PMT DB
PMT DB
Mark Schlereth on NFL Divisional Preview, Russ Cooking, and Trench Warfare
Big Cat and PFT are buzzing because the best weekend of the year is finally here. Forget the Super Bowl or the Pro Bowl—the Divisional Round is where the real football happens. Between the iconic logos and the high stakes of a Final Four spot, the energy is unmatched.
Big CatThe NFL Divisional Round is the best weekend on the football calendar
The NFL divisional round, which in my estimation is the best weekend in the NFL schedule... getting a ticket to that memorable spot, like a Final Four spot, feels so huge for the team, the fan base, everything. And you get four matchups. All these games feel like they're gonna be great games, tight games.
Before the picks, Billy Football’s travel schedule became a point of contention. Billy is heading to Kansas City to infiltrate the Chiefs Kingdom for a documentary, but PFT and Big Cat aren't letting him off easy. If his video doesn't hit 100,000 views, he's paying for the trip out of pocket. To spice things up, the crew is also doing a Ray Allen tweet bet where everyone picks one winner for the weekend, and the last man standing gets to send the legendary tweet.
The NFC Beast and Fraud Watches
Max is fully leaning into his Eagles fandom, providing highly specific medical updates on Lane Johnson’s anatomy and Jalen Hurts’ throwing shoulder. While he claims the team is ready to roll, he’s also pre-calculating the exact percentage of Hurts' health.
MaxJalen Hurts is only 82-85% healthy heading into the Divisional Round
That's my analysis. I've seen some throws of practice this week. I'm giving [Jalen Hurts] 82 to... I'm giving 85%.
Big Cat isn't buying the Giants' hype. He respects Brian Daboll, but he looks at New York’s late-season schedule and sees a team that sputtered against real competition while the Eagles were resting up for a deep run.
Big CatThe Eagles are going to kill the Giants in the Divisional Round
I understand where Giants fans are coming from... I just look at the Giants in the last two months and they played incredible against Vikings, but other than that, they were kind of sputtering down the stretch. I think the Eagles are gonna kill them. This strikes me as a, I think it's gonna be a whomping.
Bengals vs. Bills and the Rat Line
The most anticipated matchup of the weekend features two of the show’s favorite quarterbacks, Joe Burrow and Josh Allen. PFT is already doing the mental gymnastics to support both sides, pointing out that the Bengals technically have a scoring lead if you count the drive from the canceled Week 17 game.
PFT CommenterThe Bengals have outscored the Bills by 11 points this season when including the canceled game's first drive
The Bengals outscored the bills so far this year by 11 points. There's a negative point differential there, [Max].
Despite the Bengals' hot streak, Big Cat is smelling a trap. He’s worried about Cincy's decimated offensive line and thinks the Vegas spread is telling a story that most fans are ignoring.
Big CatThe Bengals line against the Bills is a 'rat line' and Buffalo will destroy them
I think this is the rat line of the weekend. The Bengals plus five and a half... I think that the bills might destroy them. You know what I mean about the five and a half? Like I think the Bengals are just as good as the bills. Why is the line five and a half? It feels like everyone's gonna wake up and say, 'Hey you gotta take the Bengals.' And there's never an easy win.
Mark Schlereth in Studio
Old friend Mark Schlereth joined the show to provide some much-needed perspective on offensive line play and the disaster that was the 2022 Denver Broncos. Stink didn't hold back on why Russell Wilson struggled so mightily under Nathaniel Hackett. He believes the "Let Russ Cook" movement actually backfired because it stripped away the structure that made Wilson elite in Seattle.
Mark SchlerethRussell Wilson's struggles in Denver were caused by the coaches letting him 'cook' too much
I think what we really saw more than anything else is Pete Carroll knew what his player could and couldn't do. And Pete Carroll basically put his foot down... I almost feel like there was a humiliation process that went on during the course of the season where Russell actually had to come to grips with the fact that I'm not quite ready for prime time when it comes to that. I think we took the restrictors off a little bit and let him cook too much. The engine blew up. Burned the house down.
Schlereth also broke down the 49ers' run game like it was high art, explaining how Trent Williams isn't just blocking—he’s looking for a body count. According to Stink, Williams is the rare player who makes other professional athletes stop what they're doing just to watch him work.
Mark SchlerethTrent Williams is trying to murder opponents on every play
Trent Williams is one dude that practice stops, like other professional athletes stop what they're doing to watch him practice. And he does not give a shit if he misses a block. He's not trying to block you. He's trying to murder you. He is literally trying to shorten your neck on every play.
When the conversation shifted to coaching, Schlereth explained that the modern NFL is missing a certain level of accountability. He argued that the best head coaches aren't just great schematic minds; they have to be able to instill a specific kind of fear in their locker room to get results.
Mark SchlerethHead coaches must utilize 'butt pucker' fear to be successful
Fear is an important aspect of being a head coach... you need fear. Like you need literally butt pucker type fear that if you don't get your job done, you will get cut, you will get benched, you will get punished. And it's not only for the players, probably more importantly your coaching staff needs to have fear. If I don't get my guys coached up, if my guys don't perform, I'll lose my job.
Fyre Fest and Final Thoughts
To wrap up the week, the guys shared their Fyre Fests. PFT has officially become a "Photoshop Guy," flooding the internet with Lamar Jackson-to-Commanders edits. Meanwhile, Big Cat is dealing with a toddler who has become a middle-of-the-night ninja, standing by his bed in total silence and scaring the life out of him.
Big CatI need to become less fun than my son's toys so he stops waking me up in the middle of the night
Last night [my son] got up at one in the morning... he was just sitting next to my bed, wasn't saying anything, just sitting there. I caught him the other day doing this at three in the morning... slowly opening the door with his hands like a ninja. I need to become less fun than his toys. He has toys in there and he's like, 'I'd rather hang out with dad' at 1:00 in the morning.
Good luck to everyone on the Ray Allen bet, especially Hank, who is currently undergoing a spiritual conversion into a Cowboys fan just to spite the rest of the room.
Don't let Billy drink more than five beers in Kansas City or he's legally obligated to rob a bank.
