Welcome in to the newest edition of the Just
In Time Sports Podcast. I am your owner and host,
Justin Jackson. In this return episode, we'll
be talking about the NFL, what's going down there
as they're already into week two. We will have
our NFL betting segment, Jack's Pack. We will
touch on college football, and we will have our
best for last. Now, as always, don't forget to
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to learn something. JTS. Just in time sports.
Life is good. Louisiana till I die is where I'm
from, I can't replace it. Some people 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. Highlight 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 make 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. If you winning or you losing, he gonna
tell it to you straight. This is Just In Time
Sports, come and get your whoopie takes. He gonna
tell it to you straight. Welcome into the show.
Welcome back into the show. Welcome back to the
show. The Just In Time Sports Podcast is returning.
We had an unexpected, unprompted break. It's
been several weeks now since we last recorded.
We kind of missed some of our big landmarks.
Like when we do the NFL prediction show, we have
where I sit down and pick the grid. and pick
every single game off the grid. We missed that.
We missed a couple of other things that traditionally
are just in town sports staples. However, we
are, I am excited to be back. and i think i'm
back right in time i mean obviously what i'd
like to not have missed so long absolutely however
i think i'm in a great spot here i think it's
not fine that we are back because we are entering
week two of the nfl season actually week two
of the nfl season kicked off just last night
as i'm recording this friday night while watching
the colorado houston game i'm recording this
friday night um and you guys will hear this saturday
morning so by the time you hear this it'll be
two days but thursday night football kicked off
last night it's actually week two Thursday night
football kicked off. It was also the second Thursday
night game in a row that my high school team
has had. We took an L, unfortunately. But we
are 1 -1 on the season. We've got a lot of great
football ahead of us. I feel like we're going
to be a really good team this year. But getting
back to the NFL, Thursday night football happened.
It was the Green Bay Packers against the Washington
Commanders. The Green Bay Packers won that game.
it felt like by a whole heck of a lot more than
they actually wanted. They only won the game,
and I say only in the NFL, a double -digit win's
a blowout. Most NFL games are 3 .5, 4 points.
As far as difference, maybe 4 .5 these days with
some of the spread offenses. They won that game
by 9, 27 -18, and it felt like 19 or 29. They
physically controlled that game throughout. The
Green Bay Packers look like one of the best teams
in the NFC. They look like one of the best teams
in the league, and to me, the team to beat in
the NFC. And the NFC is so open. And I say this,
I say this from a quarterback perspective. Now,
there's some good teams in the NFC, right? The
Rams are really good. The Packers are good. The
Packers look amazing. Of course, the Eagles are
still around. I'm not really sure yet anybody
said to make up the Lions, but the Lions, talent
-wise, is still there. So there's some good teams
in the NFC, but all the quarterbacks are in the
AFC for the most part. I think out of the top
15 or so quarterbacks, probably 12 play in the
AFC. And so that makes it difficult in the AFC
to win games. The NFC, it's always difficult
to win the NFL, but it's always easier if you're
not playing an elite quarterback. And I think
right now the Packers may have the best quarterback
in the NFC. Just running it through my head really
quickly. Nobody in the NFC East. Nobody in the
NFC South. Baker Mayfield has a conversation.
Jalen Hurts, I know people are going to say about
Jalen Hurts, you can't be a top quarterback and
throw for 2 ,900 yards. I don't care if you win
the Super Bowl. NFC West, no. Stafford, maybe.
And then the NFC North has love and golf. That's
it, right? So as far as top quarterbacks. Those
are the top names. I think Jordan Love is probably
right now the best of that group. He's definitely
the most talented of that group. And that Packers
team looks amazing. I mean, they handled the
commanders for much of that football game. Micah
Parsons, what a trade. Micah Parsons is looking
like he was born to be a Packer. I mean, that
number one looks great on him. It hasn't been
one in Green Bay in like 100 years. And so shout
out to Micah Parsons for absolutely balling right
now for Green Bay. And to me, truly changing
the course of the Green Bay Packers season. I
think going into the season, they were a team
many people looked at could compete for the NFC.
I mean, them, the Vikings, the Lions, the Eagles,
of course. The Niners, they could remain healthy.
The Commanders were kind of the names that floated
out. Bucks, if they got on the run, kind of were
the names that floated out a lot. uh regarding
the nfc and the packers just took it to one of
those teams in the commanders i mean the commanders
were a trendy uh pick to win uh or to win the
nfc i mean a very very trendy pick um to win
the nfc was the commanders and for good reason
i mean they were already really good team last
year you really didn't lose anybody you uh you
bring in a laramie tonsil Jay Danes gets a year
older, a year more into the system, so on and
so forth. So you think logically they're going
to be better than they were last year. Last year
they were in the NFC Championship game. So there's
only two ways to get better than being in the
NFC Championship game, and that's winning the
NFC Championship game and or winning the Super
Bowl. And that's the only two ways that you can
get better than appearing in the NFC Championship
game. That is where the commanders are right
now. Who would think we would talk about the
Washington franchise being in the championship
game, you know, repeaters. But the Packers handled
them, right? And the Packers, I mean. Behind
the tune of Jordan Love throwing for 292 and
two touchdowns. Josh Jacobs with over 20 carries.
A real ground and pound kind of game. 89 yards
and a touchdown. And then the Commanders on the
other side, I think for the Commanders, man,
that was a wake -up call, right? I don't think
that they're a team that's magically, oh, the
Commanders are going to go 9 -8 now because the
Packers beat them on Thursday Night Football.
No. I still think they're an 11 -win team. I
still think that they're going to be really,
really good. I think they're going to be a hell
of an out in January. When you're trying to deal
with Jayden Daniels and the rest of that crew,
Austin Eklertanis, Achilles is a problem. They
also lost another player I can't think of right
now, but another big -name player. They lost
to a season -ending injury as well. So I think
they're going to have to deal with injuries,
of course. But that's football, right? That's
not something you don't just not have that. They
lost Dietrich Wise to a quad injury, and he's
out for the season. When you have to deal with
that in Washington, you lose a running back that's
supposed to be in your rotation. You lose an
edge rusher that's supposed to be one of the
leaders in that rotation, especially from a veteran
perspective. And so now you are having to rearrange
that. Also, like I said, taking it on the chin
from a Packers team that's going to be really,
really good and kind of has stated that they're
going to be a team. in the NFC. They're not going
to be a person that's just a team that just arrives.
They're going to be a team. Holding Jane Daniels
to 200 yards passing and one touchdown. And they
just could not guard Tucker Croft. And the Packers
players were profusive in his praise postgame.
Saying like, dude, he does it to us every day
in practice. Like, you know, you ought to see
him in practice cooking us. So we were excited
to see it in the game. It's going through the
numbers and I'm a big box score guy on this show
the YouTube shows a little more lackadaisical
laughing but the This show is more analytical
and technical Two numbers jumped out to me immediately.
404 to 230, that was the total yards. 135 to
51, that was the rushing yards. As a defensive
coordinator, if my yards numbers look like that,
I'm feeling confident either in a win or I'm
feeling bad in a loss. Like right now, they're
showing Houston's to Colorado's yards. It's one,
well now after the touchdown, it's 137 to 33.
10 -0 Houston, right? So yards matter. Now ultimately,
points is the decider. but yards is what ultimately
matters um points ultimately matter sorry but
yards is a big factor and you can typically find
total yards being a big swing and a gap especially
in the nfl of around 10 points or more but let's
get into the rest of week two so i i selected
five games uh i won't give any winners you know
how i feel about that because i usually have
jack's pack which actually let me look uh let
me see probably some pre -production stuff i
should have done about what games i can actually
say a winner here and then what games am i gonna
have to wait on uh just one it looks like okay
so only one i gotta wait on is bears lions so
we'll talk about that one first so in regards
to the bears and the lions This is the Ben Johnson
homecoming game. So Ben Johnson, of course, was
the offensive coordinator in Detroit last couple
of seasons when they were ripping people to smithereens.
That was a Ben Johnson -led offense with Jared
Goff and Sonic and Knuckles and Jamison Williams
and Sam Laporta and all those different guys
and Panay Sewell catching passes. All that was
under the guise of Ben Johnson. Well, Ben Johnson,
of course, leaves. I mean, Aaron Glenn left as
well, but Ben Johnson, of course, leaves, becomes
the head coach in Chicago, simultaneously stripping
a lot of Detroit's offensive staff to bring with
him to Chicago, similar to what Aaron Glenn did
on the other side. Aaron Glenn stripped a lot
of Detroit's defensive staff to bring with him
to New York. Regardless, Ben Johnson now is going
to go home. He's going to play or coach against
the offense he helped build. Now, that offense
does not look the same without him at all. And
Jared Goff actually without Sean McVay or Ben
Johnson is 0 -19 -1 in his career. That's not
great. That's not even good. That's not even
okay. Like, he's never won a game in the NFL
if it wasn't under Ben Johnson or Sean McVay.
He's had other coordinators, right? That is something
that if I'm the Lions, I have to get rectified.
But if I'm the Lions here, what I don't want
is a 40 -piece from Chicago. I get it. You're
at no point where you're ever going to fire Dan
Campbell, who started his press conference with
the famous, if they knock us down, we're going
to bite a kneecap on the way up. Remember that
bite kneecap press conference? Most people thought,
oh, this is a one -year hire. He ain't going
to be there long. He's a stopgap guy. And then
he got his quarterback in Jared Goff, and they've
been riding for years ever since. And I ultimately
admit, due to that, there was no chance, right,
that he was ever going to get fired. The issue
arises if Ben Johnson cooks, right, and he gets
a 40 -piece and the Lions look disjointed and
disconnected. And fans are fans. They're going
to say, well, you could have had that guy. And
instead you chose to keep the guy you had. I
mean, is it unfair to Dan Campbell? Absolutely.
Is that narrative going to pop up? Absolutely.
So if I'm Dan Campbell, I'm coaching probably
harder than I ever have to keep Ben Johnson from
having that moment. Because again, if Ben Johnson
beats you 40 to 17, there's going to be a lot
of chatter that they made the wrong coaching
decision in. detroit when ben johnson decided
he was going to leave they should have moved
on from dan campbell elevated ben johnson like
that's gonna happen right and it shouldn't by
no means should dan even dan campbell loses game
50 to 0 by no means should dan campbell's name
as far as he should have been not retained ever
come up it's going to but it shouldn't and in
regards to who i think is going to win this game
i think it's going to be the bears bears had
their game one in week one very similar to what
Baltimore had the Bears had their game one um
and J .J. McCarthy went Superman and really showed
why he was the first round draft pick I still
don't like him as a prospect I still don't like
him as a quarterback however he did show why
he was the first round draft pick um and Chicago
let them off the hook again very similar to what
happened with Detroit and Buffalo so I think
that Chicago I think Ben Johnson isn't going
to allow his team do that again. I think he played
a little conservative in that second half. Caleb
missed a couple of throws he should make. Right?
Caleb missed a couple of throws he should make.
And I think that made Ben Johnson a little gun
shy as far as continuing to call those type of
throws. Because they were open, NFL open throws.
They just weren't completed by Caleb Williams.
So I think Ben may have. Pulled the guns a little
bit, especially when they went up. Okay, I don't
want Caleb to throw this game away. So let's
rein the reins in. And then by the time you needed
to, you know, up those reins again, they weren't
ready, right? The team was not ready and prepared.
And I think that doesn't happen again. I think
that the Lions start off 0 -2. And the Bears
get on track 1 -2. and one all right some other
games i want to talk about and again every other
one of these games apparently it's in jack's
pack oh wait i did that in reverse i just gave
you the bears winner okay well i had the bears
winning so in jack's pack spoiler alert it's
the bear the bear take the points on the bears
i had the bears pulling the upset there um but
Anyway, I should have went in order. I threw
my own stuff off. But the Jags at the Bengals.
This is a game. This is a very interesting game.
Jags at Bengals. Two teams that. didn't win cleanly
in week one now wins a win especially in nfl
right but two teams that didn't win cleanly the
bingos probably think they should have beaten
the browns by more right um a game that if the
browns make kicker makes a very makeable kick
the bingos are staring at oh and one on a season
having opened up with the browns the browns are
not going to be a good team this year at all
and yet you know you struggled mightily offensively
another year where the bingos open kind of slowly
Now, this time it was offensively. Their defense
played decent. This time it was they opened up
slowly offensively. Joe Burrow did not play his
best game. Again, a pattern that we've seen over
recent years that the first couple of weeks,
he's a little slower than he normally is, right?
Like, he's not as crisp. He's not as, you know,
the offense isn't as pretty early. Now, while
we're 3, 4, 5, 6, it's bombs away. Jamar Chase
is T. Higgins. All the other guys are catching
the ball over the field. But those first couple
of weeks are kind of a struggle for Joe Burrow.
We've seen that. Again, if you're the Jaguars,
man, the score was not indicative of how that
game played versus the Panthers. If you're the
Jaguars, again, that score was not indicative
at all. That game played a lot closer than 16.
And I know I spoke about it the opposite way
when it came down to the Packers on the Commanders.
But, I mean. the the jaguars did not really control
the panthers i think they had a couple of bigger
plays that allowed them to spread that lead out
but as far as control of the game i don't think
the jaguars really took care of the panthers
in the manner that i'm sure internally they were
expecting to do You know, I thought they were
going to take it to the Panthers, maybe do that
in the first half, 28 -10 or something like that
in the first half. Really put the pressure on
the Panthers in the second half to come out throwing
the ball and maybe push the lead out even further.
I think they're trying to figure out their way
with Travis Hunter. I think he ended up only
with like 50 -something snaps, which he was routinely
100 -something in college. And he only ended
up like 50 -something or 60 -something like that
in game one. So I think they're trying to figure
their way out with Travis Hunter. Find a way
to manage him along with expectations, along
with load. And so that is kind of the fight right
now. Kind of what I've seen the Jaguars trying
to figure out. But as far as a winner, I'm going
to go with the Bengals here. I'm going to go
with the Bengals here due to home field. I think
the Bengals are a 10 -win team this year. I've
said it on the YouTube show, and I was mocked
for it. But just given their schedule, I see
10 wins available in their schedule, maybe even
11. Getting that Cleveland one was big, but now
you got to continue to move on. I think Cincinnati
wins the game. The big one, the Super Bowl rematch,
Eagles at Chiefs. This is going to be a game,
like I said, Super Bowl rematch, man. This is
some crazy history here. This is the first time
quarterbacks will ever start against each other
after beating each other in the Super Bowl. So,
and when the stat was said, I was like, well,
no, because people have played. And then I was
like, well, no. Both quarterbacks had to have
a victory over the other in the Super Bowl. There's
only been a couple of times the matchups have
happened. Like, Hurts and Mahomes have gone against
each other twice. Brady and Manning, Eli, have
gone against each other twice. I'm sure Bradshaw,
you know, crossed paths with the Cowboys quarterbacks.
But there's not very many times you play. the
same team over, especially in your lifetime,
but also to play the same quarterback, and both
of you guys get one. So, I mean, that's never
happened before, so we're entering uncharted
territory with the Eagles and the Chiefs with
Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts both having to
do. both having had defeated each other in a
Super Bowl and now squaring off in a regular
season game. It's never happened before. So pretty
cool moment there. In regards to the game, I
think Jalen Carter is going to be pissed off.
He had the spitting incident with Dak Prescott.
He's subsequently been fined $57 ,000. I think
that that Eagles team knows they didn't play
well in week one. I think they're going to come
out and try and rectify that in week two. But
flipping on the other side, I think that the
Kansas City Chiefs are very similar. Like, they
didn't play well in week one, and they actually
lost. Like, it's different to not play well and
win. Like, the Eagles found a way to win. They
spread them out. Jalen Hurts scrambled first
down ball game. But in regards to the Kansas
City Chiefs, they didn't play well and lost.
And just lost, not only did they lose, they lost
to a division rival. They lost to someone who
they've counted as two wins. For several years.
And he said. The Chargers were able to. Take
advantage of the Chiefs. And get a huge win.
For not only. You know. Themselves. But kind
of. You know. For the program. Like. For the
mystique. Of the Chargers. Having the ability.
To defeat the Chiefs. And not like that one off.
That Antonio Pierce. Did with the Raiders. And
said they had figured him out. And all the other
stuff. But like. You know. Regardless of, you
know, crazy statement by Antonio Pierce, like
having the ability to win those games is big
for Harbaugh and Herbert and everyone else involved
with the Chargers. But it also kind of showed
the kink and armor in the Chiefs. Like this team
is getting older. Travis Kelsey is getting older.
He's engaged for crying out loud. He killed Xavier
Worthy. The offensive line, of course, is peeling
off. They tried to rebuild it with an injured
player from college. So, like, it's showing some
of the kinks in the armor. I think the Eagles
win the game. I really do. I just don't see the
Chiefs having enough. Just having enough. How
about they add, like, an adjective to it? Or
are we just having enough here? I got the Eagles
winning this game. Broncos at Colts. A very interesting
game between two teams with a very interesting
start. So the Colts, as you guys may know or
remember, so on and so forth, absolutely blast.
Absolutely. I'm talking about destroy their opponent
in week one. I mean, it was brutal. I mean, it
was a show. The punter never punted. They ended
up beating the Dolphins 33 -8. I mean, it was
an absolute light show. You know, 33 -8 in yards.
I mean, points are, I mean, they dominated them.
At one point, the Dolphins had like negative
yards. I mean, it was tragic. If you are a Dolphins
fan, you or anybody else, it was a show by the
Colts. A show of strength by the Colts. But then
the Broncos escaped Tennessee. 20 -12. You know,
that's one possession in the NFL. I think that
the Titans had their chances to ever take the
lead, if not win the game against the Broncos.
But at the same time, the Broncos had their chances
to make it where we're not even debating or discussing
if they would have ever had a chance to lose
to the Tennessee Titans. So I definitely think,
and I was definitely interested, rather, in this
game because of that point. You've got a Colts
team. dominated a bad dolphins team and then
you have a broncos team who probably again their
coaches meeting their staff meetings are saying
like man we had an opportunity there to really
blow that game open and we didn't um and so that
is a interesting conundrum that's an interesting
uh side by side a team that's riding high but
played not so good team and a team that also
didn't play a really good team but had to kind
of squeak out and eek out a win uh that mentality
is a little different but in regards to picking
this game i'm gonna go with the denver broncos
here i just don't see the colts having a repeat
performance uh i'm gonna bet against daniel jones
as long as i can um and so It is quintessential
to see them against a good defense to see how
they handle a good offensive scene. Bo Nix right
now is better than Tua. Sean Payton right now
is better than Mike McDaniel. I mean, Sean Payton
is probably his whole life better than Mike McDaniel.
And it's just you've got to see the difference
in a team that's going to make the playoffs in
Belize versus a team that's hoping to make the
playoffs. I mean, it's a different mindset, a
different environment. And then lastly, Monday
Night Football, the nightcap Chargers at Raiders.
Two teams both with... Pretty shocking victories.
I told you about the Chargers already defeating
the Chiefs in Sao Paulo. But the Raiders go into
Foxborough and through torrid conditions defeat
the Patriots in a game where they looked really
good. They looked like a veteran team with a
veteran coach. They were going to do exactly
what they were told to do. They were going to
be exactly what they were supposed to be. And
they were going to do their job. Now, how effective
they were at their job, that's a different conversation.
But they were going to get everything they had
every second. to the field and that's you know
like i said a hallmark and a compliment uh to
the coaching staff it's just you know kudos those
guys and but back to this game kind of a battle
of styles both teams want to play power football
both teams want to have very physical defenses
so it's going to be very interesting uh watching
those two teams go at it because of their kind
of common approach to football so it's going
to be very interesting to see those two teams
go at each other and my winner for that game
is the chargers whenever it's close pick the
quarterback to me it's not really close but if
you do call it close justin herbert's easily
the tipper and so I am going to say that the
Chargers, behind Justin Herbert, are going to
win their Week 2 game against the Las Vegas Razors
and close out Week 2 with a victory. But up next,
we're going to shift to our NFL betting segment,
Jacks Pack. Welcome back into the show. And now
we are going to have the NFL betting segment
jacks pack. Now, if you guys were here last year,
I picked five games per week against the spread.
I forgot. I forgot we weren't doing a show week
one. And I should have put my picks out. I forgot.
So we're not going to count those, right? Because
I don't want you guys to be like, oh, man, no.
He, you know. only did you know that he'd been
five for no and whatever like no no we're not
doing that right like i'm not going to um i'm
not going to do that with you guys right i want
to i want the pics to be fresh so for those of
you who are new every week we pick five games
those five games ultimately um get selected like
those five games ultimately get picked i picked
those games we keep track of the record all year
so on and so forth and that is how we do jack's
pack so it is against the spread all all things
currently are done by the espn app all odds currently
are done by the espn app um and so that is where
the numbers come from if you're wondering like
where do i get this line would i get this spread
so on and so forth so let's get right into it
again we have no week one to go back to so let's
get right in to it first game on the docket they're
in no particular order it's not like i'm saying
oh you know this is my favorite game or so on
and so forth but the first game on the docket
is rams minus five and a half over the titans
take the rams look it's plain and simple here
The Rams are considerably better than the Tennessee
Titans. Now, this game is probably, if it's in
LA, eight and a half, nine, maybe even nine and
a half point spread. It happens to be a game
that is in Tennessee. So home team always gets
an extra field goal. So whatever the neutral
site spread is, then you add a field goal and
that's how you get the Vegas spreads. So they're
staying in a neutral site. The Rams are eight
and a half points better over a touchdown better.
However, because the game is in Tennessee, they
going to give a little credence and a little
a little credence and a little respect to home
field there in Tennessee. And so therefore, they
are only saying the Rams minus five and a half.
Great. But the Rams are going to win that game
by more than a touchdown. Hammer the Rams here.
If you have an opportunity to get this anywhere
under seven and a half, you hammer it. And because
they were able to get it, I may be able to get
it at five and a half. Take the Rams. Bucks plus
two and a half over the Texans. Take the Bucks
here. While I do love the Texans defense, I have
major questions about the Bucks offensive line.
I do love the Texans defense, Roger. I have major
questions about the Texas offensive line, which
also I have major questions about the Bucs offensive
line. But I think that right now, Baker Mayfield
and that offense is just a little bit better
set up right now to win. I think that Houston
has more questions than answers. I think Tampa
Bay at least has answers. They just don't like
them. To me, it's better to have answers than
not like them. that not have answers at all um
and so right now i think houston's kind of scrambling
trying to figure out how they're gonna do stuff
uh and tampa bay knows how they're gonna do it
they just don't necessarily like the answers
um and so but anyway i'm gonna go with tampa
bay here plus two and a half uh just gotta win
by a field goal or you know i'll be within two
points and they're gonna get a victory i'm gonna
get a victory here i think tampa wins the game
all right Because again, I think Houston's trying
to figure stuff out. I think Tampa knows they
got to do it. They just don't want to do it.
So I think that is the issue there. chicago plus
six and a half over the lions take the bears
here now i'm not going to go into it again because
i've already done it in the previous segment
but i've got chicago here i've got chicago here
winning the game all right so if you want to
up your odds here you can get chicago outright
same thing with tampa plus two and a half outright
is a outright instead of a better bet than plus
two and a half So, again, if you want the Bucs
to get a little better odds, go outright. If
you want the Bears with a little better odds,
go outright. But I've got the Bears here over
the Lions. Cardinals, minus six and a half versus
the Panthers. Take the Cardinals. Remember that
Carolina team I talked about? Man, I was like,
golly. I figured that, you know, they would get
run over last week and actually stay in it pretty
decently against the Jags. That same Panther
team isn't getting better. That same Panther
team isn't magically a better football team.
That same Panthers team all of a sudden is not
going to stand up to a real NFL offense. I think
the Cardinals kind of got a lot of their kinks
off playing New Orleans in week one. And they
found a way to win by more than a touchdown there.
I think New Orleans is better than Carolina.
So I've got Arizona winning by more than six
and a half. So therefore, take the Cardinals.
Giants plus five and a half versus Dallas. Take
the Giants here. I actually think the Giants
might win this game. But the main crux of it
is I don't think either offense is good enough
for five and a half to be a spread. I really
don't. I don't think either offense is good enough.
I don't think the Dallas Cowboys offense is good
enough. I don't think the Giants defense is bad
enough. I truly. truly think that the Giants
have a chance of winning this game. I think Russell
Wilson has an opportunity here to make that conversation
interesting. I think it's about to get real loud
for Jackson Dart in New York if it's not screaming
already. And I think Russell Wilson in this game
has an opportunity to make that noise quiet a
little bit. Dallas is not done. I mean, they're
down to Ron Bland. They obviously don't have
Micah Parsons. Kenny Clark didn't do a whole
heck of a lot. And I think on the other side
of the ball, that Giants defensive line is ridiculous.
And it ain't like Dallas got their old line of
2016 -2017. Like, that's a normal, if not slightly
below average line. I think that Giants line
is going to have, Giants D -line is going to
have their way with them up front. And I just
think the Giants may, again, may win the game,
all right, but definitely take the plus five
and a half. So just to recap, I've got the Rams
minus five and a half over the Titans, Bucks
plus two and a half over the Texans, Bears plus
six and a half over the Lions, Cardinals minus
six and a half over the over the Panthers and
Giants plus five and a half over Dallas. But
up next, we're going to shift to college football
and talk about what's going down there. Welcome
into the show or welcome back into the show rather
as we are now discussing college football. Now
this won't be a really long segment. But I will
go ahead on some key games and kind of give my
quick thoughts on some of the big games this
week. First off, college football kind of enters
that early conference period. So, like, you know,
there's like all the games, but not all the games,
but, you know, three of the five games I'm discussing
are conference games. And it's kind of where
if your team, if your conference is a nine team
conference, you're starting conference play.
But if you're an eight game conference game,
you're not in conference play yet. And so that's
kind of the, not dilemma, but that's kind of
the weirdness of college football that a lot
of the power fours don't have the same rules.
Like the Big Ten's playing nine games, but the
ACC, the SEC, and the Big 12 are playing eight.
But now the SEC's going to nine next year. I
think ACC's considering going to nine. Like the
rules aren't the same all the way around. It
makes complications at the end. But it isn't
here nor there. Regardless, these are five games
I want to touch on quickly. and be there to discuss.
So number one is Florida at LSU. I think it's
one of the bigger games of the weekend. I'm also
an LSU alumni, an LSU fan, and so I want to talk
about this game anyway. I have an older brother
who's a Florida fan, so it's kind of a family
situation. But also I think this is a very interesting
game. It feels trap game -y. It went from college
game day to trap game. And I say this because
Florida just lost to USF. They were embarrassed.
They lost 18 -16, but USF? I don't know the last
time Florida's lost to an NCAA opponent that
wasn't Florida State or Miami. I think it was
the 90s or something like that. It's been a long
time since the University of Florida has lost
to anybody not named Miami or Florida State in
the state of Florida. That was embarrassing.
You can tell by the reaction of the USF coaches.
That was a monumental upset on several levels.
And now they go into Tiger Stadium at 630. By
the time the second quarter hits, it's Tiger
Stadium at night. Good luck. It's sold out. It's
a gold game. And this could start a spiral for
Billy Napier at Florida. He's going to make it
through the year. Buyouts too substantial not
to. However, we are talking a monumental spiral
out of their last. I think 10 games, 8 of them
are ranked now. I mean, it is crazy what Florida
has to go through the gauntlet. And the Garley
didn't catch Billy Napier in them last year,
but it's looking like it might get him this year
and ultimately cost Napier his job. But an absolutely
brutal situation. I don't think LSU makes it
no better. I think LSU wins the game by double
digits. The only thing that concerns me in LSU
is the offense as far as the timing aspect. I
think Florida's getting the best pass rusher
back, so that's going to be a problem because
he hasn't been on film. And so when you have...
So when you have a player who hasn't been on
film, there's no telling what he's doing this
year. There's no telling what he's lining up,
so on and so forth. He hasn't been on film. Also,
the other thing that's big right now is that
LSU has a couple of major injuries. Braylon Moore,
who's their starting center, SEC office lineman
of the week in week one, and Trades Green, the
monster at tight end. All six foot seven of them
are both. Braylon Morris, questionable, probably
will play. Trades Green is a true game -time
decision. Following injuries they suffered against
Louisiana Tech. But Florida comes in fairly healthy.
They're getting one of their pass rushes back.
DJ Lagway seems to be in a good headspace -ish.
Now, they struggled against USF. I'm sure Blake
Baker has seen what USF worked against them and
probably concocting some mad genius version of
it. But it's going to be a very interesting game,
a very tight game. I've got LSU winning by 10,
getting a touchdown at the end, maybe to separate
it, or maybe 13, a touchdown at the end to separate
it. But I don't expect a blowout by any means.
Clemson at Georgia Tech a battle in the ACC a
interesting game for Clemson so Clemson typically
kind of runs the ACC they end up winning it last
year and stealing a playoff spot you know they
kind of run the ACC but Georgia Tech has a very
interesting physical style Hunter King is a Dude,
that quarterback, I mean, he is physical. He
doesn't care. It's almost like the more you beat
on him, the better he plays. And so he's going
to be the high and center for Georgia Tech. This
is the same Clemson team that did not do anything
offensively in the second half against LSU. Struggling
in the first half offensively against Troy. So
now you are going to line up against a Georgia
Tech team that is known for hard -nosed play,
man. Those guys are physical. Probably why they
get beat up so much. But those guys are absolutely
physical. They are trying to send messages every
single time that they line up. I mean, they are
trying to send a message. And, you know, that's
great for Georgia Tech, right? And ultimately,
I do think Clemson wins this game. but it is
a trap game. I am declaring you the trap game
of the week. Clemson walks in this game and thinks
it's confident in how hunky -dory they will lose
by two touchdowns to Georgia Tech. I've seen
it done. Under this style of system, Georgia
Tech walks in and beats somebody they have no
business beating because you take them lightly.
So I think Georgia Tech is going to be very interesting
there. I think Clemson survives it late, but
it would not shock me at all if GT gets a victory.
Georgia at Tennessee, the biggest ranked game,
of the year uh georgia at tennessee man i love
conference matchups where hey dude you've got
no choice you've got to beat that dude to get
where you got to go and and it kind of reminds
me of the old sec right like you've got to bow
your back to beat them, to even have a chance
at the national championship game. That's why
the national championship game for so long was
like the SEC invitation. I think we won like
six or seven straight because the amount of physicality
you had to get to even survive the conference
was more than most people have to do to survive
anywhere else. And so I think that. You know,
Georgia and Tennessee now, both are physical
teams. It's going to be on the road. It's going
to be in Rocky Top. It's going to be loud. I
think that volume, we get a lot of questions.
Before I give a pick, a lot of questions are
going to be answered. Georgia hasn't been tested,
really. Tennessee, eh, really hasn't been tested.
So these are two fairly untested teams that are
going to have to figure it out against each other
on the fly. But winning this game, I've got a
huge win for the Tennessee program. I think the
home field is the difference. It is going to
be a loud home field, a very loud home field
in the Rocky Top. And I think that Tennessee
squeaks out with the win, but it will not be
easy by any means. Speaking of that South Florida
team, they're ranked 18th, and they're on the
road at Miami. A lot of questions there are going
to get answered. Remember we talked about questions
being answered? Was South Florida fluky over
Florida? Was South Florida actually legit now?
And by legit, I mean are they going to compete
for the conference and try and steal a large
bid, so on and so forth, in the playoff? Or is
it a fluke? And then Miami punishes them and
sends them, you know, relegates them back to
the level of middle of a Florida team. We're
going to find out, right? We are going to find
out what is the... State of the South Florida
football team. We're going to find out, you know,
just how real Miami is. They got a big opening
win. We're now going to find out just how real
Miami is. And so, you know, a lot of questions
are going to get answered in that game. I got
Miami winning it. Close, though, and giving USF
a lot of leverage when it comes down to playoff
seeding because, you know, every time if you
lose, lose closely. If you win, win by a lot.
Like, you want stuff that you want your negatives
to be hidden and your positives to be highlighted
in front of a national committee. And so that
is definitely a big thing in regards to the playoffs
is that everybody's going to watch every game,
right? So you've got to do stuff that stands
out when you do it good to try and get that playoff
seed in. In Miami, currently, it's just like
anybody else, especially in that conference,
fighting for playoff spots. And then to me, my
personal big one is Texas A &M at Notre Dame.
My personal big one is Texas A &M at Notre Dame.
Rare, rare, rare trip for a school down south
to go into South Bend. Very interesting to see
how Notre Dame handles kind of a loss and dealing
with that bounce back while Texas A &M and Marcel
Reed, like they're on cloud nine right now. They're
feeling good about themselves. They think that
they are going to compete for the SEC, so on
and so forth. So there's a lot of positives going
on in the Texas A &M football program. However,
Notre Dame right now, you took the L in week
one. You're reeling a little bit. This will be
a big one to kind of get that mojo and that swagger
coming back for Notre Dame. Who I have winning
it? I have the Notre Dame Irish winning it at
home. I think home for the band is going to matter
in the fourth quarter. I don't really believe
in Marcel Regis yet. He torched LSU last year,
but I don't really believe in him just yet. And
so, therefore, I am going with the Notre Dame
fighting Irish. But up next, we're going to discuss
the WNBA, kind of give you a mini preview of
the playoffs, along with discussing the league's
MVP, or will be, Aja Wilson. Welcome back into
the show. And now we're going to discuss the
WNBA. They are ramping up towards their playoff
and also their award season. So they're doing
both. They're getting close to their playoff
and they're ramping up close to their award season.
And so we're going to do kind of both kind of
quickly. So the playoffs matchups are as followed.
Faces Minnesota. Golden State in year one of
their franchise's history makes the playoffs.
An expansion team made the playoffs. Pretty cool
there. They draw Minnesota. Congratulations.
With arguably the best play on the planet, Nafisa
Collier. Indiana surviving. And even without
Kaitlyn Clark, they've made the playoffs. They
face off against Ryan Howard, Brittany Griner,
and the Atlanta Dream. New York. Stu York, the
defending champions with Sabrina Ionescu. Brianna
Stewart and the rest of the crew, they draw Phoenix
Mercury with Alyssa Thomas, Dawana Bonner, and
the rest of that crew, that's who they draw.
And then Seattle, you know, Seattle, despite
all the stuff they've gone through, right, Seattle
is still in the playoffs, and they face Vegas,
the hottest team by far. The hottest team in
the WNBA. So hot they've won 16 straight games.
They're on fire. And they're led by the soon
-to -be league MVP, again, Asia Wilson. She finishes
her season 24 points. 23 .4 points a game, 10
.2 rebounds a game, 3 .1 assists per game. She
also picks up 2 .3 blocks a game. She does it
on 50 % shooting, 42 % from three, 85 .5 % from
the free throw line. I mean, absolutely ridiculous.
She gets 21 double -doubles. Her scoring efficiency
is 1 .42, which, I mean, that's ridiculous. I
mean, she is the best player on the planet. I
know I said Nafisa Collier has an argument. She
does. I went into the season going when people
tried to crown Nafisa Collier. I mean, just crowned
her. Like, oh, she's the best player. And what
did I say? Like, did Asia Wilson retire? Did
I not know? I mean, to just solemnly dismiss
Asia Wilson. I thought was very disrespectful
to the level of player Asia Wilson is. And I
fought back on it. I pushed back on it immediately.
Because I'm like, man, like, Asia's been the
best player for years. To me, she hasn't had
anything to not still be the best player. And
yet, you know, it was just, to me, solemnly dismissed
what Asia Wilson did this season. and what her
history has been. She is the AP Player of the
Year and Defensive Player of the Year. She finishes
first in points, first in total rebounds, first
in blocks, first in steals plus blocks, first
in PER, which is player efficiency rating, first
in win shares, first in 30 -point games, and
first in 20 -point double doubles. Let's be perfectly
honest. She's the best player on the planet.
No disrespect to Nafisa Collier. No disrespect
to Brianna Stewart. And I've said it before.
And I've said it to friends. I've said it before.
That's the big three. It's like how I feel about
the NBA GOAT debate. As long as your answer is
either Michael Jordan, LeBron James, or Kareem
Abdul -Jabbar, I have no argument. No disrespect
to Kobe Bryant. No disrespect to Magic Johnson.
Like, right? But if your person is either Kobe,
sorry, not Kobe, LeBron, Kareem or Michael, I've
got no argument. So I feel about the WNBA best
player in the world, the female best player in
the world. As long as one of the names is Brianna
Stewart, Nafisa Collier, Asia Wilson, I've got
no argument. I firmly believe it is Asia Wilson,
but I have no argument if one of the answers
is either Brianna Stewart or Nafisa Collier because
Nafisa Collier, before her injury, to me was
league MVP. The Aces were struggling. You know,
New York was rolling, so it's kind of hard to
get that MVP the year after a championship because
that team's already good. And so, you know, you
kind of lose that credit. But I think that Asia
Wilson is the best player in the world. I think
she's going to win league MVP. I think it's very
deservedly so. But that is all I have for you
guys today. I am incredibly excited. to be back.
Try to make this thing weekly. Schedule's kind
of evening out a little bit. So try and make
this thing weekly. Get back to the business of
the JTS, Justin Thomas Sports podcast. The social
media page is rolling. Make sure you guys follow
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subscribe to the podcast if you like what you
heard. But this is your owner and host, Justin
Jackson, signing out.