think to win a game like this on the road, they didn't score its own points. They didn't play exceptional defense, really. But they made the plays when they needed to. And they finished at certain points. And that was enough to win the game. And look, I mean, the part of the reason that we would have been upset with this team that they've lost is because we felt like this was a little bit of an inferior opponent. Maybe less so than other years, because I do think that they have improved that roster quite a bit since even last year. But this was inferior talent. The Cowboys needed a win big time. And if they were to lose this game, that would have been obviously really terrible. So the fact that they go out there and get the win, it shouldn't just be overlooked because it was a tough turnaround for the Cowboys. And losing two, it can really snowball on you when you're a young team. I'm like, God, that it didn't. I will never apologize for wins in the NFL. Wins are really hard to come by. You know what's even harder to come by is Thursday night football games on the road against the divisional opponent. These Thursday games, just in general, are really sloppy. So I don't know what anybody-- In brutal, and physical with the injuries and everything, it's like, it's really rough, man. I mean-- And that met my field as a atrocious. I'm glad that the Cowboys got through that game. I don't know if they got through it. We'll talk about some of the injuries later. But at least you won that game. You don't have to play it there again this year. That part of it's nice. As for what this does for them moving forward, one of the things that we always talk about in the offseason, when you look at the schedule, it's-- And this is a Bill Belichick thing. His goal-- Bill Belichick and Bill Parstiles have always said, get through September with a 500 record or better, preferably. And then you'll start to figure out what your football team is. And I think, lay them with-- Trainee can't be being reduced down. No two a days with-- Cowboys didn't play anybody in the preseason. So nobody played in the preseason. Even guys like Tyler Geith and Marsha Neeland were rested in a couple preseason games. The first month of the season is really like the extended NFL preseason. And as long as you're not one in three or all in four, you're putting yourself in a good position to make a run over the next three months. And that's what they did here. And I think also, just to kind of look at the progression, I think you've seen a thawing of this over the last three games. I mean, it's-- on the defensive side, it didn't feel like it got a ton better last week, obviously. But you saw flashes of like-- like a good example we'll talk about in the next segment, I'm sure, is Mazi. I think you saw a little bit of a group play, at least schematically. At least the kind of-- early on, they figured out the changes they wanted to make schematically to kind of help shore up some aspects of the run defense. And then you saw some of these younger players starting to play a little bit better. And I think that's what's also going to really help this very young team, is you're going to see these guys like Geithon and Beebe and Overshone and Mazi and guys who just-- not just rookies, but young players that haven't played a ton better-- as they get more opportunities, get more comfortable and start playing a lot better. And just the older players, like you said, that haven't played in pre-season. Now that they're kind of loosening their legs up in some of these games, you start to see the timing between deck and CVs a little bit better. You start to see a little bit better coordination, though we could talk about the penalties. That part was obviously atrocious. But I think as long as you're starting to see a progression towards a more organized football, then I think that that's a good sign that at least the team is kind of coming into their own file. Which we should talk about the penalties, because 11 for 89 in this game-- and there's so many other penalties that were either declined or offsetting penalties-- I mean, they were just throwing flags on every play for what felt like the whole middle of that game. I mean, obviously, a lot of these are the cowboys, but they were also to call holding on a wave down punt with four seconds left to go in the half. When-- what are we doing here? It's like, I don't know. That was my little rant about the refs. But outside of that, I think a lot of it had to do with, you know, guidance struggling at times and getting called for holding. And then even when he wasn't holding, he was getting called for holding. So it was tough. It was-- again, young guys are going to take their laps. Yeah, and that's one of these games. And usually you see a lot of penalties in short weeks with guys not preparing. But some of the penalties were just dumb. Like, for example, Karl Lawson jumping off sides on a third and long, right? Like you're jumping in the neutral zone. They got a pick on that play. You probably don't get to pick because Daniel Jones isn't throwing that pass. But the Giants ended up picking up the third down. They went down and kicked a field on that drive. Like, that's probably a three-point penalty. One, eight, Thomas had a bunch of penalties in this game. Just stuff like that that they could easily clean up. You clean up those kind of things. And that's the other thing, all right? The missed tackles. Felt like the only guys that could tackle in this game were Demarvian Overstone and Jordan Lewis. If it wasn't those two tackling, I don't know what would have happened in this one. Yeah, and then Mosie at times, too, right? But yeah, you're right, because it just felt like-- Mosie's were more like power slams in town. Yeah, God, that one. I really thought that guy was dead. Yeah, it just felt like part of it is that they're playing guys like Booth and I forgot the other guy's name who-- Oh, Joel Arrey, why is it? Yeah, and just not getting opportunities to play very much. And suddenly, now they're on the field a lot. And but it's not like a lot of the veterans were tackling better. I mean, if I can't do it, it's had a terrible tackling game. Donovan Wilson had a horrible tackling game. Donovan Lewis just had a really overall-- The Saints, he's both had bad games. I mean, what was Billy Cooker doing on that final play or the second to last play where Wandao Robinson got behind them? How were you letting somebody get behind you in that situation? Even going for the ball. I understand that you knew where the ball was. But still, like-- You missed, you missed. It's like the Raheem Morris play or Raheem Moore play with the Broncos against the-- Yeah, so it's frustrating. There's a lot to clean up. But you'd rather go to a film session, probably what now? On Tuesday, trying to clean up mistakes after a win than trying to clean these up after a loss. And I think that's one of the things you like. I think Mike McCarthy and Mike Zimmer can be really hard on their players. Like, hey, this is all the stuff we have to fix and get better at. But it's nice to get a win coming out of this. Where the Cowboys have gotten in trouble in the past, Landon, is they'll win some of these games like last year 40 to 0 or 47 to 17. And then I think you get people that are feeling maybe too good about where you're at. And that's where you see the letdown next week. They might have a letdown next week against Pittsburgh because they're maybe not very good. But I don't think it's going to be because they think they're awesome or anything like that. No, but I think that that's the thing is that watching this team kind of get better week to week, it's-- that's what we needed to see more than anything is that I just needed to see this team get better from last week. And I think part of the kind of outlook-- and we started the segment, the segment's about the kind of 10,000-foot view after a win. To me, I think the elements that I was afraid that they were not going to be able to improve in, things like this run defense because I wasn't sure if they had the personnel for it. And not that the Giants were some juggernaut run defense run-off offense. Although they ran really well against Cleveland last week, so it's not terrible. I think what you saw in a guy like Mazi Smith really-- and again, overshown, again, more of overshown, it just really gives you a little bit of hope in an area that you thought was going to be-- or you're certain was going to be an anchor for this team. Maybe there is an area where this team can improve as the season goes on. Maybe there's a little glimmer of hope in that specific spot. Game time makes getting to the ballpark even faster and easier. Prices on the game time app actually go down the closer it gets to first pitch. With killer last minute deals all in prices and their best price guarantee, game time takes the guesswork out of buying tickets. They're obsessed with finding ways to help you save money on tickets. Game time has deals on tickets right up to the start of the event, and even an hour after it starts. It's the place to find last-minute seats. 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Locked on sports today brings you can't miss analysis, opinions, and news streaming 24/7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team, every day. Hi, this is Jake from Locked On. There are a lot of moments in life that call for a celebration. Creating your state farm personal price plan can be one of them. Nothing feels better than a personal win from finishing a home DIY project, hitting a workout PR or even just taking your car in for that oil change, if you define it as a win, it calls for a celebration. And who's cheering right beside you? State Farm. With the state farm personal price plan, you can create an affordable price just for you when you bundle home and auto. So celebrate by breaking out the confetti in those happy dance moves. Talk to a state farm agent today to learn how you can bundle and save with a personal price plan. Like a good neighbor, state farm is there. Prices are based on rating claims that vary by state coverage options are selected by the customer availability amount of discounts and savings and eligibility vary by state. Their starting quarterback leaves them midweek, mid season. You are locked on coups. Your daily podcast on the Houston Cougars. This is a complicated situation. So pardon me for spending a whole segment talking about some other school, but UNLV had a gigantic, I don't know, distraction, problem, issue, whatever you want to call it, hit their front door step on Wednesday. Matthew Sluka, the transfer quarterback. That was my dog. Has the Rebels at three and oh, two and oh against the 12 teams for its worth. It has a real shot, UNLV does, at getting to the college football playoff as the top ranked group of five team, right? The top ranked group of five teams guaranteed a spot in the 12 team playoff. And UNLV feels like a team that could really do that. They got to play Syracuse in a couple weeks. And then the conference looks like it's going to kind of come down to them and Boise. They win those two games, they really might be. They're already in the top 25 for the first time since becoming a division one football program. Quarterback Matthew Sluka has decided to pull himself from that program. He decided to pull himself this early in the season because having played just three games, he can preserve his red shirt and have a full season of eligibility left. His comment included the quote, "I committed the UNLV on certain representations "that were made to me, "which were not upheld after I enrolled." Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future. So he sets away from the program and does not look like he's coming back anytime soon. Now, he tweeted that at like midnight in West Coast time over the course night, going into Wednesday morning. And on the course of Wednesday, more news came out, right? A lot of Ross Dellinger, a lot of Pete Tamil reporting here. And in the middle of the day, I'm combining a lot of the reports you to get through stuff. But reportedly, Sluka's agent says that Sluka, the quarterback was told and what their team would argue, their group would argue of verbal agreement that he'd make $100,000. And Sluka's father reportedly has said that separately, two different reports, they haven't received any of that money. The agent would later tag in and reiterate that we must allow the negotiations and written arguments to happen and not put so many regulations on them. The school and coaches are negotiating, which were allowing someone else to pay for it, hoping they get the money from the boosters. So the agent is admitting here that there may have been some talks to a coach, but the money's not coming from the coaches. The money's coming from elsewhere. And that because of all of the complications in trying to write something so much of this happening verbally, that seems to be problematic here. The agent says that coaches made the promise that collective have made no payments. And it's interesting to say the least because those are two functioning different arms that I guess inherently don't have to talk to one another. But in modern college football, we all kind of assumed do. And with them not speaking together or not being on the same page, thanks and get a little wonky. The agent also said that coaches made the promise, the collective has made no payments. The school and the coaches are commenting that that's just not what happened. And they argue, and the school's argued very bluntly, that UNLV does not engage in such activity, nor does it respond to implied threats. The agreement would have functionally been paid for play, which presently illegal. Now I will point out that president-legal in terms of insulate football rules, the house settlement is being worked on as we speak. And those conversations may yield a world where that's not illegal and possible against the rules. And so I want to say that that's legal for the NCAA presently. And the very new future, it might not be. Now Sluka has a year left and is getting out at a point with this red shirt that he can keep that. And he was not the only UNLV player to go through this. Back up running back, Michael Allen has done the same. He didn't allude to any NIL deals, anything like that. And I think I believe I saw, I couldn't tell it was his Twitter account or not, but a tweet from an account that looked like his, saying that it's not actually tied to NIL at all. It's more about on field stuff, promises about playing time and things like that being unable to be fulfilled. And we've seen, I guess, that world a little bit more in the past where kids show up there and they're gonna play a lot and then they don't because the other kids are better or the coaching staff's got Tony running backs or whatever, right? Those are much more common conversations, but that's two of the leading four rushers for UNLV in a rush heavy offense as we saw up close and in person are backing out of the program just three weeks into what is already a historic season for the school. I don't think I need to stress to you that UNLV is up the creek without a paddle and I'm not telling you what the creek is filled with, right? They've got problems with this. And frankly, if nothing else, they've got PR problems, right? Because what it looks like to anyone that was prospectively looking at, "Hey, it'd be fun to live in Las Vegas and play college football and do a bunch of things," is you've got one player saying he got promised cash, he'd never get, right? And even if that is a far cry from the truth, has a smell of truth, a whiff of truth, that PR issue is damaging to what Odom is building as a coach, what his staff is doing. You know, frankly, a staff that has kind of leaped and jumped and like Brendan Marion's one of the hot offensive coordinator options out there for schools trying to pluck guys through with Fiving, the staff is well regarded and this, you could argue, could lead to being kind of a pretty big blemish on those guys' resume, who on the staff promised money, how many guys promised money where they ain't gonna hoots and promise this money, who knew about the, is any of this real, right? All of those conversations have to happen, right? And so suddenly we're in a world where all of college football is talking about a quarterback that eight months ago was at UNLV. It was at, sorry, eight months ago was at Holy Cross, not even at UNLV. And I think what interesting in looking at this too, is that Slookett and transfer officially till the start of the summer. They went on and got other quarterbacks putting Hoshmelik Williams from Campbell. We talked about the multiple quarterback options they had going into that game for Houston, right? And they had Hoshmelik play the entire spring before ultimately playing at Slookett and Holy Cross. It sounds like there may have been some agreement with Slookett to like finish his degree and then come after the fact that's still kind of sketchy. But I say that because some of these agreements were being made in what was like, it sounds like the handshake verbal agreement kind of stuff may have been in an early transfer window, even though Slookett finished out the spring semester at Holy Cross. That part admittedly though is murky and is one that I'm still trying to wade my way through the waters on regardless. The UNLV situation is messy. Sticky is problematic on a bunch of different fronts and frankly is valedying a lot of people opinions on college football today. And it's also really gut punching from a bunch of people that really love this board of college football. And I cannot imagine being a UNLV Rebels fan having to watch this go through the program that you've grown to love, right? A historic season for that program. - Georgia and Alabama will face off in one of the biggest games of the year. And we're talking ball with the SEC Squaz. - We gotta dive into it. We know Jimmy kind of gave us the primer already for Alabama, Georgia. But look, there's a lot of hype. There's a lot of movement being, you know, moving towards Alabama. I've already been reading articles about how Jalen Milro's gonna tear it up this week, that Georgia's overrated 'cause they only be Kentucky by one point. Who's feeling Georgia? Anybody feeling Georgia right now? There's still the fandals got 'em as the two and a half point favorite right now. - Yeah, I just honestly don't know. It's a situation. If Alabama loses this game, that Tennessee game is gonna be absolutely massive. Georgia loses this game, that Texas game is going to be absolutely massive. And I, Bama being a home dog, I don't know what to do with that. I don't know what that is. That's like me reading a foreign language at this point. - The first time it's happened since 2007 in Nick Saban's first year in Tuscaloosa. First time in 17 years. That Alabama's been a home underdog and there's been a lot of big games of Brian Denny. We'll see what that line looks like. I think closer to Kicko. I can see a lot of late money coming in on Alabama myself. And I won't be surprised if it's kind of closer to a pick 'em. We'll have to see. - It opened as a pick 'em like a week ago after the Georgia-Kentucky game going. And then it went to two and a half and one and a half. And it was like four and a half this summer. So it's, it's been all over the place. - Right. But we'll see again, one other thing to point out. - Rhyme Williams wasn't born the last time Alabama was a whole hundred dollars in just such a great extent. - It's really interesting too. I mean, this is the true test for Kaitlyn DeBore. Look, he passed the first test. They went on the road beat Wisconsin, but everybody expected him to do that. This is the first introduction to the SEC for Kaitlyn DeBore. Look, you want it Fresno State and Washington. You know, you beat a good team in the playoffs, but like this is the real deal of, you're playing Kirby Smart, whose program has been on an absolute role the last three seasons. - Yeah, and I think when you look at it, you know, last year, you know, Alabama got in the way of Georgia, potentially three-peating, right? I think if Georgia gets into the playoffs, they more than likely beat Michigan. And, you know, you talked about a Gordy on the previous shows, you know, this isn't, you know, Sioux Falls or Washington. This is big boy football in the SEC, a big test for Kaitlyn DeBore. And I think it's gonna come down to which quarterback do you trust a little bit more in this matchup, right? Is it gonna be, you know, Carson Beck, or is it gonna be Jalen Milro? And I just think Kirby Smart, he gets this team ready to go. They find a way to force Jalen Milro to be a passer, and I trust Carson Beck a little bit more in that situation. I think Georgia covers and wins by more than two and a half in this game on the road at Alabama. - Jonathan, if there was only an example of these two teams and these two quarterbacks ever playing before, I would love, God, there was only just one example of these guys ever suiting up and playing on the same field. Oh, and they did that last year. And Carson Beck was the one that fumbled inside his 15, and bam, end up getting a win in a game they were underdog. - Nelson, they've been an underdog last three times they've played Georgia. They've beaten him twice. The only two losses that Kirby has in the last two years, or three years, both to both to Bama. So I think this is, I'll tell you what, I don't think that anybody from a rival fan base or from Georgia's fan base is ready to live in a world where they lose to Alabama again. That's all I'm gonna say. If they didn't get the plan out. - There's also a baby difference between last year though. Yeah. - Yeah. - Saban. - Saban was a key part of that. - They blew up in Texas last year, and they only beat him by one point this year. Is that the big difference? - You know, my concern in this game is that Kaelyn DeBora will try and make Jaelyn Millroy into Michael Pinnix. And if that happens, he could be a little bit trouble throwing the football. Now, if they just run the ball and they line up and they can have some success doing that, you can see where Alabama could be kind of a juggernaut in this game to where Georgia is in a little bit of trouble. I'm just worried that they might fall into that trap of trying to make him Michael Pinnix. - And we saw the South Florida Bulls. I mean, they bottled up Millroy for about three quarters until the fourth quarter when the game broke. - Yeah. - Yeah, I think a real key to this game, a real indicator for me guys is Russian yards. I think if I wake up Sunday morning, look at the team stats. Alabama's only path to winning this game is to outrush Georgia. That's where Alabama's at their best. It's not just Jam Miller. It's not just Justice Haynes. It's Jalen Millroy too. And I think if you look at the Russian yards Sunday morning and Georgia outrushed Alabama, Georgia won this game. Alabama's only path is winning that battle at the line of scrimmage and having those three guys all kind of go off. And I kind of look for Jam Miller to have a pretty big game Saturday night. - Yeah, getting paid for it really helped. - Jimmy, if Georgia wins this game, how does the Alabama fan base react to this? - That's a great question, Zach. 'Cause there hasn't been a lot of home loss. Obviously the biggest home game last year is the loss to Texas. That resulted in the quarterback being benched the following. There was a reaction, not just from the fans, but from the coaches as well. I think there will be a bit of a loud reaction, but there's also the reality of, hey, you lost to Texas last year and kind of the same spot still made it to a 14 playoff. So I think logically, I don't think there would be a lot of leaping off buildings, but not everyone's logical, anyone's fan base. So I do suspect it will be loud and some, look, Alabama just hasn't lost a lot of these games and hasn't lost to Georgia much at all. I think Kirby's won in five against Alabama since he's been at Georgia. So I think the fan base would handle it better than some think, but yeah, there'll be some noise. I think the one thing that people do genuinely forget about this matchup is that a year ago, I don't think anybody expected that Alabama team to beat Georgia, like that Alabama team versus that Georgia team. And they go to Atlanta and ban was up by double digits for most of that game. And at the end of the fourth quarter, when you started seeing Georgia come back, even I said they're watching and I was like, this is like at some point, you felt like the dam was going to break, right? And what they did on offense and what Nick Saban and in Tommy recid was they put the ball and the game in Jalen, Melrose hands and they, and he went out and won it like with like design runs and wrinkles in the offense that you hadn't seen for 12 games leading up to that. And I think that that's a big thing that people don't give Jalen, Melrose enough credit for. - Quick show of hands. Who's take that? Look, you change your opinion later than a week, but who's lean in Bama right now? Show of hands. We got about four of us. Marlar, Jonathan and Brandon are leaning in the Georgia bowl. (mumbles) Marlar just made the case for Alabama for like five minutes. - Let me do my, let me emotionally hedge the way I want to emotionally, Jimmy knows exactly who I am. I'm talking about 'cause it'll, that is my, it's just Marlar's reverse rap poison. Marlar's reverse rap poison, right? - That's your favorite song for Marlar's. - You got to pull a Pat Mcery on lock by an SEC. I respect it. - Yeah, I got show. - All right, we got a couple minutes left in this segment. We've done the real football analytical talk now. It's just time to make fun of Auburn and Oklahoma. I mean, what is this game going to be, Zach? - NC 17. - Recorded with the guys that locked on Sooners earlier this week and we decided like I was nice instead of the race to 20 points and they corrected me and said, hey, it may be a race to 10 points as far as who wins this one. And to me, like statistically, Auburn's offense has been fine. They just turn it over like every five plays it feels like. If they can fix the turnovers, which is a big if they'll win on Saturday, but that is a big, big if and Oklahoma's defense has been pretty opportunistic when it comes to getting the football. - I don't know if you know this, but part of being a pretty good offense is not turning the ball. - No question, no question. - Brand rules. - Yeah, here we are. Here we are. 'Cause it's about good football and it's a Florida and New York Giants fan, right there. - I know what that football looks like and trust me, buddy, you're right in there and I know right now, no question. You got the tags from your discord. Do you mean to my team? Keep on crying, buddy. - Yeah, I think what makes this game interesting, you know, on the Oklahoma side is the bench and of Jackson Arnold and you bring in, you know, the true freshman Michael Hawkins, right? How is he gonna perform in his first start in that environment in a role game at Auburn? I'm sure the crowd is gonna be, you know, turned up, but I just can't, you know, bring myself. I'm not the smartest better, right? You know, that's why Vegas looks the way it does. But I just can't bring myself to bed on, you know, I'm Peyton Thorne, you know, whatever the other quarterbacks name is against a Brent Vinnables defense, right? You know what I'm saying? I just can't see how that's gonna be an advantageous matchup for the Auburn Tigers. So, you know, I think Oklahoma and Michael Hawkins in his first start, I think they go in there and win the game. But, you know, hey, I mean, there's gonna be a lot of silliness this weekend at Auburn. - Exactly. - I'll hang around. - Go ahead, too. - Get hang around, there you go. - Hang around, there you go, hang around, there you go. - And Peyton Thorne, get the bus off of him. (laughs) - This is the game. - I don't think they feel like that their coach threw him under the bus. But that is certainly the narrative. - Do you think if they would've tried to throw him under the bus, it would've been intercepted? (laughs) - Who do you think would've caught it, Marlar, if they did try to throw the bus at three? - It probably would've been on the other team, for sure. You know what's amazing? And it's fun to give you a hard time, Zach, because you kind of voiced what a lot of Auburn fans did, this offseason, which was looking at this, like all this preseason, Hope and Hype, and it happens with every team, right? It's the beauty of the offseason being a champion of August. Every single fan base has it. But looking at that schedule, I heard so many Auburn fans looking at me like, dude, we're gonna be born. Oh, go ahead, like go into that Oklahoma game. - Well, they should've come in there. - I mean, there's no way we could've gone into that thinking, yeah, you're gonna turn it over five times in the two games that matter in the first four games. Like, there's no way you could assume that going in there. - I never heard any Auburn fans break down any of those games thinking, this is the reason why outside of home field advantage we're going to be four and no, and potentially five in our field Oklahoma game. And then you had to get on the field and actually play, you know, like what do I always say, Gordy? They gotta tee up that ball at 3.30 and you gotta line up and play somebody. Like, that's where they've been tough. - Yeah, yeah. And I think the effort, especially on the offensive side of the football, I mean, they've just been outplayed against Cal and against Arkansas. And then, I mean, I do think the roster is better, but to your point, like it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. You gotta suit up and play. - And you think it'll be Thorin? You think they'll go back to Thorin on Saturday? - Yeah, I think it'll be Thorin on Saturday. - I have to ask you a question, Zach, because I didn't get to experience this as a fellow bad SEC program. - Great. I love where this is going. - What was it like to score a lot of points in a win in week one this year? - That was fun. That was like straight euphoric. My mind just got demolished right away, so. - But also seems like forever ago. I mean, there's just been so much pain since then. I like to think I'm stronger for it, but I don't know. - This boy is not for Cal Twitter. I do. A boy is that for Cal Twitter. - Yeah, they take it over. - What does that mean? - If Cal would not have beaten Auburn, they would not have became what they became. - The top five storyline of Cal Twitter. - It's Cal Twitter, baby. - Cal Twitter, Cal Twitter. - All that is very fortunate that this is a week where they can bounce back and win if they score like 12 points. - Yeah, we don't accept your kindness, Jimmy. We don't accept your kindness. - It's true. I mean, Auburn can have a big bounce back win and score like 12 points. - Isn't Mississippi State beat Arkansas seven to three last year? So maybe this one is a repeat seven to three. - Game time makes getting to the ballpark even faster and easier prices on the game time app actually go down the closer it gets to first pitch. With killer last minute deals all in prices and their best price guarantee, game time takes the guesswork out of buying tickets. They're obsessed with finding ways to help you save money on tickets. Game time has deals on tickets right up to the start of the event and even an hour after it starts. It's the place to find last minute seats. Find exclusive flash deals and sponsored deals on tickets for football, basketball, baseball, concerts, comedy, theater and more. And the game time guarantee means you'll always get the best price. If you find tickets in the same section in a row for less, game time will credit you 110% of the difference. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with game time download the free app and new users can get $20 off their first purchase with code locked on. Terms apply, that's code locked on for $20 off your first purchase with game time. Download the game time app today last minute tickets the lowest price guaranteed. Are you watching Fox Sports or ESPN on your TV all day? Have to turn down the volume with all that shouting? Make the switch to locked on sports today, a free 24/7 sports streaming channel programmed for you every day to bring you the biggest stories without all the screaming. Locked on sports today brings you camis analysis, opinions and news streaming 24/7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app. Part of the locked on podcast network, your team every day. - Is Illinois for real? They got a big test and a happy valet. You're talking ball with the Big Ten squad. - I have something I want to share with you. This is from Matt Sheehan from Locked On. Spartans who could not be here today. This is directed at you, Jay. - Oh, Josh. - Of course, no locked on Buckeyes. - Oh, Josh. - From the offices of Locked On Spartans, I regret I am not able to attend tonight's chat with you marvelous gentlemen. I am here to get ahead of Jay Stevens, the golden voice of Locked On Buckeyes, asking if I and Michigan State are ready for our butt kicking. The answer is, yes, I am. I am numb to all 30 plus point defeats against Ohio State, thanks to the last four years. But the joke's on Jay. This game being on peacock means only six people outside of Michigan State and Ohio State will even know about it. And odds are they'll switch to binging on below deck episodes before it truly gets out of hand. So ha. - Jay, I'll let you respond to Matt who is not here. - I mean, it is kind of nice for the Spartans fans that the game is on the peacock. So they don't have to be embarrassed by the nation. It's just more people that are making sure they got the peacock in. They can figure out how to pay for it to find it. I'm ready for this game. I know Matt's ready for a beat down once again. Ohio State's really owned Michigan State of late. And I think it's gonna be the same thing as coming Saturday. Ryan Day's not happy. Yes, Ohio State won big once again on Saturday, but he's not happy with the way the defense played. There was no defensive player of the game for the game this past weekend because Jim Knowles said nobody really showed in play like they were, they were what they called the silver bull of the game. So I do expect Michigan State to not only get beat, but to get beat bad because the players are gonna try to get that award because nobody got it last week. - You know, you know things are going well when, they're trying something to complain about over there in Ohio State. You guys look good to me. - Yeah, we complain about a lot of stuff. I did a show recently, I think on Tuesday about the defense and just really kind of talking about some things that were kind of exposed against Marshall, but stuff that has been the same song and dance over and over. Will Howard said, when you win 49 to 14, no one's really gonna complain. That's what we do in Columbus. We find things to complain about and we're doing it right now because it's not just beating teams bad. It's winning a national championship in this season. - So prediction 30 plus point win for you guys over Michigan. Michigan State likes to turn the ball over a lot. Charles throws a lot of interceptions. - Yeah, I would say 30 plus. I haven't really got that far to put a score prediction down. I think 30 plus is easy for this game. - All right, Sonny, let's talk to you. The Finding Alignite 4-0 ranked going into Beaver Stadium. Did I see the point spread today? Is like 17 points on that thing? Still no respect for the Finding Alignite. - You know, last year or sorry, last week, I think the kickoff was Nebraska minus nine. I was surprised. I figured the spread would open up anywhere from 10 to 13 seeing that 17 and a half number. Again, we're just gonna have to go into, you know, Penn State and try to win back some respect. The crowd just doesn't want to give it to us yet. - Can they do it though? Can they do it? - Can they make it respectable? Let me put it that way. I think they can make it respectable. Nebraska's different in the sense where I had us, I had that as a coin flip game. I know a lot of people, including everyone here, except for Jacob, I did watch last week, had Nebraska winning. I thought Illinois would compete. I knew Brett would have the team ready. Penn State's just kind of on a different level. They're a tier above. And so I'm not sure if Illinois can go into a hostile environment two weeks in a row and, you know, shock the world. - Was it personal, Sonny? - I promise. Was it personal, man? Truly. Yeah, we got both games wrong, but we really don't need to get into that. - Yeah. If our reasons were simple, I had no reason. And so if I'm wrong, it's not that big of a deal. It's not the end of the world. For what it's worth, I think Illinois can compete with Penn State, honestly, 'cause I just don't trust Penn State because it's Penn State that until they prove to me they can beat quality teams. And I think Illinois is a quality team right now. No, I'm not. I think Penn State will probably win, but I think Illinois can compete. Yeah, no doubt. Well, that's where I'm pretty much at. But again, you know, I don't think we're going to get blown out. I think 17 and a half is kind of a ridiculous number. I'm just saying my expectation isn't necessarily that we're going to go in there and all of a sudden surprise them just like Nebraska. I think that we're going to have a competitive game unlike what a lot of Nebraska fans, or sorry, Penn State fans and Las Vegas things. - Well, I think Luke Almar, I used to call the most underrated quarterback in the Big 10, but he was just named the co-office of player of the week. So he's not underrated anymore. And the secondary for the Penn State defense is not as elite as it has been. They struggled against Bowling Green. I think two receivers got over 100 yards. I think there's something to be had there for Illinois in this game. They're not going to go in there and get their doors blown off, I don't think. - No, and they discovered they were running game a little bit last week against Nebraska too. I was doing an episode where we talked about the PF grades for Luke Almar. And basically, every time he has a clean pocket, he's nailing the wide receiver right on target, nine out of 10 throws, which is second in the entire country. Give him time, give him a clean pocket. He'll make the right throw. And he's got two wide receivers that are going to be playing on Sundays next week. So again, the talent level is there. They were kind of, we were under the radar a lot, Illinois. We weren't very like a sexy team as they like to say, but they're performing. - Four-nose, four-nose. - Zack, how are the Huskies feeling about traveling all the way across the country, going to Piscataway and taking on a Rutgers team that's better than people think? - Zack, do you want to take that? That's, that's fine with the way, if you want it. - Oh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. - We had the wrong schedule. - Actually, that's my bet. Yeah, Roman, I answered this question. - No, I'll tell you three, Roman. (laughing) Happy to. See, that's why I wore my Friday nightlight shirt this week. Very excited about that matchup. This isn't the first time Washington has actually had to make this trip. It's been a very long time. It was about four head coaches ago at this point, 'cause that was Chris Peterson in 2017. But actually, we talked to Jonah Coleman today. And one of the things that he said was, I play my best games on the road. You go back and you look at it and yeah. You know, it had a really nice game at USC last year, dominated Colorado on the ground. I mean, not that that's hard to do, but you know, different thing there. I scored three touchdowns at Washington State last year as well. Something where Rutgers is giving up 161 yards per game on the ground. So if Washington is going to win this game, it's going to be in the trenches. I have reservations. This is a really well coached unit. I love what Greg Chiano is doing. Kyle Minagay is so much fun to watch. But I really think this is going to be a hard fought battle. I know our friends at FanDool have Rutgers minus two and a half right now. So, you know, neutral field, that's basically a push. And I'm really curious to see how this game plays out. - Our poor friend Zach has us spoken since Craig blasted him in the open, saying, "You see how they played a good first half." I mean, nobody's, I mean, we all just left that slot. He was just like, "Yeah, a good first half." And then he moved on. - The Huskies, though, you know, good. - Yeah. - Yeah. - Yeah, sorry, Zach. - That's a great point. Real quick, one more thing on the Huskies. This game's going to be over in about two and a half hours because both teams just run the ball. They're two great running backs going at it. You mentioned Kyle Minagay for Rutgers. So I think there's going to be a lot of rushing yards in this one, don't you think? - Yeah, and you know what? That's fine by me as, you know, I'm not going to be able to travel for that game, which I'm not personally complaining about. But yeah, you know, quick and easy, because you get on here, do a reaction show, all that sort of stuff. I'm not complaining about a fast game time this week. - All right, now, Zach, UCLA, let's talk about, yes, after the Indiana beat down, you guys got to the film room and fixed some things. At least that game was tied at the half at LSU. Your thoughts on what happened in the second half before we look ahead to what's coming up here against Oregon? - I'll just throw this one to Jacob. Indiana better than LSU. I mean, if you look at the tape, how about that? What about that? Maybe if you go by scar comparison, but looking what they did to LSU, I think UCLA came out with a better game plan. LSU is a little bit overrated, but the Bruins most importantly, just didn't drop the first ball they gave. They didn't just drop the first play. And even though they gave a touchdown for the third straight game on the opening drive, they responded well, did good things. I thought Brian Kelly had a terrible fourth and seven call to go for it at midfield to give UCLA a chance early, but then LSU is just, they're so strong in the trenches. That's UCLA's weakness. And after being beaten down physically by Indiana and worn down on a hot humid day in Louisiana, let me tell you I was there, it was very hot. It was doable, at least for me, but it was a hot humid day. The Bruins just don't have the strength on the offensive and defensive line to hang with more physical teams and win those games just yet. - All right. And yeah, I heard people were dropping like flies out there. All right, now the game of the century. Now I'm just kidding, but Jacob, well, you know, we love our Hoosiers. We're going against Maryland this weekend. What are your thoughts on this one? Going to the game 4-0? - Yeah, 4-0 and after, you know, an impressive performance against Charlotte. Kurt Signeti was not overly impressed that he wasn't impressed by the defensive line play, says that can improve. Kurtis Roerich doing his thing, the offense is chugging right along, another 50 point performance. But he is cautiously nervous, I think, for this Maryland game. I would check in Fandall throughout the week. A seven point favorite right around in there for Indiana, which seems weird, but we are at home at Memorial Stadium. So I feel good about it, but I do think we should be, you know, a little cautious. And I think Signeti will have the boys ready to go. - Game time makes getting to the ballpark even faster and easier. Prices on the game time app actually go down the closer it gets to first pitch. With killer last minute deals all in prices and their best price guarantee, game time takes the guesswork out of buying tickets. They're obsessed with finding ways to help you save money on tickets. Game time has deals on tickets right up to the start of the event and even an hour after it starts. It's the place to find last minute seats. Find exclusive flash deals and sponsored deals on tickets for football, basketball, baseball concerts, comedy, theater and more. And the game time guarantee means you'll always get the best price. If you find tickets in the same section in a row for less, game time will credit you 110% of the difference. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with game time, download the free app and new users can get $20 off their first purchase with code locked on. Terms apply, that's code locked on for $20 off your first purchase with game time. Download the game time app today, last minute tickets, the lowest price guaranteed. Are you watching Fox Sports or ESPN on your TV all day? Have to turn down the volume with all that shouting. Make the switch to locked on sports today, a free 24/7 sports streaming channel programmed for you every day to bring you the biggest stories without all the screaming. Locked on sports today brings you Can't Miss analysis, opinions and news streaming 24/7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app. Part of the locked on podcast network, your team every day. What the bills need to do to deal with them. You are locked on bills, your daily Buffalo bills podcast. Well folks, let's get ready for it. A big one for the bills in week four on the road to face the Baltimore Ravens. The game will be played on Sunday, September 29th, 8, 20 p.m. Eastern time at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. The game will be broadcasted on NBC. Mike Tareko is on the play-by-play, Chris Collinsworth, the game analyst and Melissa Stark, the sideline reporter. I know that Chris Collinsworth doesn't have a lot of fans in Bill's mafia, but I will say, if you can overlook the commentating, I think NBC's presentation of a football game is the best out there. I love the replays, I love their camera angles. I think they do a great job with the presentation of the game, even if you don't like Chris Collinsworth. This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the Bills and Ravens. The Bills have an all-time record of five and six against Baltimore. Sean McDermott, two and one, against the Lamar Jackson Ravens, the last meeting in 2022, the Bills won 23 to 20. Then it was the playoff win, 17 to three win in 2021. And then in 2019, that's the game that the Ravens beat the Bills with Lamar Jackson. That was Lamar's big MVP season, his first MVP season, and Baltimore won 24 to 17. The Bills enter this game 3-0. They're one of five teams currently at 3-0. There were nine 2-0 teams entering week three, and that got cut down to five. We'll see how many remain undefeated after week four. The Ravens enter this game one and two. They dropped their first game, 27 to 20, to the Chiefs to open up the NFL season. Had a chance to win that game at the end, but I would say their offense couldn't execute over those last three opportunities to tie up the game. Then they lose to the Raiders in week two, 26 to 23. Lost to Vegas in week two. They blew a 10-point fourth quarter lead, and then last week they beat Dallas 28 to 25 at a big-time rushing output. 45 rushes, 274 yards against Dallas, and Lamar was 12 of 15 for 182 yards. I mean, they were just running the ball. It was very much like the game that the Bills beat Dallas in last year, where you just kind of snatched their soul, pounding the rock and sprinkling some passing, and that's what happened for them against Dallas. It was a commanding lead that they had, and Dallas kind of made it interesting late in that game. Dak Prescott, 51 passing attempts in that game. Dallas only ran it 16 times. Head coach of the Baltimore Ravens, John Harbaugh, 62 years old. This is his 17th season as the Ravens head coach is a record of 161 and 101. In his 16 previous seasons, right? This is his 17th season. They have 11 playoff appearances, five division titles, four AFC Championship game appearances and three of those four came in his first five seasons. They lost it twice before they won it on their third try, and then eventually they won the Super Bowl. So Super Bowl winning coach, John Harbaugh. Quarterback of the Baltimore Ravens. You know, this guy, Lamar Jackson, 27 years old, was a first round pick in 2018. Number 32 overall, out of Louisville, six foot two, 205 pounds, has started 89 career games, and the Ravens are 59 and 21 in those starts. Last, excuse me, this season so far, he's 59 of 90. He's completing 66% of his passes, 702 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception and a passer rating of 95.7 so far through three games. Let's dive in a little deeper to the metrics and talk about Lamar as a player. So far this season, he has an EPA, expected points added, that's a big metric for me right now. Expected points added really kind of takes what a normal situation is, right? And every situation that's ever happened in the history of football and what the regular outcome is, and then how much you exceed that buy is where you get EPA. So it's a very good metric. It's a, it's an all-inclusive number that we're gonna use a lot on this podcast. So 0.04 EPA per drop pack, that is 11th best in the NFL. He's not throwing the ball deep very often. 8.9% of throws deep, that's 20th in the NFL in terms of frequency. And on those deep throws, he's basically, he's one of eight, one of eight for 38 yards on throws, 20 yards or more down the field. Josh Allen's deep ball percentage is 11.1%. So neither a quarterback with a lot of production or frequency down the field. Yards after catch, Lamar's getting that. 60% of his yards come after the catch. That's 8th in the NFL. Josh Allen's 64.2%. He's towards the very top, I think he's second. Second or third in yards after catch per reception or excuse me, yards after catch as a percentage of overall passing. First read percentage, Lamar throws to his first read, 64% of the time, that's 20th in the NFL. A comparison, Josh Allen, 55.6%. Dead last, Josh Allen throws to his first read, fewer than any other quarterback in the NFL. Lamar's catchable ball percentage, not good. 72.2%, that's 27th. So very low in terms of accuracy so far this season. Josh Allen, 82%, 9th best in the NFL. Lamar's off target throw percentage is 18%, that's 10th highest in the NFL. Josh Allen, 9.7%, that is 28th. Neither quarterback turning over the ball or putting the ball in harm's way. Lamar's turnover worthy throw percentage, only 1.1%. Fifth lowest in the NFL, Josh Allen, 1.4%, sixth lowest in the NFL. So big play quarterbacks that are taking care of the ball. Drops not happening from Lamar this year, I know last year it was kind of an issue, but 2.2% drop rate so far, seventh lowest in the NFL. His pressure rate is middle of the pack, 34.6%. He's pressured on drop backs. Again, middle of the pack, 15th there. And of course, just like Josh Allen, very good at not letting pressure turn into sacks, only 8.1% of his pressure results in a sack, that's third lowest in the NFL. Josh Allen, number one in the league there at 5.7%. 22% of his drop backs are play action, that's 20th in the NFL. And so you can kind of get an idea of what the picture is here for Lamar Jackson in terms of those metrics. And if you're interested in metrics, I have a brand new sub stack that I launched about a month ago where I'm writing articles, three plus articles a week, where I am breaking down a lot of things with the bills. And one of my weekly posts is Josh Allen Weekly, where I dive into all of his metrics, provide film, provide analysis for you to really understand how Josh Allen is playing. So that comes out every week and actually dropped yesterday in the sub stack. So if you'd like to check out the sub stack, there's a link in today's show notes that you can find that and get even more content from me on the written side. Having a lot of fun there, it's really gone well. A lot of great feedback. Come see what it's all about. Link in today's show notes in every day's show notes. For Lamar Jackson running the ball, also of course a big part of what he does, 35 rushes for 255 yards, that's very comfortably the most rushing yards for any quarterback in the NFL. And he's just an electric athlete. You know, a guy that can really accelerate, he can make you miss, he can rip off chunks of yardage. Very, very talented runner with the football. And then I think one of the big talking points we have to talk about with Lamar as it relates to his matchup against the bills defense is where Lamar Jackson likes to throw the football. He throws it short to intermediate and he throws it to the middle of the field. That's where he wants to throw the ball. And he's having a lot of success. Right now on throws that are 10 to 19 air yards, he's got a passer rating of 153.9. He's doing well in that area. So the deep stuff's not really there, but that intermediate range is outstanding. And then he's got a perfect 158.3 passer rating between the numbers with an depth of target 10 to 19 yards. So that middle of the field, intermediate range, that's where Lamar likes to throw the ball and he's doing it extremely well. And so for this bills defense that has been terrific with the new safety tandem, with a, you know, with the injuries on the second level to Taren Johnson, Trauburnard, Matt Milano, they're gonna be tested in some new ways in this contest just based on where Baltimore likes to throw the ball, where Lamar likes to throw the ball. And we'll talk more about this in the next segment, but the bills have played the third lowest percentage of one high middle of the field clothes coverage, 36% of the time. And so structurally, are they gonna play defense differently against this team to kind of protect where you would perceive they have some weaknesses? You know, the bills would love for teams to throw the ball and challenge Christian Pentford and Rasul Douglas, right? That's a dream. But that's not really where Lamar throws the ball. So will you invite those throws to the middle of the field with how you've structurally played defense so far this year? Or are you gonna switch it up? We'll find out, whatever they do, they better be right. - Game time makes getting to the ballpark even faster and easier. Prices on the game time app actually go down the closer it gets to first pitch. With killer last minute deals all in prices and their best price guarantee, game time takes the guesswork out of buying tickets. They're obsessed with finding ways to help you save money on tickets. Game time has deals on tickets right up to the start of the event and even an hour after it starts. It's the place to find last minute seats. Find exclusive flash deals and sponsored deals on tickets for football, basketball, baseball, concerts, comedy, theater and more. And the game time guarantee means you'll always get the best price. If you find tickets in the same section in a row for less, game time will credit you 110% of the difference. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with game time, download the free app and new users can get $20 off their first purchase with code locked on. Terms apply, that's code locked on for $20 off your first purchase with game time. Download the game time app today, last minute tickets, the lowest price guaranteed. Are you watching Fox Sports or ESPN on your TV all day? Have to turn down the volume with all that shouting? Make the switch to locked on sports today, a free 24/7 sports streaming channel programmed for you every day to bring you the biggest stories without all the screaming. Locked on sports today brings you camis analysis, opinions and news streaming 24/7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app. Part of the locked on podcast network, your team, every day. What the San Francisco 49ers have to do to beat the New England Patriots. You are locked on 49ers. Your daily San Francisco 49ers podcast. Jevon Hargreib, obviously he's getting surgery. He's going to be out for probably the regular season. Maybe there's a chance he comes back of the 49ers get deep into the playoffs, but a good chance is his 24/24 season is done and the immediate replacement is going to have to come from in-house and I still think there's some potential for the 49ers as they've done in the past to make some moves at the trade deadline. And we don't even know what the roster is going to look like but the way the injuries are coming might have bigger injuries than on the defensive line. Who knows? Before the trade deadline comes in about a month. So Jevon Hargreib is out and there's some names that could potentially replace him. Mostly guys in the practice squad, they brought Shaquille Brownback who was in camp with the Niners. They had Evan Anderson who was undrafted free agent, for your body, rookie. And then a guy we're familiar with who's been up and down on the big roster in the practice squad multiple times last couple of years that is T-Y McGill. So one of those guys and then maybe even a second defensive lineman potentially could be brought up 'cause it looks like they're gonna have a couple of open spots here on the roster to get going in week number four. Do any of those names need anything to you? And I'm gonna tie this into my key to victory, Crock my first one because the 49ers got a win up front. This team's built around the defensive line. They can't screw around and have, you know, a couple of pressures and that's it, right? They got to get after Jacobi for setting this game. - Nothing that really jumps out to me. You know, you think of a guy like McGill and know that he's a veteran. So at the very least he can come in and I don't think anything is gonna be too much for him. There's not gonna be too much learning on the job. He understands the scheme. He understands exactly what he's expected of him. So, you know, I think for the 49er faithful, it's understanding what is to be expected of him. And, you know, he's not gonna be the same type of, you know, defensive tackle that's gonna get a sack or two that you might get from hard raves in the game or potentially get that maybe a more consistent pass pressure in the hard raves. You won't get that, but I think for the most part right now with the 49ers looking for on that defensive line is such stability. So McGill can, you know, give you a little bit of that. I think that would be a win for the 49ers. And more bad news for the 49ers. This is not a major injury, but the guy who's gonna jump into the starting lineup for Jevon Hardgrave is Jordan Elliott and he popped up on the injury report today with a foot injury. So he was limited in practice, but that was the guy that was supposed to take his starting snaps. And so now the 49ers are gonna be down to Kevin Givens and Emily Collins is the only 100% healthy defensive tackles potentially in this game. So who knows, maybe they have to bring up a couple of those names. Now, I would assume TY Gill is the first man up just because he's done it at the NFL level. And they're familiar with him. And they might even need a second guy here just to make sure they've got coverage for this game, depending on what happens on Friday's practice report with Jordan Elliott. He was limited so it's not like he was completely out of practice, but that's an injury we didn't expect. And these guys hadn't had that much snaps this year. - That's tough. I mean, it just, I said on the last episode, gosh, that 2020, it keeps, you know, creeping closer towards me and when the replacements to the injured guys are injured as well, I mean, that's, that's a big issue. Even bang the, because again, you can be, you know, able to play. Are you 100% yourself? And I think for the 49ers right now, a team that's one and two, you need guys that, even if they are, you know, not legit starters, but whoever it is that stepping on the field, you need them to be a little bit more 100% themselves. And right now the 49ers, they're just not getting that out of most of the bodies out there. You expect this, you know, middle of the season, later in the year, a lot of guys banged up. I'm not sure you expect this through four weeks, whereas not just the starters, but the guys that are replacing them that are banged up as well. - Have you seen anything different on the 49ers defensive line this year, whether it's BOSA, whether it's scheme wise with the new defensive coordinator? It just feels like they haven't been that powerhouse unit. They've got pros, you know, like, they've got good players. There are teams that would kill to have the 49ers depth chart, even without J-Von Hargrave on their defensive lines. But I feel like the production's just been weird. BOSA had a couple of wins. He beat Darasau, who's a really good tackle for a sack. So it's not like BOSA's not a good player. Does it feel like they're playing different, scheme different? It just doesn't feel like they're getting after it like they have in years past. - You know, it feels like it did last season as far as the pass first goes in. And I won was someone who was like, "Oh man, I feel better about this defensive line "this season that I did last year." And, you know, obviously you're missing Eric Armstead, but, you know, even last year you had Hargrave's, you had Armstead with that edge rushing position. I'm like, "Ah, I don't know what you're gonna get out of that "with Drake Jackson." And obviously things haven't quite worked out for Drake. But coming into this year, you added gross models and you're like, "Okay, you get us a little bit of versatility. "They're only deep as the line." You add it, then they're fluid. You're like, "All right, like that's a guy "who's 10 plus sacks per year over the last four seasons "coming off the edge." You have guys that can really compliment Nick Bosa. And unfortunately for the 49ers, it still feels a lot like the 49ers defense line is gonna go as Bosa goes. And Bosa's the guy that's gonna generate a lot of attention, he's getting doubled, he's getting chipped, a lot of the best guys do. But that's gonna make it to where you kind of see him and you don't, you know, in the sense of his impact on the game. So you need the others to step up. And I think right now it feels like a lot like last season where the 49ers were trying to figure out anyone who could step up and pass for a opposite Nick Bosa, whether it was an arms that Drake Jackson, they win. They traded a guy like Chase Young and tried to figure out what he could do. There was Randy Gregory at one point, right? Just throwing bodies out there. Who can help take the pressure off of Nick Bosa? Well, right now it feels like it's another year where you're gonna go as Bosa goes and again, he's gonna get a lot of attention. I feel like some phone calls will be made over the course of the next few weeks. And so potentially some movement at the 49ers might feel like they needed to make a move, maybe too far away from the trade deadline right now to know exactly what you're gonna be looking for there. But who knows? Well, now another injury popping up on the defensive line, maybe they get a little bit more intense with some early trade calls and you need teams to be more out of it so you can go get someone, you know, whether we've talked about DJ Jones and, you know, he's a familiar name. So of course he's gonna be brought up. A couple more losses by the Denver Broncos. They might be like, yeah, okay, let's do something here. We're ready to move some players out and get some graphics for the future. So we'll see how that goes very soon. But it's next man up for the 49ers. So hopefully Jordan Elliott's able to play. I wanna see more of what he looked like and T.Y. McGill. Trust T.Y. McGill, he's a solid player. But, you know, it does start to get very thin for the San Francisco 49ers on the defensive line right now. And as I mentioned, my key to victory, you gotta win up front. (upbeat music) (upbeat music) - A Prime members, you can listen to this lock-down podcast ad-free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today. (upbeat music)