LIVE: Christian McCaffrey Returns & Trent Williams' Massive Contract | GSMC Football Podcast

[Music] all right and we are back here on the gsmc football podcast and [Music] for all right and we are back here on the gsmc football podcast and keep yourself in the loop of everything football on the Golden State media Concepts football podcast the latest news on and off the field be it college football Big 10 SEC Big 12 pack 12 ACC to the NFL we've got you cover listen to the Golden State media Concepts football [Music] podcast and welcome everybody to another edition of the gsmc football podcast brought to you by the gsmc sports network as always I'm your host Kenneth grunfelder and it's great to have you guys here on this Wednesday September 4th we have a lot to talk about on the show today before I get into that just want to remind you guys to tip or donate get your comment recognize make sure to go to the dollar dollar sign icon in the chat uh this will create a super chat for you any comment anything you want to say on the live broadcast it'll be highlighted I will acknowledge it and it just makes the show more lively between myself the host and you guys the viewers uh any contribution that you make or can make to the show means the world to us and also the other way to help out the show is by going to the link gsmc podcast. net and again any contribution that you guys can make to the show means the world to us as we give you guys content each and every day Monday through Friday so let's get into what we are going to discuss for today so we're going to start off the show uh talk about a couple things with the 49ers Christian mcaffrey returning to practice was dealing with a calf injury but he's practicing so looks like he's going to be good to go for the Monday night matchup against the Jets coming up and also Trent Williams and the 49ers were able to coming to an agreement on a new contract I think I did bring that up during the show yesterday but that's a big deal um you know and they were already in communication after they got everything squared away with Brandon iuk but they were able to get things done so he's back so the 49ers are basically at full strength on offense going into this game against the Jets so we'll talk about that then in the second part of the show we'll talk about Stefon digs some recent comments he had um kind of you know calling out his care critics and and just some of the things that he had to say about last season with the bills then we'll talk about some of the matchups that I'm excited for going into week one that was a topic of conversation uh yesterday in our production meeting uh some of the other hosts were doing uh topics on that so I thought you know I would do that as well and then in the final two segments I will do uh standings prediction so we'll do the AFC North in the fourth part of the show and then in the last part of the show uh I will cover the AFC South as well I'll give you my predictions for that division as well so with that being said let's get into the first topic which is talking about the 49ers so a couple things to go over there and the first thing is Chris mcaffrey of course returning to practice I was dealing with the calf injury basically throughout the whole summer and obviously you know that's an injury that you know isn't easy to deal with um but you know and mcaffrey has been able to play pretty much every game since the 49ers acquired him a couple years ago because with the Panthers you know he did miss a lot of time the last couple years he was there and you know the 49ers they want to be very careful with him because he is a huge part of what they do and you know should have won MVP last year or at least was one of the players that one of the nine quarterbacks that should have won MVP last year uh he was unbelievable and yeah the 49ers they they want to make sure that he's right because they don't want him to you know aggrav aggravate that even more and then he's out because the 49ers they're a little bit thin at the running back position behind mcaffrey because Elijah Mitchell he's out for the year he got put on season ending uh injured reserve and he's a guy that has been banged up a lot over the course of his career he can't stay on the field in his short career so they're a little bit thin there they got Jordan Mason as the rb2 but you know if mcaffrey goes down that that's that would be a huge problem for the 49ers but at least for the moment he's back and you know he's ready to go for this match up against the Jets but yeah he's had an a history of injury concerns uh during 2020 and 2021 he played in only 10 games with the Panthers but he has stayed healthy the last couple of years uh he appeared in all 17 games in 2022 and last year in 16 games and I think the one game was of course the finale against the Rams last year and he led the NFL last year with 1459 rushing yards 564 receiving yards and 21 total touchdowns so I don't know if he's going to get to 21 this year but he's definitely going to score a lot of touchdowns if he's on the field he did get offensive player of the year last year has three Pro Bowls two first team All Pro nods so you know an impressive resume for him but like I said kind of thin when it comes to the depth behind him so hopefully they don't have to use their depth now Jordan Mason's going to come to give him a little bit of a break from time to time and the 49ers are are of course one of the best teams in the NFL so there's going to be some games where they're going to be blowing teams out and they'll probably pull mcaffrey and give Mason you know the rest of the workload um in mop-up time but let's hope that we don't have to get to that point where you know Jordan Mason has to take over but again mcaffrey is one of the best players in the NFL and he plays for one of the best teams in the NFL and the 49ers want to make sure that you know he stays healthy and they already were talking about monitoring his workload throughout the year so um but the good news is he's back at practice but then I also wanted to get to Trent Williams as well so this was the other star player for the N for the ners that wanted a new deal you know they finally got all the Brandon IOU stuff squared away but but Trent Williams is a very important player on this offense as well because he is the best left tackle in the NFL um you know protects Brock pie and when he was out along with Debo Samuel last year the 49ers struggled and they cannot afford to go into this game against the Jets who have a very good pass rush without their left tackle and now he's going to be there he got his new contract and that contract is a threee deal uh $ 82.6 million $48 million guaranteed and a 25 pretty much a $25.7 million signing bonus totaling $103 million in guarantees since Williams joined the 49ers in 2021 now this will make him so he'll make 27.6 million in salary in 2024 and that's the highest cash payout for any lineman in the first year of a contract so getting him back is huge and you know now the 49ers on offense they go in at full strength going up against the Jets and we'll talk about that match up a little bit later in the show but that's one of the more intriguing matchups of week one because you know for the Jets you know they got Aaron roggers coming back and I just want to see Aaron Rogers play a full game for the Jets and they got a very good pass rush so we'll see how that game plays out but getting mcaffrey get getting mcaffrey back and Trump Williams back is huge and yeah like I said the 49ers are basically a full strength on defense they're still going to be missing Dre greenw because he's still recovering from his injury that he suffered in the Super Bowl and I don't know what the the timetable is for him to return but that is a big piece on defense that they lost and hopefully he's able to come back at some point um but yeah I don't see any I'm looking right now I don't see really any updates I mean I see a headline that says Drake green lost Shar is encouraging Achilles up uh injury update and that was in May so hopefully you know at some point he'll come back during the year but um yeah that is a that's a big injury on the defensive side of the ball but I did also want to bring this up um and I know it's kind of a touchy subject but also their rookie wide receiver Ricky piol is recovering from a gunshot wound um he was involved in a robbery someone tried to Rob him ended up getting shot in the chest area but um no vital organs were hit um and and you know he's he I think he was released from the hospital um because I know the an earlier update was he was in critical but stable condition um so which I feel like that kind of contradicts the other but um but needless to say he is I think he was released from the hospital and he's going to be he's got put on the the pup list but yeah he's going to be so he was shot more in the chest shoulder area um which again thankfully um he's going to be okay but it's just you know it's just another touchy subject that uh you know it's just a reminder that you know this world is uh you know can be a scary place at times and um but again thankfully he's going to be it it seems like he's going to be okay and uh at some point he will make his return to the field and I know Debo Samuel tweeted something you know encouraging and um yeah but just a a scary situation there and um yeah so he's going to miss at least the first four games of the season but um yeah I I I mean we're talking about the 49ers so I I figured you know bring it up but yeah so he was discharged from the hospital on Sunday um but yeah so peaw was upgraded from serious to fair condition earlier Sunday so I think that's what it was so he was you know he wasn't in great condition but they got him to be stable um so yeah but he is he's out of the hospital and uh again that is very encouraging so you know can't wait to see him back on the field um and helping out the 49ers but yeah scary situation there um but yeah so that's basically all the 49ers stuff that I wanted to go over here here in the top of the uh well here at the beginning of the show let me know what you guys think though about any of the stuff that I talked about as the uh again 49ers are getting ready to play on Monday so you know let's see uh you know excited to see uh how their players do I know I got a few of them in fantasy pery uh KD and Debo so hopefully they all have uh big games uh on Monday so we're going to take our first break of the show and then when we come back we'll talk about Stefon Diggs some of his recent comments uh responding to his critics so with that being said stick around and we'll be be right back here on the gsmc football podcast I feel like I'm losing my mind everybody in the world blind please Lord give me a a sign I feel like I'm losing my mind everybody in the world please Lord give me a side a side I want to be the greatest everybody on the face sh I look around I feel like everybody is the fakest I make this every day and I'm impatient hoping one day I blow up from the basement statement the top is so vacon I don't need [ __ ] that I think is amazing waiting for my day when I'm playing sold out shows for A Thousand Faces hey give me that Crown get in my way and be put down it Ain your place all this my town if I want that [ __ ] then I'll get it right now I'm losing it the news it fit I'm losing [ __ ] a stupid me you choose to live I choose to dip you choose the fight and lose your grip and lose a gift off I feel like I'm my everybody in the world please Lord give me a [Music] a feel [Music] all right and we are back here on the gsmc football podcast and for the second part of the show we're going to talk about Stefon Diggs uh his recent comments are responding to critics um you know kind of talking about last year and how last year went things like that so I just wanted to get into some of his quotes So this is what he had to say um in a recent interview with Klay Skipper of GQ Sports so he said the games looked a lot different you can blame me I don't mind blaming me I got big shoulders but pay attention pay real close pay real close attention watch the game of course there's plenty of plays I want back but there's a lot of plays that didn't go my way I need a lot of things to go right to get the ball you can't roll out of bed and get get 800 yards in the first eight games your best receivers do that or your best receivers doing that you tell me about the last 10 what changed were there changes going on I just pay attention to what really happened and not what people try to act like happened like for the last 10 games I forgot how to play football and it is true um I I I do I do think there's some validity to that and yeah over the um you know the first you know part of the Season he had 70 catches 834 yards and seven touchdowns during that time frame including going over 100 yards in four the first five games of the season but then from week 10 on 37 catches for 349 yards and one touchdown over the final eight games he averaged 10.8 targets per game in the first nine games and then 7.9 targets per game in the final eight after week 10 now this is the loss to the Broncos which was an ugly loss at home the bills fired offensive coordinator Ken dorsy and they replaced him with quarterback's coach Joe Brady and there was kind of a different approach so through the first 10 weeks under dorsy now this is courtesy of an article on bleach report through the first 10 weeks under dorsy running back James Cook was 20th in the NFL in carries but then he was 10th from weeks 11 through 18 under Brady and this is kind of something that I brought up that when the bills changed coordinators Stefon Diggs you know didn't really be wasn't really a factor you know they I don't think it was now yeah there there were a couple of plays you know Diggs you know dropped some passes but that that you could look at but I really don't think that Diggs declined I think it was just the philosophy changed with the bills and you know the play calling was different so it's not constantly force feeding Stefon Diggs the ball and I well I also wanted to pull up um diggs's stats from last year to put up in the background here well really in the foreground but um yeah like I I I don't really think that Stefon Diggs like this is what his you know total stats ended up being last year with the bills not a bad year but yeah he got off to a great start I mean he had that three touchdown game against Miami early on like I just I really don't think that Diggs just fell off a cliff once they changed coordinators I just don't think he was constantly you know he wasn't you know being force-fed the ball and I don't think there's anything wrong with that but yeah he just wasn't getting involved in the offense now obviously Stefon Diggs is getting older you know I'm not going to say that there is no decline but I don't think people should pretend like he just like you said like he just forgot how to play football now because he wasn't really putting up big numbers over the last half of the year like I think there definitely is more to it because I mean you know go look at the game against the Cowboys James Cook was the man in that game he had a monster game you know like and khil Shakir was getting more involved in the offense as well you know like there's there's more to it like I just I don't think that Stefon Diggs just that was not a good player like I do think he's going to go to Houston and he's going to do well now I don't think again I don't think I mean he's going from one offense to another where I mean it's going to be different of course but I don't think he's going to be force-fed the ball there either like he's not going to be the main guy you know you got other pass catchers that are going to be involved in the offense as well so how is he going to handle that and I know I've brought that up and you know what I think you know as long as they're winning games I think he'll deal with it I mean I know maybe in the back of his mind he's probably saying like you know he wants to get the ball more well they first of all the Texans haven't even played a game yet so we got to see how it plays out but I do think each week it's going to be a different receiver that has a big game now you might have some games where multiple receivers are going to have a big game because that's how good this Texans offense is going to be in my opinion but Stefon Diggs is still not going to be the man now there's going to be some games where he is going to be the man where he's going to have a big game but you got Nico Collins there you got tank Dell Dolan Schultz they brought back you know there's a lot of pass catchers and CJ strout is is is a guy that's going to spread the ball around it's not going to be just one guy that he's going to be looking for but that's the benefits of having all of these good pass catchers around you is you don't have to just rely on one guy so that's one thing to look towards is how is Stefon Diggs going to feel about that now again I I don't think he's you know I I I think as long as they're winning it'll be okay but if it gets to a point where he's you know a non-factor and they're losing then it's going to be a problem but but I it's all speculation and you know people are going to say well look at what happened in Minnesota you know he left Minnesota now he left Buffalo you know if he ends up being one and done in Houston and it ends badly well you know people are going to uh point the fingers at him and saying yeah you're continuing to be that common denominator in all these situations so but I I do think Diggs is going to have a good year I do I I I really don't think that he fell off a cliff I know I keep saying that but yeah I I I just don't I don't think he has declined as much as people may think but that doesn't mean now I don't think like maybe he doesn't get a th yards this year but I think that's going to be more so because of the offense that he plays and because again Str is going to be Distributing the ball to other guys but I don't think it's going to be because he lost his step I think he's still got good football left but only time will tell only time will tell but definitely some strong comments there by Diggs and he's going to go out there and prove it the Texans they play the Colts on Sunday which is an intriguing game um so that'll be the first time that we get to see him and how he and uh you know how he does uh win his debut um with the Texans you know they're playing against the team that they ended their season final game of the regular season they they ended the Colt season and uh it could very well come down to those two teams uh for the AFC South but we'll see we'll see so but let me know what you guys think though about Diggs what kind of season do you think he's going to have with the Texans like I said I I I think he will have a productive season but at the same time he's not going to be the guy in Houston you know you got Nico Collins there you got tank Dell um you know CJ stad is going to spread the ball around so and and and Diggs knows that but how is he going to feel now I I feel like if he's just not flat out not getting involved in the offense like he's getting nothing then you know there might be some frustration but you know if he gets his you know six or seven receptions you know he's getting targeted a decent amount each game then you know I I I don't think there's going to be a problem but I I I think it'd be a problem if he's just flat out not getting involved and you know the Texans are not playing well because of that uh because he feels like he can contribute and I and I definitely think he is I definitely think he will so we'll have to wait and see on that but yeah let me know what you guys think though about Diggs how do you see him doing in 2024 but actually I wanted to go back to this cuz I do want to remind you guys once again to Tipper donate and get get your comments recognize make sure to go to the dollar sign icon in the chat uh any comment any thought that you might have that you want to see on the live broadcast you could put that as a super chat I will acknowledge it during the live broadcast and it just makes the show more lively more interactive between you guys and myself the host any contribution you can make to the show means the world to us and if you want to do it the alternative way that is also another way to help out the show you can go to the link at the bottom of the show segment on the ticker that is gsmc podcast. net and like I said any contribution that you guys can make to the show means the world to us as we give you guys content each and every day every Monday through Friday so when we come back from our next break uh we'll talk about some of the best matchups going into the weekend some of my favorite matchups that I'm looking forward to seeing and that will be the third part of the show because there's a decent amount you know it's it's a decent uh week one slate and we got football games you know between the NFL and college tomorrow we got games from Thursday all the way up until Monday which is is great is great for us so um yeah we'll get into the top matchups uh for the for uh the uh the week one slate when we come back from our second break of the show so with that being said stick around and we'll be right back here on the gsmc football podcast looking for your daily fix of sports talk without having to pay for it gsmc Sports network is available on YouTube just search gsmc sports network get your fix of daily Sports talk shows on YouTube absolutely free NFL college football NBA MLB MMA UFC fantasy football and so much more gsmc Sports network has shows running all day long with new sports shows starting every 2 hours just like on your favorite Cable Sports channel except gsmc Sports network is absolutely free just search gsmc Sports Network on YouTube to catch one of your new favorite shows like the gsmc college football podcast chip shot football podcast hoops and heels women's sports podcast gsmc basketball podcast and so many more check it out for yourself gsmc Sports Network now available on YouTube absolutely free search gsmc Sports Network on YouTube right now all right and we are back here on the gsmc football podcast and for the third part of the show uh we're going to talk about some of the best matchups in the week one slate the ones that I'm most looking forward to and I mean the first two games of the Slate come tomorrow night and Friday night and that's of course the kickoff game opening kickoff uh between the Ravens and the chiefs of course that's the AFC Championship Game rematch from last year and of course you know I did talk about you know the history between the two quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes you know it's another matchup in that Saga and I'm really looking forward to it and of course you know you also got Derrick Henry making his debut with the Ravens as well you know what kind of difference can he make now that he's brought into the fold this is a team that loves to run the football and he's the king so you know I'm really looking forward to you know seeing those two work together Lamar Jackson and derck Henry but of course again it's just another you know chapter in the momes Jackson Saga so I am you know looking forward to that you know I'm locked in for it um you know going to be uh going to be an interesting game you know can the Ravens set the tone and avenge their Championship loss from last year or the Chiefs just going to continue to roll now Travis Kelce will be playing in this game uh last year he did not play in the season opener for the Chiefs and of course you know you got Xavier worthy who's now brought into the fold the rookie wide receiver so yeah I'm just I'm really looking forward to this game and the other thing too is the Yankees are off tomorrow so my sole focus is going to be on this game now it probably would still be on this game anyways because football is back and also because the Yankees continue to frustrate me in new ways including last night but my uh my all my attention is going to be on this game tomorrow night so I'm really looking forward to it but yeah that's one of the games that I'm excited for the other one is of course Friday Friday Night Eagles the Packers I did go over that quarterback matchup as well between Jordan love and Jaylen Herz and yeah this is one of the best games as well this could be the game of the week because I I I think this game could be this game has the potential I think to be high scoring this game could be a shootout possibly um lot of Talent on both sides of the ball uh the Eagles of course you know with their two stud receivers AJ Brown and Devonte Smith of course saquon Barkley making his debut as an eagle those stings a little bit but still let's see what he can do now behind a good offensive line and then on the other side you got the other running back that was signed by the Packers their new running back Josh Jacobs let's see what he does for them this year I mean hopefully he's a monster I drafted him in fantasy in I got him in the third round in my redraft league and I'm hoping that you know he has a big year and you know he's really going to be relied upon because you know they did bring back AJ Dylan but he's going to be out for the year with a neck injury um they did draft Marshon Lloyd um they still have Emanuel Wilson but it's going to be Josh Jacobs and then of course how is Jordan love going to be in year two as the full-time starter for the Packers I actually did want to acknowledge a comment on one of my videos from yesterday um and it was on the um the Packers well it was on the Jordan love jayen her segment that I did so this is from Ezekiel major 5511 and this is what he said he said most opinions of Jordan love are based off of the Green Bay Cowboys playoff game Dallas stinks so I would put too much stock I think he meant to say so I wouldn't put too much stock but he said I would put too much stock in that my Eagles will be ready for him on Sunday Bank on it actually a couple of things there so first of all he said I would he meant to say I wouldn't and the Eagles are not playing this game is not being played on Sunday this is being played on Friday so this Eagles fan is all over the place he doesn't even know when his team's playing so I said appreciate the comment I think it's more than just that playoff game he played really well towards the end of the year he beat the Lions on the road on Thanksgiving and the Chiefs in prime time he still got more to prove of course but it was more excuse me it was more than just the playoff game versus the Cowboys should be a great game on Friday yeah because there really was more to it than just the playoff game against the Cowboys he did have some really good games down the stretch beat Mahomes on in prime time you know and that you know also helped you know those two games Between the Lions and the Chiefs they won the those two games that turned their season around so don't pretend like it was just a playoff game against the Cowboys well he had to have some good games to get him to that point to play the Cowboys in the playoffs so you can't just say that it was just a playoff game but uh also you got to know when your team's playing your team is not playing on Sunday he's playing they're they're playing on Friday so I I I didn't even really think about that but any anyways that's one of the best games of the weekend as well um also I mean I'm not going to say this is one of the best games of the weekend but I will be there in person and that's Giants Vikings um but just wanted to acknowledge that um I think the Cowboys and the Browns that's going to be a good game um you know the Cowboys with their Allin off season which really wasn't all in except Allin for their Stars um how are they going to do how is that offense going to do against this pass rush of the Browns how is Deshawn Watson going to look coming back from injury you know that that's a game I I'm I'm curious to see how that plays out um I'm going I mean I'm going to be keeping up with it you know as we're traveling back from the Giant game because you know we're taking uh my parents and I are taking a bus there um you know there's going to be a whole tailgate it's going to it's it's going to be a lot of fun um just hope the game is good but I'll be keeping up with you know the the late slate on my phone as we're traveling back but yeah that's I I think that has the potential to be one of the best games of the weekend as well also Cardinals bills can be intriguing um you know KY and Kyler Murray is healthy you know and usually when he starts you know the Cardinals they usually get off to you know good starts you know fast starts but um you know obviously last year recovering from the ACL came back later in the year and the Cardinals you know people look at them as being a team that's going to make improvements and maybe could be a team that you know sneaks in as a wild card who knows but you know you got that offense you know Marvin Harrison Jr making his debut and then of course um on the other side you got Josh Allen in the bills how was Josh Allen going to do with you know all the new wide receivers that he has at his disposal um that has a potential to be a good game as well um but of course the last two games that I wanted to get to now obviously there's Caleb Williams debut um but these two games that I'm going to talk about uh towards the end of the segment here these are going to be good games so you got aord making his return to Detroit once again and that was one of the best playoff games last year you know Lions won that by a point and I I I think we're in for another good game now I'm kind of leaning towards taking the Rams in this matchup here but I do expect this to be another good game um you know Stafford coming home part two uh should be a lot of fun obviously the Lions you know they want to take it a step further this year you know they they came very close to making it to the Super Bowl they had a big lead against the 49ers and they lost it but this year they're looking to take that next step and get to the Super Bowl and we'll see if they can do that um you know this is one of the best games of the weekend right here and then finally it's the last game of the weekend and and that is the Jets and the 49ers and it's really for one now of course I did bring it up the 49ers got all their players signed and you know they got all the stars so you're excited to see them but for one reason only and that is Aaron Rogers making his return to the field how is he going to do this is a team that has given him problems in the past particularly in the playoffs does well against them during the regular season but in the playoffs he's had he's had problems with them but that's really what I am most interested in is him making it through an entire game and how does he look how does he look with this team the Jets tried to improve this offensive line let's see if it pays off they brought in Mike Williams let's see what Bree Hall could do now in year three gett Wilson in year three backed up by by a really good defense against the best team in the NFC how is Aaron Rogers going to look and I hope he goes out there and plays really well on Monday but that is what I'm most interested in this has the potential to be a very good game if Rogers you know can play a good game and how do how does uh Brock pery deal with that Jets pass rush now he's got Trent Williams back which is big but you know let's see what happens I I that that's a game I am very interested in and we be watching very closely and I just want to see Aaron Rogers go out there and play full game for the Jets so we could see what he looks like as a jet because we really didn't see it we saw him throw that touchdown pass to gett Wilson in the preseason game last year against the Giants and then he was running out with the American flag last year but that was it ended off to Bree Hall against Buffalo he had a big run and then that was yeah that and then he got hurt so I want to see Aaron Rogers get through a full game let's see what he looks like as the Jets quarterback but yeah I'm hoping for the best really and I and I think a lot of people are too they you know it's one of the best quarterbacks of Our Generation you know I I last year that was horrible let's see what he does this year year um but yeah those are the games that I'm excited for let me know what you guys think what games are you most excited for for this week one Slate from this week one slate let me know in the comments so we're going to take our next break and then when we come back last two segments here we'll be doing standings predictions we'll be going over the AFC North First when we come back from our next break so with that being said stick around and we'll be right back here on the gsmc football podcast for the best and latest podcasts available anywhere go to the podcast app on your cell phone and type in gsmc to access free content-rich podcasts on health and wellness book reviews Sports entertainment relationships social media movies technology finance and even weird news subscribe and download the gsmc podcast Network's family of shows available everywhere podcasts are found all right and we are back here on the the gsmc football podcast and for the fourth part of the show we are now going to get into the final two segments here standings predictions so let's get into them so we'll start off with the AFC North and then in the final segment we'll do uh we'll do the AFC South so when it comes to the AFC North I mean I said it over and over again uh this is the best division in football and I think now this is what I got here I got every team finishing with the winning record now I do have the Bengals and the Ravens making the playoffs tomorrow I'll go over my playoff teams um but this is what I got for the division [Music] and I you know for for me when it comes to the Steelers we'll start with the Steelers now I know they well their offense struggled in the preseason I understand that but you know until proven otherwise with Mike Tomlin as the head coach I'm going to say they somehow still find a way to finish with a winning record and I know Steeler fans are not going to be happy because they want to see more they want to see more it's I was watching the highlights the other night it's been a long time since this team has won a playoff game it's been a long time and they've made the playoffs but they haven't won you know they made it in 2020 in 21 last year but they're one and done and to me the way I have it they're on the outside looking in once again and that's not good enough now it also doesn't help that they play that they play in a tough division the toughest division in football but that's just how I see it right now now last year they did kind of benefit from the Bengals you know and burrow getting hurt cuz they ended up sweeping the season series with the Bengals and Joe burrow didn't play in either of those games now if burrow does play how do those I mean those games go very differently and the Steelers schedule towards the second half of the year is brutal because they play all these teams right here in their division they play the Chiefs on Christmas they play the Eagles I believe it's a very tough schedule and I don't know why the NFL decided to do that but I do think I'm going to give them that respect they are going to somehow find a way some way somehow to get to nine wins because Mike Tomlin has never finished with a losing record but again that's not good enough for the Steelers Steeler fans are going to be very frustrated we could very well see Russell Wilson and Justin Fields play their fair share of games throughout the year Russell Wilson's at least going to start and then we'll see if they go to Justin fields at some point but I got the Stealers at 9 and eight so uh and being in last place in the division so that's my thoughts on the Steelers then with the Browns like I said when it comes to them I do think Deshawn Watson is going to be inconsistent throughout the year but I do think that the Browns are going to be a good team once again you know they got a very good defense and like I said Deshawn Watson's going to have his moments where he's going to look good and I do think that the Browns are 10- win team last year they won 11 games with five different starting quarterbacks so you know and this year I got them finishing a game worse than that you know and we'll see you know hopefully Nick chub comes back at some point this year right now he's going to miss the first four games but it's possible that he could come back you know much later in the season um but you know I lik you know the Jerry Judy trade although you know giving him the three-year extension I I don't know I don't know how I felt about that but I like their offense you hope the offensive line could stay healthy because that was a problem last year that was another a group that you know got ravaged by injuries you had the backfield getting hurt you had the quarterback position and you had the offensive line all deal with injuries and the Browns are kind of hoping that that doesn't happen again but I do think 10 wins is fair for the Browns then for the Bengals I got them at 11- six in second and this is because Joe burrow is healthy healthy Joe burrow the Bengals are going to finish with a better record than they did last year and and we got to wait and see what happens with Jamar Chase because he's still holding in right now and you know there there's no guarantee he's going to play on Sunday against the Patriots and if that's the case it's going to be the th Higgins show which it's not a bad thing because C Higgins could definitely handle it and with burrow being back that really helps so um yeah but I I I think it really all comes down to burrow being healthy because if burrow is not healthy you know this team's not going to win 11 games but I do think with him back I think 11 games is fair but they also got to get Jam Jamar Chase back as well they have to get him back so I think 11 wins is fair for them and then for the Ravens I think this is the best team in the division I'm going to give them that respect from last year because you know they won the division last year they had home they had home field and of course they had the MVP and Lamar Jackson and now you bring pretty much everybody back you got Derrick Henry now in the fold I think this is a 12- win team and Lamar Jackson stayed he stayed healthy you know that that's been a problem the last couple of years is Lamar Jackson would get hurt late in the year and that would derail the Ravens season now they still made the playoffs in one of those years 2022 Tyler Huntley had to be the starter will take over as a starter and he started in that playoff game against the Bengals but you just see how this team is when Lamar Jackson is healthy they are very good and now bringing Derrick Henry in again that's one of the more intriguing things to pay attention to throughout the season because that's going to give defenses headaches especially towards the goal line because running the read option is Jackson going to keep it or is Derrick Henry going to run it up the middle or is Derrick Henry going to throw a touchdown pass because I mean you know we've seen that a few times but yeah this is what I got here for the AFC North let me know what you guys think though about my predictions here how do you see this division playing out again would not surprise me if every team in this division finishes over 500 somebody's got to finish in last but yeah I got the Steelers and last and the Steelers have a championship caliber defense but it's just the offense that is going to be a problem I think this year if the quarterbacks don't play well so but yeah let me know what you guys think about the AFC North so when we come back from our final break of the show uh we will talk about the AFC South next and then tomorrow I'll go over the AFC West so tomorrow we'll preview of course our first real preview of the Year Raven Chiefs that's I'll open the show I'll go through the AFC West standings give you my predictions for those um I'll go through over my playoff teams my Super Bowl prediction and then um I'm trying to think I might do I think I might do like Awards like who I think is going to win what particular award I think that's how we'll break down the show uh tomorrow so it's just going to be I mean it's just going to be all uh a predictions and and things like that which I'm really excited about um can't wait for this game tomorrow night it's going to be it's like gu like I've said constantly it's been a long offseason so I just want to get to that point and hopefully um hopefully I'm a little bit better tomorrow because again still dealing with this uh these allergies here so but definitely um I mean you can still hear it in my voice but definitely feel better today well definitely getting better each and every day so uh hopefully tomorrow I'm a little bit better and uh yeah no let's uh the season is upon us but we're going to take another break or our final break and then we'll do the uh the AFC South predictions here so for one final time today stick around and we'll be right back here on the gsmc football podcast [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] all right and we are back here on the gsmc football podcast and for the final part of the show uh we're going to go over the AFC South standings standing predictions and again uh if you're asking or if you're wondering I'm not crying again still trying to get through uh again the allergies that we got going on here but anyways let's get into that so we went over to the AFC North in the last segment uh today or now we're going to be going through the AFC South and this is what I got so and I went back and watched my schedule my schedule breakdown videos um but this is what I got so we'll start with the Titans at 6 and 11 now they made a lot of moves this off season you know they brought in Calvin Ridley they brought in Tyler brought in Tyler Boyd and Tony Pard they traded for lerus Sneed over from Kansas City and you know now they have a new coach uh Callahan brought over from the Bengals so and they also tried to make improvements or they made improvements to the offensive line because they drafted out JC leam so they they're really they really tried to build a team around will Levis now it's really up to will Levis how is Will Levis going to look and he'll be taking on Caleb Williams on Sunday and we'll see how he looks um I think it's really all going to come down to to how he does and um you know if the improvements that they made pay off and he ends up going out there and playing well then the Titans maybe they are more than a six and 11 team but I like the other teams in this division better um so that's why I kind of have them I think this is the record that they finished with last year so yeah it kind of got them finishing with the same record again but we'll see you know and the receiving cord that they have and it looks like DeAndre Hopkins is going to play week one which ISU is huge um but yeah with this receiving core that they have if this was the receiving core that they had you know five years ago this would be one of the best receiving cores in the NFL if not the best receiving core in the NFL [Music] and of course I moved something so now my camera is acting up but [Music] um but yeah so um I got them at I got them at six and 11 then um tied for second place second and third place I got the Colts in the Jags at 9 and eight now I did have the Jags at eight wins but I did give them one more win um you know with the Colts they were good last year and this was with Garder muu as a starting quarterback for most of the year you know muu did a nice job for them and now Anthony Richardson is back and you know I want to see how he looks over the course of a full season um you know Jonathan Taylor they're going to have for the full year as well because you know he missed some time last year because he was you know trying to get a new contract so you know I'm I'm looking forward to that as well you know how they're going to look together over the course of a full season and you know I did watch you know Anthony Richardson playing the preseason and you know that game against the Bengals was a mixed bag because you know went right down the field on his first drive and then you know through pick six so you know I mean he's still trying to work his way back but getting put to the test right away with playing the Texans um in week one playing them on Sunday so um but I do think this is a good enough team that they can get to nine wins and with the Jags well Trevor Lawrence got a big contract you know in terms of aav I mean he's right at the top so you know he's got to go out there and live up to that contract and we've been expecting more out of Trevor Lawrence you know they made the playoffs in 22 I feel like you could throw I've said it throw out is rookie year because that was just a mess 2022 was solid last year you know they were inconsistent they were they were eight and three and then the wheels just fell off um you know hopefully the Jags do bounce back you know they drafted Brian Thomas Jr Christian Kirk is hopefully healthy you Bron and Gabe Davis you know you tried to improve this offensive line because that's the main thing you want to protect Trevor Lawrence um you know on the defensive side of the ball they brought in Eric Armstead over from the 49ers which I think will pay off you know pair him up with Josh Allen who got a new contract and uh trayon Walker so oh man my man my is really going here um I you know I I just think that they're going to I think there's going to be a bounce back but I don't know if it's going to be enough to make the postseason because the AFC is loaded man I know we were doing great we were doing great this whole time and it just I don't know what happened we just towards the end here um the voice is uh is fading out but yeah I they they they just like the Jags last year they faded out you know like I said they were eting three and then things just fell apart so but part of that had to do with Trevor Lawrence you know getting hurt um you know shouldn't have played in that Browns game you know because it looked like it looked like he was he he had a season ending injury against the Bengals on that Monday night but then was able to play you know well probably shouldn't have played but played against the Browns and he had three turnovers well three interceptions I forget if he had a fumble or not but yeah it's just everything kind of fell apart for the Jags um and if they end up not making the playoffs uh Doug Peterson is probably gone so we'll see what happens but they got a tough game on um on Sunday against the Dolphins so we'll see how that goes but that's also that's also an intriguing matchup for you know just the gsmc sports network in general because there is been a huge debate between Tua and Trevor Lawrence so not to say that this game is going to settle that debate but there was a huge debate that went on in our production meeting and got to keep an eye on this game um but yeah so I got the brown the the Colts and the Jags at 9 and8 and then I got the Texans at 12 and5 um they went 10 and seven last year exceeded expectations you bring in Stefon Diggs they signed Neil Hunter I just think this team is going to take that next step they are going to be really good um I think they're the favorites to win this Division and I think they're going to win this division once again you know they got a Young quarterback that you know could be an MVP candidate this year and um I just really like what they did this off season you know you hope that defense continues to improve cuz in the playoff game against the Ravens I mean that defense got shredded um so you're hoping that they made enough improvements there and you know with Diggs paired up with niic Collins and tank Dell you're bring in Joe Mixon there's a lot to like about this team and demo Ryan is a really good head coach um so yeah no looking forward to it really looking forward to watching the Texans this year and what they can accomplish so yeah that's um that's my standings predictions for the AFC South let me know what you guys think about those predictions and yeah that is uh that is pretty much it for the show for today again you know I apologize for my voice uh it's you know towards the end there that was that was bad but again I'm not crying it's just I don't it's just something that I'm still dealing with and hopefully again I've been starting to feel better and we got through most of the show pretty much without what's going on with with without any mishaps but towards the end here yeah it just it uh it it started to uh fade out there so again hopefully we get past this and I will but it's just you know taking longer than I wanted to I just want it to be over so I can actually get through a whole show without losing my voice but yeah so again thank you guys for tuning in you know make sure to check out all the other shows you know as well give the other shows some love like I always say and uh yeah tomorrow is previewing Ravens Chiefs so can't wait for that so with that that is all the time that we have for today again thank you guys for tuning in we'll be back again tomorrow 10:30 a.m. eastern time and until then I'm Kenneth grunfelder signing off from the gsmc football podcast brought to you by the gsmc sports network have a good day and I will talk to you guys tomorrow take care for