SMQBs Episode 43: NFL Playoff Picture, MLB Lockout, and College Football Chaos
NFL Week 13! College Football! College Hoop! MLB Lockout! F1! PFOTW!! Lasso!!
The guys cover a wide range of sports topics, starting with NFL Week 13 action. They celebrate the Philadelphia Eagles’ recent success, quarterbacked by Gardner Minshew II, and note the unusual situation of every NFC East team being led by a backup quarterback. They discuss the tightening playoff picture, with teams like the Buccaneers, Packers, and Chiefs rounding into form, while also highlighting the surprising resurgence of the Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots. The conversation touches on the Washington Football Team’s winning streak and their upcoming crucial divisional games.
They shift to the ongoing Major League Baseball lockout, the first work stoppage in 24 years. The hosts present both the players’ and owners’ perspectives on the dispute. The players argue against team “tanking,” advocate for reduced revenue sharing, earlier arbitration and free agency for younger players, and an increase in the luxury tax threshold. The owners, in turn, highlight their proposals including a minimum payroll per club, age-based free agency, increased compensation for younger players, and openness to a universal DH and a draft lottery system.
They also talk about NCAA college basketball, a budding rivalry in the NBA between the Suns and Warriors, and the dramatic conclusion of the F1 season with Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen tied going into the final race. The “Punchable Face of the Week” is awarded to Brian Kelly for his perceived insincerity and fake Southern accent, and the “Ted Lasso” segment celebrates Buck O’Neil’s posthumous induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame.