The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Steelers Play Calling, Bad Contracts, Elite College QB’s

Episode Date: September 20, 2023

John falls on his sword for failing to identify a major deficiency of the Pittsburgh Steelers before the season, and contrasts that to a strength of the Miami Dolphins. He explains why it’s harder for NFL teams to overcome bad contracts compared to other sports, reviews this year's historically great list of top college quarterback prospects and how they can affect the thinking of NFL GM’s and franchises. John also answers listener’s questions from 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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Get the app on Apple's App Store and make sure you follow me at John Middilcoff to get notified when I go live. What is going on, my people, John Middilcoff, 3 and Out. podcast. How are we doing Tuesday afternoon? Recording a little show about football. Have some thoughts and some realizations on where I got it wrong with the Miami Dolphins. I think the Rams potentially would fall under this category. I would say the Steelers as well on the opposite end of the spectrum. And we will discuss that and why it shouldn't be as complicated as it is when us prognosticators and talking heads, I don't, I just, I'm a podcaster. A podcaster.

as podcasters, make some preseason thoughts and predictions, and then we're proven wrong pretty quickly. Some thoughts on the quarterbacks, quarterback issues. We got a bunch of guys making a lot of money that are clearly not living up to the hype, so we will dive into that as well as some draft thoughts. This has a chance, you know, Caleb Williams, Drake May, Michael Pennix at Washington. There are some other guys throwing their hat in the ring to be first round picks,

and this week is going to be all eyes on them. so we will dive into that. A little early September NFL draft talk. Some of your teams stink and are going to be drafting quarterback's eyes. So might as well start talking about them now. Middlecoff mailbag at John Middlecoff is the Instagram firing those DMs. We did one yesterday. I didn't one today.

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But first, do you know what I did last weekend? I told you. And I'm going to keep telling you, I went to a college football game. And I have gone to more events in 2003 than I have in recent memory. I've gone to baseball games. I've gone to baseball games. I've gone to multiple football games and several concerts because of my friends at game time.

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Go enjoy yourself and save a little money while you're at it because game time is giving you $20 off your first pair of tickets by using the promo code John. Don't even need a thank you. Just hammer that promo code John, game time map, Fast-scoring TV half in America. One mistake I made coming into this season is something that I live by.

The coaches in the NFL obviously outweigh coaching in other sports, right? I could win big with Steph Curry-Lebron. It doesn't mean I'm going to win the championship every year, but I'm not going to be a terrible coach if I have one of those guys. Right? We saw LeBron have excellent teams with David Blatt. We saw Steph Curry win with Mark Jackson, right?

You can win a lot of games in baseball or basketball if you got star players. Doesn't guarantee you're going to win, but for the most part, it's going to work. In football, scheming and X's nose is such a prevalent part of every single play, let alone every single game, let alone every single season. It is a constant chess match between the coordinators. And in 2023, we just happen to have a lot of head coaches who operate as their team's coordinator, mainly on offense, but we have a couple on defense, Brandon Staley, not going well, who directly impact the game, you know, half the snaps of the 60 minutes every single weekend. So this year, I love teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers. And looking back, I shake my head.

Everyone knew their offensive coordinator was terrible. I'm not even the biggest fan of their quarterback, but I, like, trusted the brand. I'm like the Pittsburgh Steelers, they'll figure it out. Now, they had a lot of early injuries, but I don't care. They could, you know, Jerome Bettis could walk through that door. Heath Miller can walk through that door. If Matt Canada's calling the plays, we got issues. We got issues.

Yet a team, like I wasn't that high on, and mainly it was a pivot. Sometimes I like to short the masses. I was like, I don't see it with Miami. How do I not see it with Miami? I followed Mike McDaniel's career since he showed up in San Francisco in 17. I've gotten to no players on that team. let alone I just know people that work in that building that swear by the guy as an offensive mind. Kyle Shanahan has publicly stated how important the guy was to his career,

helping to influence the run game a couple years ago scheming Debo as a running back. His offensive prowess was well established as an assistant coach, let alone how special he's been getting Tyreek and Waddle through last year and then early on in this season. and then he adds Vic Fangio, who I freaking love Vic Fangio. He's easily a top five defensive coordinator if you give him the right players. He'll probably have the number one defense in the league. So a sport that is predicated on having a good coach and good coordinators, and Mike calls the offense, he's the head coach, and obviously Vic calls the defense.

I was like, I don't know, man. What was I thinking? How could I like the Steelers coming into this season more than the Miami Dolphins? And let's face it, I was biased just based on my life. because the majority of my life, the Steelers have been good, and the Dolphins, for the most part, have not, which is stupid. Because I would definitely take McDaniel and Fangio right now over Tomlin and Matt Canada, and it's coming to fruition.

And as I said on Monday night, the Steelers are, you know, at best going to win like nine games. And more than likely, there'll be seven or, you know, seven or eight wins, given all the injuries that are happening and clearly their coordinator. And Miami shows you that if you have a. dominant offensive coordinator. And they do. Mike McDaniel is not given speeches in the locker room, like he's Bear Brian or Nick Saban or Bo Schembeckler.

That's not his deal. But do you know what he is doing? Every single week, drawing up all the freaking plays that get these guys wide open, who took a quarterback that most of us had red flagged. I was like, I don't know. I don't see it. Small, not the greatest arm. Well, what did two would do well at Alabama?

When he was surrounded by, one could argue, the greatest group of talented four wide receivers we've ever seen. All four guys went in the top 15. Hit a lot of big plays, through a lot of bombs. What do they do now? Run a lot of go routes. Obviously, his ability to move guys around, get guys in motion, and just the team speed with Waddle and Tyree Kill is pretty special.

But they have a guy who knows how to scheme an offense. And it's prevalent every single week they play. So when I look at the Miami Dolphins, coach right now, their two guys scheme-wise are top-not. their skill positions, I mean, the two wide receivers are elite, and their quarterback is still to be determined, though he started extremely well, has proven when he has been healthy, he is very, very good going back to Alabama with talented wide receivers. Like he knows how to get them the ball.

Now, sometimes his arm strength can leave a little something to be desired, but let's face it, he doesn't play in Buffalo. He doesn't play in Kansas City. And I was looking at their schedule because I had to Google it, because a longstanding kind of topic with southern football teams, but specifically the Miami Dolphins, because of the teams they play in their division, is they don't win a lot of games in cold weather situations. And I think they're like eight or nine straight losses and under 40 degrees temperature. Well, they have the opportunity.

If you get the number one seed, you don't ever have to play in cold weather. And then I looked at their schedule where usually because of the division, you might get a a late game in Buffalo, might get a late game in New England. That's not the case. Obviously, they just played in New England, right? They get the Jets late November, 1124, which could be pretty cold, but Aaron Rogers know where to be found. They get at Washington the following week, 12-3. That could be really cold, tough defense.

That could be a tough spot. And then a game that's got a chance, who knows, maybe it's determining the number one seat, maybe it's determining the two-seat, but it's going to be a cold-weather situation for the dolphins, 1231 at Baltimore. But they don't have as many cold-weather games in November and December as I would have assumed before I clicked on their schedule today. So defensive coordinator, A plus. Young offensive coordinator, I mean, I don't know how you wouldn't give him an A right now. The skill guys, A. Quarterback, listen, when he's been healthy, the one thing Dolphins fans would always push back as look at his numbers.

And you get to a while, like this is a production-based business. So not everyone's going to look pretty. Not everyone's going to look like Farverma Holmes. Some guys, like Tua, don't look like that. But guess what? When you're throwing for 350, 400 yards every single week, getting the ball to your playmakers, that's really all that matters. It's the longstanding argument, and I think Tua's better than Jimmy Garapolo, but like,

if you surround a solid player with really good players and they know how to use them, that's the point of football to win the games. And they're doing it in a very sexy way because of their team speed. So I underestimated Miami, and I clearly overestimated the Steelers. And I think it comes back to, I didn't spend enough time coaching, coaching, coaching, coordinating, coordinating, coordinating. The Rams, same thing. I told this to Colin the other day.

It's like, obviously, I'm not going to bet on four fifth round picks until I see them play. Well, I'm a couple weeks in. The pass rushes the Rams have, Puka Nakua, like they got some really good young players. But what do they have that's the most important thing? Their head coach is a dominant offensive play caller. And their quarterback is a $40 million player when healthy. He's a worthy, elite guy. He can go to a pro bowl on any given year.

So they have a highly paid, highly talented quarterback with an elite play caller. That's the sport. That's 2023. Sabin admitted to this several years ago in college football. We're not going to win games 13 to 10 anymore. Those days are over. We have to score points. Why he started recruiting the Tua Tonga Viloas, the Jerry Judis, the Jalen Wattles.

He wanted those players because he needed explosive players on offense. Not that he didn't early on with Julio and Amari, but he started loading up. Now, this team doesn't quite look like that, but his mindset shifted. And the NFL mindset has clearly shifted. I still believe you can be a good head coach as a defensive coach, but I'd like you to be my defensive coordinator, right? And I'd like you to be a dominant scheme guy. And that doesn't guarantee you're going to have to win.

Look at Vic Fangio, who clearly has been one of the best DCs over the last decade plus. Gets a head coaching job, they have no quarterback. Their offense is a joke. You're not going to win. It's really that simple. Brian Flores, proven to be a pretty good defensive coordinator. got the Miami job for whatever reason he didn't like Tua and their offense sucked. So the offense is so important.

And that's the one thing when you're a CEO head coach, you know, Tomlin, Harbaugh, solid now. Your success is so predicated on who you hire, how good that guy is and his impact on the quarterback. The Dolphins never have to worry about that because the guy they're paying to be their head coach directly impacts the quarterback. Every single day of the week and obviously every Sunday. Same with the Rams. same with the 49ers, same with the chiefs. I mean, same with all these good teams. So I wish I could have a redo because I just, I'm better than that.

And it's just, it's too much of a coaching league to ever, you know, not realize when you're making early season picks or kind of prognosticate how something's going to play out by not just going all in on the top coaches who specifically call plays now. And thinking about quarterback issues. And you could be like, well, what about dent? I think the problem with that is, and I think you saw with Deshaun Watson, like, I think Stephancy is pretty good. I do.

Obviously, Sean Payton has a long resume. But I've been saying this forever in the NBA. There are like five to seven guys that you feel really good about giving the max amount of money. And in the NBA, the top contracts, right, after your fourth year, after your eighth year, whatever, are slotted, whether it's $150 million or $300 million or whatever the numbers are. yet like 20 to 25 guys get those contracts.

And then the majority of the NBA teams and all these fans, like, my team has no chance to win. Well, of course not. You're paying guys max money who aren't max players, right? If I got LeBron or I got Curry or I got Janus or Yokic, they're worth every penny. They're worth the max amount of money that I can pay that. But if you have a guy who is not on their tier

and you're paying the same contract, I have a huge advantage over you. These are salary cap levy. And in the NFL now, the amount of quarterbacks making just insane amount of money is really high, right? From Holmes to Allen, now to Burrow and Lamar to Jalen to Herbert, like it's, it's growing, Kyler, obviously to Sean, Russell Wilson, Aaron Rogers, to Dak and Kirk Cousins. When you pay these guys, even if the salary cap goes up and the GMs and the people around the team always love saying, well, the salary cap's going to rise, it's not going to be as crazy of an impact. that is true, but it's still a big impact on your salary cap when you pay a guy at minimum double what the next highest paid guy on your team makes.

Like if you have a $20 million guy on your team, and especially if you have a rookie quarterback, that guy's going to be the highest paid guy on your team. So once you start paying a quarterback, $45 to $50 million, he's going to more than double typically your highest paid player. Unless you have like a Nick Bosa, a Joey Bosa, like there is a small percentage of players making that $25 to $30 million. So when you watch the Browns struggle, like their only chance to be good,

obviously, and they have a really good roster, even though they lost Chubb and had a bunch of injuries. Without Chubb, I think they'll still be okay because Ford will probably be a good player. Miles Garrett, they have a ton of impact pro bowl level guys. But if Deshaun Watson is going to play this season, like the 15th or 16th best quarterback in the NFL, they're going to have it up and down season

because they're paying him to play like the fourth best quarterback in the league. Right. Same thing with the Denver Broncos. I've heard a lot of this. Like, it's not all Russ's fault. The defense sucks. Agreed. Their defense the other day was abysmal.

It was embarrassing, especially a team that had one of the better defenses in the league last year. But when you're paying a quarterback that much money, you're expecting him to be a pro bowler. Now, the thing with Russell now, we have whatever, last season and this season, when he starts their 4 and 13. So, listen, you can tell me quarterback, wins and losses is not a stat that should go on the quarterback, yet every time I look at a good

quarterback, their win-loss record is really good. Like, say what you want about Josh Allen, shitty first game, and it was really bad. What do you do? Bounce back, play the Raiders. Looks like the best player in the league, you know? And I just think when you're paying these guys this amount of money, it's no different for the position players. When you go all in and you saw it last night on full display with T.J. Watt, and you've seen it for a couple years with Minka Fitzpatrick, they give these guys premium dollars, they need them to be premium players, and they constantly are. The Cleveland Browns, draft him number one,

pay him a shitload of money, and Miles Garrett is elite. You're like, you don't even think about it, right? You do not even think about it. And Tyree Kill with the Devante Adams, you know every time you're stepping on the field, that guy is going to play like one of the best players in the league. And if he's on, I don't care who else you're on the field with,

more than likely he's going to be the best or second best player on the entire field, including the other team. I think some of these quarterback issues right now you're seeing is that Deshawn Watson, Russell Wilson, you saw it last year with Kyler, once I give you, I have a pet peeve, I hate the word bag, because no one that makes hundreds of millions of dollars gets paid in bags. This isn't the mafia. This isn't SEC recruiting. We're paid in direct deposits and the money gets taxed.

I'd love to get paid in bags. But even if I did, you can't buy anything with bags. You can't show up to a car dealership with $200 grand in cash and say, give me the car, right? That's not the way the world works. So that's always been a pet peeve of mine. I get the kids love it, and the media loves it too. Payton, I think we should rename it, direct deposits. And once you start giving these guys enormous direct deposits, you need them to live up to the money.

And some sports are different, right? I understand in baseball, it can be difficult because most of the time you're signing a player, he's typically, you know, 29, 30, 31, 32 years old, there's a decent chance as best years are behind them. But if you want that player, the going rate's $200, 300 million dollars. And you don't have a choice. It's why Bryce Harper a couple years ago was such a good. a unique case because he was only like 26, 27 years old, right? Most of the time when these guys hit,

look at Aaron Judge, was over 30. And in football, you pay a guy relatively young. The Deshaun situation, like I do defend Russell Wilson, or at least the transaction that went down. I would have made the move too. Howie Roseman attempted to make the move. Most GMs, given a desperation spot for a quarterback, would have been very, very interested in Russell Wilson and then extended him. The Deshawn thing was a little bit more of a red flag. Everything he had going off the field, his lack of what felt like contrition to any self-inflicted decisions. Part of being a good quarterback is decision-making on and off the field.

I can call Russell kind of corny. I never worry about him not being all in and making good decisions, right, in terms of his health, his wellness, his family. Do I trust Deshaun Watson when he leaves my building? You would say, not really, right? Kyler, while he's not a troublemaker, his decision making in terms of being all in with football, have been more than questioned. The Cardinals put that thing in his contract, which is basically unprecedented for a guy getting an astronomical amount of money at that position.

The last thing you ever do is worry about Max quarterbacks in terms of their study habits, most of them, right? I bet if we went through, they would say, guys, a great studier, right? Mahomes, I know the chiefs. love his study habits. Alan, Herbert, Lawrence, Jalen Hertz. I mean, honestly, a big part of the Jalen Hertz contract because he was kind of a one-year wonder was we're betting on the guy, right? You look at Deshawn Watson, that's who you bet on? And I saw Colin talk about it today. They're like the Cleveland Browns, man. That's just, it's a classic Cleveland Browns type move. And the only reason he's there is because they were the only team willing to give him that contract,

which David Teper, who his ownership is still more in question with how good the Panthers are ever going to be, he did make the right decision where he said, no, we are not giving you that contract. Now, is Bryce Young ever going to be good? I don't know. They got a long way to go. They need to get them a lot of help. I don't know if Frank's any good. But I would not.

I never would have wanted any part of that situation. But that thing is just aging worse by the week. And last but not least, it really, I've watched. a lot of college football this year. I knew coming into the season, how talented these quarterbacks were. It's even more than living up to the hype, right? Caleb is, I mean, he's one of the best prospects I've ever seen, right?

Right there with luck, Trevor Lawrence. You know, Cam, just given his size. I mean, there's a short list of just all-time great prospects. And he basically was an established number one pick coming into this season, and he's doing nothing to slow that down. Drake May is very, very highly viewed around the league. Michael Pennix, I think, was viewed a little bit as a one-hit wonder, but also it was like last year was really, really impressive. He's doubling down on that. And one knock on him was he's had

some knee injury. So I think right now, and I'm putting Chador in his own category, because I'm just going to assume until he tells me otherwise that he's going to stay for two years with his dad and with Travis Hunter. Because, listen, I think there's a decent chance. I'm not trying to, you know, pee on anyone's parade here. But, you know, Dion might be too and done there. right when Chador, when Shiloh, when Travis leave, then he just, you know, goes to greener pastures. And listen, I'm not acting like Boulder, Colorado. That place isn't sweet, cool place to coach. But these SEC schools, these people are going to come calling with $12 to $15 million.

I promise you it's happening. So Shadur, I would put him in that class. But until I hear from, listen, he's said nothing one way or the other, but I think it's fair to assume the loyalty of kind of that group. I do think there's some other guys that have thrown their hat into the mix. And a big part of this NFL season is like, well, if you suck, there are all these other quarterbacks kind of floating out there, right? Beside Caleb, Drake May, and now Pennix.

Bo Nix had an awesome season last year. He looks every bit as good this year. And guess who they play this week? Where I don't know if you saw the headline, 9.3 million people watched Colorado Colorado State. making it ESPN's most watch game by a wide margin. A lot of people are watching Colorado. And a big reason for that is Dionne Sanders, right?

So guess what's going to happen when Oregon plays Colorado? A lot of people are going to be watching. It's not just us fans. This is where the GMs are going. So the amount of eyeballs that are just on Colorado, they're going to be right there on Bo Nix. And he's got a great opportunity to like, he's playing panics later this season.

like he can really establish himself as a first round pick. I know people in the league last year that thought if he would have come out, that he would have been a fringe, you know, top 40 pick. He's doing nothing to change that now. If anything, he's just enhancing it. So listen, all eyes are always going to be on Shudor in Colorado. But whoever is playing that team, it's like in two weeks, Caleb plays them. Right.

And when you play Colorado, a lot of people are paying attention. And the other guy that is just a fascinating case study, he's older is Sam Hartman. And he would have been a guy that probably goes in the fifth, six, seventh round if he would have came out this year. And a lot of guys in his situation, Wakeforce, come out, right? Get drafted in the late rounds, whatever. Start your NFL career.

He became such a highly valued commodity in the transfer portal. Florida was offering them millions. Notre Dame. Who knows how much they're paying him. And he's gone there, and he's been fucking awesome. And now they're playing Ohio State. And when I think of Notre Dame, like when I was a kid, They were Alabama, right?

They were Ohio State or Michigan. They were Georgia. They were winning a lot of big games. When I think of Notre Dame now, I feel like they lose a lot of big games. Well, if you finally get a legit quarterback who's an NFL guy and you go and beat Ohio State, he clearly has helped himself early on in the season. They haven't really played anybody. Now it's about to get real.

They're going to play USC and obviously Ohio State this week. If you have one of those games, or I mean, two weeks against those two teams where you're in the high 60s, throwing several touchdowns and playing. playing winning football, I think we start talking about him as definitely a top 50 prospect. So we already have three guys who are big time prospects. Like Caleb Williams is like Trevor Lawrence, who that draft now looks really shitty. Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, Justin Fields, even Mac Jones. Doesn't look great.

Well, a lot of those guys didn't have much sample size in college. That ain't the case with this group. All these guys are going to have long resumes of throwing a bunch of touchdowns and playing for a long time at a really high level. And now all these guys, Bo Nicks, Sam Hartman, Penix, Caleb, Drake may probably not as much, but who knows, they haven't lost yet, are competing for playoff spots. So they're going to be playing in these games that millions of people are watching. All these GMs are going to attend.

I was texting with a buddy that works for ESPN, and he's out here because the Giants are staying, and he's staying with the Giants. And we were talking about in the offseason. I'm like, get, you know, Joe Shane. go play some golf when you guys come in. And I text him like, hey, we're going to, I couldn't make it. He's playing golf right now. But he's like, Shane went up to UDup.

Now, he's, you know, Washington has like an elite pass rusher. So you don't just go to the school, the only scout quarterbacks. And people often ask, like, do you get, when you're a college scout, you just scout positions? You scout everybody. So if I go into USC, I'm scouting all their pro prospects. So when you go to these games, the other, you know, kind of old adage that is still a, you know, a very, very emphasized thing in every scouting department. If you're going to put grades on draftable quarterbacks,

you have to see them play in person. So the amount of scouts that are watching all these guys play in person is probably just higher than normal given there are so many guys across the country that you've got to get your scouts to all these different games. And luckily, because a lot of them are playing each other, you can bang it off. Like when Notre Dame plays USC,

I would imagine every team's going to be represented. This week, Ohio State Notre Dame, I would imagine every team is going to be represented. Colorado, like, I know this. If I was a GM, I would have to have a scout of those two games. We have to have representation at Colorado, Oregon, and Notre Dame, Ohio State. We cannot have someone not at that game. I remember Veets told me years ago, it's like mandatory that someone goes to the SEC championship game.

Just too many NFL players. And that's what a lot of these games feel like, even with the quarterbacks. And I don't care if Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen, that's the team you work for. You've still got to scout these guys. in a couple years. Look at Tray Lance. A couple years later, he's available. Zach Wilson might be on a different team next year, right? Justin Fields might be on a different team.

Things change fast in the NFL. So you watch, check the internet, come this weekend. The list of teams and scouts and executives at these games, it's going to be fucking nuts. And oftentimes in big games, you'll be like, oh, 10 teams are here. And, you know, one of the media members for the college or the or the SID for that given college will tweet it out and the teams will. I think some of these games are going to have minimum 25 teams. And like I said, I don't even think it's crazy talk to go, every team should be represented. You're probably not doing your job if you're not going on the field, scouting live.

I think you've got to be in attendance at these games. We're back with another week of football and Draft King Sportsbook is keeping us in on the NFL action. With great offers every single game day, new customers can bet $5. and get $200 instantly in bonus bets. Throw five down on any of this week's epic matchups to walk away an instant winner. And Draft Kings isn't stopping there. All customers can take advantage of two new offers every game day this September. Football's more fun when you're in on the action.

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

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

stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross

double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jek. And I'm Alex English. We pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it.

Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes.

I don't think there's a more. important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Okay, a little Middlecough mailbag.

At John Middlecalf is the Instagram fire in those DMs. Start with Joey. John, big fan of the show. It has become my daily listen. God, I like Joey. Me and my friends had this conversation after Mahomes re-signed. What would happen if he just retired?

after signing it. He didn't technically re-sign. They just guaranteed all the money on his contract. And I think added a little, but remember, he signed a 10-year deal. So he wasn't like going to be a free agent, but I know what you're saying. When a player retires with a ton of money left on the deal, does the team, for example, get some relief in not paying the signing bonus or do they have to pay him an entire contract even though he's retired? I think usually the way it works, to my understanding, and we have to get Howie or Parag or one of the money guys on the show here, is when you pay the money up front, the signing bonus is how you allocate a lot of the dead cap money, right, and the salary cap hits. Because you amortize, let's just pick an even

number, I give you $100 million in guaranteed money and you had a $200 million contract. Well, over the life of the deal, four, five, six years, however long it is, the 49ers, like, do these sneaky fake years, you spread that cash around. well if you retire after a couple years i've paid you a large percentage of the signing bonus and the guaranteed money but that money was like a credit card it's still due on the books because you've avoided it right like i don't know what nick bosa's cap hit this year is but it's not that big he's another example just because i i know the details a lot of the 49er contracts they signed givon hardgrave to four years 80 million dollars they gave him 40 million dollar basically signing bonus guaranteed money

his salary cap hit this year six. So they're kind of fudging the books. I mean, everyone does that. Those are the rules. So if you were to retire after the season, you still signed him to that contract. You would bear the brunt of it in, you know, in future years. I'm not exactly sure on the rules. He could, I technically, you would have to give back some money.

Remember Andrew Luck, they let him keep his signing bonus. He didn't have to pay it back. I would say this, usually with large amounts of, of money still owed, if you can physically still play, you continue to play so you can keep your money. Or you make them cut you, i.e. Matt Ryan, who technically has to stay, you know, active, even though he's clearly, you know, quote unquote, retired because he doesn't want to pay anything back.

Kill in the pod, two questions. If the bears or cards get the number one pick and Caleb refuses to go to them, what are the chances they hire either BNamy or Kellyn Moore to incise the quarterback to play with them. I think we're a long way away from the situation playing out with Caleb demanding to go somewhere. He's got big games coming up. A lot of people are going to be watching them. Obviously, he's going to be the number one overall pick. But I just mean that there's one thing to say something in a magazine article, and it was his father. There's another thing to execute it. It's been very few and far between over my life. I wasn't born when Elway did it. Most of you listening, we know we've got a pretty younger demo here. Probably weren't either. And if you were,

you probably were pretty young. Beale, if you were born in 1973, which would make you 50 years old, you were 10 when that happened. Obviously, some of us, you know, many of us remember the Eli situation. So, yeah, I don't know. I don't know how that's going to play out. The Cardinal situation, I think, is going to be pretty, it's going to be looked at toxicly. Is that a word toxically? It is going to be looked at very poorly by agents and people.

But the one thing, you know, this, it's not usually treated like the NBA. where historically a lot of guys in basketball, their agents, have done power plays to avoid going to the kings, avoid going to the magic. You know, it's very, very rare. Now, could Caleb do that? Like, where's he going to force himself? We're all the good situations. All the good situations have quarterbacks.

Right? It's like, I want to go. I keep saying this. Like, where does he want to go? The Chiefs? You know, who does you want to play for? I guess maybe the Rams, but what if the Rams win nine games? So I think it's basically impossible.

And think about it in basketball, I mean, it kind of happens, but you still end up going to a shitty team. It's not like the number one pick, the Anthony Davis is and the, you know, whoever, Victor Wembe Niamma is like, I want to go to the heat. It's like, yeah, guys, they don't have any first round picks. Favorite bets this weekend. I'm recording this part Tuesday, even before lunch. I haven't really dove into the slate beside. I know there are some massive spreads. And obviously, we've got the game Thursday night, which is also a massive spread.

I was thinking chiefs minus 12 and a half, bears, cowboys, minus 12 over cards, or chiefs over bears, cowboys over cards. And then I like the money line of the Jacks, Jags, Texans, and maybe the Rams winning over the Bengals. I would say this, I get very, very hesitant with enormous spreads. You know, I like waiting a little bit longer to do the basically two touchdown spreads when it is clear. the team stinks is done. Look at the Cardinals. We all universally, the Cardinals would tell you, we stink.

We're not going to be any good. You looked up on Sunday against a playoff team, in theory, we'll see if the Giants end up making the playoffs. They're up 20 to nothing at half. I know they lost. They were up 20 to nothing at half. They could have won the game the previous week. So I would be hesitant with the cards.

Now, Buda Baker's on Injure Reserve. Joshua Dobbs, I would be more. more likely to short the bears with a big spread. But even then, like a lot of these guys, to me, your pride, hell, it could be high school football, college football. Your team might suck, but early in the season you're going to try. And you're bound, like, let's face it, the Chiefs haven't exactly been some, you know, Ferrari early, they don't exactly look like offensively four or five years ago.

Now, their defense is unreal. So how is Justin Fields going to move it on that defense? It's going to be difficult. I would lean chiefs over the bears. I could see the Cowboys, you know, not even really paying attention to the bears and just have a clunker where they're just, you know, on somewhat cruise control. But maybe it's early in the season two, so maybe they just destroy them. I'm hesitant with huge spreads.

Don't hate Jags over Texans. I mean, if Joe Burroughs out, I do not like the Bengals against anybody. The Raiders defense is again garbage. Is it the defensive coordinator Graham an idiot? How much soft zone? can you play? No imagination whatsoever. No schemes to get Crosby and company any success other than one goal line stand. The offense didn't do them any favors. Now we got the Steelers on Sunday night. Unless Jacob starts to hit holes and get some yards, I'm pretty sure we will be one and two

come Sunday night. Just another frustrating year. Yeah, it's just the same shit over and over. And to me, the craziest thing, I will reiterate this. I said this the other day. they get their ass kicked and they lose more than any team that never drafts like second overall. I mean, even when they're crappy, they end up drafting like ninth. And most of the time, they're in like the teens. Yet it feels like they get worked. Now, this is a game that I would imagine they have circled because last year, that was a devastating loss. That game, what was it?

Christmas Eve ended Derek Carr's, you know, tenure with the Raiders. but a lot of the guys that were on that team, Devante, Max, Jacobs, Colton Miller, a lot of the DBs. Listen, let's face it, the Steelers. I wouldn't exactly call, you know, the steel curtain of the late 70s. They do not look great.

Please make it make sense. It seems like every sports pundit has forgot the last 20-plus years. I understand that Dallas Curley has the best defense, but please stop with Dak. The guy who was maybe a hair better than Kirk Cousins, I'm supposed to believe can beat Pat Mahomes in the Super Bowl, please. On top of that, as an Eagles fan, I cannot stand how the only conversation is the Super Bowl hangover,

and they've taken a step back. And I get it. But to not bring up the guerrillas sitting on Dallas's back is total malpractice. These dudes haven't sniffed an NFC championship since before I was born. 1996, objectively, an excellent year of the pod. I think it's fair. I think, listen. they could have beat the 49ers last year.

Of all the times, and I don't remember every Dallas Cowboy game in the last 25 years, but I've watched every snap of the last two in which they've lost. And I've been really dialed in on that game because they're playing the 49ers. Two years ago, I thought the Niners showed up in Dallas and shoved them around. The game ended up being close, but Jimmy had one of the dumbest picks you'll ever see. The Niners showed up and shoved them around. Cowboys weren't as tough. That was not the case last year.

the Cowboys showed up and were every bit as tough as the 49ers. It was a little mid-90 style. And it's one point of difference that the 49ers have had in a lot of playoff victories in Harbaugh and the Kyle Shanahan heiress. They've been tougher than a lot of opponents. The Packers, they always shove them around. And last year, the Cowboys were like, you're not shoving us around. Now, Dak, fuck them.

So you're right. He is a major wild card. But if he could ever just have a game where I don't know he doesn't throw picks, he does not have to be Patrick Mahon. I agree. If they played the Chiefs, I would pick the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. But he definitely, they're going to be comfortable playing the Eagles, see him twice a year. And now they will have played the 49ers, right? They play them here in a couple weeks.

I'm sure they'll probably play them again in the playoffs. They've played them back to back years in the playoffs. Like, they've played them a lot. So of all the teams, the Niners are going to intimidate and just out talent, the Cowboys just won't be one. And let's face it, like the one thing you guys have, if Jaylon's playing well, Jayland's better than Dak. You know, I like Brock Purdy. I'm a bullish on Brock Purdy's career, but, you know,

Dax done more. So I don't think it's out of the wrong possibility. I do think it's fair to say through two weeks and based on last year, this defense is championship worthy and their offense just has to be solid. Now, that's been they're down for, downfall. Dack last year through two interceptions, devastating picks. Cost them the game. Hey man, how are you?

Good. my Broncos, a couple of questions. One regarding Collins rant about Russ. Is there any way Denver could get rid of him in a way they get less fucked besides a trade? I don't think a team will want to trade for him with the awful contract. And my second one, man, I said, just like a lot of guys, Vance Joseph hiring was a big mistake in Denver. I would get rid of him, A cent, would you? What I don't understand, and I think I saw, I always screw up his name, a Vigero, the defensive coordinator last

year for Denver is Nathaniel Hackett. He's a UC Davis guy, like Nathaniel Hackett. I think they're best friends since college. So I think he felt very uncomfortable with staying there. I don't even know if it was, you know, if you're a Denver Bronco fan, I'm sure I read an article about this six, eight months ago, but I'm pretty sure he just kind of chose the left and now he's Carolina's defensive coordinator. And I think Carolina's defense looks pretty good.

That guy's good. That guy feels he didn't play in the league like D'Amico, but I've watched his defense for two years. He's kind of got a Domeco vibe. That fucking guy's good. And listen, as my dad would tell you, UC Davis guys are smart. They are intellectually, you know, highly educated. He always made fun of me because I just went to a little old state school in San Luis Obispo. But I like that guy a lot. I think he's got a chance definitely in the near future to be a head coach. Denver's defense was legit last year. I mean, they were really, really good. And Vance Joseph, to me, he's just one of those guys that feels like everybody's friend, everyone like. them. They'll share an agent. I just never understand that in the NFL. I understand working with guys that you like that are also good coaches, but I don't know. I've never really seen it. It feels like everyone really likes the guy. And I guess that matters in life, right? You want to like your friends, but we're trying to win football games right now. And it's pretty embarrassing the other day that there's no way around it because their players are not that bad. Now, I'm sure you

saw some of the viral clips of Rex Ryan saying, well, if I was the defensive coordinator because remember he wanted the job and I don't think Sean Payton offered him the job. It's like Rex, you were awesome 10 years ago, 15, 20 years ago. It's 2003. Are you still good? I don't know. I've been listening to these shows since it started with Colin.

I went to the cards game versus the Giants on Sunday. What a roller coaster. For the first time I saw DJ play fast. What do you think it will take for him to keep playing fast? Well, I think through the first six quarters, it was egg on their face,

doesn't even feel strong enough. It was an utter disaster for dayball and Joe Shane. Like that quarterback play to look that overwhelmed, it was, to say it was a problem feels like the understatement of the day. And clearly they unleashed the rookie speedster from Tennessee in the second half. He hit him on a couple big plays. I think he had the rushing touchdown on the bootleg or whatever.

He's a really good athlete. I thought that he had a chance to take a big step, right, to go from 15 touchdowns to like 24 touchdowns, 28 touchdowns, and be a really good player. It was hard to think that through six quarters. So, you know, can he build on any of that momentum against the 49ers? It's very difficult. What a tough spot for any quarterback. Short week on the road in their home opener against a top two, three defense in the league,

who has a really good defensive line when your offensive line early on has been question mark. but I'm not going to judge him as much this week. I think the Seattle game in 10 days will be a big moment for him. And I think if you're going to make the playoffs, you're going to need him to play second half version for a lot more than he did last year, obviously, as well. What are the rules among teams, coaches, and players when it comes to intellectual property,

i.e. the playbook and game plans. When someone switches teams, the reason I ask, this is watching the Eagles and their offense, it's obvious they don't look as potent as they did under Stuyken. I would think the Eagles would still have the playbook from last year and that it's become a matter of play calling. Just curious. Well, yeah, I mean, it's their playbook. So when Shane Stuyken, the entire offense he ran was the Eagles, right?

I mean, the Eagles owned that playbook on the plays. Now, Shane Stuyken can take those plays with them. It's not the equivalent of a lot of our industries where if, I'll use this example, in radio, right? I didn't any of the radio shows, even though I had my own radio show, I didn't own it. So when I left the company, I couldn't take that, you know, those properties with me. Shane Steichen, they're going to let him take his actual tangible playbook, you know, probably the team iPad and stuff he leaves there. But if you cut a guy on Monday and the team you're playing signs him on Tuesday, you are not going to let him take, you know, if you've had him.

handed him the game plan or whatever, which you wouldn't on Monday, but let's just hypothetically say, you take that away from, like, I've been the Turk when you, when you cut the guy, you get the team's property back. It doesn't mean he can't remember it until the other team, right? So there's a fine line. The other thing is like everyone uses the same place. So, so what is it really? The thing I've always wondered is when you fire like a front office exec in, let's say, early January. Well, he has the team and a lot, of the other executives that he's working with, especially if he's the GMs,

they're draft board. So he knows the player that team likes. So if he goes on to work with another team or consult for another team, he has inside information, right? And he's going to print that out and take it with them. Now, if he doesn't see the firing coming,

I guess you could lock him out of all of the stuff. So, yeah, it's not quite like most of our industries. If you work in tech, if you work in, you know, I don't know exactly every industry standard, but it's a little different. There is a lot of, it is what it is kind of, I think, at football.

Because a lot of the information is public, not the draft boards, but my Orioles and Ravens both had big Sundays. I'm making the rounds. Anyways, Lamar looked like Peak Lamar in Sensi this week. It was good to see. I have hope. Just got to protect, protect, protect the quarterback. It's a good example, man. When that guy's on, watch out.

Because he is as dynamic of a player. He's basically, and I loved Michael Vick. It was my first year when he had that kind of almost MVP season with the Eagles. Lamar is just a better player. He's a more accurate thrower. He doesn't have the same strength Vic had as a thrower down the field, but he's definitely more accurate. And he plays safer.

The one problem with Mike is he couldn't slide. So he just took these. he took these halacious shots. He would get hit where you're like, did he just break every bone in his abdomen region? His ribs, his pelvis, like is everything broken? And he'd get up. I mean, he was as tough as anyone you'll see,

but you just can only take those hits so many times. Lamar does a good job of just kind of plop it on the ground when he's running. I'd say Lamar and Jalen are two of my, sometimes with the runners in college that aren't great throwers, for whatever reason, maybe college coaching, I mean, Jalen had excellent college coaches. I think Lamar played for Petrino, but I don't know,

these guys became, it felt like more accurate in college. They become better throwers in the pros, which is wild, but then a lot of guys don't. So it's what makes drafting so hard. Hey, John, love the pod. What happened to Rogers was very unfortunate.

Wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy. I believe the team was going to be the most competitive they've been since 10. I still had them falling short, because of the O-line, how stacked it is. Is it possible we will look back on the injury and view it as the greatest what-if in the history of the league? Earlier in the off-season, Dave Canales came in as Tampa's O.C.

After spending over a decade in Seattle and leading Gino Smith to a career year last year. Is it possible Baker could go on to a resurgent year like Gino? Well, with the Rogers thing, it's 100% going to be the greatest what-ifs, especially if his career is just completely derailed. That's what happens. time, an older great, an all-time great has a career-altering injury. What could have been,

right? And, you know, I think the Jets, I'm not going to make, you know, huge end of the season judgments week two against the Cowboys. But the drop-off between Zach Wilson and Aaron Rogers, even at 40 years old, is clearly pretty high. So, yeah, I think it's definitely going to be the biggest what-if of this season for sure. And that's a guy that if Tampa Bay, let's just, I mean, it's not out of the run of possibility. They have really good players. Now, we'll see when Tampa, Atlanta, and obviously the Saints, they all start playing

each other. But you talk the easiest way to get a head coaching job and to become the hottest assistant in the NFL, start resurrecting quarterbacks careers. You resurrect quarterback's careers. You make quarterbacks who we view NFL people for. fans universally like everyone agrees like I wouldn't mess with that guy and make him into 30 touchdown gino make him into a winning player baker mayfield with tampa talking about getting head coaching injuries he will be a head coach don't want to be the guy who only complains when things

are not going well and not give credit when things go well the feed is back on track in south africa i keep rocking i think this guy was telling me he couldn't get the feed in south africa when you get in a tv show youtube show you can be the next back of fee i believe in you kind words. I appreciate you. Not a question. Good day. John, from all the way down under in Australia. I listen to you and Colin every day on the way to work. I'm up at 3 a.m. Monday morning to watch the NFL. My wife thinks I'm mad. Question for the pod. In the Australian Football League, our national sport, different to the NFL, we have an all-Australian team selected at the end of the year, who never play, but it's an extremely prestigious recognition. I know you have the Pro Bowl,

but no one plays and not many people care. It's so watered down. Do you think the NFL should name an all-American team at the end of the year, recognizing the best 22 players from the league across the season, I think it would be great. And we create a lot of buzz and discussion. Side question, who would you name as team captain? And why? Well, they do that. It's called the all-pros. And if you're an all-pro, it's easily more prestigious than the Pro Bowl. I do think, you know, when I was a kid making the Pro Bowl meant a lot. Making an All-Star team in baseball or basketball was a really big deal. And clearly, I think making the All-Star team in baseball is still a big deal. Making the all-star team in basketball, I mean, the same guys feels like make it all the time.

But in football, making an all-pro, like if you're a five-time all-pro as a guard, you're going to the Hall of Fame. So, yeah, I hear what you're saying, that they do that. They do a second team as well. A couple more here. Carson Wentz to the Jets. It's pretty crazy that Carson Wins' career just feels over. Like, it feels like we are six more injuries away. from anyone messing with the guy.

It really is a good life lesson. Listen, we all can get, you give any young person some money, not everyone's going to handle it seamlessly, but being humble, listening to your coaches, your bosses, even if you don't always agree.

And one knock I've consistently heard with him is he just will not listen to the coaches. And listen, Tom Brady and Aaron Rogers have different ideas. sometimes with coaches. But like, they're kind of in charge. And sometimes, like, you got to be tactful in the way to get what you want.

And I'm telling you his reputation, I don't even need to tell you, it speaks for itself. The guy two years ago had 27 touchdowns. And no one will touch the guy. Not a team. I still, if I was a betting man, think that he gets a shot sometime during 2023. But if you would have asked me in the middle of summer, I would have said by now, someone would have picked him up. But I got a DM story that will, you know, and listen, it's not, I'm not going to read it out loud, but I remember reading it thinking, yeah, I think a lot of people have the same idea.

It was basically a team, sent a guy to interview some quarterbacks. And let's just say that guy was an NFL quarterback or used to be and basically did some recon for the team and interviewed several guys about. being a team's backup and came back with the recon that he got with interviewing and having lunch with all these guys. I think they flew him around or maybe he did Zooms. I don't exactly know how it went down and basically just told the team's brass like, yeah, I wouldn't mess with this guy. I'd go with the other guy.

And guess what? That other guy is the team's backup. So, and I just think that a lot of people, the NFL small man, everyone talks. and when you're really talented, people just deal with you. But there gets to a line where when your talent starts to diminish and people view you as a problem. And being a problem doesn't mean like you're going to jail. Doesn't mean that your daily headlines for doing criminal activity or doing drugs. It can be simply like, you don't listen.

We don't have the energy as a backup quarterback to not have a guy that is basically there just to service the starter. and be ready to go in whenever his number is called. Because the majority of guys on a football team have that attitude. Most guys on the football team are not D.K. McCaff or A.G. Brown. Most guys are like the role players. Most the average guy is like the fourth and fifth guy on the team. As a DB, as a wide receiver, just trying to work their way up the depth track. Has a good attitude. Works hard.

Attitude, man. Might be cliche, but you get a reputation for having a bad one. No one wants to be around you. Huge fan. Card's fan, and 99% they're going to be terrible. If they don't get Caleb at one, what are your thoughts on getting Sanders from Colorado and trade Kyler? Do you think Dion would be able to be an OC in the NFL?

Kind of like they did with Kyler and Cliff. Well, what's funny is Deon was the OC when Shador was in high school at Trinity, not Trinity Forest. Maybe it is Trinity Forest. I thought it was in Florida, but I forget, did Shador grow up in Dallas or Florida? whichever one, Dion was the team's OC. Now, Deon's never being a coordinator.

Deon's a head coach now. Now, Deon has been very, very adamant that he doesn't want to go to the NFL, that he likes influencing these young guys. I talked about it earlier today. I think Shador is a great wild card. Obviously, if he chose to go to the NFL, he would be a very, very high pick. I'm kind of assuming that he's going to stay for two years this year and next because of Travis Hunter and with his dad.

but you never know. I think Kyler Murray is not on the Cardinals next year. That would be my guess. But like I said earlier with the, you know, with the question about the Bears and the Cardinals, we're a long way away from having this information. We got to let it play out.

I mean, last year, at this time, the Bears were like one in one. Not in a million years. Would we have thought they would have had the number one overall pick? Then they lost 10 straight games. So weird shit happens in the NFL, man. It's just, It's a long season.

Okay, last question here. I've been listening from the beginning, and you're my favorite podcast in a saturated market. We got some very, very nice guys in the DM. I like all you guys. Your takes on life have changed my career trajectory. Jesus, betting on myself and trying to hit home runs versus singles. Keep them coming.

Also, remember that Fairweather Patriot fan? Screw that guy. That guy who said should he jump off the Patriot Bandwagon? has gotten consistent hate in my DMs. And I think it's justified. You had the greatest 20-year run I've ever seen in sports. MJ and the Bulls run lasted like eight and a half years. You guys went from 01 to 2018.

It's as good as it will ever be in any sport moving forward. Even the Warriors. It's like 14 to 21. They might never win another title. It's a long run. I'm a die-hard bucks fan. and I thought the national media was too lazy with their takes on Tom is out, Baker is in, Bucks will suck.

Unlike the Rams, the majority of the core starters from the Bucks defense were on the Super Bowl team plus Evan's and Godwin. I think the reason I thought they were going to stink is you guys clearly have some good players on defense. I mean, watching that Bears game, Vita Vaya, God, that guy's a beast. Shaq Barrett makes plays. Your linebackers are good. Winfield's a good player.

What's his name in the corner who was out against the Bears? like that guy. Offensively, like you said, the wide receivers. Now, Mike Evans, but they've even, like, they didn't extend them, you know, and I think the Baker we've seen, I mean, last year he was one of the worst players in the league. He was atrocious. He really was. So you get this new offensive coordinator.

Your offense is humming. Yeah. I mean, there's no disputing that you have seven, eight impact players, like guys that are equals with, you know, your core stud players when they're playing well are Eagles, Cowboys, 49ers level talent. It's just the other offensive linemen, Baker's play, the coaching, I would say, is a big deal because one thing Todd Bowles is,

great defensive coordinator. As a head coach, it's been very suspect. So far this year, you guys look really good. You really do. But you play the Bears and you look good two weeks in a row. So I'm not going to like put you guys in the playoffs just yet, but I do think it's fair to say, that this season play the Vikings and the Bears.

I mean, two teams. I'm not trying to burst your bubble, but I mean, if we had to do combined wins of those two teams, are we looking at like nine? You got, here's what's coming up. I think we're going to learn a lot about you. Hit me back up late October. Eagles, Monday night football,

the first game, which I don't understand. Then you get the Saints in New Orleans. Then you play the Lions, who listen, I think are pretty good. Then you get the Falcons at home, who I don't really love, but they definitely have some talent. Then you go to Buffalo. So right now you're 2 and 0. Let's say you lose the Eagles.

That Saints game would be big because that's like, are you going 2 and 2 or are you 3 and 1? And you got to win over a division rival. Then you play the Lions, the Falcons. I mean, can you get to, if you're 5 and 3, you'd be in pretty good shape? Because then you got a lot of Texans, Buccaneers, Cups, Jags. Jags are actually pretty good. Panthers again, Packers. So I wouldn't say it's out of the realm possibility.

You guys are a playoff team, but also it's not out of the realm possibility. You're seven wins. I think we're going to learn a lot about you to the next four games, which welcome to the NFL. The volume. 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, S&L's Mikey Day and headwriter, 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 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 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 IHeart 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 taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast, Guaranteed Human.