The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 11/09/2020 - HOUR 1 - Buccaneers, Tua, Seahawks, Steelers

Episode Date: November 9, 2020

The Buccaneers simply weren't ready to play the SaintsTua played well, Dolphins fans should be happyColin defends Russell WilsonSteelers aren't as good as their record saysGuest: Jimmy Johnson Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It is a Monday. I am well rested, almost too well rested. This is The Hurd, wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Fox Sports Radio, I Heart Radio, and FS1, one hour from now, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, Hall of Fame coach, Jimmy Johnson in 30 minutes. This between no preseason, COVID injuries, more injuries. It's the craziest year ever. You just don't know what you're going to get in a Sunday. Joy Taylor is joining me.

It's last night, I can't, it's just a mess. How are you? I'm fabulous. That was an amazing weekend. Yeah. All around. Start to finish. That made up for the heat getting blown out in the finals.

Yeah, I'm good. Okay. We got next year. It's a great weekend. So when you're a columnist, there's a saying for columnists, people who write columns, not just sports columns, any columns. Don't bury the lead. When you're a retailer and I walk into your big box or small retail out,

What are you trying to sell me? Don't be subtle. Direct me where you want me to go for the best goods. When you're a football team similarly, what are you trying to establish? Don't outthink the room. Don't outthink the room. Don't be subtle. What are you trying to establish?

I watched two football teams, Saints and Tampa. One made it clear what they wanted to do, and one was making crap up. Go ahead. Blame Brady. The defense was working. Blame who you want. I don't care.

What was that from Tampa? their first five drives, three and out. They didn't try to establish a running game. It was a series of odd, low percentage throws. Did they spend all week babysitting Antonio Brown? I don't know what it was. I mean, Tampa is still six and three. Almost everybody in the NFL said they'd be nine and seven.

That's what Vegas thought. So they're on track. They're going to be a 9-10 win team. But it's the way they have looked against Chicago. It's the way they have looked against the Saints last night. And my takeaway was the first five drives of the game. What was Tampa trying to establish? They were just making crap up.

New Orleans, the Saints came out, short passes, get the ball out of Drew's hands. We've got big, rangy receivers. Get it out. Protect Drew. I knew exactly what the Saints were trying to do all night. I knew exactly. I could watch it. A well-coached football team can have a bad game, a bad half.

I get it. But this was a coaching mismatch. This felt like Sean Payton and Drew Breeze collectively put their heads together and Dennis Allen, the defensive coordinator, and it was just a witch's brew of stuff that would work. I don't know what Tampa was doing, and that's on the head coach. And yeah, Brady was bad, but so was the defense, and we know Todd Bowles can coach. That's the responsibility of the head coach. The protection was bad.

There was no run game established. It was low percentage throws. Stop worrying about Gronk and AB. Just get the ball to the guys that are open. I still don't think they use Leonard Fernett enough, and I don't think they'd run the football enough. I didn't see any adjustments from Tampa. Like, listen, every, but we had no preseason.

We got COVID. Guys are hurt. Seattle had a bad first half. They were more competitive in the second half. The Kansas City Chiefs had a bad game against the Raiders. It happens, okay? It's a weird year. You know, players can't go out.

You know, they're young men. you have bad Sundays. But to not have, I know Tampa was on a short week, but I don't know what they were trying to do. I didn't get any of it. I didn't see any of it. You ever read a newspaper column and you're through with it and you're like, what was she trying to say? What was he trying to say? You go into a store and the feng shui is bad and you're all over it and you're like, go to a grocery store.

And you're like, lead me somewhere. Take me somewhere. The produce is too close to the cereals, too close to this, too close to that. I got motor oil right next to the apple juice. What is this? Take me somewhere. Take me somewhere as a team. Tampa last night.

And this was not my knock on Bruce Ariens. It's always been this, is that he's fun, he's funny, but his teams are a little loose, they're a little inconsistent. I don't know exactly what I'm getting. And the great coaches will have one on in 30 minutes. I always feel like I knew what Jimmy Johnson. I know. I know what Chuck Knoll.

I know what Bill Belichick. I know what they want to do. I can see it on television. And I watched the game and I'm like, oh, they have watched film like Buffalo yesterday. When you watch Buffalo, Buffalo said, we don't respect Seattle's pass rush or secondary. We're not even going to run the ball. We're going to go downfield right at Seattle. I didn't have to be in one film session for the bills.

You could see it within the second series. They attacked Seattle's secondary. They didn't respect it on film. Our receivers are better than their DBs. That's good coaching. I can see it. I know what you looked at as a staff. and went, weakness, attack it.

Well, you watch Alabama play. Their first two series, they'll tell you right out of the gate. This is what they're weak. I watched Notre Dame against Clemson. Notre Dame told you what they thought they could do against Clemson. Three and a half hours. I don't know what Tampa was doing. Five rushing attempts is the lowest in NFL history and one was a kneel down.

I mean, they never established anything. So I mean, but blame Brady. Suddenly Brady can't play quarterback. Todd Bowles doesn't know what he's doing. None of their players are any good. I don't buy that. The culpability is always on the head coach to me because everybody has bad games, but you've got to make adjustments.

Tampa never did. And here's Tom after. Turning the ball over against a good team never helps. You know, we just didn't play the way we're capable of playing. Everyone's got to do a lot better. And it starts with me and get back to work tomorrow morning and try to make it a better week. Now, I will say, this has been the most consistent year, inconsistent year ever. I mean, no preseason, so young players are all over the place.

I've seen the Titans have a terrible game. Seattle yesterday was awful. I still can't quite figure out week-to-week what Buffalo is, and I think they're well coached. So I understand inconsistency this year. I totally get it. But the inconsistency that COVID and injuries are bringing us in no preseason, plus the inconsistency historically of Bruce Ariens, it makes me worry about this team. Like about every third game offensively, I don't know what Tampa is trying to do.

All right, let's go to this. the most entertaining football game I think I've seen all year. All year was Miami to Arizona. I'm going to tell you, that was three and a half hours of just fun. So I told you I was worried about Tua. Tua looks small and he doesn't have a ton of wiggle. And he's not Kailer Murray. So let me just say this about the game.

Kiler Murray was unstoppable against what I perceive as an excellent head coach and a very good defense. Tua did a lot of his stuff against what I consider to be a bad defense, and I don't know about the coaching staff. So what Kiler did against that defense and that coach is way more impressive to contextualize it than what Tua did. But Tua is just playing now for the first time, second game ever. So let's talk about Tua. I thought this league's about head coaches and quarterbacks. When you get a Jimmy Johnson and Aikman, you get a Chuck Nolan and a Bradshaw, that's when you win Super Bowls. When you get a Bill Walsh to Montana, you get a Belichick and a Brady, that's when you get a Jimmy.

you win Super Bowls. You get a Coughlin and Eli in his prime. That's when you win Super Bowls. It's not just the quarterback. It's not just the coach. The combination of Brian Flores and Tua, you should be very excited about. And in the history of the NFL, defensive coaches with great quarterbacks win Super Bowls, Belichick Brady, Pete Carroll, Russell Wilson. Tua was really impressive. Now, again, it's a limited defense, but I love what Miami did. They rolled him left. They rolled him right. There were seven-step drops. There were short drops. There was quarterback draw. He showed as Trent Dillford talked about, short space athleticism. What I really liked about Tua, and I've had a couple of coordinators that have dealt with him before, I know at Alabama,

is that it's not just being quick physically, but a lot of great quarterbacks or good quarterbacks aren't great because they're not quick instinctively, is that they don't make really good, quick decisions. And the better the defense, the quicker decision you have to make. You have less time in the pocket, less time before you get hit. I thought. the thing that was great about Tua yesterday. He was asked a bunch of times, think quick, act quick, move quick, ace all of them. And that is something a lot of good quarterbacks can struggle with. Big Ben drives me nuts. When you ramp up the speed against Big Ben, he makes a lot of mistakes 15 years into doing this. But I thought with Tua, I thought they asked him, they moved him around,

drop deep, go left, go right. But all the times in that game, and we all know he's accurate. Like, that's the no-brainer. We're never arguing. The comp for him, and we've been on this for two years. The comp for him is Drew Breeze. He is bizarrely accurate. He's got a beautiful release. He's very accurate. That's never been the issue with him.

We know that's good. Like Joe Burrow, he's Tony Romo. His escapeability is not under question. Justin Herbert, arm strength. We know certain, Lamar Jackson's quickness. We know certain things. To his accuracy, that's not up for debate. He throws an incredibly accurate football.

But I thought yesterday, just the ability to do multiple things, throw from multiple spots to make really quick decisions in the red zone. It's a cluttered space. I thought he was great on that. I thought he was fantastic on it. And that's what I worry about. Now, he's going to play better defenses. But if you're a Miami Dolphins fan, what you saw yesterday, I thought Flores had a great day as a football coach.

I thought he had a great game plan, good adjustments. and I thought to a past the eyeball test, accuracy test, make a quick decision test, sprinkled the ball around. He didn't get locked into one guy. He gave it to a lot of different guys. That was fantastic. Brian Flores afterwards. And I thought he made a lot of plays for us, a lot of big plays for us, especially down the stretch when we needed it.

You know, it was kind of a back-and-forth game. They made plays. we made plays. The stage wasn't too big for him tonight. He played well. Here's the other thing. Ryan Fitzpatrick got benched. He went to Harvard.

But he throws some bad picks. Okay. So Ryan Fitzpatrick is your classic gunslinger. You fall in love with him and fall out of love with him on the same drive. But what's great about Tua here, and I think Brian Flores knew this, Brian Flores is like, listen, this defense is good. our defense is good and our kicking game's good. If we can just cut the mistakes down.

So we all thought it was a little bit of a pullback on Fitzpatrick, the Tua, right? He didn't have all this. But actually, Tua fits Miami's personnel better. This team can win a lot of 2320 games. They can win a lot of 2320 games. What they can't do, they're not talented enough to get in shootouts and have two picks. You're not going to have a lot of two-pick games with Tua. So he actually fits.

He's more calculated. He plays within a system, but he's got enough juice to make plays that you couldn't coach. And the other thing about it is one of the reasons, and Jimmy Johnson will talk about this later, is that you can do a lot of stuff at practice. And I've heard NFL guys tell me this. But you know as a quarterback in practice, nobody's going to light you up. You're not going to get, nobody's going to light up Troy Aikman in his prime at practice. So you have to play in games.

because then there's a fear for a quarterback. Oh, I can get knocked out. And a lot of quarterbacks, it's like they say in baseball. He's great at batting practice. He's a batting practice hero. Live pitching, not the same. Batting practice, it's grooved in. Tuamah may look great at practice.

But when you add the element of, dude, somebody may take you out. A lot of guys psychologically, it messes with him. They're not the same in games. Tua was. Buda Baker came roaring like a freight train at him, and he just, boom. again, instinctive, quick, move, quick, fast. So I think that's why they play them. I think Flores says, you know what?

With our personnel, two is actually a better fit. He's not a gunslinger. He plays a more calculated style. And the second thing is, we've got to see if this kid live bullets can play. A lot of guys are great at practice. But when there's the fear of, oh, I can hear footsteps, and these are not my buddies that I have lockers next to. These guys will take me out.

They'll horse call her and throw me down. They'll go low. They'll hit me high. And I thought, too, it was great. That game, I'm telling you, man, if that thing comes up on the NFL network and they replay it, it was so much fun. Such a great football game. Coming up next, Pete Carroll, he worked in his contract extension all week.

Maybe that was all he worked on. I'll defend Russell Wilson. Yes, I will. Again. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win.

A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliford 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, Untaught. filtered 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. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior,

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

If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become home, whole. This podcast is for you. To hear more, listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. If you're watching the latest season of the

Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Orsha accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They hold 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. So the world's best football player, in my opinion, is Russell Wilson, and yesterday he was not good. It happens. It's okay. No reason to go crazy. I think there is a criticism of Russell Wilson of the Seahawks. They got doused by the bills, and I think it's a realistic one. And I think it's something that happens to a lot of people. It happens to a lot of quarterbacks. Russell Wilson is pressing.

He's trying to do too much. Well, I understand that, and I'm certainly not condoning four turnovers, but Seattle rush for 57 yards. Once again, Seattle's best running backs aren't healthy. Once again, Seattle is playing from behind. Russell Wilson's smart. He has eyes and stuff. He watches every single mobile quarterback Seattle faces has their best game of the year.

Cam Newton, best game of the year against Seattle's defense. Kuyler Murray, first or second best game of the year. against Seattle's defense. Josh Allen was struggling until yesterday. Then he went 31 for 38 and a passerating of 130. Russell knows that. When he faces a mobile quarterback, that guy's going to have all sorts of career numbers. And when you look, Josh Allen struggled for a month.

He threw for 415 yards, 138.5 passer rating through seven incompletions all day and people were wide open. And we think of Seattle. I do as a Super Bowl team, and the Arizona Cardinals is just entertaining. But let me ask you a question. Has Seattle become the Arizona Cardinals? A wildly gifted quarterback, kind of small, but a generationally special player with a bunch of injured running backs, a defense you can't trust, one big receiver, one speedy receiver, and an old guy,

Greg Olson and Larry Fitzgerald that are hanging on and still can make plays. When I watched Arizona and I watched Seattle, I see the same team when I watched them play two weeks ago. It's the same team. And this is no knock at anybody, but Seattle's in a weird spot. They gave up a bunch of first round picks. They're very top heavy. They have three or four stars. Bobby Wagner, Jabal Adams, Russell Wilson.

I love the Carlos Dunlap acquisition. He's easily their best defensive lineman. He's been there 10 days. But you can see Russell Wilson. The running backs are never healthy. they fall behind games. They can't stop anybody. And if you're a mobile quarterback against Seattle,

you're just going to do whatever you want to do. You're just going to do whatever you want to do. They're just not good enough defensively. They've given up draft picks. Pete's a very good coach and a mentor defensively. His teams usually get better as the season progresses. But I think there's a secret sauce to beating Seattle, and it's a mobile quarterback.

And Cam had his best day. And Josh had his best day. And Kyler had one of his best days. and I think Russ Wilson's pressing. He knows it. He can look at the schedule and go, okay, I got to score 35 points to beat Arizona. And I think that's what it is.

And he's pressing. And I don't know what it is, but it was the same thing when Pete was at USC. Maybe he practices too hard. His teams are banged up a lot. They can't keep a running back healthy. They're on their third and fourth and fifth running backs. So I do think if they get healthy,

that's a very dangerous team, but it's a shootout team. And those teams don't generally, It's hard to win a Super Bowl, even if you have Russell Wilson who talked after the game. We just got to get cleaner. I think that's the thing about this game or anything else, rather than trying to make up reasons or whatever. I scored 34 points, you know, we're pretty good offense. But I think that, you know, we can be better.

You know, and today we need to score 42, you know, so that's the reality today. Listen, Tampa never fought back. They made adjustments. They made it competitive. And frankly, if they'd have made two stops in the entire game, they would have won. So, but I think there is, I think Pete Carroll sees what we all see, is we can't stop mobile quarterbacks. And so we got to just let Russ take a, I mean, let Russ cook, yes,

but he shouldn't have to be the waiter, the bus boy, the owner, the prep cook, the chef that they're, he's pressing because he has to. And frankly, if you ask guys, you know, to do what he has to do, you're going to have bad Sundays. And they did. Here's Joy with the News. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. Steelers are 8 and O for the first time in franchise history. Pittsburgh, girl, I wouldn't brag too much about that performance. I don't know if there's any other teams in the league that right now. I'm pretty. They were down to the Garrett Gilbert-led Cowboys for most of the game. Trailing by as much as 13 points in the first half. I got to tell you, though, I never flinched.

I'm going to feel like, I'm like, they'll figure this out. I did get nervous, though, when Ben left. They didn't take their first lead until there were just over two minutes left. The Cowboys did have one last chance to pull off the upset, but Minkett Fitzpatrick

what a move getting Minkett Fitzpatrick has been. He is a defensive playmaker. He's got an Ed Reed quality. Like he'll make plays on defense that feel almost offensive. Always where he needs to be in the moments. He knocked the ball down the end zone as time expired to preserve Pittsburgh's undefeated season. Ben Rothesberger was 29 to 42, 306 yards and three touchdowns. Garrett Gilbert,

21 38, 243 yards, one touchdown, one interception. It was just one of those one of those games where it's kind of unexplainable, but at the end, well, in column and a loss column, and the better team is going to come out on top of a situation like this. I'll make an argument. It's totally explainable because it's what Pittsburgh's been for 10 years. They play. close. They play down. I feel like they play. Yeah, they play to their competition. Always. And that's kind of, that's why I never trust them. Because I think you can do that and win nine, 10 games. But boy, you can't do it against Peyton Manning. Brady, you're not going to be able to do it against Mahomes. I think that's, that'll be there. This is why I keep saying I can't put them as a top

team in the league, is that I know they're talented. And I like Mike Tomlin's had a good year, but this is just who they be, they're defined by playing to the level of competition. Well, I still think that they're, and I felt the same way about it last week, is it's the Chiefs and the Steelers are the best teams in the league. I don't have a lot of arguments this morning. And then there's the next level and that starts with the buck. So we've talked to a lot already about that performance last night, which is a disaster. In the same division, though, Lamar Jackson has been 0 in his career when trailing at halftime. Unlike the Steelers game, I was feeling like this was going to be very bleak for the Ravens.

And we were going to come in here today having to talk about. what's going on with the Ravens and Lamar Jackson. They were down 10 to 7 to the Colts in the first half, but Lamar overcame that deficit for the first time and got the 24 to 10 win. The victory also gave him a 25 and 5 record in the regular season, which ties Damarino for the best start by a quarterback in the Super Bowl era.

Okay, so let me defend Lamar on something. This is a really good defense. Yes. Okay, this isn't what Tua was facing. This was a really good defense on the road, and he was 10 for 10 in the second half. So let's, like I saw, a lot of bad quarterback play. What I saw here is a bad first half, adjustments, and a very

capable second half. So let's go back to a number, 30 games, 25 and 5. Now, do they have a ceiling postseason? Maybe they do. We'll see again. But all I know is I saw a lot of teams yesterday have a bad first half and never adjust. Not recover, yes. Baltimore did not play well, came out and I thought had an incredibly efficient second half. The coach deserves credit, the quarterback, the defense. I saw a lot of teams just quit at half yesterday. Well, that was a fair criticism of Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. He's an 0 and 6 in his career when he's trailing at halftime. Like that's how that goes. If you get up on the Ravens, we've said this the whole time. They can't play from behind. But you only can't do something

until you can't. So he finally got over that hump. That is a good team in Indianapolis and a good win for them. Making those adjustments. It's a great win for them. And coming out when they did not It's not just that they were losing in the first half. They did not look capable in the first half. Yeah, but in fairness, they had a fumble near the goal line. I watched the entire game. So it was one of those, there was a lot of red zone interceptions and fumbles yesterday. It was a weird betting day.

Like this game I actually won, you know, thank God. But it was just one of those games where I thought Baltimore was okay, but I thought, let's get him to halftime. I kept thinking, get him to halftime and figure this out. Because I do believe Baltimore is absolutely better than Indianapolis this year. I do too, but we've seen how they play when they get down in the first half. He was 9 for 13 for 51 yards and no touchdowns in the first half. So the fact that they were able to make that adjustment and beat that team is a really, really good win for them. Great college football weekend.

The top five matchup between Clemson and Notre Dame lived up to the hype in Saturday's double overtime thriller. After exchanging touchdowns in the first half, Notre Dame scored first in the second and followed by a huge defensive stop. DJ Owinga Lelele. Yeah. Yes, I'm going to get that. was sacked twice and threw an in completion to bring up the fourth and 24, and then the final pass fell short of the line to give the Irish the win, 4740. This was Notre Dame's first win over a number one team in 27 years.

Let me tell you something. The last two times they played Georgia, they were in the game with five minutes to go. They just beat Clemson. This is an academic powerhouse. Can we give Brian Kelly a little credit? I don't know what. The media's not into him. He's a little gruff.

He had a bad start Notre Dame. I understand it. But when I watch Notre Dame play, this is the most talent they've had since Lou Holtz. There's NFL line play. I mean, Ian Book's not going to make the NFL, and they're winning. They beat Clemson without an NFL quarterback. Like, Brian Kelly knows what he's doing. There are some limitations, I think, on the perimeter sometimes with them.

But when I watch Notre Dame play, I'm like, that is a well-coached team. They're fundamentally solid. They generally take away one of your best weapons. Now, again, Trevor Lawrence Clemson probably beats Notre Dame. But I, yeah, but like, we were raving about DJ last week. So, yes, obviously, Trevor Lawrence is the starter, and he is, he is better than him right now. He's a freshman. But I don't want to, I don't like, like, I'm seeing that excuse already.

Like, oh, like Trevor Lawrence was not there. No, like they beat Clemson. Clemson is a great team. Yeah. This is a legitimate win for Notre Dame and, you know, they deserve the credit for. The football, AP college football rankings right now are Alabama one, Notre Dame two, Ohio State three, and Clemson at four. No problem. A&M, a bit of a surprise.

How about Indiana? How about the Hoosiers? Better than their basketball team. Didn't expect that. Good stuff. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Heard Lye News. One of the four best football coaches of my lifetime. Jimmy Johnson's a Hall of Famer. It took too long for him to get in there. National Championships, Dallas Cowboys, and he is joining us from The Keys. Brought to you by Mercedes-Benz, the best or nothing. You know, Jimmy, I don't want to,

I don't want to overreact. coaches and quarterbacks have bad Sundays and sometimes it's just, oh hell, nothing's working. I was a little bothered with this, though, with Tampa. Jimmy, I couldn't figure out what the heck they were trying to establish. I just, it wasn't a run game. You can lose and it's okay. But boy, I didn't love, I thought they were just cooked in coaching. What was your takeaway on their performance?

You know, Colin, I think this happens, you know, in professional football especially, occasionally in college football. But the talent level is so close that once you get into the season, you know, I think a team, the players start reading just how good they are and how they are going to win this game. And, you know, they're just not up for it. And the opponent comes in there. It takes a lot of chances. better prepared, and it just starts snowballing. I mean, you look on the telecast last night, everybody on the entire set that was predicting,

predicted Tampa big win. You know, no one picked the Saints. Yeah. And, you know, the Saints have been hearing that all week long. They prepared better. They were emotionally more ready for the ball game. They were into it. They took some chances.

And then once it started going against the buccaneers, it just snowballed. It happened. It happened in the Pittsburgh Dallas game. Yeah. And so I think you see this on occasion. I don't think it's really indicative of the quality, the difference in the teams. I think if these two teams played three weeks from now, it could be a different outcome. Yeah.

You know, you get a lot, you know the dolphins well and that part of the country well. And I'll tell you what, I am, we were so impressed last year with Brian Flores. They know what they are. They play within themselves. They rarely get beat on bad plays. And this league is all about quarterbacks and coaches. If you get a Jimmy Johnson and a Troy Akeman, you win Super Bowls. You get a Chuck Nona Terry.

You win Super Bowls. So I said yesterday, it wasn't just Tua. I get a defensive coach. Tua is not going to. be asked in his career to win wild shootouts. I really like the combination. What impressed you with Tua? What did you see you like, Jimmy? I was impressed with his decision-making. And I think, you know, really, you know, quality quarterbacks, you know, that may be the number one thing that you look for is decision-making. Obviously, he can throw the football. But for only his second

start. I mean, you've got to realize it's been a long time since he's played football. Yeah. It's been a long time since he's had any kind of contact. And I thought he performed extremely well. He threw the ball well. He made good decisions. You know, he actually tucked the ball down and he ran a couple of times. He picked up some first downs. He threw his body into the end zone for a touchdown. I mean, he was impressive to me. And you're right. Brian Flores, they, are a well-coached football team. I am, you know, I visited with Brian back in the off-season, him and the scouts, and he, he's got it all together. He's got a handle on his players. I think they're going to get better and better. And they have a bunch of draft picks coming up.

Yep. I think this is a team to be reckoned with. Yeah. So I, I've struggled to put my arms around the Steelers all year because I, you know, Jimmy, I've seen this now for a decade where they They looked apart in the hotel lobby. And they are big and they're emotional and they're physical. But sometimes the details, they play down to their competition. They're a little too emotional. I mean, what did you make of yesterday? I mean, did you ever have a game when you had the Super Bowl Cowboys

and you literally struggled to get a team motivated because they just knew we got better players everywhere? I mean, can you look at this game and go, hey, it happens to a really good team? Well, it never happened to me because I was such a really hard-driven guy. I never let them smile. In fact, I did my hardest coaching when we were big favorites. When we were going to play a team and it was competitive and it's a big rivalry, hey, all I did was the X's and O's, hey, let's get ready to play. but when we were favored by a couple of touchdowns like the Steelers were yesterday,

that's when I was, I had my thumb on them. I mean, that's when I was grinding. That's when I put in the extra time with the players. You know, that's when we had more physical contact. Yeah. Getting ready for that particular game. Because, you know, these players get comfortable. It's human nature.

You know, they get comfortable. You know, the Steelers saw that. They were a 14-point favorite. In fact, it was going up above that. You know, people were saying it's going to be a complete blowout. And Gilbert, the new quarterback, came in there and made some good decisions. He threw the ball well. They took chances.

They had a big kickoff return. You know, they had the throwback on the kickoff. Then, you know, the Steelers tried to pooch kick it once on a kickoff. He ran it all the way back down. Dallas was much better prepared. than the Steelers were. And that's why it was a close ball game. The Steelers are a better football team.

And just like what we were talking about with the Saints and the Bucks, three weeks from now, if the Steelers played the Cowboys, they might beat them by 14 or 21. But one team was ready to play yesterday, the other wasn't. You know, it's so interesting, Jimmy. When you're a football coach, football is like technology. Every couple years it just changes. You have to be able to pivot.

And I watched the Russell Wilson's and the Kyler Murray's. And a lot of times as a coach, you can't control them. They're doing stuff off script. And you were a coach, go back to Miami, the Cowboys, you had a quarterback that you felt like you could corral a little bit. And I watched Kyler. And I watched Russell Wilson. I think, what would Jimmy Johnson do knowing that they could do stuff you couldn't even teach?

but sometimes bad stuff happens with that, Jimmy. Well, yeah, it was, you know, we tried to have a precision type of offense. Yes. We didn't have players that were going to be freewheeling and do it on their own. You know, people wanted me to compare Emmett Smith to Barry Sanders. I think Barry Sanders is the most talented back I've ever seen. But Barry Sanders, you know, he's, you know, if we had a hole off tackle, Barry Sanders is liable to run the other way.

But with Emmett, I made sure you run right exactly where you're supposed to run. Right. Because we were going to block it that way. Now, Barry Sanders might lose five yards. He might lose 10 yards. But he's liable to go the wrong direction and score. You know, because he had that God-given talent. You know, Kyler Murray, he's got that God-given talent.

And so sometimes you just have to go. to live with it. If that's going to be your guy, you've got to live with it. You know, they're going to win more games than they're going to lose or else you'd have a different quarterback in there. So, you know, again, you've got to understand who you have. Like, for instance, Vinnie Tessaverdi was an unbelievable, you know, talented quarterback. A big, strong could throw the ball. but it was very important for Vinny to have a precision type offense. Everybody had to be exactly where they were supposed to be. Bernie Cozar, you throw him out there on a sandlot with a bunch of rag knots,

and he's going to make things happen. And so you have to understand your talent. You've got to understand, do you have a Troy Aitman or do you have a Kyle of Murray? If you've got a Caller Murray, then you've got to deal with that. The receivers have got to deal. deal with that. They've got to be ready for the scramble. They've got to be ready for him to break the line of scrimmage and run. If you've got a Troy Aikman, make sure if it's supposed to be a 12-yard out, you run exactly 12 yards and you go out. And so you've got to understand your talent.

Finally, about a minute left, Jimmy Johnson, the Hall of Famer, one of my favorite people I've ever met in football. I didn't know if John Gruden could be out of coaching for a decade and come back and win. I didn't know, Jimmy, that's a long time to be out of any business. I got tell you. They draft well. Derek Carr's never been better. Are you a little surprised by how Gruden's fit and come back? The 10 years, the

time off didn't bother me. I wondered just if he would have the drive and he's got the drive. I think Mike Mayock has helped tremendously with some of the talent as far as acquiring talent.

But John, you know, he is a grinder now he he is going to spend night and day and you know i've always you know people come down here to the keys and they'll say hey i'm looking for an assistant coach or i'm looking for a head coach or i'm looking for this i said give me a smart guy that's passionate that wants to work hard will put in the extra hours hey and i'm fine you know now as far as having somebody that's already qualified if they're not passionate if they don't work hard i don't want them I want a smart guy that wants to work hard and is passionate about what he does. John Gruden's that way.

He's smart. He works hard. He's very passionate about what he does. So I'm not surprised at the success that he's happened. I love having you on, Coach. Learn something every time. I just love having you on. And you may be 3,000 miles away in the Keys.

Go out, play some golf. Go fishing. Go have fun. Thanks for taking time for us. All right, Colin. I'm not going to play golf, but I might go fishing. We just got over a big storm. last night.

That's right. As soon as this wind dies down, I'll be out there. I appreciate it, coach. Thank you. All right, Colin. All right. It's just a really good guy. I love talking to Jimmy.

Coming up next. Okay, Steeler fans, we'll have a talk. We'll have a chat about your great football team next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Cliver Taylor the Ford. 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. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month,

tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world has become, and lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized,

but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of a 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. Casper.com, life-changing sleep, 1,500 perforations, create a cooling system so effective, you'll sleep. through the night, casper.com. So I remember years ago when I got out of college, I got a job in Vegas, and Mike Tyson was a real thing. I covered Jerry Tarkany and Mike Tyson and mobsters.

And the thing I always noticed about Tyson, he had so much raw power he could overcome average fighters. He didn't even have to have a fight plan. He just overwhelmed people. But when he fought a holy field, a Lennox Lewis, somebody that was smart, cagey, had a chin, he could unravel really fast. he was a different, he was a different fighter. If he found somebody that could toy with him, could outsmart him, would dance around, could keep him at length.

And the Steelers have a little bit of that quality. They're so good defensively and they're so emotional and they're so physical. They overwhelm a lot of their mistakes. But they're 8 and 0, and this is why I struggle to buy into them. They have two double-digit wins. You know, it's like you are who I see, which is you're close against everybody. And again, they overwhelm Cleveland. They get up for big games.

But I've fallen for this now a half a dozen times in the last decade, where they're really good in the regular season, and they kind of play to their competition. Then you get to the postseason, and you got an Andy Reid, or you got a Belichick, or you got a Tony Dungee, you got a Peyton Manning. Well, I got Andy Reed and Patrick Mahomes around the corner. That's all about details. That's all about efficiency.

And those guys just waltz through the play. So when I watch Pittsburgh, I think they're a really great television show. I think they're a good football team. They should be on TNT. They're the best drama in the NFL. Everything's close. Bad teams, early, late. I mean, yesterday, and I know they're talented.

That's not it. And I know they're physical. And I know they're tough. But you've got to blow out more teams. And this is not the Pac-12. It's not college football. There's a lot of close games. But they tend to win our hearts, our fantasy.

points. They win the favor of the networks like them. They're a really good television show. They've got a highly emotional coach and they're physically, they feel like football. They get in your face. They knock you out. They've got, yesterday was so Pittsburgh. You got Ben limping around. You got bad opponent and they barely beat them and they struggle. And they're wildly popular. And I get why people love the Steelers. They're a great television show. I think they're a good football team. And I think, you know, years and years ago, there was a team in the NBA of the Phoenix Suns. They were just built for the regular season. They were just unbelievable in the regular season.

Because if you just flew into town the night before, you watched an hour of film with Steve Nash, they'd run you out of the gym. They were early on the three-point shot. Their offense was fast. But if you played them for seven games, they were not built for the post season. They could not defend the post. And I think Pittsburgh's one of the, they're going to win 15 games, 14 games. I mean, you look at their schedule.

It's been a weird year where they've faced. very few elite quarterbacks. The best pure passer they have faced this year is Ryan Tannehill. I mean, Jeff Driscoll gave them fits. So you can fool me once, but you know, shame on you, twice, shame on me. I've just seen this before. Play down a competition, can't finish people off. Popular, fun, get it. Here's Big Ben after. We know everyone's coming for us. You didn't know who, I'm not trying to take any shots anybody, but if you didn't know who America's team was, you should have seen the stands and all the terrible

tiles. Dallas may be America's team, but we'll be the world's team because we got fans everywhere that are the best of the world. Think about this. If I'd have told you, Big Ben goes 29 of 42, 360 yards, 3 TDs, no picks, and a passer rating of 114. Would you think it's close?

I mean, you got great Big Ben, and it was still close. That's why I don't trust him. though I acknowledge I'll be forced tomorrow to put up at number two. Colin Wright, Colin Wrong next. 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. 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, 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 celebrate. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's 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. I mean, 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.