The MMQB NFL Podcast

It’s late October, and Conor and Gary find themselves assessing two very unlikely starting (or, one starting and one potential starting) quarterbacks: Sam Ehlinger in Indy and Bailey Zappe in New England. First, what does Ehlinger create for the Colts’ offense that Matt Ryan can not? What kind of effect does his mobility have on the run game? Is it worth the trade off for what will likely make lif...

Week 7 Sunday unfolded as the trade deadline looms, though the first big move has already happened, with the 49ers acquiring Christian McCaffrey. Conor and Gary fire off all takes regarding the new-look Niners (who, O.K., aren’t really the new-look Niners yet) and some of the issues that still very much face this team. A look at the return of Dak Prescott for Dallas and why it was kinda inconseque...

It’s time for Conor and Gary to dig into the mailbag and answer the most pressing questions that the NFL public has. First, a look at the 5–1 Vikings. Is this sustainable? How much does strength of schedule matter? Are they this year’s Arizona Cardinals? Is there really that much of a difference between this year’s Vikings and last year’s Vikings? Then, gauging potential return for the Panthers’ t...

It was an upside down slate of games in the NFL, though the two headlining games more than made up for it all. Conor and Gary break down everything that went down on Sunday (including, sadly for our listeners, some baseball playoffs). It starts in Kansas City, where the Bills didn’t really exorcise anything, but they did prove they can overcome some execution issues, on the road, against an elite...

The biggest surprise of the season thus far isn’t that Russell Wilson is merely struggling to adjust to a new team and new scheme. It’s that, over his first five games as the Broncos’ quarterback, he’s been one of the absolute worst quarterbacks in the NFL. Conor and Gary set out to find out just how bad it’s been, why it’s been precisely that bad, and what—if anything—can be done to fix it. A dee...

It really was a series of weird games in Week 5—lots of sloppy offense but somehow lots of big plays in between. Conor and Gary break it all down, starting with the Bengals’ continued struggles, this time in Baltimore. How much of it was the absence of Tee Higgins? How much of it was a vastly different approach from first-year Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald? And how much of it was the...

On the mid-week episode, there is some Week 5 previewing to be done. Conor and Gary take a look at the Ravens’ woes heading into a showdown with Cincinnati, Jared Goff’s latest shot at a Belichick defense, and whether Geno Smith Fever will continue to spread after a matchup against a very good Saints defense. But this episode is more about the future—the distant future. Therefore, Sports Illustrat...

The Week 4 Sunday slate brought us some humbling losses and heartwarming victories, and Conor and Gary are here to discuss all of it, as well as remember two former Northwestern quarterbacks. We’ll start with the Chiefs in full on Sunday night, as K.C. got an early turnover and steamrolled the Bucs with a Mahomes-ian moment or two along the way. In Green Bay, the Packers continue to work through t...

On the mid-week show, Conor and Gary take a look at three big Week 4 matchups. Will Doug Pederson get booed in his return to Philly? (And, also, do the Jaguars have the defensive formula to slow Jalen Hurts and friends?) How will the Bills offense respond in Baltimore after 90 plays in the South Florida heat? And will the Chiefs play nice offensively, and continue to put the pressure on Tom Brady...

It was a bittersweet third week of the NFL season—lots of great games, but lots of bummer injuries. Conor and Gary work through the tears and break down everything that happened on Sunday. It starts with another peculiar performance from the Broncos offense, who were stuck in the mud until the final drive of Sunday night, and seem to be melting down while also being 2–1. Meanwhile, Jimmy Garoppolo...

We all know the—albeit fluky—stat regarding the drought of 0–2 teams going to the NFL playoffs, but what about 0–3? Because by Sunday evening, either the Titans or the Raiders, both playoff teams a year ago, will be in that unenviable hole. With that in mind, Conor and Gary discuss those two teams and their Sunday matchup, including whether or not to believe in their coaching staffs, and just how...

The second Sunday of the NFL season was nothing short of incredible when it came to fantastic finishes and unlikely upsets. But what does it all mean!?!?! Conor and Gary are here to take some big-picture looks at what went on in Week 2. Is it time to flip the Tua Meter (should it exist) into the green (green being good) after a miracle win in Baltimore? It is time to give Mike McCarthy a big pat o...

The first Sunday of the 2022 NFL season is in the books. A few of the games were really good. A lot of the games were really close. And the day ended with one star quarterback, Dak Prescott, injuring his thumb in an ugly loss to the Bucs. Conor and Gary unite to discuss it all, and to figure out what we can actually take away from Week 1. Are the Steelers going to pile up weird and wild wins again...

The NFL Opener is in the books and, basically, the defending champs lost by three touchdowns in a game that wasn’t even that close. The Bills picked up where they left off in terms of their general unstoppableness on offense, but it was more than that. They showed off an identity we haven’t seen much of from Josh Allen (it’s so quick!) and on the other side of the ball they had a cast of 10,000 ve...

There are six—no more, no fewer—storylines that will define the 2022 NFL season (as stated in the episode title, try to keep up), and Conor and Gary, only on this show, will unveil each one of them to you. That’s just the start of what might be the most important MMQB NFL Podcast of our lives. Editor Mitch Goldich joins the show to insult and otherwise taunt Conor over his 272 games predictions pr...

At long last, Conor and Gary arrive at the thrilling finale of their preseason power rankings countdown series. It’s time to reveal, indisputably, the four best teams in the NFL. As usual, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clues from our conversations: Also Team 4: The most controversial team of the countdown. Gary made Conor pick them to g...

And, more specifically, the back half of the Elite Eight, but the Elite Eight nonetheless. Conor and Gary delve into the NFL’s borderline elite teams heading into the 2022 season. Once again, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clues from our conversations: Team 8: Either the most exciting debut in football or the soon-to-be most disappointin...

With Gary Gramling away, Conor Orr is joined by SI Fantasy Football Guru Michael Fabiano, and we talk about the shrewdness of Jim Nantz in celebrity studded fantasy leagues. Also, you’ll want to stick around to hear about a fantasy football collective that includes the band mates from Alice In Chains, Anthrax and…Michael Buble? Plus, Fabiano tells us who we’re overdrafting, underdrafting, and ever...

It is, indisputably, time to start thinking Super Bowl for these teams in the latest installment of the Preseason Power Rankings Countdown. Once again, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clues from our conversations: Team 12: Will this be the best third-place team in football? And what do we make of the newness of it all (or the maybe lack o...

It’s a special emergency episode of the The MMQB NFL Podcast, as Conor and Gary delve into the final (maybe?) settlement of the Deshaun Watson suspension. Watson did a 180-degree turn on his apology soon after word of the settlement came out. What might Roger Goodell and the league think about that? And is there any mechanism in that settlement for this suspension to go past 11 games? Also, lookin...

We’re in the middle of the NFL’s middle, then moving toward the top of the middle as Conor and Gary continue their four-at-a-time season preview countdown. This episode features two teams with Super Bowl titles in the past five years, lots of quarterback questions, and plenty of blind trust. Once again, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clu...

It’s time to get into the middle-iest of the NFL’s middle, as Conor and Gary continue their four-at-a-time season preview countdown. This episode features two 2021 playoff teams, one underdog darling and one former underdog darling of whom we’ve talked about quite a bit. Once again, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clues from our conversat...

Conor and Gary welcome back Jenny Vrentas of the New York Times to delve into all things Deshaun Watson once again. A discussion of why Sue Robinson’s factual determinations in her ruling are much more significant than the number of games she suggested for a suspension, how the door was flung open for the NFL to determine its own punishment, and how all of it should force the NFL to confront some...

The third episode of Conor and Gary’s team-by-team, four-at-a-time season preview countdown is here, and they’re getting into the teams that should be entering 2022 with playoff aspirations (of varying degrees). Once again, we will not reveal who the teams are in this episode description, but we will provide these clues from our conversations: Team 24: A way to program the quarterback to carry out...

One long-awaited quarterback contract got done this week, but as with all things Cardinals-front-office-and-Kyler Murray since the team’s wild-card round meltdown in January, it wasn’t without loads of negativity and drama. Specifically, the now infamous “homework clause” that appears in Murray’s record-setting deal, the cause of tremendous embarrassment for the star QB this week. Conor and Gary w...