00:00Short week. Already back to game day. Good morning. 97.1 Jim Costa, John Jansen, Heather Park, Gov and Greg
00:07behind the glass on a Thursday where the Lions are in Buffalo against the Bills. Good morning. Good morning. How
00:14was your Wednesday night? Went and gone. Ready for game day. I know. Me too. Me too. You seem ready
00:23for game day. A little extra product in the hair this morning. I don't have any extra product. This is
00:27all natural. Doesn't it look like he's got a little slick in there?
00:29It does. A little slick. Got a little curl in front there. Yeah, he's got the little Clark Kent Superman
00:36curl. Yeah, a little swoon. All right, then. You got your Lions hat on. We're ready to roll today. That's
00:43right. I know. I mean, I can't believe no one else in here has got Lions gear on. Like, this
00:47is a big day. You're looking down like you're, did I put on a Lions shirt? No, I'm wearing a
00:52CMU hoodie. You don't know where you were. I don't know. You wake up early. It's dark. Both shoes are
00:57the right shoes. Yes.
00:58Yes, yes. Well, give it time. That seat will have an effect on you. But yeah, our Wednesday night, obviously,
01:05Teddy's birthday yesterday. And my body missed the memo. Like, when you have birthdays or Christmas, Thanksgiving, like those calories
01:14and what you eat aren't supposed to count.
01:18Oh, it's like, it's a free day. It is. Yeah, but my tummy didn't get the memo. I had way
01:23too much birthday cake and ice cream last night. Felt like crap for all night long. Didn't sleep well because
01:29I'm like, man, I really overate all the ice cream. And the birthday cake, it was so good. But yeah,
01:37missed the memo.
01:37Good for you. Indulge.
01:38Oh, I did. I did. You know, I just say, everybody's trying to lose weight or be healthy. You still
01:43have to enjoy stuff. You still have to have days where you let yourself enjoy it. Yeah, well, I enjoyed
01:48it maybe a little too much. As Dan Campbell would say, a little, you know, everything in moderation. Gibbs is
01:54a drug we need more of. And I would say birthday cake probably equal to Jameer Gibbs.
02:00Cake's a hell of a drug. Yes, it is. Sugar should be labeled as such. But, but, yes, we have
02:08a Lions game this evening. Short week. And we found out yesterday, a couple of guys will not be participating.
02:17Lions going to be without three starting offensive linemen. Yes, if you throw Cade Bates in there. Yes, you make
02:23it very dramatic. We knew he wasn't going to be there. Right, but that's part of who would be the
02:26starters for this team. And he's not playing. I was confused. Thank you, John. You're welcome.
02:30How's that confusing? Mr. Drama over here. He wasn't going to be playing. If he was healthy, he would be
02:39playing. We knew three weeks before the season started that he wasn't going to be playing in the Buffalo game.
02:51I think most people would anticipate that the starting unit for week one is how you would address the starting
02:59unit for week two. And no, Cade Mays is not making some miraculous recovery and available.
03:07The two starting offensive linemen that were a part of the five in week one, Christian Mahogany and Blake Miller,
03:15Malacca, will not be participating this evening. Christian Mahogany, I think it's actually an upgrade with Ben Bartsch. So, no
03:24problem there. The question is going to be, what are we going to get from Larry Borum?
03:28So, everybody's pointed out, Blake Miller famously didn't miss games at Clemson and only missed a practice. He's now missed
03:36two practices and a game in only his second week of NFL football.
03:41This is a short week. I'm imagining that has a lot to do with the fact that he won't be
03:45able to make this turnaround and play.
03:47Yeah, but young legs, young body, you heal faster.
03:51You're disappointed.
03:52I am disappointed. Disappointed in this situation. I'm not necessarily disappointed in him.
03:57I don't know what the injury is. I don't know what he's feeling.
04:01We don't have enough for me to really be disappointed, but I kind of feel I was a little bit
04:05personal yesterday when I heard this.
04:07Why?
04:09I expect these tough, young, offensive linemen not to miss snaps, not to miss games.
04:15You know what it is? When we drafted him and we did those shows, who was the cop?
04:22John Jansen.
04:24That's why you're taking it so personally.
04:26We pointed out the rock, right? Doesn't miss time.
04:30Tough SOB.
04:32It did feel personal.
04:35And I hope he's back for week three when we take on the J-E-T-S.
04:39Yes, yes, yes.
04:41How far into your career before you missed a game?
04:47I missed a game.
04:48Well, the first time I missed any time, I got my Achilles in the Hall of Fame game, and that
04:55would have been year five or six.
04:59Yeah.
05:00But the team wasn't missing a starter in week one, as we just established.
05:04Correct.
05:04I was no longer a starter.
05:06I was on IR.
05:07And that was that when you went on IR, you weren't able to come off it at any point during
05:12the season.
05:12So you're candy-ass missed time with an Achilles?
05:15That's what we're going with?
05:16Come on, buddy.
05:17Non-contact injury.
05:19Yeah.
05:19I was in contact with Marco Coleman, famously defensive line coach for the Spartans.
05:27Stoney got him to call in.
05:28I love that.
05:29And also a very good Chris Berman nickname.
05:33Marco Coleman.
05:34Yep.
05:35There you go.
05:36John, as we kick off the show, we'll Thursday touchdown, as we typically do.
05:40We'll have a two grand slam.
05:41Dear John, we'll squeeze an alliance pick and talk to Ross Tucker.
05:45But you want to label this matchup with the Bills.
05:48Yeah, this one is tough, right?
05:50Because I looked at it, and we talked about the last play schedule.
05:55And after week one, right, we kind of adjust everything.
05:58The Jets won.
05:59So what does that mean for week three?
06:02Are we looking at a 2-0 Jets team or a much improved Jets team?
06:07Carolina didn't win, but they scored 37 points.
06:10Is that a tougher game?
06:11No.
06:11So I'm looking at this one, and you look and you say, well, who are the teams on your schedule
06:19that are Super Bowl favorites?
06:22And everyone goes to week two and the Buffalo Bills.
06:27You did what you were supposed to do in week one.
06:30You beat the New Orleans Saints.
06:32Is this, can you label it, this early in the season, as the biggest game?
06:39I think that's impossible.
06:41No, you can't.
06:42You can't label it.
06:43Because, again, they're not a division opponent.
06:45Hell, they're not even an NFC opponent.
06:48But it's a measuring stick, and maybe that's how you label it.
06:52It's a measuring stick game.
06:54And it's kind of, I think, maybe what we did back, you know, when in 2024, when they played,
07:01was it 24?
07:0323.
07:03When they played the Bills at the end of the season.
07:06It was that measuring stick game.
07:08Because if we're going to have the narrative that we've got this last place schedule,
07:13are you going to be measured on what you do against New Orleans, against the Jets, against
07:20the Tennessee Titans?
07:21Like, what are you going to be measured against?
07:25And one of them is going to be the Buffalo Bills.
07:28In fact, we may be, at Christmastime, at New Year's, at the end of the season, be going
07:34back to, well, they beat all these bad teams.
07:37But, against the Bills, this is, you know...
07:40It might be the most referenced game the rest of the way.
07:46So, let's play on that one.
07:48Is this a referendum game?
07:51No, I don't like that either.
07:53No, I don't think you can go there.
07:53How about this?
07:54It's a credibility game.
07:57You can build credibility here.
07:59Otherwise, you're going to be chasing that credible win on this schedule.
08:03Because you're right.
08:04Beating the Dolphins and the Cardinals and the Jets and the Titans.
08:06Those are things that you've got to line up and do it.
08:08We expect them to win those games.
08:09You won't gain credibility.
08:11You could in division.
08:14But you don't play a division game until the middle of October.
08:17And you don't go on the road in those big games until the very end of the season.
08:22Right.
08:22So, this could be the credibility spot.
08:25The game that we will be referencing for months.
08:28If you win, it's...
08:29Hey, that's when they vaulted themselves into true Super Bowl contender status.
08:34And if they lose, they'll be chasing that validation.
08:37It could be a validating game.
08:38They'll be chasing that validation if they don't win.
08:42Could be.
08:43Yeah.
08:43I mean, that's one way to label it.
08:46Because you look and you say...
08:47Again, I'll bring up Carolina.
08:48They scored 37.
08:49Now, what does that mean against the Bears?
08:51What do they do against the defense that...
08:53And the secondary that the Lions have?
08:56Arizona.
08:58Famously.
08:58Maybe one of the best wins.
09:00Could be one of the best wins of the season.
09:03Could be their only win of the season.
09:04Well, yeah.
09:05But if they do that to the Chargers, why wouldn't they be able to do that to other teams on
09:08their schedule?
09:09Right now.
09:10Minnesota.
09:11You know, we didn't write off division opponents.
09:14But if they can do that with, you know, Kyler Murray and, oh, wait, Carson Wentz.
09:20Mm-hmm.
09:21Then you're looking at some of these teams going, well, you know, and even Tampa in a loss.
09:27Like, against Cincinnati.
09:28Like, offensively, they looked good.
09:30But defensively, they maybe got a little exposed.
09:33Yeah.
09:34A little bit.
09:36Some techs coming in.
09:37I don't know.
09:37Maybe Baker was just thrown off because his team got housed in the big house.
09:41Did you see that?
09:42Yeah.
09:43He paid off the bet.
09:43I did.
09:44Because Todd Bowles is Todd Bowles' son.
09:45Yeah.
09:46Yeah.
09:46Todd Bowles' son is having a really good, surprising season for Michigan.
09:53Led the team with 12 tackles.
09:54I won't go down this road too much.
09:56But 12 tackles against Oklahoma.
09:59No.
09:5912 tackles against Western Michigan.
10:01Oh, okay.
10:01And then nine against Oklahoma.
10:03Like, he has led the team in tackles both.
10:04And didn't really expect that Troy Bowles would be that player this year.
10:08So, Baker made a bet with Todd Bowles about who would win that game.
10:11So, Baker Mayfield came out to the podium yesterday rocking Michigan.
10:14Oh, yeah.
10:15Sleeveless Troy Bowles' Michigan jersey.
10:19That's pretty funny.
10:20And Todd Bowles was sitting there singing the victors as he went up there.
10:23I thought that was – every once in a while, we see this.
10:26And I had a famously – I've talked about it before, so that's why it's famous – a
10:32bet with Tony Banks when he was our quarterback in Washington.
10:36And I did the same thing.
10:38It was a jersey.
10:39I had to show up in a Spartan jersey.
10:41Oh, boy.
10:41And that – boy, that hurt.
10:43Are there photos anywhere?
10:44It burned.
10:44I'm sure there are.
10:46Thankfully, it was before cell phones.
10:49Lions have a chance –
10:50Camera phone.
10:51Yeah.
10:52Lions have a chance to do something tonight they haven't done in the Campbell-Holmes era.
10:57Start 2-0.
11:00In 2021, they were 0-2, and they've been 1-1 every year thereafter.
11:04Mm-hmm.
11:05Are the Lions hiding a substation somewhere under their training facility?
11:11And this text says,
11:12Why do I believe Blake Miller's injury way more than Dylan Larkin's?
11:18The most unsurprising news we got yesterday.
11:21He's injured.
11:22Uh-huh.
11:23Upper body injury that was a training injury.
11:26Hmm.
11:27Have you seen the joke running online?
11:29It's his motivator cuff?
11:35That's worse than some of the jokes I come up with.
11:38Uh, text says,
11:39The media is chasing validation, not the team.
11:41Their validation is not based on the media.
11:43No, but from fans and the way this team's perceived,
11:45today and tonight is a chance for validation.
11:48I don't think anybody could dispute that.
11:50The team doesn't give a damn what talking heads say.
11:52But from a perception of this football team,
11:55a win tonight would go a long way.
11:56And if they don't win tonight,
11:58the season's far from over,
11:59but they're not going to have many more of these games.
12:01Right.
12:01Prove-it games.
12:02Yes.
12:032-4-8-5-3-9-97-97.
12:05Hey, speaking of Larkin,
12:06got a brief opportunity to talk about the Red Wings next.
12:09And I stress brief.
12:10Today we want to deliver football.
12:12The Lions are playing a big game,
12:13the biggest game of the week.
12:14But Horkoff was at the podium.
12:16A couple things stood out.
12:17We'll talk about the Wings,
12:18then get into Thursday touchdown in Lions football.
12:20It's 97-1.
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