Should Josh Allen Play On Sunday? (Hour 1)

The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown, and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later. There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown, and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later.

There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. So I wonder, five years from now, how are we going to talk about Russell Wilson and how are we going to talk about Pete Carroll? Because the perception, and I think what drove Russell Wilson out of Seattle, was two things.

One, a little bit insecure, because when they won a ring, who got all the credit? Almost everyone but Russ. People highlighted the LOB. People highlighted Marshawn Lynch. People highlighted Pete Carroll. And then the next year, they're back in a Super Bowl, and at the goal line, he throws the pick to Malcolm Butler. After that, you saw a total transformation in that team, and it became Russ's team. And they were winning a lot of games, don't get me wrong. They were consistently in the playoffs, but they never got back to a Super Bowl or came close to sniffing another Super Bowl appearance. So that, within addition to Russ wanting to throw the football more and more and more, and start to break away from Pete Carroll's kind of conservative approach, where he wanted to run the ball a lot and play solid defense, that made that relationship make the two drift apart and drift in different directions. Because when Seattle got rid of Russell Wilson, and when they traded Russell Wilson, it didn't seem like Pete Carroll and John Schneider were all that upset in a guy that they really did believe in. They were disappointed, but I think they believed that the football team was going to be better. And they never panicked.

And there's one thing to say that, and there's one thing to stress that to your team, and you have to when you're a leader of men, but it's another thing to get those results. And right now, it's by far and away the Seahawks, Pete Carroll, and John Schneider that are winning the trade with the Denver Broncos for Russell Wilson. Because they're winning on the field, and then off the field, they have more picks coming their way, and the Broncos haven't been able to bury those picks late in the first round, or deeper in the draft because of their records being so good.

They're a football team that very may well be picking in the top 10 this year, if things continue to go south. And you look at that Broncos job, Nathaniel Hackett's not going to be the head coach most likely next year. Offensively, there aren't better pieces on the Broncos than the Seahawks. And defensively, sure, Denver has good defense, but if all you have is a good defense and you have a quarterback that is good and may never be great again, you wonder how attractive that job is. And Peter King joined us two weeks ago, and he said with the uncertainty of Russell Wilson, that's an unattractive job right now.

So who knows who you're going to be able to attract to get this right? Now with all those things being said, it can eventually get right. Yes, Russell Wilson has been bad this year. Do I think he's going to be putrid and awful for the next three, four, five years?

No. But if he's just good, or just very good and not great, then it's going to be year after year after year where you may think, okay, Seattle made the right decision. And yes, I'm not going to forget the elephant in the room. Seattle still has to find their long-term answer at quarterback, but it wouldn't surprise me if maybe Geno Smith is back next year. And maybe they get the best of both worlds where they could find that quarterback still in the draft in the first round, have the quarterback sit for a year with all the draft capital they have.

And they also have control of the Broncos first round pick this upcoming year, which could be in the top 10. So I'm fascinated to see how we're going to talk about Pete Carroll and Russell Wilson five years from now. Because Pete Carroll's already going to the Hall of Fame. Pete Carroll's a Hall of Fame coach, and now you're just adding on. And no one's expecting him to win a Super Bowl again, or at least I'm not. But if you can go make the playoffs this year, that's a big win for Pete Carroll. For Russ, it's very simple. You want it to fly on your own.

You want it to not only fly on your own, you want it to win a Super Bowl on your own. The odds of Russell Wilson winning another Super Bowl right now, I would say are unlikely. Is it impossible? No, not impossible.

I would just say unlikely. And here's the other thing, Ryan, that is kind of the bizarre part about it. There's one thing when one side wins and people enjoy it. But I don't really know too many people that are rooting for Russell Wilson right now. And sure, the cringy commercials and him trying too hard probably all plays a factor into it. Russ this year, though, has really become unlikable. And I can't remember a time in sports when just because some player wanted out and then has not played well, that there has been an overwhelming majority of people where when Russ was in Seattle, everyone kind of liked him, everyone enjoyed him, everyone thought he was a really good quarterback, probably on his way to Hall of Fame career. Now that narrative and that tide is starting to turn on Russell Wilson.

And if he doesn't quickly start to play better, people are going to remember these last three, four, five years in the NFL for the next five years, probably more than his days in Seattle, which is a crazy thing to say because he had a really good situation. And yes, did it need some fine tuning? Did it need some alterations in the last year or two, the last two seasons?

Absolutely. I'm not just going to be in the moment and forget about that. But for Russell Wilson, you got what you wanted. No one expected anything out of the Seahawks this year. And now it looks like the Seahawks are a lock to make the playoffs.

Where for you, I don't know when you're going to be making a return to the playoffs and I don't know what direction the Denver Broncos are moving headed into the future. And obviously the only way you turn around if you're Russ is by winning, because you're right. Right now, whether it was off season, kind of forcing his way out, getting what he wants, kind of like what Kyle Murray did in a different way. He got what he wanted. But when you're not performing after you kind of pull the charades you do, people turn on you really fast.

So the only way for Russ to kind of get people back on his side and make him likable again is by winning, is by turning around, is by showing that, okay, maybe it was a rough start, but he can be as good as we thought he was when some of us thought he was being held back with Pete Carroll in Seattle. So that better happen started now. Fast.

Yes, sir. Because I said going into this year, I thought they would be a year away. There may be additional recovery that they're going to need after this season to get others around the league to want to go join the Denver Broncos. So they may now be two years away. And if this continues to be ugly down the stretch.

I don't know how salvageable of a situation it is. And you look at when coaches and quarterbacks split recently, like Brady and Belichick, a lot more success. They split. Bill has made the playoffs again. But I would say the overwhelming majority of people think Brady won that kind of feud and why they split because Tom Brady won a Super Bowl. And he's considered the greatest quarterback of all time. You look at Sean Payton and Drew Brees, not that it was contentious or anything. Drew Brees retired. Sean Payton looked around and said after one year of not having Drew Brees who was hurt the last three years of his career. Yeah, I'm not sticking around for Jamis Winston or Andy Dalton anymore. I also wonder how we're going to talk about Mike Tomlin five years from now, who I think is a really good coach, but he doesn't have Big Ben Roethlisberger anymore and Big Ben retired.

And then how about this weekend? You have Aaron Rodgers welcoming in his own football coach, his old football coach and Mike McCarthy. Mike McCarthy, when he got let go by the Packers, it was ugly. And everyone was on the side of Aaron Rodgers. Now you have McCarthy coming in with the Cowboys where he still doesn't get credit. And a lot of people still think he's going to get fired at the end of the year, even though they're sitting there with the 6-2 record right now.

And McCarthy's coming in to go face a Packers team that has no shot of making the playoffs this year at 3-6. Now Aaron Rodgers the last few years has been really good. He's been back-to-back MVP award winner. They have been to the NFC Championship game, back-to-back seasons and this past year they lost in the divisional round.

So he's had some success. He's never won a ring though without Mike McCarthy. Now McCarthy hasn't won a ring without Aaron Rodgers and I don't know how good McCarthy would have been as a head coach without Aaron Rodgers. And if he would have even got this opportunity in Dallas, but now in Dallas, I think Dak's a good quarterback, not great. He's won games with Cooper Rush. Last year people thought the Cowboys could be a Super Bowl contender.

And then they projectile vomited on themselves in that wild card game up against the 49ers. And this is a prove-it year for Mike McCarthy. And yes, McCarthy's never going to usurp Aaron Rodgers. That would be a crazy statement. But it is kind of funny now when they meet up again, McCarthy is in a better spot for this season to go make a run than Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. So when we're sitting here five years from now, how do you think we're going to be talking about Pete Carroll and Russell Wilson? 855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227. When we return, is Josh Allen going to play this weekend?

And if he doesn't, how concerned are you about the Bills potentially losing the number one seed in the AFC? We'll be back after these short messages. So get started and download the free Odyssey app today. The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown, and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later.

There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. Throughout the 60s and 70s, cops hunted down key figures of the Dixie Mafia, including its enigmatic ringleader, Kirksey Nix. I'm in a rush to making money.

I'm not in a rush to hurting people. Fifteen years into Kirksey's life sentence, the Dixie Mafia was practically folklore, but that would soon change. I'm Jed Lipinski. This is Gone South, a documentary podcast from C13 Originals, a Cadence 13 studio, season two, the Dixie Mafia. Available now on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. You're listening to the Zach Gelb Show. Devin McCordie going to join us coming up in about 20 minutes. Dana White at 7.20 p.m. Eastern, 4.20 p.m. Pacific. It is the Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio, and you can think of O'Reilly Auto Parts for your car care needs.

Get guaranteed low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts. So Josh Allen, questionable to play this Sunday up against the Minnesota Vikings in Orchard Park, and he was a limited participant in practice today. Hickey, do you think he's going to play?

Because I saw a video of him. The moment when the media got let in and it didn't look like there was anything on his elbow that he was wearing. He just got up, took his helmet or I don't even know if he took his helmet and just ran right off the field. Now, there's always some gamesmanship that goes on. And I would have thought that if he wasn't going to play, they just rule him out by now if it was that serious. But what we're starting to learn is or maybe the Bills just have a great poker face here. This may not be as serious as we were initially led to believe. So right now, if you had to take a guess, Sunday one o'clock Vikings and Bills is not should.

But let's go, will Josh Allen be starting at quarterback for the Bills? No, sir. And that is? Reason? Yeah. Oh, thank you. Miss two days of practice in any time the media's air and your your first instinct is to run away.

That's I think that just tells the entire story right there. He's not playing. I think he is. He shouldn't. Don't get me wrong. It would be dumb and really foolish for them to play him.

And it should be Case Keenum. But that was just bizarre today when he ran away right when they let the media in. And it was almost as if they didn't want the media to see anything and you were causing extra attention to it.

He was limited in practice. Yeah. Could there be some gamesmanship going on? And maybe that's what it is. And I'm just getting caught up in the moment and being a sucker.

Absolutely. I think that there's a door that is left open for him to play. And that's why I'm just going to I wouldn't be shocked if he doesn't. But I'm leaning more so like 51 percent compared to forty nine percent on the side that he's going to play. I would be honestly shocked if he plays in part like what's the benefit? What is the benefit for him to play on Sunday?

The only thing that I could say from a football standpoint, and I'm in agreement with you to be clear, I don't think he should play. I don't think he should really play the next two weeks. I would just wait until Thanksgiving Thursday up against the Lions because maybe if they played on a Sunday and then another Sunday back to back, coming up from a week from now and then after that. But since they have the game this weekend against the Vikings, then they have another game. I believe it's against the Browns on that Sunday. And then they have a quick turnaround against the Lions on that Thursday. If this elbow injury and I don't know if it was as bad as we were led on to believe initially. And maybe that's why there's some panic. And you're talking about a quarterback, by the way, that is a quarterback on the team that is the Super Bowl favorite for the majority of this season.

So there's always going to be panic when you have a guy that's that great and may be the best player in the sport right now. I would say the reason they would give you if he is healthy and if he's healthy enough to play, I don't think the actual reason is, oh, we're actually in the heat of an AFC East race. And yes, the Jets just beat them in their 6-3 and the Dolphins are 6-3 and the Patriots are right behind them at 5-4. But I still think that the Bills are going to win this division.

I think it may be. And I know they have the tiebreaker in hand up against Kansas City. But if the Bills lose this weekend and Kansas City wins, then Kansas City moves in front of them because Buffalo goes to 6-3 and then Kansas City goes to 7-2.

So maybe they're going to play him if he is deemed to be healthy so they could keep that upper hand with the tiebreaker in hand in this chase to go get the number one seed. Because if you have to only win two games to get to the Super Bowl and those two games be in Buffalo, in Orchard Park, I would say then that the Bills are going to the Super Bowl this year. Now I know what you're going to say to me in retort. I could already predict what you're going to say back to me. And I'm being clear. I'm not arguing with you. I don't think he should play. I just have some weird feeling today that he will play.

You're 100% going to argue right back and you're 1,000% right in doing so. Well, if you still are just in the playoffs and you actually have a healthy quarterback and Josh does further damage to this elbow injury that he has this week, well then your season's over if Josh Allen isn't healthy when you need him later on in the year. It's not even about ending the season positive, which is obviously a factor and a chance.

So just what if his elbow needs rescue? You put him out there and he's not the same the rest of the season. Are the Bills going to the Super Bowl with the 50% Josh Allen?

I don't think so. That's a big problem. So you've got to make sure not only is he able to survive the duration of the season, but he's playing his best football like he was last year in the playoffs this year. We just don't know how bad this elbow injury is.

We never got clarity on that. And they're saying he's hour to hour now. It's not even day to day.

It's hour to hour. That's how they're going to make a determination on if he's going to play. Do you think let me ask it to you this way. Do you think they're actually I know you said you're going to be shocked if he plays, but do you think in the facility right now they're at least contemplating it? Or is it maybe just we haven't told them he's not going to play yet. We'll let him believe that maybe that he could play because he's going to want to play. And then we're going to tell him, Josh, it's in the best interest of you not to play. I think they know the answer.

You think they know the answer. They're trying to play, you know, almost like taking a page out of your guy Bill Belichick's book day to day. Have a Mac Jones that even though, you know, like a high ankle sprain, have him at practice just to see him like, oh, maybe he'll play.

He's not going to play. I think they're just trying to play coy, throw the Vikings off their game and make it prepare for two quarterbacks instead of one. Does he really throw the Vikings off their game?

They shouldn't. They know what Josh Allen is. They know how great he is. And they clearly I know it's a different staff, but they know more than enough about Case Keenum when he was their quarterback years ago there. I don't think that really throws them off where, oh, they have to go prepare for two quarterbacks. Now, if Josh Allen ends up playing. Yes, it is a tougher spot if he's actually healthy than compared to Case Keenum. But if that's gamesmanship and the end result is Case Keenum is the quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. I think you're throwing a party for the Minnesota Vikings.

I would agree. But you know how coaches are. They're crazy.

They're always neurotic and they're always thinking they got to get some sort of edge. And if I tell them who my quarterback is, then well, then I'm screwed. Like if you. I can't. No, I'm not. I'm not going to make the argument.

I'm going to say in theory, if you could have them prepare for Josh Allen, all of a sudden, you know, they'll switch. Here's Case Keenum. Oh, stop. That's what I said.

That's what I said. I'm not even going to make the argument because it's just stupid to say, oh, here's Case Keenum. They're not ready for this.

They'll be ready for it. But, you know, again, NFL coaches are just are crazy. You have quite a few peculiar situations this weekend at the quarterback spot. You have the unknown certainty about Josh Allen may be playing and that possibility.

And you don't think there's any shot that he will. I guess Ryan Tanel is going to start this weekend, but that's not a foregone conclusion yet. Up against the Denver Broncos, the Rams and Cardinals. We may see both quarterbacks. Now, I do think Kyler Murray is going to play, but he has a hamstring injury. And Matthew Stafford, I think he practiced today, but he's in concussion protocol, which that always does confuse me. If the guy's in concussion protocol and then he's practicing, that just always sounds wrong to me. So if you had to make your predictions right now, you're saying Josh Allen does not play this weekend. Does not play.

Let me be clear. I think it's stupid if they play him, but for some reason, I'm buying the bait. And maybe that's why I'm not an NFL head coach, because I'm playing into what they're throwing out to me. So I'm going to say Josh Allen does play. Ryan Tanel, is he starting up against the Broncos? I think he is.

Yes. How about Matthew Stafford? Will he start against the Arizona Cardinals? It will be John Wolford time again.

Matthew Stafford, I think will play. You do? Yes.

I think practicing today on a limited basis is kind of a good sign going forward. Okay. I'm going to disagree with you on that one. I'm going to say it's going to be John Wolford. And how about Kyler Murray? Is Kyler Murray under center, yelling at DeAndre Hopkins again, getting into a fight for the Arizona Cardinals this weekend? Yes, he plays.

Yeah, I'm with you as well on that one. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We will take a break when we come on back. Devin McCourty is going to join us from the New England Patriots. They're in a bye week, and Devin this weekend is going to be broadcasting on the other pregame show for CBS Sports Network. In addition to that, he'll be on the NFL Today Sunday, noon Eastern on CBS and Paramount Plus. So we'll talk a little bit about the state of the Patriots right now, and we'll throw in some other NFL questions to try to get him set for his big broadcasting debut on CBS.

I guess this is a one time gig for this weekend during his bye week, and we'll see what it turns into. There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown, and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later.

There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. Throughout the 60s and 70s, cops hunted down key figures of the Dixie Mafia, including its enigmatic ringleader, Kirksey Nix. I'm in a rush to making money.

I'm not in a rush to hurting people. Fifteen years into Kirksey's life sentence, the Dixie Mafia was practically folklore, but that would soon change. I'm Jed Lipinski. This is Gone South, a documentary podcast from C13 Originals, a Cadence 13 studio. Season 2, The Dixie Mafia. Available now on the Odyssey app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

You're listening to The Zach Gelb Show. It is a football Friday on The Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio. We'll head out to the guest line right now and welcome in a three-time Super Bowl champion who is in his bye week with the Patriots. The Pats sit in at 5 and 4 coming out of the bye.

They will have the Jets. You can also see Devin McCourty this weekend during his bye week on CBS Sports Network and CBS. He's going to be on that other pregame show at 9 a.m. Eastern on CBS Sports Network.

And then the NFL Today at noon Eastern on CBS and Paramount Plus. Devin McCourty, always appreciate the time. Congratulations on the new opportunity. And how you been? I'm good, man. How you guys doing? Well, I'm doing fantastic. Congratulations on this opportunity during the bye week with CBS Sports Network and CBS. How'd it come together? Just, you know, obviously free time.

I live in New Jersey, so back visiting my brother's family as he comes back from Germany. So from the broadcast, boot camp just made some pretty cool connections. And, you know, Drew reached out to me over at CBS and said, would you want to come in? I was like, sure.

I'm trying to see if I can be better than Jay Mac on TV. So we'll see Sunday. Yeah, that's what I was going to say. I think this may be a little jealousy. Your brother's on Good Morning Football now and you want to dip your toes in the waters and show him that, hey, you're still the better McCourty. Yeah, just trying to create some competition. You know, I'm trying to help him get better. You can't get better without competition.

So I want people to say how much better I did to him. And, you know, he's already been at the job for a few months now. So I see this announcement and I start to think, okay, Devin McCourty's been in the league for a long time. Maybe this is going to be his final year in the NFL and he's setting up his next career.

Is that a fair assessment and assumption? No, I think right now it's just taking advantage of something that I got to do last offseason. I think one of the biggest things coming away from that broadcast boot camp that they told us was you just got to keep getting reps. You know, whatever it is you do.

You know, we did a podcast for four years and then I think with what Jay has going on now, it's too hard to do the podcast. So just another opportunity to go out there and do something and see if you're good at it. You know, you see so many guys like, you know, Cam Jordan and, you know, all those guys, Mark Ingram doing their own podcast, seeing Sherman now.

So just trying to continue to get reps at that and see if I could be halfway decent at it. Devin McCourty here with us. You guys are sitting at five and four in your bye week. How would you kind of recap the first half of the season? We just got to keep working, man.

I think every team that's been in a bye over the last, you know, I'll call it two to three weeks, probably are saying the same thing. You know, how can we do the things that we've done well? How can we continue to do them? And how can we do some of the things we haven't done well better? And I think we're in that same situation.

You know, I think all the guys are working hard. Obviously, it feels good to get a win before the bye week. But I think last year we talked about, you know, looking back at that season, coming out of the bye, we played the Colts. We lose and, you know, I don't think we ever could get back to playing good football to end the season. And I think that's the important part, you know, getting a bye week at this time. Once we go back, you know, we're talking about playing good football around the Thanksgiving time, and that's really when the season takes off.

And the good teams start playing good football. And I think that'll be something we try to focus on. So you feel like the best is still yet to come for this group?

Man, I sure hope so. You know, I think I remember, you know, all my years, Bill would always remind us, especially at this point in the season, five and four, whether we've been, you know, six and two. Like whatever it is, he always reminds us, you know, five wins, seven wins, eight wins won't get you what you want. So it's important to continue to play good football and continue to win. And I think that's what the focus is.

And, you know, in order to do that, we've got to play our best ball going down the stretch. Devin McCourty here with us on the Zach Gelb show. For so many years, the identity nationally of this group was Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

As you know, Brady hasn't been with the team now for three seasons. How would you kind of describe, since you've been there for so long, the identity of this team in 2022? Yeah, I think always the identity, the identity of any team, you know, goes year by year. You can't, you can't hang on to what you did the year before or a few years ago.

Your identity has to be what you are, you know, at that point in time. And I think that's what we're building. You know, we've played some good games. I think when we don't turn the ball over, we've been highly successful at winning games, playing good defense, getting the ball to our skill guys like Jacoby.

Mondra has come on strong. So I think that's the identity we're building, being able to run the football, being able to stop the run. Things that this team has been built on for years, we're starting to build that. You know, I think it's important, you know, in this league and, you know, in any sport like football, you can't build anything on one or two guys.

It has to be built on a team, and I think that's what we're starting to do. Who is Mac Jones as a quarterback? How would you describe him to maybe someone that isn't a believer in Mac Jones? I wouldn't. You know, I think for me, I'll never act like I'm a quarterback whisperer or someone that can tell you what this guy's style is and what he would have meant.

Like, that's not my role. I'll tell you this. He's a hardworking kid. He's only a year or two. Has shown tremendous leadership.

Comes in every day. Puts his head down. Continues the work. And I think the cool thing about, you know, watching young guys is there's so much pressure in that position just to watch them having fun and enjoying the experience and the journey with the guys. And I think I've seen him take steps forward in doing that and not worrying so much about the result but just continuing to get better. I think that's what he's doing. And I think that's the only thing we can ask for every guy in that locker room to come in and put their head down and just work.

And that's what Mac's been doing. And, you know, I think obviously playing quarterback in this league, playing quarterback for the Patriots, you know, he's always going to be talked about good or bad or whatever it is. And I think it's just important for him to just continue to work on the things that all the coaches tell him and to focus on the guys in the locker room and not the noise outside. Is it at all weird to have Matt Patricia back and on the offensive side of the ball after all those years that you guys had a good connection and relationship on the defensive side of the ball?

It was at first. But now at this time it doesn't, it feels like that's where he belongs. And it's been a fun journey. You know, obviously I've spent a lot of time with Matty P talking defense and growing up really in that system when he, you know, was really as our coordinator. So it's been a lot of fun talking trash all throughout training camp and competing.

And, you know, I think our relationship is, you know, even more than just him being on offense and me on defense, you know, just being able to talk ball and different things like that. So it's been fun, I think, for him to use his expertise and coaching on the other side and, you know, help those guys out. You've had a defensive player the year before on your defense in New England going back to when Stephon Gilmore won the award a few years ago. It's looking like Judon could do that this year. How about what Matthew Judon's given this team? Yeah, I mean, I say, you know, after every game, I think one of the best parts of Jude is how hard he works.

You know, Judon comes in extra, you know, on the bike doing different things in the weight room. And I think all our young guys get to come in and see our best defensive player just outworking everybody, always doing something to be better. And I think that's the best part about his leadership and just him as a player.

You know, obviously not a guy that was probably highly recruited, you know, out of Grand Valley State. And he's really had to work hard and prove himself each year. And I think it's been cool to see him, you know, come obviously to our team last year, have a strong season last year, but to just pick up kind of where he left off and continue to build on, you know, just proving himself and doing all the hard things and little things to help the football team win, I think has been really cool. And I know that's his focus, how we can win more games.

He's not focused on any accolades or things like that. And I think that's why he's fit in so well and really been, you know, obviously our best player defensively. You can watch Devin McCourty this weekend on Sunday on that other pregame show 9 a.m. Eastern on CBS Sports Network. Also the NFL Today at noon Eastern on Sunday on CBS and Paramount Plus. Let me throw you a few non-patriot questions to kind of get you ready for this weekend, because they're not going to hold back when you get on that set. How about Jeff Saturday getting the job at Indianapolis as the interim head coach? What did you make of that? How did you react to it as a player? Well, I mean, I think like everybody else, it was surprising.

He didn't know if it was real at first. And, you know, I'm excited to kind of get in and talk about that in more depth on Sunday. But I think, you know, I think I've been pretty vocal about just opportunities for different people in this league. And, you know, watching coaches coach from all time, but not get, he said, coaching opportunities, especially minorities. You know, I think that's been the challenge. And I think when you see Jeff Saturday, who's obviously a great player, you know, I don't know him well, but, you know, seemed like a great leader in Indy, him as Peyton Manning, putting together so many of those great teams. But just no experience in being able to get that job. You know, I think not even talking about will he do well or will he do bad, just the opportunity to get that job, I think.

You know, I think it's so tough for other candidates to get that opportunity and for him to kind of just jump the line. It was different to see. And, you know, I think very interesting and, you know, obviously they'll have a big game Sunday with, you know, playing the Raiders and how all of that works out.

There'll be a lot of eyes on that. And really anxious to see how it unfolds for the rest of the season. You mentioned their opponent, the Raiders. Josh McDaniels not off to a good start as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. Where's your belief level that Josh will eventually be able to turn that chip around?

Yeah, I think, you know, with him and Dave Zeidler, you know, two guys that were in New England, I got to know pretty well. I think they have a vision. I think they'll get it going. I think they'll have a really big week this week. You know, like I said, just talking about playing the Colts. And now you lose Darren Waller.

You lose Renthrow to I.R. And I think, you know, sometimes that can be a bright spot for a team as far as now there's no more looking and seeing when this guy's going to come back, looking to see like when someone's going to save the season. It's up to you now.

Your back's against the wall. And I think they'll probably use that and go out there and try to play a good game and get a big win Sunday to kind of hopefully get the ball rolling for them. But hopefully not rolling enough that they're not playing great when we play them.

So we'll see how it all works out. Talking about some teams that you'll be playing. You've already played them this year and you'll see the Jets coming out of the bye. Who's impressed you more this year, the Jets or the Dolphins?

I think both. I would say really the whole division. I think for years that I've been in this division, people have always talked about the division not being good or this team or that team.

I think you look up now, it's one of the best divisions in football. And, you know, I think that makes it competitive. It makes it exciting. But it also lets you know you're going to have a challenge each time you play these teams. And, you know, obviously playing the Jets two weeks ago and then having to play them again next week, you know, I'm sure they'll be ready to go. You know, we've got a big win on the road there. So I think they'll try to return a favor and I think they're playing good ball. You know, obviously a big win against Buffalo now. They're on the bye as well. Both teams I think will be rested and hungry to kind of get their season rolling for the back half of the season. And last thing I'll ask you, Devin McCourty, Seahawks and Bucks.

I can't wait for that matchup in Germany. For Tampa Bay, they've been struggling, but they should still be able to win that NFC South. How dangerous can Brady and the Bucks be this year even after the slow start? Yeah, no one wants to play 12.

Nobody wants to play TV 12. I don't care if they're rolling or not rolling, if it looks bad, if guys are hurt. When you play against him, you know, you've got to bring your best for all four quarters. And I think you saw that last week with the come-from-behind win late in the game.

Just, I mean, always impressive just how focused he is and how his best moments come when the team needs it the most. So, I'm excited to see that game. You know, obviously, you know, during the season when some of these international games go on early in the morning, you're kind of locked in on what you're doing.

You don't get to watch them or check it out. And, you know, between traveling to the studio, I'll be able to sit there and watch the game with other guys. You know, you talk about Nate Bross and the Bill Cowher and Boomer, Phil Sams, like I'll get to learn a lot from them just watching the game. So, I'm excited to see that and hear somebody, even the quarterback kind of expertise watching that game.

Well, good luck this upcoming weekend. The other pregame show at 9 a.m. Eastern on CBS Sports Network and then the NFL Today, which everyone knows is on CBS and Paramount Plus at 12 p.m. Eastern. He is going to be a media superstar and he's been a star for the Patriots for a bunch of years, a three-time Super Bowl champion. He is Devin McCourty. DMACC, always appreciate your time.

No, I appreciate it, man. Good catching up. There you go. Devin McCourty with us on the Zach Gelb show.

Just to touch on something he said at the end. So, the NFC South, I think we've all realized this. It was just how long we wanted to allow the other teams to kind of sit there and keep on giving them a hope. It feels like last night after the Falcons lose to the Panthers, and I know when you look at the standings entering this weekend, Bucks are 4-5 and they could lose this weekend and they probably will lose, I think, against the Seahawks. The Falcons are 4-6, the Saints are 3-6, the Panthers are 3-7. Does last night really just eliminate any hope that you were holding on to, even without knowing the outcome of this weekend of Bucks, Seahawks, that it makes you just re-evaluate, OK, Atlanta. They had a few nice, gritty wins earlier in the year, but with Marcus Mariota as their quarterback, there's no way that Brady's not going to find a way to get to eight wins and win this NFC South, because eight probably gets you in this year for that division.

Probably. I really did not have much hope and or thought that they would make or run the Falcons, that is. So, I mean, yes, I think officially, yes, kind of just erases all hope. It seems like every week that a team does a surprising win in that division, and it's OK, that's that team's week. Like, I was on Charlotte today on WFNZ, I do a weekly hit every Friday, and Maka, their host, who's great, and a zany guy, too, he's talking about, oh, maybe there's going to be a playoff push for the Panthers. And the Saints, like three weeks ago, people were saying, oh, maybe they get a little bit of a run and get their act together, and then people forget or remember that Andy Dalton's just not that good of a quarterback anymore. This is, I know I clown on the AFC South all the time with how bad that division's been throughout the years. This NFC South may be worse than even when the commanders, remember the NFC East a few years ago, they were, what, seven and nine, I think it was, and they made the playoffs. This is a bad division.

Like, if you tell me there's only, if it's seven and ten, get it in, it wouldn't shock me at this point. But it's going to be Tampa. And then it just comes down to how much of a threat can Tampa be when Brady has an invitation to the dance. Coming on back, talking about college football.

Will Alabama be the rest of the way this year? The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations. Coverage of your favorite teams. Live news from your hometown and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams.

Pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later. There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations. Coverage of your favorite teams. Live news from your hometown and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams.

Pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later. There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations. Coverage of your favorite teams. Live news from your hometown and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams. Pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later. There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today.