After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 4

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That's betterhelp.com slash positive. Good morning to you. It's Monday. Is it a holiday Monday for you?

Are you off school or work or out of your regular routine on this Martin Luther King Jr. Day? Well, we're glad to keep you company. Certainly a lot of people out and about. I know that because we've got a ton of traffic on our social media. So those of you who don't normally listen to the show or catching it for the first time, glad to have you with us. And please, we hope that you will stay connected, whether it's on Twitter after our CBS or on our Facebook page.

You can always catch our show on podcast at your leisure. This is a supersized wildcard Sunday night into a Monday where it's actually kind of a bummer. Because normally at this time on a Monday following an NFL Sunday, we would be doing a mortification Monday poll, which is one of our most popular features of this football season. It was brand new this football season, but I don't know that we even have four candidates. I would think the Vikings certainly are mortified because of the season they had and feeling like it went to waste.

And yes, the Chargers because they had a 27 nothing lead. But can you say the Dolphins are mortified? I guess you could say Tyler Huntley is mortified.

We'll talk about him in a second. We don't generally single out individuals, though, because football is the ultimate team sport. I don't think you could say the Seahawks are mortified. I feel like what we saw from the teams that were underdogs this weekend, they gave it everything they had.

Sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. But there was no lack of fight. There was no lack of effort. Everything you could want in a wildcard weekend was there. Now I will confess, I wasn't thrilled about seeing two, three actually, three divisional games, but two in the AFC, where a lot of times they can be knocked down drag outs. I was actually interested to see the Seahawks in the playoffs, regardless of their opponent, against a Niners team that was red hot. And the Seahawks put up a fight. They actually had the lead at halftime. So you could look at the final score and say, oh, it was the blowout of the weekend. But it wasn't really. It was turnovers and mistakes that gave the Niners a full head of steam.

And we know what they're capable of in their, they're so comfortable in their own skin, but in their own space with all those weapons. Yes, you give them extra possessions and extra chances, they're generally going to burn you. So they took what was offered to them and they made the Seahawks pay. It definitely got away from Seattle in the second half, but not for the lack of effort or trying. And I know we don't give trophies around here for participation.

That's not what I'm saying. These guys play to win. But the Seahawks represented themselves well. And I don't know if you're a Seahawks fan, how you can be anything but proud of this season. Then you think about the Bengals, who had all they could handle with the Ravens. Even after they had the lead on an historic fumble return for a touchdown, they still couldn't come up with any offense. They still couldn't keep the ball away from the Ravens. They get a roughing the punter penalty after going 3-and-out, new life first down, and they promptly go 3-and-out again.

So I guess it was 6-and-out. There's got to be more to that Bengals offense against Buffalo next week, or they're done. And then of course the Miami Dolphins, who score 17 points in 7 minutes in the second quarter.

And then if you include part of the third quarter, 24 points in under 9 minutes. Also game. So yeah, I admit I wasn't too keen on seeing, especially the AFC divisional matchups again. But this was a highly entertaining weekend, and one that was true to its billing. Definitely wild. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio.

Again on Twitter, ALawRadio, on Facebook too. Glad to have you with us. We've got to fill in the blank, and we'll carry it through to tonight's show into Tuesday morning because we've got one more wildcard game to go. Whoever wins on Monday night will play the San Francisco 49ers next weekend.

Oh, here's what you've won behind door number two. This is the schedule for divisional weekend. We know all but the last participant, the Jaguars at the Chiefs. So the AFC top seed will be back at Arrowhead Stadium after a nice week off. That's followed by the Giants in Philadelphia. Oh, look, there's another divisional battle. Giants hoping to end a bit of futility against the Eagles this season. And so the two top seeds host on Saturday in a doubleheader.

That's followed by Bengals and Bills. The game that we so desperately wanted to see but became so unimportant in the wake of DeMar Hamlin's cardiac arrest. I'm told he will be at the stadium on Sunday. A game that kicks off at 3 o'clock Eastern, not the standard time when we expect football.

It's going to be weird, right? A couple hours on Sunday afternoon to get you ready for the long offseason with no NFL games on Sunday. Yeah, it's kind of crazy because this is your last weekend with four games.

Your last weekend where you have a full slate on Saturday, Sunday. Nah, it's coming to an end quickly. The last game next weekend will be the Niners hosting either the Cowboys or the Buccaneers. So we're going to head to Baltimore to Ravens Nation.

Ravens flock, I guess, is the hashtag on Twitter. We're going to spend some time with a bit of a eulogy. Now I know it's quick, but our friend Rob Long will give us his reaction to the Ravens exit in the wildcard round. But even more than that, if you're listening, Rob Long, and I know you generally do. What the hell is Lamar Jackson doing at home when the team is in Cincinnati?

I might ask it exactly like that. I am a huge fan of Lamar. I enjoy what he brings to the table.

I enjoy who he is, a unique personality. This is wrong. What, your knee injury is so bad you can't get on a plane? Stop it. How does that play? Forget with the fans.

How does that play with your teammates? No way. Unless I find out the team told him to stay home, which I can't imagine. Wouldn't Tyler Huntley have benefited from Lamar Jackson being there? He's a former NFL MVP. He's played on the postseason stage. He should have been in Cincinnati. Unless I'm missing something. But I haven't seen any reason or any report that the Ravens told him to stay home.

And that doesn't even seem probable or likely. So we'll get to the bottom when Rob joins us in 10 minutes here on CBS Sports Radio. So let's talk about this game. Oh, I totally lied. Thank you, Producer J.

30 minutes here on CBS Sports Radio. So he's joining us in the final segment of the show, not in our next segment. Excuse me. All right. Take two. Start over.

Well, that really changes my plan for this hour. Like Mike McDaniel, who says, well, we had it in our head that it was a first down in the late stages of the game against the Buffalo Bills. And so that's why they got a delay of game penalty when they're fourth and one, even though they had so much time. They even had a stoppage of play to come up with their set. We thought it was first down and then we weren't ready for fourth down.

Well, I'm going to have to scramble or I'm going to get a delay of game as well. Now, the Bengals did post a 9-0 lead early. Jamar Chase, well, he was busy. He had five catches on their first touchdown drive and the seven yard score. But you could tell that Baltimore had a game plan. And it's not that different from what they want to do in every game since Lamar Jackson became their starting quarterback. Heavy run, heavy on the ball control. Keep it away from your opponent.

And that's exactly what they did as an answer. A ten minute possession, which was, in fact, heavy on the run. Oh, but then they go through the air for the score.

Two spread to the left. Now J.K. Dobbins comes to the backfield. Huntley in the shotgun. On third and goal, he takes the snap. Swing pass. Dobbins has it.

It's a two. Stretches forward. Touchdown. J.K. Dobbins.

He broke the plane with a tremendous effort. Tyler Huntley goes to J.K. Dobbins to get the Ravens on the board to match. And then late in the second quarter, Hayden Hurst has a fumble after a catch at midfield. And so Baltimore is able to cash in and with a field goal has the 10-9 lead at the break. So similar to the way the Seattle Seahawks kind of surprised the Niners and were able to take advantage of opportunities, Baltimore did the same. But really that possession game, that ball control game is so critical. They start out the second half with back-to-back scoring drives. And actually it was kind of funny. The Bengals have a seven-minute possession of their own. So I guess what's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Not really appropriate here, but still whatevs. So Cincinnati regains the lead. Joe Burrow with a rushing touchdown. And a two-point conversion, but Baltimore responds again.

And actually is a bit of a role reversal. But we got to see that Tyler Huntley was comfortable in the offense. He was comfortable with the game plan that they had laid out. Huntley wants to throw, going deep, near sideline. Robinson has it, it's a 10-5! Touchdown Ravens! Demarcus Robinson on a perfect toss from Tyler Huntley. And the Ravens are an extra point away from tying it up in a very quiet Cincinnati.

17-17 tie after the third quarter. And the Cincinnati offense, other than that initial scoring drive in the third, really scuffled. Against this Ravens defense, really couldn't come up with a whole lot. And so it was up to the Bengals defense to create a turning point.

To create not just a moment that we will all look back on and say, I remember where I was when, but a moment that serves as the turning point. Now keep in mind, this moment comes at the end of a very strong Ravens drive. They've gone all the way to the goal line. Before Tyler Huntley takes matters into his own hands. Third down and goal from the one. Huntley sticks the ball out. The Bengals have the ball. They are running it back. Sam Hubbard with blockers behind him.

Hubbard to the Ravens 40, the 30, the 20, the 10, the 5. Touchdown Bengals. Tyler Huntley tried to extend the ball over the goal line. It got poked away. Sam Hubbard scooped it up and ran the length of the field for a go ahead Bengals touchdown. Credit to Logan Wilson punching it out and just being the right place, right time.

Got a few blocks along the way and I was just worried about getting tracked down. I'm glad I made it to the end zone. I haven't even seen the whole play yet. I just saw Sam running down the field, but sure. Obviously, you know, guys stepped up and made plays when their number was called and got us the win.

Yes, Dan Hord and Dave Lapham with that moment. It's not Joe Burrow to Jamar Chase for 98 yards. It's a defensive lineman who probably couldn't have gone another 20 yards past that.

He's rumbling, he's stumbling. Mark Andrews nearly caught him if not for a bit of a block in the side, was it? 98 yards, longest fumble return for a touchdown in NFL playoff history and the longest go ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter in playoff history. So a lot of you were saying that is the best thing I saw this wildcard weekend. I got to tell you, as much as the turnover and the touchdown itself was stunning, I think my favorite might have been Sam Hubbard flexing with an oxygen mask on his face.

Yeah, it was pretty incredible. And really the Ravens defense continue to give the offense opportunities. Ultimately, they get to the 17-yard line of Cincinnati. There's a penalty in there.

Try a hail Mary. It gets off the fingertips of a Ravens receiver, but that's how close it was. There were opportunities there for Baltimore. The Ravens go one for four in the red zone. The Bengals only get into the red zone twice. That's how limited they were and only three for 11 on third down.

So it's kind of a different storyline than what a lot of people expected, different from what the Bengals have done over what was an eight-game win streak to wrap up the regular season. It was the defense. You know, that's really been the storyline for our defense is rising up and really just not allowing the offense to have anything. And so for our offense to be able to get in rhythm and be able to score points, but our defense just second half has just been fantastic.

Today was no different. And it's good to see that they brought that second half defense to the playoffs also. They mix the blitz in here or there, and you've got to give them credit. They're really good on defense. They understand their scheme. They mix up their coverages. They mix up their blitzes. They're good up front.

It's a really good defense, one of the best in the league. Obviously a hard-fought game, really, really proud of our players. I thought we played a winning football game in many, many ways, ran the ball well, threw the ball well, played outstanding defense, got the turnover. The difference was the two turnovers, obviously. That hurt us, one really big one. But both led to scores, and that was probably the story of the game at the end. And then to the defense, I thought our defense was just all over the field and played great football. So the key is we didn't win the game. We're disappointed in that, but I've got nothing but admiration for our guys.

I'm very proud of our football team. If you haven't seen it, there are quotes from J.K. Dobbins all over the web. We tried to find the audio. We were unsuccessful.

Maybe we'll have it or maybe there wasn't audio. But what he said is that he did not get any carries in the red zone in the entire game. Now, he did have a two-yard touchdown catch, as I mentioned to you a few minutes ago. But he did not have a carry in the red zone. And so he was saying that he was pretty sure he would have gotten in.

Definitely frustrated. He's tired of not getting the ball. He said Tyler Huntley should never have been in that position to try a quarterback sneak. And then he said, quote, if we would have had Lamar, we would have won two.

And so a little bit of sour grapes there, to be sure. But J.K. Dobbins doesn't like the play call and how it was executed. But according to John Harbaugh, that wasn't actually the play that they were supposed to use on the goal line. You decide whether you're going to take it off the line and hand it back in the backfield or whether you want to quarterback sneak it. We felt we had a good call. It's a push-sneak play.

It wasn't executed just the right way. I mean, Tyler went over the top. That's a burrow play.

He's got to go low on that. That's the way the play is designed. So that was two to get it. You take it off the line on scrimmage, there's a chance. You know, you might score, but there's a chance it gets you in the backfield. Now it's hard to get it on fourth down.

So two to get it there from inside the one. We felt like that was the best call. We just didn't execute right. It's going to be hard because we got off-season now. I'm going to be thinking about that the whole off-season, how just one play, they won the game.

And it's going to be hard, but I think that's going to motivate me to just grind hard, work hard. So Tyler Huntley said, you know, this is going to stick with me, trying to make a play. And gosh, we did see Trevor Lawrence do it on a two-point conversion on Saturday. But it wasn't supposed to be Huntley up over the top. That was his call. He's a quarterback.

I guess that is his prerogative, except it was very costly. It's a lot tighter than people expected, though, was it not? And coming up in 20 minutes, Rob Long from our Baltimore affiliate, 105.3 The Fan. Some huge plays from Wild Card Weekend.

What is the best thing you saw over the last couple of days of football? On Twitter, A Law Radio, also on our Facebook page. Good to have you with us on a Monday morning here on CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. We'll be right back. We'll be right back. We'll be right back. We'll be right back.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Saquon Barkley speaks the truth. The Giants have a lot of first-round draft picks, and they are so much better when Barkley himself is healthy. But also, yes, Daniel Jones played at an elite level on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings on the road.

He looked completely in control and confident. This was the culmination of a year with Brian Deball and four years of going through the ringer, only to lead the Giants. It wasn't just Daniel Jones, but certainly played a huge role and set the tone for his team. Leads them to their first playoff win since they won the Super Bowl against the Patriots after the 2011 season.

We're talking about more than a decade. So welcome back to the New York Giants. And yes, Saquon Barkley, huge. Two touchdowns, but pointing the arrow at his elite quarterback.

First playoff game for Daniel Jones, 24 of 35, 301 yards, a couple of touchdowns, but also the leading rusher for the Giants. Whether it was design runs where you could really see his patience, he's lanky, he's lean, he's fluid. But you could also see his ability to watch what's unfolding, watch what's developing, and react without freaking out. And that's a sign of a veteran QB, it's a sign of a maturing QB. I hear some, in fact Boomer Esiason, former NFL MVP, has told me it takes three years really for a quarterback to get super comfortable after starting out as a rookie. And Jones was thrown into the fire and he's had multiple coaches, and he's had a ton of different voices and schemes. Rotating door of offensive coordinators and quarterbacks coaches. Brian Deball not only is changing the culture around the Giants, but he's ramping up expectations. And that speaks to a team, a locker room, it speaks to anyone. When you have high expectations for a group of people, it's because you believe in them. He believes in these Giants.

And they are delivering. Now as for the Minnesota Vikings, it's definitely disappointing. But that whole playing with fire thing all season, 11 wins in one score games by one score. While it prepares you, theoretically, for what you're going to see in the playoffs, it definitely means you're living life on the edge. And so it stings. This is not on Kirk Cousins, though. I get it. He threw a pass that was four yards when they needed eight on their last attempt, their fourth down and eight.

And that's dumb, and I hate it. But how about the defense? How about the defense for the Vikings that gave up 431 yards to the visiting Giants and over 140 yards on the ground? So there's a lot of blame to go around there. And it's a disappointing end to what was a real positive season and the three seed in the NFC.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. The two seed in the NFC is the San Francisco 49ers. And I wouldn't say they got a scare.

That would be probably overstating it. But they got a fight. They got a battle from their divisional foe, the Seattle Seahawks. And a couple of mistakes allowed the Seahawks a one point lead at the break. But that whole script was flipped in the second half. The defense is so tough.

It's so tenacious and so bold, just brash in your face. And it was fun. It was fun to watch the rookie quarterback Brock Purdy spread the ball around and use all of the targets available. Fake the toss. They roll Purdy to the left. Purdy going to throw back middle. Wide open Deebo Samuel. Down the sideline. 50, 40, Deebo 30, Deebo 20, Deebo 10, Deebo touchdown!

San Francisco! Well I told you that it may be a breakout game for Deebo Samuel. There was some emotion going into the game. You could just feel it in the environment with the fans and our teammates. Like man, this is win or go home. And so you did feel that pregame and whatnot. But once the game started, it was all, hey, it's 11 on 11. I got to do my job.

I got to get it to the guys when they're in space and go from there. Greg Papa on the Niners Radio Network. Bob Papa, by the way, on the Giants Radio Network. And that 74 yard catch and run by Deebo.

Welcome back. Was the final nail in the coffin. 505 yards of offense.

Nearly 200 on the ground. And the Niners flexed their muscles. Again, the Seahawks were game. And I think, unlike the Vikings, where this is a huge disappointment and a major letdown for them, for the Seahawks, I'm not saying they were just happy to be there. They had a better chance than any other team at taking out the Niners. But it's a capper to a season that was expected to be nothing.

Basement of the NFC West. And yet Pete Carroll, who could coach a water bottle and a pair of socks. Pete Carroll believed in Geno Smith from the beginning and believed in his team. Not to mention believed in his own coaching acumen. Meanwhile, for Brock Purdy, four total touchdowns.

Kyle Shanahan, through sources and reports, has indicated that he's going to remain the quarterback however far they go in these playoffs, even if Jimmy Garoppolo is available. And for Deebo, he knows that there's more than just X's and O's and a lot of bodies on the sidelines. You can see the definition of our team of IGYB. I got your back. At the end of the day, I feel like that turned our team up a notch. And as you can see, we just went out there and made plays. I like that. I got your back.

Chemistry, right? It certainly helps when you're winning. And the Niners have now won 12, no sorry, 11. That was not a Freudian flip. They've now won 11 games in a row and will take on either Cowboys or Bucks next Sunday evening.

Sunday afternoon, Bay Area time. But it helps when you all care about each other. You play not just for you, but for the guy to your left and the guy to your right. So chemistry is intangible. It's fleeting. It's not always there with winning teams, but when you have it, it's extra. It's special.

So what's the best thing you saw this wildcard weekend, even as we have one game left? You can fill in the blank on Twitter, A Law Radio. Good morning to you. Nice to hear from so many of you. And also on our Facebook page, we're going to talk Ravens football, kind of an early eulogy. We won't get too deep into it yet because we need to sit on it. We need to stew over it. But what was Lamar Jackson doing in Baltimore when the team was in Cincinnati?

We'll ask Rob Long coming up next. To get 10% off your first month. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp. When you're at your best, you can do great things. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the best version of yourself. Because when you feel empowered, you're more ready for life's challenges. BetterHelp is a great therapy option. It's flexible, affordable, entirely online, and it matches you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy help empower you. Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHELP.com slash positive. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.

When you're at your best, you can do great things. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the best version of yourself. Because when you feel empowered, you're more ready for life's challenges. BetterHelp is a great therapy option. It's flexible, affordable, entirely online, and it matches you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy help empower you. Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month.

That's BetterHELP.com slash positive. A double touchdown for Cincinnati. An unbelievable reversal. Now, John Harbaugh is going to look to his coaching staff to see if Huntley broke the plane with the ball. If he did, it's a Ravens touchdown. If he did not, it's an absolute disaster. He played his heart out.

You know, I think anybody that watches this game is going to look at Snoop, Tyler Huntley, and say, wow, this guy's playing hard and playing good ball. So you've got to give your hats off to him. And he's just going to continue to learn and get better and better and better. And I love that guy.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Those are nice words from tight end Mark Andrews, but does not change the turning point of Bengals raven Sam Hubbard. If it was 120 yards, he might not have made it, but 98 yards on a Tyler Huntley fumble, a ball that was snatched away as he tried to reach over the goal line. The Ravens were staring at an opportunity to take the lead. The call from the Ravens radio network is with Jerry Sandusky. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. We're pleased to welcome Rob Long, who's cohost of the Big Bad Morning Show on our Baltimore affiliate, 105.7.

Now, he's not working this morning, so I appreciate it even more that you are awake early to hang out with us for a couple of minutes and maybe vent some of your thoughts after that game, thoughts and emotions. So, Rob, what was your reaction to that moment for Sam Hubbard? My reaction was, why are you running a quarterback keeper from the two-yard line? Amy, if you get me on and ask me about the Ravens offense, it's going to be the Greg Roman show and get all over, which is the case on the Big Bad Morning Show with me. Third one, you run your tight end. Right there in that situation, you don't run your running back. Earlier, he had a goal line situation, you're throwing the football. I don't understand what Greg Roman is thinking most of the time.

You look at football from a lot of other teams. You see plays that are ran. You don't call the plays before they run them, but after they run them, you understood why they called that. I don't do that a lot when I watch the Ravens offense in football. Sometimes I know the plays are coming and I can't understand why they ran it.

I didn't know that tight end handoff was coming. But when you have two running backs who are doing pretty good on third and one, why hand them your tight end? Why hand them number one because he's not a running back?

Number two, why put him in that situation where he's unfamiliar? Ravens do some things offensively sometimes that have me scrapped in my head. Does it make you feel any differently to know that according to John Harbaugh, the play was actually not for Huntley to go over the top, it was for Huntley to go low?

I didn't understand why he went over the top. It makes me feel a little better, but I still don't understand why not hand him your running back who's picking up positive yards anyway. Your franchise quarterback is out. He's not even in town. The next quarterback you've seen him play before, you're not happy with him. Why are you wanting him in that situation?

It just doesn't make sense to me, Amy. It's the running back of gaining positive yards. So JK Dobbins actually vents to the media after the game that he did not have a carry in the red zone. What's your reaction to what he had to say? He believes not only that he would have probably gotten in the end zone there, but that if he actually said, if we had Lamar, we would have won.

I'm glad he spoke out on the Lamar thing because Lamar's not here. It's not for him to speak out, but not having a carry in the red zone. Again, it makes you scratch your head the way they play offense on this football team.

Some of the things in high school life, some of the things are funny, are laughable. JK Dobbins, I didn't even realize that. He didn't have a carry in the red zone. You had a lot of plays in the red zone, and you're running back and playing a positive yard.

In that situation, you should have the right staff to have the football try to score a touchdown. Rob Long is with us from Baltimore in the wake of what was a very competitive game, I think more competitive than a lot of people around the country expected, as the Ravens were able to run the ball and stop the run. Honestly, the Bengals offense looked abysmal for most of the second half, just really bad.

Couldn't put together anything. Even after a roughing the punter penalty, they go another 3-0. It was like a 6-0 that I've never seen before. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. I know we've talked about the potential change in offensive coordinator, but what about quarterback?

And you've mentioned it, I already told my audience I was going to ask you, and I told them I was going to phrase it exactly this way, Rob. What the hell was Lamar Jackson doing in Baltimore and not in Cincinnati with his team? It's telling. I don't know whose decision that was. His decision, the team's decision, whoever made that decision. It tells you the relationship, in my opinion, between the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson. Are fans in Baltimore very protective of the organization or Lamar?

It's kind of polarizing to be honest with you, Amy. It's either Team Lamar or Team Ravens. So when you speak of things like that that aren't said, you're speculating people get defensive, but come on, when your quarterback doesn't make it on a playoff trip, when he has the type of injury that's not going to stop him from traveling, it doesn't make you wonder what the relationship is between the team and that quarterback. I wondered the relationship in the beginning.

It just makes me wonder even more. Something's not right. Either Lamar Jackson said, I'm not going to Cincinnati, which makes me very disappointed in him, or Don Harbaugh probably said, hey, Lamar, why don't you stay in Baltimore, which means the Lamar saga has been a distraction one way or the other. It seems it appears to be a strained relationship between he and the Baltimore Ravens. There were a lot of players, former NFL players, who were coming out criticizing Lamar for not putting a brace on and playing, not playing through pain. According to his tweet, his knee is unstable and he's not ready to go.

But you know what it reminded me of, Rob? That whole situation with Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs in his last year there, where his doctors were saying he's not ready to go. He was away from the team rehabbing in New York, I think. And the team's doctors were saying, he's good to go.

We don't know why he's not playing. And then ultimately the relationship broke down to the point where the Spurs had no choice but to trade him. It's starting to feel more like that to me. That's a great comparison. I thought about that as a great comparison, and I hope it's not the case because the people of Lamar Jackson is done. But one athlete begged the difference with everybody. RG3 put out a tweet with him with a knee brace on and collapsing in that Seattle Seahawks wildcard game and said, this is why you don't wear a knee brace. RG3 straightened his knee against the Baltimore Ravens with a low bimata injury. And he went out and put the knee brace on in the playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks and the young ruckus Russell Wilson.

And we know the rest of the story. He was the offensive rookie of the year. Who knows what his career would have been without that injury. So RG3 spoke up for Lamar, put a picture with him being sacked with the knee brace on and said, this is why you don't wear a knee brace.

It's easy for these four athletes. If I'm not mistaken, Michael Vick was one of the people who said that. If I'm not mistaken, that's after he signed the $100 million contract. The situation was a little bit different.

You got paid already. I mean, we forget this. We forget it's a business. We want athletes to be so loyal to the team. But teams sign a contract with athletes and let them go before the contract's up. So it's a business for the team, but it's not supposed to be a business for the player. Whether you agree or disagree with Lamar Jackson does, he's invested in Lamar Jackson, Inc.

It's like the Baltimore Ravens are moving in their best financial interests. I agree with you and I understand. It's hard to, I'm a team first person, so I would have, I would have done anything to be out there. However, you're right, Lamar still has to get paid. But the whole idea that he's not with his teammates, that makes me angry. Unless I find out the Ravens told him to stay home, how much Tyler Huntley would have benefited from having Lamar with him to calm him down, to say, here's what I see, here's what you can do. Just in general, to have a teammate who's been in the arena, I think would have been such a help to Tyler, though he played very well.

So just to circle back before we put this- Can I add something to that, Amy? Oh yeah, sure. Not only is this a teammate, but these two have known one another since they were kids back in Florida.

Ah, yes. A teammate and someone who's a friend who I'm very close to, so that adds to what Lamar's presence may have meant if he was there for Huntley. Rob Long with us from Baltimore here on CBS Sports Radio.

Just to circle back and then we'll talk about something else. You said it's become polarizing in Baltimore. People are either Team Lamar or Team Ravens.

What are you? Oh man, I guess I'm neither. I'm a huge Lamar Jackson fan, but I'm one of those- I tell people all the time, I might have to get a little background on my broadcasting and sports management. So I went for the business of sports, so I get both sides. I'm not a person who says, man, if Lamar's gone, I'm done. I get where Lamar's coming from, but I also get where the Ravens are coming from too. He's a guy who's missed a lot of games in the last two years. Yes. He wants me to pay you all of this guaranteed money.

You've missed some time. I've relied on the backup quarterback a lot in two years. So I understand that from the Ravens standpoint. At the same time, I understand from Lamar who wants to get the guaranteed money, and that's going to be the new wave of football. However, what I will be disappointed in is to know that Lamar voluntarily stayed home for the Cincinnati trip. That kind of changes things for me a little bit, and the disappointment level of him will grow a lot.

I'm a little disappointed in some of the things he decided already, but this will really make me disappointed in some of his decision-making. It definitely was injuries to Lamar that kind of derailed the Ravens the end of the last two seasons, but it's never just about one person. So we kind of talked about the OC and a possible change there. It's about 60 seconds, Rob, but what else do the Ravens need to address in the offseason? Wide receiver. I mean, they need wide receivers badly. I don't know how you make wide receivers who are productive skills in their careers come here other than trade for them. They don't have a great history of drafting wide receivers over the years.

You just look at it. But they need to make a move with a wide receiver. If they can get Lamar signed, make a trade, a drastic whatever. It looks like Lamar may be in a potential franchise trade situation. But other than OC, I think for sure this team is in desperate, desperate need of some playmakers starting at the wide receiver position. Well, they're never going to get any free agents to show up if they don't figure this out with their OC and their quarterback. You can't tell a free agent, hey, come here. We don't have a quarterback yet, but you know, it'll be fine.

We'll find one eventually. They couldn't keep Hollywood Brown out of those situations. Well, Hollywood Brown wanted to be traded. He did not trust the offensive system, the passing game. And it had nothing to do with Lamar, I don't think, at the time.

Maybe he did know because they're friends. But it was largely this is a passing attack that's really not much of an attack. You see a lot of wide receivers. Look at the Ravens. Go back and look at some games and see how many receivers you see in the same area.

And you want the quarterback to make a good throw. Why are they in the same area? I don't believe him. He was always running the same route or the wrong route.

I believe it's designed that way, to be honest, which is crazy. It is. And there's a lot that has to be decided. So follow Rob on Twitter, at Rob Long Sports, co-host of the Big Bad Morning show on our Baltimore affiliate 105. Seven weekdays at 6 a.m. Eastern, though not today.

So enjoy your day off, Rob. Thank you. We'll talk soon. You know, I'm a high school basketball coach.

We got 11 a.m. tip-off. Oh, my gosh. Win, coach. You got this.

Thanks a lot, Amy. We appreciate Rob. You can find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, also on our Facebook page.

What's the best thing you saw this wildcard weekend? It's a lot more to do. We'll get back into it after Cowboys and Buccaneers tonight.

So join us then. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Boom! This show is sponsored by BetterHelp. When you're at your best, you can do great things. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the best version of yourself. Because when you feel empowered, you're more ready for life's challenges. BetterHelp is a great therapy option. It's flexible, affordable, entirely online, and it matches you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy help empower you. Visit betterhelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com slash positive. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.

When you're at your best, you can do great things. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the best version of yourself. Because when you feel empowered, you're more ready for life's challenges. BetterHelp is a great therapy option. It's flexible, affordable, entirely online, and it matches you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy help empower you. Visit betterhelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com slash positive. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp.

When you're at your best, you can do great things. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the best version of yourself. Because when you feel empowered, you're more ready for life's challenges. BetterHelp is a great therapy option. It's flexible, affordable, entirely online, and it matches you with a licensed therapist. Let therapy help empower you. Visit betterhelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com slash positive.