The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Brock Purdy hate is real, Is Josh Allen to blame, Brady-Belichick 2.0

Episode Date: January 23, 2024

John dives into all the hate that Brock Purdy has been getting throughout the media and gives his take on if the criticism is justified, he also reacts to people trying to compare Purdy to Mahomes, i...s Josh Allen the reason why Buffalo hasn't been able to get it done in the playoffs, how Dan Campbell has changed the way people look at head coaches, and are Mahomes and Reid, Brady and Belichick 2.0. Later, John answered your questions on this episode's mailbag segment. 5:12 - Brock Purdy hate 13:36 - Josh Allen in playoffs 18:28 - Dan Campbell 26:58 - Mahomes-Reid 35:10 - Mailbag 35:50 - DeMeco Ryans impact 44:26 - Why don't more coaches come from college 47:00 - Should the Rams draft a QB 50:43 - Why do people treat Purdy differently than other QB's 1:01:36 - What off-season moves do the Packers need to make Follow John on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the latest. Check out Gametime - the fastest growing ticketing app in the US, and the official ticketing app of 3 & Out and GoLow -  for tickets to all of your favorite NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA teams. Concert and comedy show tickets, too. Go to Gametime now to create an account, download the app and use code JOHN for $20 off your first purchase. #Volume #HerdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Starting point is 00:03:26 him that made me shake my head. Dan Campbell, I think one area that painted a picture about him originally that a lot of people missed on because of the way he communicated. And then the pressure on Lamar Jackson that a lot of other quarterbacks have not been able to figure out against Patrick Mahomes. So I know that they're two quarterbacks. They don't play each other, but what it would mean for him to beat the Chiefs, because let's face it, it would be pretty massive. He's going to win a second MVP, and you beat Mahomes and Andy Reid.
Starting point is 00:03:56 You get that notch on your resume, something that's going to age really well. So we'll dive into that. And obviously, football conversation all week. We'll have Stucky on later this week. I'll give out, I got already placed some bets on Tori Pond. I'll give those out tomorrow. Yeah, we'll just keep hammering content. We got a YouTube page.
Starting point is 00:04:12 Go check that out. Obviously, if you listen on Collins feed, make sure you subscribe to the three and out feed. Appreciate everyone that has. We have the volume.com. You can find three and out merch. Get yourself a hat. Appreciate everyone that's bought one.
Starting point is 00:04:24 Keep firing down that merch. Other than that, a lot of football talk coming up. But before we dive into some football, you guys know I need to tell you about my friends, very close friends, partners, and the official ticketing app of this podcast. Go to your smartphone, go to your iPad, and download a little app that we like to call GameTime. And the GameTime app, which is the number one ticketing app for me without question,
Starting point is 00:04:48 you can go to any event. You can go to a football game. There's three left. Do you live in one of these cities? Do you live in the Northeast Corridor? You want to go to the Baltimore Chiefs game? Do you live in California? Are you a Niner guy?
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Starting point is 00:05:29 I saw a lot of people pushing back in my direct messages about some of my conversation about him. overall, there's just a lot going on. Obviously, Ryan Clark said some things a day on ESPN that had Brandon Iuk and Debo Samuel firing back on Instagram, supporting their guy. And I think a couple things can be true. Brock Purdy this season, as the pick 262, the second year in the NFL, first year as a full-time starter start to finish. Had a fantastic season.
Starting point is 00:06:01 It is not debatable. he was really good beside a couple games welcome to football you get some bad games he had an unreal season honestly for them couldn't have been much better Cleveland game Baltimore game clearly would like back but in terms of the regular season
Starting point is 00:06:19 he was fucking awesome was near the lead if not in the lead in the majority of statistical categories quarterbacks Saturday night against the Green Bay Packers he was not good so you can have a good season and then have a bad playoff game. Peyton Manning had a ton of them, right?
Starting point is 00:06:38 Great seasons, bad playoff games. Aaron Rogers a couple years ago against the 49ers at home. Great season, awful playoff game. This is hard. This is football. And we don't have, this isn't like, well, let the month play out. Let's watch a long sample size. This is football.
Starting point is 00:06:56 We react off individual game situations, right? and clearly with Brock he can't hold the ball when it's wet. We've seen now multiple times. That is something. In good conditions, he's good. Jared Gough, who's had an excellent season, honestly, two very good back-to-back seasons.
Starting point is 00:07:16 We've seen him before in weather games, outside, he's not the same player. Not everybody is Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen. And that's the other thing I saw today on the old four-letter network streets is I can't believe we had to compare this guy to Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. Who the fuck did that?
Starting point is 00:07:37 Who in their right mind at any time this season? No matter what his stats were or how good his game, thought that Brock Purdy was as good as those two guys, making a combined $700 million. And honestly, like two of the greatest players in the sport I've ever seen, Mahomes is already like a top three quarterback in the history of the league. And I think we all agree.
Starting point is 00:08:02 Hopefully his team can do better. And I do think eventually, like Peyton Manning will get into him here in a little bit, that Josh Allen eventually is going to win some of these big games because, you know, as an individual, I thought he was incredible yesterday. But as a pure talent, he's one of the great talents we've ever seen in league history.
Starting point is 00:08:20 Lamar Jackson, like they, yeah, they were competing for the MVP, right? Lamar didn't have some statistically great season up until the last three or four games when he added a bunch of touchdowns. But no one would argue as a talent, Brock Purdy is more talented than Lamar Jackson. Right? And then when you have a bad game,
Starting point is 00:08:40 because in football, the Packers and Niners I saw today did almost 40 million people. Shocker, two of the biggest brands and the biggest league, the NFL playoffs. I don't even need to see like, biggest game since we know. Ratings are being shattered. A lot of people watch the NFL right now.
Starting point is 00:08:56 But like, he was bad. And I think we need to be able to separate, like, he's a good player or had a really good season, he had a bad game, and then projecting him moving forward. I would not give him some long-term contract based off what I've seen off two years. They're a year away from even having to have that discussion. But we've already seen, and part of the reason why the 49ers, the quarterback discussion, it's fair to have. Like, I don't view, I'm a 49er guy.
Starting point is 00:09:22 Brock Purdy, like he's on some scholarship. If you said, John, would you put $10,000 that he's going to be, the quarterback for the next six years? No. Kyle Shanahan is just proven. Jimmy Garoppel got him to a Super Bowl. Two years later, they're drafting his replacement. Then two years after trading three first round picks for Trey Lance,
Starting point is 00:09:42 he has traded to the Dallas Cowboys. Trey Lance, after they traded three first round picks, pick 12 and two more to trade up and get his services, did not make it to week one, year three. He was gone on the Dallas Cowboys. Brock Purdy said last week to ESPN that Cowsy and told him this off-season that if they can talk Tom Brady out of retirement
Starting point is 00:10:04 that Tom Brady will be the starting quarterback and Brock Purdy will be the backup. So the conversation with the 49ers like there are so many different variables here. He's had an excellent season. He had a bad playoff game. And big picture when it comes to the 49er quarterback position for being a team now that's in their fourth championship game
Starting point is 00:10:24 in five years and has a chance if they win it to get back to another Super Bowl has been one of the most successful teams in the NFL. But unlike all these other successful teams, the Ravens, the Bills, the Chiefs, they don't have like some quarterback that you go, yeah, this guy's going to be the starter for well over a decade. You're going to give this guy, if he stays healthy, several contracts. So it makes them an interesting conversation.
Starting point is 00:10:47 But just because you have a bad game does not make you a shitty player. Right? I mean, some guys struggle in the weather. Guys that are Hall of Famers, Peyton Manning, Drew Breeze. But when everyone tries to, after one game, act like the guy's a scrub, like you're being disingenuous, right?
Starting point is 00:11:06 And then the people that get so offended when you say he didn't play well, he did what everyone wanted him to do, he got the final drive, well, yeah, the reason they were in that position as a 10-point favorite, and I tweeted this during the game, if they had lost that game,
Starting point is 00:11:19 me and Stucky talked about it. I think last week, there have been seven teams in the last 25 years that have won as a double-digit underdog in the playoffs. Honestly, it's so hard to be a double-digit underdog past the first round. You either have to have a major injury or just on an incredible Cinderella run. And seven or 25, so we're talking about, you know, 25, a little over 25% winning those games, it would have been a massive, massive upset. That's a fact.
Starting point is 00:11:50 and to be in that position as a team that we acted like was the best team in the NFC all season long to a team at one point that was two and five. Now, they were hot, they were playing well, but it was because of the offense, which was terrible. The coach gets blamed too. And I think we talked about this the other day. Like, Andy Reid is one of the greatest coaches of all time.
Starting point is 00:12:12 He's had bad games. Bill Belichick, one of the, I'd argue the best coach of all time, has had bad games. Kyle Shanahan is clearly one of the best coaches. better coaches in the National Football League right now, he had a bad game. Like, I don't put it on Brock Purdy that he can't throw in the rain. We've seen it now. We know for a fact. It's on the coach to we can't ask him to throw it 40 times today. We can't just stick with the game plan. I never understand as a coach that I understand,
Starting point is 00:12:42 and I've seen these guys firsthand, so I respect the amount of hours they put in. And I saw Andy Reid, who I would imagine knowing people that have been in New England, him and Belichick, can go as long as anybody in league history throughout the week of just not needing sleep and working on football. But I do believe that Sean McVeigh and Kyle and the Gruden's like, these guys are nuts, right? So you spend all this time and you develop this game plan and then you get into the game. Well, after a couple series, it's okay to scrap some shit. Like part of doing the work is so you are prepared, but if it's not working, then you have to pivot. That's what we all do in these industries. So I put a lot on Kyle Shanahan in that game,
Starting point is 00:13:21 not on Brock Purdy. At the end of the day, the guys picked 262. So comparing him to Josh Allen, who's on a $300 million contract and was the seventh pick in the draft, or Patrick Mahomes is already a top three quarterback of all time, who signed a $450 million contract. Like, that's a wasted exercise. I think you're an idiot, right? But if you can't admit, like, yeah, that was really shitty Saturday night. I also think you're an idiot. Like, there is some happy medium. And that's the thing with Josh Allen. I saw a lot today of people that I think know what they're talking about when it comes
Starting point is 00:13:53 to football. Like, oh, this guy is just never going to get it done. He's just not good enough. What are we talking about? I've been watching football for 30 plus years. That performance last night, I thought, was incredible. I was texting with one of my buddies on the scouting staff who went to the game, was on one of the buses back to the airport.
Starting point is 00:14:17 He's like, what a performance by that guy. I mean, I bet if you ask Andy and Spagnola, and I'm sure they'll get asked about it a little bit this week, but they'll be looking forward. Maybe they got asked about it after the game. Of all your years in the National Football League, how many guys made you as nervous as that guy when he's playing? Is it his fault that his GM paid a guy
Starting point is 00:14:37 that was 32, 33 years old in Von Miller to a ton of money, and then he tears ACL, and he's never been the same? or that Stefan Diggs down the sideline hits the guy in the hands and can't catch the ball. Now, I'm not trying to act like Josh Allen is Patrick Mahomes because Patrick Mahomes is clearly the best quarterback
Starting point is 00:14:54 of his generation right now. But if you think there's like a huge gap between those two guys, especially after last night, who's got the better coach? Who's got the better organization? Who has the better defense? Right? That does matter.
Starting point is 00:15:08 Now, when you play in games you throw several picks, like that's you. Or you play like Brock Purdy and you can't complete a pass because you can't grip the ball. Like, that's a bad performance. Watching Josh Allen on Sunday night,
Starting point is 00:15:21 like, I thought that was championship level. That was the highest level in which you can play against another team who is a champion multiple times. So when I see this, like, is this guy ever going to get it done? Think about, like,
Starting point is 00:15:37 and I saw, I don't even know who, but someone comparing him to Peyton Manning. One, Peyton Manning was terrible in the playoffs. Why? Because he couldn't play in inclement weather. He was not very good outside. That ain't Josh Allen's problem. Josh Allen is fantastic in weather.
Starting point is 00:15:55 He's literally a weather cheat code. His problem is his organization when it comes to building the team has been kind of flawed. And in the past, maybe he's made some mistakes. But now two games they've lost in the last three years, One, his defense gave up two plays, like 50 yards in 13 seconds. And then last night, his kicker missed a kick. And also, some of his players just let him down throughout the game. They couldn't get a stop.
Starting point is 00:16:20 I mean, it was like the Chiefs weren't punting. It was like field goal, field goal, touchdown, touchdown, touchdown, fumble out of the back of the end zone that would have been a touchdown. What's Josh Allen supposed to do? Play middle linebacker, make some tackles? Like, some stuff is pretty obvious. It's fun to act like this guy's never going to get it done. Like, we've seen James Harden enough.
Starting point is 00:16:38 The guy folds in the playoffs, right? We've seen Alex Rodriguez back in there, remember, in baseball. Like, he didn't look the same in the playoffs. And now baseball is unique, small sample size. But still, like, I've seen Josh Allen enough in the playoffs. I would take him on my team any day of the week. And a hundred times on a Sunday night game if I needed to try to win. Whether it's January or whether it's October.
Starting point is 00:17:00 He might throw some picks, or he might throw multiple touchdowns and run for 100 yards and keep my team who should. shouldn't win the game in the game. Is he Mahomes? No. Right? Was Peyton Manning? Tom Brady? No. Would you take Tom or Peyton Manning? Yes. So I just think this notion that Josh Allen can never get it done is just stupid to me. It really is. Josh Allen, if he's going to stay healthy for the next five, six years, some of it's on his organization. This is not basketball. I can't just turn into Michael Jordan. I do need some help. There's literally half
Starting point is 00:17:36 the game that a quarterback can't do anything. So if your defense is either banged up or not good, it's a problem. Because in football, in January, having a good defense in the history of the league kind of matters. You usually don't see many teams win the Super Bowl. You're like, yeah, their defense was terrible. Right? That's a problem for the Lions right now.
Starting point is 00:17:58 I want to buy into the Lions, but defensively, it's hard to trust them. Even if, like, for win two games, they're going to beat the 49ers. And then they're going to beat either Lamar or Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. It's hard to see that because of their defense. Now, if their defense was good, they're like, hell yeah, they can win the Super Bowl. But this notion that Josh Allen is some like choker or something, yeah, his team hasn't won the game.
Starting point is 00:18:20 But watching him in a vacuum, I thought he was pretty freaking good. Just like a couple years ago when they lost the Chiefs and they changed the overtime rule, pretty sure he had five touchdowns. So some of this discourse, and I get people have to have takes for the TV to cut it up and put it out, but give me a fucking break. The Dan Campbell thing. Most football coaches have similar mindsets
Starting point is 00:18:43 when it comes to philosophical beliefs in the sport, right? It's a violent game, so you're going to want violent players. You're going to want big physical guys that hit really hard. Right? You're going to want offensive linemen who are tough as nails.
Starting point is 00:18:58 You're going to want players to battle injuries and play when they're dinged up. This isn't peewee football. This isn't high school football. you're paid a premium to play football. And coaches and executives expect that and owners. Part of the reason you get paid is to play through bumps and bruises. It's all great players do.
Starting point is 00:19:19 Every guy in the NFL playing this upcoming weekend and they just played last weekend is not 100%. A lot of guys are closer to 50% than they are 75%. But a lot of coaches, especially the younger generation, you know, Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVey, Brandon Staley was really good at this. They talk about football not under those terms. They actually talk about football much more like a dude in the media who has multiple degrees would tweet about football.
Starting point is 00:19:52 And they get a lot of praise that way. Brandon Staley used to speak early on. He called every reporter by their name and spoke, because he's intellectual, he's a smart guy, could hold a conversation that felt like he was one of the presses or the media. And the media, let's face it, looks down on people who they feel are intellectually inferior. They value academics and academia as a whole. I would say more than most of us, let's say, in the business world,
Starting point is 00:20:27 where we value much more about production, revenue, less about, no one cares where you went to school if you produce. I knew a lot of guys that didn't graduate high school that were multi-millionaires growing up, friends, grandparents, or even parents. Now, it's different generation in 2024. It's probably less likely. But your education level in the real world, I got news for you when it comes to success. Not that a college education, I have multiple degrees, but it does not determine your success or failure. Now, there are stats saying you're better off, obviously going to. college than not, but just because you don't does not mean you're guaranteed to not make in life.
Starting point is 00:21:08 That's not how it works. And the entire media is well educated. And they take academics really seriously. And Dan Campbell felt like the opposite of academics. He talked about fighting and biting and doing whatever it took to win. He gave off, quote unquote, a meathead theme. Even though a lot of people in the sport of football, I would say have some meathead qualities. right to love football as much as you do in the NFL or Power 5 as a coach you have to have some
Starting point is 00:21:42 meathead tendencies right it's impossible i didn't love football as much is all the guys i was around i saw it firsthand like Andy reed Sean McDermott Matt naggie Brett Veach howie roseman like deep to their core they just like football more than I do and I love football I love football probably more than 95% of people listening to this. But at the highest level of the sport, like every guy's a little bit of a me dead. Right? That's why we like the sport. But the way you communicate it, like this is why Belichick always kind of drove guys crazy. He treats the press like shit, but everyone acknowledges he's very, very intelligent and he's an academic.
Starting point is 00:22:23 So people kind of battle, they just call him an asshole. But no one ever questions his intelligence. People acted like Dan Campbell was a village idiot, was a complete moron. And I think he's a great example of early on he didn't talk like some of these younger hot shots. Obviously he didn't look like them either. He's enormous and he looks like he could still play in the NFL as being a former player. But I think he's a good example of clearly kind of knows what he's doing. And clearly he relates very, very well with players.
Starting point is 00:22:54 The other thing is not everyone is going to have the capability of being. Sean McVey or Kyle Shanahan or Matt LaFleur as a play caller, right? Jim Harbaugh cannot call plays. He's a former NFL quarterback. He cannot call offensive plays. Never does it. But you know what Jim does exceptionally well? Hire coaches.
Starting point is 00:23:17 And that is a skill that, I'm sorry, is kind of important. Right? Mike Tomlin, why did he hit some kind of rough waters? Hired the wrong coach. Why is John Harbaugh run a search? circles around everyone when Lamar's on the field because he has pretty good coaching staff. So Dan Campbell, like, do you get credit for, I don't know, elevating Ben Johnson and making them your offensive coordinator? Bringing Aaron Glenn to coach your defense? I mean, both
Starting point is 00:23:44 these guys could become head coaches. And this notion that like is Dan Campbell the next Nick Siriani, here would be my pushback on that. Nick Siriani's guy is Frank Reich, who, Listen, former quarterback, I think got extra credit because he's 6-4 looks the part and played the position. I don't think he's any good. I do not. If I'm playing Frank, I'm sending the limo to make sure he's on the sideline and not a minute late. I do not want him to miss one snap of the game. Dan Campbell's supporters happen to be Bill Parcells, widely regarded as one of the greatest coaches in the history of the league,
Starting point is 00:24:22 and Sean Payton, who resurrected a dog-shit franchise. in New Orleans, and then was just given $90 million for the Denver Broncos. And listen, we can debate how good he is or not. He's pretty damn good. Those are the two guys that he comes from. So I think the media missed because he didn't talk and look like them. And let's face it, a lot of guys in the NFL nowadays definitely talk like them. And it buys you a pass.
Starting point is 00:24:52 Now, they turn on you immediately when you start losing. but Dan Campbell talked like a position coach. He talked about drinking 60 ounces of coffee before 8 a.m. He talked it about scratching and clawing and doing whatever you had to do to kill the opponent. That's how football coaches talk behind closed doors. Whether you're Belichick, whether you're Andy or whether you're Dan Campbell. That's the sport. That's the way you communicate with your players.
Starting point is 00:25:16 Now, the way you do it publicly and a lot of people, you know, that cover the sport, I think are just obsessed in general with optics. I've always said optics are the biggest BS thing going in society. It's just about what's actually going on. I'm a big fan of reality. Well, what's actually happening? What's actually going on behind closed doors? What's the reality of the situation?
Starting point is 00:25:39 And the reality of football is always going to be, it's a tough man's game. Even in a sport that has tried to regulate violence out of it, and relative to what it was when I was a kid in the early and mid-90s, is clearly a lot different. It's still a very violent game. It's still a game where people tackle each other at high rates of speed, guys that do not have much fat on them and have a lot of muscle and a lot of power.
Starting point is 00:26:08 It always will be a violent game, no matter what, no matter if you want to tell me that a guy is a defenseless receiver. There is no such thing. When you're running a route, there are defenders that are going to tackle you if you get the ball. And you know that when the ball is snapped. So I think Dan Campbell is just a good example of who gives a shit how he talks. Are you just good at your job? I mean, there are a lot of people that their resume, they should be successful in their failures.
Starting point is 00:26:38 There are a lot of educated derelicks all over America. Just like there are a lot of people whose resume from an education standpoint or the way they communicate, it's like, how is this guy successful? And they're making millions and they're crushing it in their industry. props of Dan Campbell for going to a franchise that was trash. I mean, an abominate, an embarrassment, and having them in the conference championship game. That's an incredible accomplishment. And last but not least,
Starting point is 00:27:08 I think we're really witnessing Belichick Brady 2.0 with Andy and Mahomes because there were some years where they were the favorites and they won it all. There were a lot of years where it's like, ah, they're going to get knocked and they just found away. I mean, that game in Buffalo was just classic. That was so New England Patriots, it was stupid. That was the ultimate Belichick-Berady game. It just happens to now be Mahomes and Andy Reed.
Starting point is 00:27:34 Well, John Harbaugh has taken down the Patriots back in the day. When they won the Super Bowl, they beat New England in the conference championship game. And Lamar just proved that, like, okay, after a half, took a deep breath. He can look like he did in the regular season in a playoff game against arguably the best young defensive coordinator might be on his staff, but D'Amico is a star. So to me, like, any time, I've had to change my thought process on this. Should there be a lot of pressure on Andy and Mahomes?
Starting point is 00:28:05 It's like it felt like this year they were playing with Little House money, but any time you got one of the great coaches of all time and one of the great quarterbacks, there's always pressure to win. Because you just never know how long it's going to last. And they showed, like, they feel pressure, they feel urgency. And they proved it. But when you're the favorite and you're at home and your team top to bottom is better, like even if you had a couple beers with Veach, right now as we're going to this game,
Starting point is 00:28:31 whose roster is better? I think their roster is better. Now, one of the great Trump cards, every person in the NFL would take Andy over Harbaugh, and obviously everyone would take Mahomes over Lamar. Just like everyone would take Brady over everyone he ever played in these big games. But sometimes he lost him. And you know how you become a legend? Like, Lamar's going to have his second MVP.
Starting point is 00:28:53 He's in rare air just with that distinction alone. But like Eli Manning, who never won an MVP, Joe Flacco definitely never won an MVP. And Nick Foles was barely ever a starter. When they beat the legends, you kind of become a legend. And when you're actually good, you get like extra credit.
Starting point is 00:29:12 That's why it would have been so important for the bills to win that game. It just would have been such a big win for the franchise and the quarterback to have on his resume. Well, Lamar Jackson, despite being favored and getting a team now, I saw Thuny's hurt, obviously Willie Gay's banged up. I mean, it's a team that just, the Raven should win this game.
Starting point is 00:29:32 But in five years, we won't talk about it. Well, the Raven should have won that game. If you just win it, 6, 7, 8, 10, 20 years later, like, remember that time that Lamar Jackson won the MVP and knocked out Mahomes out of the playoffs in the conference championship game. So we'll get into the pressure round. rankings as this week goes on, I think the 49ers to me are still clearly number one.
Starting point is 00:29:53 Because even if you lose to Mahomes, it would sting, but you're still losing to Mahomes. It's another thing to lose to the Lions as a touchdown favorite. But we'll get deeper into that conversation. I do think this is a pretty cool moment for Lamar, who has an opportunity to, I would say, change the conversation around running quarterbacks. Historically, and it kind of looked like that in the first half. You're like, you can't just run around. This doesn't really work in the playoffs.
Starting point is 00:30:17 Like, well, it kind of does. It kind of does. And now with, you know, assuming I haven't seen the injury report, I don't know if Andy talked this morning about gay, but with the neck injury, anytime you start losing linebackers, speedy linebackers against Lamar Jackson, you're at a huge disadvantage.
Starting point is 00:30:34 You're at a disadvantage if you have star linebackers playing Lamar because of what a great runner and athlete he is. But the moment he gains an advantage, you get backups in there. If he can run and pass, you got no shit. shot. So this is going to be fun. That game, you know, from a big picture historical legacy standpoint, listen, I'm still a sucker for some of this stuff because it does matter.
Starting point is 00:30:59 Those are the guy, we don't talk about the random players of the 80s. We talk about Elway, Marino, Montana, Kelly, Aikman, Farr, Steve Young, like that's who we talk about. Just like in this generation, in 20 years, the group we're going to talk about, led by Mahomes, is probably Lamar and Josh Allen. And then we'll see how this plays. out with some of the other cats. A Jalen, a Herb, Herbert, you know, some of these other guys. They got a long way to go. But like, how you play in these big moments are the way we talk about as we get older. It's the way our kids that are watching them right now, if you're 15 years old, you're going to remember the sport of football. It's like, listen, I love Peyton Manning,
Starting point is 00:31:37 loved him as a kid. He left a little to be desired in big games. He's not as good in cold weather. Like, that's something you never forget. He's got 85 MVP's. He won multiple championships. Like he had a top five career of all time. In NFL history, there's still things if you witnessed it, you don't forget. Right? And that's like right now, Josh Allen,
Starting point is 00:31:59 like, fuck, for whatever reason, they just can't, not all his fault, but they just can't, something's missing against the Chiefs. Maybe Lamar gets them. And if you beat Mahomes, it's something, that's a notch on your belt that no one can ever take away. Imagine an Olympics,
Starting point is 00:32:19 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.
Starting point is 00:32:41 Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clivert Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite
Starting point is 00:33:12 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.
Starting point is 00:33:39 Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network. on TikTok. 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.
Starting point is 00:34:01 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 podcast. Okay, you guys know the drill.
Starting point is 00:34:25 It's that time of day again. Little Middilkoff mailbag. Fire in my DMs. It's my Instagram account. At John Middlecoff is my Instagram. Got two Fs. Fire in those DMs and get your question answered here on the podcast. We'll start with Nathan.
Starting point is 00:34:41 My wife is a huge Giants fan, so I appreciated your intel on the Brian Dayball situation. No worries. Just here to pass along what I hear. But I have a question about another topic. We live in Houston, and I'm amazed to see the Texans turnaround this year. I fully agree with Colin and your recent hypothesis on the importance of offensive head coaches. My question, what do you think of what D'Amico is doing in Houston,
Starting point is 00:35:07 specifically with regards to sustainability in an offensive league? While easier said than done, the combination of an elite defensive mind motivator, coupled with a young star quarterback, seems ideal. And it has Houston excited for the first time. Also, Buddy's golf trip to Scottsdale, April 11th through the 15th in Scottsdale. Would love your thoughts on the best tracks? I'm a two handicapped. Dude can play.
Starting point is 00:35:32 Would happy buy you around and TPC? Well, hit me up. Maybe I'll see you there. I'm a member there, so I'll just come out and meet you. You don't need to pay for me. I would say TPC, Wicapau, Greyhawk are just, and Truon are ones. Now they're pricey. Depending on that time of year, might be a little cheaper.
Starting point is 00:35:52 But I would say that's kind of the group. TPC, Greyhawk, Trune, and Wika Pah. Week a paw. I think it's how you say it. I would say, listen, there are certain guys that transcend the offensive league, and Domingo is one of those. I would bet the house on Domingo Ryan's being a good head coach. Obviously, he had an incredible year.
Starting point is 00:36:12 He's been an awesome coach since he started coaching six years ago. I mean, the guy was born to do this. so I would say he's an outlier in a situation. I also think he has a unique relationship with the quarterback because he used to being a team captain. He's a natural leader. I think sometimes the defensive guys can be like the tough gruff guy. D'emico, while a former linebacker,
Starting point is 00:36:38 I think he's just natural with people. And I think that's why sometimes defensive head coaches but heads with the offensive guys because defense is about violence. and inflicting pain tackling people in space and sacking the quarterback where offense is about scheming
Starting point is 00:36:54 and I think Domeco is kind of this perfect blend I bet the house on Domingo Ryan I'll promise you that Question for the bag What are your favorite band's artists You strike me as a Metallica guy Why is it so common To say that losing a quarterback
Starting point is 00:37:13 Played a better game This week, that's all the talk about Jordan Love Did he, though? One quarterback had more completions and yards, no turnovers compared to loves, too, and led a game-winning drive in the rain without his top receiver. Not saying Purdy was great, he was clearly off, but helped me understand the mindset. Also, if you're ever in North Florida, bring your sticks, I'll take you disc golfing. My musical taste, yeah, I like Metallica a lot, probably not as much as Dan Campbell, but I would tend to lean.
Starting point is 00:37:45 I like everything. I would say if you're talented musician, like I can listen to R&B, I can listen to rap, I can listen to country, I can listen to rock, I can listen to old school stuff, I can listen to Motown.
Starting point is 00:37:56 But I would say the two things that I consistently listen to the most would be country music. I love country music. And grunch, like early mid-90s. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Allison Chains,
Starting point is 00:38:09 kind of that whole movement, right? Chris Cornell, anything he does, Sound Garden or Audio Slave, I'm big fan, Food Fighters. I like the grungy, like a little punk rock.
Starting point is 00:38:24 I loved rap as a kid. I don't listen to it as much now, but I still throw on the 90 stuff. I don't really vibe with kind of newer hip hop. Maybe it's just, you know, I grew up Snoop, M&M, Dr. Dre, kind of that crew of guys. E40, too short.
Starting point is 00:38:45 So it's like, if I'm going to listen, hip-hop. I'm not as in the mix with the newer crew. Mumble rap, not really my thing. It feels like R&B's dead. You know, that kind of Boys to Men era, 112. Like, I love R&B. Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston. I mean, you name it. Fuck. If you're talented, I listen to you. I never understand people that claim they really like music, but like, oh, I hate country music. So, no, no, you don't like all music. There's really not a genre of music that I don't like, besides maybe opera. I'm not an opera guy but if you have talent
Starting point is 00:39:20 I can listen to it long-winded way of saying love the show I've followed you and Colin religiously for numerous years I'm a past fan live in Montana and yes love football I could be totally wrong
Starting point is 00:39:37 but I want to see Buffalo win the Super Bowl in my humble opinion they need to fire McDermott and hire a guy who truly owns the division named Bill Belichick I believe he would love the challenge
Starting point is 00:39:48 give him the chance to go against the crafts and wonderful for media as he's back in, he has a quarterback and can set the win record in Buffalo. John, I'm out. Be pretty cool. Now, listen, I'm biased. I think Sean's pretty good coach.
Starting point is 00:40:05 And I think their personnel decisions, which he's a big part of, have let them down. Right? Truly. Because he gets credit this year for firing Ken Dorsey and going with Joe Brady. It was a huge swing for that franchise.
Starting point is 00:40:17 Joe Brady is better in Ken Dorsey. We all agree with that. But Bill Belichick's better than Sean McDermott. Like, you would rather have, if the teams are equal, Bill Belichick over Sean McDermin. I just don't think that's going to happen. And I do think, you know, from the ownership and, you know, an organizational standpoint, it's hard to just turn on them, right?
Starting point is 00:40:40 And I know you've lost several times in this situation, but I was listening to a day at the gym to Rosillo. And he was right, like, you're ultimately losing to Mahomes. Who's better than you? you're not losing to some equal or inferior opponent. Like some people, Michael Jordan beat everybody in the 90s. Did that age poorly? Like Charles Barkley couldn't beat Michael Jordan.
Starting point is 00:41:07 Malone and Stockton couldn't beat Michael Jordan. If they had lost to some other randos, like, oh, you know, Clyde Drexor got you. And then we'd be like, yeah, maybe they weren't true champions. It's like, fuck, you can't beat Michael Jordan. Welcome to the club. Right? So it's like, what are these?
Starting point is 00:41:22 supposed to do? I do think it would be cool, and it'd be fun. I just, I don't think it's going to happen. Do you think perhaps some folks are overreacting to the struggles with the Green Bay Packers? To me, Kyle's decision to sit as second-year quarterback for the second consecutive, two consecutive weeks heading into the playoffs. I go, well, they sat them. Okay, I see what you're saying, week 18 in the by week.
Starting point is 00:41:46 And then on top of that, establishing the run game early was the real blunder here, not establishing the runner. I understand how important health is down the street. but to me, Brock isn't to the point where he can be expected to sit 20 days and pick up right where he left off. Obviously, understanding sitting the guys like Kiddle, McCaffrey, Warner, ETC, but wanted to get your thoughts on if you can overrest young players. That game and that performance was not about rest, was not about 20 days off. He couldn't grip the football. He could not grip the ball.
Starting point is 00:42:22 So if you can't hit the, if you can't grip the ball, you have no shot. Right and for whatever reason this guy in rain has major issues If you're playing anyone that listens this likes golf like when you play in the US open and the rough is really high If you can't hit the fairway you will not win you will lose Hell you won't make the cut you have to hit the fairway Right in baseball you eventually got to throw strikes He could not grip the ball it was like a base part of the sport.
Starting point is 00:42:59 So to me it's hard to even judge, like, rusty or whatever. It's like, he could, he had no clue where the ball was going. I saw Steve Young tell Rich Eisen, like, he just had one of the most efficient seasons in NFL history. So, like, I actually was pretty confident that he would look normal, but I didn't understand, or I understood it because I saw it earlier this year. I guess I underestimated, I, you guys can't grip the ball in water.
Starting point is 00:43:25 That's just a fact. So I think it's less about water. What would that have changed? Like even if he had played every snap against the Rams week 18, I think we get the same outcome. I don't think it looks any different. Listener from Maryland, love the show. As a Ravens fan, both Monkin and McDonald most recently came from coaching college.
Starting point is 00:43:48 It's worked pretty well for us. Why don't more teams do this? Well, I would say McDonald, I'm pretty sure if we pull up his resume, he had been with you guys for a while. so he had been in the NFL. And then he only went with Jim Harbaugh for one year. So he didn't spend that much time in college. Obviously, Munkin was with Georgia, but he was in the NFL before that as well.
Starting point is 00:44:11 So he's bouncing around a little bit more. There was a rumor floating around yesterday that a lot of teams are interested in Chip Kelly to be their offensive coordinator. That one is a head scratcher to me. Like, this isn't 2012. Did you watch their quarterback situation this year? Kind of a disaster. It was not good.
Starting point is 00:44:33 The quarterback, five-star guy, was terrible. He immediately transfers and goes to Oregon. Their defense was good. They were a defensive team. So, yeah, I mean, if you have multiple backgrounds, totally understand being interested. Bill O'Brien can go both ways. Munkin can go both ways.
Starting point is 00:44:56 Minter and McDonald have coached at both levels. but I think sometimes just because a guy is an offensive guy like is Cliff Kingsbury should he be an NFL offensive coordinator I don't know I understand why he would rather be an offensive coordinator than a college offensive coordinator because you don't want to recruit but I think teams do it
Starting point is 00:45:17 you know I think when you look around the NFL you know Harbaugh had Fangio at Stanford you know Pete Carroll had a bunch of NFL guys with them that kind of go back and forth. So I just think it depends. Look at Nick Saban, right?
Starting point is 00:45:36 Steve Sarkeesian, who had been a coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons, or excuse me, started with him and then he went to the Atlanta Falcons, obviously Billy O'Brien and Brian Dayball,
Starting point is 00:45:47 Doug Nussmeyer. So I think Alabama's been doing it for a while. And Jim Harbaugh definitely doesn't. I guess we'd have to do like a study, but I think it happens probably more than you realize guys kind of jumping back and forth. The money's so big both spots.
Starting point is 00:46:01 It's like whoever pays you more. Two-part question. Should the Rams draft JJ McCarthy in the second or third round? I don't think he'd make him the third round. Sit him for two or three years and develop him under Stafford. If not McCarthy, then why not Justin Fields? Could definitely save his career and take off the pressure. I think financially it makes a much safer bet for Fields than going to Atlanta or some other dysfunctional organization.
Starting point is 00:46:31 it could really set them up for success. Like Colin says, Chase Great Management, which the Rams, I think any quarterback whose career is a little off kilter should always want to go to rehab. Should always immediately want to do that.
Starting point is 00:46:48 Right? Like Sam Darnold, I think Kyle said last week, that Sam Darnold turned down bad teams offering him more money to come to rehab. Carson went signing with Sean McVey. Last year, Baker Mayfield and Sean McVey.
Starting point is 00:47:05 Any young quarterback in a weird spot should want a piece of Andy Reid. If the Patriots are going to get rid of Mac Jones, Mac Jones should beg Andy Reed to give him a job. Beg him or Sean McVey or Kyle Shanahan. Beg them. So I'm with you, but a lot of guys don't think like that. And some people have to be humbled before they, it's easier to cross their mind, which I understand.
Starting point is 00:47:29 Like part of being a starting quarterback, there's an ego and a mindset that comes with that, it's hard to turn off. Fields is going to be a fascinating case study. You can tell him he gets traded for a second round pick and you can tell him he gets traded for like two fours. Because when you factor in his contract, like, I think we've seen recent mistakes of people making those trades. Sam Darnold was a good example. The Panthers traded for him. They picked him his fifth year option. They gave up a second round pick and they paid him a lot of money.
Starting point is 00:47:59 Same thing happened with Baker Mayfield. Picked up as, you know, the Browns ate some of that money, but the money aspect of everything complicates things. Why do you assume Dan Campbell and the Lions' offense will regress if we lose Ben Johnson? Goff's numbers actually improved the second half of the first season when Campbell called the plays. I think if Ben goes, I think he's going,
Starting point is 00:48:26 we will be just fine. Listen, I think we have to acknowledge that Ben Johnson is an elite coordinator. Is he going to be a good head coach? No clue. There is no guarantee going from a play caller, running half the team to being a good head coach. It's proven. There is no correlation.
Starting point is 00:48:43 We have seen guys that have never been an offensive or defensive coordinator. Andy Reed, John Harbaugh, be excellent coaches. Guys that have never called plays before in their life. Jim Harbaugh, be a good coach. But I think it is fair to wonder. is Dan Campbell as good of an offensive coordinator as Ben Johnson? I don't know if he's not, but as of right now, I think that would be a remarkable achievement,
Starting point is 00:49:12 and we would talk about Dan Campbell immediately. If he can call plays, like Ben Johnson's calling plays and lead the group like he leads, I mean, he's just a bigger version of Sean McVeyer or Cautianan. I mean, let's call a spade of spade there. So I agree he is not Siriani. I would rather have Dan Campbell than Nick Sirion. every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Starting point is 00:49:32 Not arguing, mentioned it on the podcast earlier. Not disputing that. But I do think it's fair to say that Ben Johnson might be a better play caller than him. Maybe they're so loaded now, it doesn't really matter. They're the talent on their team with Gibbs, Leporta, St. Brown, James and Williams gives them the deep threat, the offensive line, golf. Why is the talk surrounding Brock Purdy so much different than the talk surrounding almost every other quarterback in the league? I'll use the Packers game as an example.
Starting point is 00:50:04 After the game, all the talk around Jordan Love was immensely positive and framed as Love is a young stud who has a lot of promise. He made some mistakes, but he has a young and bright future. Meanwhile, the talk about Purdy was almost exclusively, look at all the limitations. He can't play in the rain and is holding his team back. Yeah, he made a game-winning drive, but what was really all Shanahan and lucky catches by the receivers?
Starting point is 00:50:29 was an incredible catch by Brandon Ayyuk. We should be concerned about the nineers moving forward. Before I finish, the rest of your question? Because in a vacuum, Jordan Love has physical attributes that Brock Purdy does not. He can throw the ball in the rain and at a velocity that Brock Purdy simply can't. I've said forever, like, I'm a big-armed quarterback.
Starting point is 00:50:54 I grew up in Pat Hill and Andy Reed. I like traits. So Brock Purdy would not be my cup of tea. But once you play and you play well, I can acknowledge he's a really good player. But if you told me bet on one, if I have, both teams have Kyle Shanahan or Matt LaFlor. So I know I get a good coach. I would take the guy with more traits. It doesn't mean there are things that Purdy doesn't do better than Jordan Love.
Starting point is 00:51:20 But this notion of like one guy threw picks, one guys didn't throw any. Couldn't you argue interceptions are a little random? Pretty hit Savage in the fucking hands Literally dotted him right in the numbers He would have walked into the end zone Hit him in the hands He dropped it He couldn't have been a worse pass
Starting point is 00:51:40 The passes all night Part of not playing well in weather Is pretty concerning So yeah he threw two picks They got caught by Dre Greenlaw Pretty could have thrown four They didn't get caught So listen
Starting point is 00:51:55 I think it's simply of like You're betting on a tools guy if you did the exercise, they pick up the phone, and they say, Jordan Love for Brock Purdy straight up. Kyle and LaFleur get on the phone. Matt LaFleur says no so fast your head spins. Kyle Shanahan might still say no. Him and John Lynch have a meeting.
Starting point is 00:52:16 And there are going to be people in the 49ers that would support that. Now, listen, there are things that you can't quantify with Brock Purdy. That is part of being a quarterback. from a mental toughness standpoint to ability to battle through when he's playing shitty because he was really bad like how can anyone watch that game
Starting point is 00:52:34 just watch that game and go God you know game winning drive the game winning drive yeah hit a couple passes which were impressive but the reason they were in that position is because the balls were flying all over the place
Starting point is 00:52:44 he was horrendous Kyle was even worse Kyle in a weird way was worse than Purdy in that game I'm getting increasingly more frustrated with narratives surrounding him due to him constantly moving the goalpost. No one's moving the goalpost.
Starting point is 00:52:58 He's a pro bowler. He almost won the MVP. And then he had a horrendous playoff game. Fucking horrendous. No one was voting. Jordan Love didn't make the pro bowl. Jordan Love, no one put him in the MVP discussion. I mean, he wasn't a 10-point favorite at home.
Starting point is 00:53:16 And he can't grip the bowl. One thing, one thing that I appreciate about Philly, is like they can be overly negative, but like when it's pretty clear, like everyone's on the same page, one problem with the 49er fan base sometimes is, is like,
Starting point is 00:53:36 and this is just the West Coast fan base, there's a lot of like glass half full, very positive people, which I respect, I try to be that way too, but like you always get pushed back when things turn negative, even when they're clearly negative.
Starting point is 00:53:48 It's like, give them the benefit of the doubt. Well, I did after a couple series, and then it just kept going on and on and on and on. I mean, what are we talking about? This isn't a narrative. The game happened. I like Brock Purdy. I have nothing but admiration for so far his career and how well he's played.
Starting point is 00:54:10 That game against the Packers, separating from what he's overcome, pick 262, starting quarterback, back-to-back NFC championship games, the stats he put up this year, how explosive he was during the season, that game was shitty. There's no other way to put it.
Starting point is 00:54:31 Kyle Shanahan, that game, he was bad. He was bad. It happens. Tiger Woods doesn't shoot under par every round. I'm not saying either one of those guys is Tiger Woods. But you know what I mean? You're allowed to have bad games. But when you have bad games, we can acknowledge it.
Starting point is 00:54:49 Josh Allen's getting crushing. He was awesome. in freezing cold temperatures. I think it's fair to go, like, why can't Brock Purdy grip the ball in the rain? How does that make any, it doesn't make any sense, but he can't. One thing I never understood with these big quarterback contracts
Starting point is 00:55:08 is they're sort of handcuffs the cap. I understand from your pods, but they can manipulate the cap hits, but the bill eventually comes due. So like, why wouldn't they just take less money and let the organization build an insane football team around them. Is it greed? So like the Bengals have Chase and Higgins that they want to keep around them,
Starting point is 00:55:29 but Chase needs an insane contract and Burrow has been paid. So, like, sorry Higgs, hit the bricks, right? Like, why not just take less money and keep rolling? Well, because I think Joe Burrow or Mahomes or anybody that's not Tom Brady would go, that's not my problem. You're paying the GM to build a football team. right and I know you can manipulate the cap like these last couple years Josh Allen's cap hit has all been in the teens so it's on Brandon Bean he's getting paid millions of dollars figure that shit out I'm not the GM this is not the NBA I'm not LeBron not mandating you sign people you do the best job like that's that's the coach and the GM's job right and ultimately I take a little less you're still manipulating the cap no matter what so and at any moment in this sport you can just get your leg shattered right I mean we all see the
Starting point is 00:56:24 the commercial with Alex Smith I mean that's worst case scenario but it does happen you just your career can end you can never be the same you can tear something that never recovers so and plus here's the elephant in the room is the agent the players are not having these conversations It's the agent. And I'm not trying to shit on agents because there are some good ones. And obviously, you need people to represent you when you don't know anything about contracts. But they are incentivized to get the most money humanly possible.
Starting point is 00:57:05 So they make the most money humanly possible. Right. So their incentives don't lie with the team and the success. While the players even somewhat does, right? Their incentives strictly for the money. that's not debatable question when the NFL season is over will you continue to podcast about offseason needs
Starting point is 00:57:27 and move into a little NBA even though no no NBA we will do football 365 and we will mix in golf you know what's crazy is like I went on my guy Ethan Strauss's podcast because he crushed the NBA for the rate I just don't watch the NBA anymore
Starting point is 00:57:44 and I've watched it my entire life I've watched, it's already almost February. I haven't watched the game start to finish. So I watch football and I watch golf. That's, you know, it's crazy. As you get older in life, you know, I used to watch so much sports in my teens and my 20s, even five years ago. When I worked in local radio, watched every warrior game, watch every Giants game,
Starting point is 00:58:09 you couldn't pay me to do that stuff right now. And luckily, I can make a lot of money doing what I'm doing now. because I can't watch things that I don't want to watch. I mean, I can't. Now, there are some nights I don't want to watch Thursday Night Football, but it's still football, and I still know everyone else is watching. So I've kind of, I'm just not your NBA guy. You know, and I'm not a huge, even though,
Starting point is 00:58:29 and I told a couple people this, I still consume a lot of basketball content. You know, I list some podcasts. I just don't watch the games. And seeing the ratings, most people don't either. So I just talk about what I like. And I'm just a huge golf guy. I gamble on golf.
Starting point is 00:58:44 So we'll do PGA Tour, go low stuff as the football season ends. And we'll do football, you know, through the free agency, through the draft. And like we do every year. So, yeah, the podcast will not slow down at all. But it's hard for me to talk about these other sports that I'm not watching. You know, I'm not, this isn't first take. I'm not trying to just include everything. We're just, and I'm playing that, you know, football, luckily, a lot of people care about it.
Starting point is 00:59:10 So we'll do that. Golf's a little bit of a passion project, though. I got some ideas from my old YouTube channel. But other than that, we might try to expand a little bit golf wise with some interviews. I love gambling on golf. I mean, that's a huge. I've gambled on every golf tournament so far this year. Can't help it.
Starting point is 00:59:26 I told myself I wasn't going to. The football started or ended, and then I just keep winning. Keep hitting some top tens. Been listening to you for a while now. I've noticed a point that you repeatedly emphasize in the teams should not be hiring head coaches that do not call plays. Young head coaches. Young head coaches. Like if Bill Belichick's available or John Harbaugh or Mike Tomlin or Jim Harbaugh totally get it.
Starting point is 00:59:52 I cannot hire a 43-year-old. I cannot hire Robert Sala or Nick Siriani at 42 years old and they can't call plays. I can't do it. I generally agree. However, I know you are defender of Dan Campbell. He called plays two years ago. And then he gave it to Ben Johnson. So like the guy that emailed earlier, like he called plays and the extra.
Starting point is 01:00:14 improved. I think he fired Anthony Lynn or demoted Anthony Lynn during the season. Maybe he kicked him off the staff. I can't totally remember. But he has shown he can do that. Nick Sirianic can't. He demoted himself. My issue is young coaches.
Starting point is 01:00:31 If I'm going to hire a guy, I'd argue under 50. I'm hiring you because you were just a coordinator. Then you just become the CEO. It's actually easier to be the CEO. In football, because you can blame other people. I was like, oh, it's not my problem.
Starting point is 01:00:47 Get on the coordinator. What offseason moves do the Packers need to make to get them over the hump and be an elite playoff contender? Well, I saw a headline today that Matt LaFleur wouldn't commit to Joe Barry. So this always gets to, before we make moves,
Starting point is 01:01:08 who's our coaches? Some of the teams don't have head coach right now. So I can't talk about anything with the organization so you've got a head coach. I think the Packers, we're going to look squarely at defense. Well, is Joe Barry coming back? Are they firing Joe Barry and they're getting a new defensive coordinator? Because then I think that changes.
Starting point is 01:01:25 Well, if they get a new defensive coordinator, what scheme does he run? What type players does he like? So before we can say, well, they need to get this player. Who's calling the defensive plays? And until we know Joe Barry status, which I think is fair to say is up in the air, then yeah. I'm a Bears fan watching the Ravens dismantle the Texans in a high-pressure playoff game. and I keep asking myself how on earth does anyone in the Bears management or the coaching staff think we can't compete with these guys?
Starting point is 01:01:50 And how does my idiotic fan base think drafting a wide receiver will be the difference maker? Keep Justin Fields or trade them, draft Caleb or don't, hire the best staff or don't, we have zero shot unless we land a stellar coach like Jim Harbaugh, who can button up our squad and bring a winning culture and mentality? How come teams like the Ravens and even historically pitiful Texans can get out of their own way and become great? while the bears can't swallow their pride and open their wallets to get the best coaching and quarterback duo in Harbon-Kaleb in decades and at least have a chance to compete.
Starting point is 01:02:25 I think this gets back to the setup in that organization. Once they named Kevin Warren the president and everyone answers to him, that he's not going to want to change. He wants to get people that can function under him. I heard Michael Lombardi, or maybe, Bill Simmons or someone talking like why do the Atlanta Falcons keep interviewing all these other people well if you're rich McKay and Terry font now do you want Bill Belichick in your building of course not who do you think Arthur Blank's going to listen to if he hires Bill Belichick
Starting point is 01:03:02 as their coach those guys opinions hey uh Arthur this is uh rich mackay I got a couple philosophical beliefs on football that I think we should implement to our team or you think they're going to listen to Bill. So of course that they're interviewing all these coordinators. Because once you hire a coordinator, even if he's a highly thought of coordinator, they are going to have to answer to people. And they will.
Starting point is 01:03:29 Bill won't. So I think this gets back to the Bears. If they would have fired him, there would have been a ton of pressure to go hire Jim Harbaugh. Well, we already know that Jim Harbaugh can't stand Kevin Warren. Because Kevin Warren wanted to cancel football. for what he wanted to do, which aged about as poorly as some milk when you leave it outside.
Starting point is 01:03:51 Jim Harbaugh can't stand that guy. I actually think a lot of football administrators, right, commissioners, those guys in college football, I would red flag. I wouldn't want to work with them either. Now, it doesn't mean there aren't some good ones. Clearly, Greg Sankey's pretty impressive. Right? But we have a long line of seeing guys.
Starting point is 01:04:13 is like, yeah, I don't know if I'd trust that guy. From Larry Scott to that guy. And now that guy gets to run an NFL team? It seems insane to me. The GM has to answer to that guy? Ryan Poles, who learned under Andy Reed and Brett Veach and John Dorsey, answers to that guy? So it starts at the top.
Starting point is 01:04:34 And the owners allow the shit to happen, and then they find themselves in these situations. If you tell me at the combine that Kevin Warren is in the room, I won't be shocked at all. will not be shocked at all. If at the Combine, Kevin Warren is part of these interviews. So he can go back to the ownership and tell him his opinion.
Starting point is 01:04:52 Even though if that guy fails, he'll blame the coach and the GM. It's the most incredible spot to be in. That's where Belichick's, that everything's on their plate. Pete Carroll, Andy Reid, we get to run football. So when anything fails, it's on us.
Starting point is 01:05:09 But when we succeed, it's also us. You don't get to take the credit. Owner does, but not some press. president guy. I mean, we're all in this together, but you don't get to, like, dip your toe in, half in, half out. Either do the business stuff and separate, or just basically be the pseudo-general manager, because that's what you want to do, because that's how you get famous in football. So I think it gets back to the Bears, you know, the way they've set up their organization. Something that I think the Chargers are dealing with right now. It would be very interesting
Starting point is 01:05:37 to hear some of these conversations with Jim Harbaugh and the Spanos family. Like, I don't want to answer to anybody. This is my baby. This is what I want to do. Which is risky, too, because some coaches can do weird stuff when it comes to the draft. The volume. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends.
Starting point is 01:06:06 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.
Starting point is 01:06:35 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. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me.
Starting point is 01:07:04 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the... 80s. 84 was a wild year.
Starting point is 01:07:19 It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.

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