The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Big Ben Farewell, Belichick's Revenge, Eagles Turnaround, NFC Playoffs, Mailbag

Episode Date: January 4, 2022

John reacts to the Steelers taking down the Browns in Big Ben's last home game, explains what Belichick's return to the postseason means for his legacy, who deserves credit for the Eagles making the postseason after several disappointing seasons, his take on the NFC Playoff picture, and why the Chargers missing the playoffs would be a huge indictment on HC Brandon Staley, He also answers listener questions in the Middlekauff Mailbag.Follow John and The Volume on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the latest content and updates and check out FanDuel for the best wagering and daily fantasy action! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The volume. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Using your Aspiration Zero credit card helps fight climate change. It's true. See, Aspiration Zero plants a tree each time you make a purchase. And tree planting is one of the most effective ways to combat global warming. Track your progress in the app and earn 1% cash back each month you reach Carbon Zero. Aspiration Zero. One card, zero carbon footprint. Learn more at aspiration.com. The Aspiration. Section Zero MasterCard is issued by Beneficial State Bank Pursuant to License by MasterC International Incorporated.

Beneficial State Bank member FDIC 2021. This episode is brought to you by DirectTV Stream. Introducing DirectTV Stream, the best of live TV and on-demand, which means you can watch your favorite sports, movies, and shows all in one place. So whether you want to catch the game live or watch the latest blockbuster, they've got you covered. And there's no annual contract.

DirectTV Stream. Get your TV together at DirectTV.com. Requires high-speed internet and compatible device. Content varies by package and location, restriction supply. What is going on, everybody? Three and out podcast with me, your boy, John Middlecock. About 8.30 at night, Najee Harris. My former neighbor here in the East Bay in Northern California just busted off a long run.

As I texted a buddy in the NFL, this guy was committed to the University of Alabama at like 16 years old in Antioch, California. That's where Nick Saban, you think how good you got to be to be committed as like a junior sophomore in high school to Alabama living in Northern California at running back. Hint, good.

He's sweet. Obviously, Rathesburg is the big story tonight. The Browns, no playoffs. Adios, had a cool little one-year wonder. A lot going on today. Belichick, FU season, Eagles, Sierreani, Roseman, big year. The NFC, play.

playoff picture, some Raiders, Chargers stuff. A lot of pressure this weekend on the Chargers. Trevor Lawrence, the debacle that is the Jaguars season, dive in a little bit there. Middlecoff mailbag, always do it at the end. At John Middlecoff is the Instagram. We're going to start, I think, on Wednesday, at least incorporating early on with PJ Tour golf season starting again. I'm going to start doing a golf podcast just on this feed.

So if you like golf, you know, probably hit on some, you know, relevant story, some players, the tournament that week, some gambling stuff. I'm a big gambler in golf. Ultimately, I'm a golf lover. I'm a football golf business guy. Have a huge trip this weekend planned in Southern California. It's going to be awesome. I'll probably talk about that next week.

Don't want to jinx it because, you know, I'm going to some pretty sweet courses that, you know, I got some friends, as Garth Brooks would say, in low places. Have a few in high ones as well. And then I'm going to cap the weekend off by a little Niners Rams. And let me tell you, that ticket, going with a couple people was not cheap. But fired up to see SoFi Stadium.

If Kyle doesn't start, Trey Lance, I will not be happy. But a playoff game. Rams Niners fired up. So big week. I'm excited. Trek down to Southern California, take in some golf and then some football. But let's start with Monday night football.

And listen, from a pure playing standpoint, all you ever want in a high pick is to get a franchise quarterback. And obviously they come in nowadays in all shapes and sizes, right? From Kyler Murray to Justin Herbert. But I would say, for the most part, they tend to be bigger guys. Right? Even Lamar Jackson, Mahomes, they are much, much bigger than Kyler Murray.

Kyler Murray, Russell Wilson are somewhat outliers. But Big Ben is also an outlier. Where do you find humans that are 6'6-260, 270 pounds, who in his younger days could run with a massive arm and was just a winner. Like, quarterback wins and losses is not necessarily a quarterback stat, but it definitely is reflective of how a quarterback, especially when he plays and is the starter for a long time, how good the guy is.

Now, Rathusberger benefited from going to one of the most stable organizations in all of American business, whether it's sports, whether it's retail, whether it's car, You name it. I mean, the Pittsburgh Steelers are a model franchise for this country. But when Rathusberger went there, let's face it, he helped take them to another level. On Big Ben's watch, when he's been the starter, since 2004, he's 163, 80, and 1. He has 13 playoff victories.

Now, he's lost nine playoff games, but he's over 500 in the playoffs. And I think we can all agree if you watch Rathusberger, what he is now, and listen, I'm not, I don't judge you on your lowest moment. And as a player, a lot of times your lowest moment, especially a great player, is at the end of your career. You're a shell of yourself. It's the unique part about playing professional athletics. Most of us, right, I just turned 37. Hopefully my prime is in like 20 fucking years.

I'm a long way away from it. I can do this what I do for a long period of time. anyone listening in any form of business that you're in, you should get better with age. Where a lot of athletes, you know, in Rothesberger's day, you kind of peaked at like late 20s, early 30s. Now, with health and obviously Rathusberger, you know, he's like some cheeseburgers and some beer.

But he played till 39. Now, the last several years have been rough. But I'll never forget what I witnessed for him in the peak of his powers for like a 10-year period. I just don't know if we're going to see another guy quite like that. and plus his unique story coming from a smaller school, a Mack school, Miami of Ohio, but getting drafted that high, being that dominant of a player, and being a guy, I always judge you on this.

Like, I'm not the biggest Cam Newton fan, but I always feared him in big games because of his elite attributes and elite talent. And Rathusberger was on a completely different level, but I don't care. And obviously the Patriots owned him in his career in the playoffs. but there wasn't many times when I watched him play in a big game, regular season or the playoffs, where you didn't have faith that guy was going to make a play.

And just because his style, he could kill you from the pocket, he could scramble, and he could break tackles. He was the size of a defensive lineman. You know, we're seeing, you saw CJ Stroud, you saw Bryce Young, you know, Matt Corral, Kenny Pickett, like the quarterbacks that are coming into the sport. Hell, Caleb Williams, who's now in the transfer. for portal, these like six foot one.

A lot more quarterbacks now tend to be kind of smaller athletic guys. Rathesberger was basically built like a defensive tackle. Who could sling it, who was accurate and who played in the toughest division in the league. Think about him and the Ravens.

I mean, that's one for my generation, probably the most consistent rivalry of the last 20 years. And when I worked in the NFL, it was like in the peak of its powers. 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013. they were both good, they were both Super Bowl contenders, and they had what felt like Mike Tyson fighting Mike Tyson.

And they had a chance every time because they had that guy. And when I think the Pittsburgh Steelers, like, I didn't grow up on Mean Joe Green. I didn't grow up on Terry Bradshaw. Right? I didn't grow up, you know, I guess I did kind of on like Greg Lloyd and Kevin Green and some of those guys, but all remember Rathurstburg. When I close my eyes and I say the Pittsburgh Steelers,

all think Big Ben. And he had an incredible, career. He'll be a first ballot hall of famer. He's, you know, I think the best way you can describe any player is this guy's a winner. And that's what Rathesberger was. Now, if you want to remember him for the last several years, you're not going to look at him the same. And I actually think it's pretty impressive what the Steelers have been able to do. For the last several years, he's been a shell of himself. He got injured the one year. And it speaks to the organization, the culture. Whoever gets to go there next as a rookie quarterback who's ever drafted there in the next couple years,

the day they're drafted, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and I'm not religious, should head right to church and get down on their knees and say some thank yous to the man upstairs. Because that place makes careers. The stability, the just organizational ethos and mindset. Like, there's just a standard, like the standard is the standard. You know, it's cheesy. They say it like Alabama. But it's true at Pittsburgh.

And even this year, where you watch them, their offensive line's not very good. Rathusberger at this point in time is not very good. And they're still going to be at worst 500. Look at the Browns, who had an infinitely better roster coming into the season and throughout the majority of the season. Yet they're going to finish under 500.

Now, part of that is the quarterback they drafted number one overall. Just is a guy, you know. Stand him up right next to Rathlisberger. It'd be like standing shack next to Steph Curry. That's what it would look like. Now, like I said, you don't need to be huge to play quarterback. But it helps. You know, I'd rather have a 6-3-6-4 guy than a 5-11 guy.

You know, I would say, listen, Russell Wilson's the best short guy we've ever seen. And he ain't Rogers. He ain't Brady. Hell, he's not even Rathesberger. And he's awesome. He's one of my favorite players ever. But if you told me I'd get both guys at 22 years old, I'd take Rathesberger. I would take Rathesberger.

I mean, really, he kind of gets. I would say somewhat overlooked in his generation just because he played against Brady and Manning and then Rogers. Those were the headliners in his division. I mean, in his era. Brady best quarterback of all time. Rogers and Manning top five quarterbacks of all time. I mean, basically he just didn't play with Marino and Elway in Montana.

Like that's the group right there. Rutherberg played with him all. And he belonged. And it was a joy to watch as a football fan. and it just shows you like there's something that the Steelers have that the Browns don't. And, you know, they clearly, I think they have a smart general manager. I think they have a really good coach, but they have a quarterback situation that's a major question mark. And I don't know how you fix that.

And like I said, you just kind of ride it out. You know, there's not many, this isn't college football. There's not a transfer portal because I think if there was, they would go to the transfer portal and they'd find a quarterback. And they go, Baker, you know, I think we record. You check out the transfer portal. See if there's anything in there for you. But that's not possible. They bring them back and hopefully they can keep them healthy

and compete for a wild card spot. But the Steelers are going to need a quarterback. We know Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson are in a completely different universe than Baker. And you just hope your coach and your infrastructure and your roster is good enough. And you can either keep Baker healthy or try to improve that position.

Because, you know, it shows you. It's very, very difficult to make the playoffs. It really is. It's very, very difficult, I would say in any walk of life, to consistently win. Right? It's easy to be a one-hit wonder in anything you do. It's hard to gear in, year out, consistently be in the mix. That's why would Belichick and Brady have done will never be replicated.

It just won't. You know, hell, you're seeing it, you know, the third straight year of trying to make the Super Bowl for the Chiefs. Like, it's hard. And they're awesome. I mean, they got Mahomes and Andy. it's a mother it's tough this game is really really hard your opponents even the shitty ones

make a lot of money drive nice cars and live in big homes as well and their coaches stay up all night and game plan all week so it just the game that the margin for error is very very small and when we think the thing with football unlike basketball I mean it happens in other sports and baseball

but when I thought the Browns were going to be like a a locked 12 win team part of it's some COVID weirdness but a huge part of it was, is Baker was kind of a train wreck this season. And I'm not coward some huge Baker hater, but you have to acknowledge his physical skill set is just not like the top guys. Even if you're a Browns fan, if you could pick, you know, you had your pick of the litter.

Even if you didn't have a pick of the top 10 of the litter of the next 10, I don't know if he's going to be one of your picks. There would be a lot of quarterbacks in the league that you'd want on your squad before him. And any time that is an issue, You got a major problem on your hand. I mean, you just do. You can't be good at football in 2021, 2021, 2022 moving forward with a question market quarterback. Right?

You can't run with a broken foot. You know, you can't write without a pen or pencil. Like, it's just a basic, you know, premise right now of the sport. To win at football, you need a good quarterback. You probably need a borderline pro bowler every single year. And if you're going to win big, you just need an all-star, you know, probably a future

Hall of Famer. If you don't have one, you probably should spend every single minute of your existence. If you work in the business, trying to find one. Let's start with Bill Belichick. And let's face it, he had a pretty awesome FU season

because last year, it couldn't have gone much better for Tom Brady. Right? He goes to a new team who had been pretty terrible, He then takes them to the playoffs, beats the Saints on the road. Sean Payton, Drew Brees, ends Drew Brees' career. Goes to Green Bay, the number one seed with the MVP of the league, takes him down. Then he goes to the Super Bowl and beats Andy Reed and the Kansas City Chiefs.

And let's face it, like, if you were a bit of a Bill Belichick hater, it would have been an easy time to go, is all Brady, or at least like, you know, 70, 30 split. Brady was the guy behind it. And I think for those of us, lovers of the profession of coaching, for those of us that have followed football very, very closely, it was obvious that Bill Belichick played a big role.

But the results were the results. It was impossible to argue that Brady's legacy, he was already in like a pantheon of Jordan, Babe Ruth, and like Tiger Woods, even went to another level. And Bill had a 7 and 19. I started following on, Instagram. I don't know when, but probably within the last couple months, Bezos's new girlfriend,

good looking, kind of older ladies. She's probably like, you know, early 50s. Got a little work done, but I mean, she's good looking. I can't even imagine being her ex-husband or ex-boyfriend. I would imagine she's been married before looking at her on Instagram. Like, even if you're doing well, like you're a multimillionaire. Your kids love you. You're healthy. Maybe you have a new wife or girlfriend. your ex is still dating, I think he's the second, richest man in the world right now. And Bezos obviously skinning out, jacked, unlimited resources. It's got to sting a little bit. And Belichick came back with an all-time FU season.

He goes out in free agency, unlike he ever does, and he signs all these dudes. And the majority of them worked. I mean, Judon's been awesome. Hunter Henry's been good. He makes a trade for the big offensive lineman from the Raiders. It worked out well. but it's quarterback situation, and let's face it, it's a quarterback league. Like, what's he going to do?

What's he going to do? He was patient. Most great business deals happen when you are pretty patient, and Belichick is historically very patient when it comes to free agency, when it comes to the draft. He lets it come to him. He doesn't get overaggressive. I mean, he did in free agency, but this was really the first time.

It was an outlier in his career. And he got Mack Jones. And even early in the season, you could tell, I think when they started a little slow, they lost a couple tight games. I don't know, man, because I had picked him to make the playoffs before the season. But then he figured it out. He built the team around defense and the running game. Mack kind of came into a little zone, knew exactly what he had to do for them not to lose games.

Then this season, I think, when I think of the biggest win of the season, let me rephrase that. The most impressive win of the season, it was Belichick's signature Monday night game at Buffalo. His quarterback threw the ball three times. He ran it down their throat and he won in a windstorm. It was freezing cold. Like, I think that was the signature win of the season. He's 10 and 6 right now. There's a very, very good chance.

He's going to be 11 and 6. He plays the Miami Dolphins. Though, historically, Miami's given the Patriots under Tom Brady, a lot of trouble down there. But if he wins this game, he'll be 11 and 6. And we'll see how the matchups play out, right? If the bills play the Jets, they're going to win the division. The Patriots would be the five seed.

There's no lock, depending on who they play. they even win a playoff game. But I think we can take a step back and acknowledge how impressive Belichick has been. And if for whatever reason that Jets team can build off what they just did against Tampa and somehow upset the bills who feel a little off kilter,

like watching that game against Atlanta, they were just off. I mean, I don't know if the Falcons were feisty or Josh Allen was just having one of the worst games of his season because he is just coming off one of the best games of a season, a little bizarre. So it's not inconceivable that the Patriots win the division, but even if they go 11 and 6

and win the five seed over teams like the Ravens, the Colts, the Chargers. I think we need to tip our hat to the guy and acknowledge that we'll never truly know the split. Was it 55-45? Was it 50-50? Was it 60-40? But just no, it was a legit partnership. Like sometimes we love doing this with two athletes. I was lucky when I was a kid. I lived in Davis, California, which is right next to Sacramento. So the Sacramento Kings got good in the late 90s. And when you live in a smaller town, if you have one pro team, it's like having the Yankees, the Lakers or the Cowboys in your backyard. So the moment they get good, everyone's all in.

And obviously that was the time of Kobe and Shaq. And forever after the fact, people argue Kobe or Shaq. And I always argued like, I went to some of those games and I was lucky enough to go to a couple of playoff games. Shaquille O'Neal was by far the most dominant player on that team. But obviously Kobe played a huge role. Like what was the split? I don't know.

Can't we just acknowledge they needed them both? Like, they couldn't have done it without either one? Like, it's okay to say that, right? Sometimes you know, there's Michael and there's Scotty, right? There was Brady and then there was every other player. But sometimes it's like, we watched Bill Belichick coach all those games with Tom Brady and consistently have curve balls or game plans defensively. Who's the Patriot defensive coordinator?

It's Belichick. So when their defense is this good, he deserves extra credit. he's probably the most unique CEO coach we've ever seen because I was watching within the last couple weeks someone said on the broadcast and they're right he can coach every position literally every position imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal

but encouraged it's the enhanced games some call it grotesque others say it's unleashing human potential either way the podcast's superhuman documented it all embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement

to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment. And the next, we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music.

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

Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a game. galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people.

I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the look back at it, podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack on day, but yeah, yeah, yeah. But just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. From kicker to punter to long snapper to the quarterback to the right guard to the linebacker, to the defensive tackle, to the safety to the corner. I don't think there's any guy in the league history that could do that. So I'm just glad that the conversation is simmered And Belichick is I guess

As crazy as to say But earned his respect back Because he's too great of a coach To act like he was You know some some beta In this whole situation over the last 20 years With the Patriots winning 10 games He's now now again Brady was a huge part of this

20th season of 10 games or more 20th season of 10 games or more Just a outstanding accomplishment. And I'm glad, you know, those 20 years, you know, I've been a teenager to where I'm sitting now. I've got to experience a lot of it. And it's been very, very cool.

And it's hard not to have the ultimate respect for that organization. And it all starts with him. He sets the tone for the whole thing. Can I tell you about my friends at Shopify? It's the sound of another sale on Shopify, the all-in-one commerce platform to start run and grow your business.

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Go to Shopify.com slash John, that's all lowercase, for a free 14-day trial, and get full access to Shopify's entire suite of features. Grow your business with Shopify today. Go to Shopify.com slash J-O-H-N, Shopify. com slash John. Look through your children's eyes to see the true magic of a forest. It's a storybook world for them. You look and see a tree.

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Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the ad council. And we're live here outside the Perez family home just waiting for the... And there they go. Almost on time this morning. Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double-armed kid carry. Looks like dad has the bags.

Daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh, but the diaper bag wasn't closed. Typhers and toys are everywhere. Ooh, but Mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler. And now the eldest daughter, who looks to be about nine or ten, has secured herself in the booster seat. Dad zips the bag closed, and they're off. Ah, but looks like Mom doesn't realize her coffee cup is still on the roof of the car, and there it goes!

Oh, that's a shame. That mug was a fam favorite. Don't sweat the small stuff. Just nail the big stuff. Like making sure your kids are buckled correctly in the right seat for their age and size. Learn more at NHTSA.gov slash the right seat. Visit NHTSA.gov slash the right seat. Brought to you by NHTSA and the Ad Council. The other thing before we get into just kind of the NFC at large is the Eagles

officially made the playoffs. And I have, you know, unique insight on this because the first, my only job in the NFL was working for the Philadelphia Eagles. And I was hired by Howie Roseman. And I remember the day I interviewed, he said, anytime the head coach walks down here and gives a guy a recommendation because Pat Hill had called Andy Reed, you got a pretty good chance for the job. Luckily, crushed that interview, got hired the day of my interview.

It's pretty intimidating when you interview in the NFL because you, like, you show up for breakfast for the interview that day and like your suit, you're all nervous. You're like 23, 24 years old. And there's like four other of you sitting there. You're like, goddamn. And then you realize, like, once you start working in the NFL, like, that's how player tryouts happen. You know, that's how the draft happens. It's a very cutthroat league.

It's an eye-opening experience. But I worked, you know, my first year on the job, the way the Eagles set up, I can only speak for that setup. You know, you're the lowest guy in the totem pole in the scouting department, but you're, you work in the office every day. You basically, you know, in a weird way, are the GM's assistant. And then my next year, I became a true pro scout, but I still, you know, Howie's office was right there. And I've, you know, been lucky enough, you know, be around Andy Reid, be around Coach Hill. But even when I was a kid, like I think I have a pretty good, my dad worked for one of the biggest farmers in America. Now, they had gone through some, you know, the recession of like the 80s.

And they were a little older at the time. But at one point in time in the 70s, no one was a bigger farmer. My best friend in high school and still one of my good friends today, his dad was, you know, as we, I think either junior high or maybe in high school had kind of climbed up the corporate ladder and became a CEO. of this big health care chain in California. So it's like I had a pretty good idea of what success looked like from older people in my teenage years and growing up. And then obviously I was around them in my professional years working for accomplished head coaches.

And I know how he takes a lot of shit publicly. I think he's very impressive. And we've butted heads before when he was hard to work for. He was very demanding. He was this hard charging, relentless New York personality. And I'm, you know, from California, it was, it was a unique new experience for me that I'd never been around a guy quite like that. But I remember always hearing like he gets kind of lumped into this analytical crew. And obviously numbers are a big part of what the Eagles have always done.

And he started as a capologist. Like, he didn't play in the NFL. He started, I think he got his law degree and that's how he came up and worked his way up to become the GM. But I had a front row seat watching how hard this guy worked, one of watching, watching film and two of just his not I was in meetings with him whether it was draft meetings whether it was free agent meetings whether it was just waiver wire meetings this guy knew the league as well as anyone obviously I'd ever seen and I always thought like god this guy knows his shit and he's really smart and he's really relentless like he has a lot of qualities that are a big

reason now he's been the general manager post chip Kelly of a team that has been to the playoffs with multiple head coaches they just transitioned from carsa wents a guy that he went all in on to be the number two overall pick. And they had a quarterback in the hopper that I did not believe in, I thought would have been a running back. And they just made the playoffs with the guy. That's pretty nuts. Now, I know their schedule has been pretty conducive over the last month.

They played the Jets. They played the Giants. They played the football team. But they've won all the games. And here's the one thing, Howie knows when he's building a team. You know where they're really good? The line of scrimmage. You know where football is typically won?

the line of scrimmage. They have a really good defensive line. Remember, they lost Brandon Graham, the heart and soul of their defense, like week one or week two. Torres Achilles, gone for the season. It was week two because it was against the 49ers. Bye-bye.

But they have drafted and invested so much their defensive line. They had reinforcements. And then offensive line. They have, you know, one of the best players in the history of the franchise, Kelsey's their center. Lane Johnson, franchise right tackle.

They draft a tackle two years ago Dillard in the first round from Washington State, he just turns out he's okay. But they had signed this Australian who was this rugby player who's basically become the Australian Trent Williams. And they draft Landon Dickerson and the second round coming off in ACL.

So when they lose Brandon Brooks, they have some injuries, they get more reinforcements. And that to me has been their point of difference. And then, oh yeah, they've actually, and I know he took a lot of shit for the Jalen Rager pick. And obviously,

they could do a redo, they would have taken Justin Jefferson. It happens, right? And sometimes, if it happens at wide receiver, you can overcome it. If it's Tua and Herbert, not overcomable. So this year they draft Devante Smith. He's sweet. They draft the running back from Miss Memphis. He's sweet.

They have Jalen Sanders from Penn State. He's sweet. Goddard. He's really sweet. I mean, they just got dudes. They have a lot of talent on their team. And then I watched the 49ers. They have no corners.

Well, he has Darius Slay that he traded for for a third round pick. This guy knows how to build a team. Now, he's always going to be polarizing. I think there's just a nature of that when you aren't quote unquote. And I don't even know what this means anymore. A football guy, right? But even though I've seen it firsthand, like, I think he's a football guy. Now, there are maybe guys that are more football guy-ish, like Mike Zimmer or I don't even know, you know, John Gruden, you know.

But this guy understands football and understands value. you better than or equally as well as anyone in the league. And that is the job of a general manager. So I was like, who can play? What can we pay this guy? Well, if you're overpaying the wrong position or you're paying a guy $3 million too much per year and you're bidding against nobody, you're wasting vital salary cap space and everyone's going to make decisions.

But he understands his relationships with agents are excellent. And now he's in position where they play Dallas. We'll see. I saw McCarthy say he's going to play a. starters. Even if they go 9 and 8, I think most of us, including myself, thought the Eagles were going to win like four games. And now somehow they got into the playoffs before Sean Payton and Kyle Shanahan. So, and he hired Nick Siriani. And let's not forget about Nick Seriani. The front office serves credit on that and Nick Siriani deserves credit. Because after that

opening press conference, Nick Siriani was easy to make fun of. Right. Anytime that you blunder a press conference, people are going to, you know, make fun of. you. And the reality of the people that are making fun of you, you know, anyone, the overwhelming majority percentage of people would struggle public speaking, would struggle in that position. Because most public speakers get better as they public speak. Most sales guys aren't elite sales guys, their second sale of their career. They're way better 10 years into it. Well, if you've watched Nick Siriani this year, and I have, I watched a lot of Eagles press conference, he's gotten a lot more comfortable. But you know what doesn't necessarily matter? If you're, you're

winning games, no one really gives a shit how your press conferences go. Everyone is attacking Joe Judge's press conferences, him declaiming that all these guys want to come play for him, these players that are going to be free agents on his own team are begging. You know why he has to do desperate stuff like that? Because his team's getting their teeth kicked in every week. Siriani has just been comfortable in his own skin. He basically changed the scheme mid-year. He built it much more around Jalen's legs as the season went on because Jalen is not the

best thrower of the football. but he also won a game with his backup quarterback who's a better thrower of the football. Howie also deserves credit on that. They have two quarterbacks, two starting NFL quarterbacks. Gardner Minshu would start on eight to ten teams in the NFL right now, right now. And obviously, Jalen is, you know, a pretty dynamic runner, and he can throw it well enough that you can win with. So Siriani and his young coaching staff have figured out a way to just win a ton of games. And yeah, he's taking advantage of the football team and the Giants.

Well, the Giants were kind of a sexy pick to be decent. They've kicked their ass. And the football team was a team that a lot of people picked to be a wild card. Well, Eagles just swept them, beat them twice in the last three weeks. So I don't, I think it's a very, very impressive year from Howie, from Siriani, from the Eagles players, to do something that most people did not think they were capable of doing. And then when you look at the NFC, obviously Dallas had a really bad loss. you guys know, I talked some shit about the Arizona Cardinals,

and I thought Dallas was going to win this game. And it was clear early on that Dallas was just playing poorly. Arizona got up. And then Arizona made enough plays at the end of the game with Kyla running it to not give the ball back, and they won the game, 25 to 22. But I also think it put it in context. And a lot of people DM me last week,

like, Middle Cough, you're putting the Cowboys on a pedestal. It's football, right? Every week, you can change your opinion a little bit. One day you can buy a stock. Two days later, it can tank. You're like, I don't like this stock anymore. No different. One day you can buy a stock and it can double in value in a month.

And you're like, I love this stock. You should be able to change your opinions. I can only go off what I watch. When you watch the Cowboys, even if they play the football team and the pass rush and the players, you go, this team has a lot of talent. Now, do I trust Mike McCarthy? I do not. Is Dak Prescott the most trust.

worthy quarterback of all the top guys. Clearly not. But when you look at the NFC and when you're stacking them, there's no debate. They're the number one seed back-to-back years. Aaron Rogers is going to win the MVP, I think pretty easily, but you can never underestimate the media.

Who knows who they're going to vote for? But he's going to win back-to-back or he should. And their team, it's going through Lambo again. They to me are, I picked them last year. I'm going to pick them again this year. Maybe I'll be wrong. I don't know. I don't have a crystal ball.

These are just educated guesses. if I knew, I'd bet $100,000 on them to win, you know, but I don't. Nobody does. But they're, to me, the number one team by far. And then Tampa, I'm just putting them at two, and we'll see how it all shakes out this week, obviously because of Brady, but their team is off. What happened with Antonio Brown? Godwin is injured. What's up with Leonard Fournette?

The defense is not as good as it was last year. I mean, even their head coach is injured. He's got an Achilles injury. the only reason you're confident in them is because of Tom Brady. And as we saw against the Jets, he can pull miracles out of his ass. I mean, he really can't. How the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won that game. I know everyone's like, I knew they were going to win.

I didn't. I'm watching it thinking they're going to lose this game. Now, the Jets helped him out a little bit, but still, for Tom to drive him down the field, hit that pass toward the end of the game. And then one of the dudes that picked him off goes up to him to get the ball, it's hard to even blame that kid. When you're that shitty, you know, I don't think you can do that

if it's like Saints, Tampa, but if you're on the Jets, a team that's drafted the top five, I think you're allowed to do that. But when you look at the rest of the NFC, like the Rams, I saw a stat today in Albert Brewer's Monday morning quarterback.

Matt Stafford has thrown four pick sixes this season. Jared Goff had four pick sixes in his career under Sean McVeigh. Matt Stafford, there was a stretch yesterday when he threw a second pick. He had gone 51 passes and thrown five interceptions. And I saw

Bill Barnwell tweeted out like his season in the second half. It was a ton of picks. It was poor completion percentage. It was not that many touchdowns. He had four fumbles over that stretch. This guy is a turnover machine. Everyone has a bad game. You're allowed to have a couple

interception game. Peyton Manning's had him. Dan Marino's had him. I'm sure Montana had him, right? Y. A. Tittle, probably had some. Terry Bradshaw, Kenny the Snake Stabler, but it's just week after week. And some people like hit me on Twitter. They're like, he's still winning these games. To me, like they won 20 to 19. And I know I heard coward today acting like talking about his fourth quarter performance. You're able to do that against a Ravens team that has a million injuries. They do that in the first round of the playoffs. They're playing the Niners.

Hell, the Eagles, the Cardinals. Like you'll, you can't throw two picks in a playoff game and to win? That's not possible. This is, the level and the margin for error is so much smaller. So it's hard. I love Sean McVeigh. All Sean McVe has done since he's shown up in Los Angeles is kick ass and take names. And somehow every coach gets older, fatter, gray hair. Sean looks fantastic.

He does not look that much different now than he did five years ago when he took off the job. And we see how much being a head coach, being a CEO, being the president, president can weather you. Yet he looks great. It might just be L.A. He's got a beautiful fiancee, big house that overlooks the hills. But still, Matt Stafford has to stress him out. Because Matt Stafford, he threw a pick six yesterday that the dude walked into the end zone. Like that's, this guy's making $35 million. Hell, I was pounding the table. I thought I was telling I wanted the Niners to go trade for him. When the Rams did, I applauded it. He makes me really, really nervous. But then I go, the Cowboys and the Cardinals, like the Cardinals still to me look a little

You know, obviously they're a different team without Hopkins. I do not trust their coach. I mean, he's never coached in a big game. And I just, you can make all the excuses you want, but that's just a fact. He's, the playoffs, like, it would be by far the biggest game he's ever been associated as the head coach slash play caller. And his quarterback, you know, just doesn't quite look right. He ran it much better yesterday. But to me, when I watch and play, I go, do I trust this guy in a huge game?

But I say the same thing about Stafford. I'd say the same thing about DAC. So I don't even know, besides the Packers, to me, are the clear one. The bucks, I'd put right behind them because they got Tom. Those other three teams, I don't even know what to make of them. Like, I don't think it's inconceivable did the Eagles give someone a game. I think it's going to be harder for the Saints because I have a hard time closing my eyes and seeing Taysome Hill doing it.

But if the Saints were to draw the Bucks, I'd go, why wouldn't they have a chance? The 49ers, I mean, they might be starting a rookie quarterback in like a forced start. Hard for me to close my eyes and envision them winning a playoff game. But if they can run the ball of Bosa goes nuts, you never know. I think that first round of the playoffs in the NFC, you could see a wildcard team or two upset some of these games, especially because the Rams or Cardinals, whoever wins that division in closed environment.

Weather plays no factor. Tampa Bay be like 70 degrees. Dallas, Dome. It's just none of these are weather games. That's the difference in the AFC. Cincinnati weather game Kansas City weather game Right

Buffalo weather game New England weather game Whoever wins that division That's not the case in the NFC I mean it's a much more sunshine and rainbows And then the Sunday night game And if you've listened I had some people DM me

They're like you know I agree with what you said About Brandon Staley Because I was hard on Brian Staley Because the media puts him on a pedestal They treat him like his resume Like he's accomplished a lot He was one year as a defensive coordinator. And as we see, like, everyone who coaches for the Rams wins as an assistant coach.

So I don't give him that much credit. And as an assistant coach texts me today about Brandon Staley, it's like, yeah, he's had a good pass rush. He's coached Khalil Mack, Vaughn Miller, and Aaron Donald. You know, now Joey Bosa. Like, yeah, I mean, me and you might be able to do that. I actually think, of all the decent teams and good teams, no team in the NFL has underachieved more than the Chargers. that they are even in this game against the Raiders to win and get in is mind-boggling.

The Raiders just had another DUI today. Nate Hobbs. Now, his agent denied it, but the Vegas police found the kid, four o'clock in the morning, passed out on the honor ramp. Vegas taking down dudes left and right. If Mayok stays as the GM

or if they bring in a new GM, the number one thing I would say as a lover of Las Vegas, and as actually someone who can go there, I'm not the biggest drinker. I'm definitely not a late night guy. You know, I was asleep at New Year's at 10.30. Like, I actually, I do like to drink,

but I like to drink during the day. I'm not a guy that's going to be out at 3, 4 in the morning. I get too tired. I like waking up early. But the thing the Vegas Raiders need to do, you have to put an extra premium on the character stuff. Because it could be, if you have money, hell, even if you don't have money,

you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. Unlike basically probably every place in the country except like Miami. And even in New York, guys don't live in New York City. Dude's lives where they practice is on the outskirts. So the Raiders plan the Chargers

to get in the playoffs. Like, the Raiders shouldn't even be here. The amount the Raiders have had to overachieve this season, their coach got fired email scandal. Their star wide receiver, you know, is going to go to jail for 20 years for killing an innocent person at three in the morning. Their other first round pick got cut.

because he had 17 guns threatening to kill someone. They just had another D-Y. They got an interim coach. I mean, they got injuries left and right. Darren Waller hasn't been seen in two months. And somehow they're nine and seven. Hunter Renfro is 99 catches. Derek Carr made the play of his career yesterday.

And the Chargers, whose quarterback is a star. And their head coach has absolutely nothing to do with Justin Herbert. We saw Justin Herbert last year. Anthony Lynn kicked ass. We saw Justin Herbert in college with Arroyo, the coach at UNLV who has won like one game since he's been in college, do well.

This guy has overcome poor coaching. Brandon Staley, who is the defensive coordinator, has nothing to do with Herbert. Well, Herbert this year, only Tom Brady, who has 40 touchdowns, Matt Stafford, who has 38 touchdowns, he's tied for third with Rogers and Mahomes at 35 passing touchdowns. That's the company he's in. Brady, Stafford, Rogers, Mahomes, all won their division. Yet Herbert is playing a game against the Raiders just to get into the playoffs

because his head coach's defense has been so abysmal. Like I said, they have easily, every single person I talk to in the NFL, defensive assistants, offensive assistants, general managers, my scouting buddies. You won't meet one person who doesn't think Herbert is a star. Because if you have eyes and you watch him, you go, God, I'd want this guy on my team. But his coach and their defense is a, a pretty big joke. And is the reason

that they don't have 10 or 11 wins. This game should not matter. The Chargers should not be in this position, but they are. And to me, it's squarely on the head coach.

And all the pressure in this game is on the Chargers. The Raiders have no business being here. If the Raiders upset the Chargers, and I don't think they necessarily will,

even though I'm tempted to sprinkle a little money, they're already a three-point underdog, I don't know how we could ever look at Brana Staley the same. And you'd be like, well it's his first year coaching. First year coaching he inherited Justin Herbert.

I mean, that's who he inherited. Look at Aslo Flore. He got a first year. Got Ray Rogers. Boom. 13 games. So you can't make the playoffs. It was seven teams.

The Raiders beat you in a winner get in game that have a team that's missing several guys, their head coach, that would be pretty nuts. And it's conceivable, you know? Now, Herbert might just be enough to overcome. Who knows? but the pressure on, not just the chart, but Brandon Staley, playing Rich Baskatchez, who was the special teams coach three months ago.

And now he's done a pretty valiant job as the interim coach. It's really remarkable. The Raiders, hat tip to them, hat tip to Derek Carr, because most franchises, we'll get into a joke franchise, usually crumble. Let's talk about Trevor Lawrence. And I've talked about bulky before.

Like I said, the only interactions I've had with him, he's never really been a dick or mean to me. And I know most people that, you know, talk about the NFL or scout in the NFL or coach in the NFL, they've had interactions like that with them. I have not. But clearly people are out to get the guy. And the coaching searches, people act like he's toxic.

They don't want him. But their franchise right now is all going to surround and depend on the quarterback. They just drafted him number one overall. I had friends that did the SEC, they all said this is the best prospect I've ever done. It was universal. He was the best prospect since Andrew Luck. He was one of the best prospects of the last couple decades.

When you get a guy like that, he should at least show some signs, even if you're bad. Peyton Manning's first year, they went 3 and 13. You're allowed to be bad with a good rookie quarterback. That happens. But they haven't been bad. They've been abysible. I understand the Patriots are a good team. They beat them 50 to 10.

This is the National Football League. This isn't Alabama playing Weber State. 50 to 10, he leads the league in interceptions. His completion percentage in a league that is very past friendly where I'd say 60%, or I'd say like 64% is the new 60%. He's 58.9. So he's inaccurate. He's turnover prone.

He's having a disastrous season. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw,

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follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away,

such as the biology of tontons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith Rule of Two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever. you get your podcasts. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush

didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jek. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we picket here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill

waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84, was big to me not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack, so I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS

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

wherever you get your podcasts. No matter what they do, if I'm the owner, and clearly their owner doesn't know what he's doing. He's on this team now for a decade. They have been consistently shitty. Think how bad you have to be. Like a lot of times, if you have the number one overall pick, more likely you're going to be bad the next year.

But a lot of times you go like the number one, look at the Bengals. Last year they had the number one pit or two years ago, they get Joe Burrow. Then the next year, Joe Burrow gets hurt in the middle of the season, and they end up with the fifth pick. Like, that's, the Jacks are going to have the number one. number one pick, you know, Trevor Lawrence, and they're going to have the number one pick again.

That's one of the biggest indictments that what a laughingstock your organization is. And the Trent Balke situation, the elephant in the room, who's to say that Trent Balke knows what he's doing to build around Trevor Lawrence? Even though I've always defended him, what he did early on with the 49ers tenure was better than it's remembered. He drafted Yupati, he drafted Navarro Bowman, he drafted Kaepernick, he drafted Davis, the right tackle, who ended up retiring, quitting. He picks him good players.

Also picks up Alden Smith, who before he couldn't put down the sauce, had 17 sacks his second year. But, you know, it's a situation where they have a quarterback that every team in the league that doesn't have a quarterback would die for. And they might ruin them. We've seen this in sports before. When you go to a team like Mack Jones, as Matt Jones is talented. is Trevor Lawrence or is talented.

And when I say talented, obviously reading defenses and being smart, that talent, is he as physically gifted as those guys? No chance. But did he go to one of the greatest football situations in the history of America anytime Bill Belichick is your head coach? Yes. A place that's stable, a place with core guys that know how to win. Trevor Lawrence went to the polar opposite.

He went to a place they only know how to lose. Everywhere you go, you just smells like losing. it looks like losing. You just lose. That's all you do. That's all you know how to do. And then this year, when you tried to get out of it with Urban Meyer, it got worse. It got more toxic.

Whoever they hire as their coach, Trevor Lawrence in his NFL career is going to have three head coaches in like three months, right? He went from Urban Meyer, who was fired a month ago. Then he went to Beville as the interim coach. And then whoever they hire, be his third head coach. Like, he was used to having, did they ever lose a staff member when he was at Clemson, obviously his head coach and his coordinators never moved. I'm not sure they ever lost a staff member.

All he was used to in college was stability. And now he goes to the Jags, this all-time great prospect. You know, in basketball, like when LeBron went to the Cavs, equally as big of a joke. One player could overcome it. It doesn't matter who the coach is. It doesn't matter who the owner is. If you are great enough at basketball, you can overcome it. You cannot in football.

And we have, we don't know because we never, got to see them become guys, but we've definitely had guys that if they would have gone to the right situation, could have had success. But instead, they've gone to the wrong situation, and they never did. And they just get kind of throttled out of the league. I think Alex Smith is a good example. And Trevor Lawrence is more physically gifted big time than Alex Smith. But forever, he was on the Niners team, those first four or five years, single Terry Nolan, it was like the Jacks. And then Harbaugh came and everything changed. And his career changed. And then he ended up getting Andy Reid, and he became a solid NFL quarterback.

You know, I hope that's not the case with Trevor Lawrence, but I don't know how you wouldn't bet against the Jacksonville Jaguars, screwing it all up. Because all they do is screw everything up. The coaching, the players, it's sad. It really, it's hard to be that bad. But somehow, Shad Khan has pulled it off. Get right to the romance and find the way to wow this Valentine's

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Record this part a little before. Monday night game. Caleb Williams, the star star quarterback for Oklahoma, who replaced Spencer Rattler, who was just a massive, massive recruit, five-star guy, put his name into the transfer portal, but says he's still thinking about staying at Oklahoma, which is pretty nuts. I don't blame him because he went there for Lincoln Riley.

And so when Lincoln leaves, you know, what's he supposed to do? But, like, Oklahoma, because I texted a buddy who's basically a general manager for a Power 5 program. And they're probably, you know, not a top, like 20 Power 5 program, but a good program. They got some good wins. I bet on him in the ball game. They let me down. But this guy, I ask him, what does he think? Like, do you think he's just a lock to go to USC?

And his, basically what he said was, I think he'll just go to the highest bill. and it's going to be very, very, if he goes to USC, to me, nothing nefarious, nothing shady. I don't blame him at all. USC probably paid him a lot of money. Goes to Lincoln Riley. But I'd imagine Georgia will start sniffing around. Last time I checked Georgia, they need a quarterback. You don't think Kirby Smart can rally up some cash?

Get that kid about 500 gur? Get them to Georgia. Be like, hey, you want to win the Nattie next year? I also think Oklahoma can go, hey, buddy, look at how much sweet firepower we have here. Now, it's an unknown head coach, Leby, the new offensive. coordinators coming from Ole Miss who's supposed to be a really good coach who just helped Matt Corral be really good but it's going to be interesting college football just got a wild times man but it's hard for me to blame the guy for leaving love listen to the podcast I'm listening to

your episode right now about Utah and Ohio State and you're talking about how bad our DBs are while our starting DBs was like our second or third string running back still got roasted by their receivers but thought you'd like to know I knew that guy was a starting running back or it wasn't running back that they moved to DB. Clearly they had injuries. I understand that they're missing some guys. My point was to give Utah credit. Most of Kyle's teams over the last 15 years have NFL defenders.

And whether it's injuries, I don't fall in that closely day to day, but obviously they were missing guys. They had to put a running back at DB against Ohio State. But like I said, I mean, I'm a Utah fan. Big Utah fan. Fly Eagles fly. from most media outlets saying we would have three or four wins

to clinching a playoff berth last night. He won't get it because of how the media was toward him, but is Nick Siriani coach of the year. If Vrable gets the one seed, Mike Vrable has to get it. Because Mike Vrable won 11 games last year. He would win 12 games this year.

When he went 9 and 7, three years ago, he won multiple playoff games. But Siriani deserves votes. He's had a hell of a season. Yeah, I mean, it's... He's been awesome. Happy New Year. Fan of the show,

refreshing alternative to the outrage factories. Why are these, everyone's so mad. It's like, Arr! It's like, no, you're not really that mad. I don't think you really care.

You know what's crazy? And part of the reason I think maybe I sound different is because I'm like anyone. I'm a consumer of sports television historically. Right? I consume newspapers forever. I haven't read a newspaper or sports section

minimum five years. But growing up, growing up, and even in the 2000s, probably the early 2010s, I read sports sections, watched ESPN, you couldn't pay me to watch any of that stuff. I just think it's all so fake. I don't think any of these people believe what they're saying. I mean, most people I know don't like it either. And you're talking to someone who literally dedicated his life to work in this profession, who thinks about it, who talks about it. And I just think 98% of them are just so fake. And maybe that's what they're being told. I've never worked at a major network.

obviously I have zero desire to ever do that now. I think some of them are fucked. But yeah, it's just I don't get the, I can't pretend to be outraged if I'm not outrage. If I'm get worked up, I'm really worked up. But I never get worked up. Like, I can't pretend to get worked up about Joe Judge.

I just really don't care. Even though I thought his press conference was a little weird, but I, like, I just don't care, you know. Sometimes it's okay to be like, yeah, I don't care. But obviously you couldn't do that if you're on television. blown away by Stroud and Smith I just call him number 11 as a scout how do you see them as NFL prospects

well number 11 was outstanding you know you you could have been my mom and notice that one and again like the first thing I usually go to is a negative on a guy because when you watch a top 20 prospect or top 10 prospect you got to look for what can't he do

because you can see all the things he can do Number 11's ball skills were incredible He can get open He could high point the ball He can make plays with the ball in his hands He wasn't running away from guys He got caught a couple times So he's not the biggest guy

In his top end speed is an elite But in terms of route running In terms of getting open In terms of playmaking Now I think Utah fans would say It was going against our You know second and third string defensive backs

But he was the best player on the field by a mile Stroud is It's just a pure pocket passer It's a beautiful thing to watch. His accuracy, his poise, he's so composed. He's just a star. I mean, he's legit. Now, you know, Mack Jones, Tua, I think this guy's more talented than those two guys,

but he is playing on an all-star team. So it's always the balance of this guy throws a beautiful ball. His accuracy is outrageous. I mean, his accuracy on some of these balls on the go routes, even on deep crossing routes. hitting guys in stride. So it was eye-opening. But the NFL is a lot more difficult than that.

So that's, I think he'll be him and Bryce, you know, top five picks next year. I think it's pretty clear after watching this weekend that Will Anderson would be the number one pick in this year's draft because there's no quarterbacks. Will Anderson is better in Hutchinson. Will Anderson is better in Kvon. Will Anderson is Micah Parsons.

but maybe even a little better. He might be one of the best players Nick Sabin has ever had, but he's not draft eligible. So next year, Will Anderson will go pro. And listen, I'm cool. Like I said on Monday's pod, if you want to opt out, opt out,

if you want to stay, stay. And I said, I think Will Anderson's, you know, if they win the national championship, Will Anderson will be in All-American multiple times. He'll have won multiple national championships. There's literally nothing else for him to prove. The only thing he can do is get injured. Now, you can always work on your craft.

Iron sharpens iron. The reason you get better at Alabama or Ohio State or Clemson because you're playing against the best. I think it was the one argument on the dude that went to Jackson State. Though the bigger picture of Jackson State is Deion ain't going to be at Jackson State in a year or two. They're going to leap and Hunter will go with them. But it's hard to improve, like it's easy to improve in the NFL because you're going up against other pros.

Depending on your school, I remember when I got to Fresno State and we had Ryan Matthews, no one could tackle the guy in practice. I mean, it was, I remember coming from Cal Poly like, holy shit, this is Division I football. Now, granted Ryan was one of the best players in the country, but it's like if he, you know, he ended up getting drafted, you know, top 15, but ultimately, like, point is he's just, when you're, when you're at USC in their heyday, you're at Alabama, you're at Georgia, it's just so much easier to get better. And, you know, Will Anderson, like, I don't know what he does.

I wouldn't blame him for not playing. But the reason Jamar Chase and Sue and all those guys and Parsons didn't play is because of COVID. If that hadn't happened, they would have played. And if Michael Parsons would have played his junior year and looked like Will Anderson, Michael Parsons ain't going, where to go? 12th, 11th?

He went 12th. Yeah, because Fields went 11. Devante Smith went 10, he went and he went 12. I mean, he's probably going, who knows, three? I guess the quarterbacks went three. Pitts, I mean, how would the Falcons take pits over him? A pass rusher? That guy?

Maybe he goes four overall. I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that I don't have the right answer for this. But like the NFL has some sort of thing, like if you're Will Anderson, or even C.J. Stroud. If I'm going to be a first round pick, every general manager fills out a survey. So this guy's a first round pick, this guy's a first round pick. I'm allowed to go pro. It's like a waiver.

Because a couple people said, well, why don't they just opt out? Well, what if the guy doesn't want to opt out? Ideally, he'd like to go pro, but it's not available. Instead, he wants to play football because he's good at football, keep kicking ass and taking names. Like, you want to do things you're good at. When you're good at something, it's fun to do that,

whether it's personal or professional. Like, it's not because it's easy, but because we like having success at what we do. It's human nature. I think a guy like Will Anderson should be able to go pro. because he'd be the number one pick in the draft. And I'm not for, like most sophomores in college, should not go pro. But Will Anderson is a fucking exception.

He is. Holy moly, did you watch that guy? Now, most people, if you're listening to this in the South, you've watched them all. The guy is. I've watched a lot of Alabama. But, I mean, you're really watching them these last couple games? Looks like Lawrence Taylor. I mean, Nick, where does he find these guys?

I'll tell you, Georgia. I looked him up during the game. as I was drinking my sorrows away because I bet on Cincinnati like an idiot. But imagine that. University of Georgia couldn't even keep Will Anderson from Georgia. As a Viking supporter, wondering what you think the team needs to do to take the next step.

We managed to lose the lions and get taken to overtime by the Panthers, yet beat teams like the Packers and the Ravens. Also, if you ever make it out here to Australia, come play some golf, drink, some beers, I would love to. I went to New Zealand when I was younger with my dad. I was like 13. It was really fun. But, you know, I was 13, so I was, you just, we fished and ate ice cream.

I remember the place, uh, they had the first ever bungee jumping was invented in New Zealand on this bridge. And I told my dad, maybe I was 12 and you had to be 13 to do it. And I told my dad, if he rented a car, we had to drive two hours, I would jump. I would do the jump. He's like, okay. So he rents a car. We drive to the bridge.

I walk over there. I see these dudes riding bikes. off it doing backflips. I'm buckling up. I tell the guy, I lied, I'm only 12 years old, and they didn't let me jump. It was the smartest thing I've ever done, because I wasn't going to jump off that bridge.

My commute to work's easier. As a Pat's fan, how or when should I know if Mac is the guy? What does Bill Belichick need to see to know if Mac is the guy of the future? You're way ahead of yourself. You have a rookie quarterback who led you to the playoffs. I think you just live year to year right now.

Try to, you know, add some wide receiver talent this offseason, improve the offensive skill guys. I guess you have good running backs. You got a couple tight ends. You need some better wide receivers. And Mac can just be a better player. He's already proven like he's fine. If you have a top 15 quarterback and you have Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels

as your head coach and offensive coordinator, you're going to go to the playoffs. You just are. So I think to worry about if he's going to get, get a home's contract or be the guy for 10 years. I would just enjoy it. This sounds cheesy and cliche. And I'm going to try.

I'm not a big New Year's resolution guy, but I have been very cognizant of like, you hear this a lot from successful people or just people that are happy in life about being present. Coaches harp on this. And I'm terrible at this. But I think if sports fans,

especially if your team's solid, was just present. And it's hard because people like me we like talking about big picture. It's fun. But just be present and just enjoy having Mac Jones, having a great rookie season, helping you guys be a big-time franchise again, I think it would make it a little more enjoyable than worrying about, like, he's not Josh Allen or Mahomes, or probably even Herbert. Well, he's definitely not Herbert. Or Burrow.

But there's nothing wrong with that, right? I mean, you can be, even if he's like Alex Smith of his generation, he's got Belichick. As long as he's got Belichick, you're going to win. I'm from New Hampshire native, born and raised. also is the same question. If you haven't seen Granite State, I don't mind being a tour guide, seen at golf,

beautiful lakes, $5 lobsters in the summer. Shit, Mike, that sounds great. I've actually never been, never been to Boston. I've never been to the like upper northeast seaboard. Farthest I've ever been, I think, is New York. I went to the city a couple times

when I lived in Philly, in D.C. a lot. So I kind of stayed in that area. The New York, Philly, D.C. Hoboken. I went to Hoboken once for, St. Paddy's Day. My buddy, actually, he now works for the Chiefs. I went with him and some of his buddies.

It was badass. Now, we were, he's probably a year or two younger than me. We were probably, you know, 26, 25. It was pretty sweet. Hoboken, St. Patty's Day, highly recommend if any of the young cats need a place to go the next couple years over St. Patty's Day. It was fun.

I remember puking when I got home the next day. I actually, I got lost in Hoboken and my phone died. It was a bad deal. I ended up sleeping in this random guy's penthouse apartment because he kind of, I lost my buddy. I ended up making it into like the concierre kind of area, but the guy, the concierge guy was gone. Super nice building right by the water. You could see New York City. I started sleeping on the bench.

This guy with his girlfriend came home. They woke me up because they were wasted to and invited me up to their sweet pad. I slept on his couch. I actually took off or even got up. But, you know, simple times. I guess there was internet back then, too. I mean, this was been like 2011. My phone legitimately died in an area where I didn't know a soul.

Mailback question. Does this week's matchup between the Patriots and the Jags have any importance of McDaniels potentially leaving to be the next head coach of the Jags? Well, obviously they beat him 50 to 10. I just, I can't see Josh McDaniels working for, working for Trambleky. I don't even think that's an option. He would not work for Tram Balke. So unless, I don't know what the Jags are going to do.

I think Tramalky is clearly a detriment to their coaching search. We'll see how that plays out. But it's definitely something to keep an eye on. Love the perspective on the NFL in life. What do you think about Lynch liking that Jimmy tweet? Happy holidays, my man, and appreciate the grinding content. Well, you know, I think you can accent. like something on Twitter pretty easily.

I don't think that is that outrageous. If anyone of you has a Twitter account and someone like John Lynch, I can't even imagine what they're mentions. And when you hear the word mentions, it's basically when someone just links you in a tweet. So a guy like John Lynch, who's the general manager of one of the biggest brands in the league,

there's a chance he gets 50,000 mentions on a game weekend. So maybe he's scrolling through accidentally likes it. I also think, listen, I You know, I wouldn't say I don't know him very well at all. If I text him, he will text me back. He's a hike. People I know that know him, love him.

I don't think even, everyone was thinking that. When Jimmy had the game, we all thought, I tweeted I would leave Jimmy in Nashville. And John had to think that too. If they lose this weekend, Jimmy Garoppolo ruined their playoff chances

in that game. They should have won that game by 10 points. Instead they threw two picks and they lost it by three. That game is the reason they're not officially in the playoffs right now. If they had beat the Tennessee Titans, the Eagles and the 49ers would be playoff bound.

It would be over. Game set, match. But, you know, you could argue, I think Belichick would tell you what is the point if you're a head coach, if you're a GM, why would you have a Twitter account? Now, John worked in the media

and he's a social guy. At the end of the day, they draft Trey Lance, they gave up three first round picks. Who really gives a fuck what Jimmy thinks at this point? Like Jimmy's been paid $125 million.

Like Jimmy got paid for everything. He got every penny, whether he was playing or he was injured. So, overall, I don't think that much of it. I actually thought it was kind of funny.

Mail back question. If the Raiders went out, will they make the playoffs? Yes. Obviously, this was before this weekend. Them and the Chargers for all the marbles.

All of the, the pressure is on Brandon Staley and Herbert, but Herbert's already played a really, Herbert's had a fantastic season. Herbert has played a season where they should have 12 wins, yet his coach and the defense has let them down. I cannot put a season where he's thrown as many touchdowns as Aaron Rogers and Patrick Mahomes. I just can't. I have to blame the coach. Dan and Pittsburgh, join instant just to ask you a question. The babes have distracted me, but here I am. It can be in a distracting place.

You can go down rabbit holes of people that would get you in trouble with your significant under very fast. I'm sitting here locally hearing about how Tomlin should go. Too much of a players coach. What does he really do? His message has gone stale,

etc., etc. I know nationally's held in great regard. I personally am a fan, great winning percentage, never losing season. Players want to play for him, love his Tomlinisms, at the podium,

wondering your take on if he ever realized he has no coaching tree. Always hear about the Walsh, Parcells, Holmgren, Belichick coaching trees. Cowers guys got plucked away regularly. We've not had a coordinator sought after that I can think of.

LeBoe doesn't count. He was a legend before Tomlin was born. Ha, ha, ha. I just, that was funny. Wondering your take on what it means for Tomlin. I'm recording this part before Monday night football, but let's face it, doesn't really matter.

I think Mike Tomlin's pretty good. Okay, let's say, let's say you fire Mike Tomlin. Who are you going to hire? Do you know what would happen to Mike Tomlin? I think three or four teams would be lined up to hire Mike Tomlin. I think Joe Judge would get fired so fast for Mike Tomlin, your head would spin. If Mike Tomlin was relieved of his duties, I think the New York Giants would immediately hire him.

I guess the Bears would probably be very interested as well. I don't think he'd go to the Vikings, though he's coached there before. I just don't know how you upgrade. Now, you could argue that's the wrong mindset to have. you can't always think like that but that's how I'd think in this scenario like they've been pretty competitive the last couple years with no quarterback

and old ass Ben what's he supposed to do? I'm a fan of the Arizona Cardinals. What do you think they need to do to get to the next level? I think if they would have stayed healthy this year they would have been a mother right? I mean JJ Watt

he was playing awesome now he gets hurt a lot so you can't really be that shocked Hopkins he also gets hurt a lot but they just need Tyler to be more consistent as a passer. If he can be consistent as a passer, they're pretty deadly

because they do have a ton of skill guys. Got to get a lot of questions here. Not a Browns fan, but can you let Coward know that his Baker criticism is tired and that available quarterback talent is and will be thin? Can't see them moving on from him

unless they want to unload talent for somebody. Yeah, I mean, I just, they're just going to play. play out the string. He'll be the quarterback next year, and they'll just take it year by year. Like I said, be present with your team. They don't have many options. They will sniff around the options that are available. And if an Aaron Rogers, if Russell Wilson becomes available to them, they would kick Russell Baker to the curb, of course. Deshawn Watson, I think they'll be in on that as well. Now, I don't think they're going to get any of those guys. So I think

Baker Mayfield will be back. But I think every Browns fan will admit, even if he's healthy, you don't look at them quite the same. You just don't. So if you don't as a fan, what do you think the head coach and the GM do? They did not draft them. I know you don't touch on college football that much, but curious to get your thoughts

on the college football semi-bowl schedule. Wouldn't it make sense to schedule these games New Year's Day and not New Year's Eve? Seems like ratings would be higher having everyone hung over in watching at home during New Year's Day compared to 1230 on New Year's Eve game time. You know, you'd have to ask,

a TV executive, because the Rose Bowl has always owned New Year's Day. So when there's a rotation, like when the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl get the playoff games, I'm pretty sure they play those games on New Year's Day. I think it just matters on the rotation of the bowl games. Could be wrong. Need to get Jay Boy on this little detective work. But I'm pretty sure if the Rose Bowl hosts one of the semifinal games, the Rose Bowl's played on New Year's Day with the Sugar Bowl or with the, uh, the Peaboy.

Beach Bowl, whatever, the main bowl. I guess it's the Sugar Bowl, the Rose Bowl, the Fiesta Bowl. I'm getting my bowls. There's so many bowls going on. There's a bowl game on Tuesday with LSU. It's hard to keep up with these bowl games. But the Rose Bowl, I love the Rose Bowl. I really do.

I've been listening to you guys for years. Keep up the good work. I know you're a sucker for the money and management side of football. And with the offseason looming for several teams, I'm curious to know with which organization you would have the most fun trying to rebuild if you were hired on as a GM. My gut says you picked the Raiders

given your history of Fresno State, Derek Carr, and previous broadcasting experience with the team. Thanks. Wishing you happy holiday season. I, yeah, I mean, I'm a West Coast guy. So the Raiders, Vegas, I love Vegas. I've always said this about Mark Davis. He's not a meddler.

Like when he hired Gruden, he let John Gruden do whatever. When he hired Jack Del Rio, he let Jack Del Rio do whatever. So if he hires you, you get to just do whatever you want. Now, it would just, you know, Derek, Derek's a top 12 quarterback. Is he ever going to be a top five quarterback? He was pretty good when they had rugs and waller early in the season. Now, I think the most intriguing, if you're like a true, true kind of football junkie nut, if Shod Khan would hire you to be the GM, let you hire a coach and not and leave you alone,

it'd be interesting. Now, the Jags brand, I would never want to be the GM of the Jags. That sounds shitty. If you're the GM of the Raiders, the division just feels more important, you play the Chiefs, now the Chargers with Herbert. I'm trying to think. The Bears would be intriguing. I really like Justin Fields coming out watching them, but it's the Chicago Bears.

I would say the Bears are the Raiders. But I'm a sucker for big brands. You know, I like a big city. I like to matter. And in Vegas, obviously if you're the GM of the Bears, you really matter. The Raiders, you'd have to prove your worth. You'd have to get people interested. But it's a show-me town.

And when you're doing big things in Vegas, people will care. So it'd be Vegas or the Bears for sure. Appreciate everyone hitting me up. Have a good week. Adios. The volume. Get right to the romance and find the way to wow this valentines with 1-800flowers.com.

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