ERIC DEGGANS, HOST:
And now it's time for sports.
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DEGGANS: Vikings, Lions - who will get the top seed? The NFL saves the best regular season game for last, and college football is down to its final four. Joining us to talk about all of this is Michele Steele of ESPN. Happy sports new year, Michele. Is that a thing? I'm saying it's a thing.
MICHELE STEELE: You know...
DEGGANS: I'm saying it's a thing.
STEELE: You know, let's say it's a thing. Today it's a thing. I'm happy to be here, Eric.
DEGGANS: So the NFL regular season comes to a close tomorrow, and we're getting the best game last. The Detroit Lions host the Minnesota Vikings tomorrow night. Both teams have identical records - 14 wins, 2 losses. They also both play in the same division, which means the winner gets the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, and the loser will go on the road. Now, that doesn't seem fair, given how good both these teams are, does it?
STEELE: Yeah, you would think. But the reason that this is happening, Eric, is that they both play in the NFC North. And they've been so freaking good this year. You've got two 14-win teams in the division, which basically never happens. And NFL rules dictate that the top four seeds in their conference - so we're talking about the NFC West, East, North, South - all of those top four seeds go to the division champions. So the fifth seed goes to the loser of Sunday night's game, and whoever gets it will be the first ever 14-win team to be a wild-card team. They're going to have to go on the road to even get to the Super Bowl and win three games on the road. And if you think that rule is kind of unfair, you're not alone. Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown says the situation is crazy. But either way, it's the game of the year Sunday night.
DEGGANS: Now, I was taking notes trying to track all that, but I can't keep up with it (laughter).
STEELE: There is a lot to learn here.
DEGGANS: I'm going to take your word for it.
STEELE: I get it.
DEGGANS: We all kind of expected the Lions to be great this year, but no one seemed to give the Vikings and their quarterback Sam Darnold a real chance. How did they get here?
STEELE: Yeah, no, I drafted Sam Darnold in my fantasy team this year and got razzed for it, because even though he was drafted third overall in 2018, he really hasn't won anywhere. He fizzled with the Jets. He fizzled with Carolina. When Minnesota signed him, he was really seen as a bridge to their new quarterback, rookie J.J. McCarthy. Well, McCarthy got injured this summer at training camp. And guess what? It turned into Darnold's team. He took ownership of the team. Last week against the Packers after that win, the guys carried him on their shoulders, Eric. It looked like a Hollywood movie in the locker room. He has career highs with touchdowns and completion percentage. He finally has weapons, a good coach, a competent front office, and guess what? When you have good people around you, sometimes good things happen. He finally has what it takes to succeed.
DEGGANS: There you go. Well, the college football playoff semifinals are set for next week. Penn State will face Notre Dame in Miami, and Texas will play Ohio State in Arlington, just outside of Dallas. Now, Michele, the top-four-seeded teams in the playoff bracket are out. Is this chaos from the newly expanded playoffs good or bad?
STEELE: Well, if you're one of those top-four-seeded teams who lost, you think it's bad.
DEGGANS: (Laughter) All right.
STEELE: But if you were the ones that won, you know, you're kind of OK with it. The Ohio State head coach, Ryan Day - you know, he likes having the momentum on his side. He likes that they've played this whole time. They really thumped Tennessee and Oregon in those last two games. And he says the expanded format is giving those team a chance to peak and play their best football of the season. Now they're favored against Texas. I don't know. People were upset 'cause of the seedings. There weren't many close games in the opening rounds. But what are you going to do? It's the first year. They'll figure it out next year.
DEGGANS: And finally, I don't think I've ever said this in an NPR sports segment - we got to talk about chess.
STEELE: (Laughter).
DEGGANS: Earlier this year - or earlier this week, there was a - well, let's call it a sartorial scandal for the ages, involving the No. 1 ranked player and blue jeans. What happened?
STEELE: Yeah, Magnus Carlsen, the top-ranked player, withdrew from the World Blitz Championship after being told he would have to change out of his jeans into, quote, "presentable pants"...
DEGGANS: How dare they.
STEELE: ...To play the next - I know. He just left, and the organizers realized, uh-oh, we don't have the - we don't want to have the best player in the world leave. So they allowed him to wear appropriate jeans with a sports coat. Eric, we've heard of the Queen's Gambit - call it the Levi's Gambit.
DEGGANS: Well, I'm going to insist on wearing Levi's here as well. That's ESPN's Michele Steele. Michele, thanks so much.
STEELE: See you next time.
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