NFL Winners And Losers

And I thought yesterday was a strong, and I mean this as a compliment, I'll use a word that the kids like to say, glazing session for Cam Scadaboo. And why wouldn't it be? Cam Scadaboo has a ton of confidence. Cam Scadaboo is now the featured back. I'm trying not to laugh because I spent a decade of my life as a head coach. I didn't know when the hell the trade deadline was. The most important thing is, I've always done this, I worry about the ones that are here. Coach, the ones that are here and keep building what we got going. So we have a lot of positive energy. It's good, everybody. Josh Downs checking in. I'm excited to be joining Chiefs Kingdom, man. Just touched down in the city. Ready to get to work. Sometimes the best deal is a deal that you don't make. We're willing to pay a price, you know, to make our team better, but it's got to be something that really makes our team better. Thank you very much. It's got to be worth it. So if we don't make a deal, it would be because we didn't have anything that we felt good enough about that way. What a perfect way to start Shine Time today. Great soundbites, the aftermath, the day after the NFL trade deadline. Because now it's about, okay, the roster is set, as Mike McCarthy said. And it's about go time for the players and coaches, the teams that made trades, the teams that didn't make trades. And let's start, speaking of teams that didn't make trades, with the New York Football Giants. And listen, I was certainly one of those screaming from the... Hilltops, yeah, trade for Jonathan Taylor. And I thought yesterday was a strong, and I mean this as a compliment, I'll use a word that the kids like to say. glazing session for Cam Scataboo. And why wouldn't it be? Cam Scataboo has a ton of confidence. Cam Scataboo is now the featured back. Obviously, Najee Harris was cut. You take a look at Tracy, he's on injured reserve. Devin Singletary is Devin Singletary. And Jonathan Taylor stays in Indianapolis. And I was certainly of the belief that the Giants should acquiesce to the Colts' demand. And it was reportedly the Giants gave a 2 and a 5 as an offer. I would have given a two and a four, two and a three, two and a two, whatever it would take. I'm not going to go nuts. I'm not going to yell. I'm not going to scream because yes. He can, and I'm not the biggest Cam Scadaboo fan because of his availability, and I don't think John Harbaugh loves him because he fumbled the ball against Washington, and he can't stay on the field, but I do think he likes him, and I always have acknowledged the toughness element for Scadaboo, what he did against the Texans, what he did in college, what he did last year before he got hurt. I hate when he puts the ball on the ground. I hate when he does backflips, whether it's after... Scoring against Dallas or after Fanatics Fest. But the team is going to rally around Cam Scadaboo, who has talent. And here's the thing when it comes to the Giants and not making the trade for Jonathan Taylor. Here's a real shot. They're going to win the NFC East anyway. That's why I can't scream. That's why I can't yell. And Jonathan Taylor, who's, you know, in his late 20s, he's still available in the offseason, depending upon who the Colts general manager is. So as long as the Giants beat Washington tomorrow night at MetLife Stadium, and I believe that'll be the case. You don't have to wait for Thursday's show and our, you know, Shines Lines pick segment. Giants are going to absolutely beat the Washington Commanders. 6-2-1 going into that 425 showdown against the Powerhouse Jaguars a week from Sunday. That's going to be great. And listen, I picked the Cowboys from the division preseason. Dallas still isn't dead. If you watch them play, they're completely disinterested. So the Giants are still in position to be in position to win the division, for J.J. McCarthy to thrive. McCarthy's back to practice. You don't have to worry about the injury. Scadaboo's back to practice. You don't have to worry about the injury. John Harbaugh's fingerprints are still all over this team. And I bet you that's going to resonate with everyone in the locker room that they didn't make the trade for Jonathan Taylor. And it's a, all right, guys. This is my squad. It's like the old line from Hoosiers. My team's on the floor. So I really think that there's a great method to the madness here when it comes to the Giants and John Harbaugh. And there should be a great excitement here if you're a Giants fan. Because even without Jonathan Taylor, this team still has what it takes to hold on, win the division, have meaningful games November, December, into January, and then host a playoff game. And honestly. If you're a Giants fan, that's what you want. And depending upon what happens and who they play, Giants are capable of winning a playoff game. And then it's about making a real Super Bowl push in the offseason for the New York Football Giants. And honestly, even as someone who wanted for the long-suffering Giants fans to see them get Jonathan Taylor, There's something pretty awesome about not acquiescing to demands, not going over the top when it comes to a potential trade, and believing in the guys who have helped you catapult if you're John Harbaugh to this incredible start. So the Indianapolis Colts keep Jonathan Taylor, and I think the Colts actually, and I think this is important here, did a really good job at the deadline. And they trade four guys away, four veteran players, and they get really good returns here. And I think what's important is the volume of picks that they have coming up for the 2027 NFL Draft. And if you're a fan of the Jets, you know that's the Colts when they have this awful record. They're going to take their number one pick and just give it to New York based upon what transpired in the Sauce Gardner deal. But look at the volume of picks they have now in round number two and round number three and round number four. And that's ammunition to ultimately have the ability to trade into the back end of the first round and be able to go get their next franchise quarterback. And I think that's important here for the Indianapolis Colts. We've spent so much time. Talking about the Colts, their plan. they did the right thing with those four trades you saw on the board. And I love all four of those vets. And we'll get into downs in a second. But I think the Colts should fire Chris Ballard because he was terrible at his job. You know, this, how they handled the deadline, this job is still attractive. You can still, even with Daniel Jones still as the quarterback and Jonathan Taylor still as the running back, I'll be fascinated to see what Taylor says when he talks to the press, what Taylor's wife's Instagram and TikTok feed, what she has to say. Okay, look. I think the Colts handled the trade deadline with aplomb. And I'll be very curious to see who the next GM is. What the plan is with Jonathan Taylor. And I still think there's a real shot. Jonathan Taylor is a running back for the New York Football Giants in 2027. And if he's not, that'll increase the chances of the Indianapolis Colts getting their quarterback and trading picks for a player, picks to get into the first round. And I think that'll help the Colts attract a really good general manager to run their team for next year and beyond. Meanwhile, imagine going from a team going nowhere this season to one of the most dominant teams of this generation. You'd probably be as happy as this guy. What's good, everybody? Josh Downs checking in. I'm excited to be joining Chiefs Kingdom, man. Just touched down in the city. Ready to get to work. I can't stress enough. Especially coming from me, as someone who thinks the Bills are winning a championship, and I thought the hooker trade was a championship move. I can't stress enough, as someone who said the Jacksonville Jaguars, before the trade deadline, were the most complete team in the AFC. They can win the AFC this year. They can win the Super Bowl this year. Then you see them go out and get Bates and get Davis and the defensive tackle from New Orleans. And the Jags are amazing. Yes. If you're a fan of the AFC, this is your worst nightmare. The Chiefs nailed it with Josh Downs. And look, the Chiefs obviously have issues when it comes to the offensive line and issues when it comes to the defense and the rest of the receiving core. Josh Downs is perfect. He is the king of the slot. I mean, look at this. Second most yards from the slot position at the wide receiver position since 2023. The only one who has more. Amon-Ra St. Brown, not to mention Josh Downs, the need for speed. And he's been playing with Patrick Mahomes, which means it's a recipe for success and domination. And the Chiefs literally don't have another wide receiver that is even worth his salt. You have Kenneth Walker, unbelievable. You have Travis Kelce, still great. Andy Reid's going to put him in a position to be successful. Chiefs receivers averaging 117 yards per game. It's a wide receiver position. That is 28th in the NFL. The fewest in the Mahomes era. Think about that for a second. That is genuinely amateur hour. Josh Downs for a fourth and a fifth round pick. Chump change. Absolutely positively chump change. Patrick Mahomes has not completed. Think about this. To hit home how amazing this deal is. Hasn't completed a pass over 20 air yards since week. Four, week four. So to say this was necessary and this was everything, it's just amazing. And I still think, for the sake of conversation and fairness, right, the Chiefs will enter the playoffs on the Shine Time believability ranking. They will be sixth in the AFC. Somewhere behind Buffalo and Jacksonville and Cincinnati and Pittsburgh and the Denver Broncos who traded for a Charger linebacker yesterday. I think Charger, I think the Broncos are still going to win the division, but Kansas City getting the perfect playmate and playmaker for Patrick Mahomes. Everybody has to be on notice here. This team was desperate for someone at the wide receiver. Someone with Josh Downs' skill set. Remember, week two of the NFL season, Downs was amazing. That game was on national TV. He torched Kansas City in Kansas City. So, do I think that captured Kansas City's attention? Absolutely. What a perfect deal for the Kansas City Chiefs. Now. To the Steel City, where the Mike McCarthy-Aaron Rodgers experiment is paying off big time. Did Mike McCarthy want to add on? Here's the Steelers coach before the deadline yesterday. Trying not to laugh because I spent a decade in my life as a head coach. I didn't know when the hell trade deadline was. I just knew it was somewhere around the middle of the season. But, yeah, it's part of it. It's different. I get it. Everybody wants to improve their roster. And, hey, I have great confidence. And Omar and Art, if there's something there, we'll do the right thing. But I think it's very important for me as the head coach to keep my eye on the target. And that's the 68 plus that are in the building. The Chiefs needed to make the trade. I've said this for weeks. Steelers did not. I think the Steelers' standing pat was such a win at the deadline. And I know that's not a sexy take. I don't care. For a variety of reasons, this was the right move and the only move. First of all, Steelers are better than the Chiefs in areas that matter when it comes to winning in the playoffs. The Steelers' run game is elite. Warren Rigodato's back. The offensive line for Pittsburgh has been excellent. Aaron Rodgers is still playing at a... Hall of Fame level. Mike McCarthy is a fabulous coach. The Steelers are 6-2. And that defense is playing championship football once again. Give T.J. Watt and company a ton of credit. They're tough. They're rugged. They're physical. They can win any style of fight. Rodgers loves Jeremy, the young cat, at the wide receiver position. He loves his big tight ends. And you look at Rodgers and his history. Trading for someone at the deadline? What if the guy doesn't run the right routes? Rodgers buries him. You still have DK Metcalf, who I don't love. Michael Pittman should be coming back. I don't think that trading for a receiver would change the math here in terms of Pittsburgh having a better opportunity to win a playoff game, which they haven't done since they beat Alex Smith and the Chiefs in January of 2016. This is Alex Smith and Kansas City. That's how long ago it's been. I give Pittsburgh credit, and Mike McCarthy's been around the block. This team did not need to add. Trust me when I tell you, no one is going to want to face the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second half of the season. No one's going to want to face them in the playoffs. The Mets should be considered a favorite for Tarik Skubal, if not the favorite. The superstar left-hander will be meeting with teams, including the Mets, as the New York Post first reported next week in Orange County, California. We know three of those other teams, the incumbent Los Angeles Dodgers, are expected to get a meeting with Skubal. The San Diego Padres will get a meeting with Skubal. And we can reveal today that the Toronto Blue Jays are a fourth team expected to get a meeting with Skubal. So we have four out of the six teams involved. We do believe there are at least two other teams. They are not known. If you want to call them mystery teams for fun, go ahead, because they are mysteries right now. But this should be a very, very interesting pursuit. Skubal is expected to sign this month before the December 1st lockout. And he should get a record deal for per year salary and. Total dollars, certainly with this group of teams, I think his chances look excellent to do so. So how about that? Our guy, John Hammond, breaking the hottest story in all of Major League Baseball, the New York Mets are going to get a meeting with Tarik Skubal. Hey, Steve Cohen. Now, let's go through this here, okay, because Heyman's information, or what he just said, is off the charts, and it was interesting listening to Gomes, the general manager of the Dodgers, talk to the press yesterday. They want Skubal back, and Skubal, I think, would love to stay with the Dodgers. I also think this is where the potential of the work stoppage comes in. And it hurts the Dodgers and their ability to re-sign Skubal. Because there is a legit I don't know when it comes to a salary cap and getting taxed and what you can spend. And listen, obviously, if Skubal's on the Dodgers, they're the favorites to win the World Series in Vegas. And they'll probably be the shine time pick. You know, take the Dodgers. I always do. Their pitching's unbelievable. If Skubal goes elsewhere, the Dodgers will be fine. The Dodgers will be great. They'll make it at least to the championship series. They don't have to overreact, and Scott Boras, of course, is Skubal's agent, so you know that he's going to go where they're going to give him the most money. The Padres fascinate the hell out of me, because the Padres, they want to win, they're ready to win, they obviously could have. beat the Milwaukee Brewers. They were the hottest team down the stretch of the season. Milwaukee and San Diego were unbelievable. They have a galaxy of stars. They could, on offense, they'll lose Michael King, you put in Skubal, and, you know, that would be a blow, and somehow Skubal would be better. The Blue Jays are a monster market team. Last year was a disgrace. The Blue Jays are a factor with everyone when it comes to being the highest bidder, which leads me back to the Mets. Tarik Skubal is the best pitcher in baseball. The body of work, and obviously I love Cam Schlittler, I love the Miz, the best pitcher in baseball over the last X number of years, whatever time frame we're going to use, it's Tarik Skubal. We've talked about the Mets trading for him when he was in Detroit last offseason forever. Now we're talking about the Mets signing him. And guess what? It's only money. Here's a projected rotation of today, what the Mets starting five would look like. This is everything. You put Skubal on the Mets, all of a sudden, the math changes for the entire team. Without him, you need to be in the starting pitching markets. You know, maybe you sign Michael King, but it's not. Skubal changes everything. He's a known, he's a known star. He's a known ace. So I anticipate the bidding is going to be real. If I was advising Scott Boras, I probably want to get this done before the lockout, December 1st, because there's going to be a legit, I don't know. If you have the Dodgers in play, that's obviously big in terms of what Skubal will get and big in terms of finances and the bank account. I think that, and I've said this forever. Skubal, obviously, is going to the highest bidder. The Dodgers could end up being that team, right? Let's not eliminate that possibility. We've seen that on, you know, Edwin Diaz and Kyle Tucker and everybody else in between, right? We go all the way back to Shohei Otani, Freddie Freeman, whatever it is. But this is different for the Mets. This feels like everything. You can play the kids. The offense, I think, is actually going to be very underrated this year. If you get Skubal, everything else that happens in the offseason, it's kind of crazy. Seriously, which is wild. It's just money. Skubal is literally the best pitcher in the game. Hey, Steve Cohen, get it done. Speaking of aces, you could have, before the season, called our guy Cam Butler the future ace of the Yankees. At this point, he is the ace. He is the ace. He is the leader. He's the guy who sets the tone and the tempo. And here's a reminder of the Yankees hurler's mindset. We didn't meet the expectations of the fans in this organization. And there's a... A certain standard of being a Yankee, and we didn't fulfill that. Again, we have all the pieces to succeed and win a championship, but at the end of the day, that's not what we did this year. So here's what we're going to do right now, because it's going to happen tonight. And if it doesn't, we riot. We're congratulating Cam Schlittler on winning the Cy Young. Because there's competition. The American League had a bunch of really good pitchers, great pitchers this year who put up big-time numbers. I mean, Cease was great. Sonny Gray was great, among others. Cam Schlittler wins the Cy Young. No one was better. No one was more dominant. No one was more valuable than Cam Schlittler and what he did for my New York Yankees. You look at the stats. You watch him pitch. My ball, my mound, I'm going to take this baseball and stick it where the sun don't shine. Look at that strikeout-to-walk ratio. He struck out 239 batters and walked 49. I mean, that is filthy. That's nasty. ERA under 2.14, and 6. If Cam Schlittler does not win Cy Young, holy schlitt. Meanwhile, the Yankees are in need of a new bench coach today, because for some reason, Brad Ausmus is the manager of the rival Houston Astros. As someone who hates the cheating fraud Astros, Brad Ausmus? Haven't we seen this movie before with Brad Ausmus as a manager? I mean, what are we doing here? And don't get me wrong, I despise the Astros. I'm still... Sick when it comes to all the cheating and Jose Altuve and don't rip my shirt off, new tattoo, he's clearly getting buzzed, buzzed up freak. Ausmus has been a terrible manager. This is a gift to the Yankees that he's no longer there. And it's like he's an informant. They're sending him into Houston to completely disrupt the Astros. What would I have done? I don't know. Anything else? But really specifically, Albert Pujols, who was rumored to be a finalist. I think Albert Pujols, I've interviewed him. You know, I saw what he did in the WBC. You know, forget about the 700 home runs and, you know, star players, not great managers. Pujols puts in the work. I think Pujols would be amazing. Brad Ausmus, I just love this for Houston because he's a terrible manager. And I root for the Astros to fail. So this is what... The interaction looked like between these two, just a little tap from Tatum and not much acknowledgement from Jalen Brown. I'm just focused on doing what's best for my team. Everything else was just, to be honest, I wouldn't handle, but credit to Jason played well today, credit to the Celtics, they executed, they shot the hell out of the ball, and they were a better team than us. Let me tell you something. That was the biggest example of disrespect you can ever, ever have. And obviously, Brown and Tatum hate each other. I think Brown hates Tatum. I think Tatum has no use for Brown. They were never the best of friends. And, you know, this was the first game. I mean, look at this. First game that they got to see each other, play against each other since the trade. That is Brown blowing Tatum off. The fact that he says hello, he's dapping everyone up, he hits them on the chest, and he doesn't even look at them. I mean, that's cold, man. You know what else was cold? Brown's ability to shoot. I mean, this was a nightmare. Tatum was fantastic. Paul George, of all people, steals the show. Six threes. He was on fire. It was absolutely incredible to watch. Paul George, 36. Tatum, 21 points. And the Celtics spanked the hell out of Jalen Brown's Philadelphia 76ers as Boston, in stunning fashion. Now in first place in the Eastern Conference ahead of Philadelphia. So I think Philly gets the one seed. Still think that clearly Philadelphia is going to be great. But if you thought that they were going to say hello or even fake it for the cameras, I mean, that's a whole different level. And then Brown, obviously lying through his teeth, talking about the incident. And the post-game scrum talking to the press. What a disaster. And listen, as someone who... Said the Celtics had to trade Brown, but could not figure out for the life of me why the hell they would trade him to Philadelphia and give Philadelphia an opportunity to win the Eastern Conference and win the NBA Finals. That is a disaster. The fact that they witnessed Boston, Philadelphia witnessed Boston go into Philly and win that game in that fashion. By the way, it also hits home, Joe Mazzulla for the Boston Celtics. What a phenomenal coach. That was wild. Wait, there's more. Notre Dame should have never been ranked 11th in the first place. That was an elimination game. That was the right call. So, last night, the college football playoff rankings for the second version of them came out last night. And by the way, we were spot on on a couple of big picture things from the first. See, the problem when you rank Notre Dame 11 in the original rankings is that, and we said this, and people thought it was crazy, if you rank them 11 and then they beat Miami, Miami's going to fall somehow all the way to seven. Which, by the way, the team that I feel terrible for is Miami. How does Miami go from one, they don't even have Malachi Toney, if anyone on that committee watched the game, Miami played its ass off. I thought one of the big winners from college football this past weekend. was Miami. Miami showed they could win a championship. If Tony comes back, even if he doesn't, the way that Mensah played, the way the other receivers stepped up, Cristobal's a terrific coach. Notre Dame won. Notre Dame was supposed to win. It was everything for Notre Dame. Notre Dame should be a little higher. But the fact that you have two loss Alabama ahead of Miami, the fact that you have two loss Texas ahead of Miami, Miami should have been number two. Or in the top four and have Notre Dame one ahead of them. That's how I would have done it. I would have had Georgia number one, Notre Dame number two, Miami number three. But they couldn't move Notre Dame all the way up because they had them at 11 originally. How about UCLA? Now this, they got right. I know, you know, Indiana fans are not happy. You know, Indiana got fired on its day off. I mean, they dropped from four to nine. They didn't even play last week. UCLA, they're undefeated. By the way, Bob Chesney? I think he's going undefeated. Not going to be easy against Illinois. Just throwing that out. They're going to win. Ambiance in L.A. is going to be lit. They'll win in the big house. Kyle Whittingham has no interest in being there. The USC game is everything. I think they're going to go undefeated. And I think UCLA is brilliantly coached. I think the way they've navigated the quarterback injury is absolutely incredible. And I think they nailed it and got this right without question when you look at it from a UCLA perspective. I'm just sick for Notre Dame originally, the impact that had on Notre Dame, which should have been higher than five, and how Miami goes from one to seven. That's the show. Keep the same portion of the show, do what I do. We watch the show over and over again. Go to our new YouTube page, The Shine Time. Make sure you subscribe to our page, and every piece of Shine Time content will go straight to your device. We'll see you tomorrow on Shine Time.