4-Down Territory: Heisman snubs, worst trades ever, revenge games, Brock Purdy

Heisman snubs, the NFL’s worst trades ever, revenge games, and Brock Purdy! Doug Farrar and Luke Easterling have it all on this week’s “4-Down Territory.”

Every week in “4-Down Territory,” Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar and Luke Easterling of Bucs Wire and Draft Wire go over the things you need to know about, and the things you need to watch, in the NFL right now. With Week 13 of the 2022 NFL season in the books, and the Heisman Trophy finalists announced, there was a lot to cover!

This week, Doug and Luke discuss:

  1. USC quarterback Caleb Williams, TCU quarterback Max Duggan, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, and Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett III were announced as the finalists for the 2022 Heisman Trophy. With all due respect to those four players, what was the most egregious Heisman snub this year?
  2. The Russell Wilson trade is in danger of becoming the worst trade in NFL history — at least, for the Denver Broncos. At this point though, what has been the worst deal in the annals of pro football?
  3. A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles and Bobby Wagner of the Los Angeles Rams had compelling revenge games on Sunday against their former teams, the Tennessee Titans and the Seattle Seahawks. Which player’s revenge game was more compelling?
  4. Do the San Francisco 49ers still have a Super Bowl shot with rookie “Mr. Irrelevant” quarterback Brock Purdy under center?

You can watch this week’s episode of “4-Down Territory” right here:

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What the Heisman Trophy voters got wrong this time around

Caleb Williams, Max Duggan, Stetson Bennett III, and C.J. Stroud are your 2022 Heisman Trophy finalists. Here’s what the voters missed.

Before we get into how the voters for the Heisman Trophy finalists got wrong, we can say that the four finalists for the award, the winner of which will be revealed on Saturday, December 10, we want to make clear that we are not casting aspersions on any of the four players who did make the cut. USC quarterback Caleb Williams, TCU quarterback Max Duggan, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, and Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett III all have certain attributes that make them worthy.

That’s not what we’re saying here. What we are saying is that there were other players who were as deserving — or more deserving — who didn’t make the cut, and that’s what we’re left to deal with. And it speaks to larger issues with the process.

Marquee players who are at times helped to a disproportionate degree by those around them are given credit for things that aren’t really theirs to own. The vote should be held after the end of the playoffs, so that we really know who the biggest dogs are. And it absolutely does not matter how great a defensive player you are. You are not going to win the Heisman on defense alone. Unless you’re a three-way superstar like Michigan defensive back Charles Woodson, who got the award in 1997 because he also balled out on offense and special teams, you might as well just wait for the money you’re going to get in the draft.

So. let’s get into what the Heisman voters got wrong this time around.