The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 05/13/2021 - HOUR 1 - Toughest schedules, Packers, Bucs

Episode Date: May 13, 2021

The NFL teams that have the toughest schedule this seasonMore proof Packers QB Jordan Love isn't readyThere's a good chance QB Aaron Rodgers is staying in Green BayDespite being favored in every game, the Bucs will not go undefeated this seasonGuest: Michael Vick Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Herd. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a Thursday live in. in Los Angeles, this is the herd, wherever you may be and however you may be listening, iHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. We got everybody from Bob Stoops on the show today. Michael Vic will break down the schedules. You know, Joy, 20 years ago, 25 years ago when I started in this business,

I was way more into the draft than everybody else was. I was just obsessed about it to the point where I've had people come up to me years later. And like I like the draft because you were so into it. Not that I've led people to the draft, but I would talk about it February and March and April 20 years ago. And I also loved the schedule. And I was mocked for years for making a big deal out of the schedule. And now networks give the whole night to the schedule. It absolutely matters who you play.

when you play them, it absolutely, coaches will tell you, they look and where's the buy? Our offensive lines young. Where are the worst pass rushes? So last night I sat there, it was candy.

It was so much fun for me. Well, you know, you are, you're America's truth teller. Yeah. You're an innovator. Honesty broker. Yeah, honesty broker. You're ahead of your time.

A little bit, yeah. So the schedule matters. Let's get past that. It, of course, matters. It absolutely can change everything. And every year, everybody's like, this is the hardest schedule, this is the easiest schedule. And I never understand that based on last year's winning percentage. Teams aren't the same.

They get new coaches. They get new coordinators. They get new players during the draft and free agency. I never understand taking last year's winning percentages and then going, okay, the Steelers had the toughest schedule. I looked at the Steelers schedule. It's not the toughest schedule. I don't even think it's top five.

I'll give you two examples of what I consider, easy schedules. And these are both really talented teams. These are easy schedules. And both these teams have an over under nine and a half wins. Let's take New England. So what does Bill Belichick feast on? Young quarterbacks. Bill Belichick in his career in New England, 80% wins against quarterbacks in their first or second year. Go look at their schedule. They face six quarterbacks in their first or second year. Two at a second year. Two in the opener, then Zach Wilson. A few weeks later, Zach Wilson, Justin Herbert. End of the year, Trevor Lawrence, Tua, you can put down six and oh or five and one there. Also, six other

quarterbacks, Belichick's been running the same defensive system forever. He's got it down in stone. Six other quarterbacks who have either a new coach or a new system. The Saints, Houston, Carolina, Tennessee, and the Colts with Wins. So those guys aren't new quarterbacks, although Belichick has owned a few of them. What they are, though, they've got a brand new system. So 12 of the 17 games, edge Belichick. Here's another thing. Belichick's best coach ever.

Six games this year against first time head coaches. Huge edge Belichick. Those are games coaching can win. He's looking at that young quarterbacks. First time head coaches, folks, that is a favorable schedule for New England. Nine and a half, I'll take the over. What was the other schedule I was really interested in? Cleveland.

I thought Cleveland got a scheduling break. Now, Cleveland has to face Kansas City in Arrowhead week one. That's the worst team to play in the NFL week one. Andy Reid off a buy. Andy Reid in September. They're going to lose that. But if you look at the way, because Cleveland has New England on the schedule, Green Bay on the schedule.

A tough division. Kansas City on the schedule. So it could have been brutal. It's not. It works in Cleveland's favor. So take the Kansas City game out, 0-1-1. I said they need to get, they have eight new defensive starters or nine, right?

They need a soft open to get those guys ready. Well, after Kansas City, dysfunctional Houston and Chicago and Andy Dalton, then Minnesota rebuilding, then a rookie head coach, Brandon Staley. Then they get Arizona, Denver, at home and Pittsburgh at home. So after Kansas City, five of their next seven are at home.

They don't have to travel. Don't have to lose any time there. And a lot of these are dysfunctional offenses. At the end of the year, we said they play back-to-back Ravens, but they get a break there. They get at Baltimore by Baltimore. But Baltimore doesn't get a buy in the second game. They face the Steelers before that second Browns game. Big Edge Cleveland. also the Raiders. We said the Raiders are much tougher to face in September and early October. They've been a giant killer. They beat the Saints last year.

They beat the Chait. But they have died because they don't have the depth. They've died post Thanksgiving. They get the Raiders later in the year. So I look at that and I think to myself, yeah, Kansas City is just everybody, Kansas City would beat everybody, including Tampa Bay in a rematch of the Super Bowl with that rebuilt O line. Kansas City, week one, a narrowhead. You don't want any part of that.

After that, it's home games, young coaches. End of the year, they get a break and a buy with Baltimore. They get the Raiders later than early. And by the way, they also get Big Ben, week 17. Big Ben's an older quarterback. They're not as good late as they are early, especially for a guy who's never manicured his body like Tom Brady. So I thought New England and Cleveland are nine and a half win over under bets.

I like the over on both. I thought they both got a scheduling break. That's how I rate schedules. All right, so here's the other story yesterday that made news, and I think we're kind of, you know, sometimes everybody talks about hot takes. I always say I'm a wet blanket. I always feel like I'm always like settle down. So let me do a settle down here. Green Bay signs a one-year deal with Blake Bortles.

Settle down. That's an indictment of Jordan Love. That's all that is. That's telling you. Aaron's older. He's 37. He's been hurt more than once. They're just telling you Jordan Love's not ready. That's not telling you Aaron Rogers is leaving. The Packers only carry two quarterbacks right now. They need a third. Aaron's older. He gets hurt. That doesn't tell you Aaron Rogers is leaving. It's tell you Jordan Love, we don't think right now is as good as Blake Bortles. That's the issue. By the way, yesterday. John Coon, former fullback for the Packers, came out and reiterated.

Aaron Rogers, Green Bay is fixable. Why is that noteworthy? Because John and Aaron are boys. And that is the third close friend slash ally of Aaron Rogers, James Jones, John Coon, A.J. Hawk on this show have all used the word fixable. You think it's a coincidence? They're talking to Aaron. Also, the Packers' schedule came out.

Five primetime games and six afternoon games equals 11 total national TV games more than Dallas. Leagues always know what's up. Remember when James Hardin and the Rockets weren't scheduled for Christmas? The league knew he's getting traded. For Tita talks to silver, he's getting traded. The league knows something here. They got a sense that Aaron's not going anywhere.

Listen, Aaron is trapped. and I'm more of a ripped the Band-Aid off guy. If somebody doesn't want to be with me, girl, quarterback, I'm out. There's a sea of people. But Aaron's trapped. Green Bay owns his rights for three years. Where's he going to go?

I'm going to retire. All right, go to Jeopardy. You got to stay out for three years. Also, trading Aaron Rogers would be a wildly splashy move. If I say to you, what's the opposite of Splashy in the NFL? You would say, Packers. There's no incentive to trade him. because you can't get anything in return.

What's Denver going to give you Teddy Bridgewater? So the Green Bay roster is a collection of some veteran players who are very expensive. It's not a rebuild. You got contracts, guys, you got to pay. It is not a rebuild. There's no incentive to trade him. You have his rights. You've been to back-to-back NFC championships.

Three of Aaron's friends are all using the exact word. Fixable. It's not a coincidence. Here's what happened. Two weeks ago, the story leaks. He's out of here 100% got! Two weeks later, all his friends. It's fixable.

You know what this is. It's human. Aaron was humiliated on draft night a year ago. Humiliated. They drafted Jordan Love. Aaron was pissed. So he waited one year. He fired back.

And he said, I'm going to hurt you like you hurt me. And it got real hot and everybody talked about it. Two weeks later, Aaron's coming back. It's human. You humiliate me. I'm not going to forget. I'm going to humiliate you. What do they always say?

I'll forgive. I'm not going to forget. Aaron, even his friends have acknowledged. He can be a little petty. A little bit of a grudge holder. It's okay. A lot of people are. It's okay.

No reason not to like him. But the NFL knows some. They got all these 11 games, national TV games. His buddies are all using the same word. The Blake Bortles thing. Come on, that doesn't mean anything. That's, if anything, that's telling you they don't trust Jordan Love right now if Aaron got hurt. So I wouldn't make, I think everybody jumped to the conclusion.

He's gone. And I think, no, no, no, folks, where's he going to go? I mean, you, let's say you run the Green Bay Packers. All of us think we're armchair GMs. You run the Packers. would you trade him to Denver? I would too if Jordan Love could play. But the Packers said two days ago, quote, he's a long way off, unquote.

The Packers just acquired Blake Bordles telling you he's a long way off, unquote. Aaron's not going anywhere. All right. Tampa's not going 17 and 0. Slow down on that. Nobody's going 17 and 0. but I will tell you there are two Super Bowl rosters because we always talk about this. How many rosters are like Super Bowl rosters?

There's always like four or five. Tampa Bay, Buffalo, Kansas City, San Francisco, you know, Seattle's close. There are two Super Bowl rosters, though, I thought got a break with the schedule and one Super Bowl roster that did not get a break. And there's only about five of those Super Bowl rosters in the NFL. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

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Navi and tankless water hitters, say big on your water bill, on space, their high efficiency. Go to tankless made simple.com. Tankless made simple.com. So 17 for 17, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are favored in every single game. A lot of them, eight and a half, nine and a half, six, seven and a half,

10, six, five and a half, four and a half, seven. They're favored in every game. They will not go undefeated. First of all, there's some big trap games here. If you look at Tampa's schedule, week three, they're at the Rams. By the way, that's a minus one. That's the least they're favored in any game. So that's a coin flip game.

They also face the Patriots at New England the next week. So they travel all the way to L.A., go back all the way to Boston. And then they come back and play Miami, which feels a little bit. Miami's used to that lousy humidity in September. That feels a little trappy to me. So you've got the Rams on the West Coast. Then it's Belichick, which you could overlook the Rams. And then after the Rams and the Patriots, you don't think there could be a little

letdown for Miami? Absolutely. And Miami, let's be honest, defensively in special teams, you don't blow them out. They're in against everybody. Later in the year, they get the Colts on the road on a short week. They play the Giants Monday night football come back home. Travel short week, get the Colts on the road. That's no day at the beach.

Then they get Buffalo at home, but in December, again, that's a coin flip game. I think Buffalo is one of the few teams that can match up toe to toe with Tampa Bay. So the other thing to remember is load management with 17 games, Bruce Arien tends to be very player friendly. You know, he's not Tom Thibodeau, okay? He's not going to pressure every practice. It's very likely that Bruce Ariens, gives, they have receiver depth and defensive line depth.

They're going to give tight end depth, linebacker depth. They're going to give some guys off weeks. You're not going to have a full strength Buccaneers team. Now, they're good enough to do that and still win, but they're going to give some people time off. Also, Brady's old, not just quarterback old. He's old. He just had knee surgery. So, you know, Tom is, there's no, you know, Tom talks, oh, I want to go 17 and

No, there's a lot of things people say. I can tell you this. You get old fast in life and in sports. Peyton Manning got old fast. Like Peyton Manning went from Super Bowl to, oh hell, Brock Osweiler is now starting in Peyton's on the bench. LeBron this year has aged very quickly. Not just getting injured, coming back, getting injured again.

How many days is he going to tell us he's going to play with a high ankle sprain? So you age very quickly. Brady just had knee surgery. Brady gets dinged. There's enough good pass rushes on this defense. You got some Khalil Max, the Giants, Washington, Philadelphia, Aaron Donald. Colts now have a very good pass rush. The Saints, there's a lot of pass rushes here.

By the way, the Jets defensive lines of strength of their team. Miami. So I just don't buy 17 and 0. I think that Rams, Patriots, Dolphins, three-game stretch, nobody's going three-and-o on that. I just don't see anybody going three-and-o. And remember, a lot of what Tampa was last year, they were trying to find their way until they got lucky at the end of the year and played Atlanta a couple times in Detroit. They got their mojo going, and then Green Bay made a really bad coaching error. Green Bay had them on the ropes in Lambo.

And then they got another break because Eric Fisher got hurt and the Chief's offensive line was missing both tackled. I'm not saying this is not the best team in football, but they're not the 75 Steelers. This is not the 95 Nebraska Cornhuskers. Literally their backups were better than everybody. This has an old, old quarterback, a coach who would be more than willing to give some guys, some Sundays off or Mondays off. I think this is going to be a nice 13, 14 win team.

I think, I'll be honest, the team I look at and look at 17 and no is Buffalo. I thought they got a massive scheduling break. We'll talk about that later, Joy, with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Well, the Jaguars made some big additions this offseason. Obviously hired Urban Meyer and drafted Trevor Lawrence, number one overall.

I'm not talking about Tim Tebow. But apparently, this was not enough to put them in the TV spotlight. The Jags were only given one primetime game Thursday, September 30th at the Bengals. It's been 13 years since Jacksonville had a Sunday night game. So that's NFL Network. That's not even a Fox schedule, I don't think. And the last time the Jags played on Sunday Night Football was in 2008. The last Monday night football game was 2011.

Both are the longest streaks in the NFL they open with the Texans. Well, they have no national footprint. The networks are basically saying, can we watch this for a year? Yeah. And then we'll put you on television. So I don't think if I ran a network, I wouldn't put, I'm a diehard junkie football guy. so I'm interested in them, but I also think Carolina is fascinating. But there are about seven, eight teams that you can put on TV, you know, three of them from the

NFC. Well, you could put Kyler Murray, all four from the NFC West that, you know, are interesting and captivating. But Jacksonville's kind of a let's wait and see for a year. Is this going to be a mess or work? Well, like Green Bay isn't a big market, but it's Green Bay. Yeah, historic. Yes. So if you're going to be a small market, I mean, they have done everything, obviously, that they can to be relevant. But you have to earn some. some national credibility.

And so it's not, it's not terribly surprising. I do think that fans, NFL fans around the country, want to see what Urban Meyer and certainly what Trevor Lawrence do. Oh, yeah. But overall as a team,

there's not a whole lot else to be excited about. Totally agree. So this isn't terribly surprising. Now, next year, it could be a different situation if they make some noise, but you always kind of feel

like Jacksonville is, it's always like not all the way there. Even when they went to the AFC championship, games. Like, I mean, nobody really, like, believes this. Blake Bordels was the long-term answer. Yeah, I mean, my biggest fear was like, are we going to have to watch a Jacksonville Super Bowl? Oh, it's the same way? Is it? Like, that's, that's, that's more concerned about that anything else. And that wasn't even an interesting Jacksonville team. The Mark Brunel teams were kind of fun, but the Blake Bortles team. So it was a bad watch, but a good team.

So the Bears trade up in the draft to get Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields with the 11th pick. Head coach Matt Nagy says he recognized that special attention needs to be paid to how. they insert him into the starting role. We know what we have sitting in front of us with him. We got to make sure that he has a successful entry plan and we don't know how that's going to look. But at the same point in time, we have Andy

Dalton on our roster and, you know, Andy's come in here and done a really good job in these Zoom meetings and he's really excited too to be a big part of this and see what he can do with us. And so it is unique. It's going to be different. So their first game is at the Rams.

Then they have the Bengals at home. then they're at the Browns, Lions at home, at the Raiders, Packers at home. You know, their schedule, and they also have a stretch. And their by week isn't until week 10. Yeah, they also have a stretch where it's like they face, I think after Green Bay they have to face like Tampa Bay. I thought their schedule. There wasn't, there was a break in the schedule about week 10 where they had a buy and then got a host Baltimore choice. Yeah, so their buy is week 10.

And then they face Baltimore, I think, at home. And then Detroit after that. That to me was the softest landing for Justin Fields. But there was a point in there. It was like Aaron Rogers, Tom Brady, 49ers. So they have the Steelers and the by. And then they have the Ravens, Lions, Cardinals, Packers, Vikings, Seahawks, Giants, Bears. I'm sorry, Vikings.

So it's Baltimore out of the buy, if I remember, with Chicago. That to me felt like two weeks. Baltimore's pass rush a little hit and miss. But again... You think they can run with Andy Dalton until week 10? And that's the whole thing. You're probably right. So I was talking to my buddy John Middlokoff, the scout last night.

And he said, listen, Chicago loves their football. They're not waiting 10 weeks with Andy Golden. No, I think if their by was week six. Let me see their schedule again early. Let's see. So let's say they lose to the Rams. So this is up through week six. Okay, so they beat the Bengals, lose at Cleveland.

They're one and two. I say they beat Detroit. two and two at the Raiders. How about this? The Raiders is the deciding game. If you beat the Raiders, you're three and two. If you lose two and three, Andy's done. Justin's in against Green Bay. At least it's Green Bay at home. I mean,

I know, but that's... You're right though. The way that their schedule plays out, there's really not a soft landing place to put him in. The buy is to week 10. I don't see them running with Andy all until week 10. I don't know. I don't have the apprehension that most people have about getting rookie

quarterbacks out there. Like, I think you learn to play football by playing football. I know there's some value to, you know, being eased in and, you know, not having to learn everything at once, NFL speed and how to be professional. Like, I get it. But rookie quarterbacks have been starting for a long time. And, you know, they're usually not great. And that's fine.

Listen, the bottom. And they have a year to be to, or two to develop. If you go to L.A. and lose and you lose the following week in a shootout with Joe Burrow, Justin Fields is probably starting against Cleveland week three. Chicago's too loud and too big of a city. You just can't go O and two. I mean, they're excited about him. Of course.

I mean, you saw the reaction to, you know, Andy Dalton, QB1. You traded up and got Justin Fields. I don't, you know, I think you have to appease them. So the Packers, Aaron Rogers saga is continuing. There was some belief that Rogers was under the impression that the Packers had agreed to trade him at some point during the offseason. Well, according to a team source, the Packers regard the notion that Rogers was told he'd be traded as unequivocally. false. So again, communication issues. So Packers weren't

even aware that Rogers believed to be traded before reporting on this emerged. So yes, it's once again communication issues. I think that when I look at the whole scope of this situation, and only does it come down to communication, it's really just ego

to me. Like, I didn't see any deterioration in Aaron Rogers. He was in an NFC championship game in 13 and 3 the year before. He was still Aaron Rogers. He's still in his prime. You just paid him, obviously. So what is the value of trading up and getting a quarterback in the first round? Well, you obviously feel like you're smarter than everybody else.

And to Nick Wright, I think Nick Wright made the most sense on this, that if the rift is between Aaron Rogers and the GM, I mean, what are you choosing? I'm not advocating for people to lose their jobs, but he took a big swing with Jordan Love. That was a big massive swing. I've not seen anyone say that that was the right move to do. And certainly it offended Aaron Rogers as it should have. So what are the consequences of that? Jordan Love isn't ready to play.

You just brought in Blake Bortles. There's communication issues everywhere. Like what is the interior issue here? There's so many leaks. Well, to me, this story is telling you. So by the Packers coming out and addressing this rumor, it's unequivocally false. So I got three different guys have said it's fixable.

Aaron's friends are all saying it's fixable. Green Bay now releases. We did not say that. That is unequivocally. So you're seeing now they're coming together. So Green Bay is saying this is communication. We would never trade him. Because that was Aaron's thing he was ticked off about.

So what you're seeing folks now is Aaron saying it's fixable. The Packers denying they even considered trading him. Aaron was ticked. He went. It feels like to me. Maybe cooler heads are starting to prevail. Yes, cooler heads now. Two weeks ago it was over.

Everything is softened in the last two weeks. It's probably a waste of breath to say that this could be a lesson for everyone moving forward, that communication is very important. Vital in all relationships. But I don't know that that's going to resonate. Not to play a therapist here, but Joy and I are into that talking thing. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Heard Lye News. Michael Vick, 13 years, four Pro Bowls. Try to get him on yesterday. Happy to have him on today is joining us live. you buy Mercedes Ben's the best or nothing. So it's, you know, it's funny about the schedule. I think, listen, good teams win and bad teams don't. But there are times that, like, for instance,

Cleveland faces Baltimore by Baltimore. But the second time they face Baltimore, Cleveland gets a buy. Baltimore has to face Cleveland, then Pittsburgh, then Cleveland again. And I'm like, well, that's a scheduling break for Cleveland. When you were playing, did you ever look at, like, like for instance, in Atlanta, did you think, oh, we got to go up to the cold in December.

Did you ever look at that stuff? Yeah, I was always looking for Philadelphia on the schedule. Where's Philadelphia? Where's Brian Dawkins? And then, of course, the Carolina Panthers, because they were the division rivals, and we had to beat them in order to move forward in the postseason. And so I was always worried about Julius Peppers and where he was going to be in. And just the placement of that whole schedule.

like everything was about time and I felt like and you know of course you you look at the schedule but then instantly you start thinking well when we get to this team maybe this guy might be out or this guy might not be playing and you kind of hang your head on that Colin for real you know it's funny Mike that you mentioned Brian Dawkins and the first thing Michael looked at is who's the best DB and the best pass rush around that's funny so I said with Tampa I said I don't think they'll go 17 and 0. And there was a stretch where they go at the Rams and then it's at the Patriots and then it's the Dolphins. And I thought, you come off those big two road national TV games. You come home against Miami. You think you got it made. You got a couple guys banged up on the road. That is a

trap game, total trap game. But it is funny. Mike, I thought about this. In a 17 game schedule, I can see Bruce Ariens. He's got his Super Bowl now, right? I can see him doing a little load management with some older players, Michael, in giving guys weeks off. Does that seem, you know, strange to you? Not at all. I mean, when you look at Bruce Irons and his M.O., he's all about protecting his players, and you can ask a lot of those veteran players, and I talk to a couple of them. You know, they were so pleased at the way that they went through the season in terms of taking care of their body and how Bruce gave the veterans some days off and gave him some time to just decompress and, you know, get their body.

right, which is super important. So I don't think the record going 17 and 0 or 16 and 1 is going to be an issue for Bruce Ernst. I think it's about getting to the playoffs and getting there healthy. So, you know, the Tebow thing is interesting. Everybody likes Tim. I get it. But it's funny, Mike, because it's one thing to be out of the league for eight years.

It's another to be out and then be asked to play another position. Now, I don't think Tim is the classic tight end. he's more an H-back. But we did see a story yesterday where some of the Jags, even coaches, were like, oh, no. When you're rebuilding a culture, do you worry a little bit, Michael, that it feels a little collegiate. It doesn't feel, it feels like Urban going back to college a little bit. That was my initial thought, you know, Urban kind of recollecting and, you know, saying to

himself what works, you know, and going back in time, but then snapping back into reality knowing that this is the NFL, this is not college. And, you know, I like Tebow for a couple different reasons. I like the fact that he has some experience playing H-back. He got familiar doing that in the Belichick system. So he knows how to play the position. But in terms of just toughness and, you know, I would love to walk into a huddle and see Tim Tebow on my huddle at tight end because I'm going to feel protected. I know he's a guy that's going to give a hundred percent effort and he's going to give it everything he got. Now, the tight end position to me is very delicate because I made a living with the tight ends, you know, throughout my career,

you know, style with Algae Prumpler. So he's not a guy that you can just plug into any position. You've got to be real meticulous about what you place him. Um, you know, as, as we're through free agency, we're through the coaching hires, we're through the draft. You can sign a Blake Bortles now. But it's funny about Aaron Rogers. People freaked out yesterday when the Packer signed Blake Bortles. And my takeaway was that's more about Jordan Love than it is about Aaron Rogers. That's telling you.

That's competition. Yeah, it's like we don't know if Jordan's ready to play. It is interesting, Mike. Three of Aaron's friends have used the same words publicly in a week, fixable. How possible is it? Aaron was ticked off. he wanted to humiliate the Packers a little on draft night now he steps back and goes well hell they own my rights

where am I going to go anyway this is the best team I can be do you think maybe like because when I saw all his buddies are saying fixable that feels like Aaron you know we all have a temper right we all do and we all tend to go up the deep end sometime and of course we want our ego stroked and Aaron Rogers he certainly deserves that for the work he's put in the last two years going to the NFC championship game and just falling short. But this is a situation I think is salvageable.

You know, I woke up this morning saying to myself, I didn't think it was fixable because, you know, when an NFL quarterback says he wants out, most of the time he wants out for various reasons other than what could be taking place upstairs, it could be a bunch of different things. But, you know, I think, like you just said, Ernst looking around the league saying to him,

so, okay, where am I going to go, you know, and find a divine. Monta Adams, where am I going to go to find an offense that took me two years to get comfortable. Now I've got to start all over. You know, that might not equate to success. So you start to look at yourself in the mirror and think about the things that's most important. And when you look at the team aspect of it, Earn Rogers is the missing piece. Joy and Love is not ready, especially with that schedule.

They need Earned Rogers back so they don't look bad this year. Yeah, it's a really interesting point by Michael. if you go somewhere, even the smart veteran quarterbacks, like Matt Ryan took two years to figure out Kyle Shanahan's offense. Aaron took, I mean, these are guys that understand the game. Smart guys. Yeah, I mean, Bruce Ariens,

Brady, first nine weeks, they were, it didn't click. So do you want to give up a year of learning a system and not winning a Super Bowl? It's a good point. By the way, you know, it's funny. I see that Matt Stafford now has 10 national TV games. When you're a player, do you know when it's a national

TV game. Can you feel it? Do you sense it? Most definitely. I mean, it's what you're looking for. You always look at the schedule and seeing what games are prime time, you know, what games are on Fox, what games are on Monday night, because, you know, those are the games that you really have to show out for. And there's no excuses because you got the whole world watching. It's not local. You know, so, you know, it adds fuel to the fire. It adds more pressure, but, you know, at the quarterback position is what you want. You got to be a show off. great stuff mike have a great weekend uh great friday and through the weekend buddy thanks for coming on the show well done thanks for having you bet yeah i i really do listen russle wilson uh it wasn't as

ugly as aaron rogers but russell couple times now is squawk squawk squawk squawk squawk squawk i'm gonna list teams and they solved it they solved it um i you know i tend to be I'm like, if you don't want to be with me, I'm out. I'm good. But that's probably why I don't have the temperament to run a big company or something, right? Because I'm like, you don't like me. I'm out. That's good.

I don't want to babysit you. But I think you have to babysit a little sometimes in sports. Aaron may have to step back and go, listen, this is small town USA. You know, I'm doing jeopardy. Aaron, I think, has to go, all right. Let me take a deep breath here. Denver, man, maybe. mean, that's not a great space for me.

If I don't win, Peyton won, Elway won, what if I don't win? He's appreciated. I'll say this about Green Bay. This is the one thing. I've said this about Brady and Aaron Rogers. The Patriots and the Green Bay Packers, better than anybody in the NFL the last 15 years,

develop offensive linemen better than any team. Green Bay, whatever's in the sauce in Wisconsin. They draft, they don't draft first round old linemen. third, fifth, six. Did you watch Corey Lindley playing college? I mean, he was a fifth round pick, became the best center in football. So don't over, you know, you can go to a town that's got more flash, got more stars. Not a lot of Devante Adams out there.

Not a lot of O lines like Green Bay. By the way, people don't bother you in Green Bay. It's small town America. You pay nothing for a house, allows you to go buy a Malibu house. You know what I mean? There's a lot of value in playing at Lambo. field. It's not hip. It's not cool. Grown men wear cheese hats. I get it.

But I think Aaron's smart enough to look at it. We all have a right to blow up and go, man, I don't get hip much here. There's not a lot of Devanti Adams on the market. I mean, we don't know if Jerry Judy at Denver's any good. We think he'll be good. We don't know. Coming up next, I hate MVP talk, but I'll throw up the dark horse MVP thoughts. The NFL knows it's a story.

They're putting them on TV early. The most fascinating player in the NFL this year. That's next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on.

on all the biggest sports headlines, accurate stats to help you win big at the sports book, and all the best guests. Do yourself a favor and listen to Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection.

This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized. but we actually meet people in connection.

If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, I'm Jared Adano.

You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than that. I'm an actor. I'm a comedian, and recently I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man.

If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. One Ring is too scary. Cream a chicken suit. Hey, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Coutura podcast network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Norsha accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. And they holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the boozy style of Housewives show. I think it looks like it's going to be interesting.

On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about. As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it. I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this.

At the end of the day, when people are at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. You know, one of the things I always try to appreciate is I've been very lucky in my career. I've had mostly really good bosses and I've gotten really good support. And that's really, really important. you know, like all of us, you know, we get some breaks in life. And I've had mostly good breaks with the companies, the management. I've had a lot of stability.

I've had one brief two-year time in Tampa with an organization that was very chaotic newsroom. Nobody's fault. They had changed ownerships. It was just, it was a tire fire. And by the way, that was the two years where I struggled. And I even said with O'Dell Beckham, who I like, when O'Dell didn't have chaos in life. Odell Beckham's been great, but he goes to Cleveland, end of New York without Coughlin.

At LSU, he didn't have problems. He didn't have problems with Coughlin early. That wasn't a problem. He's somebody that he doesn't like chaos. And so I always try to say, listen, dude, you've been lucky, I've been lucky about that stuff. And I mean, here's a prime example. Dak Prescott, and I like Dak. He inherited the best offensive line in football, Zeke, the biggest brand and an offensive

coach Jason Garrett who'd quarterback in the NFL. Matt Stafford, Matt Stafford inherits the worst franchise, not named the Cleveland Browns, the Lions, got Jim Schwartz, a defensive coach with a terrible offensive line and no running game. I think Matt Stafford's more talented than Dak Prescott. So does every GM. Even Stephen Jones knows it. I don't resent what Dak's done, but he made $107 million dollars last year. Dacted. He didn't even play much. The Cowboys, the O-Line, Zeke, Jerry, middle of the country, America's brand. That's a break. He got a good break. Matt Stafford, super talented, could not have gotten a worse situation. So Matt Stafford has been invisible for 12 years in Detroit except Thanksgiving. I mean, literally invisible. What's fascinating

is Matt Stafford now. Look at this RAM schedule. Bears, NBC National TV. Two weeks later, Buccaneers. My guess is it's on Fox, America's Game of the Week. Two weeks later, Arizona, Fox, Amazon, 520, Game of the Week. Start looking at this. NBC, Monday Night Football Niners, Green Bay Packers, Fox, at Arizona.

That's an ESBM Monday Night Football. Seahawks, Fox. That'll end up being America's Game of the Week. I would imagine. At Baltimore, San Francisco. Those are 10 national TV games from Matt Stafford. This is very Kevin Garnett. Kevin Garnett was great. We didn't talk about him for 10 years in Minnesota. He goes to Boston. He was the most discussed big in the game for five years. Every playoff game, we were all glued on that. Doc Rivers, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen. Kevin had always been great. But he ended up in Minnesota. And that's where I feel for pro athletes. I know, I know, I know they're all rich.

blah, blah, blah. But God, some guys get breaks. I mean, Dak, I love him, but he inherited three Hall of Famers on the offensive line in their prime and Zeke and a coach who'd been a quarterback. And by the way, an owner who loves offensive players, Jerry loves offense. I'll get him more weapons. Man Stafford goes to Detroit and they can't, I mean, nothing works. Defensive coach, battle line, no running game. Listen, Mike Trout is great, but he's invisible with the Angels. What if Mike Trout was with the Yankees and had a Hall of Famer hitting behind him?

You couldn't throw him off speed. And by the way, when Mike Trout comes up for the second, third, fourth time, there's runners on base because the Yankees have bought all stars. I mean, if you ever think about Mike Trout's numbers, if he was in New York, and he had Hall of Famers behind him, more guys on base. I mean, Mike Trout is, I don't think he's won a playoff series. I mean, I'm, so again, Mike Trout's great. How great could he be? Matt Stafford's talented. But good God, he gets a culture upgrade, a coach upgrade, an O-line upgrade, a receiver

upgrade, camakers are running back upgrade. Now, the division's tougher, but you'd take that. I mean, it's, I'm not an MVP guy. I hate talking about that. But not only will Matt be good, the story's good. Like the Kevin Garnett to the Celtics, that was a great story. It's like this dude deserves Ray Allen, Doc Rivers, Paul Pierce, Ronald. He has earned that.

I'm not a big believer in you deserve stuff. You've got to earn it. Kevin Garnett had earned the right to be on a notable franchise. Matt Stafford's earned the right. He got a nothing sandwich, and I think he's going to have a terrific year. Still running your business on QuickBooks? Talk about QuickSand. The bigger it gets, the faster you sink.

Go to NetSuite, offering one of a kind finance. programs, netsuite.com slash heard. H-E-R-D. Peter Schrager, Bob Stoops, all coming up. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier.

This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHart Podcasts presents soccer moms.

So I'm Leanne. Yeah. This is my best friend, Janet. Hey. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. A redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip. Just a little bit bigger hips.

This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey. With all the snacks. and drinks. Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? Oh, they hit a bogo. Well, then you got it. Listen to soccer moms on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on the horny. He's a chip. Score! I'm Tab Ramos. I'm Tom Boca. On our podcast, inside American soccer, you'll get the real storylines, the biggest decisions.

and the truth about the U.S. national team. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if our team ends up in the quarterfinals or potentially a great run into the semifinals. Listen, Inside American Soccer with Tom Bogart and Tab Ramos on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season, and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk, ever again, I was crying.

You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in to you, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.