Best of The Week on The Herd

Hour two on a Monday, loaded slate and zero time to waste, so let’s rip through my weekly right-and-wrong rundown and set the table.

Right on Sam Darnold’s resilience and ceiling with real weapons, and I was too cool on Brock Purdy because his poise, aggressiveness, and quick reset after mistakes have leveled up.

Nailed New England’s fast turn with Mike Vrabel and Drake May, but the Colts cratered and I overestimated a West Coast trio that got steamrolled, to the point where moving a star for picks now makes sense.

If your board likes Fernando Mendoza, you consider it even if you’ve got a guy; and the Lakers’ offense tightened up when LeBron returned, which puts heat on the front office to clean up fit and flow.

My current top ten: Seattle on top for being good everywhere, San Francisco next with a small worry in the back end, then New England with top-five units on both sides and Drake May playing like an MVP; Jacksonville and the Rams round out the first tier, followed by Philadelphia, Denver, Chicago, Houston, and Buffalo.

Three NFC West teams in your top five is wild, and it jumps out that so many of these contenders have quarterbacks on rookie deals.

Weekly picks: Seattle edges San Francisco, Cincinnati over a turnover-prone Cleveland, Chicago’s run game pushes past Detroit, the Rams bounce back big on Arizona, and Pittsburgh keeps it to a one-score grinder with Baltimore.

I’m with you on the Rams; Lions-Bears is the one I’m staying away from.

On college ball, Ohio State handed play-calling back to Ryan Day late and the offense sputtered; hard turn to make against elite defenses, right?

That switch is tough when you haven’t done it all year, and continuity matters in December; teams that let coordinators finish the run keep rhythm while everyone else is juggling NIL and the portal.

What’s your read on Fernando Mendoza as a pro?

He knows who he is, processes fast, makes every throw, and doesn’t chase hero-ball; with the right pieces, he’s a first-round, top-ten type who can win big even if he’s not the off-schedule magician.

Miami found itself after some stumbles and now feels built to stand up to Indiana’s surge; what changed?

They stopped trying to win through a price-tagged quarterback and leaned into the trenches, asking him for a handful of timely throws while their front took over, which fits their roster.

I love Trinidad Chambles, but I don’t trust Ole Miss to get stops when it matters.

Fair knock after what Georgia did, but Trinidad’s path from D2 to this stage is unreal, and if they finish the story you could script a movie.

Back to the NFL, Sam Darnold got tossed into New York chaos at twenty and now looks unlocked with support; do you see real limits or a guy finally in the right ecosystem?

That was an organizational miss early; belief alignment matters, his arm is special, and with real weapons he doesn’t need the game-manager label—he just needs to stack playoff wins to reset his narrative.

Lamar’s cap, injuries, and maybe a half-step question have hovered all year; what do you do with that?

You don’t trade the heartbeat of Baltimore; the locker room rides for him, Harbaugh’s got his back, and Lamar’s wired to answer doubts, much like Vick—he embodies the city because they let him be himself.

Big weekend ahead—Seahawks-Niners, Bucs-Panthers, Ravens-Steelers—happy holidays and enjoy the ride.