McVay Back With Rams (Hour 1)

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There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. I'm Larry Mullins, host of the podcast, Your Weirdest Fears, the show that explores the odd things that make your heart stop. I am so scared of the Grinch. He is bad vibes. We talk to everyone from therapists to exterminators to lizard man. I was 25 when I actually got my tongue split.

I have one tattoo that covers my entire body. Listen and subscribe on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts from. And you can always get at me on Instagram, where I'm straight flexing, or via the good ol' cesspool of Twitter, at Zach Gelb.

That's Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B. Action packed show for you today on this wildcard edition of a football Friday. Ryan Horvat from BetQL, BetMGM tonight, is going to join us coming up 20 minutes from now, as we will get his postseason picks for the wildcard round. And he'll try to lend a helping hand on how to bet this weekend of games. And then coming up an hour 20 from now, former Baltimore Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta will stop by. And then at 8.20 PM Eastern, 5.20 PM Pacific, the always entertaining former NFL fullback in Lorenzo Neal. A lot to do today. We're here for the next four hours. Take you all the way up until 10 PM Eastern, 7 PM Pacific. But back in our New York City studios, producing this extravaganza is no other than Hate Kiki.

I don't know about that Hate Kiki. Alright, we gotta start the show, and obviously we'll do a ton of wildcard talk today, as you have five games this weekend. Then I'll be back in New York City on Monday night, and we will react, we will preview, we'll watch it live, until we do log off the air and sign off the air of Cowboys and Buccaneers.

But before that, we'll know what does go down this weekend. We're starting tomorrow with the Seahawks and the 49ers. Then on Saturday night, Chargers and Jaguars, no Mike Williams, we'll get into that coming up later as Brandon Staley made a massive mistake last week.

And now it could potentially cost himself coming up on Saturday night. And then you fast forward to Sunday, you got Dolphins and Bills, no Tua Tunga, Vailoa. You got Giants and Vikings, the magical ride, can it potentially continue for Brian Dayball? And you look at the Minnesota Vikings, who would have thought they would have a home playoff game before the season did start? So a tremendous job by both those first year head coaches in Brian Dayball and Kevin O'Connell. And then on Sunday night on NBC, you will have the Baltimore Ravens without Lamar Jackson.

We'll see if it's going to be Anthony Brown or Tyler Huntley starting under center for Baltimore going up against Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals who do have some offensive line issues. But I got to start the show off today with actually some coaching news. And some coaching news that does kind of catch us off guard.

Because earlier in the week, when you heard that Sean McVay was letting his coaches maybe interview for other jobs or weren't going to prevent them for exploring other opportunities. That gave me the feel that Boy Wonder in Sean McVay was going to retire. And I say retire, just delay coming on back and coaching again a few years from now and explore the TV opportunities that would have been afforded to him. And he would have had a big fat lucrative contract. And then we get the news today that Sean McVay has actually informed the Rams that he is coming back.

So I'm surprised by that. I thought with the news that we had earlier in the week, the way that he was allowing some of his other coaches to even leave the staff and explore other opportunities. That gave me the indication and the strong belief that Sean McVay was going to retire. And now he's coming back to the LA Rams for another season. Sean McVay, you know what he's turning into? He's turning into Aaron Rodgers light.

Where now it's turning into all about the drama. Is he going to retire? Is he going to leave the Rams? Is he going to come back? And we got that answer today that he is going to come back. But I'm really sick of the drama. And as a talk show host, I should eat up all this drama.

I should love it. But I have so much Rodgers fatigue when it comes to his future. And I do believe Rodgers is going to come back to Green Bay. But for McVay, this is now two off seasons in a row. One albeit coming off a Lombardi championship. Where there was talks and serious talks about him retiring. And then he agrees to a contract extension, just like Aaron Rodgers.

And we were in this same dance once again. Where he has one foot in, one foot out. And when it looks like he's about to take his left foot. And join it with his right foot and walk right out the door. He goes, no I'm going to come back to LA. And this is going to be a yearly occurrence once again. And this is just going to go on and on and on until he finally says I'm going to go to TV.

Or I'm going to go try to take another job and explore other opportunities. Because I don't know how badly Sean McVay wants to continue to coach. Like don't get me wrong, he is a heck of a coach. He has a lot of passion. He's had a tremendous amount of success in this league. But coaching is something that you got to be all in for. And I know this team was derailed by injuries this past year.

But it doesn't appear to me like Sean McVay. When it's do I stay, do I go, what do I do? Well one day it looks like I'm leaving.

The next day I'm pulling the Jordan Belfort. I'm not bleeping leaving and I'm coming back. It's really to me something that I just don't care about anymore. Like if you want to go do TV, go do TV.

Why are you coming on back right now? Like that's my question. I don't think the Rams are a Super Bowl team next year. And I know we still got to get into free agency. And I know they don't have a first round draft pick once again.

What else is new? But you look at the way that this roster is constructed. Matthew Stafford is coming off an injury.

This offensive line is nonexistent. Cooper Cupp, who's still a stud, is coming off an injury. Jalen Ramsey, if you follow him on social media and just what he's been saying the last few days. He may have played his final game as an LA Ram. And maybe they're going to look to trade him this offseason. And oh yeah, Aaron Donald is probably soon going to be relaxing in a Dr. Teals bath.

And just enjoying retirement. Because I only think he may only play from all the things that he said only one season. So McVay comes back. If you're a Rams fan, yeah you got to be happy. You'd rather have him back than have him go into television.

Or go off into retirement and do whatever he does. But I don't look at the Rams as a team next year. And they've got to make changes this offseason. But I don't really see a path for them to get back to a Super Bowl. So what I'm saying is really the apex for the Rams I think next year.

Is to just simply make the postseason. So McVay comes back, whoop-de-damn-doo. I don't think that this is just going to be something where now if you're a Rams fan. You're sitting back and saying, okay we got our coach for the foreseeable future. And he's going to be here to honor his commitment on his extension. And he's going to coach for the next 6, 7, 8 years.

Maybe even north of that in LA. This is going to be a year in and year out occurrence. And it's really starting to just remind me of the things that we've done the last 3 years with Aaron Rodgers. Where he gives you all these hints and all these signs.

And anything that the way that he addresses it is in a very ambiguous and vague manner. And it makes you think that Rodgers is divorcing the Packers or leaving the Packers. And McVay is divorcing the Rams and maybe walking away from the LA Rams.

And year in and year out, here we go again. Aaron Rodgers the last 2 seasons hasn't left Green Bay. I do believe that he's going to stay in Green Bay for this upcoming season. And for Sean McVay, if you want to throw a party, God bless, go ahead, you could do that. But I do believe next year we're going to get into the same conversation once again. Is Sean McVay going to go to TV?

Is he going to retire? So even though this goes away for right now, it's not going away for the long term future. And this Rams team, it shows you. Because I all think we get into this kind of mode whenever a team wins a Super Bowl.

And it's a good lesson to learn. Whenever a team wins a Super Bowl, there's a lot of times where right away we go, Okay, they have a window for the next 4 or 5 years. This Rams team, and it worked. They got a Lombardi Trophy out of it, and that's the most important thing.

I don't care how you get the Lombardi Trophy, I don't care if you sign everyone, you trade away all your draft picks. It doesn't matter to me, because if you're a fan of the LA Rams, you got that moment last year up against the Cincinnati Bengals. You went through that playoff run, which was unbelievable with big 4th quarter moments. But when you look at the long term of it, it just shows you how tough it is to not only repeat, but be a consistent winner. And I know injuries played a big role, and I mean a big role this year in the demise of the LA Rams.

The LA Rams having the most losses for a team that is coming off a year after winning the Super Bowl. But you look at the way that roster is constructed, my biggest concern moving forward, and it's not just as easy as saying, you got to address it. Because that's an offensive unit, and that's a position group that it takes time to gel and form, and build that chemistry and that synergy. They are bad. They are brutal.

They are horrendous. Up front, in the trenches on that offensive line. And I know Andrew Whitworth is 40 years old and walked away this offseason, and now has been doing a killer job at Amazon Prime Video.

And we had him on a few weeks ago, and we love his look with the big man comfy sweatshirt, and then also wearing the sports coat. But that offensive line losing Whitworth, and then all the other pieces too, and the injuries that they've had to suffer all throughout the offensive side of the ball, that is what set them back. And I don't think it's as easy to say, oh yeah, we'll just expect the Rams to be healthy next year, and the LA Rams are going to be right back in the title contending conversation. Now the NFC is not set up to be deep for years and years to come.

I think Philadelphia is in a very good spot. Dallas, we don't know if Mike McCarthy is going to be back coaching the team next year. You look at Dak Prescott, he's good.

He is not great. Let's see what the commanders do this offseason. Let's see what the Giants do this offseason. Minnesota, I'll be curious to see what they do next year. Green Bay, I'll be curious to see what they do next year. The NFC South is a major question mark. Let's not forget the Lions going back to the North. And then in the NFC West, you look around the West, you feel great about the 49ers.

They are now the class, and they've been the class, even though they haven't always won that division of that NFC West for the last few years, and they have a great roster. It doesn't matter who the quarterback is, whether it's Trey Lance, Jimmy G, or Rockout with your Brock out in Brock Purdy, they find a way to just get the most out of that QB position because of the pieces around that team, the way that they're built on the defensive line, the way that they're built on the offensive line with Big Trent Williams. Now, you had Deebo Samuel. You go out and you also get Christian McCaffer. You got Brandon Iuch.

You got Kittle. You look at the rest of that division, I don't know what the long-term future is of Seattle. I can't tell you Geno Smith is definitely going to be back in the postseason next year. I look at a team as well like the Arizona Cardinals.

I look at teams as if they're in a no-win spot next season because we don't know when Kyler Murray is going to play. So with this NFC being open, I could see the Rams getting back to the playoffs next year, and that even may be a big ask, but I really don't think they are going to have an opportunity and you're going to have a legit feeling about them of them going to a Super Bowl at any point next season because I look at that team, that roster quickly folded right in front of our eyes, and it shows you, yes, you sell your soul, you do whatever it takes to go win a Super Bowl, but when you can't replenish some of the holes on that roster and you can't get some youth in there because you said, F all those draft picks which won you a ring and you take the ring however you could get it, but not having those draft picks, you now look at a team that is older, that is banged up, decimated with injuries, and you just wonder with all the drama surrounding that team, and I know they're in L.A., which is a mega, mega, mega market, but the L.A. football fan is not this passionate football fan like the football fans that we see in the Northeast with like Philadelphia, with New York, if you go into Foxborough with the Patriots, and I don't know how much of accountability the Rams are going to be held in terms of their fans demanding to see them go get a winner once again and voicing their frustration. Like I was at that Super Bowl in whose house? Rams house at SoFi Stadium, and you couldn't tell that that was a Super Bowl that was in L.A. Like imagine if you had the Eagles and they'll never get a Super Bowl, but if you had Philadelphia in a Super Bowl in Philadelphia, that place would be packed with Eagles fans.

You know that that would be an Eagles home game, no doubt about it. I know they just came back to L.A. a few years ago, but that to me is a team that, yes, you win, yes, you get that ring, but I don't know how much of an outcry there's going to be and an uproar there is going to be because they regressed significantly last year, and you really didn't hear a peep about them. So they may just be able to fade and fade right into the night, and no one may really even care, but you look at that team, there is a lot of drama surrounding that team. There's drama surrounding Aaron Donald, who has banged up this year, did not play well this season compared to Aaron Donald's standards, and he may only have a year left. It looks like Jalen Ramsey is out the window too, you know, is one foot in, one foot out, and he may be off the team this offseason. Stafford coming back from an injury, that's a major, major concern, and the biggest concern that I have, even though I think Sean McVay is a heck of a coach and I have a lot of respect for him, but this is a guy that we all praise, that a lot of us really do love, and we praise his work ethic, but how all in can you actually be when each and every year you're thinking about retirement? And it's not as if Sean McVay has been around the block for 40 years and he's 65 years old, he's a young man. He doesn't need to be thinking about retirement right now. Now you could argue, quality of life, it may be a better quality of life to go sit in a comfy studio and get paid $18, $20 million a year and not deal with the stress and not deal with the pressure of being an NFL head coach, and I get that.

But if you're going to do that, just go. Don't make this a yearly tradition like what Aaron Rodgers has done. Is he going to be back? And we're going to have to wait, and we're going to have to sit on pins and needles, and there's going to be all these signs that Rodgers is leaving and that McVay is leaving, and with both these guys, Rodgers hasn't gone anywhere and McVay hasn't gone anywhere. And I can guarantee you this, this time next year, if the Rams don't make the playoffs or if the Rams are eliminated from the postseason early, it's going to be the typical same nonsense. Is McVay going to stay or is he going to go? And when Rodgers is back in Green Bay this season, then next offseason, it's going to be the same thing as Aaron Rodgers is going to stay. Because we've seen it the last three years with Rodgers, we've seen it now with the last two years with Sean McVay, and it's only going to continue.

Hickey, let me get your thoughts on this. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. I was stunned, and I know that you thought McVay was going to be retiring as well. I don't know, maybe this is just fatigue, but I'm really starting to get sick and tired of all the drama that's surrounding the situation with Sean McVay and his future with the LA Rams.

Yeah, I'm with you. I'm very surprised because it seemed like even though it was up in the air and there was no definitive, oh, he's definitely come back or he's definitely saying he's thinking about his future, by every indication, I feel like he was gone. Other staff members are looking for jobs. He's allowing them to do that. One of his best friends is leaving the staff, going back to a college offensive coordinator job at Kentucky. And don't get me wrong, I like Kentucky. I like that football program. We've had a lot of their stars and their coach, Mark Stoops, come on. We've also had Josh Allen and Will Leviss and Benny Snell. We have a good relationship with the Kentucky program, and I know he's been there before, but if Liam really thought that his pal was staying with the Rams and he's in the NFL and you hear how much easier it is to coach in the NFL because you don't have to deal with all the nonsense in college, he must have thought that he was leaving, too, because why would you go back to college?

Ryan, when they're so close, you wouldn't leave your best friend unless you thought he was hanging it up. So I'm shocked he's back. Every indication felt like he was gone and retiring and very surprising to hear that he's actually going to return for 2023. And it's kind of funny because you look at coaching right now and we throw Rodgers into this as well. Rodgers, we have all this drama.

McVeigh, we have all this drama. The other guy that's also creating a lot of drama is Jim Harbaugh because, Hickey, we've been on the same page here where we thought that Harbaugh is going to leave. If he doesn't get the Broncos' job and I don't know if he's going to get the Broncos' job or not, I don't know how willing he is for these other jobs. Like, you heard that he wanted to talk to the Panthers and it didn't happen.

And I don't know, the Colts, I don't think they've had any contact. I don't think they've set up an interview yet with Jim Harbaugh. That's another guy, Hickey, Jim Harbaugh, where it's, is he going to stay at Michigan, is he not? And now we're seeing this back to back in consecutive seasons with Harbaugh. And if he winds up back in Michigan, it's okay if you're a Michigan fan, you're pumped up, but you know you're going to go through this same song and dance next year. Just like with Vey, it's going to be a yearly conversation until it feels like inevitably he leaves at this point. And while we're on it, we've got to take a break. Sean Payton better take a job this offseason because if he doesn't take a job this offseason after all this drama, then it's clear what's going on.

Rogers, McVeigh, Harbaugh, Sean Payton, then they're just a bunch of attention whores. It is the Zach Gilp show on CBS Sports Radio. We will take a break. We'll try to win you some money next with Ryan Horvat from BetMGM tonight via Beck UO. To catch up later, there's a lot to listen to.

So get started and download the free Odyssey app today. I'm Larry Mullins, host of the podcast, Your Weirdest Fears, the show that explores the odd things that make your heart stop. I am so scared of the Grinch. He is bad vibes. We talk to everyone from therapists to exterminators to lizard man. I was 25 when I actually got my tongue split.

I have one tattoo that covers my entire body. Listen and subscribe on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts from. We're approaching wild card weekend in the NFL. It is the Zach Gilp show on CBS Sports Radio. Let's try to win you some money right now with one of my favorites from BetMGM tonight via Beck UO and he is Ryan Horvat. Ryan, what's happening, my man?

Not too much Zach. Just getting excited for the weekend, getting ready for the weekend, man. This is my favorite weekend. Obviously, divisional round weekend, championship weekend, you get the better matchups, but I like this wild card weekend.

I'm not going to complain about the extra game because it's just extra games for us to bet and you can kind of find some matchups that you really like. I think I actually have placed a bet in every single game for the first time ever wild card weekend this year. Well, we'll get to those bets in just a second, but I know that you are a big time Green Bay Packers fan and before this season I would have 100% thought, even with Devonta Adams not being there, even if the Packers take a step back, they would make the playoffs, but was that the all-time low for you in your Packers fandom when Rodgers looks at the Lions like they're gum on his cleat and still couldn't find a way to outscore the Detroit Lions, so we know we're an ascending football team.

Look, and the Lions are a great story. I think they're going to be a fun team next year. Jared Goff, what a year. That offense, so fun to watch. Ben Johnson's going to be a head coach soon in this league, but they had no excuse not to hang at least 28-30 points on the board against that Lions defense. Yeah, they got a little bit better week 10 onward. Hutchinson's great, probably the second best rookie right next to sauce, but man, if you're making that kind of money, you have to hang at least 28 points against that defense.

I don't care how cold it is. I don't care who your wide receivers are. Christian Watson made a huge leap week nine on.

Romeo Dobbs, I think he's going to be solid. That was probably the low for me, especially Zach, because the week before that, went back home, went to the game at Lambeau. We celebrated kicking the crap out of the Vikings, which is always fun, only to turn around the next week in control of their own destiny, win and get in, and they lay an egg.

So pretty disappointing, but at the same time, let's be honest, man, that team had no business getting into the playoffs. Maybe the two biggest attention whores in the NFL these days, Ryan Horvath from BetMGM tonight, is Sean McVay, who we found out today is coming back, and then also Aaron Rodgers. You being a Packers guy, I'm just so over the Rodgers story, but I still think he's coming back next season.

See, I do too, and I completely agree about McVay. I mean, I know everybody thought that he was going to go to the broadcast booth and make a ton of money, but I just, man, you're going to really, you're going to retire, and I know he could have came back in a couple years and it's not a great cap situation. He could do the Sean Payton thing, but you knew he was coming back, especially if Aaron Donald and Stafford are coming back. No way he was leaving after that kind of season. With Rodgers, as much as it pains me to say this, because I'm still an Aaron Rodgers fan, one of few, I think, left on this planet, I think what would work best, trade him to a team like the Jets that is surrounded with young talent, a bunch of skilled position players, wide receivers, Breece Hall will probably be back at least by midseason, or trade him elsewhere, because he's at that stage of his career, 39 years old, where he needs help, like Payton did those last couple years. Or even like Brady when he went to Tampa Bay and had Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. I think that a change of scenery would probably be best for Rodgers, and I think it's probably time to either turn to Jordan Love or figure out what you're going to do, because, I mean, I don't know that they're going to be able to go out there and trade for a veteran wide receiver like DeAndre Hopkins, and yeah, sure, so maybe Romeo Dodd and Christian Watson are a little bit better a year or two, but I don't think they're good enough to win 12-13 games, and that defense was a huge disappointment. People all of us thought they were going to be a top-ten defense. I mean, they were 30th in DVOA against the run, and now they're probably bringing back Joe Berry as the defensive coordinator, so I don't see that improving.

So I think it's probably best, as crazy as it sounds, to move on from Aaron Rodgers, if you could find anybody that will take on that contract, which you probably could. The two games tomorrow, Ryan Horvat. Niners are a 10-point favorite. The Chargers are a 1.5-point favorite. I like both the underdogs here. I like Jacksonville to win outright. I think the 49ers will still win, but I think Seattle finds a way, whether that's actually keeping it closer or finding a way to backdoor cover, to plus the 10 points and keep this within a 10-point game.

Completely agree. It fits at 10. I really like Seattle. If it goes under 10, I don't like it so much, and I still do like San Francisco with the teaser leg, maybe with Tampa Bay, just because it's a bad matchup for the Seahawks.

I love the number because we've seen this matchup twice, and now I think this is a huge overreaction. It is Brock Puri's first playoff game, which I do think we're overblown a little bit, only because even though Geno Smith's a veteran, it's his first playoff start as well. The only problem I have with Seattle man is their offensive line. We talk about Kenneth Walker. He's probably going to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, but their 30th in adjusted line yards and 24th, I believe, in run-block win rate. They don't get any push up front, so any runs that are successful, it's just Kenneth Walker kind of being an all-star. And then since Week 10, 28th in EPA on early downs, the reason that scares me is because Geno's came back down to earth, and if they're unable to run the ball against San Francisco, who's a top-five run defense, that means they're dropping Geno back 30, 35 times.

Crappy weather, windy conditions, possible rain, and Nick Bose on the other side of the ball. So I'm with you on Seattle, but I do worry that that one can get ugly. And then I love the Jags, man. I think the Jags will be able to score 30 points if they want in this game. The Chargers can't stop the run. I think if the Chargers lose this game, there's a shot that they would lose as a job after everything that went down last week. If Mike Williams is on the field, I'd probably like the Chargers, and you could say, well, it's just a wide receiver. But, man, you have the game plan for Mike Williams. So I'm with you on Jacksonville. Trevor Lawrence has been probably the second-best quarterback in the AFC for the last six weeks. When we get to Sunday, Dolphins and Bills, is it too obvious to just lay the 13.5 points, 13 points to Buffalo?

I don't think it is. I mean, this is probably a huge liability for the books, man, and I still would only play Buffalo in this spot. It isn't even just the quarterback position. Tyree Kilz has been dinged up, which is crazy, because right now they don't even have him on the injury report. If you watched that game last week, he's hobbling around.

He could barely move right now. I think that this is a terrible matchup for Miami, especially on the defensive side of the ball. They're giving up over 430 yards per game. That's a beat-up secondary. And Josh Allen, I mean, I know that he had some bad red zone turnovers this year, Zach, but, I mean, he wasn't even throwing the football at practice.

He was more beat up than people knew about, and that dime that he had to Stefan Diggs, he looked fully back. I think the way to play the Bills here, though, just go first half. It was minus seven. Minus 120 was the price.

I think it bumped up to seven and a half. I'm just going to play the Bills in the first half and not worry about a crazy backdoor cover in the second half. Ryan Horvat here with us from BetMGM tonight via BetQL. This is Zach Gelb's show on CBS Sports Radio. Earlier in the week, I liked the Giants.

Then I heard everyone say they loved the Giants. Now I'm leaning on Minnesota. This line has not moved all throughout the week. Minnesota's a three-point favorite. What's your play?

I'm with you. It seems like the Giants are becoming the public dog, but I really don't care, man. The Vikings couldn't stop the pass in that first matchup. As crazy as it sounds, you look at the splits, Daniel Jones is a much better quarterback on the road, and Minnesota's defense is a mess. The main thing is they can't defend the play-action pass. They're last in EPA per pass against play-action. Daniel Jones this season, 35 percent of his dropbacks come off play-action, and I know that Brian Dabel and Mike Kask are going to have the perfect game plan here. Also, the Vikings just can't defend the running back passes, so I love Saquon receptions and receiving yards.

I believe the number is 3.5 and 22.5 receiving yards. I think the Giants are going to be able to score here. The Vikings are bottom five in red zone defense. I think Saquon's going to get in the end zone. Also, on the other side of the ball, I know the Vikings have been a fun story offensively with Justin Jefferson and Kirk Cousins, but that offensive line is beat up, man. They're on their third string center, a backup tackle. I really like the Giants, who are finally healthy on the defensive line. I think they're going to get some pressure. I think Wink will have the perfect game plan, and I think they'll get home on Cousins a couple times.

I do think the Giants win this game outright. So we know either it's going to be Tyler Huntley or Anthony Brown starting at quarterback for the Ravens with Lamar Jackson not returning the Bengals. You know Collins is out.

Kappa is out on the right side of that offensive line. I'm surprised the spread here is only Cincy minus 8.5. I thought it would reflect not as big as the Bills-Dolphins game, but what do you think of this spread? Is that too low of a spread with Lamar not playing the fact that the Bengals are only an 8.5-point favorite? I think if you want to play the Bengals in this spot, use them as a teaser, right? Like tease them if you like, maybe you like Dallas, maybe you like Tampa Bay, or maybe you like the Bills. Maybe just use them as a teaser leg, because the number scares me a little bit if Tyler Huntley is able to play.

If it's Anthony Brown, I don't think the number could go big enough to be honest. I mean, he's terrible. Not that Tyler Huntley has been great. He's not going to push the ball down the field. The reason I like this matchup is because J.K. Dobbins finally looks healthy the last four weeks, and then Harbaugh was smart enough to sit him last week, so he's coming off some rest. And Baltimore's defensive line, I think, has a chance to get after Joe Burrow in this game. Cincinnati is all beat up on the offensive line as well here. Baltimore, really good special teams.

You might see a lot of Justin Tucker. I like his field goal props, and I think it's going to be a low-scoring game. I like the under, and I actually really like Baltimore to cover, as long as Tyler Huntley is the starting quarterback. If we see Anthony Brown get right off and just play Cincinnati, because I think they'll win that game by 20-plus. And then on Monday night, Cowboys and Buccaneers. If I take about the Bucks the last two months, I don't believe in them, and you know me, I'm the biggest Brady fan on the planet, but as we enter this game, I don't trust Dallas. I'll take the points here with Tampa Bay plus two and a half. Same here.

Grabbed it at three. I think there's a chance that Tampa Bay actually wins this game, and there's a chance that they make a little run in the NFC, because all season long, man, they've been beat up on the defensive side of the ball, especially in the secondary. Now they're healthy. I keep trying to make the case for Dallas, because it seems so easy, but it's Mike McCarthy, right, going against Tom Brady, and I know Brady's never lost to the Cowboys. I don't really care about that. What I care about, Dak, since coming back week seven, has faced some of the worst defenses in the league. The Eagles probably being the best, and he has just not looked right this season. I know that they could run the ball, but I think that the bucks are the play here. I think that they have a shot to win this game outright. As long as Brady and Mike Evans are on the same page, because a couple weeks ago, I thought we over-blued that comeback win against the Panthers.

They had to come back from down 10 points to Sam Darnold and the Panthers, but at least in that game, Evans had 10 grabs over 200 yards and three touchdowns. So as long as they're on the same page, I like Tampa Bay to cover, maybe even win this thing outright. So Horvat, I'm in Colorado right now visiting my sister and my brother-in-law. And I know for Saturday and Sunday, my brother-in-law and I will be watching all these games and betting on them.

I'm going to do a Ryan Horvat parlay. You tell me what to bet, and I'm going to ride you, because you've been pretty damn good all throughout the year. Give me one spread out of these five games, one over-under, and one prop bet that you like the most. All right, I like the under 42 and Seahawks 49ers. I just don't know that Seattle is going to be able to score.

And if you don't love that one, then I love the over. If you want to root for points, I'll throw you another one. I like the over and Chargers jags. I just think Keenen Allen is going to be a nightmare matchup. I think Austin Eckler is going to have a big day. So go with Austin Eckler receptions.

The jags just cannot defend running back passes. So Austin Eckler receptions, even I think it's at four and a half, and then go with the under 42, Seahawks 49ers. You've got to go with the first half. Bill 7-7 and a half over the Dolphins.

Throw that in there. And then lastly, I like Baltimore. If you could stomach it, take Baltimore over Cincinnati. The other narrative play I have in that one, man, is just how much trash that Cincinnati has been talking. Joe Mixon, you saw it the other day. Joe Burrow at the podium. I absolutely loved it, but he said the new norm around here is we're going to wear our t-shirts, smoke our cigars. That's a really good Baltimore defense, and I think there's some bulleted board material.

So I would throw Baltimore in there as well. Ryan Horvat, we appreciate it. You'll be well.

BetMGM tonight via BeckUL. Make sure you check him out. Thanks so much, Horvat. Thanks, Zach.

I'll text you those in case I went too long with it. You got it. There he is, Ryan Horvat from BetMGM tonight via BeckUL. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio broadcasting live today in Colorado. When we come on back, we will give you one man who's under the most pressure in the NFC playoffs for this weekend and one man in the AFC who's under the most pressure for this upcoming weekend of games in the wildcard round. There's a lot to listen to.

So get started and download the free Odyssey app today. I'm Larry Mullins, host of the podcast, Your Weirdest Fears, the show that explores the odd things that make your heart stop. I am so scared of the Grinch. He is bad vibes. We talk to everyone from therapists to exterminators to lizard man. I was 25 when I actually got my tongue split.

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I'm broadcasting live today in beautiful Colorado. Hickey, for this weekend, when we look at the NFC and the AFC, if we had to identify one man in the NFC, one man in the AFC that is under the most pressure when we go through the games, and you know on the NFC it's Seahawks against the 49ers, it's the Giants and the Vikings, and then on Monday Night Football it concludes Wild Card Weekend, which we will not refer to as Super Wild Card Weekend, in the Cowboys and Buccaneers. And in the AFC, it is, of course, tomorrow night, a game that I'm really excited for, Chargers and Jaguars. And you have the two other games that I'm not really that excited for because two is out, Lamar Jackson's out, Dolphins, Bills, Ravens, and Bengals. I'll start in the NFC, and I think the man that is under the most pressure this weekend in the NFC is Kirk Cousins with the Minnesota Vikings because you look at the Vikings, they've been a team all throughout the year, they've been a good team.

They're 13 and 4 for a reason. But when you get into these big spots like Philadelphia earlier on in the season, they get blown out 24 to 7. When they go up against the Cowboys, they get smacked around 40 to 3. The Lions, everyone was saying, oh, Minnesota's getting disrespected, right?

Scott was calling us in California. No one's showing the Vikings respect. How can they be a 2.5 point underdog to the Detroit Lions and Detroit beat them 34 to 23? And the most recent example was that game up against the Packers where Jay Alexander was talking a lot of smack before the game of the Packers, showed no respect to the Minnesota Vikings. He was talking smack about the best wide receiver in football in Justin Jefferson, and Jay Alexander did something that not many people could do in the NFL. He shut down Justin Jefferson and the Vikings just got embarrassed and it was a disgusting performance by Minnesota where they lost that game in a lopsided fashion by a score of 41 to 17. And you look at what are the really good moments this year for the Minnesota Vikings, okay, game one of the season against the Green Bay Packers, phenomenal moment. If you want to tell me the Bills game, absolutely, that's probably the first one you think about. But other than that, Hickey, has this football team really had a great win this year where you look at the opponent and you say, wow, that's a heck of an opponent. Like, they beat the Lions. That was back in week three when no one knew what the Lions were going to be. The Saints, no.

The Bears, no. They beat the Dolphins and that was when the Dolphins didn't have Tua Tunga by low in the game. They beat the Cardinals. The Cardinals aren't a good team. They beat the Commanders by three points.

That wasn't a pretty game. The Commanders aren't in the postseason. They beat the Patriots and the Jets. Both those teams not in the postseason. Sure, the game against the Colts where they were down 33-0 and came back is an unbelievable comeback and we know unprecedented the biggest comeback in the history of the NFL. But that Colts team, and you know better than anyone how to take Hickey, is absolutely garbage.

It's dreadful. If you want to throw the Giants in there, okay. I could say that's a good win because the Giants have been a scrappy team and I'm not going to give you Chicago at the end of the season. So this team this year in the big spots, even though the record would indicate otherwise, has pretty much failed more than they succeeded.

And you know what the narrative is around this team. Kirk Cousins, is he clutch? Can he get the job done? If you listen to me throughout the years, I think Kirk Cousins is a really good quarterback. I think he's someone that at times looks like a top 10 quarterback, but he is more so a top 13 kind of quarterback in the NFL.

Really anywhere from 10 to 13. And there's some years where he does go into the top 10. But the only big time moments in Kirk Cousins' career has really been that playoff game where he went into New Orleans.

No one thought he could win. He beats the Saints. Had that big pass to Adam Thielen. Had that touchdown pass to win the game against Kyle Rudolph where they go into the Superdome and get the job done. But then the very next week, that went poof.

It went right out the window. It evaporated because in a close game up against the Niners, who I believe eventually went to the Super Bowl that year, he threw an interception to Richard Sherman in the early stages of the second half. So I think when you look at the matchups this weekend, and I'm not gonna tell you this is a wonderful weekend on paper of football, like you expect the 49ers to win, the question is just by how much. Chargers, Jaguars, good game. Dolphins, Bills, expect the Bills to blow out the Dolphins. Ravens, Bengals, you expect the Bengals to win, the question just is by how much. Cowboys, Buccaneers should be a really good game on Monday Night Football. But this Giants-Vikings game, it's close.

We saw it the last, a few weeks ago where the Vikings have superior talent compared to the Giants, but the Giants almost beat the Vikings and the Vikings needed that 61-yard game-winning field goal. Fair or not, you know it and I know it, come Monday, if the Vikings lose this game, Kirk Cousins could play great. He will be the number one talking point from this game if the Vikings do lose. This is just the business, coaches and quarterbacks, they are the people that we highlight the most. Kirk Cousins is the guy this weekend in the NFC that has the most pressure and needs to win the most. Who's your guy in the NFC if we take Kirk out of the conversation? Gotta be Mike McCarthy easily, because I don't care what Jerry Jones says about Mike McCarthy and his job status, if you lose Monday night to an 8-9 Buccaneers team, I don't see how Mike McCarthy is back for 2023. I think he's fired, so he's really the one person in the NFC I think you can point to definitively and say if he loses, he's out of a job.

If the Vikings lose, I can see Kirk maybe getting traded and the Vikings trying to make a move, but it's not easy because there's not a ton of upgrades. I don't see another head coach in the NFC getting fired if they lose, so there's really not a lot of, let's say, job security on the line this weekend outside of the man in Dallas. Great point, phenomenal point, and you're 100% right, because Jerry Jones could go on the fan, and I love those guys. Sean and RJ, they've both been on this show numerous times.

We text a bunch, great follows on Twitter too, and they do some unbelievable work on the radio morning drive in Dallas. Well, they had Jerry Jones on this week, and he was just like, no, it wasn't, no, we're not gonna fire the guy if we lose. It was more so, no, I'm not going there. I'm not even thinking about that. I'm not even talking about the possibility of the Dallas Cowboys.

I'm about to say us, but you know what I mean. The Dallas Cowboys going down to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so you're right. Yeah, the job is on the line for Mike McCarthy because if they lose this game, he will be fired.

No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Okay, when we get into, before we get to the AFC, I'll just give you two other, just like kinds of appetizers that I don't think are big talking points. I don't think this weekend can hurt either of these two guys, but it could really help them in patting more money onto their future contracts, and that's Geno Smith and also Daniel Jones because if Daniel Jones gets a victory when he's thrown to James and Hodgins and Bellinger and I know Saquon is back and he's been healthy for the most part this year with the Giants. You know the Giants are gonna try to get a deal done. That will just enhance the salary of Daniel Jones and for Geno Smith, it appears like he'll be back in Seattle next year. He had the most passing yards in an individual season that any quarterback's ever had with the Seattle Seahawks, but once again, Hickey just pads the salary, the cash, the moolah a little bit for both those guys so they can find a way to not maybe even win. Like if you win, sure, but if you just play a good game and not be the reason why you lose. Oh, without a doubt, without a doubt.

Okay. AFC. As you went McCarthy, I will go Brandon Staley. I think there is a sentiment that Brandon Staley probably will be back next year because the Spanos family just wanted him to make the playoffs this year. They did that, and maybe we're getting caught up in the moment.

Maybe I'm channeling my inner hot take Hickey here and this is in the moment. What happened with Mike Williams last week, should have never happened. Now he's out. If Staley loses this week, he's going to get beat up like a pinata on Monday.

Maybe he does not lose his job, but I think he's under an enormous amount of pressure going up against a coach who's better than him in Doug Peterson. Who's your guy in the AFC? So for this weekend, I don't think there's really honestly anyone outside of Staley, so I'm going to throw this by really fast in terms of overall play picture AFC. Is there pressure on Patrick Holmes to play well?

Yes. Stave off Josh Allen and Joe Burrow? I think there's pressure on Mahomes to go win another Super Bowl. Now I don't think it's going to change really a lot of people's opinion on Mahomes if they don't win the Super Bowl, but that Team Talk dynasty, and last year in the postseason, even though he's great and you'd love to have Patrick Mahomes, he failed up against the Bengals right at the two minute warning and in the entirety of the second half and overtime.

So I think there is pressure on the Chiefs and you could also maybe get the push if Burrow Allen win the Super Bowl that people are going to stake their claim that one of those two guys are the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Get in the game and download the free Odyssey app today. 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.