The Mmqb: 10 Things

Conor Orr and Albert Breer break down the steps taken by the league to prevent schedule leaks, if the season has been oversaturated with too many games on Holidays, and the pros and cons we have seen from tankingAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor Orr and Albert Breer give a complete wrap up of this years draft including what teams had the best draft classes, who were the biggest disappointments, what to make of Will Levis going to the Titans, the selection of two running backs in the top twelve, and the quarterback boomAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor Orr and Albert Breer break down the first round of the NFL draft including the Texans trading  back up to pick No. 3, the Lions taking running back Jahmyr Gibbs, if Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud has the higher ceiling, if the Colts snd Anthony Richardson are a good match, and moreAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor and Albert Breer break down the order of what QB's will be drafted in the first round, who might make make the biggest shake up on draft night, and what potential sleeper picks could go in the first roundAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor is joined again by Albert Breer to break down what teams need to nail their selection or make a big move in this years draft. Albert also fills us in on what he's hearing from the Patriots about what their plans are for Mac Jones and how long Bill Belichick will remain with the team before we give our top five picks in the draftAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor is joined by The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt to discuss the odd offseason the NY Jets have had with Aaron Rodgers expressing jis interest to play for the team, deciding to keep Zach Wilson on the team, and what they'll do with a promising defense led by Quinnen Williams & Sauce GardnerAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor Orr and Albert Breer break down the best signings of free agency along with some puzzling ones before discussing big contract extensions and the sale of the Washington Commanders going into the owners meetingsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Conor is joined by Albert Breer this week to break down the swirling rumors of Aaron Rodgers signing with the Jets and how he fits in with the team schematically. We also give some of our boldest predictions of what moves teams will be looking to make this offseasonAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Yes, yes, the holding call on James Bradberry was a little ticky-tack, and the million-dollar playing surface was hilariously bad. But Chiefs-Eagles was also one of the most impressive, efficient and even Super Bowls ever played, and Conor and Gary found plenty of good things to say about that. First, an appreciation of Patrick Mahomes’s limitless possibilities playing in-structure, Andy Reid’s uncanny knack for play-calling, the concepts that set up two wide-open touchdowns and Kadarius Toney as a decoy, return specialist and scorer of touchdowns. Then, the weirdo plays that really cost the Eagles the game, one in which they were exceedingly evenly matched. Plus, Shane Steichen to Indianapolis as the Colts decide to resume normal operations, milquetoast halftime show opinions, and why nothing beats the taste of natural grass. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy &

With Conor out on assignment, Gary instead hosts a show that the sportsbooks made him promise he would never host again. It’s The MMQB Gambling Podcast reunion show, as Jimmy Traina of the SI Media Podcast and Mitch Goldich hop on to go over the logical, interesting and absurd prop bets for Super Bowl LVII between the Chiefs and Eagles. Here’s how it works: Each panel member reveals a prop bet you should wager on (but, really, don’t wager on them, maybe five bucks). And then... well, that’s pretty much it, but four times. Lots of two-point-conversion, field-goal-kicking and butt-pushing talk along the way. We also have score predictions, MVP predictions and darkhorse MVP predictions, as well as a deep dive on the Iona Gaels basketball team. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The Super Bowl is coming up. But whatever. There were 53 other big news stories from around the NFL that have nothing to do with the Chiefs of the Eagles. So Conor and Gary went around the league, starting with the Sean Payton-Broncos marriage. Payton was Denver’s third choice, but keep in mind that the Broncos were probably about Payton’s eighth choice. That said, he is a great coach, but also one who has had his success with an offense that emphasizes pretty much all the things Russell Wilson doesn’t do well. Does this work out in Denver? Then, the Dolphins beat out the Broncos in the Vic Fangio derby, and a look at how Miami is taking a new tack with their defense. Also, DeMeco Ryans and a Texans organization that is at least poised to turn the corner, Mike McCarthy takes over play-calling in Dallas while Kellen Moore gets to unlock Justin Herbert, and Duce Staley gets to climb another rung in the ladder as he heads to Carolina. Finally, the prospect of the Packers being done with Aaron Rodgers, and Tom Br

It was one debacle and one (albeit sloppy) thriller on Championship Sunday, and Conor and Gary are here to discuss how we ended up with a Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl. And how NFL officiating might have hit a new low in the process. First, Patrick Mahomes’s exceedingly impressive performance on a bad ankle and with three receivers—how did he make it work? Plus, the Ossai push, Skyy Moore redemption, and the botched series of officiating decisions that led to the do-over. Then, a trip to Philly where Conor saw first hand how the Eagles dealt with Nick Bosa, and how truly unwatchable football can be when one team literally runs out of quarterbacks. Also, the long day for the 49ers’ best defensive players, and Park Avenue drops the ball on DeVonta Smith dropping the ball—and hangs the officiating crew out to dry in the process. Also, a vocabulary word that might not be new to you, and regrettable road-trip late-night food decisions. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com o

We have our first head-coach hiring of 2023, as the Panthers turn to former Colts coach and first starting quarterback in Carolina franchise history Frank Reich to come in and get the offense moving. Conor and Gary size up the move, the upgrade for Reich himself after escaping Indianapolis, and the mild disappointment that the Steve Wilks-Ben McAdoo marriage has probably run its course. Then, a look at the Jets’ decision to bring in Nathaniel Hackett as their new offensive coordinator after his one-and-done season in Denver, and continued confusion over what it means to get a Blake Bortles- or Kyle Orton-led offense operating at a league-average level. Also, a look at the conference championship games—how the Eagles’ strength of schedule plays into it, the 49ers’ big question mark offensively, and the Chiefs’ desperate search for answers with an immobile Mahomes—as well as a discussion of Conor’s near-perfect picks so far this postseason. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmq

The NFL’s final four is set, and Conor and Gary are here to talk through just how we arrived here. First, what in the world is happening to the Cowboys at the end of playoff losses? Is there anything fundamentally wrong with this team, or do they simply keep running into a very good 49ers team in the playoffs? And does, theoretically, handing things over to Sean Payton make things any better? Then, the Bills run out of steam against a surgical Joe Burrow who threatens to quietly rule the AFC for the rest of eternity, the Eagles just beat up and beat down the Giants in every imaginable way, and the Chiefs start their search for answers when it comes to building a game plan for a hobbled Patrick Mahomes. Plus, Greg Roman is out as offensive coordinator in Baltimore. What’s next for Roman, the Ravens, and Lamar Jackson? Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out:

Conor and Gary are still sifting through the aftermath of *SUPER* Wild-Card Weekend, including what was likely the end of Tom Brady’s run in Tampa. Assuming he comes back, where does it make sense for him to play in 2023 (and, likely, beyond?). Then, a conversation of three very different outcomes for offensive coordinators. Joe Lombardi, as expected, is out with the Chargers, opening up a chance to work with Justin Herbert in one of the NFL’s most desirable non-head coaching jobs. Byron Leftwich is out in Tampa after a rocky year (and seemingly little public support from his now-former quarterback). And Ben Johnson says “no thanks” to a collection of underwhelming head-coach openings and returns to the Lions for at least one more year. Plus, a discussion of special-teams pressure in light of Brett Maher’s MNF struggles, and a look at the weekend’s Conference Semifinal Games. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising In

Super Wild-Card Weekend is five-sixths of the way done—nobody likes Monday night playoff football!—and Sunday’s and Saturday’s action brought a nice mixture of excitement and regret. Conor and Gary discuss every bit of it. The Ravens once again had Joe Burrow’s number (relatively speaking) and came up with some nice solutions on offense, but also a few of the most mind-bogglingly poor decisions by coaches and/or quarterback. The butt-push that wasn’t, and why the Bengals are glad the Ravens are in the rear-view mirror. Plus, Daniel Jones as the most vindicated-y man in the world, the Bills win ugly in a game that lasted approximately 97 hours, the Jaguars comeback (a fake butt-push!), while the Brandon Staley mistakes are piling up, he should still be the guy for the Chargers (the offensive coordinator on the other hand…), and the 49ers play a meh game and win by 20 points anyway. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertisi

It was a relatively quiet Black Monday in the NFL, as only two teams made moves at head coach while three other significant coordinator firings went down. Conor and Gary delve into the situation in Arizona, where Kliff Kingsbury and Steve Keim are done less than a year after being awarded seven-year extensions. Then a look at Houston, where a head coach went one-and-done for the second consecutive year. Are the Texans ready to function like a professional football franchise? Plus, a discussion of offensive coordinator changes in Tennessee and Washington, and the strange situation for any new defensive coordinator in Cleveland after the Browns move on from Joe Woods. Then, a trip through the NFL playoff bracket, during which Conor makes predictions based on logic while Gary acts like a stubborn jerk. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.

That’s a wrap for the regular season, but the entire week was unforgettable across the NFL. Conor and Gary start with an unbelievable opening play in Buffalo, and the Bills pulling it together under unreal circumstances. Also, Conor discusses the time he spent in Western New York last week, as greater Buffalo worked its way through the emotion of Damar Hamlin’s collapse and recovery. Then, the Packers go out in a very familiar way, and Aaron Rodgers leaves the field in a kind of weird way—what does it all mean? Pete Carroll is a hat-wearing playoff coach, Jalen Hurts returns, and the Cowboys (hopefully for their sake) get their January dud out of the way. Plus, the Bengals and the coin flip that wasn’t, the Chargers mangle themselves in a meaningless game, the Jaguars win the AFC South despite one of their worst performances of the year, the Sean Payton-Broncos connection that makes little sense for Sean Payton, and the Bears find themselves in a fascinating spot after clinching the top pick of the draft. Hav

Unless you’re a Bucs or Packers fan, everything you feared came to be in Week 17: The Packers are still alive, the Bucs are going to host a playoff game, and Jarrett Stidham is maybe good, perhaps? Conor and Gary are here to figure things out. First, whether or not anyone should fear the Packers in the event Green Bay gets back to the playoffs, or if it seems like that’s just the stylish thing to say. Plus, the Bucs put up 30 points in clinching the NFC South, but has the offense really figured things out? A conversation of the surprisingly effective Jarrett Stidham performance on Sunday afternoon that fueled Josh McDaniels’s quest for a tie, and the red flag that popped up with the Eagles that has nothing to do with the injured Jalen Hurts. Plus, some branding advice for the Sasquatch. Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrrAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

It’s a hybrid show on The MMQB NFL Podcast—not quite a review, not quite a preview, but you get a good meal. Conor and Gary do their best to ignore a horrifically boring slate of Week 16 games and instead look to the bigger pictures around the league. And, to do that, it’s a whirlwind trip division by division. On this show: • A discussion of the fallout in Denver, where the Broncos’ new ownership group takes the most predictable and—historically—least effective path toward putting out the five-alarm fire engulfing their organization. • Baker Mayfield’s on-field play has put him back in the discussion for a starting job in 2023. Should he want that? Should anyone want that? • The Packers are back in the playoff hunt. Have they really turned it around though? A search for optimism, but on the defensive side of the ball. • Plus, J.J. Watt’s retirement, the final stages of the Colts’ total collapse, the Bucs continue to hang by an absolute thread, and more. So much more. Have a comment, critique or question for