Justin Fields Done With Bears (Hour 3)

Ever notice how feline family members take a backseat to dogs by most pet insurance companies?

Yeah, that chafes me. Cats have feelings too, and it's just wrong. But, hold your horses.

I got some good news here. felikscatinsurance.com is doing something about it. They call it whisker-to-tail protection. Because, look, our cats don't actually have nine lives, and accidents and things can happen anytime. Felix Cat Insurance has plan options for cats of all ages, and it covers accidents, illnesses, emergency care, and more.

Best part? Plans start at under $1 per day. Customizable coverage exclusively for felines.

felikscatinsurance.com. No dogs allowed. Hold up. This ain't over yet. Roll that legal stuff. Insurance is underwritten by Independence American Insurance Company and produced by Independence Pet Group. Pre-existing conditions are not covered.

For all terms and limitations, visit felikscatinsurance.com slash terms. Ew, gotta get rid of this old Backstreet Boys t-shirt. Tell me why. Because it stinks, boys. Tell me why. I've washed it so many times, but the odor won't come out. Tell me why. No, you tell me why I can't get rid of this odor.

Have you tried down here? Rinse and refresh. It doesn't just cover up odors. It helps remove them.

Wow, it worked, guys. Yeah. Downey Rinse and Refresh removes more odor in one wash than the leading value detergent in three washes.

Find it wherever you buy laundry products. All righty, rock and roll. Now we're number three of our radio program.

That's right. It is the Zach Gelb Show Coast to Coast on CBS Sports Radio. We do have week 10 of the NFL season that kicks off tonight. And what a doozy of a matchup we have for the Carolina Panthers going up against the Chicago Bears. But even if this Thursday Night Football game isn't something that is going to be one that's going to elicit a bunch of big national storylines. There, of course, is a great weekend of football upcoming. And one of the games that we have a keen eye on and keeping a keen eye on is the Texans at the Bengals. I don't know how many people before the start of the year thought this would be a big game, but it now is with the way that C.J. Shroud's playing.

Now the Bengals are back with Joe Burrow being fully healthy. So let's go out to the guest line and join a guy that's calling the game. He is the legendary CBS Westwood one and Turner sports announcer.

He, of course, is Kevin Harlan. Kevin, always great to hear your voice. How you been? Hey, Zach. Good to be on with you.

Thanks for having me. And you're right. Before the season, we looked at Texans and Bengals.

And what in the world is that? How can that game even possibly elicit any kind of response? But the way the Texans are playing at four and four and certainly the Bengals turn around two good stories going into Sunday in Cincinnati. And we know the last few years the Texans didn't have this good culture.

And now you bring back one of their own in D'Amico Rinds. You get the quarterback it looks like right. And it's wild how quickly in the NFL things could turn around. Well, they've made some nice free agent acquisitions, too.

They've added to the team. They've got some nice young receivers they're bringing along. And if you're drafting the right way and of course, time tells every story and every success or failure for a pick. But if you're drafting the right way, if you have those lean years and they've certainly had some, it usually will catch up and you'll begin to get some get some production. And I think that's exactly what we've seen. You know, the Stroud story is so interesting because it was really between him and Bryce Young as to who would go number one.

And it was kind of a split room. Half would say, you know, go with the Alabama quarterback and half would say go with the Ohio State quarterback. The one thing that kind of piques my interest a little bit is that as great as Ohio State has been, and they have been phenomenal in football, they have never really produced in the modern age a quarterback that has had a big impact on the NFL. And when Stroud a couple weeks ago threw for over 300 yards, it was one of the first, if not the first time an Ohio State quarterback had ever thrown for an NFL 300 yard game. And then he threw for over 400 last week and set yet another milestone. So he seems to be bucking the trend of what Ohio State has brought to the NFL in terms of the quarterback position.

And he's really playing well. On the other hand, Bryce Young, as we know, is struggling at Carolina, some interceptions last week, two pick sixes, and his learning continues under Frank Reich in Charlotte. When you take a look at the Bengals, it feels like they are back and a big reason because of that is their quarterback is healthy.

When you look at Cincinnati, how dangerous of a team do you think they'll be the rest of the way? Well, I think they've got the best receiving core from tip to tail. I mean, all their names are good and solid and all could start on any team in the NFL. Their line has been, you know, a series of plugging somebody in here, signing this free agent there.

They got Orlando Brown from Kansas City as the left tackle. Their line has not missed a single game all season, a single snap. Their defense, they've started the same defense at every position all season long. And so they've got great continuity. It's the basic core of last year's terrific team and what they've been putting together.

But clearly everything revolves around Burrow. And like last summer, when he went through the appendectomy and didn't play any preseason and got off to a real rugged start, this year hurt the calf, strained the calf muscle, did not play any preseason, was a minimal practice participant in the summer, slow start to the season. But just like last year, this year's team has gotten their traction and they're beginning to turn the corner and they've won four straight and they're, you know, at the halfway point of the season. I think they feel good about being in the best division in football, but I think they're going to have a lot to say in the month of December and January when we begin to really nail down those those final spots.

They're as good as advertised and they're every bit of what they've been over the last couple years. Kevin Harlan here with us. I'm glad you brought up the defense because I know what we do. A lot of times it's just talk about the coach, talk about the quarterback. Luanna Rumo doesn't get enough credit for the job he's done the last few years with the Bengals. And I know that the trend is now usually young offensive coordinators to hire. Heck, D'Amico Ryan's a young defensive coordinator, worked out well for the Texans.

I think Anna Rumo should get a head coaching job this offseason. Well, he's paid his dues for sure, Zach. You know, he's a lifer and he's been at this trade a long time. But he was also the same defensive coordinator they had when they were not winning much, when Zach first got there to become the head coach. So he has grown with the team. Now listen, they got Hendrickson as a free agent from the New Orleans Saints a couple years ago.

Hubbard has developed into a terrific pass rusher, the former Buckeye. They've had two solid linebackers and they've gotten young in the secondary after going maybe through a series of big names in the last part of their careers that maybe had lost a step. But now they've got some young dynamic defensive backs.

And really, everything is probably gone pretty much as planned. I think they knew that with Burrow not playing any in the preseason and not participating, more importantly in the practices full bore, that they were going to be, you know, trying to find themselves kind of groping a little bit in the dark for where they were going to be and trying to live up to all the hype. I mean, even more than Buffalo, and perhaps as much if not more than Kansas City, people said the Bengals are the team to watch.

And this was, of course, even with all the great revelry with Rogers in New York with the Jets. So the Bengals have not let up. Their defense has been terrific. Offense is right where they need to be. They're a wonderful team. How concerned are you, Kevin Harlan, just wondering, because we talked about the Bengals who started slow and now are getting strong. The 49ers were as hot as hot could be, and now they've lost three straight. Is there a concern level with the 49ers? You know, I can't, I think they need to get some defensive players healthy. That is always, I think, a key. Trent Williams has been banged up or left tackle. That's always a concern. He is a premier player at that position.

And I think that people have probably read the book from, you know, cover to cover about Brock Purdy. Not that he's predictable, not that he has, you know, reached the level of his progress and his quarterback powers, but I think there's a better feel for his game, and I think they overload some of the position. They've missed some wide receiver help, too, with Samuel. You know, he was with an injury.

So there's a couple things at play here. But the one thing I found about Kyle Shanahan, though, Zach, is I don't know if there's a better coach in the league at adjusting on the fly with what you've got to work with on that Sunday. And he has proven time and time again that even with the depleted lineup, losing starters to injury, and maybe, you know, teams kind of getting a little, you know, tip on how to play some of these better players, in particular the quarterback, who the book was wide open on, and they were still kind of learn about what he was doing.

He always seems to make great adjustments. My feel is the 49ers are just the team we thought they were, perhaps a dry spell right now, clearly with the losses. But I still think they're one of the powers in the NFC.

I would not discount them at all. I think they also are a team that really knows when to shift gears. And they've done it in the past and were now just past the halfway point of the season. And this seems to be when they really thrive, the last part of the season, last half of the season.

I would not take my eyes off of San Francisco. Wrap it up with Kevin Harlan, who joins us right now, the legendary broadcaster, CBS, Westwood One, and Turner Sports. So on Monday, Denver and Buffalo.

I know you do the Monday games on the radio. Buffalo's just been a funky team, and they just look like they're missing something this year. I know that they were everyone's pick last year. It did not go their way, but this has been two of an up and down team. Is their ceiling just being a good team this year, and they don't have a chance to be a great team when it's all said and done?

You know, that's a great question, and I don't know that we're really going to have a definitive answer until we get into December, when we can see if they can iron out some of these problems. But they've not been consistent. They have had the quarterback continue to turn the ball over. I still don't think they're all that happy with the running game. And, you know, when you're kind of in that position where you're always the team to be, you know, we've seen this before now from them. This is, they get the quick start, and then they kind of level off, but they seem to be cooling off more than in the past. And it's kind of hard to figure out what, you know, and a lot of people, this week I've noticed it, have started to talk about their head coach McDermott.

Is he more of a, you know, guy that can get a team to a certain level, but can he then push them to where they need to go? Well, they've come close. We know that. They've come close. But when you go back to that playoff loss last year in Buffalo, when they hosted Cincinnati, I kind of feel like that might be the mark where we can kind of trace to where some of this is going right now.

Whether that was just, you know, same cast, same group coming to camp again. Have they lost that whatever it is that makes a special team a special team? Listen, Kansas City's not playing that well, too, but they're finding a way to win, and the good teams always do. We've not seen the best of the Chiefs, but maybe a handful of quarters, if that much, this year.

I've seen them twice, and they got beat both times. They got beat in Denver, and they got beat against Detroit. And they got a big game coming up against the Eagles in a couple weeks. And I know that in Kansas City there's some concern about maybe they're not what they once were. Well, they've had a loss of a lot of talent at wide receiver. The quarterback in Kansas City has never taken longer to throw, and Mahomes has never thrown for shorter distances.

Then he is this year. So, you know, there are a lot of these teams, you know, Cincinnati struggles, Buffalo is struggling. Kansas City has not really, they've won, but they've done it in very unimpressive fashion.

And I don't know if that's just the malaise of this time of the year. The team that actually is really kind of turning it on and playing with as much consistency as anybody is Baltimore. So, while we've got all these teams that we kind of put in that group, Zach, of here are the four teams to watch in the AFC, I still think their best football's ahead of them. And as we turn the corner here halfway through the year, I really believe that all those teams are going to show their best.

And that includes Buffalo, and certainly the Bengals, who I think have begun a little bit early with their four consecutive wins. Who do you think is the best story? What team do you think is the best story so far in the NFL this year, Kevin Harlan? Best story is probably, well, Baltimore is hard to beat. I mean, they paid that quarterback, Lamar, all that money. And, you know, sometimes these quarterbacks have a hard time adjusting to everything that that encompasses. But boy, I think Baltimore has been a terrific story.

And Jackson has been great. Certainly Miami got off to an incredible start, but they've had hard time beating the teams that have winning records. And until they cross that threshold, I think people are going to wonder about, are the Dolphins legit?

Absolutely. Or are they just a team that can really get at some of these teams that are 500 and below? And how far do you think the Lions could take it this year, just wondering?

Well, I just saw them a couple weeks ago, Zach, and I think they're terrific. I think they've got all the components on defense. I think, offensively, they continue to show depth at running back when Montgomery is healthy.

And back there with Jamar, Jamir, I think they're really going to be even more potent than they are right now. They've got the receivers. They've got the offensive line. The quarterback is right in stride with everything that is going right with that team. His belief and his confidence are off the charts. We saw him, like I said, a couple weeks ago, and they were terrific.

I have no reason to think that the Troy won't be a prominent team in January. Everyone gets a crappy game here and there as an announcer. Al Michaels tonight, Panthers and Bears. What do you think is going through his mind?

And I'm sure you've been in that spot where it's like, wow, there's not really much to look at with these two teams, but you still got a job to do. Well, he's such a pro and the idol of everybody that does what he does play by play. My respect for him is boundless. And I would tell you that he'll handle it tonight like a pro, like he always does. And he'll look forward to next week because I think next Thursday they've got a good, and I don't know what it is, but I remember thinking, ah, next Thursday he's going to hit the jackpot. And I think it's a good game on Thursday.

But he'll get through this. And you know what? For a team like the Colts, they're coming off a win at Carolina.

And I think that, I take that back. Carolina is coming off the loss to the Colts. They have got a lot going on right now. They've got to resurrect that quarterback and they've got to make sure that he is thinking the right way. And I think that with everything that's happening to shroud down in Houston, he's probably facing as important a game as he's ever going to face in his pro career. Now, it's young and he's just beginning, but you know what? He's got to be feeling the pressure of what shroud is doing with the Houston Texans. So I think he'll play well tonight. And Chicago has gone to a no-name quarterback. They're definitely going to be up. And it's the big national game for these two teams for the only time this year. Yeah.

And you're right. Cincinnati and Baltimore is your Thursday night game next week. So Al Michaels is a good game on the horizon. Before we let you run, Kevin Harlan, just going to the NBA, the biggest story in the regular season is when Benyama, when you get ready for one of his games, just what goes to your mind as everyone's curious what he could be in your one? Well, we saw him in preseason against Miami. We did a game down there for TNT, Zach, and he has an incredible handle for a guy that size. His footwork is terrific for a 19 year old and a man with that length. He seems to be fearless. I think he's got great confidence in his physical stature in a physical league. He may look thin, but what he does with his workouts and his yoga and his stretching and everything else has given him great mental confidence. And that's carried over to the way that I think he feels he is thriving in the lane. Now he struggled against the Knicks and I get that. And he's a rookie. He's 19. There's going to happen.

Absolutely. But, but I love his game. He's got the right voice in his head. He's got the nice compatible parts around him. They're not, they're not playing him a ton of minutes, but, but just the right amount that he gets acclimated to the NBA game. He is a joy to watch and, and him and Holmgren now coming in both kind of the same size, same style. It's an interesting dynamic for that position to see if we're going to see maybe a bit of a change and not have every big shooting threes.

Now they, those two can, but they can certainly do most of the damage with their great length inside and watching coaches use them against other defenses with a, with a hard time to defend is going to be one of the more interesting things to see develop this season. Last thing I'll ask you, Kevin Harlan, we know how important the Packers are to you long-term. Where's your confidence at with the combination of Matt LaFleur and also the quarterback Jordan love. Well, the floor I have less question about, I think, I think he's the right guy and, and, but the quarterback, I think it is, is a gigantic question mark. I don't think there's, there's any doubt, uh, what we saw in preseason and what we start, uh, to start the regular year. Um, he really was, I think down the road, we're thinking this just might be the answer, but since that, since game two or three, it is really regressed and he has been incredibly up and down.

They did get the win against the Rams this past weekend and they needed that badly. Um, but, but, but I think individually on him, um, it's going to take most of this season to figure out. And I do not think that as an organization that will sit and say, let's give it one more year. I think they'll see enough this year with full-time starting and him being in the organization for the three previous years, that this in his fourth, that he needs to show things that they can really hang their head on.

And right now there's not, I don't think the things they see that they can hang their head on and say definitively Jordan love is our guy. Kevin Harlan always appreciate the time. Thanks so much. Always a pleasure, Zach.

Thank you. There he is. Kevin Harlan, always a class act joining us on the Zach Gelb show on CBS sports radio. And I think that last comment that he made about Jordan love is fascinating because I don't know about you, Sam. The way that I view Jordan love is he was getting this year and then next year, because if you force Rogers out of town and then a year later after losing Rogers, you're done with love. Well, like if I was good accoons, naturally, I just give him another year because the moment you, and I know they don't have a traditional ownership structure there, but the moment you move off of Jordan love, you admit you get that wrong.

And that's when everyone's going to be pointing the finger at you. So I never even thought about that, about the possibility of Jordan love not being the starting quarterback next year for the Green Bay Packers. I've never even contemplated that because he's under contract through a one more season.

Yeah. Cause he's not an unrestricted free agent till 2025. I mean in today's NFL, nothing would surprise me whether it's Dwayne Haskins with Washington or Josh Rosen with the Cardinals teams are getting rid of top level early route Trey Lance with the Niners top level quarterbacks. They're getting one or two years to prove it.

And if they can't do enough. And the thing with Jordan love is what screwed him was he had to sit behind Aaron Rogers Rogers. So the expectation was he had to step in right away and be great. All those growing pains were expected to be out of him because he was sitting in watching. That was the benefit of sitting back and watching Rogers was to be able to step right in kind of like what Rogers did. And he's not doing that.

And so what, how much leash do you give him? I'd be surprised, but I guess in today's NFL, nothing shocks me with the quarterback anymore. And look, just look at that Trevor Lawrence draft class, for example, Trevor Lawrence is there stay. He stayed at Jacksonville. He's been pretty good. Zach Wilson is still playing for the jets, but not by design.

He's fantastic. Trey Lance is off the 49ers. He's what the Dallas Cowboys now Justin Fields is going to be gone after this season. Cause the bears are gonna have two top picks in the top five. And Mac Jones is going to get Bill Belichick fired.

Mac Jones is done after the season. Do you see the video by the way of Bill Belichick that was released today? Allegedly yes. So I don't know if this was today. I'm going to assume that was some point in the summer Nantucket, but it looked like a shirtless, just look like allegedly Bill Belichick quickly walking out of a house and tiptoeing in the early hours of the morning as if he just had some bam chicka wamp wamp time and was trying to leave as soon as possible. It used to be. We're on to Cincinnati for Bill Belichick. Now it's we're onto the next girl's house.

That's what it may have been with the way that he was looking, walking out of that home earlier today, or maybe it was early in the summer. Who knows? It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS sports radio. We will take a break when we come on back, we'll do some mid season awards.

And also, do you actually believe that Justin Fields is done with the Bears after this year? Thanks for calling Discover. This is Anjali. Hi, it's Jennifer Coolidge. I just got an alert for a strange charge on my card.

No problem. We make sure you're never held responsible for unauthorized purchases on your Discover card. Let's see. Did you purchase something from a t-shirt cannon store yesterday? Absolutely not.

No, I already have like three. Zero dollar fraud liability guarantee. It pays to Discover. Learn more at discover.com slash credit card.

Limitations apply. You can stream the NFL and Westwood One for free. Sponsored by AutoZone. All season long, you can listen to Westwood Ones. Every Westwood One broadcast to the NFL live on the NFL app by asking Alexa to open Westwood One Sports on the Odyssey app. Get in the Zone AutoZone. AutoZone's free battery testing and charging is available for free at your local AutoZone.

Get in the Zone AutoZone restrictions apply. So I want to do a little mid-season NFL awards through the first nine weeks of the season as we get ready to kick off week 10 tonight with the Chicago Bears and the Carolina Panthers where it's Tyson Bajet getting the start for the Bears going up against Bryce Young and the Carolina Panthers. Mid-season awards MVP to the first nine weeks of the season. I think it's Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson has this Ravens team a whole lot better than I thought they would be this year. The other people I considered Tua and Tyreek, but the Dolphins have faded in their three biggest games of the season. You have three losses.

You look around at the other potential names. Like I do think you can make a case for either Jalen Hurts or AJ Brown if you wanted an eagle, but I think it's similar like in Miami where they're going to split votes. If Joe Burrow continues to kick ass the rest of the way, you have a great case for him to be made for MVP because when he was hurt, they weren't good.

Then he gets healthy. He has done a sensational job, but we know his importance to the organization. Mahomes, I don't think that offense has been good enough for him to win the MVP, and I think everything has to go perfect for Mahomes to win the MVP.

And I go to Lamar Jackson. I think right now he is one of the more electrifying players in the sport. And also he's doing a lot with not the greatest pieces around him on the offensive side of the ball.

Like there is no doubt about it. Mark Andrews is a stud, but outside out, like say Flowers is a good player, but he's a young player. He's a rookie. They don't have any other stars on the offensive side of the ball. So that's why I go Lamar.

And I'll just jump in real quick. In your head, because they're winning and we weren't expecting them to be this good, Lamar jumps out, but he has nine touchdown passes through nine games. And he's rushing for almost half the amount of yards per game that he usually does. He usually runs for like 64, 65 yards a game. He's averaging 47 yards a game on the ground. So it's not like he's killing you on his feet like he normally does this year.

And he's certainly not killing you through the air. He's completing like 70% of his passes, but he's got nine touchdowns. So is he really the reason why the Ravens are winning or is he just doing enough? And like, for me, I look at Lamar. I love Lamar.

I want him to win a second MVP. I just feel like it's more balanced. It's more balanced. That's that was by the approach with Munkin coming in to make this, they want it to throw the football more.

And by doing that, you're getting more balanced because the last few years it was run, run, run, run, run. So yeah, he's not on pace when he went unanimous MVP to get 36 passing touchdowns as he did. And also in that 2019 season, he had 1200 rushing yards, but right now he has five rushing touchdowns and nine passing touchdowns. And most importantly, he's not really turned over the football only three interceptions as well. So I look at Lamar, the MVP is wide open right now. And through nine weeks of the season, he is one of the more valuable players to his team because like you look at the offense, yes, the defense is great.

We all know that, but offensively, they still have not put a legitimate, no doubt about it, Sherlock number one wide receiver around them. I just look at his MVP year. He had 36 touchdown passes and 1200 yards rushing. This year he's on pace for 18 touchdown passes and 850 yards rushing. So like, yes, I get it. He could still be the best candidate of a weak field, but you compare his two MVP seasons.

They're so night and day different. He'll be doing half the yardage on the ground and half the touchdowns in the air. It just feels like an underwhelming year for what I expected of Lamar Jackson. Now, one of the biggest games for him this year, like the biggest game for him, but one of the bigger games of the NFL where there's a lot of intrigue against Detroit, he fired off three passing touchdowns was 21 to 27, 357 yards through the air. And he had 36 yards on the ground and also a rushing touchdown.

So that was his big mega stack game of the year, offensive player of the year. I'm going to say it's Tyree kill. And I don't really think this is up for debate early in the year. I picked Christian McCaffrey and Christian McCaffrey is having a phenomenal season, but Tyree kill what he's been able to do so far with already over a thousand yards receiving it's wild where when he said before the start of the year, I'm like a 2000 yards receiving.

I go, no way. Just because of how just because of how many weapons they have and also with Jalen waddle. And you have to 1000 yard guys, as long as he stays healthy. Yeah, it's looking like Tyree kills going to get to 2000 yards. So Tyree kills the offensive player of the year.

I think the toughest one was defensive player of the year because it's really, I would say a two man race right now. There's other names that you could consider, but the guys with the best resume is Miles Garrett and TJ Watt. And you can make a great case for Miles Garrett. You can make a great case for TJ Watt and it's really tough to argue, but Browns fans will will yell.

Oh, there's too much of a stealer bias and Steelers fans yell. Oh, there's too much of a of a Miles Garrett push and people don't know what they're talking about. I'm going with TJ Watt. And the reason why I'm going with TJ Watt is when it's so close. When the Browns they go up against the Steelers, TJ Watt was just a better player than what Miles Garrett did in that game. That was like the one game for Miles Garrett this year. But you really can't go wrong with either player and both teams don't have good offenses.

So if you want to make here's an interesting question, Samter. Can the defensive player of the year this year in a, as you say, weak MVP field, if let's say the Steelers make the playoffs or the Browns make the playoffs, can you make a case for Miles Garrett or TJ Watt to win most valuable player? It's so weird because usually it's the quarterback and now we're talking about potential wide receivers winning it. Yeah, a defensive player could win it, but I feel like if there's any year where a quarterback doesn't win it, this year is going to be this year where a wide receiver should get it, which has never happened before.

Right now, unless, like, isn't if Garrett, if Miles Garrett gets like 23 sacks or TJ Watt breaks the record, fine, maybe they could be up for it. But outside of a historic defensive year, if it's not going to be a quarterback, it has to be Tyreek Hill or AJ Brown. Alrighty, offensive rookie of the year. I'm going CJ Stroud.

I don't even think I need to say anything more than that. I know you could consider Puka Nakua, but when you have these awards and you have a quarterback who's off to a historical start for his career, it's going to diminish what Puka Nakua is doing, even though it's been sensational. So it's CJ Stroud on the offensive side of the ball.

Bijan Robinson should be in this conversation, but Arthur Smith doesn't know how to use Bijan Robinson, so he's not. Defensive rookie of the year. I was between Jalen Carter and Devin Witherspoon. I ended up going with Devin Witherspoon of the Seattle Seahawks. Coach of the year. I'm going with Dan Campbell right now, but coach of the year I thought was one of the more intriguing ones because you got some coaches here that are making this a really good conversation. A John Harbaugh with the Baltimore Ravens.

You could make a case that the Ravens are going to be good. No one thought they'd be 7-2. I know Doug Peterson last year had a really successful season and Brian Debo won coach of the year, but the Jaguars are 6-2. D'Amico Ryans with the Texans, did they make the playoffs? How does this guy not make coach of the year in the NFL? Nick Sirianni, he's 8-1. Probably not going to get a lot of votes just because the Eagles were expected to be that good, but I had to go with Dan Campbell because I had a big concern about the Lions this year and everyone was picking them to be that team. Everyone was picking them to make the playoffs and win that division and through the first nine weeks of the season to be sitting there at 6-2 and to see what the culture Dan Campbell's brought that team and they've taken that next step.

It's really impressive and that's ultimately what determined it to me since it's newer. That's why I did go with Dan Campbell. Now I want to have a conversation with comeback player of the year because I never know how to vote, and I'm not a voter, but how people vote for comeback player of the year. Like the year that Alex Smith won the award, we know what he overcame and he nearly lost his leg in his life when you hear some of the story, but there were like other players that had a much better statistical season than Alex Smith, but when you nearly die or nearly lose your leg and then return to the field, that's overcoming this remarkable thing that was in front of you and a real scary real life thing where it maybe surpasses a great statistical performance when your numbers weren't that good. DeMar Hamlin, the story is incredible. I remember being on the air that night and I thought DeMar Hamlin died on the football field.

Like no one wanted to say that, but that's what I thought happened and that's what everyone else was thinking, but no one wanted to say that, nor should they. We all know the recovery of DeMar Hamlin. It is incredible.

It's remarkable. When I see him on the sideline, I still can't believe it. The only thing that I'll just ask is, does he need to play more? Like just the fact that he is on the team and he was active for one game and he's been on the field, I would think he wins the award, but then like you look at the Tua storyline, where up until the DeMar Hamlin story last year, the biggest story in the NFL was Tua Tunga-Vilola. And Tua's having this rock star season on the field and up until now he's not suffered another concussion. So I do wonder how voters will go about it and how much they will take into account on the individual performance on the field, because if that's what it comes down to, then Tua wins the award over DeMar Hamlin. But with that being said, I would vote for DeMar and I think DeMar is going to win the award because we're talking about someone that everyone thought died on the football field in that awful night in Cincinnati. And it's kind of just remarkable that not only is he still alive, but he's even, there's a decision to be made, is he active or inactive for a game?

So, Samtar, how do you think voters will go about that? Because Tua has been better on the field, clearly it's not even close, but then we know the story of DeMar Hamlin. And I kind of go back to the Alex Smith, the year Alex Smith didn't have this great statistical season, but he won the award because of what he overcame as well, nearly losing his life and nearly losing his leg as well. I mean, I think, I think most voters are going to want to vote for Tua.

Really? Over DeMar? But I don't think that you can not give it to DeMar.

Okay. Like you have to give it to DeMar Hamlin. He's been one of the most inspirational stories that the NFL has ever seen. So I feel like it would be doing the sport an injustice for DeMar Hamlin not to get it. But I, and I hate saying this, I don't think he'd necessarily be the most like deserving of the spirit of the, of the award of like who had the best season coming back.

His, his perseverance, his inspiration, his ability to just survive is the inspiration. And that's a great thing, but it's an award for who came back and did the most after having, you know, an issue the year before, usually injury related. So I think he gets it, but I think probably Tua should get it. And, and here's what it's, the award says, it goes to a player who shows perseverance and overcoming adversity in the form of not being in the NFL the previous year, a severe injury or simple poor performance. So it's very vague in the definition of the award where I can see what you're saying. Well, if you judge it by who's the better statistical player, it's Tuatunga Vailoa. But when it comes, comes down to perseverance and overcoming adversity in the form of not being in the NFL the previous year, a severe injury or a simple poor performance, just DeMar getting on the field and just him like being alive too, as remember what the doctor said when he woke up, like did we win the game?

DeMar you won life, remember was the quote. And when the definition is so vague, I think most people will end up voting for DeMar Hamlin. And I think part of it is if like, if he had like one big tackle or an interception or even like a fumble recovery where somebody else did all the work and he just jumped on the ball, something where you could be like DeMar Hamlin, an announcer can say the name. We can have a highlight video of him doing something on the field, but for the most part, he's been active and we just haven't really seen him do anything. He's been inactive. A lot of these only played in one game this year. And so even in that game that he played, like he didn't really do anything.

So I guess for him, for me, I'd want to see him do something like to actually be active and make a play. Yeah. Well, him just being alive is doing something. Yeah. Trust me.

I get it. And in the spirit of the award, he probably will get it. And he's very well deserving.

I just, when I think of the award, I think of a guy who came back and had a great season after those negative things the year before. And this is that Gelb show on CBS sports radio. We'll take a break. We'll come on back update time. First series, the act man, rich Ackerman.

Alrighty. This is that Gelb show on CBS sports radio. Today's memorable moment is sponsored by Prevegen.

Prevegen is the most recommended memory support brand by pharmacists and week six of the 2020 season. The bears beat the Panthers by a score of 23 to 16 to improve to five and one, the Chicago defense terrorized Teddy Bridgewater who completed just 16 of 29 passes for 216 yards. He was sacked four times and through two interceptions, the bears lead the all time series seven to four, including five wins in their last six match-ups. Alrighty, let's get to a little Zach Gelb show PSA on this Thursday. It's a Thursday. What do you have to say?

It's the weekly Zach Gelb show PSA. Who's with me? Let's go. Come on. Alrighty. Do you guys know the name Scott Tordowski?

Probably not. You should never know his name because he's an irrelevant referee who tried to become very relevant last night. And I can't stand this guy. I hate when I know an official's name, but last night, little Scott let's call him because he wanted to make a big impact on the game last night. He tossed Giannis Antetokounmpo. Now Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the more well-liked respected stars in the sport, not only in the NBA, but in all the sports. Stayed in a small market, won two MVPs, won an NBA championship, won a finals MVP. And everyone is in that building last night to see Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.

So in a game that was, I think it was 11 points, the spread was 12 and a half. So you could create your own Tim Donaghy speculation. Maybe Scott had a few shekels on the game. You could create that speculation.

I would never do something like that. Giannis Antetokounmpo already had one technical foul. He throws down a thunderous slam and he gets ejected from the game. Ejected because he did a little taunting and a little flexing. It was minor. That's what we want.

We want our athletes to show emotion, to show personality and to celebrate when they do something positive. And Scott, who's a no fun douche, let's just call it what it is. Wow. Yeah, he's terrible. He's the most miserable person at the party. He throws out Giannis Antetokounmpo and this guy has no cajones because Giannis Antetokounmpo runs right over and sits down and wants an explanation. Scott goes get out of here because he know he messed up.

So here's my PSA. Referees, I'm not saying you let players walk over you, but no one paid to see you mess up a game. I know the Bucks ended up winning, but it's ridiculous that Scott ejected Giannis for doing basically nothing. It's a name, it's stupid and it's idiotic and I don't like Scott Twardoski, Twardoski, whatever you want to say his name. He's a loser. Would it make you feel any better if you just didn't remember that Giannis already had a T and the second one was going to get him ejected?

What do you mean? I know he had a first technical already. No, no.

If the ref didn't realize it, that he gave him the T, I'm like, oops, crap. I forgot. He knows it. He's a loser.

He had an issue with his brother too. Real quickly, Sanford, go ahead. You're a PSA.

All right. So mine is non sports related. Now there's two sides of this argument that everybody gets pissed about this certain driving situation. There's two different sides of it. There's either the guy who, when they're driving, doesn't signal when turning or changing lanes or there's the guy who forgets to turn their signal off after they change lanes or they make a turn. And so you sit on either one end or the other spectrum. You either hate the guy who intentionally doesn't use his signal or you hate the oblivious guy that has the signal on and just doesn't realize he forgot to turn it off. And me and my brother argue about this day in and day out. Who's the bigger D bag? Is it the guy who forgot to turn off the signal or the guy who didn't use his signal?

And those are the two things that I always argue. I hate the guy who doesn't signal because that guy is just intentionally an a-hole. Yeah. At least you signaled.

So that's why I'll give you a little credit if you leave it on still real quickly. I know Santa left you a lot of time. No, mine is Anthony Davis. Anthony Davis as a Laker fan. Once again, he is injured. This time a abductor slash hip spasm.

I've never heard of that in my life. An injury like that. He's always hurt. I feel like every time I'm watching the Lakers play, I feel like, oh no, he's hurt.

He's going to be out for multiple weeks and it's just a miserable experience. So there you go. There's our Zach Gelb show PSA.

Santa turning into like Howard Stern there for a second with some of that language that we had. I don't know. I guess I kind of set the tone as well.

So don't always follow the leader. It's the blind leading the blind here on CBS Sports Radio with yours truly. Bears are a three and a half point favorite tonight. The Bears shouldn't be a three and a half point favorite against any team. I'm not betting, but if I had to bet, I would plus the points here with the Carolina Panthers. I actually think the Panthers win the game outright. All righty, we out. Bye bye. Peace.