PMT DB
PMT DB
Super Wild Card Weekend Recap & Mike McCarthy's Dumb Brain
Super Wild Card Weekend delivered exactly what we needed: total chaos, a few blowouts, and Mike McCarthy reminding the world that he might be the worst clock manager in the history of organized sports. Big Cat and PFT opened the show with the Fastest 2 Minutes of the year, including an all-time zinger regarding the Eagles' draft history.
Big CatThe Eagles drafting Jalen Reagor before Justin Jefferson was a mistake and Reagor is a bust
Beer before liquor, you'll never be sicker; Jalen [Reagor] before Justin [Jefferson], you just drafted a busted.
While some analysts complained that the expansion to seven seeds led to a weekend of uncompetitive football, the guys aren't hearing it. PFT pointed out that for teams on the bubble, that extra spot is the difference between a meaningful January and a long offseason, even if the result isn't always a nail-biter.
PFT CommenterThe NFL should keep the seventh playoff seed
To the people that are saying we should not have a seventh playoff seed: you're wrong. Fuck you. If we didn't have that last week, these matchups would have been better... speak as a team that's like, that's our ceiling really is this 7th seed. Just like you and the Bears last year, right? Like just getting to the playoffs, that's absolutely worth having that extra seat in there.
Big Cat agreed, noting that the blowouts this year shouldn't dictate the future of the format because eventually, the script is going to flip.
Big CatA seven-seed will eventually beat a two-seed in the NFL playoffs
Dummies, like you're just playing the results. One year a seven seed will get hot and they'll win. They'll beat the two seed and everyone will look like an idiot.
Big Ben's Finale and the Chiefs' Fireworks
The Sunday night capstone saw the end of an era as Big Ben Roethlisberger officially headed toward retirement. The Steelers gave us about eighteen minutes of hope after a TJ Watt scoop-and-score, but then the Chiefs woke up and realized they were playing the Steelers. Kansas City scored so much they actually ran out of fireworks in the stadium. Despite the ugly exit, Big Cat thinks the foundation in Pittsburgh is still solid enough for a quick turnaround with the right pieces.
Big CatThe Steelers aren't in a bad position as a franchise despite Big Ben's retirement
If you look at the entire NFL, the Steelers are not in a bad, like, no, it wasn't Big Ben with it. His last ride was with all his guys... they have pieces on offense. They just need a quarterback and an offensive line.
There was also plenty of talk about what could have been if the Steelers had a quarterback who could actually move. Big Cat had a specific name in mind for who could have saved the 2021 Steelers offense.
Big CatMitch Trubisky would have been awesome on the 2021 Steelers
If they had a mobile quarterback tonight... someone threw out the name Trubisky during this game, I was like, he personally would have fucking been awesome on the Steelers this year. Yeah, he would have.
Joe Cool and the Raiders' Grit
In Cincinnati, the Bengals finally broke the curse. Joe Burrow looked every bit the franchise savior, leading the Bengals to their first playoff win in 31 years. PFT is officially ready to put the elite label on the man they call Joey Franchise.
PFT CommenterJoe Burrow is officially an elite quarterback
It was Joe Burrow's coming out party. I think that's fair to say. He's officially now in my book, at least an elite quarterback. He is—the guy has ice water in his veins... he is fucking elite.
On the other side, the Raiders proved they have "alligator blood," fighting until the final whistle. Even though they fell short, Big Cat was impressed with the job Rich Bisaccia did holding that locker room together through a season of unprecedented distractions.
Big CatThe Raiders should hire Rich Bisaccia as their permanent head coach
Rich Bisaccia should get the Raiders head coaching job. They should give him a two-year contract, three-year contract. I don't know what more you could do. Like with a team that went through all of that and had flaws... I would be excited if I were a Raiders fan. I'd be excited if they brought him back.
The Bills' Perfect Game and the Patriots' Nightmare
The Bills didn't just beat the Patriots; they dismantled the entire New England dynasty. Buffalo scored a touchdown on every single possession except for the final kneel-down. It was the first game in NFL history with no punts, no turnovers, and no field goals. Hank was forced to eat a massive plate of humble pie, admitting that the power dynamic in the AFC East has fundamentally shifted.
HankThe Bills will win the AFC East for the next 10 to 15 years
There's no reason why [the Bills] shouldn't be beating the Patriots for the next 10, 15 years... those days are over. The Bills, you know, they have the East for now and we'll just see. Now we're back to being the underdogs.
PFT is so high on what he saw from Josh Allen that he's ready to crown Buffalo as the eventual champions, especially with the Super Bowl being played in the warm weather of Los Angeles.
PFT CommenterThe Bills will win the Super Bowl
I still think that the Bills will win the Super Bowl. If they make it to the Super Bowl, I think they can beat any team in the NFC in that stadium. The Bills are essentially designed to win a Super Bowl in Los Angeles.
Mike McCarthy vs. The Clock
The highlight of the weekend for everyone not wearing a star on their helmet was the Cowboys' spectacular collapse against the 49ers. Between the penalties and the bizarre fake punt attempt, it was a coaching masterclass in what not to do. Big Cat has a very specific, and very personal, theory about why McCarthy struggles to process the game in real-time.
Big CatMike McCarthy's brain processes information slowly because he is obese
I am this person myself—I am Mike McCarthy... when they zoom in on his face, I'm like, he's so fat that he just thinks slower than everyone. Like, that's what I think. I'm like, he's not processing at the same speed. He's like an old, outdated computer.
The final play—a Dak Prescott run up the middle with no timeouts and 14 seconds left—will live in infamy. While the Cowboys blamed the refs for not spotting the ball fast enough, PFT pointed out that the decision to spike the ball at all was a fundamental misuse of resources.
PFT CommenterDak Prescott should not have spiked the ball on the final drive; the downs were more valuable than the clock
I hated that spike that Dak [Prescott] did. You should not have spiked that... You got to have either a play called or something for that exact scenario where you know you're going to run in a panic moment. And he went up and spiking that—he got rid of a down that he thought he wouldn't need. The downs were more valuable in that circumstance.
Even with the coaching staff under fire, the guys had to give Jerry Jones some credit for actually putting together a roster that should have been a Super Bowl contender, which only makes the early exit more painful for Dallas fans.
PFT CommenterJerry Jones is actually a great talent evaluator and General Manager; it's the coaching that's the problem
Jerry Jones after the game said... when you get this combination of players, you need to have success. Jerry has graded himself as general manager with an A-plus for the season. The crazy thing is Jerry Jones is a hundred percent correct. Jerry Jones has built an awesome team. He might be sneaky a great talent evaluator. They have everything they need.
Who’s Back and Looking Ahead
The show wrapped up with Who’s Back of the Week, where Big Cat lamented the state of his beloved Chicago Bears. While fans are getting excited about the coaching search, Big Cat has reached a Zen-like state of misery where he believes the individual coach doesn't even matter anymore.
Big CatAny head coach the Bears hire will fail because the organization is broken
I've come to a bad realization with it—with my wisdom in life—is that it's not the coach. It's the organization. Like whoever gets hired is going to fail because the organization will fail them... 90% chance will fail because the Bears are broken, terrible organization.
Finally, PFT took a shot at Adam Schefter’s increasingly blatant role as a mouthpiece for agents, suggesting the NFL insider has moved far beyond the realm of traditional journalism.
PFT CommenterAdam Schefter is an information broker, not a journalist
I think that Schefter over the last couple of years has gotten—he's not a journalist anymore. Right? We can agree. Yes. He's—he's an information broker. He's essentially just like a guy that collects dirt and will play to whoever the highest bidder is... He should stop pretending that he has any sort of journalistic integrity at all.
We’ve got a Monday night game still to go, but one thing is clear: Wild Card weekend is the best weekend on the sports calendar, even if Mike McCarthy’s brain doesn't agree.
