Week 18 Review with Alex Bleuel

An episode of the The Big D Podcast podcast, hosted by Dylan Schmittler, titled "Week 18 Review with Alex Bleuel" was published on January 11, 2022 and runs 55 minutes.

January 11, 2022 ·55m · The Big D Podcast

Summary

In this episode, Alex Bleuel and I recap a crazy and historic Week 18, which saw three overtime classics to conclude the regular season. The craziest of those games was the final regular season game between the LA Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders, which Vegas won 35-32 on an overtime field goal. We look back at the NFL's craziest season-finale. With the Jacksonville Jaguars beating the Indianapolis Colts, both teams could have made the playoffs with a win or tie. With coaching meaning more and more, we look at how Chargers rookie head coach Brandon Staley handled key moments including going for a fourth down inside his own 20-yard line. We also look at Staley not going for two and his timeout with 40 seconds left in overtime. While we both think the timeout did not affect the game, LA's rush defense played a far bigger role in the loss. We also take a look at the job Raiders interim coach Rich Bisaccia has done in an emotional and season for the Silver and Black. Despite the loss, we both love watching second-year star Justin Herbert sling the football for the Bolts. After that AFC West Classic, we shift to another classic meeting between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. With the Jags beating the Colts, this game was likely to determine the AFC's final playoff spot between arch rivals. This game was also the last potential chance to see Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger take an NFL snap. While at the end of his career, Big Ben brought some of his old magic with a key touchdown to Chase Claypool in the fourth quarter. While the Steelers won, Pittsburgh needed a winner in Las Vegas. With the Raiders winning in OT, the Steelers earned the AFC's seventh and final seed and a trip to face the Kansas City Chiefs. In another overtime finish, we look at the NFC West clash between the San Francisco 49ers and LA Rams. We look at how 49ers Jimmy Garoppolo stepped up when his team needed him in the second half with big throws, including 14-yard touchdown to Jauan Jennings in the last minute. We also compliment Deebo Samuel's performance, which included a 24-yard touchdown pass and 16-yard touchdown run. For the Rams, we look at the continued struggles for Matthew Stafford, who threw seven interceptions in his last three games. We also look at running back Cam Akers' return to the backfield. During this segment, I make a bold predictions stating the 49ers are the NFL's most dangerous Wild Card team with a road in making a long playoff run. After those overtime games, we talk Dolphins. With yesterday being "Black Monday, where teams often fire coaches and general managers, The Dolphins shockingly fired Brian Flores after he went 24-25 over three seasons. We look at decisions including the Tua Tagovailoa over Justin Herbert which may have led to Flores' firing. We end this episode by revealing our revised Super Bowl predictions. While Alex is going with a showdown between Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes, The Big D likes the Buffalo Bills and LA Rams to meet for the Super Bowl on Feb. 13.

Episode Description