The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 09/09/2021 - Best of The Herd

Episode Date: September 9, 2021

Colin prepares for the kickoff of the 2021 NFL season by discussing the Cowboys v Buccaneers game and why he has difficulty labeling Dak Prescott an elite quarterback. He explains why Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa not being named captain for the season is reason for concern. He shares the 2 teams in the NFL who have disappointed despite having future hall of famers in their prime. Plus, Hall of Famer Jimmy Johnson joins the show to talk about Dak's return after last season's devastating injury. 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. 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 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but the show. celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart 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. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, 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 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 best of 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 Heard. This is the best of the herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a Thursday, a beautiful, rambunctious Thursday, where the NFL begins tonight. It's the hurt, wherever you may be, and however you may be me listening, we're on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, FS1.

Cowboys, Buck's tonight in Tampa, Dak and Brady. Ariens McCarthy. Very exciting, Joy Taylor. Thursday. I actually can't believe it's tonight. No, our jobs, we get, they're easier. Our job is easier starting tonight. There's no question.

We got college and pro football. And we'll get more hate mail over the next six months starting tonight. Yes. Well, after this weekend, I feel like there's like a rise in hope or like, a very big smack of reality for everyone that's like gotten all excited about preseason. Yeah. But I can't, I mean, every team has a great storyline this year. So let's start with this.

340 days, two surgeries, Dak Prescott returns. And I've always had this, what do I do with DAC? How good is DAC? What is DAC? I like the intangibles more than I do the talent. And I'll give me an example. So what I do for big games, is I get a yellow sheet of paper and I just go one through 10 or one through 12.

I'll do one through 12 and I list the best players in the game. And that gives me a sense of who's the better team. So Tampa is favored tonight by, you know, over a touchdown. And they're at home and they return everybody. So this shows you the struggle I have. I'll give you the 12 best players. And these are elite players at their position. So Brady's the best quarterback ever.

Mike Evans, probably number two, the toughest receiver in the league to defend in the red zone. Levanti, David, 3, Shaq Barrett for elite linebackers. Tristan Worf's now viewed as the first or second best right tackle. I would put, Demarcus Lawrence was the highest graded cowboy last year at 6. Didn't get a lot of sacks, but he's very good. I'm going to give Zeke the benefit of the doubt. He's had three straight declining years, but they say he's in the best shape of his career. So I'll give him the benefit of the doubt early in the season before all the

carries, he's still, I think, a really good back number seven. Vita Villa, Al-A-Marpet, Interior lineman, D&O for the Bucks. Then I end it with three receivers. Amari Cooper 10 is slightly better than Chris Godwin of the Bucks 11, who's slightly more established and better this morning than C.D. Lamb, who I think is going to have a big, big year. Eight of the 12 are Bucks. And then you say, well, where's Dack? And that's always my issue with Dack. Is he elite? I have two issues with DAC, and I'd like everybody to prove me wrong. Number one is he no longer beats good teams. Since the start of 2019, he has one win over a playoff team.

And it was barely a playoff team, Philadelphia 9 and 7. He played him later that year and was awful. In fact, I went this morning and I looked at his last 12 wins. Three over rebuilding New York, two over. rebuilding Washington, two over Philadelphia, one Tampa pre-Bradie, Atlanta, Detroit, 5 and 11 Miami, and a ram team that didn't make the playoffs. Not a lot there. He doesn't beat good teams enough.

Doesn't mean I don't like him. But Cowboy fans, you can't have it both ways. You can't argue you have all these great players and Dak's great and you're not winning games. You can't feast on rebuilding teams. And the second thing is, the Cowboys won more. when they were less dependent. They won more when DAC did less, right? Like when Zeke, first three years was in his prime, they won more.

First year when Zeke broke into the league 13 and 3. I mean, Dak wasn't throwing for 3 and 400 yards regularly. So when Dak did less, the Cowboys won more. The more they ask him to do, the less the Cowboys win. So Dallas's recent erosion is more about the decline of Zeke. In fact, let me ask you this. Prove me wrong. When's the last big, important cowboy win that DAC led them?

You can't think about it. Pittsburgh is rookie year. That was impressive. First thing I thought of a Seattle playoff game, and I went and looked it up. It was actually Zeke who led them. Dax pass a rating that day. It was okay. It was like 83.

It was Dack. And I never quite know what to do with Dack. I don't think he's elite at his position. I do think he's productive. I tend to like the intangibles, more than the tangibles. But all the other quarterbacks in this league that I love, your Lamar's and your Ruffles and your Mahomes and your Josh Allen's and your Arons and your Brady's, I like the tangibles.

Intangibles are good too. but I really like the tangibles. With DAC, I don't. I like the intangibles. And so as we watch this game tonight, there's a reason I have my doubts about Dallas this year. Because I do think Zeke is declining. It may stop this year, but they become more dependent on DAC. And over the last two to three years, the more dependent on DAC, the fewer wins.

All right, this was a story that broke yesterday in our show. and it's not everything, but it's something. So NFL teams now, almost all of them, have named their captains. Now, it should be noted there's four teams in the NFL, Dallas, Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland. They don't name captains. They do that weekly. Then there's the other 28 teams. So of those teams, 22 have named their captains and 20 have named quarterbacks.

New England didn't with rookie Mac Jones. and then the only other team that didn't name their quarterback, a captain was Miami. In fact, Miami is the only team in the league that has reported so far that has captains that didn't name their quarterback. Now, think about that. I'm not talking rookie. So take Mac Jones out he's a rookie. Two is not a rookie.

Two is the only quarterback in the league this morning. Who is not a rookie of the teams that have captains? It's the only team. didn't name their quarterback captain. By the way, Teddy Bridgewater was in a, he was in a quarterback battle until two weeks ago. He's captain. Jared Goff and Detroit's a captain.

And now do you like Jared Goff? Ryan Fitzpatrick's a captain for the second year in a row. Jalen Hertz. Remember, they weren't going to, is he a starter? Captain. So, and you say to yourself, Colin, you're making a big deal. It's no big deal.

But it is a big deal. Here's Robert Sala, the coach of the Jets. Here is his reaction. He was asked about this yesterday. He was surprised. He didn't know who the captains would be, right? The players vote on it. And Zach Wilson, the rookie quarterback.

I mean, most of the Jets' good players are on defense. The rookie quarterback was named captain, the rookie. Never played an NFL snap. And here was Robert Sala's reaction. When I did see it, I was like, oh, look at that. You know, so I think it's more of a testament to him. him and the way he's been able to conduct himself here. And like I said, I mean, you go to the cafeteria and he's hanging out with his old

lineman. He's got a infectious personality. So credit to him and the way he's handled himself so far. Oh, look at that. That was Robert Solis' reaction. Oh, that's kind of cool. Look at. Two of.

No. By the way, Vic Fangio, Denver coach. Listen to the words. Describe. It says a lot. because Drew Locke and Bridgewater were battling to be starters until a week ago.

Teddy just got it. So he didn't even take all the snaps in his position. And he was named a captain. Listen to the words Vic Fangio uses. I just think Teddy's that, you know, obviously the quarterback of the team. He has good leadership qualities,

he's got good people skills. I think guys kind of gravitate towards him. and I think that's reflective in him getting elected. I'm saying Ryan Fitzpatrick got it last year in Miami. Two didn't get it. Right now, only team that's not named a quarterback that played last year captain, one team Miami. And they were also in the Deshawn Watson sweepstakes two weeks ago.

Just saying, these are not opinions. This is not opinion, Colin. This is journalism. This is facts, Colin. So Brian Flores was definitive. Two is our guy. Not according to his teammates. I say this all the time.

Teammates, no. Can't fool the players. You cannot fool the players. You may be able to fool them for a week or two in the NFL. Raw, raw, we're going to win all our games and bite their kneecaps. About week three, all the players know. Can't fool the players. Players didn't vote for two of them.

It's something. It's not everything. There's something. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart 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 you're saying. 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. 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. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial. his shoes. I like the bougie 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. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, actress, mother, lover, and a Gen X woman walking through life one hot flash and hormonal crying jag at a time.

You ladies know what I mean. I'll bet you a perimen apostle chin here you do. So let's talk about it. Join me on my new podcast. How Hard Can It Be with Deanna Maria Riva, where I call on my Gen X squads from Ohio to Hollywood. as we navigate midlife's most fantastic BS. All of a sudden, I'd had hanginess happening on my own. I was like, what the hell is that?

I was married when I had her, so I didn't even consider how empty that nest was going to be. Mood swings, night sweats, fupas, sex drive. Wait, what sex? Dating at 45. How can it be getting naked at 50 with the new guy? That one's kind of hard. Well, that's lighting. They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try.

So let's get blunt with laughs, tears or tears of laughter, and dive into it unfiltered and unbothered and ask, How Hard Can It Be? I cannot believe I'm about to say this out loud in public. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva as part of my Cultura podcast network available on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And so let's start with a big band bite, new offensive line,

new offensive coordinator, rookie running back, A lot of moving new parts here. Here's Ben on the season. Once again, like anything, there's going to be growing pains. And we're all going to experience them. Even someone in their 18th season is going to experience growing pains. The key is, do we learn from those growing pains? How often do those pains come?

Now, there were only 16 games in the NFL, which there were, except this year in my life. You know, it's 14 when I was a kid, 16. Now, I'd call the Steelers an 8-and-8 team. I think the division's better, the AFC's better. I think they're an 8-8 football team. But since I have to pick a side, I picked 8-9, probably a little risky because Mike Tomlin's never had a losing season. But it is interesting to note that when you take legendary quarterbacks

and go to their last year with the team we identify them with, like Drew Brees, we identify him as a saint, although it wasn't his first team. If you go to their last year, and I think this could be Ben's last year, it generally doesn't end well. Jim Kelly last year in Buffalo, 14 TDs, 19 picks. Tom Brady, New England. We identify him as a patriot, right? His last year, he had a passer rating of 88 for the goat. Drew Breeze last year, got hurt, no playoff win.

Philip Rivers last year, 23 TDs, 20 picks 5 and 11. Cam Newton's last year in Carolina, Hurt. Peyton's last year and Indy hurt, Eli's last year and the Giants benched. It usually doesn't end well. And the end is near. And this is what I always tell my kids. Waste time in college. Because when you get out of college, you never know if the best job of your life is going to be offered.

Be buttoned up and ready to go. College is different. You got four years in college. You take, let's say, 16 credits a semester. You got four or five classes. classes. Monday you got two classes. Tuesday you got three. Wednesday, one. Thursday, three. You can schedule your, my daughter did her entire career Friday off. You got three-day weekends in college. Then she gets a month off in December. She gets two months off in the summer. Travel. Have fun.

You don't need a four point in college. Your high school grades are bigger than your college grade, actually. I've never had anybody ask for my grades in my entire career. It's the high school grades that get you into the college. And so I always said, waste some time in college. I'd go to some parties. Summer travel, backpack to Amsterdam, whatever you can afford. When you get out of college, be ready to go. Amazon. One of your college roommates ends up being really smart and having a business. Be ready to go. Don't waste time. And I feel like the Steelers have wasted so many years. I'll give you an example. There were oper-

and I know Ben's now the best shape of his life, but there were opportunities in the AFC. There was the Peyton Manning's getting old in Indianapolis years. Yeah, Tom Brady won Super Bowls during those years. There was the Colts have Andrew Luck, but they're really poorly run years. Yeah, Tom Brady beat luck and won Super Bowl those years. Cleveland, Cincinnati are layups if you play them.

They're terrible. Yeah, Tom Brady was winning. In New England, when they were in Super Bowls in those years, there's the Andy Reid in the AFC, but he doesn't have a star quarterback yet. Tom Brady, it's been a Super Bowl in those years. There were so many years in the AFC, the Peyton's getting old. Okay, luck's there. He's great, but the organization's bad.

Andy's now in our conference, but he doesn't have a star quarterback. Cleveland, Cincinnati, and your division are awful, totally chaotic. Those are all over now. like Cleveland's got a coach and a better roster. And Andy does have a star quarterback. And now you start looking around and other chargers have a quarterback and Buffalo's got a quarterback and Carson Wentz is now in the conference. All those years just wasted by Pittsburgh.

Forget it now. Three teams in your division have better rosters, arguably, two for sure. Now I'll give you over since. that he might bet two teams in your division have better rosters Baltimore and Cleveland the years of you win in that division and winning championships they're over and you wasted a lot and I've said this a little bit about Green Bay although Green Bay is getting to conference championship so I don't feel

as strongly about it but Green Bay wasted some really good years there was the Russell Wilson's playing behind the worst O line in the NFC years and getting any Super Bowls there There was the McVey and Shanahan don't quite have their star quarterback years. There was the Drew Breeze is getting old, Eli's getting benched, and the Tom Brady's not in your conference years. He weren't winning Super Bowls in those years. So I feel with Pittsburgh and Green Bay, you have these openings, legends aging, good teams poorly run. Andy Reid doesn't have a star quarterback.

And I feel like Pittsburgh just kind of frittered away all those years. I mean, just think about this. There was about a 10-year, 12-year time for Ben. Four and O against the Browns Bengals, you can just write it down in your pocket schedule. You wouldn't even get an argument from people in Cleveland or Cincinnati. Those days are over. Cleveland's better. Baltimore is better.

And Cincinnati's got an offense. They can beat you in a shootout. The roster's not better yet, but they can beat you in a shootout. you better be ready when you go to Cincinnati. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's Ben, host of The Fifth Hour with Ben Mallor, along with my trusty sidekick, David Gascon, would mean a lot to have you join us on our weekly auditory journey. You're asking what in God's name is the fifth hour?

I'll tell you, it's a spinoff of the Ben Mallor show, a cult hit overnights on FSR. Why should you listen? Picture if you will a world where we chat with captains of industry in media, sports, more every week, explore some amazing facts about human nature and more. Listen to the fifth hour with Ben Mather on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcast, 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 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, 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 a good. 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. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Georgia accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues.

I like the bougie 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 House Wise 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. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, actress, mother, lover, and a Gen X woman walking through life one hot flash and hormonal crying jag at a time. You ladies know what I mean. I'll bet you a perimenapausal chin here you do. So let's talk about it.

Join me on my new podcast. How Hard Can It Be with Deanna Maria Riva, where I call on my Gen X squads from Ohio to Hollywood as we navigate Midlife's most fantastic BS. All of a sudden, I'd had hanginess happening on my own. I was like, what the hell is that? I was married when I had her, so I didn't even consider how empty that nest was going to be. Mood swings, night sweats, fupas, sex drive. Wait, what sex? Dating at 45.

How can it be getting naked at 50 with the new guy? That one's kind of hard. Well, that's lighting. They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try. So let's get blunt with laughs, tears, or tears of laughter, and dive. into it unfiltered and unbothered and ask, how hard can it be? I cannot believe I'm about to say this out loud in public. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva as part of my Cultura podcast network available

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So Tom Brady's first start of his career was week three against the Colts in 2001. Yes. His 100th start was against Tony Romo. His 200 start was against Peyton Manning. So Peyton played a while. His 300th start is tonight against Dak Prescott. And I mentioned this.

It is. You had said something during the break. We have not seen a year in this century that Tom Brady has not been in the NFL. It's crazy. And three players were drafted, had great careers, multiple-time pro bowlers, retired for the minimum five years you need to be elected into the Hall of Fame. and then we're elected into the Hall of Fame. And that's Troy Palomalo, Ed Reed, and Calvin Johnson.

So they were drafted, great careers, sat out five years, elected Hall of Fame, and Tom is still rolling. In fact, I was just thinking about this, Joy. Just to give you a sense, let's go back to Tom's first game in the NFL. Here's what has changed in all of football since Brady's been around. Number one, the Houston Texans did not exist. There was no such thing as the Houston Texans. when Tom got his first start. The Colts were actually in Tom's division.

They were in the Patriots division. Thursday night football, there was no such thing. And that's been going on a long time. The catch rule. We've gone from what we thought was a catch to what felt like a decade of, that's not a catch, back to we screwed up, everything's a catch. The catch rules change multiple times.

Three teams have moved. San Diego, Oakland, St. Louis. Three teams have moved. Think about this. Nick Saban was only in his second year at LSU. He's been in Alabama seemingly forever. He was just starting to form his legend. Nick Saman was not, he was just a really talented coach.

There was no championships, no national. second year at LSU. Brady's current offensive coordinator, Byron Leftwich, who played for a decade in the NFL, was still a college quarterback at Marshall. So he played, he retired,

he coached, he's now Brady's OC, he was still in college. Sean McVeigh of the Rams did not have a driver's license. Did not have a driver's license. the college quarterback, the talented kid for Ohio State, C.J. Stroud, who kind of opened the college football season last Thursday a week ago. He was not born yet.

And Chip Kelly was, forget Oregon. He was still a coordinator in New Hampshire. So he wasn't even at Oregon yet as a coordinator, which he was for years before they gave him the head coach. and he dominated the conference for seven years. I mean, just think about how long. Sean McVey didn't have a driver's license. He's now been, he's becoming, he almost feels like he's not a veteran NFL coach, but he's no longer a newbie.

He did not have a driver's license. Yeah, we don't call him the young guy anymore. We don't call it. Sean McVeigh is no longer a young guy. Sean McVeigh now is an established elite coach. Like he is a young guy, literally, but yeah. He's an established NFL coach, did not have a driver's license. I mean, it's just, it's insane.

One more herd. The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Report this morning that Baker Mayfield and the Browns are fine taking it slow on a contract. So for young quarterbacks like Baker Mayfield, there are basically three camps you fall in. the number one camp is and it usually is determined by the end of your second year the franchise sees you as a 15 year star with no holes productivity maturity accuracy end of the second year everybody in the organizations like josh allen patrick mahomes i think jason herbert justin herbert was a four two biology major was so smart he was a tutor to the other biology students herbert by the end of this year they will be working on a deal. Those are the no-brainers. They got everything. The big, they're smart,

the mature, they're just, you don't have to argue with it. The second class is this is not working. And that is usually determined similarly at the end of the second year. Something's getting away. There's a hole or a flaw that's getting into the way of productivity and wins. E.J. Manuel, Mitch Trubisky, Paxton Lynch, Dwayne Haskins. It can be maturity, Dwayne Haskins. It can be accuracy. It can be a lack of athleticism. You don't have any feel in the pocket. Both of those. You're a stud and it ain't working and to your second year.

The hardest group in Baker's in this, and I think DAC was in this. You're good enough to win. You're not a perfect quarterback. There are flaws here, and you're not going to ever solve them. This is Garoppolo, Dak, and Baker Mayfield. We can win with you, especially when we're not paying you a ton. and this often takes year three or four. You know they're not a bust and you know they're not Patrick Mahomes.

Okay, if we pay them this much, we can't resign the right tackle or have good tight ends. And I think that's where Baker is, is that they're just kind of waiting. I think Cleveland's leaning 80, 85% on we're going to resign him. But Baker's not super, not real big, not as athletic as he thinks. You have to manage Baker. you can let Russell Wilson do whatever he wants. He makes great decisions. Baker, you're going to throw about 32 times.

We're going to manage you. We're not going to let you add lib. That's when Baker gets in trouble. He's just not as good as he thinks. Russell Wilson is better than he thinks. A little more humble. Some guys, you can let it loose. Other guys you've got to manage.

And that's Baker, and that's never going to change. But I also think it's very difficult. I think Cleveland's in a little bit of a difficult spot because I don't think he's as dynamic as Lamar Jackson in his own division. and I don't think he's his talent that is Joe Burrow in his own division. I don't either to scouts. But it's very hard because the standard in Cleveland is low. And there's some delusion here.

Remember when I did the top 10 quarterback list and I didn't have Baker in it? Cleveland fans to a person were outraged. Most were shocked he wasn't a tier one quarterback. They just had a Mike Sando does his 50 NFL execs. They had him in tier three. Like people don't consider Baker a tier one or two. quarterback, but I do think he'll have a good year. But what happens is, like, if you drive a Mercedes, and this is Denver with L.A., San Francisco with Montana, New England with Brady, when you drive a Mercedes

for years, a Honda Accord, a fine car is a step down because you're comparing it. If you take the bus to work for 20 years, a Honda Accord is your Mercedes. You know what I mean? The 97 Nissan, and let's be honest, for 25 years, Cleveland at quarterback's been driving a pinto. Sometimes they took a bike to work. A lot of times they were on the bus, public transportation. And so their standard is low. So Baker won a playoff game. You want a playoff game.

So to a lot of those fans, if Cleveland would have had 18 years of, not even Mahomes or Josh Allen, 18 years of Good. Philip Rivers. Good. Eli Manning, a little better than good. He's a Hall of Famer. Phillips probably not.

But Philip Rivers 50. You could look at Baker and say, he doesn't do that as well. He doesn't do that as well. What is their standard? They don't have a standard. Baker is their new standard. So I think it's very difficult for Cleveland to move off Baker.

And I don't think they will. And I think he's going to have a nice year. And I think he's smaller than you'd like, not as athletic as he thinks. and he has to be managed. But I do think he's going to have a very good year. But that's the three camps. No doubt about it.

Ain't going to work. And it can win. But how much do we have to surround him with once we pay him? And I think Garoppolo falls into that. I think Dak. I think Dallas waited on DAC. I think Baker falls into that. Some would argue Lamar Jackson.

I don't agree with this. Lamar Jackson falls into that. I don't agree. I think he, I think when you're great, at something, you don't have to be great at everything. I think Lamar is so dynamic as a playmaker. He doesn't have to be a great thrower, and he's still a quarterback. Maybe a minus, but he does one thing so well.

I'm not terribly worried that he's not the best pure passer in his own division. Forget the league. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. This is my simple rule about all sports, baseball, football, basketball, soccer. if you enter a season with more answers than questions, more knowns than unknowns, you're generally a playoff team. I mean, the Dodgers enter this season.

Not a lot of unknowns. Bullpen concerns. Bullpen, unknown. But a lot of knowns. A lot of guys that can rake, they got power. You got Kersha, Walker Bueller. There's a lot of knowns with the Dodgers. Nobody's perfect.

Back end of the staff. You know, fifth starter, bullpen. And same with this year with New England or Kansas City. I don't love Kansas City's situational defense. They were last in the league in red zone defense. But the coach, the GM, the quarterback, the rebuilt O line, the speed, the pass rush. Knowns and answers are playoff teams. Unknowns and questions usually aren't.

So Aaron Rogers talking about Green Bay, positioned his team as a question and unknown team. Here he is. There is a lot of unknowns. I've talked about it in various times. We're just focusing on accountability and holding each other accountable. Because regardless of what happens with any of our situations, this group will not be together the way it is now in years down the line.

I totally disagree. I think Green Bay is a playoff team. I think they're going to win their division again. I think they are overwhelmingly 90% of Green Bay is knowns. They have an elite corner, an elite receiver, an elite back. Matt LaFleur can clearly coach. They have the best roster in division. There's no real chaos on defense.

They get a decent pass rush. Have very nice corners. The unknowns are only provided by Aaron. It's a beautiful mystery. That's Aaron's comments. That's not Matt Lafleur's. 50, 50, going to retire. So I think Aaron provides all the unknowns.

I do not look at Green Bay as a team of questions and unknowns. 90% of this, I do worry that David Boktiari gets back soon as he can and he's healthy. But we all kind of know he's going to come back. The question is, will he be as effective as a pass blocker? Because he's the best in the football. He's the best pass blocking left tackle in football. The only unknowns Green Bay has is Aaron. It's a playoff team.

Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Jimmy Johnson, a couple of Super Bowls, national titles, Hall of Fame coach. I've never learned more about football than talking and listening to Jimmy Johnson. Fox NFL Sunday, noon Eastern on Fox again this year. He's joining us live from the Keys. So, you know, it's weird. The preseason's weird, Jimmy. Belichick was one of the few coaches who played a bunch of starters in the preseason.

And so a lot of times, Mack Jones, by his second series, is going up against second, third, and fourth string guys, and Belichick's playing starters. So my takeaway is the kid looks good to me, but I can't tell. Some of those guys he faced were backups on backups. What do you make of Mac Jones, what you saw, what you know you'll get, what you're unsure of so far? Yeah, I like it. I think, you know, the key with Jones is, you know, he doesn't make a lot of mistakes. Even though he's a rookie, he went through preseason without a lot of mistakes. And, you know, Belichick played his, you know, starters, but for the simple reason, he's got a lot of new players.

Yeah. And so he needed to put his team together. Plus, he's old school. A lot of the old school coaches, you know, they played their starters in preseason. Some of the new coaches, you know, they said, hey, we'll find out about them in that first ball game. I don't agree with that, but that's how they're approaching it. So you've, Bruce Ariens and Tom, all right, they're Super Bowl champs. They come back.

Go to your Dallas teams. When you knew you just won the Super Bowl, you're probably bringing back the best roster. You're bringing back Troy, you may have the best quarterback. What do you work on from that point? Is it just sandpapering, refining? I mean, the year after your Super Bowl, did you feel like, oh, we got a hole here? Or is it just kind of refining it? Yeah, and you always got a few new players, and so you've got to work those new players in.

But, you know, we played our starters in every ballgame. Even into the last ballgame, you know, we would give them a series or so. And in fact, I wouldn't even let our guys take off the shoulder pads the second half. One time, you know, we had Emmett Smith. He took off his pads and a running back went down. So Emmett runs into the ball game without his shoulder, you know, any kind of. of straps on his arms and everything else. He skin up his arm and really it bothered him for two weeks after that.

So, you know, our guys were fully dressed the entire ball game, the entire preseason. And that's the way I looked at it. What do you worry about with Tampa this year? Anything you worry about? Oh, you know, you always worry about complacency. You know, Colin, I think, you know, obviously coaching is important, you know, throughout the year. But I think coaching might be as important in this first ball game. Now, you've got to ask yourself, how physical.

of practices have the, has the team gone through? Are those receivers and backs? Are they going to be able to take a hit and still hold on to the football? You know, if they haven't taken a hit all preseason, you know, what's going to happen when they get hit in that first ballgame? The other thing is how well is the coach prepared the team for the unexpected, you know, different kind of formations, different kind of, you know, motion and looks, different kind of blitzes. And so the coaching in this first ball game, I think it's paramount. amount. I don't know that teams really play to form in the first ball game. They get closer to form as they go through the season. Yeah. So, Joey and I talked about this yesterday, virtually

every single team in the NFL without a rookie quarterback, name their quarterback captain. So any quarterback that started last year, any games that's coming back as a starter is captain, except Tua in Miami. And, you know, three weeks ago, we hear. they're looking at Deshawn Watson. And it's not a big deal, maybe, but it feels like something, Jimmy, doesn't it? Well, there's two things here, because I heard you talking about it yesterday.

Yeah, you know, I know a lot of the players think maybe the coaches kind of rigged the voting a little bit to make sure certain guys are captain. I don't think that, you know, that shouldn't ever happen. I don't think it happened because if the players found out, for sure that happened, it'd be a mutiny on your hands. And so it's really the players voting.

But maybe Tua's not one of the fellas. You know, maybe he doesn't go out and have beers with the fellas. I don't necessarily think him not being a captain means he's not a good player. It just means that he's not one of the fellas and he didn't get the votes. Now there was a few of those quarterbacks that were named captain. If I'd have had a vote, I would not have voted him, captain. But, hey, I'd say, what in the world? They voted him captain before.

I'm going to bench him after the first week, you know, so who knows? I guess Aikman was your captain. He was one of the captains? I went different captains every single week. And then after the end of the season, after we got through playing, I had them vote for captains for the year. I didn't want somebody to be captain. Then he goes down with an injury after the first week.

Or somebody to be a captain. captain and ends up being a third teamer, you know, or I end up cutting it. You know, so I didn't make captains every week. I didn't have the same ones every week. So I was talking about this earlier in with Baker Mayfield, it doesn't have a contract yet. And generally speaking, you know, there's the guys that like Mahomes or Josh Allen, I think Justin Herbert's this, you're going to know pretty quick, big, strong, productive, mature, boom. Then there's the guys, you need to watch them for a year or two. you know, Trabisky,

Paxton, Lynch, like, hey, it's not working. We can't win big. And then you get into the difficult ones where I think there's a little bit of this with Dak, Garapolo, Baker, where I know I can win with them, but if I pay them, you know, how much can they carry? I can't,

right? And I kind of feel... You can't get rid of them if you pay them. That's right. So I kind of feel like Baker's going to get resigned, but I do think he needs to be managed. Where do you land on Baker? My advice would be the same thing I said about Dak about three or four years ago. You know, quarterback's a hard to find.

You know, even if you've got one that's just pretty good, he doesn't have to be great. If he's pretty good and you've got a really good football team, you can win with him. Yeah. Then you pay him because if you wait a year or two, it's going to cost you a lot of money. Yeah, that's interesting. So, you know, it's such a different time. Last time I had you on, we talked about this, that you did ask Troyick, opinion on stuff. You wanted Troy's opinion.

Yeah. And I, and I, we've said this before. Russell Wilson, Aaron Rogers, you can ask him things. I mean, I get it. Aaron's a very public quarterback. He goes on radio shows. He's outspoken. And Jimmy, generally in your career, most great coaches would like to keep most of that crap in-house. You don't want that stuff going out, the newspaper guys and radio guys. Would you be a little uncomfortable? Aaron every week, kind of throwing us private stuff, publicly. Would you ever at some point go, sit him down and go, Aaron, we don't need this stuff out there. Just keep this stuff in-house. Yeah, I think, you know, you can have that conversation with

him. I don't know that Aaron's going to listen to you. You know, but yeah, yeah, yeah, I think you need to have that conversation. And as far as, you know, his advice, I would talk to Aaron for sure, you know, before I made moves. I mean, you know, like I talked to Troy before we hired North Turner. In fact, Troy met Norve before I finalized his contract. And so I think the key here as the head coach, now if Troy would not have liked Norv, I might have sat in his office for an hour or two and talked and talked and talked until Troy finally said, yeah, I like Norv. You know, you work into where he makes the decision that you want him to make.

Okay. And so, you know, but I would listen to Aaron as far as his input. But he knows a lot more than what some rookie scout or maybe a coach that's been there a year or two knows, he knows more about that football team than they do. You know, Jimmy, when you have a 17th game now in the NFL season, and it's only one game. But that's a lot of wear and tear. And I do look at some veteran teams, and I think to myself, like if you're the Rams, Andrew Whitworth, I'm thinking to myself, how many padded practices?

Do I want to give him a double buy week? A buy after the buy? I mean, where do you land on a 17th week? What do you do with it? Colin, you're soft. You're soft. I remember when I went to Dallas, you know, nobody had the off-season, you know,

Washington and Kansas City, probably the only ones had the all-season program. You know, we started working on, you know, lifting weights four days a week and having actual workouts three days a week a year around. Frank Luxa with the Fort Worth Star Telegam said, these guys are going to get worn out. you know, by the end of the season, there's no way in the world these guys can hold up.

Well, you know, I said, hey, they're young guys. You know, they're going to be fine. You know, and so, you know, now the league has changed. Now everybody works year-round. But then with the collective bargaining agreement a couple of years ago, they only worked out in pads about once a week. And, you know, they don't hit. And it would be difficult for me because we hit three days a week.

And so, hey, I don't worry about that 17th game. They're young guys. They can handle it. They're in great shape. They're not going to get worn down. By the way. Now, I will say this. Your older players, like Whitworth, I would set him out for a lot of the work.

I would protect the older players. But those young guys can handle it. So Kansas City's redoing their offensive line. I think they have four or five new guys. And Andy Reid knows what he's doing. But that is an interesting unit, Jimmy, because you could make an argument. It has to be your most cohesive unit. How long, you know, Pittsburgh's doing the same thing.

They're kind of transition with their offensive line. Green Bay a little bit too. How long did you feel comfortable if you had new pieces protecting your quarterback and engineering your running game, how long does it take to mesh with a new O line? It probably depends on how smart the offensive linemen are and how good an offensive line coach you had. I had Tony Wise as one of the great offensive line coaches ever.

and he had that bunch working as a unit pretty quick. And we had some changes. We brought in Eric Williams, and we promoted him to first team, even though he was the third round pick. We put him on first team after the second preseason game. And moved Kevin Gogan, who was our starting right tackle, we moved him to offensive guard after that second preseason game.

So if you've got an outstanding offensive line coach and you got pretty smart individuals playing offensive line, it's not going to take long for them to, work as a unit. All right. Finally, Dak Prescott, what do you expect this year?

He's 340 days, hasn't taken a hit, a couple of surgeries. Where do you land this year? What do you think we get? I think if medically he's okay, and that's a big if, if he's okay medically,

I think he'll play well. He's got a great supporting cast. Now, I think the key to their football team, though, is Elliot. If Ezekiel Elliott has a great year, he'll protect that defense. And then on top of protecting the defense,

he'll allow DAC to get the big plays to those receivers rather than the dinkin and the dunkin. And so Ezekiel Elliott is a key as far as them having success as a team. Yeah. All right, Jimmy. Appreciate you stopping by. Football season starts tonight on Fox.

It's great seeing you. All right, Colin. And Joy, I look forward to having you as a neighbor. Thanks, Jimmy. We'll go fishing. Well, he's got two boats so you can use one of his boats. Yeah, yeah, exactly. All right, thanks, Jimmy. Appreciate it.

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 it. 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 you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media.

Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeard 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. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam Jay. 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. 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. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.