The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Rodgers Heavy Hard Knocks, Johnny Football Disaster, Mailbag

Episode Date: August 10, 2023

John explains why Hard Knocks made the right move by focusing the majority of the show on Aaron Rodgers, and why the Johnny Manziel Netflix show makes it clear he never had a shot at NFL success. He also answers listener questions in the Middlekauff Mailbag. Follow John onTwitter, 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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Amp is a new live radio app that lets you call in and chat with me in person while recording. Get the app on Apple's App Store and make sure you follow me at John Middlecough to get notified when I go live. What is going on, everybody, John Middlecough, 3 and Out Podcast. How are we doing? Here's the game plan. I'm going to hit on, I watched a couple shows this week. Hard knocks, obviously, with Rogers. And I watched the Johnny Mansell Untold documentary on Netflix.

We'll hit on those off the top, and then we'll just do a heavy mailbag. At John Middlecalf is the Instagram, fire in those DMs, get your question answered on the show. Very easy to get involved. I'm not going to get to everyone's question. I'm going to do a bunch of mailbag questions over the next probably couple weeks. Just my Instagram, fire in those DMs, and I will get to your question. or at least attempt to over the next three or four shows. So we will just keep banging out mailbags.

Appreciate everyone that fired in the DMs. And I will be on Collins show, at least the game plan as of recording this on Wednesday, is for his Friday podcast. So this will be my last podcast on this feed of the week. And we'll get back after it next week. I'll be in Lake Tahoe this week. So I'm excited to get out of 175 degree heat and go enjoy the lake. So I will talk to everyone soon.

We'll discuss some preseason reactions if anything crazy happens and just overall thoughts on football. Just keep it rolling because we got a lot going on. Volume.com. Check out our merch. Got a lot of three and out hats, flex fit, trucker style, you name it. Subscribe to the podcast. Check out the YouTube page. Let's fire.

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The price points, they got you covered, $20 off promo code John. I wanted to dive into two things really quick. I've been the biggest hater of hard knocks on the planet. I've said over and over and over again. It's hard for any of us that watch the initial kind of iterations of the show in the 2000s to watch it now and think we're getting that much out of it.

We know what it's like, even if you've never worked in the NFL. to be behind the scenes of personnel meetings, when guys get cut, just the ebb and flow of a training camp. We have decades now of evidence of what it looks like. It no longer is that. It's basically team propaganda. And I've always defended the teams.

I wouldn't want any part of it either. Now, none of us. And listen, I'm probably not the target audience anymore, but I feel pretty good about when the Jets are coming out saying it's inhumane to watch players get cut. It's like, we got 20 years of evidence of watching these players get cut. And 40% of them come back on your team to the practice squad, make a six-figure job. So it's not like you're throwing them out, you know, to just unemployment line, right?

So they're going to be okay. But this is the card we're dealt. I never care and find it really boring when they get on random undrafted free agents that end up getting cut. I want no part of that. and listen, I broke down and I turned it on. Now, a huge, I would probably not have turned it on on some random teams, but it was Rogers, and I will give Hard Knocks credit. They just played Aaron Rogers the entire show.

I can do four episodes, Rogers, Nate Hackett, and the head, and Robert Salah. That's all I want. I don't need your random six-round pick who's going to be a practice squatter. I don't need the veteran guy getting cut. Just give me Rogers, give me the offense, and give me the excitement around the team. on getting Aaron Rogers on the squad. Because while I was watching that, it's a weird spot for Zach Wilson,

who the players can't be any more over the top, but is genuine about their excitement with Aaron Rogers being on the team. He's literally the savior, but it's palpable with the guys that are 21, 22, 22, 23 years old that are Zach's contemporaries from an age standpoint. They can't hide it. and I don't blame them, but you're still dealing with human being. Zach Wilson has to feel a little weird.

You also see in this episode, and I know, like, I understand what I'm getting now when I turn these things on. This is state-run media. Everything is getting approved by not just the Jets, but Aaron Rogers. So I heard Colin talk about it's painting Aaron in a good light. Yeah, of course it is. Like, that was the only way that they can get these guys on board and give them access. and it's, I'm not expecting, you know, groundbreaking information coming out of camp.

But I do think you see, and I don't think we do a good enough job, those of us that talk about football. We hold several guys the last couple decades, right, in the highest regard of football intelligence. Brady, obviously Peyton even well before Brady, I think Drew Breeze was held on that regard of just being football savants. They basically like coaches on the field, their understanding of. of scheme, football lingo. It's incredible to watch them talk. It's like they're speaking a different language. Aaron never really gets put into that category.

Yet when you watch him, and clearly if you've watched him play, like he's on that level. When you just compare him and Zach Wilson, one dude's like a Harvard business graduate and the other guy's in fifth grade when it comes to talking, discussing, and executing football.

Aaron's football knowledge, and here's the thing, when we talk about Brady, when we talk about Peyton and when we talk about Breeze, Aaron's the superior athlete, he's got the best arm of the bunch, and he's ever been as accurate as all three of those guys. It's why I think sometimes he gets so harshly criticized because it's almost like he's underachieving. Now, you could push back and it's a team game and his defenses let him out, let him down over the years. But the simple reality is he's only got past the NFC championship game one time, right?

He loses in that game a lot, where even Peyton's lost in the Super Bowl several times, but he makes it to the big dance. Obviously, Brady's been there what feels like 50 times. And, you know, I've said over and over like Rogers on a different level than Drew Breeze. But in terms of football acumen, football intelligence, and just football IQ, he's a savant. And I think you see it around the team, definitely his physical skills, the defense being awed by it. But listen, I can't get enough. If I'm going to watch the show, which I turned it on, I would have turned it off if they would have given me one of these random players that I can't even pretend to care about. And I would say the same thing if I'm a Jets fan.

Just give me Rogers, give me Hackett, give me Sala. Like when you go see Garth Brooks or Metallica, you want to hear the hits. I don't want to hear the new stuff. That's what I want. And that's what the consumer wants. Keep playing that. The Johnny Menzel documentary, I thought was pretty sad. I really did.

And I think it shows you the majority of guys in the NFL are not, you know, the elite talents, right? Trent Williams, Micah Parsons, Mahomes, Josh Allen. Those guys, even from a talent standpoint, are outliers. Most guys are relatively in the same world. Now, they're relatively talented to all of us that played high school football or even the overwhelming majority that played Division I college football. but relative to their peers in the league, once you remove the top four or five, depending on how good your team is, the Eagles or the Niners, the Cowboys, might have more good players. But most guys are in the same somewhat universe. And what separates them, the longevity of a career is there's some dumb luck, right?

Health is something that's out of anyone's control. But work ethic, desire, passion for the sport, all the intangible stuff, the ability to do. take information and then execute it on the field. And one thing you saw with Johnny, who was a remarkable college player, and they transitioned right into the SEC at Texas A&M, and he took it by storm and he won the SEC. But his work ethic, even in college, was a zero. Now, he's not alone. Not everyone at Alabama, Texas, or USC is a super hard worker. There are definitely a lot of them. Sometimes we mature a little later as guys. So sometimes your work ethic grows as you. As you, you get older. Mine did. I'm not saying I was, most people aren't willing to do stuff,

but you get better understanding of what it takes because you can get by on town, right? Think about like your metabolism when you're young. I could eat whatever I wanted in my early 20s as long as I worked out. I didn't get fat. I can work out seven days a week right now. I had to change my diet in my mid to early 30s. And honestly, as I'm getting closer to 40, it's slowing down even more. Anyone my age can relate. Right. and you got to adapt. It's why most guys, when they get to the NFL, they talk early on in their career,

they realize like, even high-level guys, I have this veteran player, he showed me what it was like to be a pro. That doesn't mean how to score a touchdown or how to get open on a route or how to make a tackle. They're talking about when to go to sleep, how to prepare,

how to study, what to eat, how to lift, right, how to sustain your body in the off season. Like, this is a full-time job. And the one thing you saw with Johnny is how little he gave a shit about any of it.

Now, there's an element of addiction and some issues clearly off the field. But when he bragged about not watching a minute of film, like did not even care, he falls into that category of his talent from an NFL standpoint was never, he did not run like Lamar Jackson or throw like Josh Allen or Mahomes. His talent was pretty average. Like his physical skills much closer to Brock Purdy than just. Austin Herbert. So when you are not going to work in the NFL, like have a work ethic and train and prepare, you're going to get lapped. And then when you play quarterback, you're going to be absolutely terrible. It is impossible to be an average talent and do the bare minimum and have a chance of success. We've seen over and over and over again. Jamarcus Russell had talent a lot more than Johnny from a physical standpoint, did nothing and was God-awful.

I'll never forget watching Johnny. I'm pretty sure it was his rookie year. There was a play. They were playing the Carolina Panthers. And he tried to run away from Luke Keekly. And he was running away. You watch this documentary from guys in the SEC. I think the SEC is probably even better now than it was back then, top to bottom.

But still, it's impressive. you're running around NFL guys. Luke Keekeley closed on Johnny Mansell so fucking fast, it was stupid. Johnny thought he could get to the corner and Luke gained on him. For every step Johnny took, Luke was taken about four. Luke tackled him with ease. And it was like, this ain't going to work. And I didn't even know at the time.

I told last night, I was watching with my girlfriend. I'm like, yeah, Johnny comes from oil money. That's just what I'd always heard. And in the documentary, they tell you they made up that story. so they could get around getting paid on the side or whatever, which shows you how stupid it is. I despise the NCAA. They remind me of the federal government.

I don't know anyone that I respect that takes them seriously, not a soul. And watching Mark Emerit talk just made my, it just makes me queasy even thinking about. And I'm not one to always have the same take as the mass media, but that's one, like the NCAA, get the fuck out of here. I've always believed football and sports. Br, like, why do you need the NCAA?

You've outgrown them. But that's neither here nor there. But the reason Johnny failed wasn't because he was making money on the side. It was was his work ethic was a zero, an absolute zero. He couldn't have worked any less. And even he admitted it. But you can get by that in college. Just like a lot of young people get by with stuff, right?

Smart people get by in school, right? Skinny people get by with bad diets. But bad work ethic in the pros, I don't care what you do, any industry. I don't care how talented and smart you are. It'll catch up to you and you'll lose. And at the highest, most competitive industries, like an NFL, you get your ass kicked and you get embarrassed. And that's, it was honestly, I found it kind of a tough watch. Listen, I've known Eric Burkart.

I don't even know if I've ever met him in person. He actually came on this podcast years ago. He's got a bunch of big clients, you know, Cliff, Kyler had. But it also shows you like, I'm not. anti-agent, but I also like, they're in it for one reason and one reason only. Like, we're all into stuff for money. So, like, this notion when these agents get on their high horse on social media about a client, like, you pretend to care. You just care about your points in the deal. Always. And even Eric Burkart was, you know, covering up drug use, uh, film study, you name it.

And I don't blame him. That's his job. He's trying to get points out of the deal. He wants Johnny to get a second contract. But this, I always love, you can always tell in the media when guys are like balls deep friends with other people in the media, or I mean agents. It's like I'm not friends with that many agents, right? Like, definitely not where I have to worry about anything I say about them. Because listen, I call what it is. They're in it for the coin. They're in it for the cash. Everything else surrounding about is a lot of BS. I'm not saying they're not good people or, you know, they don't treat people well or anything, but let's just call the most basic element of their job is to get their guy paid the most any means necessary so they can get their percentage.

That's their job. Like the real estate agent, a real estate agent would want to sell $10 million houses if they could. Why? Because they make a bigger commission. You want your client to get the biggest contracts possible and you will do anything, you know, by any means necessary to get them to that point. If that means lying, if that means covering stuff up, so be it. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream,

this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and, at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, let's dive in the mailbag. At John Middlecop is the Instagram, firing the DMs.

Very easy to get your question answer here on the show, if I can find it into my DMs, because we've got a lot of DMs. We'll start with David. Question for the bag. My wife and I stayed up late to watch Hard Knocks. I know you've been saying the show's brand has lots of value, but I'm telling you the reason we watched,

and I'm sure of a ton of others for that reason, was Rogers. I asked my wife, who was on Hard Knocks last season. She had no clue. My question is, since the in-season Hard Knocks seems to have more drama, how does HBO and the NFL decide which teams get selected for that? I watched the Cardinals last year, not a Cardinals fan, but I found the drama week-to-week in-season fascinating.

I feel like pre-season Hard Knocks is much less intense and therefore probably less entertaining. Huge fan, man. Yeah, I think Hard Knocks in training camp used to be really intense. And a huge reason was because guys got cut. Guys got veteran players might not make the team. There were competitions to get jobs. They don't show any of that.

If you just go to a random practice, right, pick any team. There are several positions that are up for debate, right? There might be an offensive tackle opening. There might be a linebacker spot. opening. There might be a veteran that's kind of battling like a fourth round pick, but they don't show any of that stuff anymore. Now, one reason that, like I said earlier, that helped with this show was just Rogers, but you're not getting any other competition. It's not like, hey, is this guy going to make the team? They're not even talking like that.

So I'm with you, the ebb and flow in season, because you're playing opponents. It is pretty cool. The intensity on the, on the coaches faces. And yeah, I hear you. The way they choose, preseason is based on teams that haven't made the playoffs for a couple years. You can't have a new coach, I'm pretty sure. Maybe you can. There's certain rules. I don't know how the end of the season works. I don't know that at all.

I would imagine teams volunteer, but that's a good question. Since colleges are chasing bigger bucks and switching conferences, I feel like the state should step in and do something. Since most schools in the bigger conferences are publicly funded, I feel like those states should scale back the funding to those schools to use the money elsewhere. Also, being that most are publicly funded, I feel the taxpayers in those states should have a say in what the school looks for. They fund the academic element of it. The athletic endeavors, like when the softball team travels, that is paid for by the athletic department, which is a self-funding operation.

So the states in a school, like, these athletic departments make money because of the football program. Why does it matter to the state whether the softball team, if your UCLA is playing Iowa or playing Washington? How does that impact the taxpayer at all when they don't even pay for any of that? I'm always, you know, I always lean government has nothing to do with impact something they're not paying for. I hear you if they were funding it, but they're not. You know, that's why these people keep making these moves is because you make more money with football, and then that all bleeds down.

Now, you could argue you lose money, right, with softball, basketball, baseball, traveling all over the place, but you make more with football, so maybe at the end, the net a little bit more. I guess we'd have to break down all the numbers over the next 10 years to see, but if you live in California, let's say. Your tax paying money that whatever goes toward any public institution has nothing

to do with the athletic program. Nothing for the pod. I hear what you're saying, though, but I, the last thing I'd want would, I mean, the UC system tried to get Gavin Newsom involved with UCLA and they basically said, kiss my ass. I know we all respect Sean Payton for what he's done in the league. However, is it fair to say the Denver situation is getting a little red flagged? He has done nothing but stir shit up ever since arriving, and he might have a real problem on his hands with Wilson. Now he's banning certain hats and sunglasses. I'm all for the tough love on coaching, but the whole situation is getting so much publicity at the point, it's hard to ignore that might end up in another dumpster fire. My overall belief anytime a guy can bend a team

over the barrel at this level, right? It's happened forever. Parcells did it. Holmgren did it. and Holmgren got like $4 million back in 99. Parcells was a seven-figure guy back in the 90s. But when you start paying a coach $18, $20 million, and it's not like he's been rattling off Super Bowls, Sean Payton's an impressive offensive mind. But his ego, let's call a spade a spade, is enormous. And if I give you, if my ego is big,

and anyone worth their salt has some self-belief, if I start going, hey, we need you to save the Denver Bronco, here's, I don't have the exact math in front of me, but $90 million? How many players on the Broncos have $90 million guaranteed? I think it's just one, Russell. So how's Sean Payton going to not only think, not only am I the savior, I'm fucking higher paid than everyone here. Even McGlinchie, who they gave $88 million, only got $55 guaranteed.

Sean Payton's contract is fully guaranteed. I'm with you. That like, you can't wear Gilligan hats. I would understand that if there was like someone on the team was selling merch and the Gilligan hats come from the team. It's team issued equipment. I used to wear one at practice when I worked for the Eagles.

Where'd I get it? The bucket hat came from the team. I'm traveling today back to Sacramento. I'm going to use a backpack that the Eagles gave me. It's a cool like kind of camo. It's big. I can fit a lot of stuff in there. I don't understand.

Stant, these are team issued gear. Puck in your shirt. This isn't 1978 at Augusta. You're playing football. So I'm with you. I think this, a lot of egos, a lot of money involved. You got the Walton's who are never used to losing at anything. They just make money, keeps growing.

It's like recession proof. Recessions hit. They make more. I'm with you. I think things, unless Russell's awesome, which he could be. Maybe he just had a down year. But as Mike Sando said, that did the tiers, he's been trending down for three years. And these aren't, you know, me sitting on my couch or you as a fan sitting on your couch going,

God, Russell's been getting shittier. These are NFL defensive coordinators, head coaches, and GMs watching his film, evaluating the guy. Keep voting him at a lower tier and lower graded year for three straight years. luckily they got the Raiders in their division and Brandon Staley you and Colin have it right the plight of running backs in the NFL it's about market value

you know who would love to get 10 million guaranteed a year almost every Olympic athlete in the world it's not like the owners are holding onto the money they're just allocating it in a way to maximize ROI the only thing I'd push back on the Olympian thing is like unless you're like Michael Phelps are you really generating any money or insane Bolt?

I mean, the running backs are part of a business that's generating huge revenue. So they're seeing it, right? If you're an Olympian, like, where's the cash coming from in 2023 at that level? I mean, I hear it's just, I'm not trying to, I see what you're doing, but that's the only thing I'd push back there. Question for the pod on NCAA conferences. The Big East is still a powerhouse basketball conference, no football. And the other teams in the conference don't have football either.

Would you expect the Big East to remain the same with all the schools not having FBS football? Villanova, Marquette, Butler, DePaul, Yukon, all big basketball brands, but no real football schools. Basketball money is important, but barely holds a candle compared to the Big Ten or the SEC football. Thoughts on the Big East. I think once you go down that road and live it in Philly for a while, you know, I worked with a guy still a good buddy in my, who works for the chiefs now, who played football at Villanova, you know, because they're built like where I went school, Cal Poly D1A. Now, the difference is Villanova is a top, I know they had a down year last year, but a top, what, 5, 10 basketball brand. But I've seen it like out on the West Coast with St. Mary's in Gonzaga.

Like they've just gone all in on basketball. If you go all in on basketball, then I think it can work. But that basketball team's got to be making the NCAA and in Villanova's case, like winning national championships. But like you said, when you leave that opportunity, and it's too late now, it's not like Villanova or Marquette can just start a basketball program that's going to be good enough to play at a high enough level. But I think when you're in the middle, right, like San Diego State's a good example.

They've had a really good basketball program for a while now. and their football programs in the Mountain West, and they compete to win, I would say somewhere between 8 to 10 games on a yearly basis, that's very lucrative for them. Obviously, they're never going to be in the national championship game in football. But just having a football program who plays Boise, who can play UCLA or whatever,

and make them money is very, very lucrative. So I don't really know, I guess, what your question is, there's just a huge separation, right? Kansas is a good example. Or Arizona. Those are basketball schools that, for the most part, have down football programs, but they need that football revenue. And I know Kansas is kind of training up. So is actually Arizona.

But there is a big difference of just having a zero. You have to operate as a conference or as a school much differently, right? UCLA and USC now going to the Big Ten, their Olympic sports are going to dramatically benefit from the cash windfall. same with Oregon and Washington. Because of the football cash windfall. And you have to wonder, and I've seen this in the SEC, look at the last couple years in the NCAA, for those of you guys, like fill out brackets or gamble on the games.

Now, it doesn't mean they always make long runs, but the last several years with the basketball programs in the SEC, very highly rated teams, they're paying their coaches a shitload of money. Buzz Williams A&M, Tennessee has, what's his name, the former Texas coach, Arkansas, Musselman, right? You just paying Alabama, Nate Oates. You just start paying guys, Big Coin, and their programs are legit.

And they're winning a bunch of games. Mississippi State, Ben Hallen, used to go to the Final Four with UCLA. You see it in these other conferences. TCU, Jamie Dixon. They're good now. So I don't really know if I answered your question, but to your point, and the Packers not streaming their family not practice. Is it possible they're trying to hide

Jordan Love? Like you, I've heard some good and bad about his practices. Seems like the jury is out. Wonder if they're just trying to keep folks guessing or just concerned about putting a first year starting quarterback who isn't performing well on a national stream. That's fair. If it goes poorly and he throws a bunch of incompletions,

we all would, it'd be going viral. Not debating you there. but we're a month away now. He's going to play the Chicago Bears. There is no hiding in football. So if you have to worry about hiding a guy, you've got to be pretty nervous about once September hits because we're all going to be watching.

Like all the plays he makes the Bears good or bad, we're going to have opinions. We all have access to it. So you might be on to something, but I think it's simply more coaches get paranoid. maybe they have a few new wrinkles with the love offense than the Rogers offense though

I think their offense is going to look they're going to run a lot of inside and outside zone they're going to try to run the ball 30, 35 times a game and pass as you know and have a much contained passing game for any young starter. That's just the way, just good football but that's the way it worked with Rogers

when LaFleur first got there and it kind of resurrected his career. Not really a question, but something that I'd love to hear you talk about on the pod. I think the XFL should be taking advantage of this running back dilemma to grow their league. It would take a big investment up front, but if they offer these star running backs who are free agents more guaranteed money than the NFL is offering them, they can add highlight real players that we want to watch in their league. I know the XFL already generates pretty solid ratings when compared to other sports,

but if they're really trying to make a name for themselves, they should jump on this. If I'm a running back, of course, I'd want an NFL team to sign me in hopes to make the most money possible. But shit, if the XFL offers more money, who cares about the patch on the jersey, right? Also, did Sequin get a no-tag clause on his new deal? No, he did not. If not, I'd be floored. He basically gave the Giants the ability to tag him on a cheaper number next year. The number goes up.

So that's not an issue. Here's the problem. you have to pay so much money to make it like, the Sequin's getting $11 million. What do you got to pay him to leave? $20 million? Because if you're paying him $13, $14 million, is that enough to leave the Giants?

I don't necessarily think it is. So I think the main problem is just that. Is that I don't think they could afford to pay them $2.5x to make it worth his while to get him to do that. And I just don't think they're going to do that. And if you just get Seyquan Barkley in your league, does it really change that much? So you'd have to pay probably three guys, 25 billion each. Because even $20 million, if I'm making 11, what I make being the starting running back of the Giants or of the Colts is still dramatically more lucrative than the XFL, right, off the field.

And guys like Sequin are making a lot of money that way. So I hear what you're saying. not a crazy idea, but the amount they would have to invest. And there's no guarantee they would get an ROI, right? It would not guarantee we would watch. It just wouldn't. Quarterbacks might be a different story, but the running backs? Because again, these guys aren't making $2 million.

So it's not like I have to offer them eight. I'd have to offer them at minimum, I would say, 20 plus. And I'd probably want a couple. So we're talking $40, 50, $60 million. Most of the guys on the team don't make that much money. I think the average salary is like $80,000. grand. So, I mean, you're talking potentially more than your entire team and one guy. I just don't think it would work.

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, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger.

So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Love the pod. Question about player shares of TV revenue. Been thinking about this question since the Sequin Talk started earlier this summer. I have no idea how this works.

I'm curious. A lot of owners talk about how much teams and owners make from TV revenue. I've heard that players or players association also make money from TV deals. How when and how much money is. actually reaches the players. Is it a significant amount? I started thinking about it when Sequin wanted a new deal. I agreed with you that he's been well compensated,

but none of the numbers include player shares of TV revenue. The TV revenue, just like a lot of other revenues, I'm not exactly sure what it encompasses, but I'm not sure if the sweet revenue, but any jersey sales, any deals like Nike, the official, you know, brand of the NFL, draft kings the official sponsor whatever that all creates the salary cap so when these players get

paid every team in the league gets 200 million dollar salary cap it's based on the revenue so it's all just a formula and i'm pretty sure it's i don't think it's quite 50 50 but it's like 49 51 the players the players get 49 owners get 51 so the players own a piece of the revenue right if i mean you own a business. And it makes $500,000 a year. In this scenario, or let's pick, let's pick a hundred thousand a year, easier to break it up. I get 49, you get 51 and so on, right? That's the partnership they're in. It's the best partnerships to be in our revenue share agreements, right? If you have some ownership because, you know, you split the cash. And that's gross, right? Then you get taxed off that, but you always want the gross revenue, which they get a piece of. And that's how they get

paid. So Sequin is part of it, no different than Daniel Jones or Kvon Tibido or Darren Waller or whoever's on the Giants. They're all revenue share partners. Here's what makes the NFL more complicated than, let's say, basketball, who all these teams or all these leagues have revenue share agreements. More players, right? So there's just 53 guys a team instead of just 12 guys a team. And there's two more teams at the NFL. So the amount of players in the NFL make it just harder for everyone to make premium dollars.

And now because like the quarterbacks make so much, it just kind of dwindles down as we go down the hierarchy of the players. I've heard you mention a few times this year how you don't cover too much fantasy football on the content spectrum. But one of your main takes last summer was about the red flags. around Russ. This sentiment was also being echoed by some fantasy football content folks

and you along with these folks were on the main, one of the main reasons I ended up backing off my exposure to the Broncos offense as a whole. Keep the training camp news takes coming and these do impact how people drafting around the league. Yeah, I mean, I don't talk about it specifically

about draft this guy in a certain round, but ultimately my content or my takes, informed takes, hopefully can help you make a good draft. graph pick or whatever in the fantasy sphere. Really enjoy the show. Your take on college football is spot on.

There seems to be an arms race for the power between the SEC and the Big Ten. I think this ends with a formation of a new league with innovations of the best 30 to 40 schools to participate. That's the only way I see some of this dead weight left on the sideline.

Rutgers, Maryland, Vandy, Northwestern, etc. We'll be hard to kick them out, but could see them left behind if the watered down SEC and Big Ten makes sense. Here's the thing. When it comes to, I saw Chip Kelly say this the other day.

He said, why don't the 50-60 big football programs, why aren't they're all independent, right? UCLA, USC, Ohio State, Texas, Oklahoma, Bama, you name it. Washington, Oregon, and everyone just plays everyone like Notre Dame.

And then all the Olympic sports, and you could even choose basketball as well play in conferences. Like it makes sense for Oregon to play Oregon State and Cal and Stanford in basketball. And you can do some non-conference tournaments, but it definitely does not make sense for UCLA softball to go play Ohio State every single year. Or Michigan State or Rutgers. It makes no sense.

But from a football standpoint, what if they all went independent and we just kind of split them up by regions and we develop the playoffs 12, 14 teams that way? Now, that was the most coherent, well thought out, and just most, I would say, least complex way of making sense that I've heard anyone say it or verbalize it for sure. But I don't know exactly how we're going to end up there, whether it's two main conferences, whether it's the independent idea. But we're all going to end up there at some point. The date, no one truly knows, but time will tell. I know you occasionally mention you winning a bet on the Broncos winning the Super Bowl. Not sure if you saw Von Miller's part of my take interview recently,

but he mentioned the Broncos wouldn't have beat the Panthers more than two out of ten times. I remember the field conditions for the game were awful, allowing Miller to dominate. Do you think the Panthers win that game if they didn't play in Santa Clara? At the time, Levi's had a lot of field issues. So if you think this issue in Arizona was a slip. field, that was bad. You know, I did hear him say that. I don't think Carolina was that much better than Denver.

Now, one thing he couldn't say because he respects the guy too much, and you just can't really talk shit about Peyton that way, Peyton was a shell of himself. He could barely throw. So if they did play 10 times, a lot of those games, they're just not going to be able to score any points. And if I remember correctly, they might have scored on the first drive, It was hard for Denver to score in that game.

But the Denver defense was, I mean, it was incredible. It had four awesome delinmen. It had Vaughn and Ware, Hall of Famers, Derek Wolf, who was a stud at the time, and Malik Jackson. Their front four was badass. Their linebackers were good. Brandon Marshall, Trevatham. Their corners were awesome. They had Roby, Talib, and Chris Harris.

Safety's, I'd watch that team several years in a row in person, because they played the Raiders. The defense was awesome. So that defense alone, you know, Cam's not exactly. I know he's having a great year, but I would say more like five out of ten. I would say more like five out of ten. And remember, that defense was just kicking his ass and Cam just had enough. What are your thoughts on Kevin Brown, the broadcaster, suspended as being viewed as a bit much?

Recent broadcasting suspensions have been more about racist inappropriate comments. As a lifelong Orioles fan couldn't be happier with the same. season. Truthfully, I'd rather focus on the good than the bad. If you buddy had a string of bad relationships but finally found the right one, wouldn't you want to introduce him and talk about how things are going right now and not previous blunders in the past? My two cents, love the pod. Overall, I think this. And universally all the broadcasters got his back. All those same broadcasters work for teams. Ninety-eight percent of them. Maybe the, I think

the two New York teams are allowed a little more leeway to be aggressive. But even like Michael Kay, who will be critical, well, yeah, maybe a bad at bat. Is he ever saying, yeah, Aaron Boone's over his head or that's a terrible move by Brian Cashman? Fuck no. These broadcasters would never say anything. They're all homers because that's who signs their check. So I think it's a little disingenuous when all these broadcasters act tough guy, like they're allowed to say whatever they want. they're all very, very cautious about what they say.

I've seen it. I was once fired because the Raiders forced me out. And I was just working for a station. I wasn't even part of the broadcast. I just did the post game show, which was separate from their quote-unquote broadcast. But they didn't like it. And I realized right then, I'm not meant for that.

That's not my personality. I don't care how much money you could pay me. I'm not a big corporate shill guy. And that's what most of these guys are. Now, what you're saying, he just gave a graphic that they've struggled against Tampa. Is that that abnormal? It'd be like the Buffalo Bills going this year to play New England. And then going, you know what?

For the last 20 years, it was very hard for us to win. The last couple of years, we've had success. But for two decades, everyone knows, we've all watched the games. I watched it. He wasn't even being that negative. But you also work for that guy. He signed your checks. And whenever you work for someone that signed your checks,

like you're not in a partnership, you're not in a revenue sharing agreement. That guy is paid whatever, three, 400 grand to call the Orioles games and to be positive. So anytime, even if it's stupid, which I think we could make that argument pretty dumb that he got suspended. But like these broadcasters all getting on their high horse, like you guys all do the same stuff, are very careful about what you say. Now, every owner has a different amount of leeway of what you're allowed to say, but my buddy, Greg Papa, who is now the voice of the 49ers, got fired

by Mark Davis. You know why he got fired by Mark Davis? Because he said he didn't want Mike Shanahan to interview for the Raiders job because Mike Shanahan and Al Davis were mortal enemies. They hated each other. But Mark Davis

didn't give a shit. He wanted to interview Mike Shanahan. And Greg said that on the radio and said he was offended by it and Mark Davis was pissed off and ultimately fired him because of it. It's Mark Davis his team. I think Greg even later said as much. Like, that's just the way it works. It's just, it's just part of the gig. So it's why most of the broadcasters, like, I don't listen to their, I wouldn't listen to their podcasts, right? Because they're not giving me real takes. They got to be

very careful about what they say. Don't blame them. They want to keep their job. But that's kind of the world they're in. I do think that you're being a little unfair, though, like, he was just showing that they struggled at Tropicana Field. Of course they do. Tampa's awesome. they're good now. That's, and I don't, I don't watch you guys on a, I haven't watched any Orioles game. So from, you know, every broadcaster told me is the greatest thing since John Miller and Bob Costas.

But, you know, I don't know. I think it got a little overblown. Here's the other thing. Do I think there's a little more to the story? Could be wrong. Probably. I do. What are the main position battles or storylines

we should be watching in the preseason? I mean, I don't know. I mean, what team? I say this over and over. Most teams don't have that many. And the ones they have, they've definitely gotten very cautious about being too outspoken about them. So I think teams are very, very careful about letting you know kind of who's on the fence,

who's fighting for their job because of social media. Yeah. I mean, to me, you could argue the most intriguing one is probably like, Is Trey Lance going to be the third-train quarterback? Because is Baker, Mayfield, and Kyle Trask interesting at all? No. Okay, last question. Quick question for the pod.

I know left tackle is a premium position and they get paid as such, but I was wondering if right tackles get any leverage on earning more money when their quarterback is left-handed. I don't see the difference between a right tackle and a left tackle. Most of the sweet pass rushers line up over the right tackle. Last time I checked T.J. Watt, right tackle. Joey Bosa, often right tackle. When Brock Purdy got knocked out by Asan Redick, who's like an all-pro, Pro Bowl guy,

he was over the right tackle and tight end. So if you play right tackle, it's like, yeah, that guy is getting a lot of money. I'm also blocking guys making $20, $25 million over here. So I think they've gained a lot of leverage. If you're a good right tackle, you're going to get paid. Look at McGlinchie. McGlinchie just got what? $22 million a year, $20 million a year, $18 million a year?

I don't know the exact average, but $55 guaranteed. So that's basically guaranteeing three years at, what, $19 million a year? So I think if you're a trusted right tackle, you get paid cash. And as you should, I'm asking you to do a lot. Like, what the hell is the difference between left guard and right guard? Aaron Donald, Fletcher Cox, Buckner, you name it. All these sweet detackles, Hargrave, whoever, can line up both sides. There's no difference between a left guard, right guard,

center tackles. You have to block. You have to block. There is no way around it. The best players in the league. Making the most amount of money. That's a guarantee.

So I hear you. I'll get to a bunch more questions, probably on Sunday's pod. Appreciate everyone reaching out, firing in those DMs. I know I got a lot to answer. We'll keep banging these out. Adios.

Have a good day. Have a great weekend. And I'll be on Collins Pod Friday. See you. 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.