The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 08/23/2021 - HOUR 3 - Preseason, Jimmy G, Prescott

Episode Date: August 23, 2021

More on the NFL preseason and what to take from itJimmy G needs to be playing better against 2nd and 3rd stringersThe Cowboys chances depend on the health of Dak PrescottGuests: Matt Cassel, T. J. Houshmandzadeh Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. 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 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games.

This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor? It signals to the world that you're not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to. Listen and learn the hard way on the AHA radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 is big to me.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Herd. We're listening to Fox Sports Radio. With Marcus by Goldman Sachs, get a personal loan with a fixed rate and no fees ever. Go to Marcus.com, Marcus.com, to learn more about their no-fee personal loans. Well, Matt Castle played 14 years in the NFL.

He played alongside Brady and Tony Romo, Marcus Marriota, Carson Palmer, 10 and 5 in 2008 when Brady tore his ACL. in the first game of the year. So he has been around the league for a long time in those 14 years. And he is a guy that knows a lot, does a lot of Patriot broadcasting as well, knows a lot about a lot of teams and the cultures of the NFL. And he is going to join us live now, Matt Castle. You know, Matt, I was saying this. I always watch preseason.

And I really didn't watch it for anything other than I wanted to see some high draft picks and see if they could play the speed of the game. But it's weird. Now the NFL is a 17th game, so some coaches are not even playing starters at all. Sean McVey a few years ago said no starters play ever, and a lot of people have copied that. So I feel like, like Zach Wilson looks good,

but he's going up against second, third. He hasn't played a first-team defensive guy. So I never took a ton from preseason, but I don't know what I can take with it now, because I mean, a lot of these teams are on third, stringers start of the second quarter. So what should I take from Zach Wilson? What should I take from Justin Fields? You tell me. Right. You've got to take preseason with a grain of salt. And like you said before, it was one thing when you get to kind of that third preseason game. It used to be the

starters are playing. And I always remember even early on, Brady would play all the way into the second half. That was our dress rehearsal, so to speak. But now the way that a lot of these teams are approaching it, they don't want to risk injury. So, you get the second, the third string guys in there. And while it's fun to see where these guys are at, and you can see the physical attributes that a lot of these first string quarterbacks have and these other quarterbacks,

but the fact of the matter is, the competition is not what it used to be. And also, in addition to that, you go out there, and a lot of these teams have these joint practices now. And they use that joint practice time to really scrimmage, get after each other during the week. And so those starters get those reps during those joint practices. And then come game time, they say,

okay, we're going to let the other guys get out there and get the game experience. And so it just changes the dynamics of preseason. And at the same time, you're not getting the same competition that you're going to get once football season actually starts on week one. So one of the few teams that is playing starters, shocker is Bill Belichick, right? Like he's playing starters. I have felt since the summer it was Cam's team because he didn't have a preseason. He got COVID.

He was bad after COVID. at the end of the year. I'm like, you know, he had 12 rushing touchdowns. They had eight opt-outs. I just think that division now, Buffalo's the real deal. Miami's got excellent defense. I'm not throwing Mack Jones up against Brian Flores or Sean McDermott. And for that matter, the Jets defensive line is excellent. I'm going to go with a veteran here. That's my takeaway. And now we have a COVID situation today where Cam is gone for five days. So you were with New England for a long time. Do you think that ticked Belichick off? I mean, how do you think the COVID situation with Cam for five days plays into who's starting,

or does it even matter to you? I don't think it matters at this point. I think Cam's done enough up to this point in camp. He's performed well. He played well last week. And all along, Belichick's stuck by his side. And I think that they're going to give him an opportunity to go out and perform with their new weapons. His new toys that they went out and got with Nelson Aguilar, Kendrick Bourne, Johnny Smith, Hunter, Henry.

they've got a full stable of the running backs. And so they're going to let him go out and see if he can lead this team much better than what he did last year, especially after having a full season under his belt. Now the COVID situation, look, that just came about, it's got to be frustrating for everybody in the organization, particularly Cam, because he's in the driver's seat right now to take this position. He had a good performance last week, and you want to build on that going into season. Now he's not going to get that opportunity.

And while Mack Jones, I don't think is where Cam is in terms of, being ready to play. He's also closing the gap. And every week that he stepped on the field, he continues to get better. And now this is another opportunity for him to step out with the first string offense all week long, build that relationship with those receivers, build the rapport, and just get additional reps, which will be huge. Because at any point, if Cam in this offense is faltering and they're not going the way that Josh McDaniels wants them to and Bill Belichick and their expectation, they're not living up to the expectation level, I can see them turning to Mack Jones at some point in letting him have the keys of the car.

You know, I said earlier today, there's three things that would kill a quarterback's confidence. Number one, an injury. You just don't feel yourself. I remember when Brady got hurt, the following year, you could tell he didn't like anybody near his knees, like nobody. Second thing is, a coach loses confidence in you. The third thing is, they draft your replacement in the first round or two. Well, all three are true for Jimmy Garoppolo.

and I watched him last night, and he didn't, I mean, he, if Zach Wilson can look good against, as a rookie, with Kyle Shanahan and those players, then the Niners played some starters, I didn't think he looked very good. And I thought to myself, why? And I'm like, well, I saw Carson Wentz. When they drafted Jalen Hertz in the second round, you could argue that got in his head. And I, and I, it just take me to what Garoppolo is going through. They drafted your replacement. You've had injuries. Kyle took the ball out of your hands a year and a half ago.

Did you ever have a point in your career, college or pro, where you just felt like you just kind of lost your fastball for a time? Absolutely. I mean, I remember being in Minnesota. I re-signed with Minnesota to be the starter that season. And of course, we get to the draft. And I'm thinking, okay, let's take a wide receiver. Let's get somebody big up front, whatever it might be. And they drafted Teddy Bridgewater in the first round. immediately your mind goes so many different directions. Okay, what does this mean for me as the starting quarterback? I know now that there's going to be competition, which you're never fearful of competition when you play this,

because you know at any given point, look, your job can be taken away for a multitude of reasons. You named a few, whether it's injury, whether it's drafted somebody. But now your mindset has to be go out and compete every day, but you have to be mentally tough. And the minute you start to worry about how the other guy's performing or what's being set on the outside, it completely takes away from your focus of on the field.

And like you said last night, look, he made some good throws, but that's a great example right there to Brandiou, throwing it high over the middle, which he can never do. And it results in interception. And the one hard part for any quarterback is the feeling that you have to be perfect. Because if you're not perfect, that you're going to have somebody else is going to be put in the game. And especially in this circumstance, when they traded so much, the San Francisco 49ers trade so much draft capital to move up,

to get a guy like Tray Lance, which inevitably you know will be your replacement at some point. Now it's whether or not you can manage that situation mentally, not press, and allow yourself to still go out and execute to the ability. Because the fact of the matter is, look, Jimmy's an underrated player. He's 24 and 8 as a starter. If anything, his biggest issue has always been his durability. If he stays on the field, he's been very successful. Yeah. And I think, as you pointed out, when you feel you have to be perfect, it just changes the psychology of how you, play. So I ask everybody that's played in the NFL this question. Dalton, Justin Field, you coach the Bears, road game at the Rams week one. Who would you start and why? I'm starting to Andy Dalton to start. Look, the Rams with Aaron Donald and that group that they

have, they're going to come out and be able to get after the quarterback, but you want somebody in there like Andy Dalton, who's a veteran that's going to be able to manage the situation. He's been through the highs and lows of this league. He knows what's about to come when he's facing a defense like that, and he understands the mechanics to maybe get himself out of trouble. Whereas Justin Fields, when you step on the field, and it's your first real action, and as you pointed to earlier, preseason's much different when you're going up against twos and threes and making these plays and running all over the field and doing that versus you get in there at live game speed,

all the adrenaline, the excitement of week one, and now you're going up against a Rams defense that's quite honestly going to get after you. You just don't want to kill a young quarterback's confidence throughout the season, make him go in and get beat up or make a bunch of bad decisions, and then where do you go from there? It's hard to turn the page back when you make the decision to go with the young guy, then to revert back and go to Andy Dalton versus the opposite, which would be if Andy struggles and they give him a few weeks,

and then they can turn to Justin Fields and see if he can give you, you know, that advantage there from the offensive side of the ball. Matt Castle, great seeing you. Got a new life now. He's doing some playbys. He's doing some color analyst work. He's got Patriot stuff. He's got his family living in a cool city, and I'm not going to tell you where it is

because that would be a breach of our confidentiality. But great to hear you're doing well. Good talking to you, Matt. Thanks, Colin. I appreciate it, buddy. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app.

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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you'll say. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where

you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast.

I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we picket here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because. of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know.

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah.

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tript Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we

don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid?

Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way.

Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now. Escape QuickBooks with NetSuite by Oracle, the number one financial system, special financing available. 93% of businesses that use it say they have more visibility in control. Go to NetSuite.com slash herd right now. Enjoy Taylor with the news. No, no, no, no, turn on the news. This is the herd line news.

Well, Larry Fitzgerald is an unrestricted free agent right now. He spent his entire career with the Arizona Cardinals, but he hasn't decided yet if he's going to return for an 18th season. To be honest with you, I just don't have the urge to play right now. I don't know how I feel in September, October, November moving forward, but as to say that, I just don't have the urge. I don't think I'd want to practice. Football practice is so boring, so repetitive.

If you're Larry Fitzgerald in your 18th season, yeah, training camp's a hard pitch for me. It really is. And look, some guys love it. Tom Brady loves it. And that's just in you. And not saying that Larry Fitzgerald is not a hard worker. He obviously is.

It's not about hard work. It's just very repetitive. There's no challenge. There's really at some point, I think, in your career, especially if you're a wide receiver, you know, quarterbacks aren't allowed to get touched in training camp. At some point, it becomes more risk than the reward, I think, because you know you're going to be in shape.

You know everything that's happening. You know everything that's going to happen. So being out there, you're kind of just putting your body at risk at some point if you're Larry Fitzgerald. He's saying he doesn't have the urge to play. Forget training camp, to play. And they're obviously going to miss his leadership. Larry Fitzgerald has been a face of the NFL for most of his career. I mean, second all time in catches, second all time in receiving yards and six all time in touchdowns.

He's a first ballot hall of famer. But they do have a pretty solid receiving corps in Arizona. Christian Kirk, DeAndre Hopkins, AJ Green. Oh, you know, I saw DeAndre Hopkins this weekend. Yeah? I saw him at the Mani Pachiaf fight. Oh, yeah, I think I could see. And we embraced, we shook hands.

Yeah? Yeah, so I saw DeAndre Hopkins. And, you know, with a mask, I think it was DeHop. I mean, it's literally, everybody's got a mask. I think I called him that. So that would be. So my friend said, who is that? And I'm like, that's DeAndre Hopkins.

DeAndre, if it was not you, I apologize. I think I did see that he was there. Yeah, I saw. Well, I saw, I saw his eyes and I'm like, oh, there's DeAndre Hopkins. Oh, my God. Well, he saw my eyes and then we like looked at each other. He went and he put his hand out. And I'm like, okay.

You know, it's hard to tell, right? Well, you know what? If people are wearing masks, I didn't see a lot of masks with the fight. He had a mask on, if I recall. Yes, and I had a mask on. I think you had to do as you walked in. Oh, okay. So there have been plenty of rumors that Damien Lillard once out of Portland,

but he is denied that he ever asked for a trade. He did say that he wants the team to be a true contender for an NBA title. And his teammate, C.J. McCollum, believes Dame is completely committed to making that happen in Portland. I don't want to speak for him, but having a close relationship to him and I talk every day, every other day. I have a pretty good sense of where he's at. And I think his goal is to win a championship. I think at the end of the day, that's what we all want. We want to put ourselves in the best position to win a championship.

but I mean, he's all in. I think he just wants to win a championship and he wants to do it in Portland. Look, outside of hearing directly from Dame, that's a pretty solid endorsement. I imagine that they have a very, very close relationship. He has said they have a very close relationship. Well, he's a loyal guy.

Dame's very loyal. In fact, he went to college at Weaver State, and I just read a story the other day. He went back to Weber State for like a charity game. He played every minute of it. Like he played every minute of the 48 minutes or whatever they played. So, I mean, I think Dames's one of those guys because of his size. He was a little overlooked initially, right? Like, Weber State, he's way better than Weaver State. And so my

takeaway is he's had doubters in his life, so he's very loyal to those who believe in him. So Portland drafts him high. Weber State recruits him. I'm just guessing on his psychology, but when people feel like they've had to overcome stuff, when people show him real love and Portland has, the city has. It's hard to say no, because he's had doubters in his life. And, you know, Portland's, the city loves him. Well, yes. But then it becomes a question of what do you want more?

Do you want to be loyal or do you want to win a championship? Well, Bradley Beale and Dame Lillard appear. If Damian Lillard decides to stay, you know, it's so weird for me. Because he's got his music career. He's got his shoe career. he's got his basketball career and he's going to be a Hall of Famer. He'll already be a Hall of Famer.

So my question is, does he want to move around a lot to win? Like, when I came to Fox, now I'm not comparing myself to Dane, but when I came to Fox, I wanted to compete against everybody, but it wasn't like I had to win. I had to beat this company,

this, like I wanted a better life. How do I know that his life in Portland just isn't awesome? Oh, I'm sure he does have an awesome life in Portland. If he didn't have an awesome life in Portland, I'm sure this would be a much easier decision. I think he likes the organization. He probably likes his teammates.

He's got a music studio playing his house. Right. Like I'm sure all of it is great. But you also know the limitations of your situation. Well, they make the playoffs. If you are a self-aware person. Right. And you can believe that you're also capable of overcoming

whatever limitations that you have. But I think if you're a realistic person, you know what it is. Like, that is an issue in a career. Like you know that Portland. you don't know that Portland's not going to win a championship. We feel like Portland doesn't have the pieces to win a championship when you look at the whole scope of the NBA

and who they would have to beat in order to win a championship. And he has said himself, they're not in a position right now to win a championship, and they need to make some changes in order to achieve that. The results of what they have done in the playoffs speak for themselves. So it's not that Dame isn't the star capable of winning a championship, but it is a team game and he can't do it by himself. So loyalty is great.

And if that's what he wants to play out in his career, I don't know that he should be judged for that. But if you don't win a championship, then that will also be a part of your legacy in some way. Yeah. It's not a part of everyone's legacy. But if you are an all-time great, it plays a factor in how we evaluate it.

But what if he's just saying to himself, let's say I win one or none. I'm still making the hall. I just don't want to get up and move everybody. I got my music. No, as I'm saying, it's not for us to judge what he wants. out of his career, I think. But it's all, this is all, these are all interesting

conference, maybe we as sportscasters put too much of a premium on winning titles. Well, I think it's what you compete for. So, and I don't know that it's just, I don't think it's just the media. I think fans evaluate your career in that way as well. Like it's, it doesn't take anything away from being an all-time great. It's the same conversation we just had about Westbrook last week. Westbrook's legacy is set. We know what Westbrook is.

if he wins a championship, is it going to change how you view Westbrook's career? No, because he wants to just go home and be around his family. So I totally get that. Like, he's just, he mails. But if he contributes to the Lakers winning a championship this year, will you look at Westbrook's career differently? You being someone who has been critical of Westbrook. Well, I think his game is his game. So if they win a championship, my guess is Anthony Davis and LeBron are primarily factors.

But let's say that he kept them afloat throughout the regular season. It will be certainly worth consideration. So, Manny Pachio came up short over the fight in his fight this weekend against Yoranas Uyghas. All three judges, your Donnas, Uyugas, all three judges scored the fight for Ugas giving him a unanimous decision to retain the WBA title. At 42 years old, Pacquiao now has to consider his future in the sport. He did not announce his retirement, but he did hint that it could be coming soon.

After the loss, he said you did not see Manny Pacquiao. You might not see Manny Pacquo again to fight in my heart. I want to continue to fight, but I have to consider also my body. Well, I mean, Manny could beat a lot of people. He's just not beating that guy. That was a good fighter, longer. I mean, just watch this guy. That guy was also a counterpuncher, which Manny is.

Yes. So he was landing a lot of his... And because he's such a good counterpuncher, his length really helped him. It was a huge factor. So it was funny. When the fight was over, I was with my buddy Eric. And let's see if you can see us right here. Hold on.

I was looking for you. Oh, no, I was ringside. I was right behind. I want to brag here. I had very good seats. You always have really good seats. Okay, okay. I was looking for you the whole fight.

When the fight ended, Eric turned to me and he said, Paciel lost the fight. Do you think they'll give it to the other guy? And I said, well, yeah. He goes, it's such a Pacquiao crowd. He said, he goes, Paciel lost the fight. Because we were talking the whole fight,

and I'm like, I've got it even. But it was funny, as we were leaving. I was thinking about that. And I'm like, did I have it even? because it was even, or do I have it even because in my mind, I'm like, they're always going to get, because there were a lot of rounds that were close. And I was kind of giving them the Pachia. It's a different experience being there than watching it.

So I watched it and it was very much leaning towards Ugas throughout most of the fight. There was a lot of mentions of how old Pachial looked and counterpunching. When you're there, the Ugas punches were louder. So when you were there, because he was doing that right. hand. Right. There was, after the fight,

my friend of Eric, we were talking about, if there were 20 punches that you thought were the hardest punches, 15 were Ugas. And you could hear his right hand. I'm with you.

I feel like it was very even until the last few rounds. And then it was more obvious to me that Ugas was winning. But I didn't never feel like Paki out. Like at the end of the fire, I was like, okay, Ugas won that.

Like it would have been a little bit outrageous. It was so funny when it ended. All of the guys, so I'm with my first. friend. And then there's a bunch of guys behind me that were funny guys talking the whole fight. And they all looked at me and I'm like, I was like, oh, no, no. And they're all like, they're like, no way. Ugas won the fight, but they're not going to give it to him. No, I didn't, I didn't, I would have been shot, genuinely shocked.

It was a Pachiao crowd though. Yes. 80, 20. But it was very obvious to me towards the end of the fight that Ugas was winning the fights. But either way, really entertaining fight and a good fight by Paciow. It's not like it was a lopsized. By the way, a lot of volume, a lot of punches thrown. It wouldn't be a bad way for Pacquiao to go out if he wants to. Yeah. Enjoy with the news. Well, that's the news.

And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lie News. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHeard Radio app. Hey, it's me, Rob Parker. Check out my weekly MLB podcast inside the Parker for 22. minutes of piping hot baseball talk featuring the biggest names and newsmakers in the sport. Whether you believe in analytics or the I-Test, we've got all the bases covered.

New episodes drop every Thursday, so do yourself a favor and listen to Inside the Parker with Rob Parker on the IHeart Radio app or wherever you get your podcast. 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me.

Cliver Taylor the Fubber. forth. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music.

The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because, of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line.

We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tript Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it.

And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely.

And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now.

Discover matches all the cash back you earn on your credit card at the end of the first year. Automatically with no limit. Go to Discover.com slash yes. So T.J. Hushmanzada played 11 years in the NFL. He has been somebody that works out with a lot of these athletes. He told us Justin Herbert was going to be great before Justin Herbert was great. He said he's going to be a star in this league. He's done it multiple times.

And it's interesting because Jamar Chase is a great receipt. he's gone to Cincinnati where T.J. played, and he, of all the draft picks, is really struggling. So let's bring in T.J. Husman, Zada, Fox Sports. So, okay, let's talk a wide receiver. So Jamar is just another LSU player that can really play, but he has struggled in games. He struggled at practice. What do you make of that? I'm not, I'm not worried about it, but I'm concerned for certain. When dropping a ball, we all going to drop balls, Kyle. As receivers, that's a certain. We're going to drop the ball. The thing that concerns me is, and he can figure this out, is it's the lack of separation. Like when you watch the balls that he's dropping, the DB is right on his back.

They're right there. And I try to tell all these kids, and this is no offense to the receiver coaches in the NFL, they don't really have time to get you better individually at your craft. They will teach you football. You will understand the game of football, but you have to get better on your own outside of the season and the all season and things of that nature. But he needs to create more separation

because if he creates more separation, the guy's not on his back. Maybe he catches some of these balls. So you were at the Chargers-Niners game last night, and when you are, you can obviously see things develop. I said that between the injuries, between the Niners drafting a quarterback that's going to play, Kyle Shanahan has lost confidence, I think, over time with Garoppolo. I thought he looked, I thought he pressed last night.

I thought there were a couple of easy throws. And I just, I watched them and I thought, good God, Easton Stick looks more comfortable playing quarterback for the Chargers than Jimmy Garapolo, who's been there three years does for the Niners. am I making too much of that? No, and the reason you're not is, when you've taken a team to a Super Bowl, you should not be going three for six in a preseason against backups. It's simple. You've taken the San Francisco 49ers to a Super Bowl. At one point, you're the highest paid player in the NFL,

and you went three for six against backups. That's concerning. That's almost, in the pick you through, I mean, IU could have come down with that ball, but it was high. The ball was high. Should he have come down with it? Probably in the regular season, you were thinking, but that wasn't a great throw for a guy that was open. Jimmy G. going three for six in the preseason against backup. That's very, very concerned.

He missed guys. Like, he's throwing ball in the coverage. You're like, oh, oh, good. That didn't get picked up either. I don't know what's going on. You know, it's interesting. preseason football, and you were at the game last night, it's really changed, TJ? Like, I don't even, I don't know, it's the Sean McVeigh effect, but I'm trying to slow everybody down on Zach Wilson.

He's yet to face one first teamer on defense. When you were in this league, starters played how much? The first game, you'd play a series or two. Second game, you for sure were playing a quarter. third game, you play the first half and probably a possession or two into the second half. Wouldn't play in a fourth game, maybe a drive. That was pretty much every team. Nobody plays now.

Like you're there last night. There's no starters. Hey, if I was a starter, Colin, I would love it. I would love it. But even if you're not a starter, you love it because you're getting so much more opportunity that guys didn't get. Like when my first couple years, I got in. And in the fourth quarter, can you imagine today? I would play all the time being drafted where I was drafted.

So it's good for the guys that are trying to make the team. And it's actually good for the starters because they don't want to play anyway. So what are we supposed to make of the DAC Prescott injury? Aikman's talked about it. Michael Irvin's talked about it today. Adam Schaefter talked about it. This is a very quarterback-reliant franchise. I understand he threw 52 passes, Dak Prescott did over the weekend.

before the Atlanta game. None of them were deep balls. So, you know, I'm not trying to be overly dramatic, but it's like that's, it's something. What do you, I mean, you had injuries in your career. What do you make of DAC's situation? When you have all these people commenting on it and not just people, people in high places that should know some things

that makes you think about it a little more. I wasn't one of those guys that was overly concerned. with the injury. I wasn't. It was early on. But I'm starting to get concerned when people are commenting on this, but they're not really given specifics because they can't. They know what's going on. They just

can't give you too much information. And so for the Cowboys, their season hinges on this. If Dak can't play, who's their backup quarterback? Danucci, they're in trouble. Again. And so they have to manage this the best, they know how and that's to limit his reps don't let him play in the preseason and cross your

fingers that he's going to be okay when the season starts that's their only hope they don't have a capable backup and i don't want to pile on these guys but they're just inexperienced and so their entire season hinges on that press guy being able to play finally um chicago is going to play justin fields at some point and i do believe the fans are so into fields it could put pressure on the Bears coaches and their organization. In your career, did you ever feel that the fans were so into a player or so anti a player, it affected a team's personnel decisions? No, when we dragged to Carson Palmer, number one, they let it be known he was going to sit

the entire year. John Kittner started Carson's entire rookie year. But it's an oatmeal society, microwave society. We want instant oatmeal right. All these rickies are playing well. Wilson's playing well. He's going against backups. Trevor Lawrence, all the rookies.

Mack Jones, every rookie quarterback has played pretty well. But they're going against backups. When they get in there against the starters in a regular season, it's going to be a different game. If I'm the Chicago Bears, number one, you start off with the Rams. Do I want Joseph Fields staring at Aaron Donald every snap? No, that's going to ruin him. Like, he's going to have nightmares about that.

And so go ahead and let Andy Dogg start that game. You're losing it with Andy. with Andy Dalton, you're going to lose it with Justice Field. You just need to make sure that when you put these guys in the game that they're ready, because if you put them in too soon, mentally you can lose them. Good stuff. T.J. Hushmanzada, Fox Sports. Good seeing you, buddy, as always. Appreciate it, man. You guys keep up the great work, as always.

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Watch the Jags tonight. See you tomorrow. 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. You funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and headwriter, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

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