After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 2

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Yep, Graybar does that. This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. It's me. It's so me.

Am I supposed to be having this much fun? I really, really miss you guys. I really miss being on the radio.

I even said to Bob, the new hubs now, I keep saying it hubs hubby, my husband, it sounds very well, it just sounds very strange coming out of my mouth. But I did tell him, by the end of this hiatus from the radio, you are going to want me to go go back and talk to someone else. You're gonna want me to go do my job because I will be itchy.

And I'll be scratchy. And I will need to be talking about football. And so when I finally got back to football, I guess it was Christmas Eve. What are we doing Thursday evening? You know what Thursday, we listened to a game when we were driving back from his family's Christmas. We're in different part of Texas. So we did listen to a game for a little bit.

But I really wasn't wholeheartedly into it. We just done Christmas. And so we're coming back.

No, we're actually on the way. And so to his family for Christmas. So I did listen to a little football then, on Christmas Eve, started to watch for the first time in earnest and really missed it. Even said that to my family. Ah, I've missed football.

I've so missed football. Anyway, so thank you for all of your kind words. Thank you so much for thinking of me. Certainly thank you for the kind congratulations and for sharing my joy, as well as my not just my joy, but also my you know, it's a it's a strange thing to say. But this this piece and this this grace and this this just almost a release. I can't explain it much more than to say after all these years of waiting, and all this time spent praying and believing that this day in this time would come. Not only is it strange, because I'm just not used to it.

But it's every time I think of it. I just am so full of joy, myself and hope and and I've been able to encourage a bunch of other friends of mine who are still waiting for answered prayers for big breakthroughs in their own lives. And they hear my story and they are encouraged and that makes me happy. We have had the chance to share our story with a bunch of people. And it's been really cool to be able to say to them, hey, if we can have answered prayers like this, if we can see some, you know, amazing, amazing, fresh start and new opportunity, some awesome miracle in our own lives, then you can too. And so that's been a lot of fun. And I know many of you are so invested in my personal life as well as in my broadcast life. And that means a lot to me. And so to see all of your comments, even though it was a week later to see your comments, to see your questions. Curiosity killed the cat, but you guys refuse to give that up.

You're not nervous at all about something happening. You all just continue to be interested and to care and to share and to want me to share. So thank you for that because I know how much you care and because I know how invested you were in my wedding flowers. They did arrive.

Finally, they were perfect. And so many of you were stressed out with me. Now, some of you didn't understand the point. Marco Belletti, some of you did not understand the point. We'll talk about Marco or we'll talk to Marco, I guess, when we finally are back together. Producer J is off the rest of the week.

I actually think Marco is too, but don't quote me on that. And so we won't be together as a group until next week following New Year's. But I'll be on the air New Year's Eve. I always work New Year's Eve.

I don't ever go out on New Year's Eve, even now. In fact, Bob will be joining me in studio for the first time. He's never been to a radio studio before. He is really excited to see what it looks like behind the scenes. Some of you have asked whether or not he will be on the air.

The answer is no. And that's his decision. I would have been more than happy to allow him to say a couple of words just to say hello and be whatever fun on New Year's Eve. But that's not what he's interested in.

It's not at all what he wants to do, but he is psyched to sit there and be part of the show. And of course, we want to ring in New Year's together. And then I'll also work New Year's night.

By the way, I've married into a Longhorn family, and so I had to adjust accordingly. It was kind of fun to hear them all talk with great nervousness and anxiety, but also anticipation for the college football playoff and those two games taking place on New Year's Day. So I will be with you on New Year's Eve as well as the night of January 1st on into January 2nd. And at some point, so middle of next week more than likely, maybe our hump show because we always do Ask Amy anything.

I will designate that the wedding show and will tell you the stories and will tell you about the moments that did not work out as planned, but also the sweet moments that I'll never forget. And I'm working on a blog post. Many of you have asked me about pictures. The only pictures that I have up right now are one from wedding morning, which is I wasn't dressed, but I did have the dress.

It was in the car with me. And so you can check out that photo. You have to page back a little bit, but you can check out that photo on Twitter. A law radio and just posted on both Twitter and Facebook after hours with Amy Lawrence. The flowers are here with me in the super secret home base that is originating in the Houston, Texas area.

So you can check out those photos. So many of you were invested in the flowers. They turned out perfectly. I couldn't have asked for more from our friend who decorated for us.

Our main color was the darker purple and I love the silver and the ivory accents there. They were perfect. We don't have any official wedding photos yet. In fact, I took zero photos as in no photos all weekend long.

I half the time didn't even know where my phone was. But thankfully, my family and a bunch of friends were snapping photos, so we were able to get some cool photos. My brother set up a Google Drive folder and so all the families chipping in their photos and I've been able to see ones that friends took.

It's been really cool. A little bit overwhelming to see other people's photos, but we don't have ours yet. I will not be posting photos from the wedding on social media.

I know some of you have asked. Probably will put a few in my blog because that's my own space and that way I can tell the stories along with. But for now, and this is how it's just going to be, we want to keep our wedding and our ceremony and reception private. We asked all of our family and friends to refrain from posting photos on social media. So far, none have popped up from the wedding or the ceremony, so we don't have any out there. There aren't any online.

And like I said, I will likely put a few in a blog post after I consider it and have a chance to write it. But for now, I hope you enjoy the stories and then the photos of the flowers are up to, again, Twitter or Facebook. Our phone number is 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4CBS. On to some funny stuff and also to answer your questions about our blended family. Many of you have asked me about Penny. I'll be honest, it's been a rough couple of weeks for Penny. We left New Jersey two weeks ago Wednesday. OK, so we were after I got off the air on Wednesday morning, December 13th, we had a few hours to get out of that. I slept for a couple hours, had appointments. We had a few hours to get out of the house and then we started driving. And we drove 18 hours straight to Little Rock. So other than stops for gas or to let the dog out or for us to get a drink, we were in the car for 18 hours straight. So that was a long haul, but we had to get to Texas. So that took us into Little Rock on Thursday evening, Thursday afternoon.

We were able to sleep, eat, let the dog get out for a little bit. And then we finished the drive on Friday, December 15th, got back into the Houston area on Friday. So Penny, I told her she would never have to do another 1700 mile haul or if you go round trip to and from my mom's.

I had done it at Christmas 2021 and had done it myself, just me and the dog. And it was really hard on her then. And she was two years younger. So I told her she'd never have to make the trip again. I was pretty nervous about putting her back in a car for all of those miles.

If you haven't, there is actually a photo of Penny. We made a sweet bed for her in the minivan we rented. So we had dress and flowers and gosh, just everything for 18 days away. All kinds of wedding stuff that we had to take with us, not to mention my stuff that I needed. And so we had to rent a minivan because Princess Leia wasn't large enough to get the dog and everything else. And so I did post a photo of the sweet bed we made for Penny. She was actually laying right next to the wedding dress. She was guarding it so that Bob did not try to sneak a peek.

So that's also on Twitter, A-Law Radio. Anyway, she is not great out of her routine anymore. One of the things that has really changed for her over the last couple of years is that she gets pretty anxious when she's out of her routine. So I had consulted with the vet. I know I shared some of this with you before I took the break. And the vet gave me a few different options. One of them was something called Gabo Pentin, for those of you who have pets.

You may have heard of it before. A friend of mine has even used it on her dog. She was at the wedding so she was encouraging me. And it worked perfectly. Penny slept almost the entire 18 hours. She was up a little bit. I would get her out of the car. And she would take a quick walk. She ate. But for the most part, she was really calm. And she slept in the bed that we had wide open for her.

And no problems, no issues, no anxiety. So we get to Little Rock. The medicine is wearing off. She's now kind of coming to terms with the fact that she's in a strange place. And so it was a really nice Airbnb with a fenced in backyard. She went in and out. I gave her another half of a Gabo Pentin. I didn't want to give her a full one, but I gave her a half. And that helped her get through the final eight hours.

Actually it was more like seven hours of driving back to Houston. But the Friday before the wedding, we nearly took her to an emergency vet. She was, gosh, she was panting heavier and had more anxiety. And she was dehydrated and just really struggled. And I was nervous.

Bob was nervous. My family was nervous. So we nearly took her to an emergency vet. Thankfully, she finally calmed down. She was able to sleep on Friday night. We actually kept her out in my mom's trailer during all of the family party and festivities. Because it was cooler out there.

It was quiet. And so we went out every hour and took her out. But for the most part, she stayed out there. Not by herself.

I was out there for part of the time too. But she was better out there than with 30 people in a house where it was hot and loud. And she wouldn't have known anyone except for a couple of us. So she calmed down over the course of the weekend. She went to a friend's house on wedding day. And they said she was amazing.

She had no problems. My mom's dog was there. So the two of them, they know each other. And they were fine.

They were in the same area together. So she got through, and she's been at my mom's all of the last week. She got through that okay. But still dealing with some anxiety. And so the panting and the pacing, poor thing. Just any changes to her routine. I was gone for a good portion of the last week. And so I think now that I'm back, she's a little calmer.

But yeah, the gavel pen I'm trying not to use unless I need to. But she struggled a little bit. So anyway, came time on Christmas Eve for us to introduce Bob's dog to her.

Now this was in neutral territory, right? Because now Penny spent more time at my mom's than Bob's dog, whose name is Daisy. She's a mini Aussie, and she's a runt. And she's afraid of everything, including her own shadow. And so Penny's pretty calm. Doesn't get all crazy anymore about anything really. But certainly not all that freaked out about other dogs. She just kind of sniffs them and goes back to her business and couldn't care less. And so we introduced them, and then there's my mom's dog in the mix too, right?

So we have three, one purebred full-size Aussie, one purebred mini Aussie, and then Penny who's half Aussie. And it was funny. They were all eating and drinking each other's food, or trying to.

And water, which was hysterical. Daisy hid behind me or Bob for most of Christmas Eve. Then on Christmas Eve night, Daisy and Penny were both in the room with us.

And so they were at least in close quarters. Daisy finally warmed up a little bit. She's barely over two, so she loves to play. So she was stealing some of my mom's dog's toys. And then of course mom's dog, who's Gracie, she wanted them back. So they were playing a little bit, a little more comfortable. Right now, all three, Bob and the two dogs are sleeping in the room across the house.

And so I think they're better. Daisy's still a little anxious, but Penny's sniffed her a few times. When Penny's been sleeping, Daisy will walk up and investigate.

And no one's making any noise, no one's upset. Gracie was really the one that, because she wanted to play and because Daisy was stealing her toys, was a little agitated and barked a bunch. But Penny doesn't bark anymore.

Daisy only barks when there's some strange noise, so she's actually a great watchdog. And right now, it's quiet on the other side of the house and they are all sleeping. So I am happy to report, before we get back in the car and drive 1,700 miles to New Jersey, that it appears as though the dog integration, the dog introduction, the dog probation is going well.

And we haven't told them, but of course it's too late to change it now because we're eight days into being married. And they just are stuck with us, stuck with all of us. So it's been kind of fun.

It's been fun to introduce them. But it's been good to have Penny back with me too because she's much calmer. She loves Bob. I think she likes Bob more than she likes me.

Not a big surprise. She loves Bob and she was well cared for by my mom and her husband, but is calmer now. And so she's in the house, I guess, getting ready to make that trip back to New Jersey, though she doesn't know it yet. Oh my gosh, so not easy to get her in and out of Bob's truck either, wowzers. That was a, yeah, we had to get creative there, but she's such a sweet girl.

Fourteen and all these changes now. So thank you for asking about Penny. She's doing well. She's sleeping. Hopefully stays calm the next couple days as we now pack up a house and get ready to get back in the car. Oi! Oi! On Twitter, A Law Radio, also on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence. The wedding flowers are there.

There's photos of them there. I hope that you enjoyed your Christmas. We really did have a nice Christmas together. It was kind of fun to be able to celebrate as a bunch of families together, so that was neat. And you all just keep asking. I am happy to talk football too, but I appreciate that you all are caring and you're asking, so thank you for that.

Our phone number 855-212-4227. Now coming up, not only did the Lions clint a playoff spot this weekend, but so did the Miami Dolphins. And man, what a win for them, plus the Chiefs, who among the big bads in the NFL have yet to clinch a playoff spot. And so we'll talk about the Chiefs too, who right now continue to play this brand of football that befuddles me. So Kansas City, Las Vegas, coming up next, and good to hear from you. Again, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays. As we reconnect, it's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. And right now, if you download Instacart, you'll get free delivery on your first three orders and delivery in as fast as one hour. Offer valid for a limited time, $10 minimum per order, additional term supply. Nobody wants a surprise in their jelly donut.

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Available on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. He's lined up under Humphrey who hands it to Ball. Ball's out. Score.

There you go. Ball all nickels. Touchdown.

Oh, my goodness. They tried the trick play. And when Pacheco handed it off to Mahomes, he dropped it.

And Ball all nickels has a big man touchdown. Rolls out to his right, tries to find his receiver. Intercepted down the sideline. Intercepted Jack Jones.

And he walks in. Touchdown. Back to back plays for the defense with touchdowns. And the Raiders defense has completely flipped this game in Kansas City. There's the snap on second and four. Handoff to Samir.

Cuts to the right side. First down 35. First 40. Down to 50.

Near side 40. 35-30. And Samir White might have just salted away a Raiders win. He's brought down at the Chiefs 25-yard line on a 44-yard pickup. And a first down for Las Vegas.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. On the Raiders radio network, it was one of those games in which Kansas City's demons showed up in full force. Credit the Raiders.

Credit the defense specifically. But certainly the Chiefs with their mistakes and their miscues and their sloppy play and their lack of discipline and their drop passes and their penalties and their turnovers. This is the story of the year for the 2023 Kansas City Chiefs. And despite all of that, they may still end up winning, likely are still going to end up winning the AFC West. But this is not the Chiefs that we're used to from the last five years hosting five consecutive AFC championships, playing in three Super Bowls and winning two rings, not to mention two NFL MVP awards for Patrick Mahomes.

They're at nine and six. But because of everything the Raiders have gone through this year, the slow start, Josh McDaniel's getting fired, Antonio Pierce taking over, they're only seven and eight. And even as the Broncos won, what was it, five in a row, losing the way they did to the Patriots on Sunday night was a huge blow to their playoff hopes. Now both those teams, Raiders and Broncos, they're still officially alive for the playoffs, likely not to be in the wildcard mix simply because of the other teams in the AFC that are ahead of them. And there's a big old fat group, they're thick around the middle, the AFC's thick around the middle. There's a bunch of teams that are eight and seven that are ahead of them, so already have a game in hand, plus the Bills who are nine and six and the Browns who are ten and five. And so the wildcard route is a little tougher in the AFC West, not that it can't happen, but it is not one of those things where they control their own destiny, quote unquote. So the Chiefs right now still have the two-game lead in the West, but they are playing fast and loose with their playoff spot, with their division title. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. So Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, Andy Reid as well, though it was Kelce and it was Reid going back and forth, Andy trying to get to Travis and say to him, compose yourself, get your bleep together, so to speak.

And they certainly have that kind of a relationship. Mahomes going ballistic on the sideline, screaming and yelling, members of his own team. It is up to him, right? It's up to him to get these guys back on track as the leader, as one of the best players in the NFL, as the guy who sets the tone for his team.

I always appreciate when the captains, when the leaders take responsibility and they are accountable. Even though it's not all Pat's fault, it's never that simple, it's not always the quarterback's fault. But the fact that the Chiefs continue to play this brand of football is got to be disturbing. Well, maybe exciting for the rest of the AFC, right? Because it's been the Chiefs or bust the last five years coming out of that conference, except for the year when the Bengals went to the Super Bowl, right?

Patriots, remember that one, their very first AFC championship game of these five, in which they had the interception to take out Tom Brady and the Pats and then there was the D4 offsides. But honestly, we've seen some of those types of penalties too. And Mahomes has lost his cool more than once and Travis Kelce has thrown more than one helmet.

So these guys who have so much attention on them, they go viral for those moments. But Patrick Mahomes is a guy who can elevate the play of everyone around him. At the same time, he can't, as good as he is, and he is great, he's the best. I would still take him over any other quarterback in the NFL right now. But as good as he is, as creative and innovative, the escape artist that he is, as elusive as he is, he and the team cannot make the kind of mistakes they're making and get away with it all the time.

And he knows that. And so the Raiders take advantage. Within seven seconds, they score a pair of defensive touchdowns. The Raiders don't have a completed pass. This is crazy.

You want to talk about a nerd alert that just blows your mind. The Raiders don't have a completed pass after the first quarter. But they get these two defensive touchdowns, actually a second straight week in which the Raiders have had a pair of defensive touchdowns.

Aiden O'Connell never connected with another target after the first quarter. And yet they won. They beat the Chiefs. Why? Because of the defense, because of the scores and the opportunistic defense, but also because the Chiefs, they just don't look as tight. They don't look as disciplined at the sloppiness, the turnovers, the mistakes.

Those are the ones that drive me nuts. But also congratulations to the Raiders and Antonio Pierce and Zamir White. And so we'll hear from Pierce. He actually gave flowers to his players on Christmas Day.

This was the earliest game of the triple header. But first, Patrick Mahomes, who, as I say, is good enough to elevate the level of play of everyone around him. But even he is not immune to the type of mistakes the team is making. Also, I know they're dealing with injuries right now. Isaiah Pacheco got hurt in this game.

Clyde Edwards, a layer. He's been spotty this year. They're really not using him as much as they were. Jerick McKinnon is out. And so Mahomes was the leading rusher, which is not what you want. But the Raiders put a lot of pressure on him. They didn't have a great running option, and so he had to throw a ton. 27 of 44, only 235 yards, sacked four times, throws the pick.

There's another fumble return for a touchdown there with Pacheco. And so this was a Raiders defense that forced the Chiefs into a ton of mistakes. Yeah, I think just the mistakes, offensively. I thought defense played a good game. Just two mistakes that gave them two touchdowns there down to when you're backed up in their red zone. So you just can't do that, especially when defense is playing like they're playing. So I just got to be better in that sense and not making those mistakes and try to find a way to play the game in the best way to win it. Again, we're on a short week here. So we're going to get everybody back in and give them a day off and get everybody back in and get ready for Cincinnati. But I take full responsibility for that, for the way we played. I still believe that they can be a dangerous team in the playoffs, but this doesn't inspire confidence in how far they can go.

Now, the experience. Reed Mahomes, one of the odd couples in sports, Travis Kelce, these receivers now have a year plus under their belt in some cases. Right.

The was it three of the four touchdowns or I know this in the last year Super Bowl or earlier this year, but last season Super Bowl, there were three touchdowns scored by chiefs that were in their first year with the team. And so, yeah, they can lock in. It reminds me a little bit of the Golden State Warriors, the way that they kind of lollygag and I guess take nights off, take games off where they didn't really feel like putting in the effort or playing defense. But once the postseason comes around, they're a different team. Is that a tried and true formula for success?

Heck, no, I wouldn't recommend it. But the Chiefs certainly know what it takes to win. And they have the experience. They have the ability to to raise their level of play on the biggest stages in sports.

We know that we've seen it. So can't write them off yet that you do that at your own peril, but I wouldn't say that this team is as dangerous. And I would say it's hard sometimes you establish. Poor patterns, unhealthy habits, and you can end up. In a situation where, oh, we thought we could flip a switch, we thought we could change this, we know we're better than this, but this has become the pattern. We've gotten lazy, we've gotten undisciplined. So many drop passes, it's crazy to see. So again, not all on Patrick Mahomes, but as the leader, he's trying to inspire them to change this, to turn this ship around before it's too late.

It's after our CBS Sports Radio. As for the Raiders, they hang 63 on the Chargers going back to week 15 and Brandon Staley and Tom Cholesco get fired. Now they have these two defensive touchdowns against the Chiefs on Christmas Day and kind of stick it to them. They are still below 500, but I wonder with Antonio Pierce inspiring this team with the way that he's connected with the locker room in the wake of the Josh McDaniels mess, could it be him as the head coach moving forward?

Right, so he had special flowers for his team in the locker room. We knew it was going to be a gritty game, it wasn't going to be a high scoring, we didn't want it to be a high scoring game. Hats off to our defensive Patrick Graham and our defensive staff. Hats off to our players of executing, staying with it, being relentless.

We talked about squeezing, finishing, finishing the second quarter, finishing the fourth quarter and they did that. Aiden O'Connell goes 9 of 21 with 62 passing yards. Now Zamir White was nearly 150 yards rushing, but 62 passing yards?

It's crazy as I look around the NFL and I know it's even more pronounced now than before when I took off. The Raiders were 0 for 3 in the red zone, they were 3 of 12 on third down, they only had a dozen first downs. Barely over 200 total yards and their quarterback does not complete a pass after the first quarter.

And yet they win. That's the kind of door the Chiefs are leaving open even in the AFC West. The Chiefs generally so good at Arrowhead because that crowd creates a raucous atmosphere in Kansas City, but they're only 4 and 4 at home this year.

The Broncos beat them there if I remember correctly. This Raiders team, it's a work in progress. They've got to figure out what they want to do at quarterback and they've had some defections, right? Josh McDaniels did not leave them in a better space than when he took over. But they're playing hard. They're playing inspired. I can see how much they want to play up to the belief and be worthy of the belief that Antonio Pierce has in them.

And at this point they're still alive for the playoffs, so there's that. Alright, on Twitter, ALawRadio, on our Facebook page too, couple of photos up on both sites. We'll look at this playoff picture now and the possibilities, but also have you considered some of the matchups we might have? The two quarterbacks that might be on the field come postseason if some of these guys don't get healthy.

Oi. It's After Hours on CBS Sports Radio. Here's our latest sports update.

Here's Peter Schwartz. Golf is going to go empty out of the gun. Jared takes the snap back. Looking, looking, throwing, middle, caught, touchdown Detroit Lions. Amenrah, St. Brown and the Lions have the lead back. Golf takes the snap, turns, gives to Jameer, running right to the house, touchdown Detroit Lions.

Untouched. They just opened it for 26 and he found it. 58 seconds to go. Clock will start on the snap. Mullins takes the shotgun snap, he's back.

Mullins looking, pressure comes, stepping up, looking, throwing deep downfield. It is picked up by the Lions. Intercepted, coming back the other way.

Ifatu Malafonwu, this is going to be over. Lions are going to win it. Lions are bringing the NFC North title back to Detroit.

The fourth interception of the day delivers for the Detroit Lions. I'm pretty ecstatic, man. You know, this is, this is special. This is special, but, you know, like I said, it's a special group and this is just the beginning. We feel that way. So, there again, I couldn't be more proud of the guys.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. An emotional Dan Campbell and why not? Maybe you've heard this, you've probably heard this. Four of the current Detroit Lions were born. Four of them were actually born the last time the Lions won a division title. That does not include Jared Goff because he was born in 1994. But Detroit is celebrating its first division championship since 1993. Thirty years.

And that's fine. Can you remember where you were when, Lions fans? So, this was over the Vikings on, was it Sunday? I think it was on Sunday.

My days blending together as I get back into the routine. But the NFL's second longest active division title drought. It's a mouthful, but second longest stretch without a division title. Brownie points if you can pinpoint the only team that had a longer active drought.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Yeah, these guys celebrating, just really enjoying this as a team. And we sometimes talk about chemistry in sports, whether it be pro or college. It really is one of those intangibles that's impossible to create with a formula, right? It's impossible to cultivate it outside of relationships, honestly. Winning can help. In fact, winning does help because winning makes you all like each other a little bit more.

When there's no conflict and there's no adversity or even if there is and you're winning through it, it's a bonding experience. But that in and of itself does not create chemistry. Chemistry is born from relationships. Chemistry is about a team, a group of people. It can be a corporate boardroom.

It can be a family, whatever it is. Chemistry can be a friend group. It's about caring more for the man on your left and the woman on your right, caring more for the other people in the locker room than you do for yourself. It's about caring more for the group success than for your own individual stats. It's not just about liking each other because, of course, these guys, you're talking about an active roster of 53 guys, a practice squad that's ever growing, a coaching and staff that can number in the dozens, managers and trainers and doctors and every type of support staff under the sun. They don't have to like each other, but they have to care. They have to respect. They have to be willing to push through the challenges, the tough times because it's not about them. It's about their brothers, their sisters, depending upon the team that we're talking about.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. I do love the Dan Campbell leadership style, the toughness, the grit. We know all about his press conferences. Well, we have to tell people that me thinks he doth protested too much, but I love him. I love the way that he's changed the culture in Detroit. I love the fact that the defense plays with his personality and has adopted that style.

Certainly the way that this group has come together has been extraordinary and it is in part because of chemistry. Maybe it's because they've got something to prove. Maybe it's because they're in Detroit where it's been 30 years since they won a division title. And it's been, gosh, even longer since they've had any type of postseason success. And yet it's not these guys, but they carry that mantle, right? The stories that you're hearing about the last time the Lions did this, the last time the Lions won a division crown, it was the NFC central, right?

The last time, la, la, la, la, la. And so even though it's not this team and these guys are not from Detroit, not, well, not all of them. We know Aiden Hutchinson is a Michigan guy, a local guy. But for the most part, you're not talking about guys that come from this area, but you're talking about a fan base that embraces the team, a team that cares more about each other, a team that has something to prove and that is all pulling in the same direction. That part's pretty impressive.

And so the Lions and this uber long drought, maybe it felt like forever for the fan base. And they've got Dan Campbell, who stands in front of a microphone and wears his heart on his sleeve and can convince these guys that it is worth fighting for. And he validates them because his expectations are high. And because of how much he wants them to succeed, not just for him, but for them. But you can hear it when he talks about this team. Nobody got frazzled.

Nobody lost their cool. And when we needed it in the crunch times, we made plays. And that's what good teams do. They find ways to win the game instead of the other way, you know.

And that's not an easy thing to do. It's not. And yet this is preparation for the postseason.

It's preparation of things to come, for things to come. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. Lions fans, you all blew up my social, I guess it was my Twitter on Sunday when I was tweeting about the division title. I would imagine that if I was a Lions fan, long suffering, I would go on a liking spree on social media, liking every possible post about my team.

And it's winning, wanting to savor this moment. And so right now you've got the Lions at 11-4. Same record as the Niners and the Eagles. Best record in the NFC. Though the Niners still have that nose in front for the number one seed and the buy.

So here's how it looks. Here's how it looks in the NFC at this point. The Niners are the one seed. Again, this is right now through week 16, still two weeks to go. But the Eagles win the tiebreak over Detroit based on the strength of victory.

Just all kinds of weird ways that they determine who gets the two, the three, blah, blah, blah. The Lions will be the three seed. The Buccaneers at this point, the only team in the NFC South with a winning record. Baker Mayfield, all of a sudden, the man in Tampa Bay or in Tampa. And so the Bucs at this point would be the winners of the South Division, though the only team with a winning record, as I say.

So they still have some work to do. But I guess not that long ago that the Buccaneers won a Super Bowl with Tom Brady as their QB, even though they were the four seed that year as well. That was the COVID year in 2020, right? No, they were a wild card, actually. Were they a wild card?

Yeah, they were because they went on the road the first week of the playoffs. The Cowboys would be the five seed at the 10 and 5 mark because right now they're behind the Eagles in the NFC East. It would be Rams and Seahawks who are into the playoffs as the other two wild cards. Rams and Seahawks, both out of the NFC West. It blows me away to think about the top heavy NFC and the fact that we've got these four teams that have double figure wins, but then the best record beyond that is 8 and 7. And then a bunch of teams that are 7 and 8. The Vikings, the Falcons, the Packers, the Saints, even the Bears are still alive for a wild card spot for that reason. Because once you get through those top four teams in the NFC, it's really mediocrity behind them. The Eagles we'll talk about at the top of the hour following this break because they finally ended the losing skid, but I'm still not sure we've seen them play their best football this year. After the Monday evening game, Baltimore Ravens have the best record in the NFL. They're 12 and 3, and what a statement win on the road in Santa Clara. Lots of buzz around Lamar Jackson, his MVP.

His numbers are not the best, but his team has taken on his personality, kind of like we talked about with Dan Campbell and Detroit. So find me on Twitter, ALawRadio, on our Facebook page, too, from the After Hours super secret home base in Houston, Texas. Merry Christmas. It's After Hours CBS Sports Radio. When the whole family comes together to watch the game, nobody wants to miss a second of the action to run to the grocery store. With Instacart, you can get all your weekly groceries in as fast as an hour.

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