Bills Can't Be Trusted, Ravens Can Be (Hour 1)

Here's your host, Zach Gelb. Live from the play show, yet not overly ostentatious, studios of CBS Sports Radio here in beautiful New York City, sitting on top of the 10th floor of 345 Hudson Street. Welcome on in to a Monday edition of the Zach Gelb show across all of our great locals, CBS Sports Radio affiliates, Sirius XM, Channel 158, the free Odyssey app, and of course streaming on YouTube, 855212 for CBS, jump on it, 855212, 4227.

You can always interact with me on the good old cesspool of Twitter, on Instagram, I'm always straight flexing, at Zach Gelb, that's Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B. Got Michael Samter and Pat Boyle rocking and rolling with me as we take you all the way up until 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific. Okay, let's start with two enormous storylines from week seven in the NFL that we just saw yesterday on Sunday. The Buffalo Bills can no longer be trusted, and the Baltimore Ravens have now entered into the Zach Gelb show circle of trust. Let's start with the Buffalo Bills, that is an embarrassing performance yesterday by Buffalo, and you go into New England, and I don't want to hear New England right with their history, and it's Gillette Stadium, and it's a divisional game, that's a bunch of bullcrap, that's what it is, if we're just being honest. The Patriots are not a good team, they are a bad football team this year, and the Buffalo Bills continuously are the most frustrating and inconsistent team in the NFL this season, and when you watch the Buffalo Bills, and really the first game of the season set the tone for them, when you go up against the Jets, Aaron Rodgers has the Achilles injury, four plays into the season, and you couldn't win that game, so a game like that sets the tone, but you think, all right, lose one game, first game of the season, that stuff happens, then you have two performances up against the Raiders and the Commanders, whoopty damn do, you get the victories and you blow them out, but Buffalo teased everyone. Buffalo teased everyone in that game a few weeks ago, right in the start of October, where they're going up against the Miami Dolphins, where the Dolphins come in soaring, the Dolphins come in, they're the talk of the league, and Buffalo absolutely dominated them for 60 minutes, where Stephon Diggs had three touchdowns, Josh Allen's looking like an MVP, and that defense was dominant up against the high octane explosive offense of the Miami Dolphins, where they won the game 48 to 20, and ever since then, it looks like that was the apex for the Buffalo Bills season, because after that, you tell me the nonsense, and it's always excuses of Buffalo, oh, they were jet lag in London going up against the Jaguars, stop it. What was the excuse against the Giants when the offense did nothing and the Giants defense isn't good and the Giants almost won that game in Buffalo with Terod Taylor as the quarterback? Oh, Brian Deball, though, knows the Buffalo Bills, so you knew that was going to be a close game. It just keeps on, even when they win, we make excuses for this team, and yesterday, you're up against the Pats, you don't even show up early, you make Mac Jones look like a stud, and we know that's not the case, and this Patriots team, which was lifeless, which was dead, which was a football team that before the game, and I think this was coming from Robert Kraft, they have to call up Ian Rappaport and say, oh yeah, by the way, Bill Belichick got a long-term extension before the season started, so people would stop wondering, is this going to be the final year for Bill Belichick at one Patriot place? And you let that Patriot team that has no offensive line, has no legitimate weapons in the past game, their defense, they're without their two best defensive players, and Christian Gonzalez and Matthew Judon, you allow that football team to beat you, and they were up by 12. The Pats were up by 12, and at least Buffalo came back, but they teased you once again, because once they took the lead, they allowed a big play to Armandre Stevenson, and then the Patriots move it right down the field. They originally had Pop Douglas in the end zone, and it was a bad play design, where the receiver was too small, they go right back to the well, the next play, and Mike Kiseki and Mac Jones.

Think about that image. If you're a Bills fan, this is the image of your season. Mac Jones and Mike Kiseki dancing on your grave in the end zone.

That's pathetic. Mac Jones and Mike Kiseki should be celebrating nothing, absolutely nothing this year, because that football team that I watch each and every week in the Patriots is a bunch of garbage this year, and you allow those two guys, Mike Kiseki and Mac Jones, who've looked horrible against every other team in the NFL, have a party at your expense. Buffalo has to do some serious soul searching. There was a reason going into this season why everyone was out on the Buffalo Bills, and shame on me for thinking, oh maybe all that negativity, maybe all that criticism could actually be positive for Buffalo, because last year everyone was in on the Buffalo Bills. You couldn't find someone that didn't pick the Bills a year ago before the season started to go to the Super Bowl and win it, and they got embarrassed.

They got emasculated. They got destroyed up against the Cincinnati Bengals in the playoffs, and this offseason it was a mess. This offseason there was a bunch of questions, and I thought to myself in a stupid fashion, oh you know maybe all that negativity, maybe all that pressure being against Buffalo, and everyone going elsewhere will wake up the Bills, and when the Bills are backed into a corner, maybe they'll show up, but this team just doesn't have enough pop. This team doesn't have enough sizzle, and I understand losing Matt Milano's big, losing Tredavious White is big, but I've seen teams get decimated with injuries and still find a way to hoist a Lombardi trophy.

The Patriots won a Super Bowl without Rob Gronkowski. The Eagles lost their quarterback, their star offensive lineman, their star linebacker, a special team's ace, and still won a Super Bowl, so don't make it out to be even though they're big losses that this team should look this pathetic up against the Patriots because you don't have Tredavious White, and you don't have Matt Milano, and Buffalo they need a spark. Buffalo needs something quickly, and from now until next week when the trade deadline is quickly approaching, as we're already about to enter week eight of the NFL season after it wraps up tonight, Buffalo needs to do something, and Buffalo needs to do something on the offensive side of the ball. I don't care what the reports say. I don't care what the speculation says. If Buffalo sits on their hands, and if Brandon Bean doesn't do anything from now until the trade deadline, I don't even know if the Bills will make the playoffs.

That's the direction we're trending with. I don't even know if the Bills will make the playoffs, but this team right now, they are dull, they are pedestrian, they are pathetic, and they are inconsistent, and that Miami game, it was like champagne, pop the champagne, praise Buffalo, praise Buffalo, and this team really exhaled. We're in their last three games, they lost to Jacksonville, they lost to the Patriots, and they were lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky to be in a bad football team in the Giants. Brandon Bean, you need to be aggressive. Brandon Bean, you need to save this season, and you better pick up the phone and get a deal done with either the Giants or with either the Tennessee Titans.

You need to. You need to go get Derrick Henry. You need to go get Saquon Barkley, because right now, you're asking Josh Allen to be Superman. You're asking Josh Allen to do everything, and it's really a problem for the Bills, because if you ask Josh Allen to do everything, inevitably a mistake will happen. Inevitably, something will go wrong, and I know they've tried the running back position, they've tried to run the football with James Cook.

He's been too inconsistent. Last year, you had an opportunity, a golden opportunity. Remember, Brandon Bean has Carolina Panthers connections. You could have traded for run CMC Christian McCaffrey. Instead, the 49ers did that, and it's looking great for them.

You can't make the same mistake twice here. You need to give up your draft capital to salvage this Super Bowl window of the Buffalo Bills, because I thought going into this season, the Bills would never be able to do anything to make me get all back in on them in the regular season, because ultimately, it would come down to the postseason, and can they get that monkey off their back? But most of us thought, even questioning Buffalo, they would still make the playoffs. With what I've seen through the first seven weeks, and this team being a four and three team, the playoffs are in a lock. The playoffs are in a given, and I'm really concerned about the Buffalo Bills.

Now the regular season means something. I thought this regular season was going to be meaningless for the Buffalo Bills, but they got to go make a move, and they got to go impress the next few weeks, because you got the Buccaneers on the horizon. You got the Bengals on the horizon. You should be able to take care of business against the Broncos. You play the Jets who already beat you earlier this year. Then you got the Eagles, the Chiefs, the Cowboys, the Chargers, and the Patriots, and the Dolphins, and then we're in January, and the season's over.

That's a tough schedule. The Bills need help. The Bills need help in a big way, and it could come from Derrick Henry or Saquon Barkley, but this team is no longer a team. Even in a year where the NFL is wide open, whenever you latch on to a team in the AFC, they stumble. But even in a year where this is wide open, I can't sit there and tell you anything's going to be different with the Buffalo Bills.

Why should I expect so? They've had good teams the last few years. They've had, at times, elite teams. What I'm seeing this year, it's a poor offensive line. It's an inconsistent run game. Stefan Diggs is too emotional, and you have a quarterback in Josh Allen that you're saying, here you go. We paid you.

Do everything. In a team sport, when you rely on one player to do everything, it doesn't work. And what makes yesterday so bad for Buffalo is the opponent you were going up against. This isn't the Patriots of 20 years. This is the Patriots in a miserable spot with no hope, no optimism, and they looked competent yesterday.

Mac Jones had 130-something passer rating. He threw for 270-something yards, and he moved the ball at ease up and down the field against the Buffalo Bills, who had another blunder. Now on the other side, the Baltimore Ravens, they were a team heading into this season. I didn't think they'd make the playoffs.

I did not believe in the Baltimore Ravens, and it was because they've been a group that have just been derailed by injuries the last two years. What Lamar Jackson did yesterday, up against the talk of the league and the Detroit Lions, is the most impressive thing that I saw in week seven of the NFL season. Because Lamar Jackson and the Ravens sent the message yesterday that they're forced to be reckoned with as long as their quarterback is healthy. That throw that Lamar Jackson made is a video game type of play, where he was running around, extending the play, stops on a dime, right by the right sideline, and fires the ball to Nelson Aguilar for a touchdown.

That was awesome. That was an MVP type of performance yesterday from Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. 21-27, 357 yards through the air, three passing touchdowns, and oh yeah by the way, nine carries to 36 yards and a rushing score. They didn't only beat Detroit, they dominated Detroit. That game was over at halftime when it was 28-0, and everyone in the AFC North, which is the toughest division in football so far, everyone's been sleeping on the Baltimore Ravens, and here they are at 5-2. We know Harbaugh's a good coach, you know they got a good defense, and you know Lamar Jackson is one of the more electrifying and valuable players in the NFL, and Baltimore sent a statement yesterday to the NFL, everyone's going to talk about Detroit, no one's going to talk about us, and we are forced to be reckoned with this year, and I'll go as far to say this, through seven weeks Kansas City's the best team. Kansas City's the best team just looking at the AFC, and I think they're the best team in the NFL right now, but if you want to ask me who is the second best team in the AFC through seven weeks, how can't you go Baltimore? I have to go Baltimore. Dolphins, they haven't beat anyone. You look at the Bills, clearly if you listen to the last 10 minutes, they can't be trusted. The Bengals, let's see what they do coming off this bye week three and three with two tough opponents against the 49ers, and I thought was going to be a tough game up against the Buffalo Bills.

The Chargers forget about it, they suck, and Brandon Staley needs to be fired. Jacksonville, I could believe in Jacksonville, but I think Baltimore is more ready to win now, and it's about one individual because that guy Lamar Jackson, as long as he could stay healthy, he makes plays, he makes explosive plays, and he makes your jaw drop about six or seven times throughout the game. Give me a team that you could trust, give me a team that you're out on after seven weeks of the NFL season, 8-5-5, 2-1-2 for CBS, 8-5-5, 2-1-2, 42-27. I could trust the Baltimore Ravens, I could no longer trust the Buffalo Bills. Take your phone calls on the other side, plus we'll update you some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio in the news brief, off and running, very busy Monday edition of the Zach Gelb Show right here on CBS Sports Radio. This is Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio. I just saw that the NFL announced that the Hard Knocks in-season team this year is actually going to be the Miami Dolphins, where I'll watch that.

Hard Knocks recently I think has turned more into a better product on social media, and when you sit down and when you watch the entire hour episode, it gets a little boring, especially since the teams control all of it. The Jets were fine this year, the Lions two years ago were fine, the Cowboys were boring three years ago, really the last great team on Hard Knocks, and it doesn't always translate to great success on the field, let me be clear, and have that distinction. We're the Cleveland Browns.

When you had Hugh Jackson fighting up against Todd Haley, Bob Wiley with the stretching and the World War messages and kind of lectures, you know Bob Wiley, he texts me about once every other week, and I get these inspirational messages from Bob Wiley and these hilarious memes. He is one of the funniest people I've ever interacted and you had that also contrived fake speech from Jarvis Landry in the wide receiving room just to try to go viral. The Browns were the last team to really make a dent into being an intriguing Hard Knocks team, but the Dolphins are, because Mike McDaniel's a wild card, he invites you into your home, he'll say anything, sometimes you have no clue what the heck he's even trying to say. You have the personality of Tyreek Hill, you have the storyline of Tuatunga Vailoa, and you have a good Dolphins team. You know this is not a crappy team, I know the Dolphins lost last night and they haven't beat anyone of great significance where you go ooh and ahh with the Miami Dolphins, but they put up a ton of points and they're going to be a team that can absolutely win the AFC East, they should win the AFC East this year, and they're an actual force in the AFC. So I will watch Hard Knocks in season with the Miami Dolphins. 855-2124 CBS, 855-212-4227, let's go to Jordan in Calgary. First up on the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio.

Jordan, what's happening? So I think the problem with the Buffalo Bills is partially on coaching, and partially on Josh Allen's inconsistent play. I think the biggest thing is, is like you have a super athletic quarterback, and I think pretty much anyone can agree with that. And there's like been no designed quarterback runs for the guy. I know that it seems like they're trying to make him run less this year, but I also, I don't even know it's necessarily like James Cook has been inconsistent. I think that James Cook has come in and done his job, but I think the problem is the passing game isn't really keeping the Bills on the field. So I think that, I think that they should maybe try and trade for disgruntled Devante Adams. Well, I don't think they'd trade Devante Adams, the Raiders, in season.

And also then you have to worry if Staphon Diggs would be happy about that. But Jordan, I think you make a good point in terms of the Bills don't have an identity on offense, because going into this off season, you heard the quotes from Brandon Bean, they said Josh Allen has to protect himself more and knows how to have to give up on a play, and they wanted to run him less. But once again, like James Cook is a fine option. James Cook is solid, but he's, I don't know if he's ready to be the running back that this team needs where they could say, we'll give the ball to you 20 times a game. He showed that against the commanders and against the Raiders, but with the team that's ready to win now, I need a back that actually has some clout in this league and actually has a track record of a, no doubt about it, lethal running back. And Derrick Henry would be great. He would be great for this team, and you would have no choice but to hand the ball off to Derrick Henry more, because the Bills just don't know what they want to do on offense. And McDermott, his butt should be on the hot seat. Ever since they lost day ball, this offense has gone backwards, but just because you lose a coordinator, it doesn't mean your team should regress this much.

It doesn't. I'm not saying it's not important, but the great players, the great teams, they are used to losing coordinators because teams want to replicate what they have built. And to the Bills credit, people have wanted to replicate in the GM department with Joe Shane and our offensive coordinator department and Brian Dayball, what the Bills have built. But now you got to take this the next step forward.

Instead, they're taking a step backwards. And it's because they have not figured out what they want their offense to look like, because they're telling you, we don't want Josh to do everything. But when push comes to shove, they make Josh do everything. So it's one thing to say, we want to protect Josh more. We want to take the ball out of his hands more. He needs to know when to throw the ball away more. Then go invest in your running game and go get me a solidified back in this league, whether that's Derrick Henry or Saquon Barkley, who will regard this report.

So I would imagine if you give up enough, both Tennessee and also New York would be willing to part ways with their running backs, both in the final years of their deal. Let's update you some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio. We get to a News Brief. After an entire week of getting a lot of love, especially from yours truly, the Detroit Lions face planted. Here is Jared Goff on their blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens. We've been through a whole lot worse than this. This is a tough game. You know, we got our butts kicked, but this group's had a lot of adversity and this is kind of our first taste of getting kicked in the teeth this year.

And yeah, we need to respond the right way and show off whatever it is Wednesday whenever we come back and make sure we're ready to go. Yeah, it was a horrible loss. And you look at their wins this year, they beat Kansas City.

I don't want to sound like Mike Torrico and put an asterisk on it, but it was without Chris Jones. It was without Travis Kelce. You lose to Seattle at home in overtime. You beat Atlanta. You beat Green Bay. You beat Carolina.

Give them credit. They beat Tampa Bay. That's a solid football team. But with everyone stroking you for the entire week and everyone's saying, all righty, here comes the Lions.

Zach Gelb leading the charge on national radio. They already have the division one, first division title since 1993. They haven't won a playoff game since 1991. They're going to win multiple playoff games this year.

You get popped right in the mouth. Now this is a humbling moment for the Lions and it shows you why home field advantage is so important for them because of the little wind. You're outside the dome yesterday and that offense got derailed. But the Lions are still going to win a ton of games.

They are. You have the Raiders. You have the Chargers. Still two games with the Bears, the Packers, the Saints, the Broncos, the Vikings twice. Like their toughest game remaining is against the drama Dallas Chokin' Cowboys. Yeah, this Lions team is still going to win 12-13 games and they have a chance to be the number one seed in the NFC.

And that number one seed for the Lions in the NFC is the most important out of any other teams because it ensures that they're playing their games in their home building inside a dome, which is very important for Jared Goff. Jonathan Allen has been with the commanders for about seven years. All these experiences losing.

Even when they got to the playoffs and they won their division, they were below 500 team. After the commanders only put up a measly seven points yesterday against the Giants, Jonathan Allen, who's a captain star defensive player in this league, clearly voiced his frustration with the team. Does it get frustrating when that?

Yes, it does. I'm tired of this. I'm tired of this bull. It's been seven years of the same. I'm tired of this. What can you do now going forward to get it turned around?

Get our minds right and get ready to play for Philadelphia. So I've interviewed Jonathan Allen before. He's very mild-mannered. He's like a very normal dude.

He doesn't usually show that much emotion publicly. But when you constantly just lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, and you know you're going up against an inferior team in the Giants who are starting to rod Taylor, you can't lose that game. And the offensive line right now for the commanders is the biggest problem and Sam Howell is on pace to be sacked more than any quarterback in the history of the NFL in one season. Let's go to Andy Reid, Taylor Swift in the building, Patrick Mahomes, his wife Brittany Mahomes, and Taylor Swift coming up with that friendship handshake which is pretty damn cool after the Chiefs just kept on scoring against the Chargers and it was national tight ends day yesterday and Travis Kelce put on a big performance. Here's Andy Reid on his star tight tight ends day. Kelce keeps getting better with time. Taylor can stay around all she wants.

That's great. Andy Reid, he's living life. For years he was winning games in Philadelphia but never won the big one, then goes to Kansas City, turned that franchise, turned that organization around, and then gets Patrick Mahomes. And we always wondered if Andy Reid would ever win a Super Bowl. Now it's how many is he going to win? RDS too under his big belt and on national tight ends day, Travis Kelce, 12 receptions, 179 yards, and a touchdown. Everyone stroking you.

Oh geez, that was quick. Let's go to Tuatunga Vailoa on the criticism of the Dolphins after their poor performance on Sunday Night Football. I don't think we listen to the to the outside noise with in regards to how people feel about our team. I think the most important thing is the guys in the locker room sticking together and continuing to go. There's a lot of football to be played, a lot of football.

It's a long season. So we all know the Dolphins are explosive, the Dolphins are a good team, and they have a chance this year to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. But I say this all the time, there's a difference between a good team, a very good team, and a great team. There's few great teams this year in the NFL. The Dolphins have that potential, but it is fair to say, who have you beaten?

Who have you defeated? You beat the Chargers, the Chargers stink. You beat the Patriots, they stink.

Sure you scored 70, that's always impressive, but it was up against the Broncos who were one of the worst defenses in the league. You lose to Buffalo, your first big test. You beat the Giants, you beat the Panthers, both those teams stink.

And then in your biggest test against the Eagles, you lost. So that bills and Eagles performances for the Dolphins makes everyone just be skeptical. And we know they're very good. We know they'll be a playoff team. They'll probably win the AFCs, but can they take it to the next level? And they have a golden opportunity to show that they can take it to the next level in two weeks when the Miami Dolphins go to Germany and do battle up against the Kansas City Chiefs. And that's a game that should have been played in Kansas City, but the NFL are a bunch of selfish pigs and they're like, oh, we got to expand the game. Why would we want Tyreek Hill to make his return to Kansas City and actually appease the fans here in America? But that's Roger Goodell.

He's all about the straight cash homie. Alrighty, Bill Belichick got his 300th win yesterday. So I guess a reporter asked him afterwards on what it means to him for his 300th win.

I'm going to take a guess. This was Bill. You know, I'm not focused on individual accomplishments. It's just a good team win. And it's all about the team.

T E A M. Let's hear from the hoodie. Bill Belichick. Bill, what is your reaction to becoming the third head coach with 300 wins behind Don Shula and George Hallis? I mean, it's great. I'm really more focused on, you know, our team in this year and worry about that later. Thank you.

So easy with Belichick. The thank you threw me off, though. That was actually him showing appreciation like, hey, you know, I know it's cool. So thank you. Well, that's him. I could recognize the voice asking the question. It's Mike Reese is a tremendous reporter. That's like little Mike Reese.

Thank you. I appreciate you, you know, bringing up my accomplishment, but, you know, I'm in character on this podium. I'll never take the individual success. Also, in the midst of a two win season for the Patriots, I don't think you want to be jumping up and down there. If you're Bill Belichick, Joe Shad, who used to cover college football now for like the last decade, has been covering the NFL with the Dolphins. Man, can you whine more?

This is his tweet last night. The touch push is not a legitimate football play. It's not a football was meant to be played.

It's also lame and could cause injuries. Nobody except Eagles fans will miss it once it's banned in the off season. So here's my reaction to Joe Shad. I don't usually like to accuse people just doing things for clicks, but this is Joe Shad knowing that no one's going to read his article after the game because the Dolphins stunk and Miami is a very fair weather fan base. So he needs to now attack the Eagles fan and he knows that he'll get dragged on Twitter or get a bunch of clicks and will drive people to his Twitter page, Instagram page, whatever it is. But come on, if the touch push was this big advantage where it should be outlawed, then every team should be running it.

But when every other team runs it, they don't have success. So here is Nick Sirianni defending the touch push with a lot of these networks. I guess they don't like the words touch push. They've now been calling it the brotherly shove, which I like touch push better.

But here's Nick Sirianni. Shoot a lot of faith in that play because you've seen it, right? You've seen it across the league that people can't do it like we can do it. They can't do it like we can do it.

And so I'm making my plug right there. Like, don't don't ban this play. Like if everyone could do it, everybody would.

Where's the camera? If everybody could do it, everybody would do it. I love that guy. I have never done more of a 180 on a coach than I have with Nick Sirianni.

His first year, he lost me with his flower analogies. And then all the guy does is win. Made the playoffs with Jalen Hurts, that wildcard year where they lose to Tampa Bay.

Last year goes to the Super Bowl. He's really embraced the city of Philadelphia, and you would think he's from Philadelphia. Here's one of the biggest losers in college football, Dabo Sweeny. We know all he's done has won for years, but he's such a sore loser now since things aren't going his way. Already has three losses on the season, and Dabo always puts his foot in his mouth. Like, if the guy would just lose and not speak, we would all leave Dabo Sweeny alone.

But I thought this was just stupid. And, you know, he just doesn't really get it, Dabo Sweeny, when he was asked as a team employee, a psychiatrist. Some coaches have employed sports psychiatrists.

Have you ever done that? Oh, we got him. We got him. He's probably he's probably on suicide watch right now.

Uh, yeah, yeah, we got we got him. He's horrible with his words. Remember when he went after NIL and he was like, oh, yeah, we have name imaging like this.

We're built off God's name imaging like this, which, you know, he can't stand NIL. And I'm sure he can't even stand the team psychiatrist and the thought about having a team psychiatrist. And then he goes out there and makes a suicide reference like this guy is such low class. He's so arrogant. And usually his arrogance was hidden by winning.

But now he doesn't know how to handle criticism. And look at the game. They had that game one up against Miami, and they choked it up. And remember his comments last week? Oh, maybe fans to jump off our bandwagon. We need to lose more to weed out the fans on the Clemson bandwagon. This guy's insufferable. And he'll never build Clemson back up because the guy doesn't know how to adapt with college football in the year of 2023. And finally, here is Greg Popovich trying to show some personality actually on Steve Kerr saying he's rejuvenated now with Victor when Binyama being able to get coached by the great Greg Popovich. What was I being rejuvenated from?

Was I was I in a mental institution or was I was I depressed and curled up in my bedroom or something? He knows you better. Steve's an ass. I agree.

I know that they're very friendly and they've known each other for a long time. But pop calling Steve Kerr. And you know what? There is one of the all time great lines and one of the all time great pop moments. And quite frankly, what I think agitated pop there is he knows Steve Kerr was right because pop kind of the last three, four years. I don't want to say he was irrelevant, but no one was talking about him outside of when is pop going to retire?

And now people expect that a pop because you have this alien player, this one on one player and Victor one Binyama. That's a news brief for the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We'll take a break. Love our three college football takes next. If you're a Penn State fan, we're going to be talking about you when we return.

And also USC just choking it up once again in a big spot. Here's your host, Zach Gelb. It's time to ask the pros where you the listener gets to ask us a question brought to you by O'Reilly Auto Parts. Simply tweet your question at CBS Sports Radio at Zach Gelb using the hashtag ask the pros. Be listening later in the show when we might answer your question. Think O'Reilly Auto Parts for your car care needs.

Get guaranteed low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts. Let's get to three college football takes right now. And let's not even save the best for last. Let's dance on the grave of the Penn State Nittany Lions, who once again in a big spot. James Franklin shows why he is a fraudulent football coach. He is a tremendous a tremendous recruiter, but an in-game coach. He is miserable.

He knows how to get the Maserati in the driveway, but he always leaves you with no gas left in the tank. And that's what Penn State has become. Penn State has become an empty program where they're all sizzle.

They're all about their tradition, their passionate fan base. But when you judge them for what they do on the field, they don't win the big games. And James Franklin is now 3 and 16 against top 10 teams in his career as the head football coach of the Nittany Lions. And he's 0 and 10 on the road against top 10 teams.

This guy just doesn't get the job done when it matters. And even when they won a big 10 championship, it was empty. They didn't even get to the college football playoff. Whoopty damn do, last year they won a Rose Bowl against Utah.

You lost to Michigan and you lost to Ohio State. And the same damn thing is happening again where this is going to be a team at the end of the year that they're going to look like they're this great team. They're going to look like they're this dominant team, but in their big games they already lost one to Ohio State. And guess who's coming to town in a few weeks? It's the Michigan Wolverines where Jim Harbaugh won't even need to scout you legally or not for this game.

You're going to have JJ McCarthy, Blake Corum, Donovan Edwards, Roman Wilson, and Colston Loveland, and they're going to dominate you at Happy Valley. Penn State fans love to say we are. Start saying we are never ready for the big moment because that's what Penn State has become. They know how to get this team to look like a good team, but every time they're asked to be a good team up against great teams, they fail over and over and over again.

And this guy, James Franklin, he thinks he's elite. He thinks his program is elite, but they're the farthest thing from elite and all these great Penn State fans, they drink the Kool-Aid that this guy's trying to deliver you and you fall for it every single year. Oh, Drew Allen's going to be great. Oh, this team is great. And up against Ohio State, who didn't even play their best brand of football, you couldn't win the game. Your defense was great. Your offense was pathetic. Here is James Franklin after the game. And this guy, whenever he loses, he always says something outlandish.

This one just had me rolling over in tears and tears of laughter. Here's Coach Franklin. I want to give Ohio State a ton of credit.

I'm not sure. We'll watch the tape. I'm not sure if we didn't just watch two of the best teams in college football. Obviously, specifically on the defensive side of the ball.

Yeah, maybe on the defensive side of the ball, you're right, but not offensively. And Coach, this is a three-phase game. Your offense didn't convert a third down until late in the game. You guys were like 0-14, 0-15 at one point. So you can't tell me, oh yeah, we had this great team. Oh, we may have just watched the two best teams in college football.

What? Your offense won't beat anyone of significance if this continues and you have that offensive performance up against Michigan, pick the score even with your great defense. They'll beat you 45 to like 10. Give me a break, James Franklin. Now let's get to Alabama. I was not a believer in Alabama all year, and after week two of Texas, I go, okay, Alabama loses. Alabama with their tough schedule is going to lose one more game and they'll be out of this. Now with the Brock Bowers injury and it being uncertain, if and when Brock Bowers is going to come back, Alabama showed yesterday or on Saturday that they're alive. Now they still may get another loss and there's never been a two-loss team to make the college football playoff, but to be down to Tennessee 20 to 7 at halftime and to make it up all in the third quarter with explosive play after explosive play after explosive play and be up 24 to 20 entering the fourth quarter was damn impressive.

It really was. And for the first time this season, Alabama actually impressed me on the offensive side of the ball against a good Tennessee team. We know their defense is dominant in Alabama, but that offense made a big statement in Alabama. Just when you thought they were dead, they popped right back up where it looked like they were on life support and were about to pull the plug on the Alabama season with it being 20 to 7 at halftime and they made a dominant statement and said, we're not dead yet in the year of 2023.

And finally, I've said this for years, but now it's starting to be proven true. Lincoln Riley is an overrated coach. That doesn't mean he's horrible. That doesn't mean he's a miserable head football coach.

He's a very, very, very good head football coach. But in big moments, he doesn't he doesn't show up with Heisman Trophy winners, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray and a Heisman Trophy finalist in Jalen Hurts, 0-3 in the college football playoff. He scurries off to USC last year with the Heisman Trophy winner, lost to Utah twice, couldn't win the Pac-12 championship. And this year with Caleb Williams, who's going to be the number one overall pick, they got blown out with no offensive performance up against Notre Dame and up against another backup quarterback, cam rising out for the year with Utah.

You can't beat Utah. And he's arrogant Lincoln Riley. He trusts Alex Grinch too much, defensive coordinator that burns him over and over again. Lincoln Riley can compile wins, but he doesn't get the big wins. And to not get to a college football playoff with Caleb Williams is embarrassing.

And also, it's very disappointing and it puts him in a conversation. Either USC or LSU are the two most disappointing teams in college football because both had national championship aspirations and we're not even in November yet. And both of those teams won't sniff the CFP. Here is Lincoln Riley after the game talking about expectations that are created, but not by himself in his own program. We don't come in every single week talking about winning a national championship going to playoffs.

And I don't know where that narrative starts. You come in every single week trying to fight your tail off to go play well and win a ball game. We've won a hell of a lot more here than we've lost. Are we satisfied at all sitting here at six and two?

Of course we're not. Well, coach, where does the narrative start? July, when you got the job of 2022 and you did an interview before the start of your first season with Bill Plashke, you said the expectation is to win the championship.

We didn't come here to play for a second. That's a coach that doesn't want to take it on the chin after losing a game and knowing that the rest of the year he's coaching for really nothing because he knows what the standard is. He knows what he has to deliver. And that's a national championship. And with the best player in college football for the last two seasons, he hasn't even gotten an invite to the dance because his teams haven't been good enough. And that's a reflection of a coach that once again, like Franklin, good. You get talent. But when the game is on the line up against the elite teams, they don't get the job done.