Welcome in to the newest edition of the Just In Time Sports Podcast.
I am your owner and host, Justin Jackson.
In this week's episode, we'll be discussing the NFL Week 17 and 18.
We'll have our very successful NFL betting segment, Jax Pack.
We will talk about college football round two as we are barreling into the second round of the college football playoff.
And we will have our best for last.
Now as always, don't forget to like, grade, and subscribe to the Just In Time Sports Podcast on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
And of course, don't forget to follow the social media handle at JTimesports.
I repeat, at JTimesports.
Follow your breaking news, coverage, and updates.
And as always, sit back and get ready to learn something.
We're talking basketball without a Jordan Brown debate.
If you got the hottest dick, she better come and make it case.
If you win a couple games, he might even show you grace.
JCS on every platform, we grow in adaptation.
Numbers going up the charts, we create the separation.
Louisiana, till I die, is where I'm from, I can't replace it.
Some people's minds are obtuse, but I like to be adjacent.
Giving my opinion like I'm Nick Bright or I'm Jason.
ESPN, better watch out, cause I'm coming for the spaceship.
We even tweeting on Twitter, you can meet us in the spaces.
I like clips of sports news, yeah, you gotta embrace it.
We never had it easy, we just came from the pavement.
I might be controversial, but I like to nick my statements.
This is just a time sports, come and get your weekly takes.
His opinion from the heart, he can never show you fake.
Look, if you winning or you losing, he gonna tell it to you straight.
This is just a time sports, come and get your weekly takes.
He gonna tell it to you straight.
Welcome into the show.
Welcome into the season finale, the season five season finale of the Just In Time Sports
podcast.
It feels kind of insane to be saying season five finale, right?
Like this show has grown in the way it's done, it's grown in a production, definitely helped
by my guys at IMS production.
But absolutely huge and weird to be saying the end of season five.
So when you guys hear from me in 2025, it will be season six.
It's pretty insane actually.
We had some great additions to the show this year.
We had the intro song by B-Roy, shout out my guy B-Roy.
We had the intro song from him.
We had a lot of different content.
We had the YouTube show get added.
We had different equipment get added.
A lot of behind the scenes stuff got changed.
I mean pretty big year.
We've already got a lot of exciting stuff on the table for 2025 for season six.
Guests are coming.
I have requests of guests.
So we're gonna have guests, hopefully one guest on at least a month.
We're trying to update of course.
So you guys hear a different voice besides mine.
But we are definitely going to get that on the road.
Because I'm excited for season five.
I'm excited for season six.
Very grateful and happy for season five.
But enough of that jazz.
Let's get right into NFL week 17.
So it's still ongoing.
This is one of my favorite weeks of the year.
One of my favorite shows.
And of course you guys don't have to end it on an Insta release show.
I take all the time whenever we have one of these.
It's my favorite shows because it happens right as it happens.
So I'm recording this at like 830 in the morning.
So by the time you guys hear this after production it might be 1030 11.
But it's as up to date as you'll get besides one of the shows being on TV or one of the
shows being on the radio and something breaks.
This is why some days you'll get it.
When it happens this morning I will have a live reaction to it as it happens.
So pretty cool.
One of my favorite shows of the year.
The Insta release shows.
Now I do love the traditional shows that I record the night before and they come out
the next morning.
I'm not against those shows at all.
But the Insta release shows to me.
I always I'm going to do a late recording show.
I try to make it late.
That way outside of a couple of NBA games that happen on the west coast.
Not much tends to happen between the hours of 11pm and 10am.
You usually use that window pretty quiet.
So for the most part 95% chance the show would sound the same if it was at 11pm.
Insta release or if it was 10am scheduled release.
So that's why I don't mind those late recording shows.
But the Insta release shows just feel so much fun.
They feel so genuine.
And if you listen to them.
This show is going to come out by 10am.
That's the plan anyway.
Or by 11am.
If you hear the show then you're not like at any point you're like oh wait no but that
other thing happened that counts without what you just said.
So that's the thing.
But anyway let's get into NFL week 17.
It's still ongoing of course.
We're going to have the Monday night football game tonight with the Lions and the 49ers.
Very interesting game.
The Lions and the 49ers.
For a multitude of reasons.
And I'm sure someone has brought it up in the building.
Next week the Lions play the Vikings in a winner take all week 18.
And we'll get into what we're talking about now.
Screw it.
We're going to take all week 18 battle for the one seed and the division next week.
It doesn't matter what happens in this Lions game.
In Lions 49ers.
It doesn't matter.
It's irrelevant.
Granted it's the final Monday night game of the year.
So I'm sure that you know the NFL would like to see it played fully and wholeheartedly.
Right.
But next week game 272.
The final game of the season.
It will be Lions and Vikings in Detroit.
The battle for the one seed winner gets the one seed and the NFC North loser gets the
five seed and it's on the road at the winner the NFC South.
And then you know at no point are they scheduled to host a home game.
At no point.
Because you're the five seed.
So you turn around and beat the four.
But you get the you'll probably get the highest.
They get the highest remaining more than likely because the 60.
I don't know.
It's weird.
But I thought you in the plan to three seed.
We're not going to be home for that game.
And then I don't that game.
You're going to play in a two or the one odds are.
But guess what?
You're not going to be the whole for that game.
So this game literally decides if you ever have a home game the rest of the season more
than likely.
OK.
So that being said what if.
Sounds crazy.
What if the Lions rest their starters tonight.
They just say hey 49ers look man.
We got a big game.
We got it.
We effectively have our first playoff game next week.
Because the difference between a one seed and never having to leave Detroit.
Versus being the five seed and never playing in Detroit again.
I'll draw the rest of the season it's massive it's huge.
It's potentially title picture changing.
It's that level of big.
So what if.
And again it's going to sound insane.
What if the Lions just.
Hey golf.
You're not playing tonight.
I'm on wrong.
No.
They already lost one running back.
Hey.
We're starting running back.
No.
I'm trying to think.
Peney Sewell.
Nah buddy.
Like you know and they just decide that their top eight or ten guys are all inactive tonight.
And eight or ten new guys come out the practice squad.
It's the first time they'll be in a full uniform all season and they'll have a great moment.
But it's a whole lot of.
Oh man.
I'm hitting the hooker tonight.
I'm in the night football.
What's the harm.
Pisses off the NFL.
Oh well.
Because the Lions have already one of the more beat up teams in the league.
The Lions.
The fact that the Lions are standing.
In the way that.
The fact that the Lions are standing.
In the gap.
Even in the way of a potential one seed.
Like they can be the one seed in the NFC.
With the amount of injuries they've had.
Is actually insanely impressive.
They've suffered cluster injuries.
They've had cluster injuries at edge.
They've had cluster injuries at linebacker.
They've had injuries at running back.
They've had injuries at offensive line.
They've had injuries in the secondary.
They've had cluster injuries in spots that would derail most teams hope.
And yet they are playing next week against the Vikings for the one seed.
If I'm Dan Campbell.
I have that conversation with my GM.
Look bruh.
Let's be honest here.
I got some guys nicked.
I got some guys beat up.
Whether we beat the Niners by 50 or lose to the Niners by 50.
Next week we're playing the Vikings at home for the one seed.
It doesn't matter.
Why are we playing this game tonight?
Like why are we playing this game hard?
I would say.
We're going to prep like it's a regular week.
Golf's going to prep like it's a regular week.
So on and so forth.
But they're all late scratches.
For whatever reason.
They all popped them in injury report and they're done.
Like you know what I'm saying?
Now that would be the only thing that would stop them.
The NFL would find them like crazy for injury report stuff.
And this is something that I probably if I'm the Lions I would have had that conversation
last week.
Certain guys have injuries.
Golf has a back.
Amon Ra has a quad.
Penesul has an ankle.
Like I would just go through the list and be like hey just in case this does pop up
the NFL can't find us like crazy.
But if they all popped up in injury report today and they sat.
They would get injury reports out.
They would get a fine.
Oh my god Monday Night Football the last one of the year.
The only draw to the game is your offense pretty much.
And you sit everyone.
I mean that's a three million dollar fine.
Is three million dollar fine worth the home playoff game?
And that's kind of conversation you have with your older ship at that point.
Like hey they're going to fine us a million dollars.
Is that one million dollar fine worth the home playoff game?
Because I know if golf and I want to say Montgomery but I know that golf and Amon Ra and Sewell
and the speed he received from Bama Jamison Williams.
I know those guys are healthy entering week 18 if they don't play week 17.
I can confirm that.
I cannot guarantee if they play the whole game do they play in week 18.
And that's the kind of conversations that's the hard conversations that need to be had.
Me personally it's not my money obviously.
I take the million dollar fine or whatever the fine is.
Everybody has sources in the league.
I go to one of my sources and I ask the question if we sat to our guys tonight and it was obviously
an arrest situation to prep for week 18 do you know what's the punishment?
What's the fine?
You're not going to take the home playoff game away.
You're not going to forfeit the game.
You're not going to take draft compensation.
So only you really can affect is money.
If it's a million dollars to a billionaire I do what I got to do.
And I sit with my guys.
And you know this is no disrespect to the Niners.
The Niners season is over anyway.
Like I said so you're not even really if I go to the league we didn't even affect the
playoffs because the Niners couldn't get in.
So it's not like oh the Niners were going to if the Niners win they still were alive
and now they got to win over the Lions they really weren't likely to get.
You know what I'm saying like you think stories like that.
They're not getting in.
They don't really affect anybody getting in.
So therefore because the NFC West decided the wild cards are pretty are locked.
The only thing pretty much we're finding out now is who's the one and who's the five in
the NFC.
So hey it doesn't really affect the Niners.
It moves the draft run a little bit but oh well.
And the Lions protect the final game of the regular season because the Vikings got out
healthy.
Now the Lions get their chance to get out healthy.
I make the move.
I said everybody if I'm the Lions.
But on to other games in week 17 the Christmas Day games.
I'm not going to talk about them very long.
They were both snooze fest.
The most exciting part about the Christmas Day football games ended being Beyonce's halftime
show.
They were both snooze fest.
The Steelers honestly made the Chiefs game a snooze fest.
The Chiefs to me never beat the Steelers.
The Steelers beat themselves.
Where there was Russell Wilson's pick where he anticipated the safety moving because Pickens
was supposed to run a clear out route.
Pickens didn't run the clear out route.
The safety never moved in the interception of the scene.
There was a fumble that the Steelers had.
You know crazy insane bounce on a fumbled punt.
The Chiefs guy fumbles it forward.
It bounces off his parents back and comes right back to him.
It was one of them games where it was like alright if you're the Steelers fan you're
just like one of them Knights.
Now the Chiefs tend to have a lot of it's one of them Knights.
So maybe the Chiefs are really that good.
I still see teams beating themselves.
I know the Chiefs to me have entered the stage where they need my homes to be great probably
two drives a game.
And the fear of my homes being great screws up a lot of people.
It reminds me of the Patriots right in the second half of the dynasty.
Not in the first part that was punching them off defense.
But in the Brady is the Goat era of the dynasty a lot of times people would beat themselves.
Like it wouldn't even be something New England would do to you.
It would just be like Tiger Woods in the red shirt on Sunday.
Michael Jordan down 8 and 4 quarter.
You know LeBron on your home floor in a game 6 and he got to get it back to his house for
game 7.
You know it just became one of those Usain Bolt.
You're even with Usain Bolt 50 meters on the track.
Like in one of the things where you would do stuff to beat yourself.
Or it's a relay race.
Usain Bolt's about to get the baton but you're a little bit ahead.
But you stumble out of the game.
Like you would do stuff to beat yourself and he didn't even do anything to you.
The fear of him beating you.
You know the balance beam is left and you're only up half a point on Simone Biles.
Like you would do stuff to beat yourself.
So I'm seeing that a lot of times teams get a bad pass interference call.
Teams hold on a big run.
Teams throw a pick that was a bad pick.
Like it wasn't even like a great interception play.
The dude hit the guy in the chest.
People fumble.
They just run the ball in the pocket and out of the hand.
It just looks like people are beating themselves on a regular basis just as opposed to the
Chiefs going out and taking the game from them.
And that's the advantage of having someone like Omar Holmes as your quarterback.
You don't necessarily need to beat people.
They tend to beat themselves.
The fear of you tends to beat them.
So that is what's happening a lot with the Chiefs game.
That's what happened on Christmas Day.
And then the Ravens and the Texans.
Again, the most exciting part about that game was Beyonce's halftime show.
The only points scored from Houston was by the defense.
It was a shame.
Baltimore outclassed Houston start to finish.
Houston seemed to have hit that year two wall with a year two quarterback, the year two
coach.
The guy needs to figure out his priorities.
I think he jumped into the world of I'm famous, I'm great.
Kind of early.
It was podcasts.
It was interviews.
It was studio sessions.
It was Kim Kardashian parties.
It was taking Ambrose home after the party.
It was a lot of things outside of football that I think he got caught up in the limelights
with.
And year two usually is the sophomore slump.
Some guys have ignored it, a la Justin Herbert.
Most guys run face first into it.
And TJ Strahd to me is run face first into it.
So I think that he has to prioritize himself a little more.
Get into the lab because everyone's looking like, oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
It's those Chiefs, Bills, Ravens.
Oh yeah, we'd love to play the Texans.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Give us Houston.
You see what I'm saying?
Last year, no one would have said give us Houston.
So I think he needs to prioritize himself a little more.
Prioritize getting his life together.
A little bit more and focus on the field, just opposed to what happens off the field.
The Bears are bad.
Again, I'm not going to spend a lot of time on this game.
It's the Bears and the Seahawks that score with 6-3.
I'm going to spend as much time on this game as they spend the end zone.
So moving on.
The Bengals.
What a game.
What a game by the Bengals.
Two great survival moments.
Three great survival games actually.
All by quarterbacks, I like.
All by quarterbacks, I'm a huge fan of two of my LSU brethren and one Sam Dahl who I've
been defending since he came out in the draft.
I always say they went to crappy situations.
Look at them now.
But the Bengals survived the Denver Broncos and Zach Taylor being an idiot because Zach
Taylor, oh good old Zach Taylor, tried to lose that game multiple times.
Now yes, Cade York should have made that kick.
As an LSU brethren, I'm disappointed.
Yes Cade York should have made that kick.
I totally agree.
But why kick it on third down?
What's the benefit?
It's not a situation where it was third down with 10 seconds left and you're like, okay
if this goes left, we can reset it.
You know what I'm saying?
30 seconds and get this goes left, just pick it up and run and we'll re-kick it.
And it was third down in overtime, I don't know correctly, with like five minutes left,
four minutes left.
There was no reason to kick it on third because you weren't even in the range of if the snap
goes bad, fall on it and we'll retry it.
You weren't even in that situation.
Like I've seen, I heard coaches say kick it in that game in a situation.
Don't boil down to three.
Kick it on third.
If it comes up, kick it third down in about 10 seconds because the snap goes bad, you
can fall on the snap and then we kick it on fourth.
If it goes bad on fourth, you have to kick it on fourth or kick it a little early, like
eight, nine seconds left.
Again, if something goes wrong, you can fall on it or pick it up and throw it out of bounds
or something crazy as opposed to you're married to that play.
I've heard that before, but in that situation, it's like three, four minutes left.
There was no, and you were like from like 50 yards away or 40 something yards away.
There was no reason to kick it on third.
Why not try to get a few yards?
Why not, even if something simple, just catch it, hand off to Chase Brown.
Chase Brown was hurt by that point.
So catch it, hand off to the backup who was getting yards.
Let's see if you can get five yards, kick it on fourth.
Stuff like that.
Not taking it, not using the clock well at the end of the fourth quarter.
So Chase Brown has the comments.
He's actually giving himself a high ankle sprain doing it, but the Broncos had figured
out, okay, let him score.
So they pitched it to Chase Brown.
Chase Brown's running and the Broncos obviously weren't trying that hard to stop him.
So Chase Brown looks around and he tries to sit down.
Well, somebody from the Broncos was chasing him.
Cause if he sat down, nobody touched him.
He could be slated, he'd be fine, but Chase Brown hurts him stuff trying to stop and slide.
It hurts his ankle.
Well the Broncos were calling it their last time out on that point.
There's about a minute, a minute 22 left.
Because Chase Brown gets hurt, the Bengals by rule have to take a timeout because under
two minutes.
Excuse me.
So the Broncos timeout is in charge.
So now it's on the right hash, it's like a three yard line.
The Broncos still have one timeout.
Everyone in the building, announcer included goes, okay, it's second down.
You gotta make the, you have to make the Broncos use that last timeout.
Right?
Or make them burn the 40 seconds.
The announcer was like, hey, set up for the field goal.
Take Joe Burrow, hike it, walk or slide to the middle of the field cause you're so close.
Walk to the middle of the field, take a knee.
The Broncos burn the last timeout.
Cool.
Now on third down, hike it again and take a knee.
You should be at about 30 some odd seconds when Ken York drives on the field for a 30
yard field goal to win it.
With 30 some seconds left.
At that point, Bo Nix is down, excuse me.
Bo Nix is down three points with 30 some odd seconds left and no timeouts.
I feel pretty good about that.
Then, Jack Taylor calls a QB sneak.
They score.
Bo Nix then comes down and leads the drive and scores because now he has a minute, 20
seconds and a timeout, which multiple times, either 40 less seconds or the timeout came
up.
And they score.
And now you go to OT.
And you just mismanage OT.
Luckily, the Broncos mismanaged somehow played it worse than you mismanaged it and you survive.
It's insane.
Can't stand Zack Taylor.
And the fact that they're probably at this point, they feel destined to get in the playoffs
bothers me because Denver.
Actually, I'm going to say that speech.
But the Bengals survived Denver.
The Vikings survived the Packers.
Now it's a game that it was 27 to 10 and the Vikings had the ball.
At one point, it was okay, they're going to score again or they're going to go get a field
goal or they're going to do something of that nature.
And they are going to maneuver their way right down the field, all but in the game, go three
real possessions, take half the clock off and they're going to win.
However, anything happened.
Sam Donahue threw probably one of his worst interceptions of the year.
And the Packers come down and score and they end up getting a two point conversion to go
27 18 and then they score again and they end up only down two points.
They end up down 27 25.
They end up only down two points.
The Vikings hang on and survive because Donahue gets a couple of big first downs.
Kevin O'Connell has a couple of smart play calls in that three play sequence.
He didn't just run the ball to the line.
And I think that was the difference between the offensive head coach and defensive head
coach.
And a defensive head coach probably says, look, we got to make them burn their timeouts.
We throw one pass, you always throw the pass after the timeouts are over.
Right.
I mean, that's the defensive head coach mantra.
You throw it on the first time or the last time.
You throw before the timeouts or you make them burn.
You make them burn the first thing you throw it.
And you don't throw it for the too many warning like a defensive head coaches have all these
different markers and monikers he checks.
And offensive head coach looks screwed, they threw it on the first down, they threw it
on the third down.
Like they were going to throw the ball to try and win this game.
Donahue was hot.
He continued to be on the last drive and they win.
And then there's the viral clip going around of Donahue running into the locker room at
the postgame interview and they lifted him on his shoulders and there's water splashing
everywhere.
And you just see Kevin O'Connell smiling like a proud dad.
And it was one tweet that was like, look at he's smiling at the culture he's built.
And I was like, yeah, he's smiling at the fact that like this is what I wanted the whole
time and it's kind of fruition.
And then the commanders on the last, well not the last, but on my second to last Sunday
night NBC Peacock version regular season was sending that game of the year, Survive Atlanta.
Atlanta was game.
And that was an interesting game because the commanders were needing a win to clinch the
playoffs.
And one of them, they could lose, other people do come up with a week 18.
They had a win or get in in two weeks, but they win, they clinched.
But the Falcons were trying to keep pace with the Bucs who had just destroyed the Panthers.
So the Falcons were trying to keep pace and in their scenario and all their playoff ties
and so on and so forth, they were trying to keep pace.
So it was a game where both teams needed to win and the commanders pulled it out.
It was a game where if young Wacoo was healthy, Atlanta might win in regulation.
It was a situation where Michael Pinnix showed his promise and showed his mistakes.
It was a situation where Jayden Daniels threw an awful pick in a game where Washington's
kind of rolling downhill in terms of coming down the barrel.
It was a game where Daniels threw an awful pick.
I mean, hit the linebacker right in the chest type pick.
But Pinnix threw one bad one too.
Probably looking like on a miscommunication and he got confused on the coverage maybe.
He threw a bad one too.
So it was a showcase of the future of the league and simultaneously it was a showcase
of they're both rookies, right?
But they're both going to lead, potentially both lead their team to the playoffs.
Now I won't get into that next segment, but it was a great game, great moment for the
Washington Commanders franchise.
They've had a long, arduous road to get here.
They felt like they were a quarterback away since RG3.
So for the past, since Kirk Cousins really.
Kirk went to Minnesota and ever since then they felt like they were a quarterback away.
The roster always felt like it had talent.
Who's watched it for the last 20 years of my life felt like they've always had talent.
They've always had people that could play.
It just felt like it never worked out.
For whatever reason.
And so, Dan Snyder probably.
But now they move into an era where they have, they have their quarterback of the future.
They appear to have their head coach and so it is just looking like all kind of greatness
happening for the Washington Commanders.
Quick hitters.
The Giants win and they lose the right to the number one overall pick because that goes
to the New England Patriots.
Now my New England Patriots, I have a lot of thoughts on what they should do on that,
but I'm going to wait to save them to after week 18 to find out if we even keep it.
Saquon Barkley becomes the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards.
And the Rams officially clinch the NFC West.
Thanks to the Commander's victory.
Oddly, right?
Tiebreakers and all that other weird stuff.
But now we're going to shift to NFL week 18 and talk about some major headlines going
into next week.
Welcome back into the show.
Admittedly kind of a long winded first segment, but a lot of stuff went down in week 18 and
I really got into that Lions 49ers thing, which seriously, seriously, I'm being told
this is they should totally not play their players.
Like screw the fine.
Like two middle fingers to the NFL if necessary.
They should totally not play their players.
It makes no sense.
You're only risking them for nothing.
You could beat the 49ers by a hundred and guess what?
If you lose to the Vikings next week, guess what you have to do?
Go on the road in the playoffs.
Like it doesn't do anything.
Like it all comes out to that game anyway.
I'm resting my guys on the lines and I know Dan Campbell is one of the guys who's, if
I like the term crazy enough to do it.
Like I'm resting my guys.
It would take an ownership directive personally for me to consider not doing it because then
I'm going to argue, slam my hand on the table about the risk of benefits and rewards.
Like, I'm, I'm, I'm not, I'm not doing it.
Like, but anyway, so we're going to jump in the NFL week 18.
Honestly, I don't know how the NFL does it, but they're hard knocks teams.
They're in season hard knock teams.
I think except that year they had whatever team Carson Williams was on.
I can't think of, but they're hard knocks the Colts that year.
They ended up being out early.
But the hard knocks teams in season of the Cardinals were out early too.
Okay, nevermind.
So this is where it happens.
But the NFL hit the gold mine and they hit in the sense of the AFC North.
They do the end season.
They're doing the end season hard knocks on the AFC North this year.
Amazing by the way.
Mike Tomlin is spectacular.
John Harbaugh is pretty good.
Kevin Stefanski, he's in a bad spot.
He's already, you know what I'm saying?
But he's definitely keeping the guys engaged, keeping them up.
Kudos to him.
I don't know why Zach Taylor has a job.
Okay so anyway to the AFC North.
They're all tied in together and there's some gamesmanship that can be played.
I would love, I know they're not going to have these conversations on the show because
this is the kind of stuff the NFL doesn't want to admit exists for some reason.
Gamesmanship so the NFL used to schedule all the games on two blocks.
No, the NBA did that.
No, the NFL.
They used to do all the, when they first did the ultimate flex schedule for week 18, they
used to, or week 17, week 18, they used to make the AFC play on one time and the NFC
play on another time.
And then they'd have one special Sunday night game.
So the AFC drew noon, everybody in the AFC played noon.
And then if the NFC drew three, everybody in the AFC played it through.
Like everybody.
It didn't matter, coach, anything.
Everybody.
Like they maneuvered that last week to where everybody played at the same time.
The reason why, or everybody who mattered to the playoffs played at the same time.
So if you will, if it was like a three and 13 team and a four and 13 team, y'all can
play Saturday, y'all can play at noon, whatever.
But they made sure that everybody played simultaneously that mattered to the playoffs.
The reason why is they didn't want people resting.
Players.
That got to be icky with the media writing the streaming so they can't do that anymore.
But they used to make everybody play at the same time.
Remember that very clearly.
Like the AFC, the AFC got noon, so everybody in the AFC played at noon.
That mattered.
Okay, the NFC drew three, so everybody that played in the NFC played three.
And then it would be like one game, but first like Lions and Vikings.
That only mattered to themselves for the one seed.
They'd affect everybody else.
They'd get the Sunday night game.
So they were the only game that was separate, right?
And so this year, it didn't happen.
So because of which the AFC North now has a bunch of gamesmanship happening.
Okay.
So let's talk about it.
The Ravens play the Browns at three.
I'm sorry.
The Ravens play the Browns at noon.
They play first.
They're in the first window.
They play at noon.
Okay.
The Ravens are 18 point favorites.
The Ravens are expected to absolutely Mollywap dog walk the Cleveland Browns.
Okay.
Odds are that's going to happen.
Right?
We have no quads about that.
Odds are that is going to happen.
They are expected to Mollywap dog walk the Cleveland Browns.
Okay.
You've established that.
Everybody's good with that.
The Bengals play the Steelers.
I'm sorry.
No, nevermind.
The Ravens play.
Okay.
So the Ravens play in the three 30 window on Saturday.
I knew something about that was wrong.
The Ravens and the Browns, the AFC North draws the Saturday game, Saturday division.
Ravens plays the Browns, goes right into Bingo Steelers.
So Saturday the fourth.
Again, the Ravens are 18 and a half.
It's going up.
18 and a half point favors over the Browns.
They're going to Mollywap dog walk the Browns.
Cool.
Right?
Cincinnati is expected or Cincinnati then plays Steelers in Pittsburgh.
If the Bravens win, which again, they should Pittsburgh has nothing to play for because
Pittsburgh is in the playoffs, but they can't win the division without a, without a Ravens
loss.
So if the Ravens win, the Steelers have nothing to play for.
They would know the result of that game before they get on the field.
If they look up and it's Ravens 31 three in the third quarter, they're going to be
in pregame warmups knowing the results that it's over.
They're not going to win the division.
They're going to the playoffs.
They have a wild card game on the road at potentially Ravens.
Right?
They know that already.
So what's the incentive for Pittsburgh to play their guys?
Same thing when I said about the Lions.
Ultimately, this game is irrelevant.
The Steelers are locked in their playoff seed.
All this is the purposes because going from five to six, well, they wouldn't even, they
would be five.
Then AFC, yeah, they're probably going to be five because no other, the East only putting
in one, the North is them.
The West has Denver potentially and the South is only have one.
So yeah, I'd draw the Steelers are the fifth seed.
Oh, the charge, forgot about the charges.
I'd draw the Steelers are fifth to six.
They're not going below six.
So therefore their seeds pretty much locked in.
What incentive would Pittsburgh have to play their guys?
And I know Mike Tomlin has this conversation.
And when I say they're not going to show the hard knocks, but I know a guy like Mike Tomlin
has had these conversations.
I know he has.
He's too smart not to.
So Ravens go up.
Huh.
It's going to be on the scoreboard and bring it home up.
430, you know, local time.
I think that's just the time zone, but 430, 430 local time.
You're looking at the board, 24-0 Ravens.
All right.
Cool.
So this is two and a half hours for game time.
You go, you have a quick meeting that Russ Pickens, Minka, Nope.
Kim Heywood, Nope.
Get your brother ready.
You have those, you travel with the practice squad guys.
Now the only thing about it is what would stop them from maybe resting as many as I
suggested with the Lions or the Lions can't do them because the Lions had to elevate last
night.
So the Lions can't do my play on the practice squad guys that they would have had to elevate
last night.
So the Steelers in theory could elevate three or four just to make the roster look right
and then late in, late inactive a few of their guys.
Right?
Like it, but I'm sure Mike Thomas had a conversation with Russ, whatever.
Okay.
Fields, you go, you're up tonight.
Pickens you're down.
You keep watching that board, keep watching that board.
Kim Heywood you're down.
Minka you're down.
Keep watching the board, keep watching the board.
Like and just five or six guys, all of a sudden guys who've been healthy scratches,
you're up.
These guys are down.
Russ, you're in emergency QB3.
Right? and just, you know what I'm saying?
Because again, they will be able to steal a buy.
You know what I'm saying?
They'd be able to steal a buy, be able to arrest their guys.
If they're not going to have a buy, they're not going to have any home games.
These are a chance to hey boom, take a seat.
Now here's the gamesmanship.
The playing the Bengals.
The Bengals have to beat the Steelers to have a chance at the playoffs because the Colts
have already lost.
So the Colts are out.
They're out of the Bengals way.
In order for the Bengals to make the playoffs now, they need to win and the Chiefs potential
probable backups to beat the Broncos.
Right?
So if you're the Steelers, you have a chance to get in because the Bengals need a Denver
loss and a Miami loss to get in.
Miami is playing the Jets.
The Jets have nothing to play for.
The Dolphins have everything to play for, but it's going to be cold as hell.
And Rodgers is going to play.
DeVonciadis is going to play.
Saas Gardner is going to play.
So on and so forth.
Now those guys thinking, it's cold as hell.
I don't want to play.
Sure.
But at the same time, we all know the Dolphins record of being incredibly cold and freezing
their opportunities away.
So let's say the Dolphins lose, but the Dolphins don't play until Sunday.
So the Steelers can go, we can end the Bengals this season today.
And there isn't much AFC, there isn't much better AFC Northwood drama than being able
to end somebody's season.
And your division rival, Week 18, end their season?
Oh my God.
So is the Steelers going to play their game Saturday night, even though the Ravens have
destroyed the Browns and they can't win the division anymore?
Are they going to play Saturday night just to keep the Bengals out?
Like I said, like I said, high, high drama in the AFC North because you have a chance
to either rest your guys and get ready for a wild card game.
And you know, by rest your guys, I mean rest your, probably your top five, because you
couldn't do the late, you couldn't do the late call up of practice squad guys to fill
the roster.
And so let rest your top five.
Like I told you about Detroit, rest, you know, the QB receiver running back tackle corner
or linebacker.
Same with Pittsburgh, pretty much to the same exact people.
Do you rest your guys and basically hand the Bengals life who would still need the cheese
backups to win and a disinterested Jets seem to win to get in?
Or do you take the chance to crush your AFC North rival and keep them out and ruin and
shut them down before even the last Sunday of the season's played?
I mean, like I said, decisions, decisions in Pittsburgh.
Absolutely huge decisions to make.
It's going to be like choices got to get made.
It's going to be very interesting to see.
The AFC South is our other game that is, the other division that everybody's tied in together
and they're all playing each other.
So the Panthers got absolutely wrecked.
Right.
They got disrespected.
The Panthers at this point, you know what I'm saying, I believe Atlanta is going to
dog walk the Panthers.
Panthers are disinterested.
Like there is no interest there for them playing.
I mean, they got wrecked by Tampa last week.
The Panthers have no interest in playing football right now.
Tampa is getting the Saints.
What's left of the Saints at this point.
They are playing hard, but because Coach Rizzi didn't let them not.
Because they are playing hard, there's no talent left.
They played a really good first half in the last game and then there was the Raiders in
the was game off the bus.
Like there's just no talent left.
Camaras are playing week 18.
Cards are going to play week 18.
Alavis are going to play week 18.
Like I said, there's just, there's literally no bodies left, especially with offense.
There's no talent left.
So the Panthers are not going to put up any resistance to Atlanta.
Quick couple quick strikes from Atlanta, Panthers are going to lay down and walk off.
The Saints however, have known, have been known to be traditional spoilers in the past.
Do they take their shot and their pound of flesh off Tampa and try to keep them out.
But Tampa has to win to get in.
Atlanta needs a Tampa loss and a win to get in themselves.
Oh, we're talking about the Broncos and the Chess.
The Chess are not going to pay their players.
Now they might, because they don't play, they'd be off this week.
Next week they'd have like 20 days between games.
They've done this before.
They know what they're doing in terms of long rest and recoveries, but it's a gamble.
So would the Chiefs play their guys for half just to make sure they don't have 20 days
off between games.
It's something I can see any redoing.
If so, I think the Chiefs probably keep it closer than the point spread just because
the Chiefs may go up 17 to three.
And then now the Broncos are battling the backups trying to get back into the game.
But like, you know what I'm saying, it's a situation where you don't have Carson Wentz
and the practice squad receivers against you all week.
So it is an end of game.
I'm so glad the NFL did this Saturday night football battle for the one C battle for the
North Vikings Lions games to 72 when it gets to one C we talked about it.
Loser gets the fifth C and they're on the road all playoffs.
It's just been I mean, it's the biggest game of the year.
It's game 272.
They were so excited they flexed it all the way to Saturday Night Football and they were
you know, and they were just hoping and with a fingers crossed that the Vikings held on
against the Packers so they could obviously flex that game into week seven into Saturday
Night Football slot and it would be irrelevant what happened Monday Night Football between
Lions and Niners.
But well, that is all we're going to have for the NFL as far as week 18.
Now we're going to show you a very successful betting segment Jax Pack.
Welcome back into the show.
And now we're going to talk about NFL betting segment Jax Pack which pending Monday Night
Football which my own theory of the Lions to the rest may screw it but pending Monday
Night Football is undefeated.
We were in 4-0 again pending Monday Night Football.
We are on track for our first 4-0 week.
We haven't had a 4-0 we haven't had an undefeated week in a long time.
It had not been this season for sure.
Which brings our record again pending Monday Night Football to 47-34-3 which gets our percentage
up to 58%.
So we're currently sitting at 58% pending Monday Night Football.
So huge huge huge for us there.
Sitting at 58% on the year.
And our goals 56% or higher for professional gaming purposes.
So we're sitting at 58%.
Week 18 in the NFL is always the hardest because again you're limited on games of who's going
to rest and who's not.
So now you're almost playing the guessing game in terms of rest.
We're going to do our best here especially doing this so early.
But right now Cincinnati minus three at Pittsburgh takes Sensi.
This is A I think Sensi is going to win the game straight up anyway but also I think Pittsburgh
may end up resting their guys because Baltimore smashes Cleveland.
So if you can get it at minus three that'll be huge because if it comes out Pittsburgh
well Pittsburgh rests their guys that line is going to swing to minus eight or nine over
instantly for Cincinnati.
Atlanta minus seven and a half versus the Panthers.
Panthers have no will to live.
They padmate in the Star Wars.
They're just they're they're just they're going out on the table man.
Like they're just they're just giving up.
The Falcons dominate the Panthers to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Eagles minus three and a half at the Giants versus the Giants.
This is purely a Saquon Barkley bet.
He's 101 yards away from Eric Dickerson's record and in my opinion winning the MVP.
If he breaks ED's record he has to win the MVP.
Like he's got no choice.
He broke a single season yards record in the NFL.
He's the MVP right.
He's 101 yards away from that and he gets to do it against the Giants.
The team who basically said oh that half a million dollars we could pay you is not worth
it.
We're going to keep Daniel Jones instead.
Great for Saquon career they did that but you know he feels he gets he might get a hundred
one yards for half time.
Now Conversey the Giants may load everyone in the box stop him all night and just say
you're not going to break the record.
As a professional hater at times I would do that.
I would just put eight in the box.
I don't care what you can come on five wide that's eight in the box.
You're not doing it against us.
So you know but also the Giants don't have a lot of offensive fight and Saquon's a hit
your head on the goal post type running back.
So if one power is blocked correctly he gets 80 on one run.
You know so but I've got the Eagles here beating the Giants handily.
Saquon breaks the record and ultimately wins MVP.
He's plus nine and a half at the Broncos.
This is my trickiest number because I didn't know rest situation but also Denver isn't
built to blow anybody out and it's NFL so you can't rest that many guys.
So I think that Denver isn't built to blow anybody out because of which I think plus
nine and a half is just too big of a number to swallow and points and then Vikings plus
three at the Lions.
I think the Vikings going to win the game all right.
So give me points perfect the Vikings going to win the game all right.
So again Bengals minus three over Pittsburgh.
Falcons minus seven and a half over the Panthers.
Eagles minus three and a half over the Giants.
Chiefs plus nine and a half over the Broncos.
Vikings plus three over the Lions.
But now we are shifting into college football talk talk about round two of the playoffs.
Welcome back into the show.
Welcome into week two of the college football expanded playoff or round two I should say.
They get started tomorrow.
Actually there's one game tomorrow and then there's four games three games.
The last three games are New Year's Eve and they are Penn State Boise State opens the
party New Year's Eve.
You can see Ashton Gentry versus second power five defense of the year.
The people's Heisman is what he's been called by some circles.
And so we can see him against Penn State.
His team's not good enough.
Penn State's going to not down it this game.
I think Gentry keep it close.
He'll keep the score down worse come to worse.
But I think Penn State Fiesta Bowl I think they take care of business.
Now the only thing is the Fiesta Bowl is the underdogs bowl.
Think about all the underdog crazy CFP updates we've seen.
It's been Fiesta Bowls.
Boise State was a Fiesta Bowl.
I think UCF that year was a Fiesta Bowl like there's a bowl and there's a stadium for
underdogs.
It's Tempe Arizona.
It's State Farm Stadium.
Both of the Patriots' Subo losses in the modern version of the dynasty was in that stadium.
A lot of the big random oh my god I can't believe this college team beat that college
team happened in that stadium.
That stadium was built it's weird.
It's indoor.
It's grass.
Like that stadium was built somehow some way for upsets.
And so like I was saying about Saquon against the Giants.
Gentry can have eight carries for 12 yards in the first quarter.
Penn State's up 7-0.
And then Gentry busts two 70 yard runs and it's 14-14 and a half time and you're going
holy crap we have a game on our hands.
I think Penn State's better.
I think Penn State's going to win by double digits.
I think Gentry's going to have a solid night.
35 carries probably a buck 60 and two touchdowns.
But Penn State's going to win the game.
You know I can see a 34-20.
I just don't think they're good enough.
I don't think anything Boise State has is good enough to beat Penn State.
And if I know common sense here they're going to load the box on Gentry and Dare.
Somebody who's not going to be a first round NFL draft pick to beat them.
Texas versus Arizona State an old Big 12 matchup.
This game would have been a Big 12 game last season.
Conference realignment.
It's an SEC versus Big 12 type showdown.
Texas has some injury concerns.
One of their offense alignment is a game time decision and Isaiah Bond is also he's trending
to play but he's a game time decision as well.
Who cares?
Texas by 14 plus.
Arizona State again they have a good running back as well.
They have one NFL player that nobody knows about and that's the running back.
He's not Ashton Gentry.
He's probably going to be a second or third round pick.
He can play but he's not Ashton Gentry.
If Texas is going to do the same thing we're going to load the box and Dare one of these
non first round pick players talent wise to beat us.
One of these non top 40 picks to beat us.
Playing this up a period.
Texas by 14 plus they roll.
Ohio State versus Oregon.
The best game of the weekend in my opinion.
Because this is a rematch with that classic in Eugene that they had.
Ohio State looks like good Ohio State.
In Oregon they've had the time off.
Dan Lang's probably been prepping for Ohio State.
He's probably didn't put much thought into Tennessee.
And so this game neutral site.
You don't have the advantage of Eugene Oregon.
You don't have the advantage of Autzen Stadium.
This is going to be a very good game.
It's in the Rose Bowl.
It's perfect.
It's old Big Ten versus old Pac-12.
One more time.
One last time you get a team that's basically Pac-12 in Oregon and you get a Big Ten.
You get it one more time.
Right.
You get a classic.
I mean it's a classic.
Half of it will be green.
Half will be red.
It's going to look like an old.
It's going to look like a real Rose Bowl game.
With an old Pac-12 and an old Big Ten team.
Squared off one more time in the Rose Bowl.
It's going to be fun.
To me it's going to be the best game of the weekend.
Picking a winner right now.
Good Ohio State is probably the third best team in the country.
Good Oregon is probably the second or first best team in the country.
Considering you gave Dan Lang two weeks.
Considering you gave Dylan Gabriel two weeks.
Or an extra week.
I'm going to go Oregon here close.
I think it's going to be a field goal at the end.
Walk off in the Rose Bowl into the night type game.
Victory for Oregon.
It's going to be beautiful to watch in the Rose Bowl again.
That's one of the most beautiful places to play a football game.
So I've got Oregon in here by field goal.
And then probably the hardest hitting game of the playoff.
Notre Dame versus Georgia.
It's going to be a fist fight all night.
Marcus Freeman's got his team amped up ready to go.
They just mollywopped and abused Indiana.
So they're coming in looking to punch against Georgia.
Georgia's representing the SEC.
They ain't going out like that.
So no one out physically is Georgia.
Now Georgia doesn't have Carson Beck.
Now say the same thing about Carson Beck.
Carson Beck's probably going to be a first round pick.
Carson Beck's the same quarterback.
Carson Beck knows the hell he's doing.
So they're not going to have Carson Beck.
However that was probably their biggest advantage player to player between Georgia and Notre
Dame.
Now they will have the speed advantage over Notre Dame.
I've got Georgia here close.
I think Georgia gets out of there close.
It's in the Sugar Bowl.
Kind of familiar confines.
It's in a game where the SEC is used to traveling to New Orleans.
I've got Georgia here.
I think they have a couple of those physical bruising drives.
And they went an ugly fist fight.
If it was 17-14 with three minutes left on the fourth and Notre Dame had the ball down
three, it wouldn't shock me.
But I think Georgia escapes it again by a field goal and a knock down drag out brutal
fight.
Then a couple of quick hitters on the college football.
Colorado era, this era of the Sanders' goes out quietly.
BYU just takes them apart.
I think it was so much happening with Colorado.
You had the Travis Hunter.
Girl from fiance drama.
You had the Heisman.
You had bowl prep.
You had Deion talking about, oh yeah you're going to find out what she's doing.
We'll look at his cleats.
It was just all kind of stuff happening over the course of the three, four weeks.
You had a BYU I never heard one word out of.
They were locked in in Provo.
They were ready to go.
It was weird.
It was a conference game and a bowl game.
That was weird.
Didn't like that.
But ultimately you got what you got.
And it was an amazing era in Colorado.
You got the haters online.
They're 0-3 in bowls.
What are they really doing?
Deion has never beat a top 25 team.
And it's like dude.
Colorado fired their coach because they were 1-11.
Year one Deion goes 4-8.
Year two they go 9-5.
9-4 I'm sorry.
And they honestly probably had an outside shot to play.
To me if they lose in the Big 12 title game it's a conversation if they get in.
But them losing when they lost.
They lost because they got punched on by Kansas.
Some of the high BYU just out physicaled them.
They stopped me from running the ball.
We ran the ball at will.
That sort of thing.
But it was an amazing time.
It closes the book on Shadour and Deion's player-coach relationship.
Because Deion's openly said he's not going to the NFL with them.
Absolutely insane wild ride for all of them from the Jackson State time to redefine the
HBCU football.
To be in the face of HBCU football.
To then go into Colorado and revitalize on their program.
Wild, wild.
Kudos, hats off to Shadour, Travis, Shiloh, Deion and the rest of that crew who made it
possible.
Impressive to hats off.
And then me, Lil Justine Sports News.
I'll be on site tomorrow at the Texas Bowl in Houston for the LSU Baylor game.
I'm a huge LSU fan.
My first ever bowl game.
So I'm excited.
All of them going to be there.
Half fan, half reporter.
I'll be covering the game for sure on Twitter.
But yeah, so actually we're not going to do the NBA segment.
We can do best flash real quick.
Good job NBA.
I'm not going to do this and put it out.
Good job NBA.
Great job NBA.
You needed it.
You needed a moment where you needed a day.
You had a day to prove it and LeBron had the comments after was like, you know, NFL, you
know, this is our day.
And then of course they have about two other ratings.
There was 50 some people people watched.
50 people watched the NFL.
Yes, the NFL is going to have the better ratings.
Cool.
Great.
That's been the case for the last 15, 20 years.
That's not shocking.
The NBA needed a day where the games were good, where it was good basketball.
It was high drama.
Your stars starred because Christmas Day is kind of the unofficial start of the season.
It's got to the point where like analysts are saying like just started on Christmas.
Like stop butting your head against the NBA.
That's NFL.
Stupid.
Started on Christmas.
Have the finals in August.
It is what it is.
Right around the start of August, the final start.
Like, you know what I'm saying?
Make the NBA a summer sport, which it should be anyway.
It'll help attendance.
You have your playoff games in the summertime.
It'd be pretty dope.
But you're you know what I'm saying?
You're banging your head against the NFL for why?
Like why are you doing this?
You're killing two, three months of your sport against the NFL.
You're never going to win that battle.
And so but that was a great day on the NBA.
Wimby goes berserk.
McHale Bridges goes berserk.
LeBron and stuff gives us one more classic.
You have all these amazing moments in the NBA needed a game like that.
Needed a day like that and they got it.
But that is all I have for you guys today.
Very again, football heavy show.
It's going to be the way it happens probably through the Super Bowl.
But very football heavy show, but a great show.
Thank you guys for joining me in these five seasons of the Justin Time Sports podcast.
It's been a fun ride.
I'm excited for season six.
We can start in 2025 for season six.
This is your host, owner and host, Justin Jackson signing out.
We have, we have, we have.