The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 09/07/2021 - HOUR 1 - Stafford, Carr, Cowboys, Newton

Episode Date: September 7, 2021

Vegas doesn't think Matt Stafford is much of a factorPeople should realize Derek Carr is very underratedThe Cowboys are dealing with too many distractionsCam Newton did all he could in New EnglandGuest: Albert Breer 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 Hurt at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHartRadio app by searching Herd. For listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. It is a Tuesday. We're live in Los Angeles. It's called The Hurt. Wherever you may be, however you may be listening, we're on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. We are pivoting into the next eight to ten weeks.

It's as good as American sports get. Baseball playoffs, college football major conferences play is opening up. NFL begins in earnest in two. days. This, we work in this business for about a 10-week stretch of greatness, and a lot of it converges September, October, early November, and Joy Taylor is joining me. Very exciting time. A stretch of greatness. It is a stretch of greatness. And, you know, I'm, I rely on Vegas a lot. Yes. Because I'm media, right? Like, media's got agendas. Some people do. And fans are crazy.

Fan is short for fanatics. And coaches always say nice stuff about their players. They protect their players. So who can you trust? Well, he can trust Vegas. Vegas cares about one thing. Let us. Money.

That's all Vegas cares about. They have no agenda other than making money. So whether it comes down to political elections, they like Joe Biden. About a month out, they were on Biden. I'm like, all right. as who's going to win the election. And I often, having lived there for seven years, met a lot of people who make those lines. I don't know why you don't trust them and you trust the Wall Street guys with your money, but whatevs.

Here's what Vegas thinks about Matt Stafford. He's the new Rams quarterback. So last year, Matt Stafford won five games in Detroit. And then he leaves and goes to L.A. And that terrible Jared Goff goes to Detroit. You know what Vegas has the Lions over under at this morning? Five. Not a half game better with Jared Goff over Matt Stafford.

Well, well, what about the Rams? Well, the Rams won 10 games last year with terrible Jared Goff. Thank goodness he's out of here. Stafford's in, the over-under total in Vegas on the Rams is 10 and a half. Vegas does not buy Matt Stafford as a Messiah or a savior. If you go look at Matt Stafford's career, his 12 years in Detroit, a couple of different injuries, he averaged seven wins. That's about it. He had two good years.

2011, he had Calvin Johnson doing amazing things. 2014, he finally had a decent defense. Three playoffs. And they didn't do much in those. Now, he only averaged about one or two pro bowlers during those years. So let me give you a comp. Andrew Luck. Andrew Luck had the wrong coach, the wrong GM, terrible low line.

But Andrew Luck, unlike Stafford, was not lost or hurt in his first year or two in the league. No, he was 11 and 5, then 11 and 5. And actually got to the AFC championship. Don't ask me how. They had no players. So let's take Stafford out of the transformative category. Like Andrew Luck was transformative. We've never seen a number one pick go to a terrible team and not only win, but like win big with nothing.

So let's take him out of that category because I hear a lot of that in Los Angeles. Oh, Matt Stafford's going to change the world. No, he's not. But it's interesting. What Matt Stafford couldn't consistently do is overcome dysfunction. in Detroit. And I am not saying it's easy. Detroit's poorly run. But I saw Carson Palmer do it in seven years in Cincinnati with multiple playoff seedings. I saw Kurt Warner do it in Arizona. I saw Andrew Luck do it. And I saw Deshawn Watson until last year do it in Houston. I've seen guys who have

overcome regularly Deshawn Watson multiple consecutive playoffs in Houston. Carson Palmer, Cincinnati was as poorly run or worse than Detroit. You got them to the playoffs. several times in seven years. Kurt Warner, Arizona, Andrew Luck, he's not that. So the question is, how good is he? Well, here's what I find funny. Who we love and who we don't.

With the Rams defense, which was number one in the league last year, the best defensive player in the league probably in a decade, Aaron Donald, and was Sean McVeyas coach, and we all acknowledge he's really good. And with an offensive line that was rated top three last year, no reason to think there'll be a great drop-off this year, and an excellent

wide receiving court. Are you telling me Matt Ryan and Derek Carr, Vegas wouldn't have them at 10 wins? It's interesting, right? It's interesting. Nick Wright made me think of this this morning and adds a layer to this argument. Not a criticism of Matt Stafford, but it's interesting who we fall in love with in the National Football League. Stafford was in Detroit when they had Jim Caldwell.

Jim Caldwell was there for four years. And Jim Caldwell, by the way, you know, won Super Bowl, his assistant coach with Indy, coached Indy to a 14 and two season as a head coach, ran Baltimore's offense when Joe Flacco looked like Joe Montana for a month. Did he have weapons? Well, he had Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate for two of those years together. He had Marvin Jones. He had weapons around him.

And he squeezed out more than nine wins once. Now, I don't want to be Mr. Negative. I live in Los Angeles, and I like Matt Stafford. But I say this as a consistent theme on this show. I watch the media who they fall in love with, who they embrace. And I find it fascinating how they've now dumped on Goff and elevated Stafford. And you know who hasn't? Vegas.

And I always trust Vegas. Let me shift gears to this. I know. To Baker-Mayfield topic, Mr. Negative. No, it's not. But pro-football focus is interesting. So they did their all NFL underrated team. And Baker was the quarterback.

And I thought, well, I'm going to go, I see, 12 national TV commercials underrated. All right. I'm going to go to Marion Webster, the dictionary. morning. And I'm going to look up the word because I want to get it right. You know, Joy and I talk about this. Now about being right, about getting it right. So what is underrated? Let's get the exact definition of underrated. Rated or valued too low. In fact, the synonyms are unnoticed, unrecognized, uncredited. Baker Mayfield. I'm going to put up Derek Carr's numbers.

And I want you to think about this when I show you Derek Carr's numbers. Derek Carr has as a coach, we're not sure can coach, and a GM, we're not sure can GM. He had to move franchises, does not have a number one receiver. And yet Derek Carr, and I'm going to give you three years with Gruden and Mayock. And you would admit to me, you're not sure if Gruden and Mayock are going to make it pass this year. 69% completion percentage, two and a half to one TD to interception ratio, 99 passer rating. no number one receiver. They had to move the franchise.

And if you've looked at recent days' transactions in the NFL, we're not sure this organization in the executive area and coaching knows what the hell they're doing. Now, let's look at Baker-Mayfield's numbers in terms of underrated with the best offensive line. I'm not even going to count as three years. I'm not going to do it because he's had some dysfunction, you know, like Derek Carr's had. But I'm not going to do that. I'm going to count one year last year when he had the coach of the year. Kevin Stefansky, who appears and the GM Andrew Barry, appear to be very smart, talented

young executives and coaches. His completion percentage significantly lower than Carr. TD interception ratio is fine. Passer rating lower. But I mean, Baker's numbers are fine. But that's with the coach of the year. The best offensive line. A clear Jarvis Landry is a great young receiver.

He's not a top five, but he's really, really good. Excellent running backs. Look at those numbers. Let's go back to the synonyms for underrated, unnoticed, unrecognized. Folks, Lamar Jackson has been an MVP, doesn't have one national TV commercial. Baker Mayfield is like Blake Griffin. I can't watch a sporting event without him showing up on my television set. Look at the last couple of days the Raider moves.

They're getting rid of third round picks that never took a snap with the Raider. So if you're asking me, it's funny who we embrace. And the pro football focus, I would strongly suggest to my staff, we go on Amazon buy a dictionary and send it to pro football focus. Baker's a lot of things. Underrated? It was a number one pick. He won a heistman. He's on every commercial in the league.

We all acknowledge that once they pay him, this roster won't be nearly as neat and tidy. Derek Carr is not only more underrated. Derek Carr is the most underrated player in the league. Folks, go look at what chaos has done to Andrew Luck. It got him out of the league. Go look at what chaos has done to great players in this league. We don't even know if the Raiders know what they're doing. And they don't have a number one receiver.

And they've moved. This is not a shot at Baker Mayfield. field. But both the Stafford commentary and the Baker commentary, it is weird to me who we embrace, who we root for, who we elevate, who we discard, who we roll our eyes at. Maybe Jared Goff's not terrible. And I know Derek Carr isn't terrible. All right, good stuff today. We are ready to go. Thursday, the NFL season begins. The Dallas Cowboys, wobbly and hobbled. And Jerry Jones is talking.

Again today, Jerry's talking. I don't think he's being honest with what he's saying, but Jerry Jones is talking. We'll have that next. 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 I-Hard 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, Clifford 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. American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on to Ernie Stewart for Chip. I'm Tad Ramos. I'm Tom Boe. On our podcast, Inside American Soccer, you'll get the real storylines.

I'm not worried about Policic. I'm not worried about Balligan. I'm not worried about McKinney. My only concern is what happens in the back. The biggest decisions. If you're going to look at stats and numbers, he has no shot at making this World Cup team. 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. The World Cup is almost here. Experience it all with us. Listen to 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, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds.

Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. and finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series

because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends, stop by like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash will get that thing.

That man, hell get the flying. He run up the court licking his fingers why he got the ball like, you go through a training camp with that I said, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the I Heart Radio app, Apple

podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Limited time, Casper, 15% off select mattresses, 10% off pillows and sheets. Caspers' Labor day sale, go to casper.com. So I'll give my final herd hierarchy in the preseason, 45 minutes. I'll just lay out my top 10 teams and why as we get ready for the NFL season. There's not going to be, I would imagine, any injuries over the next couple of days.

It's walked through, it's not a lot of hitting before Thursday's opener and Sunday's games. So, you know, it would be, I make no bones about this, is you drive the bus for this show, what you like I talk about. Ohio State football losing is more interesting than Purdue winning. Tiger Woods Chaos and Losing was more interesting than Rocco-mediate winning. There's nothing against people that win, but I'm in the business of attracting people to this show. And people, you know, they like Greek tragedies. They like the rise and the fall of great.

So I talk about LeBron struggles. LeBron good. That's more interesting than 95% of the players winning big. And that's just the business I'm in, right? Like I've always said, this is a grocery store. You like bread, eggs, milk, cheese, produce. That's what you like. I don't have anchovies up front.

There's no vanilla extract by the cash register. I put the stuff you like. It's my job to make it as interesting as I can. But I'm in the omelet business, not the egg business. I'm not here to make something. You tell me what's good and I'll serve it in my way of serving it. And so the Dallas Cowboys are always popular, even when they're losing. Now, a couple years ago, they were so bad.

when Tony Romo got hurt pre-DAC that you couldn't talk about. I mean, they were literally, arguably, the worst team in the league. But this year, they'll score a bunch of points. They'll be productive. DAC is back. I think they're a borderline playoff team. Jerry Jones was talking about hard knocks. He does not see it as a distraction.

He's not worried about the DAC injury. Here's Jerry Jones. I'm such a believer that that attention causes the pressure even more than if it weren't there. I think people do better when they know a lot of eyeballs wrong. I do not believe that's true. That's why a lot of reality couples get divorced. I don't think more eyeballs is better. In fact, of the 16 last quarterbacks that have been on hard knocks,

one, Matt Ryan even made a Pro Bowl, I don't think it's good for teams. Nor do I think DAC is 100%. Leg injury, shoulder injury, I've got questions. But I will say this about the Cowboys and the NFL in general. We know that baseball needs certain franchises to win to get ratings, Yankees, Cubs, Dodgers, Red Sox. We know that. We know that in the NBA, LeBron, Kevin Durant, Lakers, big brands help move the needle. Think about the current state of the NFL.

The five biggest NFL brands, and this has been the case for a long time, are the Cowboys, the Steelers, the Packers, the Bears, and the New York Giants. The Giants are in a rebuild, kind of a mess. The Bears aren't in a rebuild, but always feel like a semantics. my mess. The Cowboys have been average for 25 years. The Steelers are picked third in their division and the Packers, even Vegas is pulling back this year. A lot of distractions. Who's currently winning in the NFL is Tampa Bay, Buffalo, Kansas City, Baltimore, Cleveland should win, the Colts. And yet the numbers all through preseason NFL draft are record setting. I wish the Cowboys

were more interesting. Mike McCarthy's boring. Dax productive, but kind of boring. They don't have a ton of chaos. Zeeq's even grown up. They're not an overly verbal team. They don't talk. The owner does. Green Bay, combustible. Seattle Steelers, personalities. Cleveland, damn interesting. But I think it shows the power of the NFL that Dallas and the Steelers and the Bears and the Giants and the most noteworthy teams are all kind of stuck in a weird malaise, and none of you seem to care. Joy with the news. No, no, no, no, no.

Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Boy, the Mac Jones hype train is... Oh, what happened now? It has left. It is on the way. Full steam ahead. Hall of Fame projections.

No, it is happening, though. Mac Jones Hype train is happening. All right. It's a thing. Here we go. So Mac Jones will kick off his NFL career. Patriots take on the Dolphins on Sunday, which is a very exciting matchup to Alabama quarterbacks.

And he has a big fan in Drew Breeze. Former quarterback said the minute the Patriots took Mac Jones at 15th, I said, that's the steal of the draft. It's probably the guy who is most ready to play NFL quarterback right now. I think Mac Jones is going to have the most success of any rookie quarterback, not just this year, but probably for the next few years. In terms of wins, he may be right, Because it is a perfect spot for him.

Best coach, probably best defense. It's winning games, yes. The best defense of the rookie quarterbacks. I might lean San Francisco, but we don't know if Tray Lance is going to play right away. So I think you have to narrow it down to the ones that we know we're going to play right away, right? Which is Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, and Mack Jones. We don't know when Justin Fields is going to play and we don't know when Tray Lans. So we know he's going to win the most games compared to those guys.

Correct. That won't be close. That's, yes, I think everyone can safely say that. He is in a better situation for defense and coaching as well, as you mentioned. But I did hear this a lot about Mack Jones. Like this was the thing, I didn't know what to make of Mac Jones in the draft either. I really wasn't sure. Alabama quarterbacks have not exactly hit it rich in the pros.

Right. And we don't know what any of these quarterbacks are going to be. I mean, Tua and Jalen Hurts and Mack, the jury's still out in all three. We don't know anything. No, absolutely. We haven't seen Mac yet other than preseason. So I did hear this a lot, that he's the most NFL ready out of all of them. That's what everyone kept saying because of the...

Sabin's a pro coach. Sabin's a pro coach. The coordinators he has at Alabama, the system that they run there, the amount of reps that he has, like, everything... SEC, football. All of those things were said about Mack Jones going into the draft. This is the best case, this is the best landing spot for any of the rookies. Perfect. I do think he fits this New England style. He kind of has that low-key personality. Right. And clearly Belichick trusted. Think about this. So last year, New England ran Joy.

51.3% of the time, they ran the ball. That was second most in the league. I think Baltimore was one. So it's a heavy running team. And if you sort of look at the O line and the running back group, it's reasonable to think they will, along with Baltimore, run the ball more than any team. So if they run at 52%. 48% of the time, Mack Jones is really not crucial in the offense. So, I mean, when I look at Mac, what are you asking him to do? Like, I think Chicago's problematic with Justin Field,

and Andy Dalton will discover this. If you double or roll your coverage to Alan Robinson, who gets open for Chicago? And they don't run the ball terribly effectively. And the offensive line is a great good. We almost have to find a word. I think Mack's going to win the most games. I don't know if that means he's great, but I do think if you just look at the data on New England,

there's a chance that 48% of the time they will not ask him to do anything. Well, hand a ball off. Then so what is the... So what is the term? What's the evaluation? That's exactly. Who had the best season? Are we going off of wins or are we going off of individual performance?

Somebody said this to me about Matt because I was very, I kept saying, you keep telling me, you know, he's got this and that. and I keep saying, show me the proof Alabama guys win. Even now we have three starters. We don't know any of them. And somebody said there is value in having pro coaches. Sark had coached in the league and save it and coached in the league. And he said the one thing Mac does, and he was a skeptic of Mac too. He said the one thing he does, he's been listening to an NFL language.

And by the way, Alabama, like New England, doesn't ask you to carry the franchise. So, you know, you go to Oklahoma. That's a college offense. you are intricate as the quarterback at Oklahoma. You're really the centerpiece of the offense. But isn't that the question that we have with all these young quarterbacks is that we pretty much know for the most part, if you're taking that high, that you have the intelligence to understand an NFL playbook and learn things.

You have raw talent to develop. You're going to be able to game manage, as they say, which everyone always thinks is a negative thing. really not at all. But are you able to make this spectacular play in the crucial moment with the pressure on the line when everything's fallen apart? Because that to me is

the difference between a manageable guy and a great. Or not even a great, like a good franchise quarterback. You know, we forget this about Brady though. Tom wasn't great early. He was really, he inherited a great coach and a great defense. So I always

go back to this. It's just like kids. Some kids grow up in an unstable house with chaos, some have chaos. The kid that grows up with less chaos and more support, he may not be as gifted or as, but his chances of excelling are just higher because of the environment. So I think max, if we put a percentage on, let's say this, if we had a bust percentage on all these guys, max is really low. Now, his ceilings lower, but if I said to you bust percentage, it's almost like being a kid in a stable house. The chance of you really going off the cliff is just lower, even if you don't end up at Harvard. Or, you know what I mean? Like, I think, I think I'm looking the other end of

the telescope. I think Mac's bust percentage now is really low. Because of where he landed. Just really, really. And look, I'm not taking anything away from what Mac might become. Right. I just, I'm wondering how we're going to evaluate. Like, at the end of this year, are we going to be able to take a step back and truly evaluate what each of these guys did in their first year? We've been looking through one end of the telecope. You and I both have for these guys. Start them. If you flip it around and just go, okay, who won't flail? Then your argument for Mack Jones is, yeah, it becomes much easier because there's less chaos he has to manage. And you can really see Justin. Actually like no chaos he has to manage.

You can see Justin Fields going to Chicago and the offensive lines of mass, Alan Robinson, and he's running for his life, starts bad habits. Yeah, absolutely. That's the fear. That's why they have Andy Dalton out there. Yeah. So Seahawks left tackled, Wayne Brown has ended his hold in and has returned to practice. He had not participated in on-field work with the team since the start of training camp as he looked for a new deal, and he has reportedly gotten his wish with a reworked contract that maxes out at $12 million for this season. Oh, did they rework it?

Yes. So this deal converts per game bonuses to guaranteed money. Was this this morning? Yes, this just came down. and adds an injury protection benefit for 2020. Okay, so he got $2 million more this year, Dwayne Brown. Who, by the way? Guaranteed money.

Okay, so he's exceptional. This is important. This is not a small store. I didn't know that. That just came down. Yeah. Dwayne Brown's a great. Dwayne Brown is wildly athletic for a big left tackle.

This is a huge. That offensive line is still suboptimal at center. And Gabe Jackson, I'm told, got about a year left in this league. So this is a big deal. He's a tremendous left tackle. It's important for Russell Wilson, obviously, as well, because he was campaigning, obviously, to get his left tackle back. Now, he did come back to practice, so obviously he probably had some more insight information on this deal being close to being done. But they did rework it with him, so he is back.

And Cawndre Diggs also ended his hold in without a new deal and is on track to play for week one. All right. So that's a big story. So that must have just because I know he made $10 million and wanted more. So we got more guarantees. He got $2 million or max is out $12 million for the season. It converted his per game bonuses to guaranteed money and adds to injury protection for 2020. Good for him. Good for Seattle.

So the Ravens lost another running back. Justice Hill reportedly tore his Achilles and will miss the 2021 season. This comes just over a week after Baltimore lost J.K. Dobbins for the year as well. So following the Hill news, the team worked out some running backs, including Levion Bell and Devonte Freeman to fill out their roster. They also worked out Elijah Holyfield, who was waived by the Eagles last week. So Gus Edwards is slated to start at running back. Good, solid. Be solid.

Well, they had, I believe he was, he, okay, so J.K. Dobbins was out for the 2020, is out for the 2021 season. Last year, he had 805 yards for nine touchdowns. Gus Edwards had the most carries last year, 144, had 723 yards and six touchdown. So they're in a okay spot with Gus Edwards there, but obviously they're very thin, having lost J.K. Dobbins and Justice Hill now. They lost Mark Ingram, who is now with the Texans. So they are going to have to sign someone.

They were the number one rush offense in last of the two seasons, but Lamar Jackson has a little bit something to do with that. I don't love this, not in that division. It's a run the ball. It's not great. It's not great. Having already lost J.K. Dobbins and now losing Justice Hill. I mean...

It's not good. No. It's not. Well, they still have Lamar Jackson, obviously. So that's, like, that's very important to the dynamic element of their offense. But I have them in Cleveland, tying. Do I feel less about Baltimore this morning? Yeah, I do. I mean, I think you have some

questions. I don't think adding Levy on Bell or Devante Freeman is a terrible replacement for Justice Hill. There's always running backs on the market. I mean, I was thinking about somebody the, so New England had a bevy and they gave, they traded Sony Michelle to the Rams. Somebody else has

somebody else, I was thinking about this yesterday, somebody else is pretty thick at running back. Oh, Seattle has Rashad Penny, Chris Carson, DJ Dallas, Homer, and Alex Collins. So if I am the Ravens, I would call Seattle. I predicted the Rams would go out and get one.

If I'm the Ravens, I call Seattle today and I make a deal. Rashad Penny, the Seahawks would move him former first rounder in a heartbeat. So Seattle's got like five capable running backs. If I'm Baltimore, I get on the phone and make a move and get one of Seattle's running backs. You would do that over just signing Levion Bell or Devonze Freeman without having to give anything. guys who have been in camp ready to go. I think Seattle's a little thicket running back. I know they like Carson.

They love Carson and they love Collins and they love, I think they love the kid from Miami, DJ Dallas. I think they love him. But I think the other two they'd move. They'd move Homer and they'd move Rashad Penny. I'm just going to throw it out there. Let's play GM. Sometimes when we do this, they hear and then they do it. It works.

So Baltimore call Seattle and pick up a Pete Carroll running back. By the way, Seattle's trying to get a. get more draft picks because they pay Russell so much. So Seattle would take a fifth or a six-round draft pick, a six-round draft pick for a running back. Absolutely. There you go. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Ly News.

Albert Breer, of course, is listening to this nonsense. He's like, what is coward doing? He joins us live, sponsored by Mercedes-Benz, the best or nothing. It is interesting, though. Yeah. Seattle does have five running backs, because I know the Collins kid, Pete Carroll last night, said he's going to make the team. and I look at Baltimore and I think, I'm sorry, but between Pittsburgh's defensive front

and Cleveland's offensive firepower, you're a run team. You can't, you need another running back. I'm not nuts here, right? Yeah, you know what's crazy about it is just thinking about the way the RAM situation played out. I know they wanted to get a look at their younger guys, Xavier Jones and Jake Funk, before they went and made another move to compliment Daryl Henderson at tailback. And so they waited it out and figured out we need another hand here.

Henderson got back banged up. a little bit. And the Ravens are sort of in like an accelerated version of that where I think they do trust Gus Edwards the same way that the Rams have some, you know, trust in the ability of Daryl Henderson. And there's a lot of feel in that building like, okay, like maybe Gus Edwards can be that every down back. You just haven't seen it yet, you know, and you haven't seen him hold up over the course of a full year as a full-time tailback. And it's a big leap to just assume that a guy's going to be able to do that. So it wouldn't surprise me at all if they're looking for some insurance at tailback. We saw that with the workouts yesterday, bringing in guys like Levyon Bell. And yeah,

I mean, I think looking at teams that are heavy at the tailback position, Seattle and New England would be two of them would be a smart thing to do. And I can certainly see the Seahawks, you know, looking at it and saying, okay, maybe Baltimore had a nice draft credit a couple years ago on Rashad Penny. Maybe we can get something back for him. Yeah. And Seattle, by the way, again, with Russell Wilson's contract, they want draft picks because they've got to get some cheap labor here because they're paying him and now Dwayne Brown and Bobby Wagner and Jamal Adams, big money. So it's interesting. Vegas has no agenda. So Stafford wins five games with the Lions. He leaves. Gough replaces him. They're over under in Vegas. Five wins.

The Rams won 10 with Gough. He leaves Stafford comes in. They're over under. It's 10 and a half. And golf won 10. Is the media higher on Stafford than the reality of Stafford? If you go back and look, no consistency, hurt twice. You know, a lot of fourth quarter comeback wins. Most due to the fact they trailed in the fourth quarter. When you talk to NFL people, what do they say about Stafford? And what do they predict for this Rams connection? So your timing on this, Colin, is flawless. Because right now I'm running a poll of GMs, of scouts, of head coaches, of assistant

coaches, and generally I'll wind up getting 50 or 60 ballots back. Right now, we're at 38. So that's a pretty good chunk of the NFL, a bunch of head coaches involved in that, a bunch of general managers involved in that. So the top six quarterbacks, number one's Mahomes, number two. Two is Rogers. Number three right now through 38 ballots is Josh Allen. Number four is Tom Brady. Number five is Russell Wilson. And right there at six is Matthew Stafford. So I think there are a lot of people in the NFL. And I'm not talking about media. I'm talking about coaches and scouts who believe

Matthew Stafford is going to explode for the Rams. And I think you're well aware of how the Rams feel about this. I mean, a couple things that I think they believe they're going to be able to do the first thing. That's Shanahan style of offense that Sean McVeigh runs. is at its optimal place if you can attack all three levels of the defense. Stafford is going to allow the Rams to do that in a way that they couldn't with Jared Gough. And then the other piece of it, Stafford's like a coach out on the field. I mean, that's the one thing that really surprised Sean and the Rams staff.

It wasn't so much the physical ability. They could see all that on tape. It was how advanced he is. And, you know, I know that there are some coaches in Detroit a few years ago that had also worked with Peyton Manning, Jim Caldwell staff, right? And all those guys would tell you, you know, from a mental standpoint, Stafford's not that far off from where Peyton Manning was when they'd coached him. And so it's going to be really interesting to see, you know, a guy who has that sort of backlog and knowledge of just football that Stafford has, injecting them into Sean McVe's offense, injecting the fact that he can attack all three levels. I think that's what other people in the league are looking at when they say they believe he's going to be a top five or six quarterback this year.

It's interesting. Mike Mayock said last week, but we need to make the playoffs. John Gruden said yesterday, I don't feel any pressure. If the owner, Mark Davis is upset with me, he hasn't let me know and he would. And I will say this. I do think Gruden and Vegas are good for the NFL. I think it's a really good brand fit. That's nothing against Oakland. But I think they feel big.

Gruden Beals big. Vegas feels big. The city's got a personality. Gruden's got a personality. When you talk to people around the league, I don't, I'm watching some of their roster moves. the last couple of days, boy, they have really missed on a lot of draft picks. Where are you on the Raiders? Where are your sources on the Raiders right now in Gruden's Act in Vegas?

There were rumors leading up to the draft that there was going to be a shake-up in personnel in Vegas after the draft. Now, it didn't happen. I think perception around the league holds right now, Colin, that there are some financial issues that that team is going through, and part of it stems to COVID because they expected this huge windfall from the move to Vegas. And obviously, they couldn't cash in on that because they were in an empty stadium all of last year. And so, you know, I think that's, you know, that connects to some of the personnel moves they made this offseason. And maybe it bought people

in the personnel department sometime. I haven't heard much about the idea that John Gruden could be gone in 2022. But I'll tell you this, this is going to be his fourth year. If you miss the playoffs four years in a row, somebody's got to pay. Yeah. And whether that's Mayok or Rudin, I don't know. I just, I'm not sure that that Mark Davis would want to foot the bill for a clean sweep where you're cleaning up the entire coaching staff and you're cleaning out the entire personnel department. But you would think that if they don't make the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year,

somebody's going to have to pay. And I actually think like a lot of the things that Mayoff has done are, he's done some nice things there. But it wouldn't surprise me if he winds up being the scapegoat and this whole thing if they don't make the playoffs in 2021. By the way, I'm going to ask you, you know, I want to ask you about the Cam Mac Jones thing. And regardless now, there's not a huge market for Cam.

That's yesterday's news. Joy and I talked about this. 51.3% of the time last year, New England hands the ball off. They run. And so I think they're running back stable is deeper than last year. I think the offensive lines better. And they've upgraded it tight end. So tight end being, you know, eight yards and less shorter passing routes.

And my takeaway is instead of worrying about Mac being a star, turn the telescope around. he has almost to me no bust rate at all. And I kind of look at this offense. And my gut is here as they looked at it and they just thought, let's be honest. We've gone through this before. It's the first three years of Brady, where we asked him to just not, just don't wreck the car. What is your kind of sense from what you hear within the organization? I think they're one of these teams in the NFL.

There's not many of these. Actually, it's the first Belichick team that I think is a little undervalued, maybe in 20, well, 10 years. Your thoughts on what we're going to see this year? I came across an incredible stat last week. And consider this. Since 1971, there have been nine quarterbacks that have won offensive rookie of the year.

Six of those nine quarterbacks had top four running games, four out of 32. I mean, these guys had elite running games. And so I think you're right on to look at Damien Harris and look at that offensive line and look at a restock defense. You know, you wish they had Stefan Gilmore out there, but when they're at full strength and Gilmore's back out there and healthy, that could be a top five or six defense. They were really, really good two years ago and had all the opt-outs last year. And so the formula is exactly what you said.

It's how can we put Mack Jones in a position where he's not in bad down and distance situations consistently, where he's not playing from behind? And I think that they can do that with the roster that they have right now. Now, does that mean they're going to compete with the chiefs and the best? bills and the bucks and the Packers at the top of the NFL? Maybe not, but I mean, I think so much of the basis of the Patriots dynasty and so much of the way they played the game the last 20 years was waiting for somebody else to screw it up. If you watch the way their games are played, in a lot of cases, it's, well, we don't think you can go 14 plays on us consistently. We think

you're going to turn it over at some point. We think something stupid is going to happen and we're going to be able to cash in. And in a lot of cases, they're right. And so if they can put Mac Jones in a position where he's not in third and 15 and he's not playing from a three touchdown deficit, I think Mac Jones can be good enough. Now, it's another question whether or not he can carry a team five years from now when maybe he's making a lot more money than he is right now. But as for today in 2021, I think the formula is in place for him to be successful. And again, it doesn't mean him throwing for 5,000 yards. That's right. But 3,000, 3,500 yards in an offense that's going to keep him out of bad situations consistently, I think he can certainly.

see that happening. Great stuff. Albert Breer Monday morning quarterback. Check out their MMQB power ratings. I think you'll be surprised where Green Bay falls. As always, Albert, great sourcing. Appreciate it, man. All right, thanks, Colin. Atop of the hour, my final hurt hierarchy before the season starts. A very no highs and lows here, just pragmatic. That's what we do

on this show. Very little emotion. The accounting firm of American television. All data. of the herd, weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's Ben, host to the fifth hour with Ben Mallor, along with my trusty sidekick David Gascon, would mean a lot to have you

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Grace. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard 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're saying. Yep, that's me, Clivert 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 Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano and our podcast Point Game is about

defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin. Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid.

He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers,

got the ball like you go through a training camp with that Isaiah you figure it out real quick get your ass up and down the court and you're going to get the ball so listen to point game on the iHeart radio app apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts american soccer is about to explode the world cup is coming ramers sending on to earnie score at the chip i'm tab ramos i'm tom boke on our podcast inside american soccer you'll get the real storylines i'm not worried about I'm not worried about Balligan. I'm not worried about McKinney. My only concern is what happens in the back. The biggest decisions. If you're going to look at stats and numbers, he has no shot at making this World Cup team. 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. The World Cup is almost here. Experience it all with us. Listen, inside American soccer with Tom Bogan, Sam Ramos on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast. NFL Kickoff Week is sponsored by Las Vegas. You're home for all live sports. Every game, match, race, and competition. It is always on. I'm thinking about going to Vegas this weekend.

Really? Making things happen in my life. Are you going to stay at our secret hotel? Yes, I am. Joy and I. There's one hotel to stay at, and we're not going to tell you what it is. The second thing I've always learned. learned if you have a good dentist, don't tell anybody or a good doctor.

It was like, I felt like such a rich old auntie. And they're there to see my nephew's game. I just fly in, go to my luxurious room. It's got a secret ballet. Yes, it's like a little garden. So we're saying too much. We're saying too much. We're going to give it away.

No more clues. Yeah, it's a lot of smoking there. No, it's, there's, you know, there's a way to do every city. Yes. Like you go to Rome, there's a way to do Rome. You want to stay out of the tourist spots. You don't want to go in August when it's hot. Yeah, I went in July.

Yeah, like there's a way to do places. There's a way to do Vegas because Vegas is not a place. Fun comes to you. Yes. You don't have to go to the fun. Fun will come to you. So what you need to do is make sure you're at a place by 1145 to midnight. It's quiet.

And this place can get quiet. Well, it depends on what you want from Vegas. Because you always know who went to Vegas to like. relive the hangover movie because they're the ones that are like walking through the casino sideways like leaning on the tables and they're like uh there's one more drink bro say yes amateurs so um cam newton didn't that much of a market uh no reason to beat up on him bill bellichick was talking about cam newton it's over and that cam did everything he had asked of him here's bellichick on cam i've got nothing of positive thoughts and feelings for

Sam, you know, he came in here. He worked hard. He gave us everything he had. And right now, our future is going to be Mack at quarterback. And so that's where we're going to go. By the way, I do think Cam did everything he could do last year. I thought he was dealt a horrible hand. If you really go back and look what Belichick did last year, he gave up on the season. I mean, basically eight guys opted out. They led the league. I mean, Bill was just thought it was all nonsense. I mean, Bill has had his own personal issues and comments on COVID that aren't necessarily aligned with a lot of people. And I think Bill just gave up on the season.

And Cam had to carry the luggage. And I thought he was better than people said, despite the fact no preseason, got COVID, was obviously weak for like two days after COVID or two games. I thought he was fine. My knock on Cam has always been the media's handling of Cam. It borders on fanaticism. Of the nine years he was in Carolina, five of them he had a top 10 defense. He had a very good coach, perhaps not great but good.

in Ron Rivera, and they were in a mushy division where Tampa and Atlanta are seemingly always in a rebuild, and they just never had back-to-back winning seasons. I've always thought the media's job, my job is to add context. I'm not always right. When you watch political pundits, they're not always right. When I watch during an election, political people, I'm not looking for right. I'm looking for context. And I've always thought the media picks and chooses who they defend. And I think what Cam was, was so unique and so interesting and had such a personality, the media love stories. And they loved Cam. He's interesting.

He was a power running quarterback. And I've come to terms with that. The media has a weak spot. And the weak spot's unique and fun and interesting. And Cam was that. Hour 2 next. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman helped make 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? 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick you 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. Before it was a wild year. 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. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host Kier 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 not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to, listen to learn the hard way on the IHard radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart podcast.

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