The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - NFL Week One, Superstar Holdouts, Deion Dazzles, Incredible College QB Talent

Episode Date: September 6, 2023

John gives NFL fans one important thing to keep in mind for week one of the season, and praises two NFL stars for holding out for better contracts. He reveals one of the biggest secrets to Deion Sanders’ success, explains why Florida State could win the national championship, and the reason NFL quarterback rooms could experience a purge next year. He also answers listener questions in the Middlekauff Mailbag. 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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you get your podcasts. What is going on, everybody, John Middilcock with the re-and-out podcast. How are we doing? Happy Tuesday. Hopefully everyone had a good long weekend, enjoyed themselves, saw some family, chilled by the pool, had some bruskees, and washed a little football. It's back. College football's often running. Obviously, the National Football League. as all the coaches and executives often say to make themselves sound smart. Can't say NFL. You see the National Football League returns Thursday. So we will dive into some NFL stuff.

We still got some holdouts as of recording this podcast, as well as some takes from college. I went on with Colin. I'm sure you guys saw that yesterday. And here's the game plan. I think we'll have a podcast every day this week. Today's a pretty big podcast as well as with a mailbag at John Middlecoff is the Instagram, at John Middlecoff as the Instagram

firing those DMs. We'll have a lot of mailbags this week. I'll probably do a preview pod of just picking the divisions, picking the winners, picking maybe a Super Bowl pick as well on Thursday. And then we will have Friday reaction to Thursday night as well as some other stuff for Sunday. So we're going to have a lot of podcasts.

We're going to have a lot of content. I mean, football's back. This is what I do. Talk about football. So why not just do podcasts all the time? That's the game plan. Today is a pretty big one just because I had a lot to say.

And other than that, if you're listening on Collins feed, make sure you subscribe with three and out feed. Appreciate everyone that has. Thevolume.com. Check out merch. We got three and out hats. And other than that,

let's buckle up, baby. I mean, it doesn't get any better than this. Fall, football, gambling, and just spending so much time on our couch that we question, is this healthy? and you always get back to, yes, there's no place I'd rather be than watching this football game.

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J-O-H-N, $20 off for the first pair of tickets. Cannot recommend it enough. The NFL's back, baby. The NFL is back. We are, depending on when you listen to this, just a couple days away from a game. It doesn't get any better than that. And we've talked a lot on this podcast about the success of the NFL, about the widening gap of football separating from the other sports.

Football is now the NFL specifically the number one television show in America. If I would have told someone this back in the 70s, the 80s, the 90s, when we just had some incredible television hits, you wouldn't have believed me. But the world's changed. And football, this iteration of it is perfectly made for 2023. Gambling, fantasy, the scarcity of the inventory. Because at the end of the day, you're only playing once a week. So even if you play on a short week Thursday, Sunday, Monday, whatever, just play one game a week. And you cannot fake importance.

You saw it this weekend in college football. you'll definitely see it immediately in these NFL games starting Thursday night, but then all day, Sunday, and clearly Monday night. Every game feels like it matters. And I was lucky enough to work in the NFL as well as college football and the ebb and flow of a game week. There's nothing quite like it. And there's nothing like the high of winning. And one thing I will never, ever miss is the shitty feeling of losing. And it's why we love football is because of.

the way our excitement leads into a game and our reactions after it. And because of the scarcity of the amount of games, the reaction on Monday to what we just witnessed, it matters. The hyperbole that come from other sports is like, how can you have a true take in the middle of June in baseball? You get another game tomorrow. He could easily snap a streak tomorrow and go on a five-game homer streak

or a pitcher or in basketball. It's like half the players in the league don't even care about this. given game in January. Yet in football, everyone cares. Us the fans, whether you're playing fantasy, whether you're gambling, whether you just love the team because you have your entire life to the coaches who dedicate 100-hour work weeks to the players who lay it all in the line. It all matters. And listen, it feels like in the summer and definitely in the spring, it's like, God, when is football going to come back? And it feels so far away. And then it comes back and you're like, God, I'm glad this is back.

And there's nothing like the NFL. I like college a lot. I watch a stupid amount of college football for someone that doesn't have a team. But I like the NFL dramatically better. It's just a better product because every team in the NFL except a couple, every fan base right now, you think your team has a chance. Now, that changes over the course of the season. But if you're a Bears fan, if you're a Packer fan, if you're Atlanta, falcon fan, if you're a dolphin fan, if you're any fan except like the Arizona

Cardinals or maybe the Houston Texans, you feel like, why can't we be the 70th? Why can't we, maybe we can't win the division, but like, why can't we win 10 games? Why can't we be in the playoffs? And who knows, it's football. This isn't a seven-game series. I'm not playing Michael Jordan here. One game, 60 minutes. Why can't we win it?

And it happens. You saw it last year with Seattle, with the New York Giants, with the Mike. Miami Dolphins. Things changed so fast in the NFL. Like in college football, like, yeah, you can win six, seven, eight games, have a fun season. But you know you got no shot at the playoffs. That's not the way in the NFL, right? Because we've seen so many times some of those teams with the Giants, the wildcar teams, go on to win the Super Bowl. Crazy shit happens.

But the most fun part about the sport is that you know when you give your time, and that's the most valuable asset we have in our lives, that they give. you a lot that obviously there are going to be some games throughout the season that I don't care if you're the best team in the league or the worst team in the league where it feels like it's like what is going are they trying but for the most part you're riveted you're on the edge of your seat because they're giving you everything they have and the players laying it all on the line the entertainment value of the league I love to gamble never been a big fantasy football guy I know a lot of you guys play fantasy we all have a different iron in the fire of our

interest and just a love of the sport. Obviously, more people play this sport in junior high and high school than any other sports is based on the numbers. Right. In high school basketball, you can only have so many guys on the team. Even a baseball team, if you got 25, 30 guys on a high school baseball team, you got double the amount playing high school. And if the last time you ever played football was in junior high or high school, it's something you never forget, the camaraderie of the coaches, of your teammates, of how hard it is, physical. physically demanding it is and how much time you put in throughout the week to just attempt to win one game. And you're going to see it's going to be on full display on Thursday night. The Chiefs have been to three Super Bowls in the last five years. They've won two of them. And they're going to throw the fucking kitchen sink at the Lions.

This is going to mean a ton to Andy, a ton to Patrick Mahomes. The Lions are trying not to be one of the laughing socks of the league anymore. They're trying to be a legitimate operation. I'm probably going to pick them to win that division. But the thing with football, no matter how much work, no matter how much hype, no matter how many draft picks you have, no matter how many guys, you read stories about this guy and that guy and this guy's ascending and we think we got this diamond in the fourth round, eventually got to play the games. And we all get to see it because the majority of people don't even go to a practice, right, during training camp. So they're just reading and watching and listening. We all get to watch the games.

And it's unlike any other business that is on that level, right? It's a billion dollar business. It's one of the biggest businesses currently in America. It's definitely the most popular entertainment product we have in terms of television. But it's very black and white. Either win or you lose. No one gives a shit how many draft picks you hit on if you win six games. Just like no one cares how many draft picks you miss on if you win 13.

The whole point of the entire thing that we do, that we talk about, that we love, that we watch is about the games on. Sunday, starting Thursday and obviously Monday as well. And your team winning that game. I mean, that's the whole point of it. And I think, and listen, I love the drama around the league. I love the transactions around the league. I love breaking down the coaches. But we judge John wins and we criticize you on the losses.

And I'm as excited for this season. I expect it to be a massive season. The league's in a very healthy spot with the, you know, we've gotten rid of Brady, Breeze, Manning. Aaron Rogers is coming down the home stretch, but the amount of young talent that have come in at that position from Mahomes to Allen to Burrow to now Trevor Lawrence to Herbert to Jalen Hertz, Lamar, the exciting element that they all bring in different forms and fashion feel very good about the, you know, short-term health of the league and short-term the next three, four, five years of those guys kind of carrying the torch. That's exciting. We got a lot of good young coaches. We still got some older coaches that are, you know, not going to.

going to go away quietly. It just doesn't get any better in football. It definitely doesn't get any bigger than football in terms of sports in, you know, in America. And as someone that does this for a living, there's nothing like the games. I love all the other stuff that surrounds it.

I obviously now dedicated my life and make my living to talking about it. But, and I like talking about a good training camp story as much as the next guy, but nothing beats reacting to a game and having. a take or a thought off a situation that came from the game. And it's finally here. And thank God. A couple of football things.

As I'm recording this, this could change by the time you're listening to this. We have two major holdouts by two teams that, I mean, you'd be crazy to not pick the chiefs on a yearly basis. And obviously, the Niners are a very sexy pick to always compete to either be in the championship game or to be a Super Bowl pick for a lot of people. and two of their better players are both not, I mean, just no shows. Obviously, the Chiefs play in 48 hours, and the 49ers have an enormous game on Sunday, not in terms of like make or break their season, but I mean, playing the Pittsburgh Steelers,

who I view as a Super Bowl contender. And neither guy, Nick Boser or Chris Jones are in. And I will commend both guys because, and I've always said this about the running backs. It's about comps. It's about comps. It's why the tight ends and linebackers get screwed because the comps and the contracts at their positions never get high. But now the positions that I don't think anyone can deny that is not just eclipsing

$30 million, but is heading as the number two position behind the quarterbacks is the pass rushers. We all agree to that. Fans, coaches, general managers, owners, no one even attempts to deny their importance, their value, and how impossible it is to not be an elite team without one of these guys. You have to have a difference maker on your front. Most good teams now have several. But Chris Jones and Nick Bosa are clearly elite players.

There is no denying that. And I commend those guys because the only way you gain leverage in business, I don't care what industry you're in, when you truly have the leverage and both these guys have some, simply because of the level of play that they bring to the table, is by saying no. No is the most powerful thing you can say in business. No.

Nope. Nope. Nope. Yeah, that doesn't look right. No. When you say that and anyone listening to this that has ever been in the position where they have some juice in their side of the negotiation, whether that be in a business acquisition, whether that be in a hiring situation, when you're in the position that's trying to get something done and you hear no and you know you need the other side, it's powerful, man. And those two guys are clearly constantly saying, nope, that's not good enough. That's not high enough. That's not enough guaranteed money.

And while I totally agreed with the team side when it came to the running back, I agree with these sides. Screw the comps. If I'm Nick Bosa, you're telling me that Kyler Murray, who they have to put clauses in his contract to watch film, is worth $165, $170 million guaranteed. and you want me to sign a contract for $110 million guaranteed. And here's the other thing, especially for Nick Bosa.

I'm sorry, guys, there's a California tax in this. I didn't have any room to argue when it came to my rookie contract. It's slotted. But this is what I do. And to me, net income, I always hear like people like, oh, I would take that money with taxes, whatever. It's easy to say when it's not your money until when I say, okay, I'm going to give you $100 million. But the difference of after taxes and net income,

income and gross income is in California, it's 13%. So if I'm giving you $100 million and obviously you get taxed where you played, we're talking about a difference of $10 million in your pocket. I don't care who you are. $10 million net income, if you're not Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk, is a shitload of money. So if I'm Nick Bosa, not only am I arguing, I don't care about the comps. And one, there hasn't been a pass rusher who hasn't signed a free agent deal. Aaron Donald was just extended, but my brother, Miles Garrett, that was a while ago.

Like, I want, one, the factor of just like inflation in terms of the salary cap going up, but two, like, I'm in California and I'm getting taxed through the wazoo. So one, when I look at some of these average quarterbacks signing these enormous deals, I'm going, I need a lot of my contract guaranteed. So let's just say 125 million of it guaranteed. But then because of the place we play, I want to. want a little California tax on top of that. And every time that you guys say, well, the number we're coming with is smaller, I'm going

to say, no, that's not good enough. What the fuck are you going to do? Because I'll promise you this, you're eventually going to need me. And I know that. You have no chance to win a Super Bowl without me. So am I prepared to, you know, miss a game? Clearly I am. I've gone this far.

And maybe by the time you're listening to this, they have signed. But I think both these two players kind of realize the best. leverage you can have and hold that. And this speaks for the running backs too. Do not show up if you are truly value. The problem with the running backs is people just move on. The Pittsburgh Steelers did it years ago with Levion Bell. But with a player like Nick Bosa, with a player like Chris Jones, that's basically impossible. There is no replacing that guy. There is no, de-line by committee to fill in their stats. Like, no. And these guys know it. And whenever you get to the level of a player, who is just an all-time great offensive tackle,

an all-time great pass rusher. The only leverage you truly have is not showing up and constantly, when they send you numbers saying not good enough, you need to go higher. And I think these guys have played it right. From a business standpoint, they've drawn a line in the sand,

and you've got to make the other side uncomfortable. And I think, obviously, the chiefs have been, but clearly the 49ers, it's working. And I think Nick Bosa, if I'm him, like, I don't even fault even with, and listen, I'm, I've said contracts are based on comps, like, we're blowing through this comp. There is no comp for me with my importance to your team and just look at other players, right? Are you telling me that some of these average quarterbacks?

Because that would be my thing. Because no one would trade Kyler Murray straight up for Nick Bosa if they had Nick Bosa. Nobody, not a soul. So like, I start playing that game. And most players, you get laughed at because it's a team front office league. They have all the leverage. There are certain players, obviously the top quarterbacks and the occasional non-quarterback. Micah Parsons will be one of those guys.

Nick Bosa is one of those guys. For a long time, Aaron Donald was. He said, yeah, I'm going to retire. If you don't essentially guarantee the rest of my contract and add $10 million on top of that per year. I know I'm making 20, but I want 30 and I want it all guaranteed. And he got it. Why? because he's Aaron Freakandtdonnell, one of the great players of all time at the most important

position. And that's Nick Bosa. So sometimes in business, you got to draw a line in the stand and make the other side uncomfortable. And I think clearly they're doing it. And most players aren't willing to do that. And most players don't have the leverage or the juice to do that. But Bosa does. And Chris Jones does as well. Because okay, Kansas City, if you're not willing to pay me what I think I'm worth, someone is. So if you think the 28, like that's making you uncomfortable, even if I'm not asking for 30, if you think, like, listen, the way we've built our books, big picture, you know for a fact, you could easily trade me for one and a couple twos, and someone else is willing to cut me that contract. You know that.

We all do. It's not even debatable. So I like both these guys, just making things uncomfortable because that's what elite players, just like elite people in any industry, should do if they want more money. And then last but not least, we'll dive into some of the matches. later this week. I think week one can be very, very tough to kind of gauge. You know, you have just, it's football, so you got a lot of player turnover.

You have so many different just core guys changing teams, either free agency or trades because of salary cap issues. You have so many new coordinators at new spots. I mean, think the Eagles were second best team in the league last year. They got a new coordinator on offense and defense, right? Russell Wilson was one of the worst players in the NFL. he's got a brand new head coach who's also the play caller. So you see it all over the league.

I mean, the Raiders were terrible last year. They lost all these onescourt games. They got a new quarterback. Same with Derek Card. Now he's with the saints. Like, how are these teams going to look? No one truly knows. Some teams with some experience, you go, God, they look pretty good in the preseason.

I feel pretty confident that Steelers are going to be solid. But we've learned time and time again to be very careful with the preseason. Good and bad. Like, I'm out on Carolina after I watch them play. But part of that is like, can they block? anybody. But if you told me that Carolina actually ends up going 7 and 10 or somehow wins eight games, it's not the

craziest thing, right? I think the one year the Lions didn't win a game, they ran the table in the preseason. So you've got to be very careful about overreacting to the preseason. The other thing is the NFL college football is kind of this combination of the Jimmy's and the Joe's and

the X's and the O's, but it kind of leans with the Jimmy's and the Joe's. Like, if I got Jalen Carter or I got Travis Hunter or I got Caleb Williams, you're just not stopping them. We're in football, you can have great players, but if your coach is a fucking dingbat and can't scheme guys open

and can't figure out how to take advantage, it's a chess game. It's why the coaches work such long hours because they're scheming. In college football, they work long hours because they're recruiting. And that's why Lincoln, or not Lincoln Riley,

but Urban Meyer was such a joke. He's a recruiter. He's a motivator. He's not a schemer. So he came to the NFL that is a scheme-oriented business, and his motivation tactics felt like they weren't really resonating. And scheme-wise, it was over his head. Where I think when you look around the NFL,

the best coaches are always scheme-oriented, right? Or great motivators, and they have great coaches underneath them. But when you look at week one, I do think it's very, very hard to gauge. Typically, from a gambling standpoint, a lot of underdogs win. it also doesn't define your season. We have seen teams have terrible week ones and be fine, right? Because I think it's much more difficult now to find out your identity, especially if you have new coaches.

I think the Vikings have Brian Flores, the Miami Dolphins get Vic Fangio. Those are two of the better defensive coordinators. Was that truly going to show week one? Or is that something that comes to fruition more by the time you're in early November, you start seeing their impact? Because let's face it, you have no double days in training camp. Every three or four days is a mandatory off day by the NFLPA.

That's a great, great bargaining chip. The NFL owners just took more money. They're like, yeah, we'll give you how many off days you want? Five out of seven, more money for us. That's a win for you, win for us. I mean, it's just, it was terrible negotiation by DeMora Smith, but that's a different conversation. But my point here is that week one is really fun,

just because we have football that matters. but I think when trying to figure out what your team, like I know what Andy Reed or Kyle Shanahan's team are going to look like. But there are a lot of teams like even Gino Smith in Seattle. We know what Pete Carroll likes to do, but is he just going to be able to sustain that? Right, Belichick, new coordinator, Bill O'Brien, what is their offense going to look like?

Because in the preseason, you just kind of run your plays. You're not scheming plays against their looks. You're just running the plays that you've been practicing that is the base of your offense or your defense. You're just calling defensive plays on third and eight that you typically would call on third and eight. But it's not a schemed look where this entire week, starting with Chiefs Lions, going into the weekend, are schemed ideas. Now, because the new coordinators and a lot of transition in football with both coaches and players, you're taking educated guesses. It's not the same as by October and I got a month of film of knowing what your strengths and weaknesses are and knowing what you like to do.

because it also changes year to year. We know Mahomes is going to throw to Kelsey, but like, is Guy more legitimate player this year? Is he an impact guy? Is Isaiah Pacheco just the same guy? Is he a better version? Right?

Or they, you know, more running back by committee. You just never know until you see it. And that's, to me, week one is much more in this current kind of set up of the NFL, of a feeling out process. And then by the end of the month, you kind of get an idea,

the identity of your team, what you might need to work on, what a player that's not living up to the hype that eventually is going to get benched, and you kind of see the transition throughout the season of the starting lineup, right? Because most teams, and the other thing is injuries can happen at any moment.

You get guys on the pup, guys coming back. The cool part about week one is that we just got football, but in terms of knowing a team and knowing what a team's going to look like, good or bad, like, you tell me the Arizona Cardinals. Everyone, I've heard everyone say this, The Arizona Cardinals are going to get worked by Washington. We see all the time a team that ends up winning.

The Chicago Bears drafted one overall last year. Obviously, they traded the pick, but they were the first overall team in the draft order. They won week one. They beat the 49ers in Trey Lance. What did that happen? The 49ers won 13 games and we're in the NFC championship. Hey, well, let's transition to college football. And the story of the weekend is easily Dionne Sanders.

And remarkable game. As I told Colin, that's why football's king. You can't fake that entertainment. I like a little more defense, but I'm not going to even pretend that that wasn't incredible. That is why football is the number one television show. It doesn't get any better. And college football is the number two sport in America. Don't ever get that twisted.

College football dominates rating-wise. There's a huge gap, as we talked about earlier, between the NFL and everyone else. College footballs do. In that game, I haven't seen the numbers, but I would imagine they're huge. but Dion Sanders. I'll never forget when I worked for the Eagles. Our special teams coach was Bobby April. He's worked in the NFL or worked.

He's retired now. Worked in the NFL for decades. His son is currently the defensive coordinator for Stanford. Coach, you know, lastly for Jim Leonard with Wisconsin, his lineback coach, really good young defensive coach. But his dad was awesome.

One of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. And my role, when you work internally, you know, maybe they've gotten bigger now, but most of these personnel departments aren't that big in-house. You get a lot of scouts on the road. So they give you a lot of different roles. And I used to help the special teams coach out doing kind of stuff that the position coach doesn't want to do, right?

Hang times, jot down numbers, who lines up where, a week in advance. Just make the process easier for him once we game plan on a weekly basis. And once you start doing that, you end up interacting with the guy a lot. And me and Bobby April used to talk. all the time. And then even when I was in radio, he became the special teams coach for the Raiders. Talk to him a lot. And I'll never forget him telling me a story because I used to ask him about different coaches and different players. And he coached in the early 90s for the Atlanta Falcons, 91, 92, 93. So I used to ask him, like, what was it like coaching Dion Sanders?

Because Dion Sanders at the time was one of the bright young stars in the league. This was before he went to the 49ers and the Cowboys and became Super Bowl champ, absolute legend. But he was easily one of, if not the most electric players in the league. And this is at the time when Dion was like on TV, NFL network, no one thought that he was going to become some college coach, right, at Colorado, let alone Jacksonville State, right? Jackson State, excuse me. But Bobby April used to tell me, he's like,

you know the biggest misconception with Dionne Sanders? Because he's so loud, he's so cocky. And, you know, let's face it, can rub people the wrong way, is he was easily one of my favorite players I've ever coached in my entire career. not because he was great. Obviously, that's always fun, coaching great players, but because of how much he cared. And because of his work ethic, he said,

he'd always sit in the front of the meetings. He took incredible notes. He'd stay after at practice and his practice habits were elite. And I would imagine if you just ask the casual fan, what do you think Dion Sanders' work ethic like was as a player? I would imagine a lot of people, if you just did some poll, would be like, oh, Dion was so, had so many God gifts.

It was easy for him just to kind of cruise. Well, it turns out, dude had like a Kobe Bryant, maniacal desire to be great at football. It's why him and Michael Irvin are such good friends, right? When you just bring up Michael Irvin, who's currently getting sued, which feels like bullshit, but like his history as a player, you know, hookers, blow, a lot of crazy stuff, you ask anyone, and I've been lucky enough to be around people that have played with Michael Irvin, his work ethic and practice elite. Like, you usually don't get great at anything, whether it's football, whether it's radio,

whether it's real estate, whether it's construction, if your work ethic isn't top-notch. That's typically how you separate. Most people aren't just like naturally gifted to the nth degree at a very competitive industry just to maintain that. You have to be a grinder. And you've got to be usually pretty passionate about what you're doing. And the way he described Dionne Sanders to me was just the ultimate football guy, like the way when we describe Brady or we describe Peyton Manning or we describe Ray Lewis

or now some of the great young players in the league, right? They just love football, they're junkies, they study it nonstop, they're obsessed. That was Dion Sanders as a player. So when you look at him as a coach, there was a moment in that game against TCU that really jumped out to me is there was a player down. I forget, I think it was a TCU guy, and Dion Sanders had come out to talk to the player on the ground, and Sunday Dykes was there as well. And this was, the game was well in the balance, like third quarter, tight game.

I forget, Colorado, my mind. even had the lead at the time. Obviously, TCU came back. It was a back and forth game. And Sonny Dykes, who was just literally in the national championship, Dion kind of hugs him. And you could tell they're talking. Sunny Dykes, and I've met him a couple times when he was the coach of Cal,

it's just an old school Texas football guy. His dad was a coach. He's a coach. Just when you see Sunny Dykes, when you talk to Sunny Dykes, sunny Dykes is his football, football, Dean can relate to football guys. Why? He's an old school football guy.

This offseason, definitely in training camp, but I'm pretty sure they did in spring ball. as well. Most of these teams, right, in college football, indefinitely in the pros, there is no tackling to the ground. When you scrimmage in the NFL and at even all the Power 5 schools, they are doing what's equivalent like thud. And what thud is, is like the padded version of two-hand touch. You kind of hit, but there's no wrapping up, you kind of tap them, and the guy keeps moving. It's why if you watch, if you've never been to a NFL practice, if you've watched NFL network, there'll be clips of kind of guys colliding in practice, and then the running back or the

wide receiver or the tight end just keeps on running because you're not tackling the guy to the ground, right? Well, Dion Sanders tackled to the ground. I think we look at Dion Sanders as like this progressive young hip coach. And obviously when it comes to recruiting, he's got a lot of that. Think who taught him, one of the truly great recruiters in the history of sport, Bobby Bowden. That's where he learned from when he played as, you know, at Florida State back in whatever, late 80s. So Dion and his personality, he was going to be a natural recruiter. But I think people looked at him like, ah, corner. One of the things Dion used to say, like, they don't pay me to tackle. Deon's, I don't even blame him that he's right.

They pay him to cover. But like when I watch Deon Sanders, he actually relates and has much more in common with Belichick and Sabin in terms of the way he views football. Now, obviously the way they play, they don't have Georgia, LSU. Florida State's personnel on defense. So for them to be successful, they're going to have to score points. But I've always said this about Lincoln Riley. I question his ethos and his belief how important recruiting defensive players were. I watched USC when they were great.

That was in my football-loving college life. And I watched a team full of NFL players at every fucking position, D-Line, linebacker, and DB for almost a decade with Pete Carroll. That's what it takes to win Natty's. No one else has won a national championship out west because the defense is always a question mark. Dion will value that. I promise you that. But the other thing with Dion, when you view him as like this outspoken, he just, I think on social media, he feels very 2023.

When it comes to football, he has much more in common with like 1993. And I'll promise you this. If you've watched the clips of him addressing the team, he's got that down pat. And two other things really stand out to me. be a great head coach when you are like he's not going to be one of the coordinators. Obviously, if he was, he'd be the defensive coordinator. But he's going to be a CEO head coach. Think John Harbaugh, think Mike Tomlin, think now Nick Saban.

But when you are that, you have to hire really well. It's very incumbent on you to hire the right guys. Well, he got last year the Kent State head coach left that job to become his OC. And there were multiple plays in that game. One was in the red zone that led to a touchdown. and another on like a third and five that was like, this guy's really scheming it up. Obviously, there were some plays with Chatur and Travis Hunter

where there was just some like, hey, our jimmies and the Joes are going to beat your jimmies and the Joe's? And that's a huge part of college football. For as great as saving this, for as great as Kirby Smart is, for as great as that scumbag phony Urban Meyer is, they've always had the great jimmies and the Joe's, as well as their exes and the O's.

And when they get to the biggest moments, they got the better players. So that's a huge part of college football. This is not the NFL, but you still need to be able to scheme. You still need to be able to dial it up. And right now I watched Dion Sanders' offensive coordinator. What a hire. And that's happening a lot more now.

Like I say, Bo Baldwin, this guy used to be the offensive coordinator, head coach at Eastern Washington, became the head coach at Cal Poly, left that job to become the offensive coordinator at Arizona State. Because it's easier for that guy to get a Power 5 job, not through a smaller school, but being the OC at a bigger school. And the other thing is, Dion knows talent. Like, Dion knows talent. I would imagine anyone could recruit Travis Hunter, right?

I'm not not giving them credit for that. You deserve credit for establishing the relationship. But every team that's worth their salt in the country, Clemson, Florida State, Bama, Georgia, you name it, wanted that guy. But I watched a bunch of other guys. They had a second wide receiver number 10, the little running back that Dion's known forever. Obviously, the million dudes they've landed in the transfer portal.

like Dion and his crew can identify players. They deserve a lot of credit for that. And this whole business now with this transfer portal, evaluation, like landing a guy from a smaller school, bringing over a guy, like the one thing that I thought was kind of stupid. And I get why they're saying it. But Dion and Shador acting like,

I was just at the HBCU, I'm an HBCU players. Like go Google Shador's rival.com. Obviously he was going to go play for his dad. He would have gone to the SEC or Florida. to State. Those are the schools that were sniffing around. Now, he's clearly better. Anyone that says, like, I knew he was going to be this. I watched a lot of Jackson State BS. People were not watching Jackson State. I'm not saying people didn't. I watched last year their

conference championship game, but on the whole, we consume, we just don't consume that level of football. That's just the fact that we've all seen the ratings. Right. Now, you also didn't know how it was going to look once he got to this level and he was remarkable. And Travis Hunter playing seven million plays in that game, those two guys. This other notion, and we'll get into Florida State here in a second, Colorado was never going to win the national championship. Definitely not this year. Because to win a national championship, you have to play defense.

It's the only way possible. You've got to be able to tackle. You've got to be able to rush the faster. And most of the schools in the country, that includes all the conferences, SEC as well, are not great defenses, right? Think of who's good at defense in this country. Georgia, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin has. been with Jim Leonard. I always had some teams. Florida State. You just kind of go around,

right? But you can win eight to ten games depending on your schedule if your defense is average at best, honestly a little below average, if your offense is elite. Look at TCU. They made the national championship last year because they could score points. And TCU is still going to win a bunch of games because they can score points. So do I view Colorado as like some playoff contender? I know. But do I view them as a team? that could win nine games, is it going to be hard for them to physically handle Utah and Oregon? 100%. But can they beat the overwhelming, and even USC?

But can they beat the other teams? For sure. I mean, I expect them to win this week by probably like 10, 15 points because you'd be like, well, kind of a letdown spot to Nebraska. Boulder, Colorado is going to look like fucking LSU at night, even though it's a 10 a.m. kickoff plate's going to be bananas because of prime. Prime is what we call in business a cash cow. Jim Harbaugh's that.

Sabin's that. Kirby Smart's now that. Belichick was that for 20 years. Andy Reed is that. Pete Carroll's been that way for Seattle. Kyle Shanahan's that way for Jed York, Sean McVeigh. That is a cash cow. Deon's a winner.

And winners find ways to win. And I think anyone that thinks he's new school, yeah, he has some new school identity to him with how active he is on social media. But his message, if you watch him talk to his team, and if you watch the clips of him practicing, is very old school. Florida State. When I was a GA at Fresno State,

we had a young student assistant who had tried out for kicker, and the coach said, listen, you're not going to be able to be our kicker, but we would love to have you on the staff. And his name was Derek Ray. And he went on to be work in recruiting, and end up going to Oregon State for years, most recently with Jonathan Smith, had become a really, really highly thought of recruiting coordinator in college football.

It was purning down, quote-unquote, bigger jobs. He loved Jonathan Smith, so do I, dude just stud. Dude made DJ Ungolet look good. Well, last year, the Florida State Seminoles offered him the job to be the GM, and he took it. And this is a guy from the Central Valley, Fresno State, Oregon State, went to Florida State. And I talked to him on the phone a couple weeks ago.

I've known him now almost 15 years. And he's like, bro, two things. We're fucking good. We have a squad. These receivers and this receiver we landed in the transfer portal is the real deal. And he's like, our head coach, who's also our play caller, is big time. Or him as a play caller, just watching him last year and watching him in practice. This guy's no joke.

and that was on full display. He wasn't lying to me. And I didn't think he was lying, but you never know. Big game, LSU, coin flip game. That was a clinic. And to me, what really stood out, like Derek told me, their personnel is big time. They got NFL players like LSU everywhere.

And that play caller was really, really impressive. Because part of college football is a Jimmy's and the Joe's matchup, just like the NFL, but in the NFL, there's much smaller gals. between talent on opposite sides of the field. Obviously, you have a Micah Parsons or Trent Williams. I'm not saying there are certain guys, but as a whole, as a unit. There were clear deficiencies last night, and Norville took clear advantage of them. And I think Florida State, that game, like, listen, I love TCU, Colorado.

Like, I was glued to my couch for whatever, three and a half, four hours. Sunday night's really more of my style. I like watching NFL players on defense flying around, Russian people. Herb Street was even mentioned it last night. People were getting crushed. Absolutely Molly one. I like that. And you just see the body types. Like that guy's an NFL player, that guy's an NFL player. But I think Florida State, they got a real squad. LSU would be fine. They'll win their 9, 10 games. But Florida State can win the national championship. They just got to get by Clemson. They're now in the driver's seat. And anyone, by the time you're listening to this, that doesn't put them number two overall.

I got no problem leaving Georgia till they lose number one. Back-to-back champs, they've earned it. But if you just watch college football over the last three, four days, how anyone can say Florida State today, that doesn't mean it can't change, is not the second best team in the country, is on some drugs that I'd probably like to get a hold of because they work pretty, they're pretty powerful. A couple other things.

I didn't really get the chance. I saw Colin open with this. He had texted some NFL executives and scouts about, Cador, and you can't watch Chador and I think, obviously, not just an NFL player, but like, is this a top five pick? I mean, shit, if Trey Lance and Zach Wilson go two and three, Chador could play one game and that could be his game and he could easily go top five in the draft. But the college quarterback play is elite. I mean, it just is.

It is fantastic. And the number one thing that stood out to me, there are so many random players, quarterbacks all over the NFL. They're like, how's this guy still in the NFL? How did Matt Barclay last this long? how this guy lasts this long? There's a lot of fat about to be trimmed. I mean, there are so many quarterbacks. And I texted a college director.

I said, how many quarterbacks do you think are going to get drafted in the top 50 in this draft? He's like, I don't know, six, seven. I'm like, what about just the quarterback class as a whole, even underclassmen that aren't draft eligible? He's absolutely loaded. Every other game has an NFL quarterback. And not all of them are going to be first round picks, but you're talking second, third, fourth round. listen, we can nitpick Jaden Daniels all we want, the LSU quarterback.

Like that's a draftable player. Same with Florida State's quarterback. These are draftable quarterbacks, let alone the Drake Mays, the Caleb Williams, the you name it. Michael Pennix, to me, throws as beautiful a ball as any quarterback, college or pro.

It is, honestly, I'm going to pick Washington to win the conference. I think Washington will win the Pact 12. Oregon, you know, I'm not betting on USC. I'm just not. They don't have the defense.

Oregon might be as good. obviously they played an incredible game. I got to see them play a real opponent. But, I mean, Oregon and Washington is going to be a fantastic game. A lot of people love Bo Nix. I'll never forget Andy Reid told me years ago when they were evaluating Patrick Mahomes. I was like, was it difficult to evaluate a quarterback in kind of this spread soft offense? He's like, no, it actually made it much easier.

I just removed every quick screen he had. And he just had more evidence and more inventory of short, intermediate. it in deep throws than most quarterbacks in the history of my job because of the amount these guys throw. And that speaks to all these quarterbacks. Now, they're just throwing more. And that starts with high school. I've been saying this forever. In 2001, two, three, when I was in high school, we ran the wing tea. And this was in Sacramento, a pretty big recruiting hotbed. It's not quite, you know, I would say L.A. or the Central Valley. But it's got a lot of division one players that play Power 5 football. And I would say a large percentage of teams ran some.

version of the wing tea, of the option of the veer. And now if you just look, and I follow high school football in Sacramento relatively closely, they're all running spread offenses. They're all throwing it. And that speaks to all over the country now. So all these top quarterbacks are used to throwing the ball in high school. And then they get to college where when I was a kid, even if you threw the ball in high school, once you got to college, you usually played in a running offense. Well, those days are over. It's all spread it out and slinging around. So the amount of sweet quarterbacks makes one college football really easy to watch because it's just fun. I get it.

It's just an exciting game. And it's also fun even if you, listen, when I lived in Philly, there was a big Penn State contingent, but Philly, Boston, New York, the Northeast leans much more NFL. Obviously, the South leans much more college football. And while we like college football in the West, I know I do, it's much more pro football, right? The 49ers, now the Rams, the Chargers, Seattle's good now. bigger than college football, even SC when they're good.

They're the only team and we'll see if their importance has dropped a little bit because of the NFL teams in Los Angeles. But my overall point is that the talent in that position is stupid. And some of these random quarterbacks that have been hanging on by a threat in the NFL, they're about to get booted because there are just going to be so many guys drafted, even teams with starting quarterbacks like a Dak Prescott, like a Kirk Cousins, like just go around the league with some of the middle of tier guys. I'm just going to be drafting quarterbacks in the third, fourth round, who are really good. And that's exciting.

And that means there's a healthiness for the league when there's a lot of quarterback play, at least a high level. And we know a lot of these guys aren't going to turn into good play. I'm not acting like these guys are all going to be stars. Because even between Caleb and Drake May, the likelihood that both are pro bowlers, history would tell us that's not the case. Even though it's like, God, I watched both of them. Pennix as well. Now, Pennix has an injury history. Those three players are just elite.

I mean, he's just, Caleb's remarkable. Drake May, I thought, looked awesome the other night. And Pennix, I just typed him into Twitter the other night, the day after his game, just because I wanted to watch a couple of his throws, just because it's so beautiful coming.

There's something special about a nice, soft touch from a lefty, but really enjoyed, and you should do. I mean, if you're just flipping around, I mean, the amount of high level quarterback play is just, it's jaw dropping.

And last but not least, I would say over my life, 37, 38, 38, I'm about to be 39, I'm getting old. I've become much less emotional. It doesn't mean that I can't be moved emotionally or when I think of things about my parents or, you know, I see something on the internet that's, that's, you know, heart wrenching, gut wrenching or moving that I can't, wouldn't shed a tear. but for the most part, I've developed some calluses. And it's not always the healthiest thing. And it honestly might be a middle cough trait.

I know my brother's a lot like that. I told the story when we were in Tahoe a couple weeks ago about something crazy that happened on the ranch and a guy almost died and was like, didn't even phase them. Middle cops, we can be, our emotions are just, we kind of struggle with it sometimes. We don't know exactly what to do. Didn't exactly have the most vulnerable upbringing in terms of just talking about our feelings. Not, you know, I was raised an old school home. But I was watching the Pac-12 over the weekend, and they obviously did not lose a game. Pretty incredible start for a conference.

This is literally about to die. The conference is going away forever. And I've said, I'm not as aggressive as coward of like, you know, this is just inevitable. Like, obviously it's great for the networks. You know, it's great to have Michigan playing Washington and Oregon playing Wisconsin and Ohio State. I get it. I get it from financial standpoint. And I'm as pro business as anyone easily.

lead that talks about sports. You will not find anyone who not only understands it, but celebrates it. I'm pro money here. That doesn't mean that watching it this weekend and watching the PAC 12, which is probably going to have their deepest league in fucking forever. I mean, they have potentially four teams that could compete to make the playoffs, Oregon, Washington, USC, and Utah. I do feel pretty confident that they will get a playoff team.

Like right now, if I was a betting man, I will say the PAC 12 would be represented the playoffs. What Dion Sanders is doing with Shador and Travis Hunter, the Arizona schools, especially University of Arizona looks really good. Oregon State is really good. I mean, they're going to be an eight and four, nine and three team that you want no part of. Washington State has an NFL quarterback. Cal and Stanford actually, you know, had a good start, especially Cal for a program that doesn't care about sports. Not the coaches or the players, but the administration. Kind of made me sad. And honestly, I was thinking about it on Sunday night like it sucks. It really does. It's over. And I'm not, I'm not hoping that it ever come. I understand

that there's no looking back. Somehow Stanford and Cal are now in the ACC and I've, I tweeted this and I believe this to my core. If you think that Clemson and Florida State and North Carolina, who all voted against adding them, are ever playing a game in the Bay Area, you're high on something because I can't ever see that happening. People like, middle cop, they're in the coverage. Like, yeah, for how long one and two, I don't see it. But regardless, like for all the expansion, I understand why the networks want it. I understand why every week one game should be Colorado TCU, LSU, Florida, Florida State. We should not have Oregon playing Portland State.

That's an embarrassment. That should not happen. I don't blame them for doing it because those are the current rules, but that needs to die. And as these conferences dissipate and they all go under one umbrella eventually, we will just get, Every game will be Alabama, Texas, or Ole Miss Washington, or just whatever. They'll just be bigger games against Power 5 opponents, even the non-Power 5. You can play Boise State, Fresno State, some of those schools as well, but you should never be able to play D1-8 teams.

Those days not only need to die, I'm pretty confident they will. But if you're of a certain age, it is going to suck not having these traditional rivalries and just having them die. I think it's cool that now with Texas going back to the SEC, that you'll get Texas and Texas A&M again. You should. But there was something cool about like Texas, Kansas State or Texas, Texas Tech, when they would lose that game sometime. And it would make that program season.

Or when Oregon State last year takes down USC or almost does, or a couple years ago they did. And it's just, it's a huge feather in that team's cap. And those days feel kind of over. And regionally, at least, for us. out west and that sucks. And it truly makes me sad. Not sad enough to cry, but I do understand the people on the other end that say this is all about money. It is because football pays for everything. As you've seen with the destruction of like the Big East, why did it get destroyed?

Because football was the cash cow, not basketball, even though basketball is a profitable venture. But football makes so much more that the basketball programs, especially the basketball that don't have football or don't have a powerful football program were viewed as an afterthought. And I don't really know what else to say beside that I hope the Pact 12 has just an incredible year. I hope this doesn't slow down. Obviously, it's impossible to not lose a game because you eventually play each other, but keeps kicking ass and taking names. And it's going to be weird next year when we see it,

even if that means more entertaining games and it surely does. but for those of us that grew up loving football on Saturdays out west, it was hard not to get a little sad with the success that the conference really had over the first three or four days of the 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 is a win.

I don't care which I'm 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 what 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. 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? to do a little kill. 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's big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but yeah, yeah, literally. 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 age. 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. Okay, let's go mailbag. At John Middlecough. Add John Middlecough is the Instagram. Fire in those direct messages. Very, very easy to get in the show. He's firing the DMs and get your question answered here on the pod.

Start with Bo. Hey, John, just watching the first half of Washington, Boise State. And Pennix has got to be the hardest player to place in the quarterback mix for the draft. The injury history is undeniable. But so is the talent. Dude throws lasers and really excels at working through progressions. If this guy gets through the year healthy, how can a front office determine whether to take the risk on the,

this guy in the first two rounds or waded out in a class that looks promising. Have you heard anything from the scouting community? I personally, you know, I'm not, don't work in the league anymore, thought he was like a fringe first rounder last year, but I know how those meetings go. Injuries, ACL injuries, always scare teams. Once you start stacking back-to-back seasons of health, I don't know, I don't think he missed a game last year. Well, if he goes back-to-back years, fully healthy.

and he checks when he gets physicals at the combine that everything is a go, that he just had prior injuries, and he doesn't have some degenerate knee, he doesn't have any question marks physically moving forward. Yeah, I think he'll be drafted in the top 10. I think he's got a chance to be in the mix for the number two overall quarterback. Now, Drake May,

I don't have like his entire extensive history of high school, but if he's never had a major injury, I don't think Caleb's ever have a major injury. those two guys feels like would go ahead of them. But I would say, and listen, I haven't watched every quarterback. But to me, Michael Pennix looks right now like the third best quarterback. ACL injuries, pretty sure, too. But Nick Post has been hurt before, had an ACL injury in high school,

had major growing surgery in college. So, like, guys that have injury histories get drafted and then go on to have successful careers at all positions. And the one thing you feel good about, out with quarterback is they're pretty protected in the sport now, obviously in the pros, but in college as well. So if you feel his body can hold up, yeah, I mean, I think as of today, someone that just is kind of a football addict and watched an unhealthy amount of football, to me, he's clearly the third best quarterback.

He throws just, God, his ball so beautiful. Jacob, hindsight is 2020, but would the Texans have been better off taking Will Anderson and Jalen Carter instead of C.J. Stroud. Next year's quarterback class is loaded. Texans are going to be bad this year and C.J. and would, and they would have been bad with C.J. or Davis Mills. I don't have insight information on this, but I think it's pretty clear that the owner got involved, that the owner said we can't go into a season with Davis Mills and Case Keenham and just be an embarrassment,

draft to one of these quarterbacks and kind of gave them an ultimatum. because CJ Strout. Now listen, that game against Georgia was freaking awesome. And that game alone, he was a big time talent. But who do I think is better? Drake May, Pennix, obviously Caleb, like I'd take all those guys over CJ Stroud. Could be wrong.

Time will tell. Maybe D'Amico coach this guy up and he becomes really good. Now, if I get the guy from Georgia, then I feel pretty good about it. But yeah, I'm with you. Would you rather have, you can't do this in a vacuum, though. Would you rather have Will Anderson and Jalen Carter than C.J. Stroud, if C.J. Stroud, the likelihood that he's not going to hit.

Of course. But factor this in. The likelihood that Jalen Carter, he had to go to a place that had the infrastructure, that had veteran players who could kind of not only take him under his wing, but like, that's just not going to be tolerated here. You're not even the best player on our team, even though he could be very quickly. And I think the Eagles were much more equipped to take the flyer, even though it's still risky for them, then all the other teams that were drafting really high, like the Texans, like the Falcons,

like all these other teams, which he immediately improves. Right? But then he becomes their best player. They can't, you know, just it's much riskier. And I think the one thing that Damiko,

and obviously their GM, kind of come from programs with Kyle and with Belichick, kind of avoid those guys. Because it can blow up in your face as well as like, you can, hit a home run 100%. But I think the Eagles were just in the perfect situation. They have his teammates. They have these incredible veteran players and Kelsey, Brandon Graham and Fletcher Cox and Slay and all these guys who have seen it all,

who've made a ton of money, who were just high level guys. I don't think the Texans, it's worth the risk. Not when you have all these picks coming. Now, I think the big quote, Willie Anderson is going to be fine. Willie Anderson is going to be a good player. If CJ Stroud's not, like how long are they tight? to him. Now, they just drafted him two overall, so he's getting years. Well, he said, you know, Trin Lance only got two, but I hear you. Okay, let's see. You're the best in the business. I kind of like this guy. Real quick question. I keep seeing where a player reaches an injury settlement with the team. How do those work,

and is there a specified amount of time a player is not eligible if those are met? Well, typically you see them with like undrafted, free agents or late round picks. that the team doesn't want, right, that would have cut. So when you get hurt on the job, right, in practice or a preseason game, I owe you some money, right? So I got to put you on injured reserve. Well, if I tell your agent, right, let's say you don't have like a torn ACL. You just have like a broken arm, but I go, listen, I don't want you here.

You're not going to play once you get healthy. We're going to cut you. How about this? We cut you now. We come to some sort of settlement. and maybe it's 100 grand, maybe it's 50 grand, maybe it's 200 grand,

we pay you out, we go our separate ways, and then you're in position healthy in, you know, two months to get back with a team on a practice squad or something. So usually it's an undisclosed amount, clearly, which is a smaller number,

right? And it allows that player, maybe it's just a broken finger. Maybe it's just a guy who got injured on the job that, like, you are obligated because you can't cut a guy who's injured.

right because I can't claim a guy he won't pass my physicals. So you have to put him on injure reserve. It's basically just, and I could be not describing this perfectly if I had like Howie Roseman or John Schneider, they could definitely describe it in more detail. But most of the, you're not cutting a guy like you would never come to an injury settlement with like Jalen Ramsey, right? It doesn't happen with starters, with veteran players who make a lot of money because they would never come to an injury settlement. You're offering them too much money.

Or, I mean, they're making too much money. So it's like, yeah, just play it out. But I think with these younger players, guys that were not only not guaranteed a spot, but we're not going to be on the team, that it just is conducive for both sides to be like, hey, here's 80 grand. You go your separate ways. You can rehab here. And then we'll go our separate ways. And then you can bounce back with another team once you're able to pass physicals late in the year. that's why I think you usually see that. What is your take on Dionne Sanders? He's been shaking things up in college football realm

and just shut the haters up briefly with an impressive win over a well-coached TCU team. A lot of people still have him losing record this season, but the buzz is hard to ignore. Do you think he's wanting to work his way to the NFL? If so, do you think he has a long ways to prove himself before an NFL team takes him seriously as a coach? Do you know what I hate?

and this happens in college football. It doesn't happen in the pros because I can't steal a coach that I've seen so many takes on the interweb of like, enjoy Dion, will you have him? He'll be gone in 18 months. Why do we always have to do that? Why do we always have to do that? Can't we just enjoy it?

If he's there three years, awesome. If he leaves in two to go to Texas or Florida, so be it. But can't we just enjoy it while it's here? Clearly, if he wins the next couple years, all these transfer portal players. Some of these programs, Texas, if Sark doesn't win, Florida with Billy Napier,

will offer him $150 million. They just will, right? And who knows? Maybe the Cowboys, if he's number one, you know, his quarterback, his son is drafted. Maybe that team wants to hire him. If they have the number one overall pick

in a couple years, obviously the Cowboys probably wouldn't, but you know what I mean. He's going to have options. Dion Sanders now with just that one game. and if he just goes six and six, he is going to have a ton of options. That's a fact.

You know, let's face it, last year, Auburn did not offer him the job. They won a few frees. A couple years ago, Florida State, Mike Norvell, which Norvell is going to turn out

to be just fine. But you know what I mean? I have some theories and educated guesses that I can see coming from a mile away. Ohio State. Like the Ryan Day thing, like he's not going to be treated

like Urban Meyer, say he is going to be nitpicked with a fine tooth comb. And if he ain't beaten Michigan, and he ain't winning that, he's, like he's not some guy on scholarship. I can already see Kalin DeBoer, the dude at Washington.

Google his resume. He wins everywhere. Honestly, he has some Brian Kelly vibes. If that guy goes in the Big Ten, let's say, wins the Pac-12 this year, wins 10-11 games, again, goes to the Big Ten, keeps winning double-digit games.

That guy's got Ohio State written all over. Just like Florida. Billy Napier ain't going to be there long. He's just not. Sark, obviously, big week against Alabama, a big couple years coming up. If he wins eight, nine games the next couple of years, they'll run him out of town.

That's got Dion Sanders written all over. And let's face it, if McCarthy, you know, we've been saying Lincoln Riley, Dion Sanders fucking played for the Cowboys. So he's going to be in the mix. But let's just enjoy it. Let's just have an incredible year of Dion Sanders, coaching his son,

coaching both sons, Shiloh led the team in tackles, and Travis Hunter and a little running back. And it's just fun. Let's just have fun. I hit up Notre Dame in Michigan State for week one college football and was super impressed by Notre Dame. Unreal campus. As a father of two kids, it got me thinking, where would you want your future unboard children to go to college?

Well, let's not get a twisted that I will live and I plan on it if they so choose. And who knows? You know, higher education, maybe it'll be changed. And I haven't had one yet. Hell, I don't even have one on the way. So we're still 19 years minimum away from my child going to college. And who knows? Like if they want to go to trade school, maybe they become an entrepreneur.

The world changes. Maybe they become a full-time YouTuber. So I will not force. Education was forced on me. And I'm glad. But I was talking about it with my girlfriend last night. It was like, you got to go to college to go to college. But it was never like to really improve your education, to really improve your knowledge, to improve your skills.

is like, you just got to go to college. Well, why? And I went and I, hell, I got multiple degrees. But it's like, why did I go? And really, most of my time spent there was partying, chasing girls and setting myself up football-wise, like getting involved with the athletic program and the football program. So I'm not acting like it didn't have benefits to my life. But I didn't, I didn't learn anything there besides what I was learning on my own. So I look at college a little differently, though I went to Cal Poly. So we don't have, I mean, we have a lot. athletics, but not that anyone cares about. I would love for my son or daughter to attend the school that matters athletically, but specifically in football. Hopefully football is still a really big deal in 20 plus years,

keep our fingers crossed, surely trending that way, but wouldn't matter. I mean, I've been to a lot of campuses, obviously through this job, all the PAC 12 schools, I mean, USC, UCLA, Colorado's actually got an incredible campus. I always thought Utah was really underrated, Washington, Oregon, or badass, any of the schools in the South, Bama, Georgia, Florida, Clems, you name it. I mean, I wouldn't matter. But I would like Power 5. But I'm also, I'm not, we are going to promote and push curiosity in my family.

And, you know, obviously there is a level of discipline of doing your homework and stuff that translates to life. But like, so many times my parents are like, you got to trust. Like, I don't care what they're telling what they're teaching me. These classes are stupid. I do not care about chemistry. It does not matter. I literally talk about football to pay my bills now. So I was right.

They were wrong. Hey, John. The husband and I are huge fans. I like this family. Need your thoughts on this because I haven't seen much coverage on it. What the hell do you think is going on with Isaiah Bugs? Trade, pay issues, shit seems sour. Isaiah Bugs?

Who's Isaiah? Isaiah Bugs. Am I an idiot? Isaiah Bugs. Isaiah Bugs frustrated after learning he'll be a healthy scratch. Bench for the season opener. Place for the Lions. Defensive linemen. I'd be lying if I knew much about the Isaiah Bug situation.

I will say this. The big question mark with the Detroit Lions is going to be their secondary, right? Can they cover people? I think defensive line, I thought Aidan Hutchson last year by the end, you're like, God, this guy kind of looks like a bosa brother. This guy looks like one of the next big JJ Watt or something. This guy's got a chance to be an all pro.

And I think they drafted, I forget his name, but another guy last year in the draft that had eight sacks. Maybe their defensive line is just good. And sometimes older players, you know, Wally Pipped, get replaced. It's the best part of the NFL, ultimate meritocracy at any single moment, unless you're just like Peyton Manning or Tom Brady,

right, or Aaron Donald or whatever. hard to kind of bench you, but eventually you get replaced. And the majority of the league is not those guys. So the majority of the league, every single training camp, new players come in, expectations get higher, and you're not guaranteed a spot. So Isaiah Bugs, he's been on the lines for a couple years. I don't say I don't even know that much about this guy. He played at Bama.

I don't really remember him. But yeah, got to produce. Got a question for the bailout. If the Rams are projected to be so bad, why don't they follow suit with their division rivals, the Cardinals, and Tank? Hard to sell Donald and Cup on that, but Cup is hurt and could be an asset to a competing team,

and Donald could generate at least one late first or multiple picks. Why not sell and go in all in on acquiring Caleb Williams? Williams staying in California with McVeigh, because you can't do that week one. You're paying Donald, Stafford, and Cup too much money. Now, can you do that October 15th? Yes. And their schedule is lined up for them to have some problems.

But you can't do that immediately. So to me, they're in a position to just kind of let it play out. And letting it play out is going to be pretty ugly. The Cardinals do not have Stafford Donald or Cooper Cup. I mean, they got Buda Baker, but safety can only do so much. I mean, Aaron Donald's going to go down as one of the great players of all time. And you're paying them $30 million. Stafford is making

just half of you just walked into a Wells Fargo in Southern California you can just empty the bank and that might not even be enough to pay mass effort because if you know the bank's the way they operate is a little shady especially Wells Fargo I got I got into it with them the other day been a customer for 20 plus years and they're screwing me over on some fees

but that's neither here nor there I do think it's a little harder to just tank but I hear what you're saying. Okay, love you, man. But I have to call into a question, a comma, a false media narrative. You chimed in on Collins' pod that I hope you consider reexamining on your pot. The idea that the Jets have a terrible offensive line is nonsense. Is it potentially injury prone?

Yes. But you can't say that almost every unit good or bad in the league. I agree. Duane Brown at left tackle, Wall 40, I think he's 38, is a former all pro who played pretty well last year and allowed just one sack. Again, when I say bad offensive line, I'm not tired. I trust, I like their guards, gave Tomlinson, who coming off a bad year, but got paid a lot of money who's been a really good player with the 49ers.

Tucker is a really good player to love that guy in the draft. I think, do we even know if Mackay Beckton is good? Yes, we know he has not been good. We know he hasn't been reliable in a guy, if we're playing, I'm circling the fucking wagons if I'm the defensive coordinator and we're attacking relentlessly. I'll promise you this. Week one, when Mackay Beckton lines up at right tackle, I'm sending the heat

constantly at his ass. Now, if he proves it, great. But to pretend that like, we're in this pretty deep now. He hasn't been any good. He just hasn't when he's played. And let alone he's been injured a lot. Like you can say, this has not worked out. And this is a guy that other teams would not want.

Now, as their starter, can he change that? can he it's not a narrative i mean you watch hard knocks mackay beckton they spoke about it last year there is no justifying that mcky it's like the tray lans thing no at the information we have right now those are terrible picks gigantic bus can they change it all 100 but the information we have of today i'm recording this on september 4th there is no macky beckton might be no at so far been a disaster. That's a fact. There's no emotion or bias or agendas behind this. Narratives, I hate that word sometimes, honestly. No, it's just the Jets offensive line is a question mark. Just like we go team to team. Every team has question marks. But when you have an offensive

line as a question mark, older tackle and just a question mark at right tackle that just the guy might not be any good. He might not have the quickness or be too injury prone to function. That's a problem. So I hate, it's not a narrative. It's literally the information we have right now. So listen, I'm going to pick them and I think we'll do a big season preview probably Thursday on Thursday's pod. Might just be that. This might be the pod. I'm going to pick them to win the division. But it's going to be because they're going to have the number one defense in the league. And I think they're going to be a top five rushing team. But I don't feel great about Mackay Beckton. But this notion that like he's been disappointed but hurt almost two and a half years, look at the

analysis of him when healthy the first rookie year. That's like four years ago. Like we got new information. Things change. Players, evaluating players in the NFL is like the stock market. You can't hold on to things from three years ago. It's not relevant in 2023. Like, oh, what about 2019 or 20? Like, who gives a shit? I'm never in my, the way I operate in life, a rear view mirror guy. I look forward. Now, I give certain people the benefit of the doubt. Like, can Aaron Rogers bounce back? Well, yeah, he's got. years of resume. So one bad year,

like I feel pretty confident. But most players, and you get this a lot with draft picks, like he's always been hurt. He's not a reliable individual, right? Say what you want about Herm Edwards?

Kind of a cheat. The first coach to be a five-year college coach, go back to television because he got ran out of town for cheating, and then immediately go back to the NFL stuff. It's like, why aren't people asking this guy about college football? He's been working in college football for the last five years. He's put him back on the NFL.

How's he been? fall in the NFL. He's been in college. Herm Edwards, sneaky scam artist. Find him entertaining, but sure scammed Arizona State. But my point is, like, things change. Things change. And the best ability is availability. And right now, you know, if you can't rely on players, and if it's a starter, that's a major problem. But I hate this notion of narrative. There's no narrative. It's the legit question mark. Yeah, we'll end on this. Some stuff I want to. to touch on, I make your video. If not, it's okay. One, I think everyone's opinion of Colt being released isn't that he's some superstar

quarterback. He's clearly not. But that he, in fact, that he took all the first team reps in practice and was preparing to start. I agree with you about them drafting the guy from the fifth round and seeing what he has. I think everyone is just reacting to that. He took all the first team reps and not the rookie. It's not that Colts just turned 38 and that we knew he could have prepared someone sooner. I don't think any time in that situation that a guy drafted in the middle rounds would get the first team reps.

That's never how it would work. So in the situation that they just drafted the kid from Houston and whatever, the fifth round, if they're starting quarterback like Kyler's injured and you have this veteran player in Colt McCoy, but he could be any player. He could be Chase Daniel. You can name some random backup.

That guy would get the first team reps. in the off season and early in training camp. And then as time went on, you went, what's the point of this? Because that fifth round player has to earn, he's not a super high pick. You can't just put him with the ones. You have to earn that.

Now, over time, you realize, what's the point of keeping Cole McCoy? He's, we don't think he's any good. One, two, we might as well get a good look at this guy while we can. But I have no problem with making that decision late in August. because you wouldn't have the information. You get three weeks of this guy playing in preseason games in the building, how we reacts in practice.

You go, God, we really like this guy. Let's just, we're obviously not going to be any good. What's the point of not giving this guy the game opportunities? Maybe we strike oil. Maybe we just find our backup quarterback when we eventually trade Kyler and draft all these other guys, right? But I don't think it's what team, I don't care how shitty you are, would ever start a fifth round player running with the ones like August 10th.

That's just not how it happens without several injuries. If Colt McCoy was going to be, and then you change your opinion. Like I said, football's a stock market. Things are constantly changing. Some guys are getting better. Some guys are getting worse. And some veteran players you realize have stagnated and there's no point to roll them out there. So second, I have the Jags going 14 and 3.

Lawrence going off around 40 touchdowns, 5,500. yards and winning the MVP. I know Titans fans get very, very angry with me because I don't give them the proper respect. And I definitely value them more now. Like I think that I don't think they're going to be just terrible because their coach is too good. But I'm with you.

I think the Jags 14 and 3 feel strong, but 11, 12 wins. And I think win that division by several games. Now, maybe early, it feels close. But I'm with you. I think Trevor Lawrence, Doug Peters. because usually you bet on the coaching quarterback. And the Titans have a really good coach and Mike Frey. But like the Jags kind of have both.

I don't know their coach won a Super Bowl. Out coached Bill Belichick. Remember that? One another playoff game the following year with Foles again. Trevor Lawrence, one of the best prospects of the last 20 years. So 40 touchdowns feels a little strong. But yeah, 35 to 40 touchdowns. I see a massive, massive year for.

Trevor Lawrence. I think the Jags are going to be one of the best offensive teams in the league and are just going to be, are going to cruise to that division when it's all said and done. 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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 ton-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,

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