We were shocked by Brian Flores’s dismissal. We were shocked by the lack of a Joe Judge dismissal until he was dismissed. Conor and Gary discuss the very strange situations with the Dolphins and Giants, and what’s fair and what isn’t when it comes to longevity in the NFL coaching world.Then, an assessment of the six head-coach openings in the NFL. Which jobs are good? Which jobs were bad? Which one would allow you to most closely mimic the work-life balance of Craig T. Nelson in Coach?Then, a preview of the six wild-card playoff games, from the suddenly underrated Raiders, the realness (or lack thereof) of the Bengals, why Mac Jones should consider sleeping in a meat freezer, the issues the Eagles present for the Bucs, the Cowboys dealing with the 49ers’ wide-zone running game, the chances T.J. Watt can literally throw Patrick Mahomes out of the stadium, Eric Weddle Fever grips L.A., and more.(“More” includes a discussion of the 2007 National League MVP voting and Mehmet Okur’s presence on the world champion Detroit Pistons.)Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On one hand, Week 18—and the unprecedented Game 17s—brought a weekend full of duds. On the other hand, it did bring the weirdest Sunday Night Football game ever contested, a prisoner’s dilemma game between the Raiders and Chargers, who could have moved to the postseason with a truce but instead Vegas (after a moment of hesitation) grabbed the win.Conor and Gary discuss the wisdom and logic behind Rich Bisaccia’s and Brandon Staley’s decisions in overtime, as well as the outright absurd performance of Justin Herbert.There were other games too! A look at Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers somehow surviving another week, how Jimmy Garoppolo dragged the 49ers back in L.A., why Saints fans surely hate the Rams even more than they did before, and how the real Trevor Lawrence stood up and the Colts collapsed with an all-time brutal loss in Jacksonville.Plus, Joe Judge’s latest meltdown, and how Vic Fangio’s fate was sealed in Denver.Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The NFL regular season is wrapping up, which means the coaching carousel is firing up. But rather than slog through a weeks-long process full of uncorroborated rumors and misinformation and overall frustration, Conor and Gary condense the whole thing into one 60-minute podcast episode.Where do the Jaguars look in light of the Urban Meyer debacle? If the Raiders are indeed going to make a move, does Mark Davis go big-game fishing again or do they find a personality fit from the coordinator ranks? Are we sure the Bears will move on from Matt Nagy—and, if they do, is there anyone capable of cleaning up the mess of a roster in Chicago?Plus, the Vikings’ alternatives if the Mike Zimmer era is over, the chances the Seahawks job opens up, David Culley and the islands he will shop for, and a whole lot more.Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The penultimate Sunday of the NFL regular season was the strangest Sunday of the NFL regular season, and nothing was more unusual than Antonio Brown walking out of MetLife Stadium during the third quarter of the Bucs-Jets game. Jenny, Conor and Gary discuss how we arrived at this point with Brown, how the Bucs could possibly justify bringing him in, defending some of his indefensible actions, then cutting him loose after what was a relatively minor incident compared to the rest of his history. What all of it says about Brown, the Bucs’ organization and the way the NFL handles players.There was also plenty to talk about on the field, including Joe Burrow’s heroic performance in the Bengals’ division-clinching win over the Chiefs, the Cardinals defense rekindling concerns over Dak Prescott’s late-season performance, the Rams’ uneven win in Baltimore, the Raiders’ persistence in Indy, the Dolphins’ meltdown in Nashville, and the good and bad of Trey Lance’s second career start.Plus, a fond farewell (though she’ll be returning as a guest) to our own Jenny Vrentas.Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Last spring he was the most polarizing quarterback in the NFL draft, a prolific collegiate passer who lacked the dynamic athleticism we’ve come to expect from this generation of QBs. But now, 15 games into this season and his NFL career—and even after back-to-back disappointing outings—Mac Jones is the Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner and objectively outperforming every other quarterback drafted last spring.So… what does that mean? Jenny, Conor and Gary discuss Jones’s skillset—his strengths, his limitations and why, to this point, he can overcome those limitations—whether or not it will lead NFL teams to try to find similar quarterbacks in upcoming drafts, and why there’s more risk in identifying and drafting “the next Mac Jones” than you might think.Have a comment, critique or question for a future mailbag? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jenny, Conor and Gary launch into the Week 16 show with a look at the Bills’ revenge game in Foxboro. The Patriots had few answers for Josh Allen, especially as an unexpected weapon emerged with a career game for Buffalo. Plus, what to make of this Patriots offense after another disappointing performance in December.Then, what to draw from the Cowboys’ spectacular shellacking of Washington on Sunday night—is it time to put Dallas in the same class of the NFC elite? How the Chargers went to Houston and got their butts handed to them (and why David Culley is making, maybe, a half-serious Coach of the Year bid?), the superstardom of Joe Burrow and the impressive resilience of the Raiders.Finally, a break down of the Saturday games, including the downs of Baker Mayfield and the ups of Carson Wentz, then the latest round of Antonio Brown absurdity in Tampa, a good day for the Jets, the legacy of Urban Meyer and the always-underprepared Jaguars, and the anger and sadness of the Falcons-Lions matchup.Do you have a good rule-change suggestion? Even better, do you have a bad one? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In the spirit of the holidays, Jenny, Conor and Gary are giving you the gift . . . of filling out our show outline for us!Last week, we ran down the rule changes we need to see in the NFL. Now, we’re fielding your rule proposals and deciding which suggestions are worthy of working into our imaginary (and very much superior) version of the NFL.Has the time finally arrived for the three-point conversion? What CFL rules should the NFL be adopting? Should the clock stop after the first down like in college football? And what should happen when the ball gets fumbled out of the end zone?But, most importantly, we answer the age-old question: Does Krampus put kids in, like, a laundry hamper or something?Do you have a good rule-change suggestion? Even better, do you have a bad one? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

For the first time this season, the NFL postponed three Week 15 games due to COVID-19 outbreaks—they'll be played on Monday and Tuesday. The league and the players union also negotiated new protocols that include, surprisingly, less testing. Conor and Jenny break down the rest of the abbreviated weekend schedule, starting with the Packers' win against Baltimore that came down to a failed two-point conversion try and knocked the Ravens out of first place in the wide-open AFC North. They also discuss the two big upsets: Tom Brady and the Bucs being shut out in yet another regular-season loss against the Saints, and the Cardinals being at risk for another late-season collapse after falling to a Lions team that had won only one other game this season.Then, a discussion of the Jaguars' decision to fire Urban Meyer after his disastrous 11-month tenure, and the ripple effects for Trevor Lawrence and other college coaches looking to make the jump to the pros. Plus, the Steelers stay alive against a depleted Titans team, the Cowboys offense still trying to keep up with its defense and the theater begins for the Patriots-Bills showdown (Part 2) that we all need and deserve.Have a question for the show? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrrLearn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

More specifically, Jenny, Conor and Gary each write—or change, or eliminate—one rule in the NFL that will make the sport we love into a sport we love more.We saw it done in light of the Kenny Pickett “fake slide” move in the ACC title game—the rule banning it was in place less than a week later. So it’s time to get out in front of a few other things. Conor delves into the evils of the onside kick, and looks to the Alliance of American Football to improve upon it. Gary asks that you expand your mind, and reconsider how we administer penalties in light of down and distance—does the first-down marker really have to stay fixed in place like the North Star? And finally, Jenny wants more points for some kicks, but fewer points for others, and it doesn’t matter if it creates a nightmare scenario for indecisive coaches.Do you have a good rule-change suggestion? Even better, do you have a bad one? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jenny, Conor and Gary run through a Week 14 Sunday rife with playoff implications. There were winners, losers, and Urban Meyer struggling through it all (including, allegedly, defining the words “winner” and “loser”).First, the Bucs throw their hat in the ring as the NFL’s best before having to hang on against the Bills, but why Buffalo’s second-half performance was a positive step in the overtime loss. The 49ers steal one in Cin City thanks to their catch-and-run studs and a couple of special teams mistakes by the Bengals. And the AFC North is anyone’s race again (but especially the Browns’!) after Lamar Jackson’s ankle injury.Then, a discussion of the latest Urban Meyer debacle on the field, and the constant fire raging around the coach when it comes to his interactions with his team.Plus, SNF starts wild but ends up the same old story for Packers-Bears, Dallas proves they can get it done on an off day for Dak, coaches with chapped butts over guaranteed wins, Joe Judge and Matt Rhule go out of their way to warm their own seats, and much more.Have a question for the show? Email themmqb@gmail.com or tweet at @GGramling_SI, @JennyVrentas or @ConorOrr Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy