PodcastFrom NFL: The Insiders
Week 6: Vikings, Patriots enter top 10; Eagles, Saints in free fall
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
38 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Oct 14, 2026
Published
Wed, October 14, 2026
22
Player insights
21
Players mentioned
Topics
Drake MayeAaron RodgersBo NixBrandin CooksCeeDee LambChristian WatsonDak PrescottDeebo SamuelDerrick HenryJames CookJared GoffJaylen WarrenJordan LoveJosh Allen
Player analysis
Player insights
Aaron Rodgers
NegativeProjection32:00
Aaron Rodgers is very strong on odd-numbered weeks and looks comfortable in most games; the Steelers appear to be an odd-week team, performing well in odd-numbered weeks (putting points on the Bengals and Colts) but less so in even-numbered weeks.
Insight pageBo Nix
NegativeProjection14:18
Bo Nix had only 123 passing yards in the Broncos' win over the Chargers; Nick Shook criticizes the offense for having "no life" and notes the team finished with just 224 net yards. He remains skeptical about the Broncos offense until they show better results.
Insight pageBrandin Cooks
NegativeRole2:02
Signed with the 49ers and made a notable catch in their win over Seattle; Nick Shook highlighted the play as a reminder that Cooks is still in the league and continues his nomadic journey through the NFL.
Insight pageCeeDee Lamb
PositiveRole31:00
CeeDee Lamb's value to the Cowboys offense was evident when he went out with an injury in the fourth quarter against Tampa Bay; the Cowboys' offense, which had been explosive, was unable to mount a comeback without him, scoring only 16 total points.
Insight pageChristian Watson
PositiveUsage25:00
Christian Watson caught a great touchdown pass down the middle of the field in the Packers' dominant win over the Bears; Matt LaFleur had no respect for Chicago's secondary and repeatedly tested it deep, with Watson benefiting from this aggressive approach.
Insight pageDak Prescott
NegativeProjection31:00
Dak Prescott led an explosive Cowboys offense that managed only 16 total points in a brutal home loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday night; the offense was unable to overcome defensive issues and special teams mistakes, raising concerns about the team's ability to win when the defense doesn't perform.
Insight pageDeebo Samuel
PositiveRole3:58
Nick Shook identifies Debo Samuel as the most critical player to the 49ers offense; his health is essential given the team's thin receiving depth, with Jacob Cowing getting more snaps as a sign of limited options at wide receiver.
Insight pageDerrick Henry
PositiveUsage6:48
Derrick Henry was heavily featured in the Ravens' overtime win in Atlanta; Nick Shook notes he wanted the Ravens to lean on Henry for weeks, and they finally did so in this game, which helped them overcome adversity and win without Lamar Jackson.
Insight pageDrake Maye
PositiveBreakout20:00
Drake May threw 5 touchdowns in the Patriots' dominant win over the Raiders after the sky was falling on him last week; Nick Shook notes this is a fantastic two-week stretch where May suddenly looks exactly like the guy expected near the end of last season. The Patriots had 536 yards in total offense, the most in Mike Vrabel's tenure as head coach.
Insight pagePositiveProjection20:15
Drake May has had a fantastic two-week stretch and suddenly looks exactly like the guy the Patriots thought he was near the end of last season; he produced 536 yards in total offense in Week 5, believed to be the most in Mike Vrabel's tenure as head coach, and finally got back to who he is after seeming inconsistent and uncomfortable early in the season.
Insight pageJames Cook
NegativeRole10:18
James Cook fumbled in overtime in the Bills' win over the Rams, continuing a fumbling problem that has plagued him; Nick Shook noted Cook looked devastated on the sideline and walking off the field, appearing "like the saddest man in America," though the Bills ultimately won the game.
Insight pageJared Goff
PositiveProjection21:59
Jared Goff has been so good and one of the most consistent quarterbacks this season; he has not thrown an interception yet and is spreading the ball around to his many pass catchers effectively, leading the Lions to dominate inferior competition like Arizona.
Insight pageJaylen Warren
PositiveRole33:00
Jalen Warren is the key to the Steelers' offensive success; the team runs the entire offense through him, and you're usually going to find success with that approach, as evidenced by strong performances against the Bengals and Colts.
Insight pageJordan Love
PositiveProjection25:00
Jordan Love finally got back to who he is after seeming inconsistent and uncomfortable under the weight of carrying the entire offense; he produced a 360-yard game against the Bears and benefited from Matt LaFleur's aggressive deep-passing attack that tested Chicago's secondary repeatedly.
Insight pageJosh Allen
PositiveProjection10:54
Josh Allen rushed for 121 yards in the Bills' overtime win over the Rams; Nick Shook calls him "the superstar that we know him to be" and credits him with propelling the team to victory. This was Allen's first career overtime win after being 0-7 in overtime previously, largely due to losses to the Chiefs.
Insight pageJustin Jefferson
PositiveRole12:06
Justin Jefferson caught a touchdown from Kyler Murray in the Vikings' win over the Saints in New Orleans, his home state of Louisiana; Nick Shook highlighted the connection as a positive sign for the Vikings offense.
Insight pageKaVontae Turpin
NegativeUsage31:00
KaVontae Turpin fumbled on a return in the Cowboys' loss to Tampa Bay, contributing to the team's inability to mount a comeback; the Cowboys were loose with the football in this game.
Insight pageKyler Murray
PositiveRole12:06
Kyler Murray looked much more comfortable in the Vikings offense in the second half of their win over the Saints; Nick Shook notes this was the first time the Vikings generated significant offense all year, with Murray connecting with Justin Jefferson for a touchdown.
Insight pageLamar Jackson
NegativeInjury6:18
Lamar Jackson was unavailable for the Ravens' win over Atlanta; backup Snoop Huntley led the team to victory in overtime, with the Ravens leaning on Derrick Henry to help overcome the absence of their star quarterback.
Insight pageMatthew Stafford
PositiveProjection23:36
Matthew Stafford is better this week than he has been for most of the season, though still a little bit sloppy at times; he needs to clean up endgame scenarios and close out games for the Rams to improve their record.
Insight pagePuka Nacua
PositiveUsage24:00
Puka Nakua is going crazy as part of the Rams' explosive receiving duo with Devonta Adams; despite the team's loss to Buffalo, Nakua and Adams remain the receiving duo the Rams expected them to be.
Insight pageSam Darnold
NegativeRole4:24
Sam Darnold continues to have turnover issues; in the Seahawks' close loss to the 49ers, he struggled with ball security in a game that came down to a fourth-down measurement, though Nick Shook notes the loss was not entirely his fault given how close the contest was.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. For more information on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
0:07hosts as we preview and recap every game. Listen to NFL daily on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
0:14Hey, it's Drew Franklin from NFL Cover Zero. The 2026 season is underway and we are loving football on TV.
0:20Here's what you can expect from the podcast in our second season.
0:24I would suggest for these preseason games, I think they should do what they do on the NFL draft.
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0:42NFL Power Rankings is a production of the NFL in partnership with iHeartRadio.
0:46Welcome to NFL: The Insiders. I'm your host, Colleen Wolfe, here with Nick Shook, the man with the power in the rankings.
0:52I have not even been back from London for 24 hours, so...
0:56And you can't tell at all. We're all going to be in for a ride today.
1:01Alright, let's take a look at Nick Shook's first eight teams in the rankings.
1:05And the top four, they have not moved at all.
1:08You have the same Niners up top at number one, then the Chiefs, Seahawks, Ravens.
1:13The Jags at five, they're up one spot. The Bills up one at six.
1:17The Vikings, they're the only new team in this tier at number seven.
1:21They're up four spots. And then the Broncos still hanging on in the top eight.
1:26Down three spots, but at number eight. Let's start with the number one team, though.
1:30The 49ers, who outlasted the Seahawks. They remain perfect.
1:33They control the division. What impressed you most about that win?
1:36That is a perfect way to describe it. It's outlasted them.
1:40And that is what impressed me the most about this game and about this team.
1:44Is the fact that they were able to go into Seattle, not to the fifth straight victory for a road team in
1:51this regular season division series between these two teams.
1:54And do it in an environment in which there were many reasons why they should have fallen apart.
1:59But they didn't. Brock Purdy did not have a great day.
2:03He was under constant pressure. And yet he made plays like that one to Brandon Cooks, which gave me one of those
2:09like, oh yeah, Brandon Cooks signed with them. He's still in the league.
2:13Just add another team to his nomadic journey through the NFL.
2:17And I also felt like it's another game in which their defense, which is at least the front becoming very much a
2:23no-name unit, they found a ton of success. I mean, there were guys making plays, whether it was the fumble recovery in
2:30the end zone by Halton or it was a sack of Sam Darnold, who I had never heard of.
2:36Like, I'm still at this point now where I'm like, practice squad elevation?
2:40Like, I got to deal with this guy. We are leaning toward a search bar defense with this group.
2:45And they're playing collectively. Mike Evans was a big part in this game, obviously, but it wasn't just him.
2:51And I felt like this was the first time in which they were truly 100% tested, even more than the Denver game.
2:58And they overcame everything that was against them and won this game in a division rivalry.
3:03I mean, look, they were already number one. I think it only bolstered their case.
3:07Yeah. And when you look at the amount of points that they scored, it's funny because they scored more points in this
3:14game than they did in three matchups against the Seahawks last year.
3:18What is the weakness for them? Do you look at wide receivers?
3:21Do you look at the pass rush depth? Even though they were good, even though you mentioned, like, they didn't have the depth there.
3:29Yeah. I wonder if this entire season I've thought, well, once they face a really good team, those weaknesses are going to start to show.
3:36And for the most part, they haven't. They didn't in this game.
3:40It's depth. The only weakness I can consider is depth because this is a team that just historically has suffered a lot of unfortunate injuries.
3:48And the receiving court, it's pretty thin. Like, Jacob Cowling's getting more snaps, which, you know, you signed Brandon Cooks.
3:54It kind of is a sign that, look, we don't have many options.
3:58You need Debo Samuel to stay healthy more than anything because he's been a huge part of this offense.
4:03But so, yeah, I think it's depth as of now.
4:07But look, they're 5-0, so there's not much to complain about.
4:10Look at that. Let's go to the team that they beat next.
4:14Your number three ranked team, the Seahawks. They played a really great game, but they just fell short in the end.
4:20Yeah, they did. And Sam Darnold still has some issues with turnovers.
4:24But it's one of those teams in one of those games that I can't dock them for it because it was so down to the wire.
4:32Depending on how they, you know, would measure a spot on fourth down, did they have an opportunity to continue the drive
4:38and maybe tie the game, send it to overtime?
4:41We'll never know. I mean, according to the rules, he was short.
4:45So, yes, that is the answer. But they're still a strong team.
4:48They're a team that has an issue with the ground game right now, with ball security.
4:53But they have Jackson Smith and Jigpa, and they have a defense that is swarming and made the Niners offense, which looked
5:00like a well-oiled machine, that gave them a lot of difficulties.
5:03You know, that pass rush, Byron Murphy was very good.
5:06He wasn't the only one in that group to play really well.
5:10They're still one of the best teams in the NFL.
5:13I just felt like after this game, it was a defensively dominant first half for both sides.
5:18It was a turnover-filled affair. Nine of them. And it was a battle between two teams that are two of the best teams in the NFL.
5:26That's true. So, nine turnovers, though, including four last week.
5:29Like, that's a huge deal for them. And then, I don't know, I think the one thing that people might look at
5:36on these rankings is that you have them ahead of the 4-1 Ravens, even though they lost.
5:41And we're going to get to the Ravens right now.
5:44Let's go to them. All right. Because they also are the same place that they were last week, number four.
5:50How impressed were you with that win in Atlanta on Sunday night?
5:54That was their most impressive win of the year.
5:57And they've had some pretty good wins. They have.
5:59You know, the win over Dallas down in Rio was a big one.
6:03They've taken care of business against lesser teams. So, it's all kind of worked out for them.
6:08But this is the one where I felt they were tested the most and they had the most adversity facing them, which
6:15is on the road in Atlanta against a very hot Falcons team with a backup quarterback in Snoop Huntley who is very
6:22experienced, but still is not Lamar Jackson. You know, facing a deficit in the fourth quarter, going down the field, scoring the
6:29touchdown and the two-point conversion to send it to overtime and then bleeding most of the clock in overtime to win that game.
6:36It just felt like, okay, this is the Ravens team that we usually expect on an annual basis.
6:41And even without Lamar Jackson, they were able to lean on Derrick Henry Moore, which I've wanted them to do for weeks.
6:48And they found a way to get the job done.
6:51And I think that that's most important in matchups like this, especially in primetime as you go through the marathon that is the season.
6:58They're on top of the AFC North right now.
7:01And that's why they sit there at number four.
7:04Yes, they have one more win than the Seahawks.
7:06But, you know, sometimes quality losses matter too. That's fair.
7:09All right. And they also have their first division game coming up of the year.
7:14They play the Browns, your Brownies. Highly interesting contest.
7:17I'm very excited about that one. Let's go to the Jags, who they beat the Eagles in London.
7:22It was a very interesting game. I felt like the offense really did not.
7:26We're not going to talk about the Eagles yet.
7:29This is about the Jags. But I felt like the Jags offense did not look that great.
7:34It was sluggish throughout. Even their, like, Bejal Tootin, he's very consistent.
7:38But even throughout the game, they really couldn't get anything going until the very end.
7:43So where are you with the Jags? They're up one spot.
7:46They're ranked at number five in your rankings. This is one of those games that I think the score influences the way
7:53that you feel about the game and the way that you just recapped it.
7:57Because they did have scoring opportunities. They just didn't convert.
8:00Right. A lot of that had to do with the fact that they were playing with an emergency long snapper.
8:06Didn't trust their field goal unit. So in those situations, you don't even get three.
8:11You get nothing. You look like you're too aggressive in going for it on fourth down.
8:16And when you come away empty-handed over the course of a game, that starts to wear on you.
8:21But Liam Cohen kind of had his hands tied.
8:24He was doing the best that he could until they only had one option at the end, which was kick a field goal from 57 yards out.
8:32And luckily, they nailed it to win the game.
8:35I'm not too concerned about them. I love the fact that I can count on Bejal Tootin to finish between 68 and 73 yards a game.
8:43He does have juice. It's not productive on a per-carry basis necessarily, the average being well under four.
8:48That needs to be a little bit better. But this is a pretty well-balanced offense that faced an Eagles team that played
8:55way better than I expected, that really overcame a lot of adversity, lack of personnel.
8:59The Eagles have every reason in the world to fall apart and just lay down and quit on this season.
9:05And they did not in this game. But the Jags are still the better team.
9:10And because of, I would say, some luck, some mismanagement on the part of the opponent, they come away victorious to the
9:17point where their coach walks away smiling because he knows he got away with one.
9:21Yeah, that was it. What an interesting end to a game.
9:25But yes, the Jags, they get the win there.
9:27They have another game coming up in London against the Houston Texans this week.
9:32Let's go to the Bills, though, who survived a massive overtime scare to beat the Rams.
9:37And that's why they're the team of the week.
9:39This is one of the weirdest games that you'll look at and just be like, I feel like you should have lost, but you also deserve to win.
9:48You know, we had a few of those this week.
9:51It was just a strange week in that regard.
9:54One of them ended in a tie. But the Bills, in this game, sometimes you just have to let a team give you an opportunity.
10:01And then it's up to you to capitalize on it.
10:04And they did that. Now, did they block the field goal that Harrison Mevis attempted, you know, that set up their opportunity
10:11to go down and kick the game on a field goal?
10:14Sure. And they deserve credit for that. But if you look at this from a statistical standpoint, not a usual Bills game.
10:21Josh Allen only threw 19 passes. They leaned heavily on the ground, which is exactly what I wanted them to do.
10:27Lean on James Cook, but he fumbles in overtime.
10:30He has a fumbling problem. The shots of him on the bench in his face, I just, I felt for him.
10:37That was rough. I watched a shot of him walking off the field into the tunnel, and he looked like the saddest man in America.
10:44And they won. Yeah, exactly. Thank God they won for him.
10:48Yeah. Like, for his sake. Soft in the blow a little bit.
10:51Josh Allen going for 121 yards on the ground.
10:54He is the superstar that we know him to be.
10:57And he was able to propel them to victory.
11:00But, man, talk about a wild game. It's not one of those wins that really makes me think, all right, you should
11:06move up that much in the rankings. But just one of those games where it's like, this was entertaining, and the result was what it was.
11:14Let's all move forward. And the fact that this was Josh Allen's first career overtime win?
11:19Crazy. How is that possible? Well, there's been a lot of overtime losses to the Chiefs.
11:24That's fair. He was previously 0-7. So he finally breaks that streak, gets the win.
11:29So there they are. Let's go to another one of the undefeated teams in the league.
11:34We have the Vikings at 5-0. They maintain their flawless record.
11:37They kind of grinded out this win over the Saints.
11:40Yeah, exactly. You can consider this, I don't know if I would say it's an olive branch, it's a mea culpa to
11:47Vikings fans who have been understandably after me for not putting them in the top 10 in recent weeks.
11:52You don't say. Even though they're undefeated, this was the first time where I felt it was warranted to put them in
11:59the top 10 because they actually generated some offense for the first time basically all year.
12:04Kyler Murray looked a lot more comfortable in the offense, especially in the second half.
12:09Good to see him connect with Justin Jefferson for a touchdown, and good for Jefferson to do it in New Orleans, his home state of Louisiana.
12:17And again, this defense is special. This is a defense that I think by the end of the season, if all things
12:23stay the same and they stay healthy, we're going to look back on it and be like, that was one of the
12:30best defenses we've seen in the last 10 years.
12:33That's how good they are. Brian Flores has no regard for convention whatsoever.
12:37He's just like, I'm going to blitz. 11 of the first 12 opportunities, he sent the blitz like he's playing Madden.
12:43And it worked. And it continues to work for this team.
12:46The problem is those who watch these games and then go watch Rams-Bills may feel like the Vikings are a lesser team because they're not as explosive offensively.
12:55Well, there's a reason that there's three phases to the game.
12:58And the Vikings have a championship level defense. If their offense can continue on this path, they will continue to win.
13:05They will continue to climb. And then Vikings fans will finally get off my back.
13:09Yeah, hey, that's great. That's what we're all looking for here.
13:13Minnesota people are supposed to be nice. Exactly. Midwest nice.
13:16They're up four spots. I feel like that should make them happy.
13:19And the fact that their team has a bye and they have a perfect record.
13:24Everyone can just, you know, have a nice week of relaxation.
13:27Let's go to the Broncos at three and two.
13:30Big win over the Chargers. Yes, this is not the Chargers team that everyone expected them to be coming into the year.
13:37The 0-5 Chargers. But a divisional opponent, if you are going to compete, like you need to beat the teams that are
13:43on your schedule and definitely in your division. And they did.
13:47And congratulations. You know, I commend you for getting the victory, Denver Broncos fans.
13:51That feels like a gold star that's, I don't know, doesn't have a lot behind it.
13:56It's one of the gold stars that you put on your thumb and you stick on the forehead.
14:01Yes. You're just like, good job. Uh-huh. A little bit of sarcasm.
14:05What did you think of the play calling in that game?
14:08Oh, well, I think the entire sideline operation was pretty chaotic.
14:12Sean Payton taking over play calling and getting very angry at all of his assistant coaches at one point late in the game.
14:19The operation pre-snap was a little messy as well, especially when there was a goal to go situation.
14:24And then they just decided to burn all the clock before deciding what to do and then calling a timeout.
14:30There was a time where they called a timeout and then got to delay a game out of the timeout, which is just unacceptable.
14:38Now, I'm not penalizing them for that. I'm penalizing them for the fact that they finished with 224 net yards and Bo
14:44Nix had 123 passing yards and this offense had no life.
14:48And that four of their five scoring drives began in Chargers territory.
14:51There is strength in this team. It is on their defense.
14:55And until they figure it out offensively, they're going to be a team that I remain skeptical about.
15:00And I'm just going to stick by that. So they moved down because some other teams moved up.
15:06But when you think about wins, wins to be proud of.
15:09Every win counts the same. But if I'm a Broncos fan, I'm not necessarily proud of this.
15:14I think they're pretty honest with themselves about the current state of their offense and hoping for better results.
15:20I think that if the results were the other way around, this would be a massive problem.
15:25There would be chaos with the fan base because they had to get this win.
15:30It's like a weighted win, you know, when you're grading things on a curve a little bit.
15:35Okay, so that is the top eight teams. Coming up though, hey, Drake May, we talked about the Patriots last week.
15:41Have they officially figured things out? Maybe. Maybe. Where do the Packers land too?
15:46After their win over the Bears, the answers, we have a bunch of them coming up next.
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19:28Teams 9 through 16. All right, so the Bengals, they remain unchanged at 9.
19:32The Pats shoot up the rankings, up 8 spots.
19:35They're at number 10. The Lions up 5 spots.
19:38The Rams up 1. Bears down 3 at 13.
19:40Panthers remain unchanged at 14. Same as the Falcons at 15.
19:44And then the Packers up 11 spots. Oh, yeah.
19:46They're in a brand new tier. They're at 16.
19:49We'll get to them in a minute. Let's go to the Patriots because we're going to shine a spotlight on them.
19:56Drake May, 5 touchdowns in this game after last week the sky was falling.
20:00Where are you on Drake May and this Patriots offense?
20:03Some are saying that this is a resurgence that's even greater than the Revolutionary War.
20:07Wow, some people. Oh, my gosh. They just really turned it around.
20:11The guerrilla warfare in that one. The offensive explosion with the Patriots.
20:15It's been a fantastic two-week stretch for Drake May, who suddenly looks exactly like the guy we thought he was near the end of last season.
20:23I won't say actually at the end of last season because the playoffs were a little rocky for him.
20:28Yeah. And they were incredibly productive. 536 yards in total offense.
20:32I believe it was the most in Mike Vrabel's tenure as head coach.
20:36They detonated the Raiders. The Raiders had no response.
20:38No answer. That's a perfect way to put it.
20:41Yeah, I mean, just vaporized. There are no more Raiders after playing the Patriots this week.
20:46Everything worked for them. It was one of those games that when you went back and watched it, you're just like, wow, they can't do anything wrong.
20:54Yeah. And I think it's a little bit misleading because this is still the NFL.
20:59It's a week-to-week league. But, wow, what a turnaround for the Patriots in the last two weeks.
21:04And the best part about this is it wasn't just the massive offensive output.
21:08The defense. It was the defense. It was guys like Elijah Ponder making plays.
21:13It's the Vrabel defense that we saw last year where you saw the elevation of guys that maybe you didn't even really pay attention to.
21:20Caleb on chase on, for example, had a great year last year with them.
21:24They just find a way to get it done as a group.
21:28Yeah. And, you know, they had an impressive win here.
21:31So we'll see. We'll see if it's the next step toward them being great again or not.
21:36That defense led up 35 points to the Jags.
21:39They got rocked. Everyone was in panic mode. And now it feels like things are just leveling out a little bit.
21:46So really happy for New England fans. In the last two weeks.
21:49They need a break. 21 spots they've climbed. Okay.
21:52Let's go to the Lions, who they are up five spots.
21:55And, look, they – Jared Goff, he has been so good.
21:59Maybe one of the most consistent. And has not thrown an interception yet this season.
22:03They're your number 11 team. How are you feeling the fact that you put them up these five spots?
22:09Good about them. Let Jared Goff cook and spread the ball around his many pass catchers.
22:14And that's what they did. And they took care of business against a Cardinals team that is getting worse by the week.
22:21This is exactly what you expect from a Lions team that believes they should be back in the playoffs.
22:26Go in there, take care of business, dominate a team that you're better than.
22:31And that's what they did. That's what they did indeed.
22:34I mean, the fact that they bounced back. It was just at the 45-21 over Arizona.
22:39The defense. The defense played well. That's big for them.
22:42But, again, could be fool's school against the Cardinals.
22:44That's true. Let's go to – and, by the way, they have a bye week.
22:49So they get to chillax a little bit. Hopefully get some of their guys back as well.
22:54Let's go to the Rams up one spot after their loss to the Bills on Monday Night Football.
23:00And they really – they bounced back – or they didn't bounce back.
23:04It was frustrating for a lot of Rams fans, I think.
23:07What did you – what do you figure out for them, especially with their special teams right now?
23:12Yeah, that's the biggest concern with this team, as we know.
23:16It's been an issue for them for more than a year.
23:19And it's already prompted a kicker change, which is understandable.
23:22But it's about the entire unit, not just the kicker.
23:25It's also about the coach's management of endgame situations.
23:28This was setting up to be a pretty big landmark win for the Rams.
23:32This was a game for all of Week 5, by the way.
23:36Yes, it was. Just gross. Yeah. Gross endgame management everywhere.
23:39And Sean McVay, you expect being such a good coach, he wouldn't do that.
23:43And yet, he managed to find a way to do that, playing a little too conservatively, leaving James Cook speechless and also
23:50giving the Bills an opportunity to come back and win that game in overtime.
23:54This is one of the – this is the latest loss that they're going to look at and go, ah, we should have won that one.
24:02And eventually, those start to pile up. They have things that they need to clean up.
24:07They're still a good football team. They have an explosive offense.
24:10Puka Nakua going crazy. Him and Devonta Adams still the, you know, receiving duo that we expected them to be.
24:16Matthew Stafford better. Still a little bit sloppy at times, but a lot better this week than he's been for most of this season.
24:24Like, man, you really got to clean up the endgame scenarios.
24:27Yeah. I mean, that is the biggest thing for them.
24:30They got to close out these games. Let's go to the Packers here.
24:34With this – right now, when you look at the Packers up 11 spots at 16, they delivered a statement performance, I
24:41would say, against one of their biggest rivals in the Bears.
24:44Where do you put this dominant win in terms of what you saw in Week 5?
24:49Well, it's funny because you go into this Week 5 and everyone's like, oh, the Bears are going to dominate the Packers.
24:56Ben Johnson's quarterback proof. We even made, you know, those assertions here and there, right?
25:00And yet, I looked at it and thought, rivalry game.
25:03Packers are due to actually figure something out, and did they ever figure it out?
25:08They were airing it out all day. Matt LaFleur had no respect for Chicago's back end of their secondary and just decided
25:15to chuck it deep over and over again. There was a sequence in which Christian Watson catches a great touchdown pass down
25:21the middle of the field, and it followed a pass that was called back by an offensive pass interference.
25:27The first play right after, he's just like, go deep again.
25:30We don't care. We're going to test this secondary all day, and it worked out producing a 360-yard game for Jordan Love,
25:37who I felt finally got back to who he is.
25:40He seemed inconsistent, maybe a little bit uncomfortable under the weight of having to carry the whole offense.
25:46The running game is still not good. The defense was very good, and that's the most important part, I think, of this
25:52entire operation is if they can balance a deep shot passing attack with a defense that can harass an opposing quarterback, then
25:59they can be a good football team. And look at that.
26:02They're 3-2. They have the same record as the Bears, and last week I considered them to be very different teams.
26:09Wow. How much do you think Matt LaFleur loved that post-game handshake with Ben Johnson?
26:13I think he probably saw the slow-mo replay of Ben Johnson's long stare.
26:17Like, you know, there's an awkward moment in handshakes, and he just holds the stare and continues walking but holds the stare, stiff jaw, clenched because he's angry.
26:26It's one of my favorite things to watch now.
26:29Revel in that until they play next time. Yeah.
26:31And, hey, they're going to play on Christmas, so we'll get to see that on December 25th.
26:37And also, they have a big game coming up against the Cowboys this week, so everybody buckle up for that one.
26:43More points. All right, coming up, we have our Cowboys.
26:46We're going to talk about them. Ever going to figure out things?
26:50Come on. I mean, I hope not, but that's just me.
26:53Plus, there's a one-win team that Nick thinks could make a run for the playoffs.
26:58Find out who next. I'm Brett Coleman. And I'm Trevor Sikama.
27:01Have you ever watched a game and wondered what really made the difference beyond the final score?
27:06That's exactly why we created NFL Pro. Got a man wide open.
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27:17We go beyond the box score to uncover the numbers, the tendencies, and details that help explain what actually happened on the field.
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28:06The new NFL season is here, and you should be listening to NFL Daily as we march along to Super Bowl 61.
28:12Last year, we had Mike McDonald, Sam Darnold on the field after the game, but that was last year.
28:18If you're a football sicko like me, NFL Daily is your kind of show.
28:22It is in the name, NFL Daily, fresh content in your feed every day, all season long.
28:27Matthew Stafford coming off his MVP season. On a dazzling dart from Matthew Stafford.
28:32Big time trades that shake up the NFL. A.J.
28:34Brown is loose! And of course, those Seahawks trying to run it back and win another Lombardi trophy.
28:40The Seahawks win Super Bowl 60. They are bringing the Lombardi back to the Northwest.
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28:53Football's back! Hey, it's Drew Franklin from NFL Cover Zero.
28:56Enjoy the NFL season while listening to NFL Cover Zero.
28:59We have storylines, predictions, and lots of silliness. Here's what you can expect from the podcast in our second season.
29:05When you meet people and you say your job's a sports announcer, it's always interesting to see what the first thing they say is.
29:13I did have one of the more difficult questions, though.
29:16He sits next to me and he sees I'm on my computer and he goes, big sports fan.
29:21And I was like, yeah, actually. And he goes, what do you think about my Jaguars this year?
29:27I realized, like, no one's ever asked me that question ever.
29:30About anything. And I was like, Duval. Listen to NFL Cover Zero on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
29:37Hey, everyone. I'm Mike Yam. And I'm Trevor Sykema.
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30:32Welcome back to Power Rankings, presented by Energizer. A look at teams 17 through 24 for Nick Shook.
30:37The Giants up two spots at 17. The Cowboys, they fall 10 spots.
30:41They're down to number 18 in the rankings. The Raiders right behind them at 19, down 7.
30:46The Jets up 4 at 20. Then the Browns down 4.
30:50The Steelers up 3. The Bucks up 7 at 23.
30:53And then the Colts down 2 at 24. What is going on with the Cowboys?
30:57This, it was a brutal home loss on Thursday night football to Tampa Bay.
31:02The defense just, the cracks keep getting worse and worse.
31:05And it only really shows up when you can't paper over it with the offense.
31:09Right. Which is what they weren't able to do in this game.
31:1316 total points from an explosive offense led by Dak Prescott.
31:16We saw how valuable CeeDee Lamb is to this offense when he went out with an injury in the fourth quarter and
31:23they had to try to mount a comeback. KaVontae Turpin fumbling on a return also didn't help them.
31:28They were loose with the football. Their chances of coming back ended with an interception that was more unfortunate than anything.
31:35And there's a reason to be highly concerned because when you can only win in one way and that one way doesn't
31:42work against a team that was winless that everybody expected you to beat, you should be really worried about where this team is right now.
31:49We'll see if they bounce back. Well, I mean, I think that the incompetence that we've seen from the other three teams
31:56in the NFC East gives all of the NFC East teams cover somehow.
32:00Everybody's got time to figure it out. Exactly right.
32:03Let's go to the Steelers. They're up three spots.
32:05Number 22. They had a convincing win over the Colts, but the Colts are kind of a mess.
32:11So I don't know how much stock you put into that.
32:14The defense, though, for the Steelers stepped up when they needed it.
32:18Do you remember in baseball how the San Francisco Giants won a World Series in every even year from like 10, 12, 14?
32:25I think the Steelers are an odd-week team because every odd-numbered week they play really well.
32:30They put a ton of points on the Bengals.
32:32They put a ton of points on the Colts.
32:35They couldn't put as many points on the Browns.
32:38And so ultimately what we find is a team that I don't really know what to think about them right now.
32:44Aaron Rodgers is very strong on odd weeks. He looks comfortable in most games.
32:49This is a defense that's bad. The Colts defense is bad.
32:52So it was one of those examples of, look, this team can find success against lesser defenses.
32:57And when you look at the Steelers as an entire unit, their defense tends to be aggressive.
33:02Most importantly for me, Jalen Warren. He ran the ball through Jalen Warren.
33:06You just run the entire offense through Jalen Warren.
33:09And you're usually going to find some success. I think that that's a good plan.
33:14Pittsburgh, though, right now on the heels of Baltimore in the AFC North race.
33:18They're 3-0 at home, 0-2 on the road. And their next two games are on the road.
33:23So we'll see if that alternating week situation, that trend, if it holds.
33:27Let's go to, let's take a look at the 25 through 32 teams.
33:31Oh, yeah. In your rankings. The Texans, they're down 2 at 25.
33:35Eagles down 5. And our researcher Ben McWilliams says they're 6 spots too high at No.
33:4026. The Saints at 27. Commanders at 28. Dolphins 29.
33:43Chargers up 1 spot at 30. The Cardinals down 5 spots at 31.
33:47And then the Titans at 32. But the Eagles shook another bad loss for the Eagles.
33:51They've lost 3 in a row after starting 2-0.
33:54And this one was spectacularly terrible. But I don't hold it against them because they played hard.
33:59They have every reason in the world to not play hard and to lose by many points to this team, to the Jaguars.
34:06They have injuries all over the place. Their right tackle, who's a franchise legend, retired.
34:11They had traded away their starting center, who they had moved to guard out of necessity.
34:16This is a team that should have gotten dominated.
34:19And yet they fought. For four quarters, they fought.
34:21They got some, you know, advantageous breaks with the Jags not being able to get points and in-scoring opportunities because of their special team situation.
34:29And then it all falls apart in the final 7 seconds.
34:32It's probably the most heartbreaking and crushing loss of the season for an Eagles team that really couldn't afford to take one of those right now.
34:40No. I'm very fascinated to see how they bounce back or if they do at all.
34:45That's what I was going to ask you. Do you expect them, how do you expect them to recalibrate from this?
34:51And do you? I mean, you've got to learn how to manage that last 7 seconds better.
34:57But it's find the good in what happened in this game and hope that, you know, before long you can get healthier
35:03and kind of get back to who you are.
35:06There's just so many things that they have to figure out offensively right now that they just have not been able to do.
35:13I mean, 232 yards of total offense, yet they were in position to win a game.
35:18It's just a low-ceiling operation right now. Yeah. Well, that was an Eagles-heavy crowd in London, even though it was a Jags home game.
35:25But the Jags, they get the win, and now the Eagles will need to try and pivot and figure out how to fix things.
35:33But your rankings, they are set for this week, and we're going to do it all again next week.
35:38We're going to fix them. Nick, thank you so much.
35:41And gang, thanks so much for watching. We'll do it all again, same place, same time next week.
35:47Our Rankings is a production of the NFL in partnership with iHeartRadio.
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35:56I'm Brett Coleman. And I'm Trevor Sikama. If you love football and want to understand what's really happening on the field, check out our show, NFL Pro.
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36:24The new NFL season is here, and you should be listening to NFL Daily as we march along to Super Bowl 61.
36:31It is in the name NFL Daily. You'll have fresh content in your feed every day, all season long.
36:36That game-winning drive. Maybe it's Herbert. Maybe it's Gino.
36:39Maybe it's Mahomes. We'll have the highlights. If Fernando Mendoza or any of the rookies are balling out, we'll break down the tape.
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36:56Hey, I'm Mike Yam. And I'm Trevor Sikama. And together, we host the NFL Fantasy Football Show.
37:01Are you ready to dominate your fantasy league this season?
37:04Because if you aren't locked in with us on the NFL Fantasy Football Show, you're already playing from behind.
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37:24Hey, it's Drew Franklin from NFL Cover Zero. The 2026 season is underway, and we are loving football on TV.
37:30Here's what you can expect from the podcast in our second season.
37:34I would suggest for these preseason games, I think they should do what they do on the NFL draft.
37:40You know, when coverage of the NFL draft is basically for moms.
37:43And they're just like, hey, he has a dog named Spartan.
37:47Listen to NFL Cover Zero on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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