Boomer Between The Games: Week 16 Preview With Mike Quick
In Week 15 of the NFL season, the New England Patriots wrapped up another AFC Division title and the Washington Redskins came up small on Monday Night Football. This season, NFL fans will be able to hear even more about their favorite teams in a brand new digital show called Boomer Between the Games. Hosted by NFL on CBS analyst and WFAN radio host Boomer Esiason, the former NFL quarterback gives his thoughts on the week that was in the National Football League and chats with an all-star roster of guests about the upcoming week of games.
This week on Boomer Between the Games, former NFL wide receiver Mike Quick returned to the program. Quick played his entire career with the Philadelphia Eagles, was named to the Pro Bowl five times and scored 61 touchdowns in his NFL career. The 1982 first round pick is now the radio analyst for Eagles football on Philadelphia Sports Radio 94.1 WIP.
This week's episode began with a conversation about the Philadelphia Eagles falling short on the road to the Baltimore Ravens. Esiason started things off by saying he loved the move from Philadelphia head coach Doug Pederson to go for the win with a two point conversion try in the final seconds. While Esiason noted that Wentz struggled with his accuracy against the vaunted Ravens defense, he still believes the former North Dakota State signal caller will be a star in this league. Meanwhile, Quick put some of the blame for the Eagles loss on the offensive line and the absence of Lane Johnson. The former Eagles wide receiver likes the way Wentz has carried himself this year despite some rookie mistakes he's made late in games.
Additionally, the two former NFL players discussed New England's dominant defensive performance against the Denver Broncos. Quick believes Pats defensive coordinator Matt Patricia deserves a ton of credit for the job he's done this season. New England held Denver to a season low three points. Esiason pointed out how the Patriots still won despite the fact that quarterback Tom Brady didn't play well. Additionally, Esiason and Quick discussed Washington's disappointing performance on Monday Night against Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers. Esiason doesn't think Washington's defense is good enough to get the team to the playoffs and the former quarterback joked that its time for the Redskins to get away from Monday Night Football since they've only one once at home since the late 90's. Quick described how the Panthers kept Kirk Cousins on the run for most of the night and threw him off his game.
The biggest storyline heading into Week 16 is the rivalry game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. This matchup will decide which team wins the AFC North and make the playoffs. Quick started off the conversation by highlighting how Le'Veon Bell's dominance over the last few games has made life very good for quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Quick is also pleased with the way the Steelers defense stepped up during its five game winning streak. The former Eagles wide receiver is picking the Steelers to win the game. Meanwhile, Esiason emphasized the importance of Baltimore's defense in this game and the need for the Ravens to contain Bell and Antonio Brown. Esiason and Quick also previewed Philadelphia's Week 16 matchup with the New York Giants.
Finally, Boomer and Mike grabbed a fan question from Twitter. The former NFL MVP and former wide out discussed who they believe is the best wide receiver is in the National Football League. While Julio Jones, Antonio Brown and AJ Green are all in the conversation, Esiason and Quick both agreed that Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is the best receiver in the game. The host of Boomer Between The Games gushed over what Beckham has done in his first three years in the league and Quick loves how Beckham has become such a dominant player in the open field.
Boomer Between the Games will be available every week here on CBS Local Sports. Throughout the entire season, guests like former NFL linebacker Bart Scott will join Boomer. Former NFL player Brian Jones stops by next week to look back at Week 16 and look ahead to the great games in Week 17. Join the conversation with Boomer each week by using #BoomerBTG and one of your tweets could be included in next week's show.
DJ Sixsmith is the Editorial Director of Boomer Between The Games and a play-by-play announcer for ESPN 3 and the Big East Digital Network. Follow DJ on Twitter @DJ_Sixsmith.