00:00Is anybody else doing anything different this weekend?
00:03It's championship weekend, championship Sunday.
00:05AFC championship is between the Broncos and the Patriots in Denver.
00:09And then, of course, the NFC championship rematch,
00:11or match number three of the year between the division rivals of the Rams
00:16and the Seahawks.
00:17And all things considered, the way that the game went on Sunday,
00:21generally how you feel about football and this football team,
00:24are you watching on Sunday?
00:26Because I think that this is interesting.
00:27I'm always intrigued to see if people are still tapped in
00:29or if they're just like, I need a break.
00:32Yeah.
00:32And if you are, what are you interested in?
00:33You know, it's funny because when we were talking about this
00:36and bringing it to the class, I was like, well, I mean,
00:39we're all going to watch it, right?
00:40Well, not everybody's like us.
00:42No.
00:43You know, we tend to forget that in this business.
00:45You know, not everybody, you know, feels compelled or wants to do
00:49anything that's going to be relevant in this little world we live in.
00:53And then I realized, even I, you know, obviously I'm going to watch them,
00:57you know, whatever.
00:58But I'm going to do it reluctantly.
01:01I'm like doing it reluctantly.
01:03This is one of those where I'm like, yeah, I guess I'll watch it.
01:05And normally if the Texans are out or they're in,
01:09well, they've never been in, but if the Texans are out.
01:12You didn't have to say it like that, though.
01:13You're not wrong.
01:15I'm like, I don't care.
01:16I'm just like, oh, AFC, you know, an NFC champion.
01:18I'm in.
01:19This year's different.
01:20I'm just kind of like, I guess it's the what if, you know,
01:23or you're just frustrated because they should be there.
01:26I don't even think it's that.
01:27I think it's the simple fact in the AFC because, to be real,
01:30we pay more attention to the AFC.
01:32Yeah.
01:32Because that's where the Texans got to go through.
01:35I just think this matchup ain't really appealing, man.
01:39You got a backup quarterback in Denver.
01:41Yeah.
01:42And then you, I mean, I don't know what to think of New England.
01:44Maybe they are good.
01:45Maybe they are the real deal.
01:46But it's just, I don't know, it's not really that star.
01:50I mean, you got Drake May.
01:51Yeah.
01:52Probably going to win MVP.
01:53But I don't know.
01:54It's not the Patrick Mahomes versus Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes
01:59versus Lamar Jackson or vice versa.
02:01Yeah, there's not the star power that the NFL tends to sell these games on.
02:05I'm actually very intrigued now, of course,
02:07this is getting into the nitty-gritty of some of the matchups.
02:10And, yes, I'm a sicko.
02:11But, yeah, sincerely, because some of this is people are looking at the Patriots
02:16and going, yes, they had the easy schedule.
02:18The back half of the season, is their defense getting better?
02:21And I wonder how much that is.
02:23And I think that if their defense is getting better,
02:26this matchup versus Jared Stidham is in them also.
02:30I think it's more capable of a backup than sometimes we give him credit,
02:33especially just because we haven't seen him.
02:35But then how does he go about it?
02:37Is he going to do – because Bo Nix kind of exhibits backup tendencies
02:41without being disrespectful because I do believe that he's done a damn good job.
02:44But they keep it easy for him until they need him to do something special, right?
02:49But he does things in a very – but he does it really quickly.
02:52He makes his decisions.
02:53He gets the ball out.
02:54What is the difference between Jared Stidham and Bo Nix?
02:57Is he able to do the quote-unquote backup things in the starter type way
03:02that Bo Nix does it?
03:03And does that – whatever slippage is in there, does that make a change?
03:06And then on the other side, that's where it gets really fun
03:08because you get Drake May who hasn't really put up very good
03:11playoff performances yet, this playoffs.
03:14A lot of fumbles.
03:15Against a Broncos defense that I think is going to also give him a test.
03:20I think that's going to be really fun within this as well.
03:22But if I'm going to be honest, I'm not as interested in that game
03:25as I am the NFC game.
03:25And my feelings on them is very superficial as opposed to what you just went into deeply,
03:30which is fair and accurate and all that.
03:33But superficially, I just feel Texans should be there, man.
03:37They not only could, they should be there.
03:40We were saying all along, they can get to the NFC championship game.
03:43This is a Super Bowl-caliber team, especially on the defensive side.
03:46I just feel like they should be there.
03:48Honestly, if it wasn't a Super Bowl-caliber defense,
03:52I still feel like they should have been there, man.
03:54I feel like the window was wide open where anybody could have got through this, man.
03:59You got all type of injuries and different weird situations that happen
04:03where it wouldn't even be surprising if they made it to the AFC championship game.
04:09Is there any part of you that because of, one, the emotions of that feeling
04:14that you guys just described, and then, two, what it feels like
04:17is a less interesting schematic game or matchup that you might tap in at 5.30
04:22for the NFC game and just say bump the AFC game?
04:24No, I'm going to watch both.
04:25Or at least just have it on the TV more as background noise
04:28versus actually tapping into it.
04:30Because the NFC game, if you're telling me you're not watching it,
04:32then you're just like, I'm out on football.
04:33Yeah, I think that's fair, but I'm just saying, I feel like that's the way.
04:38I am really curious to see what Jared Stidham do.
04:41Yes, that's true.
04:42I don't really care because how crazy will it be?
04:44How much of a Cinderella story would that be?
04:47Yeah.
04:48Seeing Bo Nix out for the season with a broken ankle
04:50and this guy who ain't taking snaps since, what, 2023?
04:54Yeah.
04:55Something like that.
04:55Ain't throwing a pass since 2023.
04:57That's it.
04:57He's taking some snaps, but he hasn't thrown a pass since 2023.
04:59Yeah, he ain't throwing a pass since 2023.
05:01At least not in the regular season.
05:02Get in there and win a game.
05:03Yeah, and Reggie brought it up, I guess, Monday.
05:06You know, there have been some Cinderella stories like that
05:09that have won Super Bowls.
05:10What up, Trent Dilfer?
05:11I see you, big dog.
05:12Yeah, yeah.
05:12Jim Plunkett.
05:15Jeff Hostetler.
05:16I mean, it'd be cool.
05:17Yeah.
05:18Well, I guess he's not the backup portion of it.
05:20I just like bringing up Trent Dilfer to remind you
05:22how he's the worst quarterback to have ever won a Super Bowl.
05:24Anyways, this game between the Rams and the Seahawks,
05:29have you realized how close it actually, this thing has been?
05:33Well, it's a two-point game, which means basically a toss-up.
05:35Yes, but that's our friends in Vegas, the line that they give.
05:38The head-to-head over the last two seasons between these two teams.
05:41When it comes to points scored, the Rams, 109, the Seahawks, 107.
05:47When it comes to yards, the Seahawks, 1,599, the Seahawks, 1,589.
05:55A difference of two points and 10 yards over four matchups.
05:59And then they meet up again here.
06:01This is going to be fascinating stuff because both quarterbacks, I think,
06:05are not 100%.
06:06And I know that it's football.
06:07Everybody's not quite 100% when we get to this time of year.
06:10But I think both quarterbacks are very clearly not 100%.
06:13Sam Donald's been limited all through the week with an oblique.
06:16Matt Stafford, I think we're seeing the effect of all the hits after,
06:19remember, he was in the, what was it, the Airstream doing the funny stuff
06:22before the season that we were wondering if it would impact week one.
06:26It didn't week one, but does it impact week 21, right?
06:29I think that that's the thing that I'm watching.
06:31And then I think basically the question for me largely is,
06:35can the Seahawks run the football?
06:37Because that's been the thing that's come along for them,
06:39that's helped them go to another level.
06:41If they can run the football, they can insulate Sam Darnold a little bit.
06:46And I think they can win this game pretty easily.
06:48Thank you, D'Amico.
06:49No, look, you're absolutely right.
06:52Now D'Amico the only coach to run the football, huh?
06:54Okay, all right.
06:54I think whichever team runs the ball,
06:56because the Rams are going to have to run the ball,
06:59just for Matt Stafford's sake and the pressure of the defensive front
07:02that they're facing, et cetera.
07:03But Kenneth Walker, man, I mean, you know,
07:06they've been having some success.
07:07I think whichever team has the most success there is going to win.
07:10Also, Puka Nakua is probably just going to go off in this game again, though.
07:13How does that make it different from any other game?
07:15That's right.
07:15Yeah, that's right.
07:16The sky's blue.
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