After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 2

Around New Year's, we get a little obsessed with changing ourselves and forgetting the things we're already doing right.

Like taking our supplements every morning or scheduling me time into our day. Therapy helps you recognize those victories and keep up the good work in the new year without changing everything. BetterHelp offers affordable online therapy so you can try New Year's Same You with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com slash grow today to get 10% off your first month.

That's BetterHelp H-E-L-P.com slash grow. Babysitter paid. Pizza ordered. Flowers delivered. You can do a lot of things with your phone and with Blue Link Plus you can even access your Hyundai Tucson Limited remotely. Doors unlocked.

Temperature set. Lost car found. Oh, there it is. Get complimentary class-leading Blue Link Plus. Just another way we make owning a Hyundai Tucson Limited more convenient than ever. Learn more about the new Tucson and Blue Link Plus at HyundaiUSA.com.

Call 562-314-4603 for complete details. The final four is set. You guys, there are more teams left than there are games still remaining in the NFL season.

You get to this point and you think, whoa, okay. We are about to face weekends without football. Unless you're really into the USFL, which I'll give you is exciting and is football, but doesn't have the same buzz as do these NFL playoffs. Now, we've learned over the past few years that there's no such thing as an off-season for the NFL and we still have a bunch of coaching jobs that have yet to be filled. For instance, we are waiting on the Atlanta Falcons. Now, what we've heard is that they actually talked to the offensive coordinator of the Lions, Ben Johnson, just before the deadline. So he completed a virtual interview after the Lions win.

Get that. After the Lions beat the Buccaneers and reached their first NFC title game, first NFC championship game since 1991. He did a virtual interview for the Falcons head coaching gig. So they have done two interviews with Bill Belichick. We know they've interviewed Jim Harbaugh. And this was their interview with Ben Johnson. I guess if you watch the Lions put three consecutive touchdowns on the board in the second half and win the game, then you're more interested never to speak to Ben. He was the 13th candidate to interview with Atlanta.

How about that? 13 different guys they've talked to for the head coaching gig. And are you ready for this? They haven't yet talked to Mike Vrabel, but apparently he has an interview set up this week. So they will have talked to 14 potential candidates. Falcons fans, how does that make you feel? Now only Belichick has interviewed twice. I mean, if I'm Arthur Blank, I pick his brain as much as I possibly can about my franchise.

Even if you don't intend to hire him, how about you take his ideas, you try to implement some of them for your franchise to find some upward momentum. It depends upon who you believe. I've heard everything from Belichick to the Falcons is nearly a done deal. That's one end of the spectrum to it's still wide open.

That was reported by Jeff Darlington of ESPN, still wide open in Atlanta. And I don't know why you keep interviewing candidates if it's not wide open, if you're convinced, but that's just me. So they still plan to do follow up interviews, second interviews with guys like Ben Johnson, and they're waiting to interview Mike Vrabel this week, reportedly, as a host of guys. Some who have a little bit of head coaching experience and just aren't right now and others who would be first time head coaches. And then Belichick, who's the GOAT of coaches and really wants that wins record, by the way.

So that's what's happening. Part of what's happening with the coaching carousel in Atlanta specifically, you may have seen over the weekend that Antonio Pierce had the interim tag removed from his name, from his title, and he is now the head coach. Congratulations to Antonio of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Good for him. They played hard for him. It's clear he inspired them. I still think they're lower on talent. And they need a quarterback, obviously. Have to determine what happens with Devante Adams, Josh Jacobs. I mean, there's a lot of questions, but they certainly have talent.

Star power on both sides of the ball, just not a ton of depth. Max Crosby, it's indicated that he only wanted to play for Antonio Pierce, and there were a lot of players who stumped for Antonio. He speaks their language, and he got them moving in the right direction, even though they missed the playoffs. So now you have New England going with Jerrod Mayo promoting from within. You've got Antonio Pierce keeping the job in Vegas. That leaves us with six other openings, so a half dozen jobs still available, including the Carolina Panthers and the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South. Obviously, the Chargers have yet to hire, though they are reportedly really interested in Jim Harbaugh. He was at the Ravens-Texans game on Saturday in the cold.

It was cool to see him. So he's making the rounds. Haven't heard a whole lot about the Titans gig, only that they're looking at a lot of different candidates. Still nothing on the Eagles, though at this point, Nick Sirianni is expected to keep the job. Maybe that's why we haven't heard anything, because Howie Roseman refuses to dignify the idea with a response, but there have been changes in the coaching staff. So Matt Patricia, who became the de facto defensive coordinator, defensive play caller, after the other got demoted, he's expected to be looking for other jobs, and then the demoted D.C. has been fired. So there are going to be changes on the defensive side of the ball for the second straight year.

Remember the Eagles lost their defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, to the Cardinals after their run at the Super Bowl last year. So that coaching carousel will keep us busy, and as I say, next weekend, championship weekend, a doubleheader on Sunday, so no games on Saturday. Dang it. A whole Saturday with no football. Whatever will I do with myself? My hubs will be so happy. We'll have to shut everything down. All our unpacking and organizing doesn't have to be shut down by 4 o'clock Eastern Time on a Saturday afternoon. Sweet. Sweet is right.

I'll sign up for it. As much as I will miss football, well games, I'll miss games, we can't miss you if you never go away. The doubleheader for next weekend is set up this way. Chiefs at the Ravens is the 3 o'clock Eastern Time, so noon kickoff on the West Coast, but it's 3 o'clock Baltimore time. And then the Lions at the Niners, San Francisco hosting its first of these three consecutive NFC Championship games. That'll kick off at 3.30 Pacific Time, 6.30 Eastern Time in Santa Clara. And so the number one seeds hosting the number three seeds in both the AFC and the NFC.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. How you feeling football fans? There's a lot to talk about from this weekend, even the teams that lost. There are plenty of implications and we'll get to Niners and Packers.

That happens Saturday evening. But the future's bright for Jordan Love and this Packers team. There's got to be a lot of hope and excitement there.

There's got to be a lot of excitement. Maybe it's tempered right now, but there's got to be a lot of optimism around the Bucs, right? They finished above.500 in the first year post Tom Brady. They found their quarterback and I'll explain why they're going to stick with Baker coming up. And they're not going to have to pay him $50 million a year. So the future's bright for the Packers.

I think it's bright for the Buccaneers, even with so much transition around them in the NFC South. I know Dennis Allen's keeping his job in New Orleans, but they're still trying to figure out moving pieces on offense. Alvin Kamara's in and out of the lineup. Michael Thomas is gone again.

Derek Carr was injured. I mean they've had so much transition and so much inconsistency just on their roster. So Dennis Allen keeps that job.

But think about what's happening in both Atlanta and in Charlotte. Yeah, the Panthers are going to stick with Bryce Young for now, but a brand new head coach and a new coaching staff and Atlanta, same thing. So if you're the Buccaneers and you keep this group relatively intact, I mean these receivers are left over from the Brady tenure. If Russell Gage gets healthy, it's Chris Godwin, it's Mike Evans, now a 10-year vet.

Rashad White's been great for them this season. You re-sign Baker Mayfield and that defense has been terrific. In fact, the defense, Todd Bull's defense, is the reason why they went on their surge in the final six weeks of the season. So yeah, different perspectives, even for the losing teams. I can't say the same thing about Buffalo. And it's not that I don't think they're still in their window because I do.

It's just because that was such a devastating loss when it seemed like it was all lining up for them to finally get by the Chiefs to dispatch them and put them into the rearview mirror. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. You can find me on Twitter, ALawRadio. We're also asking you how you feel. That's it.

It's a simple question. We offer therapy, if you're not sure how you feel, on our show Twitter. After Hours, CBS are on our Facebook page and we'll share some of your reactions. Coming up, game ball from Dan Campbell went to Derek Barnes, who's not a newbie, but this was his first career interception to seal their win on Sunday. Mayfield takes him straight to the line with a minute forty.

Baker leans in, there's the snap, blitz comes. Mayfield back, loads, goes, picked up by the Lions! Intercepted by the Lions!

Intercepted by the Lions! Derek Barnes! Derek Barnes! Derek Barnes!

Oh baby, one thirty-three to go! The Lions are going to San Francisco! Derek Barnes with the interception! Oh baby, stand up Fort Field! Look at this! Look at this! First career interception for Derek Barnes and how big is that?

Yes, man, yes! I don't even know, I ain't got to the bench. I don't. I don't know, somebody said I was raising my hands in the crowd, I don't really remember that. And that's just exciting, there's nothing with my head. I don't have any potential or anything like that, but that's just the emotions going through. But the fact that I got to enjoy that with my teammates and coaches and something, especially in a moment like that. Derek Barnes says he doesn't even remember how he got to the bench.

We hear sometimes from athletes I completely blacked out. He doesn't remember lifting his arms to the crowd, doesn't remember his celebration after the fact, but now with two-oh-six to go. This is on NFL Network, I'm actually going to see it coming up here in seconds because they're sitting on two-oh-six in the fourth quarter. The Lions are just about to punt up 31-23 and Baker Mayfield throws that interception right into the hands of Derek Barnes who was cheating and gambled and it paid off.

Stepped in front of the receiver. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio, so Dan Campbell's crew gets the job done and he says he's not surprised at all. He expected this from his team. I envisioned that we would have a chance to compete with the big boys and that's where we're at.

All you got to do is get in, you know, and it's about placing yourself in the very best position to where you can move. He definitely inspires men to come together. I love his attitude. I love that he's crying in the locker room.

Not sobbing like that Bills fan they kept showing on TV on CBS on Sunday afternoon, but he was definitely emotional. He believes in his guys and when he's all in and he has a high standard, that inspires the locker room. And then you've got a leader in Jared Goff who's hearing the Lions fans chant his name. He says the overwhelming support that he's received from the Lions fans, really even going back before the Rams game, but obviously fans wanting him to succeed against the team that unceremoniously dumped him in Detroit, and he says it made him calm. Hearing that, that support, that encouragement, that noise, his name from the crowd really did keep him calm the whole time that he's played in the postseason so far. It's a credit to all the guys in there. We've said this a million times about how it's the same group. It's not like we've added a ton. It's a lot of the same guys and Brad and Dan have been very intentional about bringing in those type of guys who can handle moments like today and moments like last week and ups and downs of a season.

I think it's all been intentionally done by them and we're not here by accident. Not a great passing day for him. 30 of 43, 287 yards and a couple of touchdowns. But when you've got no interceptions from Jared Goff and no turnovers by the Lions, that's huge.

Especially given that Baker Mayfield threw two picks. And he obviously feels it. His face following the game as he's walking off the field after throwing that pick.

Again, literally just about to watch it here on NFL Network. His body language, he's never had a poker face, nor has he ever been good at keeping his emotions to himself. And I don't think he needs to. That's part of what makes him good at what he does.

But man, he was wearing it. It sucks. I feel like my heart just got ripped out. But football is a complex game, but it's also simple. It comes down to taking care of the ball. And two minute drives like that, when you know you're going to have four downs to use.

Just a bad mistake by me. And it sucks because I know what type of group we've had all year that we fought to get to this point. We fought to be in that game. We weren't supposed to be here by any measures, but we believed in each other and we fought for it.

And so, yeah, this one's going to weigh on me for a while. As I'm watching it right now, yes, Derek Barnes did exult. He goes into the end zone. He's got his hands up in the air and then he falls backward, almost like he's going to do a body surf in a crowd. He falls backward into the blue of the end zone. As for Baker, and he throws, I mean it was a pretty pass. It's just Barnes stepped right in front of Kay Dotton. So as he sees that ball get picked, good stretch by Barnes, as he sees it get picked, he doubles over, right, so head down between his knees.

And then he comes up and he's got both hands on either side of his helmet, just beside himself. But here's why Baker Mayfield has earned a home. And I know Todd Bowles talked about this too, if we have an opportunity to grab it, because he was asked about Baker. Baker, despite being the number one pick of the Cleveland Browns and potential savior for the Browns franchise, he's had career numbers this season. Better numbers with the Bucks than in any of his years in the NFL so far, including his first year as the starter for the Browns. Now you may remember when he took over for the Browns, he had a then rookie record for passing touchdowns in a season, even though he took, I can't remember how many games in Browns fans you could let me know, three, four games into the season maybe. But this year, 4,044 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and this is not including the postseason, only 10 interceptions, and the best passer rating and QBR of his career.

So he's earned himself a new job or a new deal. I can't imagine they're going to pay him $50 million a year, the going rate for elite quarterbacks. I wouldn't call him elite, but I'd say that he can still make most every throw. He's cut down on the mistakes. Now there are times when he attempts to get it all back with one big throw, one big chuck in the arm, but as they pointed out on, this game was on NBC, so it was Mike Tirico and Chris Collinsworth. As they pointed out, when Baker gets into a groove, oh, you just let him fire away. He can still do that.

So he definitely does have a home, and the Buccaneers have indicated they want him back. But yeah, this one's tough because they still fall short of their goal. We felt like the first half, we did a lot of things, self-inflicted mistakes, whether it was misidentifications, just not executing like we normally do. And so we felt like we were in it going into halftime, obviously even game, and we felt like we were in it up until the last drive. This is one of the better teams that I've been a part of, especially being resilient. I mean, we fought hard all year.

We lost like four or five in a row, and nobody batted it out. We kept playing hard each week for each other, and it was cool to be a part of. Mike Evans, with some positive words. In fact, he says, this is post-Tom Brady, right? Three years with Tom Brady. He says, this is definitely one of the better teams I've been a part of.

And that's what he's talking about. We fought back. We stayed together.

We're on the same page. He and Baker Mayfield developed a nice rapport, though I think you remember in each of these playoff games, Evans started slow before he was able to stop with the drops. Eight catches for him, nearly 150 yards, and a touchdown. But this NFC divisional game belongs to Detroit.

Two playoff wins in the same season for the first time since 1957. Taking your comments about divisional weekend on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence, also on Twitter, ALawRadio, and we're going to circle back to the other winner on Sunday because you didn't hear much. We haven't heard really anything yet, or I have.

Maybe you have, but not on the show. Not much from Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and the Chiefs, who were victorious in their first road playoff game. Man, driving a stake through the heart of the Bills.

I thought the Bills had this one. I really did. Of course, I thought that before, actually. 13 seconds. Oh gosh. So we'll let you hear from the victorious Chiefs. I love it.

We've got fresh blood in Detroit, and then we've got your defending champion still alive in Kansas City. It's the top seeds hosting next weekend in the Championship Weekend doubleheader. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio.

You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. Running back. Chiefs will use the shotgun. Motioning left is Hart.

They give it off to Pacheco. Slamming on the left side. Angling into the end zone. Touchdown! Kansas City.

Pop. Goggles the sweet neck through the end zone. And the Chiefs are back in front.

26 to 24. Hands it off. Runs hard.

Pushes, pushes, pushes. First down! And his own 45-yard line. And a minute 28 to go.

Gaining just enough to move the chains. And Mahomes is high-fiving everybody on the sideline. And Pacheco runs hard. Jersey tough to get a first down.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Lot of big plays for Isaiah Pacheco in this game. The Chiefs rallying to win.

In fact, 5 lead changes between Bills and Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Game. I hope you were entertained. Are you not entertained?

I certainly was. But the entertainment comes with a level of stress. I felt this way during the Bucks-Lions when the Bucks kept coming back to tie it until, of course, those touchdowns late by the Lions, the 3 in a row. But it was fun and nerve-wracking. I can feel it in my gut.

Mitch Holtis on the Chiefs radio network. I suppose if it was boring, we wouldn't be so sucked in, right? We like this kind of torture. Isaiah Pacheco ends up with 15 carries, 97 yards rushing, and that big touchdown. Not to mention the first down. The tough first down run that sealed the win.

It's very important to start off fast and eliminate distractions. That's what we've been harping on and that's how we've got to keep focusing. It takes practice to allow us to be great and practice hard so when we get out here on this field on the first quarter, it allows us to be great.

We've got to make sure we score. We've got to make sure we're putting them in the right positions. I thought we could have been better.

I told you that. I went back and looked at all that as did the coaches. We've got to make sure we're putting them in the right position and the guys make it plays.

I thought our guys made plays down there. The Chiefs definitely finished the job in Buffalo. Though after what we saw with the back and forth back and forth, the five lead changes, the five consecutive touchdown drives, to only have that early fourth quarter score by the Chiefs was stark.

And yet there were so many twists and turns. Now Patrick Mahomes goes 17-23, just over 200 yards, hit a couple of touchdowns, both to Travis Kelce. We'll talk more about that coming up. But a passer rating of 131.6. Didn't get sacked, didn't have any turnovers, though Mikol Hartman had a fumble. But he'd heard all week about his first road playoff game and they handled the pressure. That was fun. I love Arrowhead, but it's always fun when you get to come together as a team and really just be like y'all versus everybody and get the win. So it's always great to be in great environments and find a way to get a win. He and Travis Kelce, connecting for two touchdowns, have reached already record territory.

And this is really impressive. Especially when you consider that Patrick Mahomes is still in his 20s and still in his first decade in the NFL. Six straight AFC Championship games. Now he took over as the starter in KC in his rookie year, but not until game 17. Actually, they may not have been playing 17 then.

16. I don't remember when they switched over. I think it was after he was drafted. But Alex Smith started that entire season, his entire rookie year, until the very last week. And then they handed the mantle to Patrick Mahomes. They obviously did not make the AFC Championship game that year.

So he's now in year seven and they have made the AFC Championship every year since. He and Travis Kelce, and remember Kelce had had a really rough final month of the season. He talked about publicly how much he'd sucked.

Now he laughed at any idea that he might retire, but he was not pleased with how he was playing. Gosh, I think the biggest play for him was that game against Buffalo in which he had the lateral. Remember, who was it, to Kadarius Toney? And it was called back on the illegal procedure lined up in the neutral zone. Anyway, that might have been the highlight of the last six weeks for Travis Kelce. Anyway, with these two playoff touchdowns, they now have 16 together as a duo, a dynamic duo, which is the most ever they've passed Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski. You always emphasize getting the ball to Travis, but passing anything that has Brady and Gronk in it is special because those are two of the greatest players. I mean, Tom is the greatest player and one of the greatest tight ends of all time. And so those are great and postseason players.

And so to be mentioning that and passing that, you appreciate that. I mean, it speaks to Travis and his work and being able to go out there and make plays in big games. I got a lot of respect for not only this team, this organization, this fan base. It was an unbelievable environment. I'm just really proud of the guys that I came here with to fight through it and get a win there in the fourth quarter.

It felt great. Alright, we'll circle back to the environment and the road win for the Chiefs. But if you're watching the game, you know that Jason Kelce was shown frequently.

I would say as much as Taylor Swift, maybe even more so. His brother is shown shirtless. Now I wouldn't call it a gut necessarily, but he is a center, which means he needs to maintain weight.

A lot of times these guys lose a ton of weight when they get out of the NFL because they just don't eat or beef up the way that they needed to. So he's up there, hairy, berry, chested and all. And every single time his brother does something impressive, he smashed that hairy belly against the glass and is going nutso.

My brother was shirtless. Nah, it doesn't surprise me one bit. It doesn't surprise me one bit. I love that guy. And every time we're not on the field together, we're always rooting for each other. I cannot wait to hear their next podcast and Jason can talk about his experience in Buffalo. If he remembers any of it.

That's true. He definitely had drinks in his hand. He was enjoying himself. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio.

Travis, a guest on Westwood One. And it was, let's see, Kevin Harlan who was calling this game on Westwood One. As for the road element, there was definitely a chip on the shoulder of the Chiefs. And honestly, I would expect the Bills would be favored in front of that crowd. Now I know it was a relative toss up, a veritable push game, not quite. But the Bills should have home field advantage with a crowd like that, an electric atmosphere like that.

And yet, Pat and the Chiefs, they really relish the opportunity to go into the atmosphere and take care of their business. I think guys took it as a challenge. I mean, obviously, I mean, I'll say that we played in the Super Bowl in Tampa Bay. We lost that one.

I didn't like to bring that one up. But I mean, we've played basically road playoff games before. But I mean, we just come in with the same mindset. If we're going to come together, put our best foot forward and see if we can come out with a win. And that takes the mentality throughout the week.

It takes every single play executing. And we did a great job of that today and we were able to score enough to win. We'll hear more from Chris Jones about the defense coming up. Probably not more on Jason Kelcey's shirtless.

I think I've done plenty on that. We're asking you how you're feeling after this divisional weekend. It lived up to the hype.

It lived up to the expectation, in my opinion. You may not think that, but the twists and turns, the momentum swings, the dramatic storylines, the fresh blood with Detroit, the game, Buccaneers. Obviously the Chiefs going into Buffalo, a different storyline than what we've seen with Kansas City, the dejection and the disappointment extended for the Bills.

I feel it. I can't imagine how Bills fans feel. Bills Mafia, how are you doing?

So you can find us on Twitter, ALawRadio or on our Facebook page and let us know. Now coming up we're going to get to the Niners. Our friend Amy Trask, she made headlines this weekend because she talked about, this was on CBS Sports Network, how there were five, was it five?

Sorry. Seven good quarterbacks and Brock Purdy this weekend. She actually said that.

Seven terrific quarterbacks and Brock Purdy. And she got blasted for it since he is an MVP candidate. Now she has admitted she's wrong. I don't know that it ever made it back to Brock.

I mean, if I'm a football player, I'm not so concerned about what some analyst is saying, but she certainly went viral with her comments. In fact, I bet we can find them, Jay, if you wanted to. That'd be fun. So we'll get into that Niners-Packers finish because it was everybody's dramatic as Bills and Chiefs. On Twitter, ALawRadio, how you feeling? We offer free therapy.

855-212-4227. Top of the hour, Josh Klingler, who's now off the team plane in Kansas City, will join us to talk about the Chiefs' ride home. Oh, no, no. That and what it was like to be on the sidelines there at Highmark Stadium. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. Shotgun snap, Purdy, going to roll away from a blitz, going to throw for the end zone. George Kennel's got it. Touchdown San Francisco! When in doubt, throw it to George Kennel over the middle of the field, and Brock Purdy does a great job, flushed out of the pocket, gets out to his right, and a perfect throw. Forty-eight yard, third field goal attempt. Here's the snap, placement made, and the kick is partially blocked, and Karim's into the end zone harmlessly.

No good. Looked like the Packers blocked it. I think Colby Wooden got it.

Hits, misses, and messes. Time to talk football After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Many people thought this would be a shootout in the Bay Area. Instead, it was a grindy seven to six lead for San Francisco at halftime.

Not that there weren't plenty of critical moments in what was primarily a torrential downpour on Saturday afternoon in the Bay Area. Saturday evening, for those of us on the East Coast, it's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Coming up, we'll head to Kansas City, and we'll welcome Josh Klingler, who is back in KC after getting off the team plane. I don't know if his adrenaline is still holding out, but what a trip. What a business trip for the Chiefs. Green Bay really dominated the time of possession in the first quarter of this game against the Niners, but only came away with a field goal to show for a long drive. The second drive, Jordan Love gets stuffed on a QB sneak on fourth and one, and that's down inside the red zone. So initially, despite the fact that the Packers were moving the ball, they were not coming away with the TD's. The longest and loudest play of that first half is the one you hear on Niners Radio with Greg Papa. Purdy finds George Kittle for a 32-yard TD strike, and it was a brilliant throw. He's on the move, second quarter, he's eluding pressure, and I mean, it looked just like something Josh Allen would throw. It was perfect. And so I couldn't help but think of what Amy Trask said on her What the Football podcast.

Now, she does do CBS Sports Network, the other pregame show, but this was on her personal podcast with Suzy Schuster. Four games this week. That means we have eight quarterbacks.

Did that math all by myself. Good girl. Four games, eight quarterbacks, seven terrific quarterbacks, and Brock Purdy. Now Brock Purdy is a good quarterback.

Make no mistake about it. Everybody be calm 49er fans. I'm not suggesting Brock's not a good quarterback. He is. I simply don't put him in the same category as the other quarterbacks. So I'll say it again.

Eight quarterbacks, seven terrific quarterbacks, and Brock Purdy. What do you like about it? It's not that I don't like him. It's not that I dislike him. He does things very well. He is surrounded by a tremendous, tremendous supporting cast, both on offense and defense. He is a good quarterback. I don't put him in the category of the other seven.

Now that's odd to me. It's not that I don't think Baker Mayfield is a competent starting quarterback, but I wouldn't say he's terrific. Maybe he shows flashes of terrific, and I think the more mature he gets, he's found a home in Tampa. I told you about his career highs in pretty much every category this season, but I think he has just as good a supporting cast.

Maybe not just as good. He's got some incredible people around him too. One of the best receivers in the league in Mike Evans.

We talked about Rashad White. The defensive line specifically for the Buccaneers is tremendous. They've got a solid O-line as well. I know their offense has shown up in these last couple of games, but I'm sure she did.

I don't want to be snarky. You couldn't have watched the Buccaneers offense in the past four weeks and felt like he was playing terrific ball, because he wasn't. They beat the Panthers 9-0 in week 18. Anyway, I thought that was crazy, because I think there are a lot of people out there that would take Brock Purdy over Baker Mayfield. Again, Baker's got a bunch of experience, and he can make every throw, but he's always been one of those all-or-nothing QBs too. He's a bit of a gunslinger still.

I was kind of surprised by that. I think it's impressive that she puts Jared Goff into that terrific category, because he's definitely played his way back into that. Lamar Jackson's likely the MVP. We know about Josh.

We know about Pat. C.J. Stroud is probably going to be the Offensive Rookie of the Year. He's still early. I mean, I need to see more of him, but it's still early for him. Jordan Love, too.

Interesting. I know he's had an incredible 10 games. Well, he had two picks on Saturday, so he's had a really incredible stretch, but we've seen one year of him. And then Brock Purdy, who, by the way, is going to finish in the top four in the MVP voting, if not in the top three.

It kind of depends on if he in CMC split votes. And it's a Purdy party every time you ask the Niners locker room about Brock. I was really stunned by that. So Amy Trask, she's a guest on the show all the time.

I'm sure we'll have her before the Super Bowl is done, and that was on her What the Football podcast. So then Brock Purdy, in the rain there in the Bay Area on Saturday evening, he has a couple of smart throws, but yeah, a lot of the times he's off. A lot of the times he's just missing his guys. Meanwhile, Jordan Love connects with Bo Melton for a 19-yard score. San Francisco, they're kind of hit or miss, inconsistent on offense. Credit the Packers defense because they were committed to stopping McCaffrey as much as possible.

It took him some time to find any momentum. High formation, toss to McCaffrey, big hole, and he runs out across the 30, breaks a tackle, he's gone! Touchdown!

CMC! CMC 23 finally detonates, breaching that defensive line right up the gut. Yeah, you hear it there on Niners Radio where they talk about how it took Christian McCaffrey until that second half to be able to break free in one of his signature moments. And before that, it was George Kittle making another play, a 32-yard catch and run.

So Amy's right about Brock having incredible weapons around him. Pro bowlers, all pros, they're everywhere. At that point, it's 14-13. Again, this is a barn burner of a game. Now, middle of the third quarter, I hope you guys remember this sequence, this was nutso. Where there is a long kickoff return by Keyshawn Nixon, 73 yards he goes, but then he fumbles the ball. And in stride, incredible, Eric Wilson's trailing the play, he sprints from way down the field, he leaps and dives and the ball bounces right up into his gut. How often do we see that football, that slippery little sucker, bounce in all kinds of crazy ways and it seems like it bounces and whirls away from guys? It bounced right into his chest as he is diving. I mean, that's the kind of play we're going to see over and over and should.

It looks so athletic and yet a lot of it is how the football bounces. Anyway, that leads to an easy Tyler Kraft touchdown just two snaps later. And the Packers, they're in business. In fact, they're leading, so it's up to Brock and that Niners offense to make some noise.

Here we go. Purdy under center. Juszczek offset left.

Coming in motion, Warner. Next to Kittle, tight right. Juszczek goes right. Purdy takes it. Hands off to McCaffrey off the left side. Breaks a tackle. Touchdown!

San Francisco! Greg Papa with the call on Niners Radio and Purdy steps up, maybe specifically for Amy, six for seven on that final drive. Plus McCaffrey. And then you also had Purdy scrambling up the middle at one point to pick up a first down. But it's Christian who caps the drive for the 24-21 lead with a minute to go.

Still time for Jordan Love. First and ten, Green Bay. They have two timeouts left. Love out of the shotgun.

Deep drop. Crusher gets chased out to his right. Will throw on the run back.

Middle. It is intercepted. Go down, Dre Greenlaw. Running back the other way. Secure the ball. He'll run back the other way. They're trying to strip it from him. Big play, Dre. Goes down. Green Bay has two timeouts left, but the 49ers have the football.

It's mental love. We know they're trying to get the ball deep and get that field goal right. We're just playing deep to short. My guy went to the flat, so I was able to just have eyes on QB a little bit.

I saw him just throwing across his body and just able to make a play. Dre Greenlaw with his second interception of the game, the first in that third quarter, led to a Jake Moody field goal that also helped San Francisco chip away. So yeah, the Packers had the lead for a good portion of this game, but Brock Purdy and the offense came up with a go-ahead drive in the final couple minutes, and the defense made it stand up. And so the future is bright for Jordan Love and these Packers. The youngest team, one of the youngest teams. No, it is the youngest team. The youngest roster in the NFL. Mom's new favorite.

She's getting in on the ground level. But the future may belong to Green Bay. The present belongs to the Niners in their third straight NFC championship game. We're going to talk Chiefs coming up next.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio. Around New Year's, we get a little obsessed with changing ourselves and forgetting the things we're already doing right. Like taking our supplements every morning or scheduling me time into our day. Therapy helps you recognize those victories and keep up the good work in the new year without changing everything. BetterHelp offers affordable online therapy so you can try New Year's Same You with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com slash grow today to get 10% off your first month.

That's BetterHelp H-E-L-P dot com slash grow. Babysitter paid. Pizza ordered. Flowers delivered. You can do a lot of things with your phone and with Blue Link Plus you can even access your Hyundai Tucson Limited remotely. Doors unlocked.

Temperature set. Lost car found. Oh, there it is. Get complimentary class-leading Blue Link Plus. Just another way we make owning a Hyundai Tucson Limited more convenient than ever. Learn more about the new Tucson and Blue Link Plus at HyundaiUSA.com. Call 562-314-4603 for complete details. When something happens to your car, you might say, No!

My car! But what you really need to say is something that can actually help. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. And just like that, State Farm is there to help you file your claim right on the State Farm mobile app. So just remember, like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. State Farm. Bloomington, Illinois.