The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Belichick vs. Brady; Loaded AFC; Leaguewide Question Marks; Pac-12 Comeback?

Episode Date: May 14, 2021

In this episode, John looks ahead to the Brady/Belichick blockbuster regular season matchup, looks at the loaded AFC, discusses the biggest question marks heading into the 2021 NFL season, and if the Pac-12 can make a comeback from irrelevance under new leadership. He also answers listener questions in the Middlekauff Mailbag. Follow John on Twitter and SUBSCRIBE now to get all the latest content!! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Lifetime regular season. Not the greatest ramifications, but just the most hype going into a game, and I think it's justified. The Pack 12, who has been in shambles, hired a new commissioner. A little bit off the beaten path, but I'm going to tell you why I'm fired up. I think it's an exciting time. They went a little outside the box, and I love it. Middlecoff Mailbag at John Middlough. It's the Instagram.

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And if you could, leave a review. Leave a review. That helps with everything we got going on here. Okay, I wanted to dive in to what I think is the number one story of the schedule release. And there's a lot going on. I mean, you could probably,

there's three or four things. But when I think the schedule release in 2021, I think Belichick and I think Brady. And we lived it for 20 years. The NFL became the ultimate national sport, whether you lived in California, whether you lived in Texas, whether you lived in Seattle,

whether you lived in Tampa. You were drawn to that franchise. You had an opinion on that franchise. And most of all, you had an opinion on those two guys. Belichick, Brady, cheaters, winners, great for the game, bad for the game, whatever. They moved the needle. It was said forever in Terrestrial Radio.

Now, you know, those of us say it on the podcast space, two things are key to being successful as, you know, a content creator, someone who talks for a living. You either want to be loved or you want to be hated. You do not want to be in the middle because the moment you're in the middle, no one gives a shit, aka they don't listen. Remember if you've ever watched private parts. And Paul Giamatti, he grabs the ratings and they go,

How's he up again? he's so terrible and they say listen we went to our polling station and they said a lot of people can't stand them but they can't wait to see what he says next and it was the same thing with bellichick and brady whether you despise them if you were a steelers fan a colts fan in the a fc east just a general the raider fans who thought that you helped start their dynasty you couldn't help but pay attention to what those two were doing and the reason was they kept winning over and over and over again. So even if you hated them in a weird way, you had some respect for them.

And if you loved them, like where I eventually came down to, I couldn't have any more respect for the duo. I think they're the greatest coach quarterback duo that we will ever see in the league because of the amount of time they did it over and the continuity success they had with so many different iterations of players. Now, they also controversy surrounded their group which if you're standing

from where I'm sitting, it's great for business. People get very interested. Everyone had an opinion on deflategate, on spy gate, on just some of Belichick's, you know, quirky things that people always thought he was doing shady shit. That was ultimately good for the NFL.

But, back to what I said, hated or loved, if you were already down on them, you really hated them after those incidents. and the breakup, which unlike you, we've seen a lot in sports, guys demanding to be traded, coaches quitting, I think that's happened a lot less in these modern times because guys make so much money. I felt like in the 80s, 90s, I mean, I wasn't really a lot. I mean, I was born in 84, but I don't remember anything in the 80s. That's why I don't.

I can't have legit sports arguments over Marino, Montana, Elway. I mean, I remember Marino, but he couldn't move. he was old, you write, in the mid, late 90s. I remember Elway, but he was also really old. And all Montana's greatness came before I, you know, can remember stuff as a sports fan. The first quarterbacks I remember, like Aikman, Young, and Farf. Like, those are the guys I can really argue.

But part of that in the 90s, like, Parcells would just leave a job, right? Pat Riley would just fucking bounce. You know, Mike Holmgren would just leave the Packers and go to Seattle. And I do think it's factored in there. The amount of money these guys make, no one walks away when you're making $10, $12, $15 million, right? So coaches don't leave as often. Plus, when you're Belichick and had that much success, where is he going to go? But players, no matter how much success you have, I mean, Michael Jordan played for the Wizards.

Right? Tom Brady is now playing for the Buccaneers and won a Super Bowl, right? It's pretty crazy how that whole thing played out. But these two individuals, in the history of the league, which, you know, we can argue when it became the most popular, it is clearly this last decade the most popular sport in America. There's not even a close second. The only thing that is trailing them is college football, and there's a distance gap between the NFL and college football, obviously.

But the other sports, America's pastime baseball, which I still love. By the way, I've watched a lot of baseball this year. It's been fantastic. I think the product in baseball is excellent. Now, you can nitpick strikeouts and pitchers not going far, but ultimately I just turn on baseball every night. Very competitive. The NBA would die to be that consistently competitive on a nightly basis.

So I actually think the product in baseball is pretty good. I'm a golf lover, so I mean, I watch other sports, but football pays the bills. And it's just, you see how big the schedule release moves the needle, unlike baseball or basketball who are in the middle of their seasons. No one even cares when the schedule release happens. And it's two most famous individuals. Now, you could argue Rogers, Mahomes, but Belichick and Brady, if I say Bill Belichick or I say Tom Brady

walking down the street to a non-sports fan to a woman who doesn't watch sports to a guy that doesn't watch sports they're going to know who those two individuals are and listen the ramifications when these two teams play in week four ultimately like it won't matter whoever wins or loses that game

and no one's going to make or break their playoff seating based on that game but the hype leading into that game will be as great and strong, I think, as any regular season game since like of the Goodell era, right? I truly believe that. And I would say the majority of the major needle-moving games over the last decade, at least a large percentage of them, partly have just involved Belichick and Brady when they were together, right? Big NBC games, big Monday night games, just big AFC games. They, they,

played in a ton of those games. But when you put these two guys together, Tom on top of the world, Belichick, who just basically bought a new team, who just drafted a quarterback in the first round, just, I can't wait. I would, if you put this game on pay-per-view, 99-99, I mean, shit, people are paying that much money to watch YouTubers fight, you know, 45-year-old Floyd, or, you know, a washed-up NBA player. You don't think I'd pay to watch Belichick and Brady go after it? swear to God, if NBC put this thing behind a paywall, maybe $99, $99 is a little strong, but if they put it to like $49.99, you don't think they would sell millions of pay-per-view buys? I promise you, they would.

And we just want to see it. And I also think when you factor in returns, I don't vividly remember Farv's return when he finally got to Minnesota the year after going to the Jets. I would imagine any Packer fan vividly remembers that. And he played well in that game. I think the Vikings won. And ultimately that season he was awesome before he threw that pick in the NFC championship game. But the vivid memories I have of returns, there's a lot of animosity, right? When LeBron went back to Cleveland with Miami, that thing was a war zone. I, you know, being a warrior's guy, the Kevin Durant returned to OKC, the Cupcake game, back when the NBA was a lot more popular.

Woo-hoo! There was venom in the crowd. There was venom in the crowd. Probably the most anticipated return that I can remember. is MJ's return MSG 1995. But that's right when my sports memories at 10, 11 years old, were kind of coming into my own. Diehard little young sports fan, MJ, television.

We just got cable, I remember. Actually, we didn't get cable because where I lived, you couldn't get cable. We had to get direct TV. And the back then, the satellite looked like something NASA would give you on top of our house. You could spot it. We lived in Davis.

You could spot it from freaking L.A. It was enormous. But it was sweet. We had a lot of channels. We were ahead of the curve props to my dad For knowing that we had to do something We couldn't keep operating on three or four channels When all these other people are getting 100

Time to get up with the times And we swung for the fences But the thing about this return A little bit like Michaels to MSG Even though obviously everyone at MSG Was rooting for Michael to lose I think Tom I think there's such a like a standing ovation type moment

Before the game even starts I think it's going to be like a religious experience to attend that game. I saw Darren Revelle tweeted out the most expensive tickets on the secondary market. That ticket, basically, of the top five tickets, four of them are Vegas,

which makes sense, right? Denver, Kansas City, all these teams, they're going to want to see their team in Vegas. Place is going to be badass. Who wouldn't want to go to Vegas for the weekend and watch a game? But by far, the only game that was over four figures, the average price to get in,

New England, Tom Brady. It's just going to go down. lifetime and if you're older you probably have some moments if you're younger depending on what sport you're in love with i mean if you're listening to this i'm sure you like football but you're going to have moments this is just going to be one of those games that you just never forget you'll remember where you are when you watch now the game may not to turn out to be great right maybe Tampa kills them Tampa's awesome maybe new england turns out not to be that good maybe new England upsets them whatever it's just a regular season game but the moment and the

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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.

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Hey, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Cultura Podcast Network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Build up leading up to that game, I think will be like nothing.

playoff or Super Bowl, those will always be bigger. But for a regular season game, we'll be nothing like we've seen. And it's week four. So we don't even have to wait that long. I'm not going to lie, I'm already excited just thinking about it on May 13th. Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our shows at Fox SportsRadio.com. And within the IHard Radio app, search FSR to listen live.

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No, I actually didn't. But once you look at the schedules and once you kind of gather, once the draft ends, you know what your team is. Now, things change. You can make a trade and training camp. You can have an injury. But for the most part, the moment the NFL draft ends, and we head into mini camps, which we actually just looked on Instagram before I fired up

this part of the pot. And Amari Cooper and like seven other offensive linemen are just, working out at the Cowboy facility. Remember when Tom Brady and Aaron Rogers, we talked about earlier this week, really thought OTAs and no one was going to go to facilities? Yeah, you lost because you just, if you follow any players on Instagram,

they're always at the facility. The Niners guys, Instagram, like last week, all the wide receivers were inside, like, the wide receiver coach's office. It's Welker, just bullshit. Like, people, you know what football guys like doing? They're like hanging out with other football guys. It's like, what else they're supposed to do?

Work out anyway for a living. to work out. But my point is you do know the team. We have an idea what all the rosters are going to look like. There can be little incremental moves. Blake Bordle signs with the Packers. We'll dive into that here a little bit later. But I think the AFC, which was really good last year, right? It took 11 games, 11 to get into the playoffs. The Miami Dolphins 1-10, they got left out. They got left at the altar. The Raiders who had like one of their best seasons in 20 years, miss the playoffs by three aims. It's a very, very competitive conference.

And clearly the chiefs are the cream of the crop. They've been the best team in the AFC. You could argue a default off sides, three straight years, right? Three straight years. But definitely the last two years. They are the clear favorite going into this to this year, as they should be. To me, they're probably a 14-15 win team.

But I think overall, I think the conference is improved. and it was already really good. I think the bills are going to be excellent. I was going through it on Cowards podcast. You look at it, they play so many either brand new coaches or young or first-time quarterbacks. And they were already a powerhouse last year. Now, the one question is, is Josh Allen, the guy we saw last year?

Is that who he is moving forward? Because when I hype them up, that's who I talk about. That Josh Allen. And I'm the first to say, you have to do it over and over before you became or become a great player. Like, why is Travis Kelsey viewed as great? Because he's been kicking everyone's ass for six years. You got to do it for a long period of time.

So I'm going to bet on him doing that, but, like, he could come back to Earth a little bit. And I think we might see some quarterbacks, not necessarily him because he's played in front of crowds. They're going to be crowds. Like, every stadium this year fully sold out. It's over. Like, we're coming back.

So the impact on quarterback, especially younger quarterbacks, is going to be big. I think like Seattle, but Buffalo more than Seattle, because they haven't experienced success and fun, there will not be a stadium in the NFL that is going to be more bat, you know what, crazy than the Buffalo, than the Bill's Mafia.

That place missed their best season in two decades last season. You don't think they're lined up for that bad boy. You don't think that they're going, if we can just beat the Chiefs, we will win the AFC. They play the Chiefs this year in the regular season. Now, Kansas City kicked their ass twice. Beat him in the regular season. Remember, it was a weird

Corona game. If I remember, that game was on like a Tuesday. But then in the AFC, it wasn't JV versus varsity, but it was clear they were on a different level. Well, they drafted multiple pass rushers. I like the way they built their team. You win in the NFL. You obviously have to have a good quarterback, a good offense,

but you win with pass rushers. That's how you win. You can get by with average defensive backs. But if you can't rush the passer, impact the passer, pressure the passer, move them off their spot, and really just kind of dictate terms up front, it's hard to win big games. The reason Kansas City got worked in the Super Bowl, they couldn't block the front. Now, I'm not saying that the bill's front is going to be Tampa's front, but they are going to be better.

They're going to be a factor. I think the bills are going to be excellent. Colts. Their roster is fantastic. The question mark is just Carson Wentz. Is the Carson Wins we saw last year an outlier? All time bad season, in a bad headspace, lost his

mojo, lost his confidence, in a weird spot with the head coach, and it just unraveled? Or is he a guy that just lost his fastball? Because as you see, like Matt Harvey used to throw 98. Now he throws like 90. So if that's the case, they got issues. Now clearly the Colts

are betting on the come that they can flip it around. They can get him back to what he once was, back to when Frank was around him, and had MVP-type ability. Now, ability's the wrong, MVP-type production, MVP-type play. He still has the ability. You could watch him when he was playing like shit. You could see the movement, the arm strength, that hasn't left him. It was just, when the ball left his hand, it would just go to the guy in the other jersey, which is a problem. But their roster, that defense, stacked. That offense, Jonathan Taylor is one of my favorite college players. in the last decade.

Stud. Michael Pittman Jr., stud. That offensive line, like the Colts just, we've talked a lot about on that culture, they're going to be really good. Here's what I know about the AFC North.

If I was a betting man, I wouldn't feel confident betting on the Browns to win it, but I wouldn't hate the bet, right? It's like right now, I'm down big in some stocks, down very, very big in a couple energy stocks. One, Roaring Kitty took me on a ride

with one of my weed stocks. I took about 50 Gs, put it into this one, actually spread it out, but put about 40 of it in this one. And I'm down big. Talk about 50%. It'll rattle to you if you look. But ultimately, I believe big picture. So it's easier for me to like not freak out.

Five years ago, John, I probably would have sold it, take the loss and cried in the corner. But right now, like, if I bet on the Browns, I kind of believe in what they're doing. Now, the quarterback still makes me a little nervous, but ultimately, here's what I know. That division is legit. And the one thing about the Browns is I saw them beat Pittsburgh in a playoff game. I saw the Browns go toe to toe with Lamar in the game when he got the cramps and he ran

away and McSorley came in and then he got hurt, right? We saw that. I think the Ravens obviously ended up winning that game, but I think the Browns, that was an impressive game for them. That division is big time. The NFC West is the best division because they're working. team who I think is the Cardinals is better than the AFC Norse worst team, the Bengals who are terrible.

But the top three teams, the Steelers, the Ravens, and the Browns, those are three playoff teams. They literally were last year. So I would believe any of those three teams win the division. If you told me that they get three teams in the playoffs again, I completely believe it. Like the AFC is top heavy with powerhouses. The chiefs, like I said, dominant force.

Best player in the game, elite coach, elite roster. They added their offensive line. The reason they couldn't win the Super Bowl, right? The Colts upgraded at quarterback. In theory, we'll see. But I think ultimately it will play out that way. The bills, we already know they're good. As long as the quarterback can just sustain his level of play.

AFC North, loaded. Loaded. So the AFC man is really, really interesting. Now the question is, can any of these teams, and Tennessee's been a playoff team the last couple years too, they're good. Can any of these teams beat the Chiefs in the playoffs? I would bet no, but like the more and more shots you get, the more and more times you get in the ring with someone, even if he beat you, you can just gain some confidence. So even though last year, those two games against the Bills, the Bills have to be feeling like, okay, we belong a little bit more, we belong a little bit more, give us another shot. same with the Colts against the Chiefs.

Like one of these teams, they're going to believe that they can beat him. Now, you got to take down the homes, which is difficult. But I think the AFC is not only, oh, the Patriots, like they're going to be much better. I haven't even mentioned the Dolphins who were a 10-win team. The talent in the AFC is fantastic. It does feel there are probably 10-plus teams who you could say beside the Chiefs could make the playoffs. And to me, ultimately, that's a good thing. Okay, a couple things jumped out.

to me on the schedule that I just have some question marks on. And if you wanted to play the fun hypothetical game of win-loss, I don't have enough information to do that. And to me, the number one thing that jumped out to me when looking at schedules, and the first schedule I looked at was the Niners, is they played the Packers week three, Sunday night football. And if you just look at the Packer schedule, you'd go, I mean, that's a 12 to 14 win team.

If, I don't know, they have the N-VACChi. VP of the league? Like, it's impossible to even guess what the Packers would be, could be, if Rogers isn't on the team. And Jordan Love is a starting quarterback. I have no freaking clue. I watched Devante on with Coward, and he tried to ask him, like, you saw the guy at practice, is he any good? Now, it's a tough spot for Devante Arons' guy. And hell, they didn't have offseason. Maybe he never even watched them really practice. Because when Devonte's practicing, Jordan loves over there running scout team against the first team defense.

I got no clue. I don't know to give them wins, to give them L's. Now, my best educated guess would be Rogers is the Packer quarterback, but you never know. Like this has already got kind of dicey and feels a little more extreme than Russell Wilson and Seattle,

which is definitely simmered and Russell Wilson's going to be their quarterback, who I felt like he was going to go, but clearly it wasn't that bad. The difference is it never, got out that Russell Wilson, I don't know, hated John Snyder, hated management, was making fun of those guys, like despise those guys? That's kind of the case, at least the information we have with Roger, so I wouldn't trade him, and clearly Gutikins and LaFleur would be crazy too, but what if

they get to the point where he just won't show up and won't play for him? If Jordan loves their quarterback, I don't know what to make of the team. Chicago, when I look at Chicago and I think the red rifles, their quarterback, every game I look at, I think loss. If Andy Dalton's quarterback, they suck. But to me, it's an easy solution. You start Justin Fields. That would be my recommendation to Matt Nagy, who I know loves the guy. I haven't given him my recommendation. He probably doesn't care. But under no circumstances, would Andy Dalton take one snap in a regular season game unless Justin Fields got hurt. I would have quote-unquote an open competition, but I'd already know the outcome because there's no chance on God's Green Earth that Andy Dalton is beating out Justin Fields. So if

Justin Fields is the starting quarterback for the Bears. I find them more of an intriguing team and more likely to get somewhere between eight and nine wins than I do if Andy Dalton's their quarterback and I view them as a four or five win team. So when I look at different schedules and I see the Bears on there, I don't know who their starting quarterback is. If you tell me Justin Fields is their quarterback,

one, I just think they're way better and two. I want to watch their games. So that to me is one of the biggest question marks. Both of them are coming from the NFC North. Roger's status and how fast does Justin Fields become the starting quarterback? My gut, my guess, educated, based really on nothing besides just watching the two guys play, I think that Justin Fields is the starting quarterback week one. The Miami Dolphins.

A lot of people, Miami's really good, Miami's really good, they've had all these draft picks. Here's the problem. What if their quarterback isn't any good? Now, is the guy we saw last year just an injured player with a bad hip and someone who doesn't reflect the guy that we witnessed at Alabama, or is the guy that we saw last year closer to the guy that he's just going to become? Not that athletic, not that big of an arm, struggles to get the ball down the field.

Now, I think the first thing Miami would say is, we just drafted Jalen Wattle at 6, we signed Will Fuller, we have more weapons now to push the ball down the field. Something Tua did very well at Alabama. Throw the deep ball. He throws a beautiful deep ball. a little Russell Wilson-esque when he was in college. Right, he just threw bombs away.

Now, guys were more open in college. A little difficult here. Last year, he just wouldn't pull the trigger. And you could be like, middle cop, they didn't have any weapons. Well, every time Fitzpatrick would come back in the game, he'd throw the ball down the field. So was the guy just hesitant? Was he scared to do it?

Was he incapable of doing it because of the hip? I don't know the answers to this. I don't, this is just a question. I don't know how he's going to look. but I am not confident just to say Miami's going to be a 10 or 11 win team again because a lot of their success last year was predicated on Fitzpatrick, who was excellent.

Plus their defense was really good. It's hard when you don't have elite blue chip players like San Francisco and Seattle did early in the decade, right, when they were just, Seattle was the top scoring defense for four straight years. They had like multiple Hall of Famers. Miami doesn't have that. They're a well-coached, sturdy defense.

We'll see if some of these pass rushers they've drafted can come on. But, like, I don't view them as just some lock to be a top two or three defense again. May happen. But let's just say they regress a little bit. Their offense is going to have to be better. And there's going to be pressure on Tua, Tonga by Loa, to be good. And when you look at Justin Herbert, who had the best rookie season in the history of the league, now granted, it's skewed because we pass more.

You've got to put it in a context. it's impossible to put his rookie season against guys in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. It's a different sport. Hell, even the 2000s. But we all have eyes. We know what we witnessed. He is a big-ass dude who can run and has a massive... 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. Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than me. I'm an actor. I'm a comedian. And recently, I've become...

quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, hope from a hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian.

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let it ring twice. One ring is too scary. Oh, cream of chicken suit. Hey, cream. Cream and chicken soup. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Coutura Podcast Network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection.

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

If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, it's Edwin Castro, also known as Castro 1021.

And I'm Kunky, his best friend and business manager. And we've got a new show called the 1021 podcast. I'm taking you behind the scenes on how I became one of Twitch's most popular streamers. We also love sports. And with the World Cup right around the corner, we'll be breaking down the biggest storylines ahead of the big tournament here in the USA. Listen to the 1021 podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. To form. Like, his physical attributes popped off the television set. But last season, he was able to play, and just as every other quarterback was, in a ton of games on the road with no fans. And last year, the moment Aaron Rogers, I can't remember what week it was, but I'll never forget because my gym was closed, so I bought a little stationary bike, and I threw it in the office,

and sometimes on Sundays, you know, he just wanted to get a little sweat as I'm watching the games, and I'm watching Aaron Rogers play the Saints. And I think the Packers won the game. he was getting the Saints to jump off sides at the Superdome. I mean, it was, now, like, I don't question Aaron Rogers, Tom Brady, Mahomes, all the guys who have played in front of crowds. It's obviously more difficult even for the best players to play in front of a crowd than it is with no crowd. But I know the top guys, Russell Wilson, you name it, can play in front of crowds. We've seen them do it their entire careers.

but a guy like Justin Herbert, how does that impact him? Now, he's done it in college, but the pros, a little different animal. On the road in Kansas City, on the road, even in Denver, just the Washington football team is who they open against. It's going to be more difficult. Plus, like, their home stadium, being in L.A. now,

is just going to have more of it. They're not going to have a home field advantage. I mean, last year the fucking place was empty. It was basically just a practice. I am a huge Justin Herbert fan. I'm not trying to diminish him at all. My question is just, is it just going to translate and just be a smooth transition this year, and he's just going to kick ass and take names again?

He might. But he's got a first year offensive, or a head coach. First year, I think, offensive coordinator. So there's just transition there. There's going to be a lot of pressure on him because everyone's kind of anointing him, including myself. I'm guilty. I just think that's something to watch for some of these younger quarterbacks.

Last year, like, I don't expect Aaron Rogers. to get the Saints or teams like that to jump off sides on the road. But I expect him to be good, right? I expect Russell Wilson, Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott. You go through the names of the good quarterbacks, Tom Brady, who've done it for a long period of time. Like, they're going to be fine. But what about the young guys who've never experienced it at the pro level?

It's just an added element that they didn't have to deal with last year. And I'm excited to watch. If you love to be remembered as the person who gives the best birthday gifts, I'm here to tell you that 1800flowers.com is your ultimate birthday gifting destination. 1,800 Flowers has thoughtful and artfully created options that are guaranteed to deliver the best birthday surprise. Shop thousands of unique gifts at 1,800flowers.com for exclusive offers and great values. To order today, visit 1,800flowers.com slash tune in. That's 1,800 flowers.

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And they see you. Their fearless guide is this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at Discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the ad council. We had some breaking news today that's near and dear to my heart. Some of you might not be excited because you typically make fun of this conference. But it was a big day for us. I grew up going to Cal Berkeley football games with my dad, Memorial Stadium.

Awesome. Some of my earliest memories going to games, mid-90s, probably 9, 10, 11, 12 years old, seeing Tony Gonzalez watching Keishon Johnson. My dad was a big Cal guy. His dad had taught there, even though he had gone to UC Davis. But, you know, I'm a Cal Poly guy. When you go to a school and your athletics aren't as great, you kind of gravitate toward the bigger schools that you have some sort of connection to. And I just, as a whole, I'm a West Coast guy, root for the conference.

Let's face it, it had become a laughing stock. They had prioritized the wrong thing. And college athletics are not a normal business model, right? because in most businesses, you would take what you're really good at and what makes the most money and put all your chips in the middle of the table. Well, even the SEC has to finance

everything beside football and men's basketball doesn't make any money. So they are subsidizing every other sport, every other coach, every other athlete, all these people, the support staff, that generate no money. They're in the red. They cost money.

in most other industries you would just cut that out. Well, obviously that's not the way it works, right? That's part of the deal. Title IX, but hell, I might have a daughter one day and she probably won't be athletic enough, but if she was, like I'd want her to have the ability to play college soccer, college volleyball.

But those sports make no money, and they cost a lot. But we all acknowledge football pays the bills. And depending on the school, basketball generates a lot too. And just basketball in the Power 5 makes a lot of money because of the television contracts. Well, out on the West Coast, The PAC 12 this last decade has not prioritized the sport of football. And it's not all Commissioner Larry Scott who's kind of become a punching bag and a laughing stock.

And let's face it, I don't think he knows what he's doing and he was over his head. He had more of an academic elitist vibe to him than someone who would run the SEC, run the Big Ten, run the Big 12th. Feels like those guys know what they're doing. And our guy out here had no clue. He got great joy in watching a softball game being put on a Pac-12. network that no one could even watch. And I'm not opposed to putting non-revenue sports on television.

I get it. But when it feels like you're not prioritizing, the thing that literally pays the bills for everyone, including the softball team, including the women's soccer team, including the commissioner's salary, which is the sport of football, you got to go.

And ultimately he was pushed out. And I saw that the new commissioner, George, his name, His last name, I'll butcher it, reads like a Russian mobster, Klievakov. They hired him from the MGM. That is in Las Vegas, the casino. And he's been running their sports entertainment.

And the first reaction I see for many of the media elites that just like to know how, like, I don't know this guy, it can't be good. And let's face it, most of the media elites don't like the private sector. They're not pro business. So this is kind of an outside-the-box hire, even though those same people have been ripping the pack 12, my first reaction absolutely loved the hire. We have watched, Larry Scott was an Ivy League guy, an Ivy League tennis player. I would consider him an academic elite.

Ruin the conference. They get a guy that comes from the most cutthroat business of them all, Las Vegas, the casino business, who cares about one thing and one thing only, money, because ultimately, even in college athletics, the thing that makes everything go is the cash. and we get a guy who understands that. And he said something today that couldn't be more cap than obvious, yet it was so refreshing to see

him say these exact words. He said, I want to be, Larry Scott, never, not in a million years, would have uttered these words. Because I think deep to his core, I don't even think he believed it. So he wouldn't have said it,

and he didn't even understand it, bro, this is, do you get it? Here's what Klyvakov or said at his opening press conference. I want to be clear. We know where the bread is buttered. We're focused on revenue sports and winning in men's basketball and football.

And as, like I said, that is, of course he should have been to say that. Like it should be, like everyone says that. Not us out here. Not the guy that just ran the conference. Not the conference. Most of these universities, UCLA, Cal, Washington, they don't view themselves as, you know, athletic endeavors. These school presidents view themselves as academic institutions.

And I think we've lost touch out here where Bama, LSU, Ohio State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Clemson, you know, these big boy schools in other parts of the country, even their presidents who most of those guys also come from academia realized a long time ago how much money is on the line if you are successful. And I think, you know, just as a whole, the conference lost touch, we weren't winning as much and fell way behind because there is a clear line of delineation of,

and you can argue all day long, the SEC's overrated. Well, they produce the most money, they send the most teams, and you can be like, well, it's only Alabama. Well, they got Alabama, you know. if ACC might suck, they still have Clemson, right? They still have Duke in basketball. That's all that matters.

You need to be top heavy. The Pack 12 is not even top heavy anymore. They don't say anyone. We're not relevant. We lost touch because we had Larry Scott taking the Pack 12 and literally lighting it on fire. Now, there are going to be things that we'll never overcome out here.

We will never have the fervor and the intensity and the deep, rooted passion for our universities as Ohio State, as Alabama, as Florida. It won't be as consistent. But one thing we are on the West Coast, as good as anybody, we are fucking fantastic front runners.

And when you win, like when UCLA wins at hoops, when Arizona wins at hoops, when USC wins at football, when Oregon wins at football, hell, when Cal had some moment with Tedfords, people will come out of the woodworks. We love winners.

We are apathetic when you're just average and don't give a shit, when you lose, like at least in these other, and I see it in pro sports. I'm in the Niners business. When the Niners are great, my business, revenue is afloan. The last month with that trade was fantastic. I've been doing this for a little while now. I've been a part of Jim Tom Sula and Chip Kelly. It's hard to keep your head above water. I lived in Philly. Now granted, I worked for the team at the time, but I knew some people in the media. Their business boomed when the team sucked. People really cared. No one cared.

out here when you lose. Not a soul. And I think part of the problem with the PAC 12 is apathy set in because we didn't have great teams. When USC and Pete Carroll was humming, people paid attention. Not just if you were a USC fan or a USC alumni, UCLA was locked in, Oregon was locked in watching, cow was locked in. And a rising tide lifts all the boats. We haven't had a rising tide because we've had this academic elitist who was obsessed with non-revenue sports who drove the conference into the ground. And the first reaction I see, and of course,

it's so typical, my life advice to anyone whenever I get people DM me, like, I want to become a podcaster, I want to get involved. My number one advice before even getting your equipment, doing it, whatever the mass media thinks, sports media, go the opposite way. Because when they hang a left, usually the right answer is on the right.

And of course, everything I saw, From the Big J Journal's was, this is, who could you hire? I've never heard of this guy. Bring a guy from the private sector? Well, guys, it can't get any worse because it's been an utter disaster. Literally the building is basically the equivalent of on fire. It kind of is with the amount of money they're spending for their San Francisco offices, which has not gone well. The overall just vibe of the conference, the perception of the conference, and the reality of the conference has not been good.

Larry Scott was clearly justifiably fired. Honestly, they gave him too long. They should have thrown his ass out two or three years ago. But it's never the wrong time to do the right thing. And they went outside the box. And they hired a guy, and I saw a lot of this, how could they hire a guy with no collegiate athletic experiences? Is it really that complicated?

He ran sports and entertainment at MGM. He meant he was involved with all the collegiate conference. because they had bowl games, right? They hosted the PAC 12 men's and women's and basketball tournaments there forever. They also, in college football, have brought the Pac-12 championship there. Obviously, with the Raiders moving there, he's been involved with football.

But the number one thing I think, when I think of getting a guy from a casino, what he knows? He knows how to generate money. And part of the problem that Pac-12 is falling behind, their money is falling behind. And it's not like we don't have cash out here. It's not like we don't have successful businesses out here. It's not like we don't have successful alumni out here.

The problem is those people stopped caring. Now, back to what I said earlier about Alabama, Florida, LSU, Ohio State, Michigan, there is somewhat of an uphill battle and there always will be. Because pro sports, some of these schools are in bigger cities. In Seattle, the University of Washington will never be as big as long as Russell Wilson's. there. But it doesn't mean they can't be much bigger than they've been. Cal and Stanford will never ever sniff the 49ers. It doesn't mean they can't get more support. One thing I would say in L.A. UCLA and USC have more in their back pocket than even like the Rams. They just do. If UCLA and

USC are powerhouses at football, when I was young in the 90s, UCLA was really good at football. and then when Pete came, USC got really good at football and they really freaking mattered. The last, you know, five, six years, they just have not. And it's been a problem. Utah, Salt Lake City is a growing area. Oregon has just been really good. You can grow this thing to at least,

maybe not become what the SEC and the Big Ten have become, but to just not be what you've been, which is a place where people laugh at you and your teams do not excel at the highest level. And bottom line, that's unacceptable. But you get what you tolerate. And ultimately, Larry Scott, an academic elite, a tennis player, tolerated it. And I don't necessarily, I can't really blame the presidents of the schools.

They do their work on whiteboards. They do their academia. That's where they live. That's their little realm. So Larry Scott really basically robbed them for the last whatever decade. he was the highest paid commissioner for a long period of time, even though the conference, in my 35 years of life, 36 actually at lowballed myself,

has never felt less, not just relevant, but less successful. And it's sad. We have too much talent. It would be one thing if we don't have any talent. We have the number one state that produces all the best college football players. The problem is Naji Harris. Where did he go? Alabama.

D.J. Ungule. Where did he go? Clemson. I just saw, I read the other day, I was like, oh Alabama got this transfer from Tennessee five-star guy that was going to go to Alabama but then Tennessee made him commit. Do you know where he went to school?

Oh yeah, Dayless Al, five minutes away from my house. Why are these guys leaving the state to go to the south? I'll tell you why. I don't blame them. I'd go play at Alabama. I'd go play at Clemson, too. The Niners draft, I think his first name is Josh. Last name, Banks.

Offensive lineman from Notre Dame in the second round. I was like, God, this guy's big. I wonder Midwest, thick guy. And they're like, actually he's from El Cerrito. which is where my grandpa lived for a long period of time. It's right next to Berkeley, California. Why are all these kids leaving the state? Now, you can say that's not necessarily on the commissioner.

It's on the conference, true, but the conference has become so negative. There's such a bad perception of it, and just the teams, the success overall, is so down, I don't blame any of these kids for leaving. But when I was a kid, these guys didn't leave. They stayed. So to me, the number one thing this guy has to,

How can we get the vibe, the positivity, just the tie-end programs rolling again? How can I help? I love to hire. I honestly can't celebrate it enough. They had to go outside the box, taking a guy from the casino business. I mean, why not? John Baxter, former USC coach, assistant coach, he was with me in Fresno State, always had a great line. He said, what do you do when you find yourself in a hole?

Every kid would be like, what do you do? He's like, drop the shovel. And it just felt like they dropped the shovel. They stopped digging themselves deeper. And now just, it might not work. That's part of doing risky things. Sometimes when you take a risk, it fails. But at least they took a risk.

At least they thought outside the box. And at least they gave themselves a puncher's chance to make some more money, to get their television network, more relevant, to just bring some positive vibes back to the conference, which feels much more like, it's been the power four in the pack 12. Hopefully today marks the start of we can start calling

the power five truly the power five again because the pack 12 you know, starts winning. Okay, let's dive into the Middilkoff mailbag. At John Middilkoff is the Instagram handle. You fire up in the DMs and you get it answered here

on the podcast. I'm also throwing this up on YouTube. John Middlecough is the YouTube page. Subscribe to that page as well. Throw some different stuff up there. Obviously, all the podcast content is going to live there. From Dan, do you think if Ryan Fitzpatrick was drafted into today's NFL with rules favoring the quarterback? He would be a franchise quarterback? Imagine him on a rookie deal with a stacked team.

I feel as if whoever drafted him could be a playoff team and above the perception of him would change. It just seems like the NFL has changed so much since he came to the league, and maybe if he was drafted in 21, instead of back in the day, Ryan Fitzpatrick, they'd be happy to be in the Ryan Fitzpatrick business for the next four or five years. Hard for me to say. I mean, you are watching Ryan Fitzpatrick at 38 years old. I don't pretend to remember him in like 05, 06, 07, 08, you know, when he first got in the league. He did have a moment for Buffalo.

I think it was 10 or 11. But he kind of is what he is, right? I mean, he's a good athlete, he's tough, good athlete would be strong. He's athletic enough. His arm is not great. To me, his best attribute is he's fearless. So he kind of overcomes average talent with a fearless mindset. You know, would he be like a better Gardner Minchu or something like that?

Maybe. But I don't franchise quarterback. I don't think that would be the case. I'm curious why the NFL doesn't take advantage of their partnership with Nike and allow teams to wear custom uniforms such as Oregon and Oklahoma State. Call me crazy, but I believe fans would spend money. on alternate uniforms. I'm from Iowa, and I know growing up

that we would always keep an eye out for what uniforms Oregon would roll out on any given Saturday. I think it brought a ton of attention to their school and could do the same for the NFL. Side note, I truly believe that Tim Tebow has some dirt on Urban Meyer for his years in Florida.

Well, he definitely has dirt on Urban Meyer. He was starting quarterback for four years. I mean, they had a murderer, they had a ton of dudes doing drugs. Like, I mean, come on. I mean, Urban Meyer, my issue with Urban Meyer has never been as a coach. It's been he just ran a dirty program in Florida, but got on his moral high horse like he was above it all.

Tebow was, right? Urban wasn't. Urban gladly signed those guys, which, again, is his prerogative trying to win big in the SEC, but let's not act like you're some great person. Like you're trying to win national championships. I don't quite understand the rules why the NFL is so obsessed. That's a great question.

I don't know. I don't think the NFL really wants to get in the gimmicky business. They don't need to be gimmicky like Oregon or Oklahoma State because they are basically Alabama or Ohio State. Like that's the NFL, you know? So with the NFL, if George Kittle's sweet, people are buying the San Francisco 49er jersey. If Devante Smith is sweet, people are buying just the normal Eagles jersey.

If Dak Prescott, like you don't need to outthink the room. Now, you never want to be close-minded to that because there might be potential new revenue streams but that probably is more ownership would be my guess. Educated guess. That's a good question. I think I like about the middle-coft mailbag, you guys bring angles that I just wouldn't think of

because my personal take is like, I think the Oregon uniforms are okay, sometimes I think they get a little gimmicky. Like, you guys are a powerhouse program. You've been a top 15 program now for, two decades. Like just, now it's part of your thing because you're there with Nike. I don't expect them

to just be like super traditional. But like I got golf on in the background right now. Sometimes Nike does some weird shit. Like some of the outfits that they give their golfers are terrible. But not everything they do is great. Now I hear you, it definitely brings awareness, but the awareness is there now. We know.

I don't think you necessarily need it. I'm from UK and recently came across the podcast. It's great and I look forward to every episode. I I appreciate it. Had a quick one around your comments of West Coast players struggling to perform in cold weather. What side of the fence would you sit on if someone had argued cold weather players would struggle just as much playing in hotter weather when they are not used to?

Our national soccer team has struggled playing in warmer weather as they are accustomed to colder weather in the UK, i.e. playing very poorly in Brazil in the World Cup. Yeah, I think it's fair. would agree that extremes are going to throw anyone off. Right? If you're used to playing in the cold, going into the heat is very difficult. I remember when I got hired at Fresno State, some of our early games in September, at 7 o'clock at night would be 105, 110 degrees.

And we'd play Wisconsin, we'd play Hawaii, we'd play some of these, they would be so thrown off. It was a big advantage. I listened to Davo Sweeney on with Coward on this volume podcast. He was like, Colin said, is it sometimes hard to play 1 o'clock games in September?

And he said, Moada, Mo betta. That's the way he likes it. Now, I'm with you. If you are not used to 110 degrees and you come from 70, it's going to throw you off.

So I would agree. Same deal. I do think it's easier to get acclimated by drinking fluids and just mentally toughing it through heat than it is not being able to feel fingers and toes.

That's just me because I like to. heat. So maybe I'm just on the one end. I think you're on to something. Hey John, big fan of you and Guy, probably like many others. I live in Washington and my dream is to someday move to a sunnier place like California or Vegas. How would I go about doing that? Any advice? I don't even know if this is a middle cough mailbag question. My advice would be simple. Pick up and move. I mean, just find a spot. If you're going to California, it's going to be pretty expensive. You probably need a job. If you're going to go to Vegas, Scottsdale, probably

way more affordable, more options. Not going to make as much money potentially. But the number one thing I just advise, leave. Just pack up and go. Especially if you're young and just never look back if you don't want to. Obviously, you can look back if you got family. But you just got to go. That's what you got to do.

If you're young and you can move. Especially if you're just renting or something, you can always find places to live. Now, I don't know what your financial situation is. Do you have a job? Do you not have a job? You're unemployed? I mean, there are obviously a lot of very.

variables. Are you married? Are you dating? A lot of different things going on in this hypothetical. But if you don't have many variables, anything holding you back, just do some research and just pick up and move. Worst case scenario, you don't like it. You can move again. As everyone is aware, the Cowboys defense couldn't pour piss out of a boot last week with the addition of Parsons and the rest of the draft being heavy defense. Also with them bringing on Dan Quinn, how much better should they be a bit? expected to be. I like that analogy. Feels very Jerry Jones.

Well, they couldn't be any worse than they were last year. It was pretty embarrassing. Michael Parsons is a playmaker. And I think, or Micah, I think I've been calling him Michael. His name is Micah. He is just an athletic freak. My question is how dynamic is Dan Quinn as a defensive coordinator? I watched Atlanta Falcons for, you know, almost a decade.

They've been bad on defense. He's a defensive mind. Hell, he was the defensive coordinator last couple years. So I don't think you're going to, to see like Bill Parcells or Bill Belichick level impact here. Now, should they be better? Yeah, just because when you find yourself at the bottom, the only way is it to go up. So they should just be a little improved.

But ultimately, I think it's going to be a difficult ask for them to be like dramatically better. Now, can they be the 20th best, you know, can they make an incremental jump? I think it's possible. Vanderech gets hurt a lot. Sean Lee retired. The pass rush needs to be better. DBs were terrible. It's got a long way to go.

If Tua has a dominant offensive line, a variety of weapons that can all do different things, match with his defense, can Miami be a Super Bowl team and Tua, a Super Bowl game managing quarterback? From Kyle. It seems the dolphins are building it that way. Yeah, I mean, he's, last year he wasn't good enough to be a game manager.

Like, when I think game manager, I think, you know, Alex Smith, Kirk Cousins, like, I did not see that. There's only one year, really half a season, bad hip. Let's give them the benefit of the doubt. I would lean up. It's hard for me though. You know, like when judges, I've never been in a courtroom,

but mainly just, I break the law. I just, when I get jury duty, I just throw it away. Maybe one day I'm going to get arrested, but I'm not a great civil, very civilly obedient, very community oriented when it comes to jury duty. I met my mom like, oh, you can't believe. you just didn't show up. Yeah, I just didn't show up.

Like, what am I going to do? Guilty, innocent, like, you don't want me on the jury. I don't have time. Like, listen, am I selfish that way, of course? Pay a lot in taxes. Good with the community. Other than that, right? I got no problem giving to charities.

I'm just not going to be a jury duty guy. But, you know, when juries, you know, when judges tell the jury, they go, they go like, forget what he just said. It's like, well, I just heard what he just said. If I was ever on a jury, And I got told that. I'd be like, well, Judge, you know, I did just hear what came out of his mouth.

So you can tell me to forget it. But, like, that's not really how my memory works. Like, he just said something that, you know, it's kind of incriminating. Or it's like, I don't know. I don't think I can. I think you could say the same thing for Tua last year. It's just hard to forget. If he becomes a lot better, then, yes, the dolphins will be good.

So one day, if you'd be like, oh, John Middlek, you see a headline. I don't know how you'd see a headline. I'm not, like, famous or anything. I get arrested. More than likely, it's just had 17 outstanding warrants. You never show up for jury duty his entire life. That's how I'll go down.

I'm a fan of three and out. I have a question about the Eagles. If Howie Roseman would have drafted D.K. Metcalfe and Justin Jefferson opposed to Rager and J.J. Artega-Whiteside, do you think Wents would still be an eagle? Or would the Eagles at least have had one of the best wide receiver cores in football?

or neither. Nate, this is a pretty powerful hypothetical question. Well, it would have been hard. Their receivers would have been a lot better. So, yeah, I think it's a possibility, yes. If you had D.K. Metcalf and Justin Jefferson last year, it would have been hard for Carson to be as crappy as he was.

And Rager was hurt. He really wasn't that impactful until late in the season. I mean, D.K. Mechaf and Justin Jefferson were two of the more dynamic players in the league. so you get a guy that can run that fast and Justin Jefferson that can do that much to go along with Miles Sanders. Yeah, you would have thought that they would have been or thought that they would have been a lot better.

20 years old from D.C. Thoughts on AFC North. Winners. How well Lamar needs to perform? Could Lamar potentially be traded if the season doesn't go well? What's your prediction on the Browns? Trend of seeming good on paper than looking sloppy. I guess Lamar could eventually be traded

unless they extend them this offseason. If they extend them, I mean, Baker probably won't get an extension this off season even though they've hinted at it. Who else we got? We got Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. I personally, here's where I stand on extensions. I'm not doing extensions. Like, let's let these guys play four years.

Caps going back up. We'll fucking pay them next year. Let's keep producing. What's the point in playing out a rookie contract and then signing him to extension early? Let's the rookie contract play out. You got the fifth-year option, the guy's not going anywhere to make sure he can do it. I would be surprised if Lamar got traded.

My gut would say the Ravens win it. I'd say it's probably between the Ravens and the Browns. Rathesberger looked really old last year toward the end of the season, but the Steelers roster is still really good. I technically could see any team winning this division. I think the Browns, you know, really their only question mark is like, can Baker maintain this level of play? but their team is fantastic.

I mean, their running attacks awesome. They got multiple tight ends. You got Odell coming back. Their wide receivers are good. Miles Garrett is a monster. They signed the safety from L.A., the Rams. They drafted the Northwestern corner that people like. They drafted the linebacker from Notre Dame.

I mean, they got a lot of good talent. So I don't know, man. It wouldn't shock me if the Browns wanted it at all. But I would probably still lead the Ravens, and I mean, I'm not betting against Mike Tomlin, like the Steelers ain't going anywhere. They got a bunch of dudes. It's a fantastic division.

I mean, all three teams should be in the playoffs. Listen to the pod every day in North Dakota in the tractor. I like it. Was raised a 49er fan. My question is, what happens if Jimmy D, Jimmy G. Leads the team to a Super Bowl. Being there are two years left on his contract,

does that put the team in a sticky, situation. It would be the best possible problem to have. Ultimately, they're all in on Tray Lance. They just traded... You know, we say three first rounders.

It's really two net first rounders and they flip-flop picks. Two net first rounders and a third. So it's like, they invested a lot. It's hard to invest more than two first-rounders in any player, right? Most drafts, like the Chiefs gave up one first rounder

from Holmes. They flip-flop picks and they gave up one first rounder. Same with a lot of these. Same with the Texans with Watson. So the Niners gave up a lot. So they're all in eventually. If he wins a Super Bowl, I think you just trade him at the end of the season.

And hopefully if he wins a Super Bowl, that means he's pretty good, you can probably get a first round pick for him. And then you get a first round pick, given that you don't have a first round pick, and then you just start Tray Lance the next year. I'll be a little surprise if they win the Super Bowl with Jimmy Garopla.

I have a hard time seeing that. But that would be a great problem to have. That really would. One thing I think, and I've talked to, me and Guy talked about this on the schedule release, you can't not play Trey Lance this year. You've invested too much. I'd even say the way Patrick Mahomes did it, they had a very unique season. Alex Smith is better than Jimmy G.

Was playing so well. And ultimately the way it played out that Patrick got the final start, Trey Lance has got to play in games. And whether that means he gets a series here or series there, it's got to be a little collegiate. Like, I'm sorry, Jimmy, just like when you want to be a final start, when you want to put in Tray Lance, Tray Lance is going in. Tray Lance is getting packages.

He's playing. I think it's not going to be one of those like he's just going to be strictly the backup. And then when he starts, he starts. He's going to play. I know you follow the Chiefs because of Andy, so I wanted to ask you about Clyde Edwards Halear. Do you think he can flourish under the line this year takes a leap? The kid looks like a playmaker,

but you don't hear much about him because of the loaded second year running back class. Yeah, he's just going to be different. Like he's not going to be like a Dalvin Cook. He's not going to be, you know, Todd Gurley was when he was healthy. He's not going to rush for Derek Henry. He's going to be a hybrid player. They're going to throw the ball to him.

I think, you know, ideally he's going to get 50 catches, kind of like Alvin Kamara. They're going to use him as a unique playmaker. He can run the ball between the tackles. But I think his true value, Andy is arguably in my lifetime, the best screen play call. or ever, this guy is made for that. I think they compared him when they drafted him and vached to Brian Westbrook. Like, he's a dynamic chess piece. He's an offensive playmaker.

And whether that means throwing it to him on wheel routes, on quick screens, on sweeps, on pitches, he just gives them a little balance. And I think just because you don't quote unquote call a run play, if I call a wheel route, what the hell is the difference? if it's a design play to throw the ball four yards in the air to get it to Clyde. So, yeah, I mean, I don't think he's ever going to be leading the league in rushing,

but he's definitely going to be a factor. And if there are offensive lines better this year, it already is, right? I think Orlando Brown is going to, well, Eric Fisher was good last year, but he tore his Achilles. So they'll be good at left tackle. Orlando Brown's a good player. They drafted an offensive lineman in the, I think, in the second round. That guy's going to be a good player. They get the offensive linemen last year from TCU that opted out back.

Now, you don't know, but they're depending on him to be pretty good. You get Kyle Long, and if he can stay healthy, he's a pretty good player too. So you've got a couple guys that I think that you can depend on, maybe be a little more stout up front in the run game, and I would expect Clyde to have a big season. Appreciate everyone listening. Have a great weekend. Godspeed.

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