Week 3 NFL Picks (Hour 4)

Fall is just around the corner and home is the center of it all. At Ashley, seasonal decorating's a breeze with their range of designs and materials. Snuggle up on a family-friendly sectional or an ultra-modern sofa. Or gather outside and enjoy the crisp, cool air with a new fire pit or conversation set. From minor refreshes to total overhauls, Ashley has the essentials to make your home fall functional and fabulous.

Shop in store or visit Ashley.com today. 24 monthly bill credits plus tax for well-qualified customers. Contact us before canceling account to continue bill credits or credit stop and balance on a required finance agreement due.

One-year upgrade requires financing, qualifying, device and upgrading in good condition after six months with half paid off. We continue this exact Yelp show coast to coast on CBS Sports Radio. Let's go out to the guest line right now. Welcome in the Pro Football Hall of Famer. Of course, Kurt Warner is an NFL Network Analyst.

You can see Kurt every Sunday on NFL Network's NFL Game Day morning at 9 a.m. Eastern. Kurt Warner, how you been? I'm doing really well, Zach. How are you? I'm doing fantastic.

We'll see how I'm doing on Saturday. Big game for our owls as I could say that now as they welcome in a tough opponent in Miami. I got to ask you about your son who had an incredible freshman season at my alma mater. What did you kind of challenge him to do as he got set for that sophomore campaign? Well, I think the challenge is always just to continue to improve.

I mean, he had a great freshman year, as you said, a freshman All-American. So many good things. But you're just looking on the little things that you can improve on. I mean, he's got kind of the superpower of his ability to see the field and process information.

I'm kind of in awe every time I watch him on film. But, you know, there's always technique things that I'm always pushing him on because I think technique can always carry you. And as you know, you know, they're still working on the pieces up front. So, you know, he's playing under pressure in a lot of situations and the ability to be ready to throw and to be able to anticipate and have proper technique. There were some times last year I felt he was kind of falling away from some throws and not being able to get enough on the football. And so it's all those little things that, you know, the nuanced things that make great quarterbacks great. And so that was really the challenge going into this year.

And he's embracing that and continuing to work on it. We see what Coach Prime is doing right now with Deion Sanders with his sons at Colorado. Did you ever think about maybe becoming a college head coach one day? No, my wife kind of made me to commit that, you know, when I got done playing, I actually coached high school ball for my two boys. But she, you know, kind of made me commit that once they were done, that I was done from a, you know, full time coaching position. I've always loved to kind of game plan and I've always told people I'd love to be a consultant to help people game plan and design plays and do that sort of thing. But I don't think I'll ever do the grind of the everyday coaching.

Just too many other things that I want to do, too many kids that I want to chase around. So that's probably not in my future as much as I still love the coaching aspect and will do. You know, I've got my own Web site that's kind of a coaching and teaching platform. I do some individual coaching with high school, college and sometimes pro guys here at the house.

So I get my fix in a few different ways. But but I don't foresee myself getting into the coaching profession. I don't know how much you've seen of your old NFL Network colleague, Dion Sanders, over at Colorado, but his son should door stands is really taking the nation by storm as a quarterback.

What stands out to you with your door? You know, I just think I just think he's a good, solid quarterback. I think they have a good scheme. I think he's a guy that wants to play inside the pocket. And what we've seen in the early stages here and a lot of people watched him play at Jackson State was just, you know, his ability to stand in there and make plays under pressure. That, to me, is the quarterback position in a nutshell, is that there's a lot of guys that can throw and there's a lot of guys in a perfect world that can play this position.

But the ability to process information, to stand in there. And then when the pressure is the highest to make plays, should do or as has shown us, you know, a couple of times already this year that he's got that to him. And so I'm excited to see him progress, excited to see him play a little bit more. And, you know, I think he's got a bright future in college and then you're going to have a great opportunity in the NFL. The Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner here with us. When we get to Brock Purdy, another start, another win. He hasn't lost the game that he started and finished so far as an NFL quarterback. What do you think the ceiling is for Brock Purdy in the NFL?

You know, I think it's hard to say. What we know is that he's playing on a really, really good football team. And that's no, you know, that's no strike against Brock.

You know, you come into a perfect situation and you don't have to do everything. I think what we've seen with Brock is that, again, you know, kind of like we were talking, he's a guy that in the moment doesn't ever seem too big for him. That he's able to step in and make the plays that he needs to make. You know, the question when you talk about what his ceiling is, until we see him in situations where he's got to carry the team with his right arm, I don't think we're ever going to know what he could be as a quarterback. And again, when I say it's not a knock on him that he's around a good team, let's think back to Tom Brady. First few years that he played in winning a Super Bowl and he played in the Super Bowl against us in his first Super Bowl, he threw for 150 yards. So he wasn't the Tom Brady that we knew. Ben Roethlisberger played in a Super Bowl, you know, early on where he wasn't the center of things. He had a great team around him and they developed into those guys.

And so that's why I want to be, you know, you know, make sure that it's not a knock on Brock. He's playing with a good team right now and he's winning football games. It's simply this is the phase he's in. And then there will probably come a time where he's got to be the guy and he's got to carry a team with his right arm.

And that's where you find out how special. And if these guys are, you know, the Pro Bowls or the elites or the Hall of Fame quarterbacks are the ones that ultimately show that they can carry the team when needed with their right arm. Brock hasn't really had to do that yet. Yet he's playing the position perfectly for what they have and what they're asking him to do. Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner here with us. When you take a look at the Jets, all the air went out of the balloon with the unfortunate Aaron Rodgers Achilles injury. Now people are starting to wonder, well, what can Zach Wilson do? There was a reason why they brought in Rodgers to replace the former second overall draft pick. Do you think the Jets eventually need to go make a move and get another quarterback or do you have no choice but to ride it out with Zach? I mean, I think you have to ride it with Zach at least right now. But, yeah, I mean, I think that has to be in the back of their mind because Zach hasn't shown us, you know, from a consistent basis that he can go out and play playoff type football. And that's what they believe they have with this football team. And so you owe it to the team, you know, at some point to go, OK, this guy's not there. We've got to go get somebody. I felt like last year they gave him that shot. They realized that he wasn't there.

They went and got Aaron Rodgers. He's going to get another shot here for a few games to determine, can he be that guy? But if he can, if he's not there still at this point.

Yeah, I think it's a disservice. And again, first thing is you got to figure out who's out there, like who can you go and get? Who's who's going to be better served for you in the short term when you're training for somebody or picking somebody up. But if there is somebody out there that you feel gives you a better chance to win, then, yes, I believe the organization owes it to those other players now because they've given Zach his shot. You know, sometimes it is a you got to give a young guy a shot. He's not ready.

And you've got to bring the team along together. Well, he got a shot last year. He's going to get another shot this year. I think it shows again that you can't be that guy right now.

Yeah, I think they need to go and look and see and explore if there are some other options out there. One of those names that gets thrown out there is team started off 0 and 2. They could be 0 and 3 after this weekend against the Chargers is Kirk Cousins final year of that contract. Is that a name that maybe if it goes that way where Minnesota has taken phone calls that Joe Douglas should jump on? Well, I mean, you know, it is one of those things that it's probably a one year contract. It's journeying in somebody that I think we all know is better than where Zach Wilson is at this point.

This plays some really, really good football type football. But I think the next question becomes because a lot of people the knock on Kirk Cousins is that he's a really good quarterback, but they don't know if he can lead a team to a championship. So that's the question you have to ask. Do you believe he's that guy?

Do you believe he can be that guy? And if you do, I think it is worth exploring if you've got the money there and you've got the ability to make that trade and bring Kirk Cousins in, coupled with the weapons and the people that they have for one year. I think it's worth exploring that knowing that, you know, based on what we've heard, that Aaron will be back next year and you'll be able to make that run. But but, yeah, I mean, again, I think it's worth exploring if you believe that your team is a playoff team or a team that can compete for a championship. And you're one piece away. Yeah, you go and do whatever you have to do to get that piece.

And at least at least try. You know, you and I both know following the NFL is that these opportunities don't come around very often where you feel your team is in a place to win a championship. The teams that go on and have that sort of success or compete for those things are the ones that go all in. You know, I mean, we saw the L.A. Rams do that a couple of years ago. You know, Jared Goff had taken him to a Super Bowl.

Jared Goff is a really, really good starting quarterback in the NFL. But they said, hey, we've got to hedge our bets. We believe we're here. We need to go get Matthew Stafford and make this trade. And they go on and win a championship and didn't pay dividends last year as they had to do a lot of different things. But they went all in with their chips going, this is about winning championships. We'll win one now.

If we've got to take a couple of years and, you know, and figure out how to work it around that, we will. But winning a championship is what most organizations are all about. So you go all in to try to do that. Talking to the Pro Football Hall of Famer, Kurt Warner, what advice, rough week for Justin Fields, throws the coaching staff under the bus, then had to walk it back, said everything's fine. They had that fake hug in practice with the O.C. What advice do you give to Justin Fields? Because I feel as if probably right there is going to be picking in the top five. They have two first round picks this year that they're going to be looking for a new quarterback after this season. Well, I mean, the advice is that you have to keep growing as a quarterback and as a leader. You know, you have to keep working through some of the issues that you have, both as a team and individually. I mean, that's the only thing that you can do. I mean, the one thing that we know about this league is that if you're playing quarterback and you're not good enough, this league will swallow you up.

I mean, that's just how it is. And right now, Justin Fields is not good enough across the board. Doesn't mean doesn't that talent doesn't mean he hasn't shown us some special traits over the last couple of years, but he's not consistently playing good enough to be in that position and to be able to, you know, to help make up for some of the issues that they have there. I mean, I'm not going to be the first one to sit here and say, oh, it's all Justin Fields. I mean, they got some issues up front.

They've got some issues, I think, scheme wise at times. And then Justin has to get better. And so all you can really do is take ownership of what part of this is yours. Continue to work with your coaches and try to develop a system that fits your skill set. But as quarterbacks, we've got to take ownership, ownership of where we're not doing it well enough. And that's all I would say to him is where you know you have to get better, work to get better. You know, there's going to be times that, you know, everything doesn't play in our favor. But you have to know what you know, who you are, what you are as a quarterback. And you have to improve in those areas so you can, you know, be ready for this. You can handle this.

You can carry a team if they're asking you to do that. I know it's only week two, Kurt Warner, but do the Dolphins as they get set for week three look like a Super Bowl team to you as long as to it could stay healthy? I think they're going to be competitive. You know, I think what we've seen so far this year is that just like every year, you know, each team has their flaws.

There's nobody that's invincible out there. You know, San Francisco looks pretty good right now. Maybe that team. Dallas was maybe on the verge. You know, we'll see how they respond with Trayvon digs and the injury news. But, you know, even the Eagles, really good team.

But there's some struggles this year. Miami, you know, the first game, they looked like world beaters. Second game, they looked, you know, more more human.

And so that to me is I think Miami is going to be in the mix. I think they have the playmakers as long as to stay healthy. I think their defense is improved from where they were last year. But but I don't think they're a flawless team. I don't think they're a team that can't be beat.

But we've seen that already. The Chiefs are there. The Bengals off to an 0 and 2 start. The Ravens, although to an 0, you know, haven't looked great either. So all these teams that we thought in the AFC were going to be, you know, the pick of the litter and the best teams in the league have all shown us that there's some changes in the armor. And so that's what's going to make it fun.

You know, continue to grow. As you said, it's only week two. You know, we got to see where these teams can go from here.

But I definitely think Miami is going to be in the mix. Do you have any optimism with Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson that they could get back to being consistently great quarterbacks once again? You know, I'm concerned.

I'm concerned about both of them. You know, when I watched Deshaun Watson in Houston, although he put up great numbers, I always felt like a lot of those numbers came in games where they weren't competitive. And from him buying time, creating and being that special athlete. But there were often times that he would hold the football and wouldn't be able to kind of process information quickly enough inside the pocket, you know, as a pocket passer. Those are the same concerns that I'm seeing now is that, you know, he took some time off. I don't know if he's the same athlete that he was when he was in Houston. But when you watch him play, he's holding the ball too long. He's not processing the information as fast as you want him to. And so that's where you start to get concerns is, you know, as players get older and older, you say you can't always rely on the athletic ability.

We need you to see process and grow more, you know, more passes on time. So I haven't seen that necessarily this year, even though it's off to coach the fans. And he thought he was going to turn that corner and get back to more of what we saw in Houston. But without the ability to do that, I'm always worried about a quarterback. So it leads me into Russell Wilson. We've seen some good things from Russell Wilson this year that we didn't see last year.

When you stay in his wheelhouse, the play actions, you know, you do things where it's kind of mirrored on both sides so we can pick a side and just let it rip. But I really believe Russell, when he came to Denver, was saying, I want to show the world that I can be a pocket passer, that I can read the field. I can dissect what defenses are doing and I can get the ball to the right guy. When they've asked him to do that over the last couple of years, he's really struggled. And we know Russell, even older than Deshaun, doesn't have kind of the same juice that he had a few years ago. And so if you can't get to that point where you can process C and get the ball out on time, you always wonder what a quarterback can be as they get into their early 30s and their mid 30s. And so those are my concerns with those guys. I want to see them process a little bit better. I want to see them process faster and get the ball out of their hands and not have to rely so much on being athletes because it feels like both of them have lost a little of that for different reasons.

But I do still have concerns about both of them. Last thing I'll ask you as a Pro Football Hall of Famer, Kurt Warner is with us. Of course, a great NFL Network analyst.

You could see Kurt every Sunday, NFL Networks, NFL Game Day morning at 9 a.m. Eastern. Jordan Love, he's been impressive through the first two games. What have you been seeing using your QB brain? Yeah, I think the thing with Jordan is that he hasn't really done anything to wow us. And so, you know, the natural thing is a Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers.

Can Jordan Love be the next Hall of Famer in a Green Bay uniform? I can't say that I've seen anything that jumps off the table about what he does necessarily physically or anything. But I think in the early stages, his ability to have the command of their offense, his ability to be comfortable and to make the plays that are in front of them have been really, really impressive. You know, he's not making dumb plays.

He doesn't look like he's panicking in the pocket. He's playing good, solid football, you know, up to this point. And that to me, I love that. That is winning football in the National Football League. And then we always say, if you can get to winning football, you've got a chance as a team.

Now, what can you give me that's extra? You know, and the extra is what makes teams championship teams. That's what makes, you know, quarterbacks Hall of Fame or elite quarterbacks is what they can do from an extra standpoint. And, you know, I'm still waiting to see what that can be specifically for George Love. But I have been very, very impressed with how he's played, his comfort in that offense and the fact that it doesn't seem like it's too big.

And then he's out there panicking where I've seen quarterbacks that have played a lot more football that seem to be more in that state this year than he does. Kurt Warner, always a treat to have you on. Good luck to our Owls this weekend. Let's get a big W up against Miami. All right. That would be awesome, Zach.

But good to talk to you and hope we'll see you out in Philly. Facts are facts like how contributing to employees financial security makes them want to work harder for their company. In fact, according to a twenty twenty three study by principle, eighty seven percent of employers say that better employee financial security means employees are more engaged and productive at work. The fact of the matter is that employees want to feel financially secure in their future. So consider this principle helps you invest in your employees by providing customized benefits and retirement plans to help keep your employees more engaged and productive. When you take care of your team, they take care of business. That's a fact. Learn how principle can help you find the right benefits and retirement plan for your team at principal dot com slash benefits, products and services offered by member companies of the principal financial group, Des Moines, Iowa.

For important information, visit principal dot com slash disclosures. Imagine you're looking at a balancing scale with everything you do for other people on one side and everything you do for yourself on the other side. If it isn't balanced, maybe it's time to spend a little more time on you. And therapy is a great place to start. Better Health connects you with a licensed therapist online who can help you find that balance and stick to it. Visit better help dot com slash positive to get 10 percent off your first month.

That's better HELP dot com slash positive. I'm here to tell you about Pom Pom at home where comfort meets elegance. Pom Pom at home is offering 20 percent off site wide for a limited time. See why so many of the top designers use Pom Pom's luxury easy care bedding.

They have created a timeless, beautiful coastal living look that incorporates subtle tones and natural fibers offering a unique touch. Create your dream bed now. Get 20 percent off sheets, duvets, throws and more right now at pom pom at home dot com. Easy to use, easy to love luxury bedding.

Just enter code pom pom at checkout. No one wants to get sidelined by covid-19, including me. I've got my work, my family.

I want to be able to keep my plans. I'm getting this season's covid-19 shot. It helps protect against covid-19, which can cause severe illness and hospitalization.

Learn about eligibility and schedule your covid-19 shot on the CDC site vaccines dot gov. Sponsored by Pfizer and BioNTech. You're listening to the Zach Gelb show with eBay guaranteed fit. You're the MVP because when you see the green check, you'll know that part fits your vehicle.

eBay Motors dot com. Let's ride. Eligible items only.

Exclusions apply. 49er stud running back Christian McCaffrey had another impressive all-around game rushing for 85 yards in a touchdown mode. Notching 34 receiving yards in San Francisco's 30-12 win over the Giants on Thursday night. It was the 12th straight game run CMC has recorded a TD matching Jerry Rice's 49ers franchise record.

Alrighty, let's get to it. One thought in every NFL game for this upcoming weekend. Coming off of the 49ers taking care of the Giants open up week 3, 30-12.

I start with the Titans and the Browns. I want to see what Deshaun Watson does. You just heard Kurt Warner with us. He's concerned with what he's seeing from Deshaun Watson and also Russell Wilson. Deshaun Watson, the first two games of the season, has lost. People said week 1, oh bad weather. Then week 2, they had two touchdowns. Pretty much up against that Browns quarterback and just kind of the play with the Steelers defense.

Where TJ Watt scooped up the Alex Highsmith who joined us earlier. Fump forced fumble and then you had the pick 6 to start the game with Alex Highsmith as well. So I want to see up against a gritty football team if Deshaun Watson has anything left in the tank here in week 3. I want to see what the Titans are as a team. Lose an ugly game week 1 of the Saints.

Come back at home winning game. Most people don't think you're going to win against the Chargers. I don't think the Titans are going to be very good and be a contender in the AFC South this season. But again, you just beat one team you thought was going to be a playoff team in LA. Can you now foul that up with a team right now in the Browns?

Like you said, you lose Nick Chubb and now you're going against a quarterback who looks lost. Let's go Falcons and Lions. The Lions, I want to see if they can go get a convincing win this week. I think the Falcons have a ton of talent. Falcons are my pick to win the NFC South. But the Lions win week 1. Some people like Mike Tarica go up and put an asterisk on it because there was no Travis Kelce.

There was no Chris Jones in week 2. They're only up by 7 at halftime but it's 14 to 7. Then the game goes into overtime after making a little bit of a comeback and you lose in overtime. I want to see how real week 1 was. They're a more talented and better football team than the Falcons. But I truly don't know which way this game goes. The Lions are a 3 point favorite year at home. Give your home fans something to smile about and go win this game by 10 points or more. Against a Falcons team that didn't wake up last week until the 4th quarter up against the Packers.

I'm picking up right where you left off. I want to see this Falcons offense. Can you have more consistency? We've talked all offseason about the great weapons they have. But in the first game, I mean, put 24 points up against the Panthers. Okay, good defense.

Fine. But week 2, like you said, kind of clunky performance until you got to the 4th quarter. And you're scoring all 3 drives. But can we get some more consistency against defense in Detroit that, especially last week, was shredded by Geno Smith? Let's go Saints and Packers. The Saints are 2-0.

But they haven't really been all that impressive. The game against the Panthers was sloppy. In week 1, give credit to Derek Carr late. Makes the big throw up against Tennessee.

But I've not been all that impressed with Derek Carr. Sure, it's back-to-back weeks to start off the year where he makes a big throw late. But I want to see the Saints play a more crisp game offensively against a Packers defense that has some talent. They've had some consistency issues with the Green Bay Packers. But I want to see if the Saints can give a full 60-minute effort on offense. How does Jordan Love respond?

He's not a rookie, but I'm treating this year like a rookie. After fourth quarter, he gets shut out and you're not able to blow in part a 12-point lead on the road. How do you respond after that lackluster final quarter here at home against the Saints? Broncos and Dolphins. So, the Dolphins in week 1, high-scoring game, back and forth with the Chargers.

They pull it out. Week 2, I still think the Dolphins are one of the better teams in the NFL, but I wasn't impressed with them up against the Patriots. And this is coming from a Patriot fan. The Dolphins are a phenomenal football team, but I thought they allowed the Patriots to hang around and they were begging them to go tie the game. And the Patriots don't have the talent to do that. I want to see from the Dolphins against an inferior football team in the Denver Broncos, where, yes, the Broncos have a good secondary, but their defense has not been good through the first two weeks of the season. Just go ask Rex Ryan on ESPN this whole week, where he wanted a defensive coordinating job. And you look at this Dolphins team. We'll see if Watto plays.

I saw he returned to practice towards the end of the week today. But I want to see the Dolphins just go blow out the Broncos. This Broncos team stinks. They're no good. They're not going anywhere. It's a 1 p.m. Eastern Time kick. They're going down to Florida. We'll see what the weather looks like. But this Dolphins team has all the talent in the world to blow out the Broncos, and I want to see them have a convincing victory this week.

I put the ball in the tee here for you. I can't believe I'm going to say this. I backed you in a corner just as we're going to play. All I want to see from week three is not even a win. All I want to see from the Broncos is a non-Nathaniel Hackett-like coach team.

Through two weeks? I'm not kidding. I can't tell the difference between this year's Broncos team and last year's Broncos team. Can you see a true, real difference, whether it's offensive output, whether it's getting the play call in on time, whether it's consistency, whether it's winning? I see one difference.

The coach, afterwards, is not afraid to go after the players a little bit. That's about it. It's the only difference. I mean, he's not calling a timeout and kicking an 89-yard field goal at the end of the game to try to win, so that's an improvement.

But otherwise, penalties are a problem, too. I also see one more difference with this team. Last year, your prediction was they were going to win the Super Bowl. This year, your prediction was they were just going to the playoffs. They're stuck.

Blow with the bar! They just looked just as bad. Now, we asked Kurt Warner, in this hour, about his confidence in terms of Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson getting back to great form throughout the season. He said he's very concerned. How concerned are you with Russell Wilson? Out of 10, I will say right now a 5. Only a 50-50 here? I don't think his turnout is going to be overnight. Now, I thought he'd progress a little bit more so far this part.

Get an older buddy. But I think it's going to take a little time with the Peyton system to go, but again, I thought it would be better by this point in the season. Chargers-Vikings, here's what I'm looking for. I hate ties. There's nothing more in the world that drives me crazier in the sports world than watching a football game, going to the dopey 10-minute overtime, and then it ends in a tie. With the way that both these teams play and how infuriating it is with both of these teams and how they get so close but yet so far, I'm actually rooting for a tie this weekend. I want to see the Chargers and Vikings be 27-27 and it ends in a tie.

I want to see the loser in this game accept a reality and blow it up. If the Vikings lose in your 0-3, trade Kirk Cousins. If the Chargers lose in their 0-3, fire Brandon Staley. Make Kellen Moore your head coach for the next 14 games. Give him a tryout and then go into your coaching search in the offseason, but I don't see how the loser of this game, how you can come out of here and still keep things running the same as they've been. Imagine if you go, and Brandon Staley stinks, but imagine going from Brandon Staley to Kellen Moore.

That really doesn't do anything for him. I'm not saying he's good. The season's over anyway. Give him a tryout just so you're not going to the offseason of, I wonder, I guess we can see, you know, interview him.

You'll have a big sample size of this guy can coach or not. And you know what's going to determine this game? Defense. And both these defenses stink. The Vikings last year were 31st and the Chargers, first two games of the season. If you would have told me that the Chargers would have put up 34 points and 24 points in the first two games, you would have thought they at least have one victory.

But they have none. And the season's on the line here in week three. Alrighty, let's keep it moving. Patriots and Jets. I got to be careful how I say this because I don't want to see it happen.

But I am curious. That's the way that I'll see it. What Zach Wilson does. And you remember last year, that's what started the team pulling the plug on Zach Wilson because he took no accountability when that offense was horrific. Can Zach Wilson have a redemption moment up against the Pats where they haven't beat the Patriots in the last 14 tries or whatever it is? I was actually at the last time the Jets beat the Patriots. But Zach Wilson, he's on the 18th hole now.

If you want to have a future, you better go birdie this hole and make people want to see you the next week and go play another round. Because if not, and let's say the Vikings lose, that Kirk Cousins stuff is going to be all over the place. I want to see how the Patriots come out in this game.

0-2 for the first time since 2001. Moral victory team, I don't like it. They have dominated the Jets.

They own the Jets. And now with no Aaron Rodgers, there's no excuse for you to lose this game. I think things unravel a little bit for Bill if you go into Meadowlands, MetLife, and allow Zach Wilson to win this game. Bills and commanders.

It is the approach. Last week, the Bills finally did something that I've been bitching about for years when they all say, oh, Josh Allen has to protect the football better. They said, Josh, only run the ball three times.

James Cook hears 17 carries and he put up over 100 yards. I want to see if that approach is going to ring true for the second week in a row and maybe they figure out how to actually play football and help out their quarterback and not ask them to do 10,000 things. Or if this game gets a little bit tight, which this game could be a very good game against a commander's team that's 2-0 and they have a solid defense and their offense looks like it's competent so far under our enemy. Do they just go back and panic and revert to things that have cost them in the past?

I want to see if the commanders are legit. Comeback win over the Cardinals week one, comeback win over the Broncos at week two. Now the Bills come to town, you're 2-0.

How do you play against still what is a very talented roster and still bare minimum as a playoff team? The Jaguars up against the Texans. The Jaguars in week one, sloppy, they come from behind, they beat the Colts. Week two can make a big statement against the Chiefs. The Chiefs didn't even have a good offensive performance and the Jaguars only scored nine points and never got in the end zone.

It was three field goals by Brandon McManus. I want to see if the Texans could show some life here under a new coach, new quarterback, new star defensive player and can you make this a one score game in the fourth quarter with about five minutes to go? Because the Jaguars, and I was high on the Jaguars before the year, they have not stepped up to the plate and delivered yet. And I wonder if the Jaguars kind of go, okay we know we're going to win this game regardless. Do they kind of sleepwalk through the first three quarters? See this has to be the cleanest game for Jacksonville so far. You mentioned the sleepwalking and the sloppiness against the Colts in week number one. I think the Chiefs defense is legit so I mean look you still want to score more than three field goals but I don't think it's like oh wow we scored three field goals on a Chiefs defense. I think it's better than maybe they got credit for historically but if you're Jacksonville, offensively especially, you better come out rolling and you better flatten this team in the first quarter. Colts and Ravens, can Gardner Minshew do something stupid?

And what I mean by that like impressive stupid, not actually like dumb stupid. He's going to get the starter Anthony Richardson out with the concussion from last week. I feel as if Gardner Minshew always does some Minshew mania, something magical. Can it happen this week up against the Ravens? Ravens are going to more of an air raid we'll say quote unquote for NFL standards, offense or the throw in it more.

It's going to be a raining game in Baltimore. Can you run the ball to win? Banged up O-line, banged up running back game, running back room. You still got to run the ball to win. Colts have a good D-line.

Can you run to win in the rain? Panthers and Seahawks. The Seahawks don't have an offensive line this week.

They also didn't have an offensive line last week. I think Jason Peters is going to play. He's good to be like in and out of the lineup like seven times in a game going down with an injury, going on the field, going to locker room and then coming back onto the field.

He's 40 or 41. I want to see the decision making here of Geno Smith and how quickly Geno Smith gets the ball out of his hand against a Panthers defense that has some pass rushers led by Brian Burns. The Panthers, they stink.

They're a bad football team but they have an okay defense. I want to see if Geno Smith makes a good, quick, timely decisions throughout this game against a team that they should annihilate at the 12th man. Bryce Young has not been good so far in two weeks. Small sample size but I want to see in this game with him not playing and now Andy Dalton starting. How much is him? How much is the talent around him? It's been bad.

It's a lot to go blame wise. I know he's a veteran quarterback. Dalton is so he'll be able to read the field and probably get the ball out faster than Bryce Young but truly if Andy Dalton is getting crushed back there and no one is catching the ball, I think maybe this in a way could take down some heat of Bryce Young if Dalton just looks like a disaster. Bears, Chiefs, I'm all for Bears chaos this week. This week has been horrible. I don't know what happened with the defensive coordinator. Justin Fields throws the coaching staff under the bus. What happened today with all the equipment that was stolen too? Thursday morning, their lawnmowers got stolen.

$100,000 worth. Well, here's what I want to see. I do not like the disingenuous hug that was between Luke Getze and Justin Fields. I want to see the Chiefs win 60 to nothing and Justin Fields and Luke are getting into it over the sideline and their true colors do show because how they tried to put all the toothpaste back in the tube this week I thought was laughable. Justin Fields says he's going to play, think less and just say F it. I'm going to play on instincts. I want to see what that looks like. I don't think that's sustainable. I don't think it's realistic. But if that's truly his game plan for this week against again, where I think he's a good Chiefs defense.

I want to see just what that looks like and how bad that probably implodes. Cowboys Cardinals. The Cardinals for the first two weeks have been scrappy. They almost beat the commanders. They were up big against the Giants.

Then they lost the game. I don't think the Cardinals are going to be able to be scrappy this week up against Dallas, but I want to see if they can for a third week in a row with a roster that does not have a lot of talent. I'm not spoiling our next segment, but this is more of a little bit of a compliment to the Cardinals. Cowboys are 12 and a half point favorites.

On paper, that should be an easy cover. I'm staying away from this game because in part, I do think that the scrappiness continues. I think this is a classic overlook spot for the Cowboys after just crushing their first two opponents. You can easily light up on the road here against a team that we felt was going to be the worst in the league. I think this will be a closer game than we think going into the fourth quarter. Steelers and Raiders.

What do these offenses look like? Steelers have been lethargic through the first two games of the season on offense. The Raiders, good showing week one outside of the first drive. Up against the Buffalo Bills with the Devante Adams touchdown.

They were putrid last week in Buffalo. What is Kenny Pickett? What is Jimmy Garoppolo? What is Nanji Harris? What is Josh Jacobs?

What is Devante Adams? What are George Pickens going to be able to do this weekend? This is a Kenny Pickett game. You got to bounce back. Not play great at over 300 yards. Play better than you did last week.

It shouldn't be hard to do, but he was brutal. Eagles and Buccaneers. So I don't want to directly make this comparison, but I remember in 2001 when people were trying to figure out how good are the Patriots with Tom Brady after replacing Drew Bledsoe. They played the Rams and they lost the game, but it was close.

And people were like, oh, that's kind of a win for them. I want to see how good the Buccaneers are up against one of the better teams in football, one of the better teams of the NFC in the Philadelphia Eagles. If this is a touchdown or less game with the Bucks having the ball with about three or four minutes to go, regardless of how it ends, I think it's a win for Tampa Bay and shows you that Tampa Bay has something this year. I'm watching the Eagles play calling new offense, new coordinators on both sides of the ball, but the offense has been clunky and they've not got into a rhythm even when they're scoring. It does feel like they're still forcing things and not really on track.

I want to see now 10 days off, I guess really 11 days off from Thursday Night Football now to Monday Night Football. Can you make some adjustments and get some flow to this offense? Finally, Rams, Bengals, assuming Joe Burrow plays, can Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase get going? They have not been in the end zone through the first two weeks of the season with Burrow throwing the ball to Ja'Marr Chase and knowing how great that connection is going back to their days together at LSU. Go Tigers! Can Lou Anaromo right now slow down what is the hottest sensation in the NFL?

Puka Nakua! Puka Nakua, uncoverable guy, basically Cooper Cup 2.0, it's a lot of McVabe play calling which is great and if that continues, Cincinnati could be in trouble. Alrighty, we'll take a break, we'll come on back with picks.

When you need to know what's happening, it's time to get hit. In the Huddle. Nobody's picking the Colts to win the Super Bowl, so let's just go learn, right? Well, this was always going to happen.

Jim Irsay's calling all the shots there and the hunky-tonk man didn't draft this kid where they drafted this kid to have him look great in practice and look awesome running the scout team, you know what I mean? But yeah, let's play this Minshew Cat or whatever on Sunday. No way!

Listen and subscribe to In the Huddle, available on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. Well, well, well, shopping for a car? Yep, Carvana made financing a car as smooth as can be.

Oh yeah? I got pre-qualified instantly and had real terms personalized just for me. Doesn't get much smoother than that. Well, I got to browse thousands of car options on Carvana, all within my budget. Doesn't get much smoother than that. It does. I actually wanted a car that seemed out of my range, but I was able to add a cosigner and found my dream car. It doesn't get much- Oh, it gets smoother. It's getting delivered tomorrow.

Visit Carvana.com or download the app to get pre-qualified today. You're listening to the Zach Gelb Show. Alrighty, time for NFL picks. Hickey could thank Sean McVay for kicking the field goal last week, because that gave me a push. Hickey had a good week last week, going 2-1. I was 0-2-1, so on the year right now, what are we? You are 2-3-1. I am 3-3.

So look at that. Hickey after an eh week one, now setting the pace for potentially the rest of the season. So I'll let you go first. You won last week. Showcase game for the Washington commanders at home, getting almost a touchdown.

Six points against the Bills. I'll take Washington plus six. Okay. I will start things off. And remember, you have to do one underdog each and every week.

You can do more than one, but at least one. I'm going to go here with the guy that we had on earlier, Alex Highsmith. His Steelers are a dog this week. At the Raiders, plus two and a half, Steelers have the better defense. The offense, it's up in the air, but I think that defense is going to have another monster week. And the Steelers, plus the two and a half, and they win the game outright. I like the Steelers to get the two and one.

They call me Mr. Seauk for a reason. I love Pete Caro. I love Geno Smith.

I've been a big defender of what they're doing up there in the Pacific Northwest. You're taking on right now a Panthers team that is banged up, that has no quarterback. And Bryce Young out for the game now. Andy Dalton coming in, and the Seahawks are favored by five and a half.

Love the nickname Red Rifle. Don't think it's going to equate to any score touchdowns. Seahawks minus five and a half at home. Lock it up.

Andy, Andy, Andy. You should not be allowed to bet, by the way. The Seattle Seahawks.

Why not? I'm Mr. Seattle. No one trashes the Seahawks more than you. Oh, come on. There has to be someone out there.

And I love Washington. All right, maybe Pat Boyle, who thought last year Pete Caro was going to drop dead on the sidelines. He said that on the air because of all the stress from losing Russell Wilson. So there you go.

How did that work out? I'm not wishing death upon anybody, especially the Seahawks head coach. I was mortified when he said that. I was on TV, on CBS Sports Network, when Maggie and Prowell were still on TV. And I was filling in, and he said that, and I was like, oh my God, this is on live television. That idiot just said that. And then I shut off his mic and never went back to him for the rest of the show. But I love Pat Boyle. Cowboys and Cardinals.

Hickey threw a little carrot out there earlier. I think this game could be a little bit closer, but you didn't have the Cajones, and you're going to stay away from it. And you think the Cardinals are going to be gritty three weeks in a row?

Nonsense, nonsense, nonsense. Cowboys win big, 40 to 10 this weekend. Give me the Cowboys laying the 12 and a half. Yeah, the drama of Dallas choking Cowboys. Wow, a combo really of their first two games, huh? 40 points they scored against the Giants, and the 10 points they allowed against the Jets.

40, okay, wow. Look at me. Look at Josh Dobbs.

Look at me. Josh Dobbs and Zach Wilson, one in the same. Finally, I'm going to a division I know very well. The AFC South. Jaguars have not looked great so far through the first two weeks. This is where things come to fruition.

This is where the track or the wheels get back on the track. At home against the Texans. Texans, O-line, horrific, banged up.

Secondary, banged up. Minus eight at home. I'll take Jacksonville to lay the wood. Not only with the number, but also on the Texans. So you go Jags minus eight, and what were your other two picks again?

Seahawks minus five and a half. Commanders plus six. Alrighty.

I will just jot this down so I can keep track of this. Commanders plus six yet? Commanders plus six.

My final pick here. I'm already the Cowboys laying the 12 and a half, the Steelers plus the two and a half. The Miami Dolphins are going up against the Denver Broncos. The Broncos defense has not been good through the first two weeks of the season. The offense, I can't trust it.

I think to a tongue goodbye, Loa and Tyreek Hill got it going on. Rahim Mostert had the big run last week. We'll see if Jalen Waddle does play. I kind of feel like as this is progressing throughout the week, he is going to play. Miami has too much offense. The Broncos don't have enough. I will take the Dolphins to win the game and win it by at least a touchdown. Give me the Dolphins minus six and a half.

So those are the picks for week three. Once again, I go Dolphins laying the six and a half. Cowboys laying the 12 and a half. Steelers plus the two and a half. Hickey goes with the Jags laying the eight. The Seahawks minus five and a half.

And the commanders plus the six points. Alrighty, that is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Those are our week three picks. Big weekend upcoming tomorrow in college football. The college games are just better than the NFL games on paper this weekend. Of course, get started tomorrow Florida State and Clemson.

You have Colorado and Oregon, UCLA, Utah, Ole Miss, Alabama. We'll see if Alabama can get back to being Alabama on Saturday, 3.30 p.m. Eastern. That kick is on CBS.

Did I see this right? Is game day going to Arkansas, LSU? Where is game day going this weekend? No, Notre Dame. Oh, they're Notre Dame?

Oh, that's where McAfee. What is, oh, it was Herb Street and Fowler are doing Arkansas, LSU? Yeah, that's the seven o'clock ESPN game. Why? Why are they sending that crew there for Arkansas, LSU?

Well, what else they got? I mean, outside of sending them to the noon game, but they're going to be at game day, so you can't have Herbie be in South Bend and then at 12 o'clock magically be in Clemson. Colorado, Oregon, 3.30 p.m. I think it's kind of too close. I don't think Herb Street can make it to Oregon in three hours. Eh, you're probably right on that. They should have made that like a seven o'clock kick. So, yeah, you're right. I saw McAfee was out there today at South Bend, so game day is going to be there.

I heard Herb Street and Fowler are doing it. D and CBS and even Fox. Three big games at night. LSU could go back to the SC championship game. Arkansas was coming off that loss to BYU.

I'm not in love. Old rivalry, but I mean. We're talking about 2023.

I don't need to hear about the pass. Oregon State, Washington State, can't wait for it. I think Oregon State's defense is going to impress a lot of people. You have Ohio State, Notre Dame. Come on, Notre Dame.

Get the job done so we can be chanting OHNO coming up on Monday or Tuesday. Iowa, Penn State. And I'm curious what kind of game it is between UNC and Pittsburgh. You know, Pitt is one and two. They just lost to Cincinnati and West Virginia. And you take a glance at this UNC team. They're 3-0 with Drake May.

I'm just curious to see what type of game that is. Wouldn't that be like the classic ACC pick coming off a loss? UNC is undefeated.

And then Pitt does the rest of the ACC teams a favor with UNC going down early in the season. Alrighty, I will not be here on Monday because of the Jewish holiday. I will be back on Tuesday. Catch me on Sunday, though, for eight hours of ION football starting at noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Great show today. We out. Bye-bye. Have a great weekend, everybody.