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NFC Champions
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Tristan and Miles talk about the Seahawks’ 31-27 victory over the Rams to head to the Super Bowl, an instant classic game that went full throttle for all 60 minutes.
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Transcript
Is the Pike Place Market Fish Toss Overrated?
00:00:00
Tristan Amundson
Miles, Kurt Menifee last week on the Brock and Salk show asked them a question. Are you guys tired of seeing us go to Pike Place Market with our camera crew?
00:00:13
Tristan Amundson
Do you still want to see the fish toss? Is that something that the Seattle public are hungry for? Do we want more salmon in the same way we want more Bobo? And the guys let them know, hey, it is a little dated. It's a little old. There's other things you can show us. It's a gorgeous city.
00:00:33
Tristan Amundson
i was happy. Not to see a fish toss. Now, I might have missed it. So I want you to tell me if I missed it or not. I did see some gorgeous shots of the city during the Fox broadcast. It looked like a beautiful night in Seattle.
00:00:49
Tristan Amundson
Beautiful pink sunset.
Reflecting on the Seahawks vs Rams Game
00:00:51
Tristan Amundson
Miles, how are you doing? What did you think of the broadcast?
00:00:55
M dub
Tristan, great to be with you today. I do have to report about that fish toss. One time many moons ago when I lived in Seattle, took my beloved grandmother there. We took a look at it.
00:01:06
M dub
And what she said afterwards was, where's the real one? It's it's a little tinier in there than you'd think for as famous as it is. And I see why she asked the question. i see why they put it on television. And and I think TV's really stepped up in 2025 showing us we've gotten some shots from Bainbridge Island.
00:01:24
M dub
Is how it's gone, which which I think that that's a lot of effort. That's a lot of work. And yes, I thought the aerial work in this broadcast was excellent. There's there's a lot of diversity in Seattle and Washington, and and I love i'd love to see it.
00:01:37
Tristan Amundson
What?
00:01:37
M dub
That's what I was watching for in this game.
00:01:39
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, well, and one last question before we get into the game. What did you think of Aaron's jacket? I thought I thought she looked great. It did have kind of a mob wife kind of vibe to it with the with the fur. What did you think of Aaron Andrews and and her wonderful jacket during the broadcast?
00:01:58
M dub
Gotta be honest, I totally just didn't... I don't remember anything from the sideline reporters in this game. I was... um I'm refreshing my beverage or or something.
00:02:07
Tristan Amundson
Okay, well, that's the show.
00:02:08
M dub
Sorry, sorry.
00:02:08
Tristan Amundson
i don I don't think I have anything else to talk about. I wanted to hit those two things.
00:02:11
M dub
here
00:02:13
Tristan Amundson
Miles, what a game, man. What an incredible game that we got to see on Sunday. Can I just start by saying this? And I think this is a good place for us to start.
00:02:25
Tristan Amundson
This is not only exactly the game that I expected that we would see, but it's exactly the game that I feared. It's exactly why i didn't want to have to face the Rams because the Rams turned this into basically a 50 50 game. They turned it into two heavyweights going at it Who's going to win?
00:02:45
Tristan Amundson
And, you know, we were we were kind of hoping for more of a laugher. We would have loved um a blowout win, right? But the Rams, they gave the people what they wanted. They gave the nation what they wanted.
00:02:57
Tristan Amundson
What an incredibly entertaining game. Two incredibly good teams playing. We won this one. I think if we played the same game 10 times, I really do think one team's going to win four. The other team's going to win six or five and five. I think it's that close and good of a matchup. And I do love um what Mike said after the game. He said, let's get we're going to have to get used to this because this is how these games are going to be for a long, long time. And I think he's totally right. um
00:03:28
Tristan Amundson
Just give me your initial feelings about the game.
00:03:33
M dub
I think the emotions pregame are exactly right. it It is the game I wanted and I expected and I feared that it would happen all at the same time. There was a dream. There was a way.
00:03:45
M dub
Just in this NFL season, there was a way this playoff bracket could have broken down.
00:03:48
Tristan Amundson
Thank you.
00:03:51
M dub
And I think it could have been relatively easy for the Seahawks to get there. And you knew what that Bears versus Rams game in the freezer, you knew with the Rams triumphing once they got that interception over time that ah it was not going to be easy.
00:04:09
M dub
And so there's a a bit of fear building up throughout the week. If you're like me, you were watching the AFC championship game beforehand and going, this looks like some sub 500 football from week 14. Come ah this that's go on, man. and he And you just knew that it it was it was really kind of an opener versus main event ah scheduling for the day.
00:04:33
M dub
All that, but you know what? The the Seahawks, they they went through the fire. it you didn't As much as we've been talking about the the the playoff bracket, they got it head on in this game.
00:04:47
M dub
They took it on and and they triumphed. And you know, it it really took all 60 minutes. that That's what stunned me about that for this game. We went from zero to 100 immediately and it stayed there until the clock hit all zeros. It was, this was all 60 minutes wall to wall football, slight moments where maybe one team had the edge over the other, but but really no dips. It was just, it was a, it was full 60 minutes of championship level football.
00:05:19
Tristan Amundson
that's you you perfectly described it i think this is a good moment because i think this describes your point exactly um we we discussed at the end of of the last podcast where i was gonna watch the game um and so let me give the big reveal because i and i i think it plays into your point perfectly i was i did go to the to the party i went um I was watching the game with a bunch of Rams fans, um three of us Seahawks fans.
00:05:28
M dub
Thank you.
00:05:47
Tristan Amundson
Actually, i should say four of us Seahawks fans there. And um what was really interesting about watching a game like this, ah this good of a game with people that really enjoy the Rams, that have watched every Rams game, that knows that team inside and out,
00:06:05
Tristan Amundson
Our emotions were basically identical for the entire game. If I was pacing back and forth, they were pacing back and forth. It would be a moment where I'm high-fiving my Seahawks buddies.
00:06:17
Tristan Amundson
And then, as you know, right, five minutes later, they're high-fiving their Rams buddies. And there's moments when, oh, yeah I'm not going to make eye contact with you because i you know I feel almost bad because my team just did this. And then, oh, you're not going to make eye contact with me because you feel almost bad. And all of those emotions were just going back and forth and back and forth. And I think if you were just to watch the people, you would have no idea who was winning and who was losing. I think if you did not watch the TV, if you were just watching the people and taking notes, you would at the end have to ask, okay, so so who won, who lost? Because it was just, to your point, championship football from...
00:06:59
Tristan Amundson
Literally the very first snap to the very end, both teams battling it out in in such an incredible way.
00:07:02
M dub
Thank you.
00:07:08
Tristan Amundson
I walk away with such respect for this Rams team. I already had a ton of respect before, to your point. There was an easy way and and hard and a hard way to get to the playoffs or get to the the Super Bowl. And we we took the hard path and we were victorious.
00:07:23
Tristan Amundson
But that doesn't take anything away from the fact that it was an incredibly hard path championship game from from start to finish. It really was incredible.
00:07:33
M dub
This game even went past the zeros. I don't know if you were like me, but we had this moment at the end where Pukenikua is making another unbelievable catch. The coverage is all over him. He's he's still fighting through and making the catch.
00:07:48
M dub
Is he inbounds? Is he out of bounds? And there was the moment... where the the clock was at zero and there's a big rush of of Seahawks and personnel from that side of the field into the field, a rush of celebration.
00:08:04
M dub
And if you were like me, Tristan, I was going, I literally said to the people around me, it it was not mixed company of Rams fans, but, and and nobody was listening to me by the way, but I i did say out loud this game is not over.
00:08:21
M dub
And and i I was not in a i it I needed that one last bit from the referee to say... The referee literally needed to tell me... I'm pretty good at knowing when the game is over, normally.
00:08:34
M dub
Watched a few sports games in my life. Today, or yesterday, I really needed the referee to say, through the microphone, the game is over.
Seahawks' Road to the Super Bowl
00:08:43
M dub
And that's when I finally... thought That was... that was That was the only time I felt any sense of relief the entire three hours.
00:08:51
Tristan Amundson
No, I listen. I was in the exact same boat, had the exact same thing happen when when that caught when that catch was made. My brother in law yelled, hey, you know, he he went out of bounds. There's still time on the clock. And I like he's a Rams fan. And I yelled back to him. Yep, you're right. I mean, 100 percent. There's they got one more shot at this. I figured there was going to be one second left.
00:09:15
Tristan Amundson
Right. One second from the 50. And here we go. Matthew Stafford. Can you heave one into the end zone for an unbelievable Hail Mary, which would have been, I mean, an incredible storyline for them. Right. But to your point, it was clear he was out or he was in bounds when he went down. And, uh, I mean, talk about it, man, from start to finish, this game did not let you down. This game continued to give the full octane, whatever you want to call it, the, the, the full experience of playoff football.
00:09:50
Tristan Amundson
Um, again, two championship teams really going at it to very worthy teams going at it. And, um, It's just, it was such a moment of elation, such a beautiful moment. I know, i mean, speaking for all Seahawks fans everywhere, you just, you you get that double zero and you take that deep breath and it suddenly hits you.
00:10:16
Tristan Amundson
We're going to the Superbowl. We like my team gets to keep playing. We get to see this continued and happen. Um, Yeah, I mean, I got a giant smile on my face right now is were as we're talking about it because um the as we've said all year, this doesn't happen all the time.
00:10:34
Tristan Amundson
you don't You don't win games by the margin that the Seahawks have so often this year. You don't win 14 games the margin. in in the Seahawks case ever until this year.
00:10:46
Tristan Amundson
You don't get to the NFC championship game, play one of the best, if not the the, you know, I guess the second best team in the league and are victorious. You just don't, this doesn't happen all the time.
00:11:00
Tristan Amundson
We gotta, we gotta pinch ourselves. If you're listening to me right now, you gotta pinch yourself a little bit. You gotta to just say, thank you. You just gotta to be it like, just gratitude.
00:11:10
Tristan Amundson
Because man what a special game, what a special moment for this team and for all us fans. It's just, it's incredible.
00:11:17
M dub
You know what's funny, what I was thinking a lot about with this and getting to the Super Bowl?
00:11:24
M dub
It really kind of snuck up, even on me, following this week to week. It it really felt like it snuck up on me. i was just reminded so much with... with With the Pete Carroll team, the Legion of Boom, 2013 and 2014 Super Bowls, the buildup there was years long.
00:11:41
M dub
And, you know, it starts in 2010 when Pete comes to town. You get that 7-9 playoff entry. You get Marshawn Lynch added at midseason in 2010, the Beast Quake.
00:11:53
M dub
and And that's kind of, it's kind of this long mountain slope that's pointing up and up. And it takes four years to go from 2010 to 2013 at the top of the mountain. Funny enough, the Seahawks, I was looking at the Seahawks were not the favorites in that Super Bowl against the Broncos. The Broncos were slight favorites, but it's, it's nobody remembers that now. It feels like they were just cruising totally on the mountaintop that entire 2013 season.
00:12:18
M dub
That's a four-year buildup. this just really came out of nowhere. it was ah It was a really great year for Mike McDonald, year number one. And the Seahawks offseason seemed to have a lot of positives and a lot of negatives to it. So so it felt. and And that was from our perspective.
00:12:37
M dub
A lot of people thought it was kind of all negative or mostly negative. And there's really not a very long story to this team. They just kind of, Got everything together pretty quickly and just immediately played complete team football, appreciated their depth, appreciate appreciated each other, had clear veteran leaders, and it just kind of happened without any sense of drama or buildup at all.
00:13:06
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, you know, it I guess it speaks to how quickly the team made adjustments, right? yeah you You sign a couple years ago Leonard Williams, and you know, okay, this is our guy. We want to keep him, check.
00:13:19
Tristan Amundson
you You get Baker and and Dotson last year, the linebackers, and you realize pretty quickly, what, about halfway through the season, ah this isn't going to work. We we need to adjust. Yeah. And you make the adjustment. You get Ernest Jones. and You just kind of do it quickly.
00:13:36
Tristan Amundson
um You think about um Rashid, you know, Shahid, the fact that, hey, we we need another guy, but this is the guy.
00:13:39
M dub
you
00:13:45
Tristan Amundson
We're going to get him. And just not only... Great decisions, obviously, all these signings, but and maybe it's just really speaks to the linebackers not holding on to bad bad decisions. Hey, we're just going to move on. We're going do this. Hey, we're not going to try to keep working with DK Metcalf. We love him. He's great, but he's not our guy. We're going to move on. Hey, you Gino Smith, we're going to move on.
00:14:10
Tristan Amundson
conviction maybe. And, and I feel like that's, I don't feel like, I know that's a word that um Mike has used to describe how special John Schneider is, is, is his conviction.
00:14:17
M dub
Thank you.
00:14:22
Tristan Amundson
and maybe that's what we're seeing the last two years and and why we were able to get here so quickly is John Schneider being able to um follow his conviction just you know, fail fast, right? And make a decision. It didn't work. Okay. Make the next decision. That was the right one. Let's move on.
00:14:41
Tristan Amundson
um i wonder how much John, I mean, obviously he has a lot to do with it and, and deserves a ton of credit for what he's put together to your point, because it it feels like it's gone so quickly.
00:14:53
Tristan Amundson
Mike McDonald, right? I mean, the conviction of, We are going to wait until after the AFC championship game to sign our coach. That I remember, you remember at the time, it seemed like forever. When are we going to get a head coach? you know Why can't we just, everyone else is getting a head coach. Why don't we have one?
00:15:10
Tristan Amundson
No, we're going to follow John's conviction. So I just wonder how much his conviction is a part of of the whole story and why it feels so quick.
00:15:19
M dub
I think of the Ryan Grubb situation as well.
00:15:23
Tristan Amundson
Yes.
00:15:23
M dub
It wasn't a beautiful year last year, but at the time, this time last year, he had gotten fired and looking back at it like, yeah, no, it wasn't perfect, but this guy just got 10 wins as a first year and if at first year in his life in the NFL. That's that's not nothing. and And yet, boy, was that a crucial decision. I mean, that that was as essential as any of the others to get here.
Sam Darnold's Impact on the Game
00:15:50
Tristan Amundson
Absolutely. Yeah. Hey, Ryan's not the right guy. Let's get the right guy in. um So speaking of the right guy, ah Clint Kubiak, who, um you know, really, i thought did an incredible job in this game and in managing a lot of different pieces.
00:16:06
Tristan Amundson
Tell me how you felt during that first drive. When I think of that first drive, there was a a graphic that came up.
00:16:11
M dub
Thank you.
00:16:13
Tristan Amundson
um I want to say maybe maybe 14, basically one quarter into the game. I think it was like 14 minutes into the game. And the time of possession was 10 minutes to the Seahawks, four minutes to the Rams. We were dominating time of possession. There was a time, I have to admit, Miles, in the beginning of this game where I thought we might just dominate.
00:16:33
Tristan Amundson
um I thought that we might just really lay it to him, get up 14, 20 points and just not relinquish. um Obviously, that's not the game that we got.
00:16:44
Tristan Amundson
But it was there was a moment in the beginning, you know, that first drive was so cool. And to get that touchdown so quickly, um the way even that K-9 was was was moving and just kind of the, you know, the jukes that he was ah he was doing out there.
00:17:00
Tristan Amundson
There was a moment in the beginning where i I thought this might be a runaway train. Did you kind of get that sense at all? Like call it in the first quarter? How did you feel?
00:17:09
M dub
There have been some games this season where I've got a little bit zealous of maybe regular season blowout records and and what could happen ah if the Seahawks kept the foot on the gas for all 60 minutes against the Saints or the Cardinals.
00:17:23
M dub
I didn't feel that in this game. I was very afraid of what the Rams were going to do. i wanted to get as many points on the board as possible. I thought it was possible to establish a lead, but I did not think a blowout was like a possibility in this game.
00:17:38
M dub
Third play for the Seahawks on ah offense from scrimmage is that the deep connection to Rasheed Shahid. And that's a play that's a play we've been talking about. from I feel like I've been talking about it for months now. When is this going to happen? It's really crazy that just this straight, I mean, just running a straight line. and It's really funny that it took until...
00:18:01
M dub
this deep into the playoffs for that connection that to happen. They've had him in the building for maybe three months now or almost three months. And I was really glad to see that looking at the replay.
00:18:13
M dub
I didn't notice this in real time, but, but looking at it again later, Shahid, he's got his man beat, right? But, He does even have to slow down a little bit. there There is just a different math which with how fast this guy is, getting the ball to him down the field.
00:18:29
M dub
And Sam Tarnold and the Seahawks still haven't totally cracked it. but This was a good great sign. I was a little... There were two other targets to Shahid in this game, but neither of them were very deep.
00:18:44
M dub
So this this actually goes down as its only reception in the game. i was really baffled that they're just like, yep, we got it in the first opening minutes. No need for us to go back to to this well. I thought that was a little bit odd, but in the end.
00:19:00
M dub
Really crucial play. And, you know, the the Seahawks have had some issues with starting slow. That goes for the December game against the Rams. Even some of the other December games that they ended up winning decisively started really slow.
00:19:15
M dub
I thought that was really crucial. You had to play all 60 minutes in this game, as we know. So I thought i thought that was just a really good sign that there's There's no warming up into this game. We're going for it. And they got a touchdown on the board in the first five minutes.
00:19:31
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, I loved, um is courage the right word? I loved just the moxie. I think that's the word I'm looking for. That that showed from Clint Kubiak, obviously the belief in um in Sammy that he was going to be able to get that throw down the field, specifically with not doing a lot of work this week with the oblique, you know to be able to launch that down,
00:19:57
Tristan Amundson
And, you know, one thing I was kind of impressed with, he is such a fast player and he caught that ball and had three or four strides before maybe five strides before the defender tackled him.
00:20:09
Tristan Amundson
And I kind of thought the second he got the ball, he was just going to be gone. um So that defender was able to stay on him pretty well and, ah you know, eventually make the tackle and and then make it a, you know, at least, you know, we had to prove it right.
00:20:16
M dub
Thank
00:20:21
Tristan Amundson
We had to run it in with K-9. That was such a cool play. It was so cool to see, you know, Just kind of the the back and forth of that first drive, ah the the runs by K9, the jukes, that beautiful play, and and just the tone setting, right, that that suddenly, you know, that created. and knowing we just got a touchdown on our first possession and we're going to get the ball to start the second half. It's kind of a – it just instantly is is that beautiful cherry on top um that you get.
00:20:58
Tristan Amundson
Let's talk a little bit. I mean, we should keep talking about some of these plays. As you're talking about that throw, I just, I'm thinking about Sam right now. And I'm thinking about, i mean, what a beautiful game this was for him.
00:21:11
Tristan Amundson
Overall, the poise of um of Sam Darnold to be able to, ah we we talked about it for the last few weeks, right? We talked about it a lot um leading up to this game, not making the crucial mistake.
00:21:25
Tristan Amundson
it It was so cool to see. And i um I guess one of my takeaways with Sam is there's plenty of plays out there to to make an impact on the game. You don't have to be great every single play.
00:21:38
Tristan Amundson
And man, I found myself every single time he got sacked, Every time he rolled out and just threw it away, i think I cheered. I literally at this party, at people must have thought I was crazy. I cheered. I was happy about it.
00:21:54
Tristan Amundson
No problem. that No problem. I mean, what's what's that quote that we had that we were talking about with Mike McDonald earlier, Miles, a few weeks ago? um An incomplete pass is perfect. That's great. That's that's perfect. Let's do that.
00:22:07
Tristan Amundson
And ah I kept having that thought when Sam would roll out and just throw it out of bounds, when he would take a sack and he would just get his his arms around that football and secure it.
00:22:18
Tristan Amundson
That's fine. Like just the the negative play was the ultimately the thing that was going to kill us in this game. And for him to, in my mind, basically play perfect, just absolutely incredible. The poise.
00:22:34
M dub
I absolutely agree with you. There's also, you know, it is a mistake, but he reacts to it so well that you do kind of forget about it. But there there's the shotgun snap that, you know, he's not quite ready for it.
00:22:46
M dub
And the ball's on the ground immediately.
00:22:46
Tristan Amundson
Yeah.
00:22:48
M dub
And he just lays on that thing. and it's I mean, it's the right thing to do. But I think it's hard, even for an NFL caliber quarterback, to just to just do that. I think there's something...
00:23:00
M dub
about the human mind that says, I'm in a hole. i need to dig out of it right now. I need to dig out of this hole. But the reality of football is like you you end up out of the hole and back on ground level with with the next snap as long as you can move on.
00:23:15
M dub
And what a powerful example that in the AFC championship game, I mean, all of Bronco Nation is wishing that Jared Stidham, you know, it's a broken play.
00:23:15
Tristan Amundson
Absolutely. Yeah.
00:23:24
M dub
it's It's a play that's not going well, which is not Jared Stidham's fault at first. But he he doesn't take the sack. He panics and creates this this terrible fumble that that ends up being the margin in the game.
00:23:39
Tristan Amundson
It's a broken play. Let it be broken. I think it is such a powerful thing.
00:23:41
M dub
Yeah.
00:23:43
Tristan Amundson
Absolutely.
00:23:44
M dub
Right, and and Sam did not do that in the previous matchups against this team. it's It's been really great the last few weeks. Just the ball is never really in a dangerous situation. And, you know, you mentioned these sacks and these incomplete passes. there They were great plays, and and there weren't even that many of them.
00:24:03
M dub
For the night, he completes 25 out of 36 passes. That's a great percentage, and it's three sacks for a total of 25 yards. So, you you know, uh.
00:24:12
Tristan Amundson
Thank you.
00:24:14
M dub
ah How not a problem is that when when you're throwing 346 passing yards? You know, you know those those broken plays stay really small when you just take the loss and move on instead of creating a turnover.
00:24:28
Tristan Amundson
Yeah. And in the grams in the grand scheme of things, right, it's just it's it really is small potatoes. And I just keep thinking about um Ernest Jones picking him up after that first Rams game and him saying, no, like Sam's our guy. We love Sam. We believe in him.
00:24:46
Tristan Amundson
and And the incredible moxie that the defense has been playing with um you know for the last, you know call it five, six weeks, whatever it is. I mean, really all season. um But I mean, they've really obviously turned it on here. and And I wonder just, even though this turned out not to be the defense's best game, and and obviously this incredible Rams team gives us trouble and there's just there's no way around it.
00:25:11
Tristan Amundson
And yet I wonder... I wonder if some of Sam's maturation is also learning, understanding, trusting his defense, appreciating his defense and realizing, yeah, you know what? Like I i don't, I really do not have to be Superman. I can look across the field.
00:25:32
Tristan Amundson
I can see these monsters on our defense. And they allow me to, I love that you bring up the snap that, you know, goes by him. That monster defense allows Sam to know, nope, just fall on it. It's, I don't need to try to fix something that's broken.
00:25:48
Tristan Amundson
This play is broken. It's just let it die. It's fine. We'll move on to the next one. that's That's the perfect thing to bring up, Miles. I love you bringing that up because it's the ultimate example of, we're like, this play isn't going to lose it for us. And if we punt it,
00:26:04
Tristan Amundson
they have to deal with Nikki Monroe and Devin Witherspoon and big cat and Byron Murphy and and Jordan Lally. It's, it's going to be terrible. Julian love, excuse me. So, you know, just let them, let them deal with it. I, I love that thought. And um yeah, that's a really good example of it.
00:26:23
M dub
We're talking about Sam Darnold eliminating mistakes, which is true. And i went into this game really thinking this was going to be a run-heavy game.
00:26:31
Tristan Amundson
Yeah. Yeah.
00:26:31
M dub
We do have to say it was much more than that for Sam Darnold in this game. This was an absolutely elite game. And when the offensive line was able to create a clean pocket, which which wasn't every time, but it was enough times...
00:26:47
M dub
he was so precise and aggressive pretty much every time he had a clean pocket. There's a lot of advanced stats I've heard thrown around that just shows how good this game was from Sam Darnold.
00:26:59
M dub
This was his most passing yards in any game this season, I believe. And so it was it wasn't... There was the eliminating mistakes, which which I think is what we were most dialed into.
00:27:09
M dub
Because we'd seen the excellent play all throughout the season, but we'd seen the mistakes as well.
00:27:09
Tristan Amundson
Yep. yep
00:27:15
M dub
So I think from at this point, following the Seahawks so closely, it's like, yeah, eliminating the mistakes is the more important thing, but... He did both in this game. It's just so crazy how they won that 41 to six game. And we're talking about, you know, game management the whole time. through this This was way beyond that and a whole nother category. it it had been several weeks since the Seahawks needed to win a game through the air.
00:27:41
M dub
And it was it was it was an immaculate performance.
00:27:45
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, and the last time was probably against this Rams team, I think, where they really had to open it up. And and Sam, um during that game, rose to the occasion and really did some cool stuff. and And again, to your point, we see him rise to the occasion again in this game. um And what I found is probably around the third quarter, it took me about halfway through the third quarter,
00:28:08
Tristan Amundson
To where I was like, Sam's Sam's got us like this is fine. Like now that's not to say that I thought we were going to win and hey, this is in the bag. But my confidence level in Sam went from just don't make mistakes. Now, I still appreciate you right when he just would make the choice to land on the ball or whatever and not try to fix a but a broken play.
00:28:29
Tristan Amundson
But I found myself around midway midway through the third as he was passing it. I wasn't holding my breath thinking, oh man, you know, could this be an interception? you just you could kind of feel that he was in control and he was playing the way that he was meant to be. He was meant to play. and up to his potential. And um that was kind of a cool emotional moment for me watching the game and realizing, no we've we've turned the corner here. Like, with this is beyond game management. Like, this is game winning.
00:28:57
Tristan Amundson
um And those two things are very interrelated. But, yeah, I think sam Sam really quieted the voices in my own head about um what I thought of him as a quarterback and and really, really just appreciated the way He took control of this game, to your point, literally from start to finish. And I think just as impressive, right, that that first drive to get that touchdown to that last, you know, call it four minute, you know, some odd drive to end the game and to ice it um really, really um impressive both ways.
00:29:36
M dub
It is just so funny how much of the conversation was about if if Sam Darnold could win the big game. Just, I mean, so the Vikings against the Rams last year in the playoffs, which he loses, and it it probably cost him a lot of money, but I think unfairly...
00:29:51
M dub
He was sacked nine times in that game. it Just, you know, if the Seahawks allow nine sacks in the Super Bowl, it's not going to be a very good game. His stats are going to be terrible and it's going to look bad. it's not It's not, I mean, what he supposed to do if he gets sacked nine times, you know? So, oh gosh, that that um it was satisfying to see that narrative die so quickly because it was pretty prominent around NFL circles.
00:30:19
M dub
you know, eight eight or nine days ago.
00:30:22
Tristan Amundson
Yeah. Yeah. And good for him. It must feel great too. And I mean, you know, maybe it' it's a manufacturer. I was going to say, get that monkey off your back. It's a bit manufactured and it really just depends on who you're listening to. So it's, It's possible that he wasn't really listening too much to it anyway. um i did hear, it's it's not a terrible question, but it's an interesting question I heard during his press conference. One of the reporters, I'm assuming, and in fact, it was a national reporter, I've never heard the voice before, asked him,
00:30:51
Tristan Amundson
how who how he's different now than the sam darnold that said i'm seeing ghosts and he basically kind of asked him to kind of give me a juxtaposition between you know that version of sam darnold to this version and i love sam's response he chuckled he's like i actually had forgotten about that thanks thanks thanks for bringing that up and then he he was like you're good it's fine and you know then he yeah tried to answer the question the best he could
00:31:05
M dub
Thank you.
00:31:16
Tristan Amundson
But I bet knowing good athletes, I bet that's basically true. Like, yeah, man, I'd kind of forgotten about that. Like that, that's the old, that's a different version of me.
00:31:27
Tristan Amundson
And, and frankly, I mean, if you think about that version of Sam Darnold, that was a version with terrible coaching, really. I mean, the, the first two coaches in Sam Darnold's career aren't in the NFL anymore.
00:31:40
Tristan Amundson
I mean, that I don't know what else to tell you that that's that really goes to show like he had incredibly bad coaching and and that certainly had a lot to do. And he was on really bad teams and that had a lot to do with why he wasn't very good. I mean, this isn't maybe as personally complicated as as we like to make it or as as the media likes to make it in general.
00:32:06
M dub
Tristan, can i move on to something that we talked about in our in our preview, and it it actually came to fruition, which kind of stunned me because we spent quite a bit of time talking about special teams in our last episode previewing
Special Teams and Game Strategy
00:32:22
M dub
it.
00:32:22
M dub
And sure enough, that ended up being one of the biggest moments of the game. It played out kind of exactly as predicted. It wasn't just us. I think a lot of people predicted this.
00:32:33
M dub
So it was really astonishing to see it. We have Xavier Smith, the Rams punt returner, just completely dropping a punt in the third quarter of this game.
00:32:45
M dub
And it was set up early because in the first half, Smith muffs a punt and Derrick Young, the Seahawks special teamer, who's been on the team four years, by the way, I noticed that on that first play, I'm i'm sure everybody knows this, but you know the Smith on the first one, he bobbles it and it lands in front of him. But Young has kind of traveled over to his side. And it's kind of a close battle to get that fumble, but Young's just kind of off to the side.
00:33:16
M dub
There's a punt in the middle that Smith ends up fair catching cleanly. Young is right there in front of him. And then sure enough, in the third quarter where the next one is fumbled, the reek is right there, right in front of them, ready to collect.
00:33:31
M dub
i I can't believe the Rams to me are a team that, that has made a thousand smart decisions. They traded away so many of their first-round picks. They haven't had first-round picks in forever.
00:33:44
M dub
They have rebuilt this Super Bowl contender from the depths of the draft. There's there's third, fourth, and fifth-rounders that they've selected everywhere on this team. They clearly have so much going right for them.
00:33:57
M dub
Maybe football just is that complicated because I don't know how you can leave – This journey has really made me appreciate special teams more than ever. It's the plays in the game where the most yardage is changing hands no matter what.
00:34:12
M dub
And it needs to be good. And I can't believe that the Rams special teams was so bad and the Seahawks were so good that you could actually see this. It was going to come somewhere. And and it it actually happened. I just couldn't believe it.
00:34:27
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, no, I mean, you you obviously we talked about it and you were just waiting for the moment if it was going to happen. and And I think the way that I and I think most of us thought of it was we're going to see this in the form of Rashid. You know, he's going to he's going to have at least a 60 yard return and, you know, set us up in great field position, which just by just by his very presence, they kept kicking it into the end zone and giving it to us at the 35. Just his very presence. He was giving us 35 yards over and over again, which is what, you know, was great. um But yeah, I think when I was thinking special teams miscues, I was thinking of us taking advantage of them um from an offensive special teams perspective from, you know, we're we're doing our kick return team and and we get a touchdown or something like that.
00:35:20
Tristan Amundson
Um, and it is interesting, the nature of special teams. There's so many different nuances to it that you never quite know when a bad thing is going to rear its ugly head.
00:35:30
Tristan Amundson
And, uh, one thing you do know though, is if the same things are happening over and over again to a unit, there, there is a bit of a problem. And, you know, to your point, that guy had already, um,
00:35:41
Tristan Amundson
it almost muffed a punt earlier, right? He was able to land on it and and and take care of that. But, you know, already he was um dancing on the edge of the knife.
00:35:51
M dub
Thank
00:35:53
Tristan Amundson
And then, of course, Derrick Young being there, Johnny on the spot to be able to get that, know, ah get that recovery. it's It's a massive, I mean, absolutely massive, massive play. And i kind of liken it to our own boneheaded play when we have them, you know, fourth and 12 and Reek decides to taunt the sidelines.
00:36:15
Tristan Amundson
Again, you know, another moment when I'm watching with Rams fans and we look at each other and we agree. Yeah, he was out of line. That's, you know, you can't do that. The the ref was trying to help you not do that and you did it.
00:36:29
Tristan Amundson
And then the very next play, they get the touchdown to Puka Nakua, you know, right there on the front pylon. And, And it's interesting how a game like this works out because in my mind, that touchdown to Jake Bobo, am I saying that right, ah Miles?
00:36:46
Tristan Amundson
Was it the Bobo touchdown that resulted? It was right after after the muff.
00:36:49
M dub
Yeah.
00:36:50
Tristan Amundson
Yeah. so So you get that Jake Bobo touchdown. They get the Devontae or the Puka Nakua touchdown. And to me, those are kind of almost like... one boneheaded mistake for another, right? Like, Hey, here's, here's the but thing that you really screwed up on your side. And here's the thing that we screwed up on our side. And it turns out that they both equaled seven points and they kind of nullified each other. Does that, does that make sense? Is your, do you think of it the same way?
00:37:18
M dub
I thought of it a little bit differently. It's funny. ah Watching with an all Seahawks crew, not in mixed company, we were outraged at the woolen flag. I thought it shouldn't have been thrown.
00:37:30
Tristan Amundson
Oh, interesting.
00:37:30
M dub
And then looking around ah later around the internet, it does seem like that would have been and aggressively, that would be looking at the world and through some lime green.
00:37:42
M dub
glasses I would say um so all right but but either way we we kind of we did have a sense that it it was just um ah well I do want to get back to the punt for a second because I do think they're weighted differently but with the woolen play you know coach Mack was asked about it um at the press conference afterwards and he
00:37:55
Tristan Amundson
Oh, yeah, yeah.
00:38:05
M dub
he His answer to it, it's just going to slide by, i think, in the world. His answer to that was as gracious and as thoughtful and probably as perfect as possible.
00:38:18
M dub
And I just didn't have that in me as as a fan. I'm thinking, we week week it you know, thinking back to that week one play, it there's times where it feels like a bit of a time bomb with Wolin. And it had been a long time.
00:38:34
M dub
And I was like, how how does this come back now in the second half of the championship game? I really, I really thought that was the game because as the game continued, I kept on thinking this should be 31 to 20 right now because the, the touchdown after the woolen penalty makes it 31 to 27. I kept on going, this should be 31 to 20. That that's a pretty big lead that, you know, that's, that's two scores. That that's a lot. And,
00:39:02
M dub
And it just, it still created this extra terrible weight to the whole fourth quarter where where one touchdown for the Rams went won it. I... i You know, i i mean, Coach Mack has to keep the team together for one more game. I think he he answered he answered it very well.
00:39:21
M dub
It just doesn't feel right to me. It feels like he's this one guy floating out on a different page from the entire defensive unit. Doing nothing is is probably the right thing. I don't know how they handle it internally, but...
00:39:36
M dub
I don't know. It really messed me up emotionally. I really normally don't ah have a thought like this about a Seahawk, especially after a win, right?
00:39:44
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, you know, it's funny. we It's funny how we saw this so differently. um And I think a lot of it is because I was watching with Rams fans. So i I had to be a little more balanced in my approach live in the moment. But also kind of on the back end of it, I i kind of let go of it faster, too. So it's funny. Like, he he made...
00:40:07
Tristan Amundson
He made the mistake and I was very like, what an idiot. Like, I mean, you you just cost us, um you know, 15 yards and and obviously a first down. um We would have gotten the ball back. And instantly i kind of just agreed with everyone. Like, yeah, he's clearly in the wrong. um He just, you know, it's a it's a big mistake.
00:40:29
Tristan Amundson
Um, they get the touchdown, all of that kind of stuff. I, it's funny cause on the, on the backside of it now, I am kind of just happy to forgive and move on and just say, all right. And I think that's mostly because the nature of a a locker room is so self policing. And I think this team has such good character and such, um,
00:40:50
Tristan Amundson
such high standards that I just I guess I'm really very comfortable with Big Cat and Julian and even Nick, who was yelling at him while they were walking with each other, which says a lot about a rookie. I mean, that's kind of an incredible thought that the the rookie is in the veteran's face being like, you're you're an idiot. Like, what what are you doing? um I think there's such a great self-policing aspect to this team and and accountability that I'm just not super worried about it. I don't think it's going to be a problem moving forward.
00:41:21
Tristan Amundson
um And Enrique, you know, has played an important part of this team. And um I thought it was very wise of, incredibly wise of Matthew Stafford and Sean McVay and Puka Nakua to instantly attack him.
00:41:35
Tristan Amundson
um And they they got him while he was down. to Tell me your your additional thoughts, though, on the um on the ah the the punt um and the the the muff, because I want to hear kind of what you're what you're what you want to get at there.
00:41:50
M dub
Oh, yeah. Well, I was looking up Xavier Smith. This is a story that I think would would normally inspire, it should inspire, honestly, his background. So he quits, he doesn't get scholarship offers out of high school.
00:42:02
M dub
he He stops playing football and he works for Amazon for a year.
00:42:05
Tristan Amundson
Oh, whoa.
00:42:06
M dub
And then he walks on to Florida A&M takes a long time to work his way up, joins the Rams, has his rookie year last year as a 27-year-old rookie. And then this year, he was sixth in the league in total punt returns and 10th in the league in punt return average. So they just didn't have a guy back there. You know, this was their guy. the This was their person the entire year to return punts.
00:42:32
M dub
My thought with it, because as he's fumbling it, the problem is he's stumbling backwards. And it made me think about the Rams firing their special teams coordinator in the middle of December, right before the playoffs.
00:42:44
Tristan Amundson
Thank
00:42:46
M dub
And it made me think, I wonder if the coaches just didn't have, if they didn't prepare him for how long Michael Dixon's punts would be. This is one of the best punters in the NFL.
00:42:59
M dub
They're going to go a little longer than normal. And he's kind of stumbling backwards to get it. That was a thought I had, but We have this mistake, this obvious mistake from the Rams special teams, but it wasn't just that. i don't know if you remember the December game.
00:43:13
M dub
The Rams had about a 160-yard advantage offense versus offense that got pretty much wiped out by just the starting field position out of special teams, and it pretty much...
00:43:26
M dub
happens again. So Dixon punts five times in this game. We're just going to toss out the fumbled one. just So just that that's ah that's the one that goes best for the Seahawks. We're just going to toss that out.
00:43:38
M dub
All four of his punts land inside the 20 and give the Rams a starting field position at the 14.5 yard line on average.
00:43:48
Tristan Amundson
wow
00:43:49
M dub
Compare that, the Rams punt only two times to the Seahawks in this game. Seahawks average start at the 22.5.
00:43:58
M dub
those are real yards and then now the kickoffs each team had six kickoffs to the other the Rams offense started the field at the 26.6 yard line Seahawks started at the 31.1 so those are I mean for as many smart things as the Rams are doing and of course their offense could and did get it back in a matter of seconds but
00:44:15
Tristan Amundson
Hidden yardage. Yeah.
00:44:24
M dub
They're just tilting the field uphill to their disadvantage with literally just about every single possession. And, you know, those kickoff numbers are with Shahid was only able to return one of them and it didn't go very far. So that's even with them covering that. They are just, they're just bleeding yards everywhere at all points in the game.
00:44:44
M dub
and it's It's really big. It's a really big deal because everything in this game was a big deal. And i'm I'm so surprised that such a smart team like the Rams just totally, you know, that's so just tossing out the fumble. that That's really blowing it with your special teams.
00:45:01
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, you know, it's a really good way to look at it. um It's something that It's something that Tom mentioned multiple times on the broadcast. The idea that, hey, you know, against this defense, it feels more like 150 yards. I think one time he said it feels more like 200 yards than 100 yards to drive the field.
00:45:19
Tristan Amundson
um Now, i I think he was being hyperbolic. And he said that one time. And then the very next play was a bomb to Devontae Adams. And, you know, i was like, ah that that was the wrong time to say that thing because the Rams were moving the ball pretty well against us, certainly. um But I love what you're bringing up because you are tilting the field is a good way to look at it. You are just by default making it a little harder for yourself with where you're getting the ball, where you're starting from, whether that be a punt return or a kick return. So... It's a really interesting point. Those numbers are real, to your point. those are Those are legitimate yards that Sam does not have to lead his offense down the field, that they're asking Matthew Stafford, hey, here's an extra five, six, seven, 10 yards you're going to have to start from over and over and over again. And certainly there's going to be an impact there and there's going to be some attrition. um so yeah, it's a really, that's a really cool point. That's a really interesting way to look at it. Those hidden yardages, the, ah the tilting of the field via special teams. I like
Analyzing Key Game Plays
00:46:25
Tristan Amundson
that point a lot. Yeah.
00:46:28
M dub
Speaking of chasing edges, Tristan, there were a lot of really crucial plays in the third and fourth quarter in this game. I think we want to get into a few of them. There were some really wild sequences at the end.
00:46:41
M dub
Can i talk about my personal favorite play of the game?
00:46:44
Tristan Amundson
I wish you would.
00:46:45
M dub
It's a play that before the ball was snapped, I did say out loud.
00:46:46
Tristan Amundson
you.
00:46:49
M dub
Again, nobody was listening to me. Nobody heard me. But I said, this is the game right here. The Rams have a fourth and goal. They're trailing 31 27 with five minutes left in the game.
00:47:00
M dub
with five minutes left in the game They have gone on the drive of a lifetime. It's lasted about eight minutes. Most of the fourth quarter, they are knocking on the door.
00:47:11
M dub
What has just happened on third down is Devin Witherspoon has saved the season one time by completely breaking up a pass to Mumfield. And then it's fourth and four.
00:47:25
M dub
it's It's a pretty intense coverage or pretty intense like look that Mike McDonald shows at the line. And the way it works out is Witherspoon, again, is right inside. And it's interesting that these plays go to Mumfield and then Terrence Ferguson for the Rams.
00:47:44
M dub
But Devin Witherspoon is inside Terrence Ferguson's pocket and completely breaks up this fourth down It would have been a touchdown.
00:47:56
M dub
i do have to say, I don't think this play will go into... It's one of the most important plays in Seahawks franchise history. And I don't think it will be remembered that way because um look as I looked at the replay of it, Witherspoon is still kind of sliding on the grass after kind of falling down and making this play. And he is still in motion when he turns around to the referee and is kind of screaming for a flag.
00:48:23
M dub
I don't really know what kind of penalty he was looking for. This is a great play. No need for penalties to be involved in this in either direction. It was just classic football. So I do think funny enough that his reaction will will make it less of a remembered play. But to me, this what this was the ball game right there.
00:48:44
M dub
The Rams really didn't get another chance after that. I think it was the right call to go for it. i mean, obviously, you know, they're down by four. we get We'll get into that, but they were down by four. And I just thought it was the play of his career.
00:48:59
Tristan Amundson
It was an incredible play. um One thing I was watching very closely, I think, because we had just seen Reek have a problem with the officials earlier in the game as he was talking to the ref. And to your point, it's fourth down, man. I don't know what you want this flag to do for us. like We've already gotten best case scenario, which is we have the ball back because of what you just Turnover on downs. You did it.
00:49:25
Tristan Amundson
Um, and as he's like talking, I love, I can't even think of who it was. It might've been Derek Hall comes into the frame and like, you know, gives him a pat on the back and kind of directs him like, Hey, let's, Hey, let's take a walk and celebrate together.
00:49:31
M dub
Yeah, yeah. it was
00:49:38
Tristan Amundson
And, um, just kind of stops that conversation. Cause like, brother, we, we, we don't have any margin fair at this point. Like we don't need a flag to be thrown on you because you're arguing anything.
00:49:50
Tristan Amundson
um And I just had a sense that that was a Derek Hall. I have a sense that that's what he was thinking too.
00:49:57
M dub
Yeah, no, it was Derek Hall, and that was a great veteran move. And yeah, there's there's nothing a penalty could do for you. It really felt like skating on thin ice because it was like this can't happen again on another fourth down to get this flag.
00:50:09
Tristan Amundson
We're
00:50:13
Tristan Amundson
we're, we're set.
00:50:13
M dub
The rest have a tough job. He he just pushed right through it. he He knew it would have been the wrong thing to throw that flag. it It was the wrong thing for Witherspoon to act like that, but there're there that that is that's as clutch as it gets. I mean, I really feel in terms of importance that that's up there. I mean, who knows? But there's a little more time left in the game, but I'll put it in in a second place, right right behind that Sherman tip in the same end zone on that side of the field.
00:50:42
M dub
Yeah, it it was perfect. absolutely loved it.
00:50:44
Tristan Amundson
incredibly important to your point. He was, um, like, I mean, if you think about spooning somebody, he was the little spoon. Oh man. i didn't even think about how perfect that analogy wasn't all said out loud.
00:50:55
M dub
yeah Yeah, that's right.
00:50:56
Tristan Amundson
Um, but I mean, that's how close he was to Ferguson. He really was like in his hip pocket, just right in front of him. Um, What's funny about that play, I don't know if you heard McVay's comments um about that specific play.
00:51:10
Tristan Amundson
McVay was a bit miffed that I've never heard a coach argue this or like be frustrated by this, that in his opinion, the Seahawks blew the coverage because we bracketed Williams. So Kyrene Williams, um I think was the number one option on that play. um If not number one, number two. And he looked Kyrene's way and Julian Love and D-Law are bracketing him. I mean, he is surrounded, so he is not an option. It's not going to work. um I believe they they basically had Puka um bracketed. i think they had Devontae as well kind of bracketed. So we were spending a lot of energy to basically stop their number one guys. And I think to your point that that led to all right, man, like just you need to stay on this tight end and be in his hip pocket, which obviously um Spoon did an incredible job of.
00:52:08
Tristan Amundson
um But I just I don't know if you heard McVay's comments. I thought it was such a funny, weird thing to say. he He literally was frustrated because his words, the Seahawks busted the coverage because there's no way they would have had two guys on Williams on that play. um at which I just, I mean, it worked to a T obviously, and it turned, you know, we, we turned them over on downs. um I have a ton of respect for, for Sean McVay, but I thought that was just ah a very weird comment to make. um
00:52:39
Tristan Amundson
it It sounds kind of like the comment of like an evil genius of like someone who is so good at their job. It's like, well, no, I mean that, Like, no, one plus one equals two. Like, there's no way there should have not been two guys right there. i I know what I know what the other team should have been doing. And that's not how they should have covered it. And yet, um you know, I'd love to hear. And maybe someone will ask Mike if if that was by design or not.
00:53:03
Tristan Amundson
um and And maybe he'll tell us or or maybe he won't. But just thought that was a fun nugget. ah Just yeah one more layer of intrigue around that play.
00:53:13
M dub
That is really funny. It reminds me, Tristan, one time I was playing a game on chess.com against somebody from Britain and I was destroying. i was I had everything, he had nothing, but i was struggling to get the checkmate and he started trash talking me.
00:53:30
M dub
He said, figure it out with the rooks, bruv. And I thought it was funny, like, sorry, I'm not checkmating you correctly. hey Hey, I've got all the pieces here, man.
00:53:41
M dub
It doesn't really matter. And I kind of feel that same way. i actually feel like this was a super intentional call by Mike McDonald. he He has this front where you got six or seven people on the line.
00:53:53
M dub
And as Mike McDonald will do, and his sense for doing this is just unbelievable, he will drop a defensive lineman into coverage. It it it it always feels like it's exactly the right moment.
00:54:06
M dub
And you mentioned it. D-Law is in coverage on this play, which is wild on a fourth down to call that. And i really think that what Mike McDonald was saying was, we know Stafford will not try to run this one in.
00:54:22
M dub
And it's it's kind of it's kind of like Stafford being such a good quarterback working against him. We know that Stafford wants to win by – he doesn't want to win by running the ball.
00:54:30
Tristan Amundson
yeah
00:54:32
M dub
I do think there was a pathway for him to get into the end zone if he ran it. But I think Coach Mike just made the calculation he's not going to look for that. He he is going to pass this ball no matter what.
00:54:47
M dub
And we don't need that many people on the defensive line. We need people back in coverage.
00:54:52
Tristan Amundson
That's a really interesting take on it. I, I, that's you, you're probably right. it's a really interesting take, you know, he's going to want to do that and you know, he doesn't have massive confidence at this age in his speed.
00:55:04
Tristan Amundson
Right. And, and you know, there's still some guys home that might've been able to Kobe Bryant was basically, I mean, if you think about where he was playing, he was in the middle of the field, almost exactly on the one yard line or on, on the goal line, really.
00:55:15
M dub
Thank
00:55:18
Tristan Amundson
um So, yeah, I do think that that would have been tough sledding for um for Matthew as well. ah What what an incredible play. I'm going to have a really hard time, as I think most people will um picking one play. Everyone that, you know, i don't know. I think every Seahawks fan just was elated to see Jake Bobo get his touchdown. That was so fun.
00:55:45
Tristan Amundson
There's a great storyline with um with Cooper Cup. And I mean, for goodness sakes, what's, I mean, almost equally important. I suppose the touchdown is the most important because it put points on the board. But that third down play where he he reaches, I mean, Miles, is there a better example? We've talked about his yak the entire year and his propensity to just get that extra little bit and the the difference it will make. The fact that he knew When you say he knew where the first down line was on that final drive, I mean, he knew exactly where it was and he reaches his arms out to be able to break the plane of that first down marker and get us that first down
00:56:27
M dub
Thank
00:56:30
Tristan Amundson
ah Unbelievable. I mean, so incredible. I'm tempted, if i have your blessing, I don't want to derail the podcast. I'm kind of tempted just to take us through that final four minutes and 54 seconds because i just think it was so fun. It was such an incredible um such an incredible drive and so important. but But I don't want to overshadow if there's other specific plays you want to pick out maybe before I go into the final drive.
00:56:59
M dub
Well, I think the final drive is important. I mean, that was one of the greatest no scoring drives you'll ever see. Just I'm watching a clock count down and ah um absolutely my adrenaline is pumping at full blast.
00:57:13
M dub
I think that's important. And I think it's also after that important for us to go back and talk about the Rams not going for two. After the last touchdown and how funny it was that just like no points are scored towards the end of this game. But but yeah, let's get into it. It's it's right after the the play I talked about Witherspoon being the little spoon in Terrence Ferguson. And that gives the Seahawks the ball with four minutes and 54 seconds on the six yard line. They they got the end zone right up behind them.
00:57:44
Tristan Amundson
They got the end zone right behind them. We both know how dangerous that is, right? I mean, what a what a dangerous place to find yourself as an offense. You get that first run by K-9, know, just to keep the clock going.
00:57:57
Tristan Amundson
But, I mean, maybe if we were to talk about one play in this drive, ah you can't because there's – we just got done – I just got done talking about the Cooper Cup, which is unbelievable. But that first – so, okay, let's let's maybe make this more macro.
00:58:12
Tristan Amundson
the The through line of that final drive is throwing it on second down, is it not? That's that's the through line. That's the storyline of that final drive. it the The typical cadence that we see all the time, Tom Brady was advocating for it, is run the ball, run the ball, throw the ball, run the ball, run the ball, throw the ball. And hopefully that works.
00:58:33
Tristan Amundson
and the the beauty of what clint decided to do that took all of us by surprise i think was run the ball throw the ball run the ball throw the ball and he just kept doing that and it it really it felt a little disjointed in the moment because it's not what our eyes are used to seeing on an nfl field especially when we're trying to drain the clock that first toss to K9. I feel like I should let you break it down a little bit because you were talking earlier about the jukes or you put in our notes.
00:59:07
Tristan Amundson
um And this is the jukiest juke fest of K9's career. do do you want to just kind of talk us through um the the many jukes of K9 to take that? I think it was what, probably second and six. I think he got about four or five yards on that first run.
00:59:23
Tristan Amundson
And then he got us, what, to the 25th?
00:59:27
M dub
Yes, that that's exactly, that's exactly right. Looking at the, the pro football reference rundown of it. um It was wild from K-9 from the start of the game. There there were there were jukes aplenty in the first quarter, and you just – you sensed that he knew – Yeah, he really turned things up to another level.
00:59:46
M dub
The stats do not do it justice. Do not look at the stats. He played a really important role in this game. You know, I didn't notice this kind of run pass thing. We also had this drive broken up by timeouts aplenty.
01:00:00
M dub
It's the new thing to do.
01:00:01
Tristan Amundson
yeah
01:00:02
M dub
you use your timeouts with three minutes left in the fourth quarter. really helped the Seahawks in that game against the c Colts. And you're right. It's, it's every second down there's a throw. um Yeah, it was, i forget if we talked about this in the preview, but K-9 had about 260 receiving yards on the season.
01:00:23
M dub
And he had about a hundred of them in the two games against the Rams.
01:00:26
Tristan Amundson
It's really interesting.
01:00:27
M dub
So,
01:00:27
Tristan Amundson
Yeah.
01:00:27
M dub
So that was a weakness that I thought the team did a really great job with because it wasn't just K-9. George Helani, our newest ready our ready squad member of the game, had some really crucial catches after dropping the first one or or you know not connecting on the first one.
01:00:44
Tristan Amundson
Yeah. Bit of a heartbreaker.
01:00:45
M dub
and ah And this was the most important one of all.
01:00:46
Tristan Amundson
Yeah.
01:00:49
M dub
Yeah, for 15 yards. And it just totally gets – now you're in the field. You're away from the end zone. And this drive is really rolling.
01:00:55
Tristan Amundson
And you did you have the moment when K-9 goes down at what call it the 25? I'm not saying that I completely breathed a sigh of relief, but at that moment I was like, OK, this really just flipped this game a little bit because worst case scenario, now we're punting, say, you know, at the 25, the 30, something like that.
01:01:17
Tristan Amundson
And it's going to be much harder for the Rams versus, you know, punting out of your end zone. And, you know, that that there's just so many issues. So at that moment, my confidence level, again, I'm not saying that I thought it was in the bag at that moment, but my confidence level really rose.
01:01:33
Tristan Amundson
um And then sure enough, they were able to continue to do that. And we find ourselves, I mean, obviously I'm skipping a lot of great stuff. Cooper cup had a great catch. um Jackson Smith and jig, but had an unbelievable catch that, that kept the drive going. he he had the holding call that kept the drive going. And by the way, I was, When I rewatched the game, I very specifically wanted to see Sean McVay's face after that holding call.
01:01:59
Tristan Amundson
And there was no emotion. There was no, what are you talking about?
01:02:02
M dub
Thank you.
01:02:03
Tristan Amundson
That's a bad call. Um, I think everyone knew that that was a legit hold in that moment. Um, And now suddenly, really quickly in this in this drive, they're out of timeouts. And the second you see that team is out of timeouts, it it was such an interesting, encouraging thing. you know I'm not going to call the play of the game because that would be hyperbolic, but a pretty cool play on this drive.
01:02:28
Tristan Amundson
was um the very last play of the drive before the punt where Sam, I mean, i can't even, it was Fisk, came out of nowhere, um got that huge, I mean, ferocious sack.
01:02:42
Tristan Amundson
And it was another one of those moments. Sam somehow saw him in time, and he just took that ball and took the sack. um And I don't know if if you were doing this, Miles, I was counting down as we were in punt formation.
01:02:55
Tristan Amundson
I was just watching the clock tick. Tick tock. And um I believe Dixon punted. Well, he punted exactly at one second to go. They milked that clock as far as they could. But when he punted, there were 30 seconds.
01:03:13
Tristan Amundson
And I was just watching. And as it's in the air, I'm like, I want this ball to stay in the air forever. and And what's it what it amount to? It amounts to the Rams receiving the ball after
01:03:24
M dub
Thank you.
01:03:26
Tristan Amundson
Us getting the ball with four minutes and 54 seconds left. We punt the ball. They get it back. And in fact, we can take it a step farther. We started on our six. 4-54.
01:03:40
Tristan Amundson
the The end result of the drive is the Seahawks punt the ball. The Rams receive it on their own eight. with 25 seconds left and no timeouts. They went from 4.54 full of timeouts um on our six-yard line to 25 seconds left, no timeouts on their own seven or eight.
01:04:05
Tristan Amundson
And the rest is history. and And by the way, speaking of your original point, that this game just never stopped entertaining right off the bat. What's he do? He gets a massive pass, right? I believe to Puka gets them to about the 30 or so. And then just like clockwork, hey, we're going to go back to one of the best receivers in the game again, gets it to Puka again. And that last play,
01:04:29
Tristan Amundson
um to the 50-yard line. Luckily, he was tackled inbounds, and and that's you know that's the whole thing. But i mean even those last two plays of the game speak to the high-octane, never-ending, just fever pace of this of this championship football game. It was really unbelievable.
01:04:51
M dub
Oh, man, it was unbelievable. You know, that third down play, which is the last, it's the the Fisk sack or or tackle. um That's the Seahawks' last offensive play of the game, and I felt like that was the first missed call of the game. I really appreciate he mentioned that Darnold just went down with it, which which you're right. that That is the right thing to do.
01:05:14
M dub
You know, the situation, the Seahawks are facing third and seven. They've just called their own timeout. There's 115 left. And you got to think about a field goal as well. You're you're pretty close to to field goal range at that point is is how well the drive went.
01:05:30
M dub
and And for that play to go for negative yardage was... it it kind of knocks you out of Myers range. Certainly out of the range, you'd feel comfortable because if he misses, you know, the Rams are getting the ball pretty much at midfield, which, so it was good that they punted the ball and didn't go for the field goal, but that did feel like the one play of the game to me that just wasn't,
01:05:52
M dub
I just didn't i didn't know if you were – as the Seahawks called the timeout, I'm going, do you run it or or do you pass it here? You're third and seven, 115 left. I was going, I don't know. i don't know. And then the play happens and the the the feeling was, it looks like the Seahawks didn't really know either. it was It was a tough situation. But Mike Dixon getting in the coffin corner, that was a huge punt.
01:06:17
M dub
That was a huge punt to get them back at at the eight instead of getting the touch back.
01:06:22
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, in some ways, as you're describing it, it feels a lot like that week, but that first matchup, right? Where their punter, i mean, literally coughing corners at the best punt any of us have ever seen in our entire lives.
01:06:34
Tristan Amundson
And, um you know, so he did an even better job.
01:06:34
M dub
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
01:06:37
Tristan Amundson
And obviously, Sam almost drove us down the field, got us in field goal range to give it a shot to try to win that game. um And in this case, you know, Matthew Stafford wasn't able to do the same or or get close enough.
01:06:50
Tristan Amundson
um But with that said, I mean, yeah the the hidden yardage of this of this game being the special teams on the leg of of Michael Dixon um in the presence, I guess, is the best way to say it of ah Rashid. um Those are those great hidden yardages that made such a difference in this
Coaching Decisions and Game Outcome
01:07:11
Tristan Amundson
game. So. um Yeah, that that was fun. Thanks for letting me. i really loved that final drive. So though thanks for giving me the space just to go for it there. i I probably took way too long doing it. But man, I just loved the way that that drive, the time of possession, the it's it's one of the most demoralizing things you can do to another team in football is just not give them the ball back. And it's a big part of offense. And I just I loved it.
01:07:38
M dub
No, I think you're absolutely right. And it's funny, this game, you know, no points were scored in the fourth quarter. This has to be the best ever game played with a total of zero points scored in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks don't even attempt a field goal on that drive. And yet it's one of their drives of the season.
01:07:56
M dub
Funny enough, and there was no way of predicting this, but the sequence we discussed, the Wolin penalty, immediately attacking Wolin on the next play with Puka Nakua.
01:08:07
M dub
It's a touchdown for the Rams. The touchdown, and and it took me until after the game to realize this because I was flustered. i was ah My undies were in a bundle after after that penalty. I wasn't thinking about this in the moment, but looking at it after, i do think this this is a huge moment. It feels bigger and bigger to me the more the game goes into the past.
01:08:33
M dub
The moment of that touchdown pulls the Rams within 31 to 26, so five-point margin. so a five point margin And McVay goes for one.
01:08:43
M dub
And so that gives us the four-point margin that we would then become very familiar with for the rest of the game, 31 27.
01:08:53
M dub
I have... At first, I thought, well, McVay would have been confused. or you know it would the decision Not confused, but the decision would have kind of snuck up on the Rams because this penalty happened and and you're kind of not thinking about... I don't know Your offense is kind of really suddenly back on the field.
01:09:12
M dub
But then I was like, wait a minute. No, the the Rams had just... gone on a drive to get up there and I think it's procedure for these teams you know among the coaching staff at the start of the drive you you have a ah short discussion about whether it's one or two so I just feel like at the start of that drive the Rams would have said hey we're down five right or or you know if we get a touchdown we'll be down five we have to go for two on this one I don't know why they didn't do it because if they if they get that two-point conversion, this this whole Devin Witherspoon pass breakup thing, that doesn't happen. The Rams are kicking a pretty short field goal and it's tied 31-31. It really, really changed the rest of the game.
01:09:59
Tristan Amundson
It really did. i mean, it it would be great. I'm sure, I'm sure the media asked Sean about that today. Maybe they did ask him last night and just didn't catch it. Um, it would be interesting to know kind of what, what the thinking was in that moment.
01:10:14
Tristan Amundson
I'm, I'm not entirely sure. um I was asked at the party as that shouldn't they go for two in this moment. And I was just so out of my mind. I felt like I was in a different dimension that my brain could not do that level of mathematics in the moment.
01:10:26
M dub
Thank you.
01:10:29
Tristan Amundson
I just like I couldn't I couldn't even bring my all I could do was watch if that makes sense. And I'm I'm sure Sean was not in that place. He he is very, very good at his job. um it So, yeah, it's it's an interesting decision that he made. I'm assuming there's a reason behind it.
01:10:46
Tristan Amundson
um But, yeah, it's so it's a really, really, really interesting call. And, yeah, to your point, a totally game-changing
01:10:54
M dub
I really feel like it was it was a crucial mistake. And i I feel like the Seahawks haven't exactly been unbelievable with with their decision-making in these close moments. the The blessing of the Seahawks is they have such a big lead so often that these these really high-leverage decision points rarely come up. There's been maybe two or three of these snaps and the in the entire 2025 season.
01:11:23
M dub
and ah and And, you know, with the lead like they have in this game, you you're much less likely to face that type of huge decision.
01:11:23
Tristan Amundson
Thank you.
01:11:30
M dub
ah Yeah, it it it was, again, the Rams are supposed to be a rebuilding team. We saw them trading so many draft picks to get to the 2021 Super Bowl.
01:11:42
M dub
And at that time, everybody's going, well, the Rams are great now, but Stafford's old. They don't have any draft picks. They're going to really be feeling it on the other side. And exactly the opposite is true.
01:11:52
M dub
They're one of the best teams in the NFL, and that's on the result of 1,000 really smart decisions. so It was just so bizarre to to see this one. It's reminder they're human on the other side, too.
01:12:04
M dub
I think the Rams could have won the game. I just think it changes the entire game with – Maybe not one, but it um it it probably gets us back into a tie game instead of the Seahawks having the lead.
01:12:17
Tristan Amundson
It changes the complexion for sure. it is one of those funny things, man. And and it goes back to why this game was going to be such a, like just a tough game in general, because we knew it was basically a 50 50 and I'm, I'm going to be a broken record all year about this.
01:12:35
Tristan Amundson
Just the amount of respect I have for this Rams team, how good they are, how well they match up against the Seahawks team. And, and yeah, I mean, a game like this comes down to, you two or three little things that add up to massive swings in a game like this because yeah, just two equally matched, extremely well coached, um extremely talented teams. I mean, really it's, it's pretty incredible. And to your point, it comes down to a coaching decision here.
01:13:05
Tristan Amundson
a muffed punt there, um you know, ah a personal, ah you know, foul over here. um And you you add all these things up, right? All these quote unquote mental mistakes and,
01:13:21
Tristan Amundson
yeah Typically, the the you know the team that has, if you're equally matched like this, the team that has, you know the if you're if you're on the negative side of that mental mistake ratio, you're you're going to be the one that lost. And and I think that's about the the difference of this game, really. Just a couple of those little mistakes, whether they be coaching or or playing or whatever, that just...
01:13:44
Tristan Amundson
equal to the the the slightest of margin difference between these two teams.
01:13:52
M dub
Yeah, and it wasn't just the mistakes, too. You talk about Cooper Cup reaching for that first down. I mean, there were so many amazing plays to get it. It feels like this this game was a Jenga tower, and you it's it starts out with a row of three, and as the game advances, we we get down to the row of one.
01:14:10
M dub
you know And this was this was a one-story Jenga tower all the way up.
01:14:12
Tristan Amundson
Yep. Yeah.
01:14:15
M dub
However many first downs the Seahawks had, They needed absolutely every one of them to finish this game. Again, they needed they needed that Pukenikua's knee in the last seconds of the game. They needed it to be a foot over here on the green grass and not a foot over there on the white grass.
01:14:33
M dub
it It doesn't get smaller.
01:14:35
Tristan Amundson
It really doesn't. No, it it really doesn't. it's It's incredible. And I think we're going to have many more of these games. I think we can only hope, right, as as sports fans, that we have many more of these games going into the future. um and And you imagine we're going to have every flavor. There's going to be moments when...
01:14:54
Tristan Amundson
Mike really has Sean's number. There's going to be moments where Sean really has Mike's number. And there's going to be moments where it just seems like a gridlock, I bet, too, where it's just back and forth and, you know, great plays and performances on either side. So pretty, pretty cool, man. Pretty fun to see. And listen, this game was such um such a dogfight that.
01:15:16
Tristan Amundson
ah you know, I'd be crazy if I didn't mention it. The, the, the longer week, right. The extra rest, the fact that the guys didn't have to play that much last week because it was such a blowout meant that big cat, do you know the percentage of, of snaps that big cat had for us in this game miles? It's just, as kind of crazy what they were able to do.
01:15:37
Tristan Amundson
um
01:15:38
M dub
Yeah, they they really went for it. And by the Rams offensive line won the battle in the trenches, which two which was which was crazy.
01:15:44
Tristan Amundson
They did.
01:15:47
M dub
and That's, I mean, just just on name recognition, i'm I'm not sure how that happens. But ah how much was he in there? Because he was in there pretty much the whole time.
01:15:57
Tristan Amundson
So you're totally right in pointing it out. We needed every second of Byron Murphy and and Leonard Williams. And yet, and yet the Rams won the battle on that in in the trenches.
01:16:09
Tristan Amundson
Leonard Williams played. I mean, think about how large of a man this is. He played 85% of the snaps, which is just absolutely unbelievable. it's It's above and beyond the call of duty. Byron Murphy played 61% of the snaps, um which is which is quite amazing. And now let me juxtapose that and kind of give you just a little... um a thought of what that means on the other side.
01:16:37
Tristan Amundson
Riley Mills played one snap. Mike Morris played zero snaps in this game. So they really went for it. you know, Morris usually gets five, six, 10 snaps a game. They decided to go the opposite direction.
01:16:51
Tristan Amundson
Peely only got five snaps in this game.
Seahawks' Strategic Decisions and Future Games
01:16:53
Tristan Amundson
He played 8%. So they really um so they really Went all in on on kind of their their top line starters and said, hey, we're going to need everything out of you guys. Jaron Reed with 51 percent. So really, I mean, this was all hands on deck. We're going to have our top dogs out there. And, you know, we're just going to rely on having Big Cat and and the top line out basically the whole game. So the I'm glad they got two weeks to recover because they they they went for it. They they drained the tanks.
01:17:25
M dub
Yeah, I think that that extra week really helps. i know it'll build to maybe ah ah too much Super Bowl coverage by the end of that that long two weeks. it It can feel pretty long, but I do think the Seahawks went into this game knowing that you either go home or or you have a bye week, you know.
01:17:44
M dub
so So why not go for it and use that bye week to your advantage?
01:17:48
Tristan Amundson
Yep. and And to that point, we'll be doing an episode every two hours from here until the Super Bowl because we just want to be a part of that over coverage culture. So, um yeah, I've quit my job.
01:18:01
Tristan Amundson
ah Miles has quit his job. We're just we're just going to be here every two hours, um you know, coverage constantly. Uh, we'll be on radio row before it even opens. Just, you know, we'll be talking about every tweet, but we don't really have a lot to talk about. It'll mostly just be talking about what other people are talking about. Um, but we think it's super important. So we're here for the people.
01:18:26
M dub
It'll be good to talk about it. If there's an angle, we'll talk about it. We'll break it down. We'll look at this angle. We'll look at that angle. And I think we'll completely understand the game.
01:18:37
Tristan Amundson
Miles, um Adam Schefter used five characters in this tweet. He usually his average is 8.3. What how what do we make of this? It's going to be that kind of content. It's going to be really, really good. I mean, really, really good.
01:18:51
M dub
It is going to be good. Can I whet your appetite, Tristan? As I mentioned, this AFC championship game was more on the blooper side, whereas this was on the classic side.
01:19:02
M dub
and know it ended with that snow. The snow's only there for like 30% of the game. Okay, it wasn't really a snow game. All the offensive stats, you're tempted to look at it. I looked at one thing.
01:19:14
M dub
one One stat here, just as as we look ahead for these long two weeks in the 75 podcasts ahead of us. Patriots in the playoffs, allowing sacks to their quarterback, Drake May, 16.3% of the time.
01:19:32
M dub
The very worst team in the regular season was the Las Vegas Raiders at 11.1%. point one percent
01:19:41
Tristan Amundson
Whoa, that's wild.
01:19:44
M dub
So so the the Rams offensive line, they they had this one under control, but I think it it could be a different story in two weeks. that That's something I'm interested in in talking about in in probably upwards of 40 of our 75 upcoming podcasts.
01:20:00
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, no, that's that's really good. can Can I give you my analysis of the game?
01:20:05
M dub
Yeah, yeah.
01:20:07
Tristan Amundson
here's Here's my analysis of the game. i I stopped watching after the first half. I didn't watch the second half of the game because I just it was such boring football. I just was like, i I have better things to do. So I had a conversation around the dinner table or around around our dinner table because we had some guests and we' we're waiting for the Seahawks game. And I i saw that it was the halftime would be over. And I was like, should I turn the game on?
01:20:31
Tristan Amundson
And then I just decided not to. I'll probably watch it tonight just so I can see the snow because I live in Southern California. I don't get a chance to see it a lot of snow. I'd like to see some snow. um But yeah, it seemed like a real snore fest. And I just I watched a good chunk of the first half and it it didn't seem worth my time if I'm being just totally honest.
01:20:52
M dub
um yeah pretty good to watch right before bed, i would say. It's a good call.
01:20:56
Tristan Amundson
Okay, good. Yeah, if if you need a nap, um watch that Patriots-Broncos matchup. and And hey, the good guys won. Sean Payton is probably very frustrated right now, blaming other people.
01:21:08
Tristan Amundson
We can all enjoy Sean Payton's pain. A bad dude is not playing football anymore. He's he is now just he has his secretaries to blame. He has management to blame. I'm sure he has plenty of people that he can um blame. And so that's, you know, ah listen, I think we can all agree that the world's a better place with Sean Payton on the playoffs. and And finally, we're here. So that that is a great um takeaway of the of the Patriots Broncos game.
01:21:41
M dub
your Your beef with Sean Payton is unbelievable. I wanted the Broncos to do it. I i wanted to see Jared Stidham in the Super Bowl. And it it got quite close to happening.
01:21:52
Tristan Amundson
Yeah, I mean, that would have been fun. that That would have been a fun matchup for the Seahawks defense to to to face Jared Stidham. But will ah we will just wait for the Patriots. It's going to be a great matchup.
01:22:03
Tristan Amundson
um Plenty of storylines. Drake May, um and MVP candidate, right? I mean, really, really good quarterback in this league. Great running attack. um theres There's certainly plenty of things that we can we can peel into as we get close to this game.
01:22:19
M dub
Yeah, 15 fewer passing touchdowns on the year than Matthew Stafford. Definitely a leading MVP candidate, I would say.
01:22:26
Tristan Amundson
Very good. um Have we done it, Miles? Is there any more juice to squeeze out of this orange or are we set?
01:22:34
M dub
This orange is is a ah rind on the ground that that's dry the desert. But it we we it felt good to squeeze that juice out.
01:22:44
Tristan Amundson
Well, Miles, don't know about you. There was ah certainly something I said as I was giving very deep, long hugs to my fellow Seahawks fans in in in quiet relief as we finally won this game. And I'll just say it. I'm not even going pause. Go Hawks.
01:23:02
M dub
Go Hawks.