Speaker 1: Welcome to playmakers. Everyone. I'm your host, Haley Elwood. It
Speaker 1: is week nine. The Los Angeles Chargers are back from
Speaker 1: there by and they will head to Atlanta to take
Speaker 1: on the Falcon. So joining me to talk about this
Speaker 1: one is NFL on Fox reporter Shannon Spake. Shannon, welcome
Speaker 1: back to the show. Thanks for coming on. Of course,
Speaker 1: I can't believe you just said it's week nine. It's
Speaker 1: so unbelievable that it's flown by like this. It's last week.
Speaker 1: I was shooting like a little video before the start
Speaker 1: of our game and I said it was week eight,
Speaker 1: and I had to like, I was like, is it weak?
Speaker 1: Is it really weak? Eight? Like I just couldn't believe
Speaker 1: how fast this season has gone so far. It's nuts.
Speaker 1: This is what the halfway point, right, because now we
Speaker 1: have week seventeen. It's kind of crazy math wise, but
Speaker 1: we've made it. I guess you can look at it
Speaker 1: that way. Here we go. So one thing despite the
Speaker 1: craziness that has kind of remained the same over these
Speaker 1: last couple of weeks for you is the Atlanta Falcons.
Speaker 1: You were there last week for their overtime win against Carolina.
Speaker 1: You will see them again we're going to preview this
Speaker 1: opponent against the Chargers this week. They lead the NFC South.
Speaker 1: Who knew at this point, but in your opinion, what
Speaker 1: is sort of the state of that team right now?
Speaker 1: I don't know if you really know, because I know
Speaker 1: that they're leading, but that that win last week was
Speaker 1: so weird, right, I mean, they wouldn't have won if
Speaker 1: d J. Moore hadn't taken off his helmet. They wouldn't
Speaker 1: have won. If you know, Bradley opinion, had hit that
Speaker 1: first field goal or that extra point, they wouldn't have
Speaker 1: won if you would hit it. I mean, it was
Speaker 1: just like there's so much, like there was so much
Speaker 1: going on in that game. So I still don't know
Speaker 1: much about this team. We had them week one as well,
Speaker 1: and obviously with most teams, you were still trying to
Speaker 1: figure it out. You know, listen, they're gonna get Cordarrell
Speaker 1: Patterson back. They love to run the ball, and I
Speaker 1: think that, you know, Tyler Algier has done a great
Speaker 1: job sort of jumping into the you know, into that role,
Speaker 1: but with Corderyl coming back, it will be interesting. They
Speaker 1: finally started using Kyle Pitts last week, and we saw
Speaker 1: Drake London get a couple of catches, and so I
Speaker 1: do think that the fear of that run game, especially
Speaker 1: with Patterson coming back, is really going to give them
Speaker 1: that two dimension that they're looking forward that's going to
Speaker 1: make those guys, you know, whether it be Kyle Pitts,
Speaker 1: Kyle Pitts and Derwin James, that's a matchup that I'm
Speaker 1: really looking forward to seeing if those two are matched
Speaker 1: up on each other. But yeah, yeah, I think they're
Speaker 1: still sort of finding their identity. But they were just
Speaker 1: I mean, they were this close to not winning that game. No,
Speaker 1: I think that wasn't the game that I had locally,
Speaker 1: but it kicked in because it got kind of crazy
Speaker 1: towards the end there, and I'm going, oh, Atlanta's got
Speaker 1: this in the back. Hold on, here comes the sixty
Speaker 1: two yard No, it's from bj Walker and then the
Speaker 1: helmet incident happens, and then overtime happens. But in your
Speaker 1: point of view, though, looking at that kind of win,
Speaker 1: is this something that maybe could propel them moving forward
Speaker 1: or are they still sort of, like you said, trying
Speaker 1: to figure out who they are despite being at the
Speaker 1: halfway point of this. Yeah, I think any win is
Speaker 1: good momentum. I mean, we saw of Panthers when they
Speaker 1: got a win, right they came in. I mean it
Speaker 1: was there, like the only their second win on the season,
Speaker 1: but it was like this big win and without Christian McCaffrey,
Speaker 1: without Robbie Anderson, and then all of a sudden they
Speaker 1: have this like new life, new head coach, and all
Speaker 1: of a sudden they've got this momentum in this hope.
Speaker 1: So and they came in and played really well and
Speaker 1: we're a couple of plays away from getting a second
Speaker 1: win in a row. So yes, absolutely, I'm a big
Speaker 1: believer in momentum, whether it be in the NFL. I
Speaker 1: cover NASCAR as well, big believer in momentum, and so certainly,
Speaker 1: and as far as the Chargers, you know, I just
Speaker 1: I watched that Seattle game on my way home from
Speaker 1: Atlanta on Sunday night, and it was a tough watch
Speaker 1: the first half. It was a real tough watch. And
Speaker 1: so it was good that they had to buy And
Speaker 1: I know, I know you guys are limping in with
Speaker 1: some injuries, especially with you know, with your skilled players,
Speaker 1: So we'll have to see how all of that plays out.
Speaker 1: One of the kind of fun caveats to this game,
Speaker 1: and we had sort of projected this earlier in the
Speaker 1: season and it's stuck true. Is Marcus Mariota and Justin Herbert.
Speaker 1: You got a big Oregon game coming up. That's kind
Speaker 1: of got to be a fun matchup though for you
Speaker 1: covering it right, You know, these two guys held this
Speaker 1: position so long in such a high level at their colleges,
Speaker 1: and now they get to face off in the NFL. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I'm gonna try to get in touch with Mark Helfert,
Speaker 1: who works for Fox Sports now and obviously recruited both
Speaker 1: of those guys, and and just find out what that
Speaker 1: was like. You know, I'm not directly connected to the
Speaker 1: Oregon program. Living on the East Coast, I don't I
Speaker 1: don't stay. I don't follow it as much as as
Speaker 1: I would some of the SEC and ACC matchups. But
Speaker 1: I do know that Herbert kind of came in and
Speaker 1: at a time when you know, after Marcus left, and
Speaker 1: Marcus Mariotta was obviously the man at Oregon, and and
Speaker 1: I do think that there's an argument a lot of
Speaker 1: things that I'm reading online, it's like, you know one
Speaker 1: and then there's there's two who's kind of slowly kind
Speaker 1: of going like this and listen, I mean, Justin Herbert
Speaker 1: has so much respect for Marcus Mariota. It's hard not to.
Speaker 1: He's such a likable guy and such a good guy.
Speaker 1: And I am excited to see these two guys on
Speaker 1: the field together. I know that it's happened before in
Speaker 1: the NFL, but just to talk to the two of
Speaker 1: them and see what each has to say about the
Speaker 1: other one I think will be really interesting in and
Speaker 1: just a really fun matchup. Yeah, the last time that
Speaker 1: happened was versus the Raiders when Derek Carr went out
Speaker 1: and Mariota had to come in, and it was this
Speaker 1: surprise matchup. But that game actually was wild and a
Speaker 1: ton of fun. When it comes to Mariota though, I
Speaker 1: was reading some reports and people believed he played his
Speaker 1: best game last week with the Falcons. What did you
Speaker 1: see from him? Well, I think he had he used
Speaker 1: a lot of his weapons last week, so I know
Speaker 1: I asked him about that post game, you know, I
Speaker 1: mean I think it was like Beard had a great,
Speaker 1: great game. You know, Pitts got the touchdown. You know,
Speaker 1: we finally saw Drake London, who like the week before,
Speaker 1: I think Pitts and Drake London had only had eight
Speaker 1: yards passing yards in the entire game. So I really
Speaker 1: think that we saw a lot more of Marcus Mariota,
Speaker 1: and I know he had a couple of big runs.
Speaker 1: He's a lot of fun to watch. And one of
Speaker 1: the things that Arthur Smith told us is that his
Speaker 1: command at that line of scrimmage is something that's really
Speaker 1: kind of I think exceeded the expectations that Arthur Smith
Speaker 1: had for him. Obviously he knew him really, really well,
Speaker 1: but I do think at the beginning of the year,
Speaker 1: no one really knew what was going on with Kyle Ritter.
Speaker 1: You got a ton of playing time in the preseason
Speaker 1: and it was like, all right, is this Marcus's team
Speaker 1: or is this going to be a one or two
Speaker 1: or three game thing? And then we're going to see
Speaker 1: Ritter come in. And I do think that Marcus has
Speaker 1: done a really good job kind of cementing his you know,
Speaker 1: you know, when we cover a game and a player,
Speaker 1: a quarterback in particular, if he has a really bad
Speaker 1: first half, you go into that locker room and you're
Speaker 1: like to talk to the coaches and you're like, all right,
Speaker 1: do I have to ask him about making a quarterback change,
Speaker 1: and I don't. I don't feel like that's a question
Speaker 1: that I would ask Arthur Smith about Marcus Mariota or
Speaker 1: Ritter and there are some other coaches that you just
Speaker 1: don't know. And last week as well, with p J. Walker,
Speaker 1: who they've now said that he's going to be the
Speaker 1: starter this week, I didn't feel, just based on the
Speaker 1: way that he was playing in that game, that that
Speaker 1: was a question that I would have to ask. But
Speaker 1: I do think that there's a lot of times in
Speaker 1: this league that you do have to ask that question.
Speaker 1: How much does that believe? And camaraderie between Arthur Smith
Speaker 1: and Mariota sort of just help that offense overall. I
Speaker 1: think that, you know, Mariota knows that he's getting a
Speaker 1: second chance, and you don't normally get a second chance
Speaker 1: in the NFL, especially at that position. He said that
Speaker 1: to us week one when we talk to him, and
Speaker 1: I really think he's making the most of that right now.
Speaker 1: I do think that the team is still slowly building.
Speaker 1: It's it's pretty young. I mean, Tyler al Jeers a rookie,
Speaker 1: you know, and he's been your he's been your guy
Speaker 1: for the last four weeks when Cordarell Patterson's been out.
Speaker 1: So I think I'm I am really excited to see
Speaker 1: what Patterson does when he gets back out there. He
Speaker 1: was at practice last week when we were there and
Speaker 1: we saw him kind of running around and he looked
Speaker 1: really good. And he was on the sideline last week
Speaker 1: as well, and I know he's aching to get back
Speaker 1: on that field and to be a difference maker, which
Speaker 1: we know that he can be. Yeah, just what kind
Speaker 1: of boost does he bring in terms of how dynamic
Speaker 1: he is, not only as a pass catcher but as
Speaker 1: a runner too. Yeah, totally. I think that it's going
Speaker 1: to be huge. It's it's just seeing him on the
Speaker 1: sideline last week, just seeing him and his vibe and
Speaker 1: the energy that he was giving to all those guys.
Speaker 1: I think it's going to be It's gonna be that
Speaker 1: extra little piece. Now, all the pieces and parts are
Speaker 1: kind of coming together with that offense. Like I said,
Speaker 1: they were able to kind of open it up and
Speaker 1: use some of their playmakers last week, and I do
Speaker 1: think that this is going to be um. I mean, listen,
Speaker 1: he's a big threat. You have to account for him,
Speaker 1: and when you don't account for him. He'll make you pay.
Speaker 1: And when you do account for him, they're now proving
Speaker 1: that they have other weapons that will make you pay.
Speaker 1: So in getting to Arthur Smith, I had read an
Speaker 1: article that said that he is quote unquote getting the
Speaker 1: most out of a team that has a lot of deficiencies.
Speaker 1: How has he sort of rallied this group? Well, look,
Speaker 1: last week, I mean their secondary was completely depleted and
Speaker 1: was so exposed by the Bengals. I mean it was
Speaker 1: like four hundred and eighty one yards or something like
Speaker 1: that that that those guys that the Bengals were able
Speaker 1: to put on that secondary. And last week they went
Speaker 1: out and did a really stellar job with guys that
Speaker 1: I mean that they brought one guy up off the
Speaker 1: pro they had signed with the Actice UH squad, and
Speaker 1: then they signed them do a one year deal with
Speaker 1: Cornell Armstrong and you know, they kind of like mixed
Speaker 1: and matched these pieces and those guys really stepped up
Speaker 1: to the to the challenge. And yeah, so I think
Speaker 1: that that's kind of what it is there. Again, you know,
Speaker 1: you don't have your number one skilled player out there.
Speaker 1: You have a quarterback who's getting a second chance in
Speaker 1: this league. I definitely think that that's a true statement.
Speaker 1: We'll just see how far that can take them. So defensible,
Speaker 1: you mentioned that this unit has given up yards, but
Speaker 1: they found ways to still contain it and still get wins.
Speaker 1: What is your assessment of that group. Well, there they
Speaker 1: were not happy with the way that that Bengals game win.
Speaker 1: But I think with the defensive backs and with that secondary,
Speaker 1: we hear it all the time, right, you gotta have
Speaker 1: a short memory that is that is the position on
Speaker 1: the field besides the quarterback that you gotta just like
Speaker 1: you gotta like mart and go because because you're gonna
Speaker 1: get fifty percent of the time, a guy's going to
Speaker 1: be celebrating in the end zone because you know you
Speaker 1: weren't you know you weren't in your position. And the
Speaker 1: other half you're going to be in the right position
Speaker 1: to get it done. And I think that what they
Speaker 1: did last week. And we don't know if Um Terrell
Speaker 1: AJ Terrell will be back. We don't know um if
Speaker 1: Jalen Hawkins will be back this week, so they're gonna
Speaker 1: have to step up again. And then they just got
Speaker 1: rid of m Marlowe. They just sent him. I can't
Speaker 1: I was like during the trades today. I saw I
Speaker 1: saw that that trade went down. I would be lying
Speaker 1: if I if I told you where it was, but
Speaker 1: I did see that it went through, And so yeah,
Speaker 1: there's again there's there's some changes that are happening. You're
Speaker 1: gonna have a new guy that's gonna have to step
Speaker 1: up it in some of those roles. And then lastly, Shannon,
Speaker 1: what do you think is a deciding factor in terms
Speaker 1: of how you see this game playing out, whether it's
Speaker 1: on the Falcons or maybe the Charger side too. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I definitely think, I mean, the Falcons have definitely proven
Speaker 1: that they want to run the ball. They want to
Speaker 1: stick to that run game. So you've got to be
Speaker 1: able to stop that first and foremost. And we know that,
Speaker 1: you know, a games are won and lost in the trenches,
Speaker 1: and that's going to be the case again to this weekend.
Speaker 1: Are there enough guys downfield for Herbert to air it
Speaker 1: out and to expose the secondary? You know, is Keenan
Speaker 1: Allen going to be healthy? I know, I know he
Speaker 1: wasn't at practice on Monday. Will he be back out there?
Speaker 1: Will he be able to be a difference maker? Because
Speaker 1: even if they I mean, you don't want to bring
Speaker 1: him out there if he's not one hundred percent because
Speaker 1: you don't want to get him injured even more. But
Speaker 1: I think that those are going to be the keys,
Speaker 1: because that secondary does. I mean, they while they looked
Speaker 1: good last week, we do know that they didn't two
Speaker 1: weeks before that, So I think that that's an area
Speaker 1: that can certainly be exploited. But I think stopping the
Speaker 1: run game and making them one dimensional in terms of
Speaker 1: the Falcons, I think that's really important. Shannon, We appreciate
Speaker 1: you coming on. Thank you so much for sharing your
Speaker 1: insight on this game, and we will see you in Atlanta.