The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - TNF Recap, the Bears finally win, do these teams suck

Episode Date: October 6, 2023

John recaps the Chicago Bears 40-20 win over the Commanders, even though Washington is a bad team, will that head coaching job be intriguing for big name coaches, he remembers Dick Butkus and what he meant to the NFL, and a weekend preview of the top games. Stuckey from the Action Network joins John to talk about some of the best bets of the weekend. 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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How are we doing, my people? Another day, but not another Bears lost. The Bears beat Washington, Thursday night football, their first victory in a long, long time. We will dive into that fields for more touchdowns. RIP Dick Butkus, as well as some stuff with Washington, Belichick, Sean Payton, the Giants. We will dive into it all.

A lot going on football-wise as we head into the weekend. So let's have some fun. This is the podcast. Make sure you subscribe. You listen on Collins' feed. Greatly appreciate it. And we're on YouTube as well. The volumes YouTube page, check that out.

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Swiftie probably back in another game next Thursday because the Chiefs are playing so she's busy but she's going to be singing sometime soon and if you want to go game time buy a pair of tickets promo code John. Okay the Bears Destroy doesn't feel too

strong of a word to describe what we witnessed. They took it to Washington. Washington had a couple drives but for the most part the Bears played their best game in a long long time. They played a good half last week. This was a really, really good game, and they needed it. And I want to start by this, because through two weeks, Justin Fields wasn't bad. I mean, it was an utter train wreck.

He looked, it wasn't even, you didn't, there was no subjective conversation. It was not arguable. He was playing the position at a really, really low level. Production wise, I test, the coaching staff. No one was on the same page. It was not going to. to work. Now, I liked him coming out a lot. Why? He has a ton of physical tools. Big strong arm. Big. Can really run. But playing quarterback, as we know, is a very nuanced position and it had not been going well. Well, the last two weeks, he has eight touchdowns. So I give, I respect anyone in any walk of life. Times get tough. I don't give a shit who you are. Nothing is easy all the time. In an industry, like Wall Street or the NFL, you're going to fail.

And failing like, listen, it happens to all of us, and you have to be mentally tough. And to play quarterback at the highest level in the NFL, just to sustain being a starter. I'm not talking to become Mahomes or to become Josh Allen, just to last, just to keep a starting spot, you've got to be mentally tough. And especially as a younger player to go through what he was going through, nationally everyone's shitting on you as a player everyone talking a lot of crap about your team your team just internally is in shambles

you have a wide receiver sent home you have a defensive coordinator resign we still don't know the reason why you hadn't won a game in basically 11 months which they were trending toward and I was thinking about this if they were heading into this game

thinking that listen there's a chance that they lose 16 games in a row and I was thinking if you lost 16 games in a row, which has obviously happened, teams go 0 and 16. I know we have 17 games now, but the 0 and 16 teams, I think it's much more difficult to lose 16 straight games in two separate seasons because you get rid of some bad players, you add some new players, you probably were not good the previous year,

so you added some draft picks. So they were trending toward, it's almost impossible, it's not impossible to go winless on a season. It is very, very difficult to lose a season's worth of game, separated by two separate seasons. And Fields refused to let that happen. He was really good. Obviously, DJ Moore was fantastic. Looks like Debo Samuel the night on steroids.

Just carried him, dominated, taking slants and hitches and comebacks to the house, breaking tackles. But I give Justin Fields a lot of credit mentally because, listen, a lot of, players in the NFL are tough, right? Obviously there are some players tougher than others. We'll get into Dick Butkus. But mental toughness, listen, I think in all sports at the highest level professionally, really separates guys. And I think Justin Fields has really, really shown a lot these last two weeks. Now, is he going to be the bare starter for the next decade? I can't go that far. Is he going to be the bare starter in 2024? Won't go that far either. But like, He's taught everyone

Listen, I'm guilty to Pump the fucking breaks, guys This ain't quite over yet I got a lot of talent here I can make plays I can play winning football He played winning football last week He obviously played winning football

Tonight but We all know the physical skills My mother can see that The mental skills And the mental toughness side Is something you can only learn By going through tough times And that's how you're evaluated by your team

your GM, your city. And I think if you're a Bears fan today, you're really prideful in the way he reacted. Because listen, as a fan of just the sport, it's definitely cool to see. And as a fan of the sport, growing up, I never saw Dick Butkus play a snap. Obviously, well before my time,

I would imagine 99.9% of people listening or watching this podcast fall under that category. There's a pretty good chance it's 100%. But there is not anyone who grew up liking football that didn't know the name Dick Butkus. And I think as a football player, especially a defensive football player, like most famous people when you say their name, like have a brand, right? Like if you say Warren Buffett, most people think like rich famous, you know, rich successful financial guy, right?

You say Steve Jobs, you like, innovator, right? You say Tom Brady, you're like winner. When you say Dick Butkus, I think the first thing that comes to mind is, you're like, toughness. And listen, I always somewhat support older players being bitter at newer players, especially if you played basketball, baseball, football in like the 70s or 80s. You're like, we laid it all in the line. The game was way more physical.

We did not make nearly enough money. Some of those guys had to have second jobs. And see the money being made now, you think guys are softer. When you think football and you think defensive football, Dick Butkus, the moment you start playing, whether it's peewees, whether it's high school football, whether you play through college in the NFL, that is a name that is uttered by coaches at every level. And it's someone, listen, I know, I've never even been to Chicago.

And I feel like I know exactly what Dick Putkus was, what he stood for. You Google him when he dies, and, you know, obviously all the Pro Bowls, the Hall of Fame, the all-decade team, multiple decades. Really, when you think about the Bears, really the only offensive player that's really famous on the team is Walter Payton in the history of the franchise, at least for me. And it's just littered with superstar, I guess Gail Serres as well, but littered with superstar defensive players.

And he's obviously the Tom Brady, Joe Montana of that group for that franchise. So R.P. Dick Butkus, to me, when I think linebackers in the NFL, I think Ray Nitchke, Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert. I mean, that is the NFL when you're a kid and you're watching some of these grainy footage of football from the late 60s or the early 70s. You're like, these guys were nuts. Blood everywhere.

You know, just the game was, it wasn't safe. It wasn't safe. And a huge reason it wasn't safe is because guys like Dick Butkis were on the field. I remember hearing a scouting story. I don't know if it was on like, you know, the top 100 players with Belichick or Art Rooney told the story. But they went to scout Lambert and like the field was muddy. So they had to practice on concrete and it was supposed to be a walkthrough. And Lambert was like making full speed tackles on gravel and was bleeding everywhere.

And he went back to like the Rooney family. He's like, we got to get this guy. and I just think that's who built the NFL, guys like that. And Dick Budkis, you know, will always be till the league folds one day, which doesn't seem any time soon, one of the guys that put this league, like, built the base of it. You know, if you laid the concrete for a home, he would have been one of like the founding fathers of this league and where it's at right now with all the success, Amazon streaming, the billions of dollars, were because of guys like Dick Butkus, so R-I-P.

And the team that got their ass kick tonight, I was thinking about it watching, like Ron Rivera is not going to be the coach in 2024. They have a brand new owner, like their team's just not good enough. Though I actually think they're kind of an intriguing job opening whenever it comes. They do have some young, talented pieces.

If you're not in position to get a top quarterback, you got a guy that at least you could play a season with, who's cheap, as you figure things out. But I was thinking Josh Harris, they showed him tonight in the booth, and he obviously owns the Sixers, and their last two coaches have been Doc Rivers, and now Nick Nurse, who just got fired by the Raptors, but won a championship with Kauai Leonard,

and was known as one of the better coaches before last year in all of the NBA. So their last two coaches have been big-time bright lights guys. And I think we talk a lot about, and listen, just because Iber Fluse won the night, I by no means think he's some lock to be the coach in 2024. He's coaching for his job for the next three months. Bears fans would agree. He ain't on scholarship.

That's for damn sure. But there's a lot of Harbaugh, Chicago. Shouldn't Chicago try to take a big swing? Jim Harbaugh was drafted there, played there. Does it make a lot of Midwest Big Ten country? Why wouldn't Washington be all over him? Like I just said, this owner has gone after big names in the NBA. How do you spend that much money on a team and not do it in the NFL?

To think he's just going to hire, and a lot of teams do, the next offensive coordinator, the next sexy name, Ben Johnson with the Lions, I'm not saying they won't interview them and hell, maybe they do end up hiring them. But I see this guy sniffing around. This is a brand that has fallen on very, very hard times the last 20 years. I mean, Dan Snyder obviously ruined everything surrounding the team, including the actual team. It's just been a very ugly period of time for a franchise that, you know, some of you that are a little older than me probably remember them in their heyday. When they were competing with the Niners, the 80s Bears, the 80s giants, right, to win Super Bowls and to be one of the best teams in the league.

Well, that feels like eons ago. and I do wonder if you're a new owner that it's one thing hiring a coach in football is very, very difficult especially when you're hiring coordinators for every Sean McVeigh and Kyle Shanahan there are a lot of Joe judges

and Pat Shermer's and Vance Josephs that there is no formula it's a lot like drafting players you know you do all your due diligence you meet with the people you feel good about it but you never know and you never know till it's too late and then the guy's coaching your team and you realize he's not the guy

the easiest way to avoid that is just go big game hunting. And to me, Jim Harbaugh, when you factor in, like, you know, even the Urban Myers and the Lincoln Riley's, those guys never coached in the NFL. We saw Urban Meyer not even last year. Like Lincoln Riley's name's not going to go away, but the dude is allergic to defense. Like, that ain't going to work in the NFL.

Love Mike Leach, RIP. I miss Mike Leach, which he was obviously still around coaching. He was a fun, fun character. But like when you don't care about defense, you have no shot. Jim Harbaugh not only knows NFL football as a player and as a coach. Defense is a huge part of his ethos, and they have some pieces in Washington. So you watch, you know, forever, it was the dolphins.

We're always getting linked to, God, the dolphins are sniffing around Harbaugh or, you know, Coach X, right? Some big-name guy. They're always trying to, Tom Brady, they're always, now it feels like they're kind of, they got McDaniel, their team's pretty good, they've kind of mellowed out a little bit. I think the team that you're going to start seeing being circled is the Washington commanders. Well, that might not even be their name because they might change it. But what we saw tonight, pretty lifeless effort for a large percentage of it, definitely the first half was pretty embarrassing. And overall, to let fields kind of kick your ass like that, you got to go back to the drawing board.

But, you know, if you believe in the football gods, if you just believe in things bigger than yourself, under no circumstances. is where the Chicago Bears losing on the day that Dick Buttkus passed away. Okay, let's dive into a couple other things in the NFL before I get to do these teams suck because that's one thing I have circled. We got four teams on buys, the Browns, the Chargers, the Seahawks, and the Bucks.

So we go through this stretch now of like five or six weeks where some weeks you're like, God, there aren't really that many games on TV. That's the one thing early on in the NFL season, like week one, week two. Sunday, the 10 a.m. slot and even the afternoon slot, sometimes you're like, God, there's like, feels like there's 10 games on right now. Once the bye weeks happen and then you spread out Monday night and Thursday night football, you know, you might get an afternoon where there's

like two games on, which I, listen, I'm not complaining. But let's start with one game that I think, and listen, if you've followed me for a while, you know my take was Mack Jones is going to be a major problem for Belichick. He was going to end the dynasty. And it's sure, and I know the dynasty he technically ended when Brady left, but like end Belichick's career in New England. That'd be another guy. Like, you know, if they got a little breakup, let's just say Belichick's not the coach of New England in 2024, you don't think Josh Harris, Washington, just, hey, get the train back on the tracks? But listen, Bill Belichick is playing Derek Carr, who is obviously injured, but last week

dumped the ball off at a historic fashion. The Saints, I've watched them three of their four games. clearly they're solid, but offensively they'd have some issues. And then the moment Derek got hurt and clearly is not the same. And listen, he's not the most inclined guy to just bombs away. This guy's not Patrick Mahomes in his prime. This is a game. Belichick, not in a million years, would lose to a banged up Derek Carr and Dennis Allen.

But if he loses this game, like to me, they're trending for a four or five win season. I don't care how good of a coach he is. I don't care how many tricks he has up his sleeve. The Patriots, and hell, even Belichick, like Mac Jones rookie year, is winning this game. And I don't have faith. I talk about it with Stucky from a gambling perspective. Listen, obviously you should bet on Belichick,

but I don't trust it. And this is a game feels like you can't win this thing. What are we doing? And this is why I keep getting back to, if he can't win games like this, and they're having back-to-back seasons where they don't really get close to make the playoffs. Last year technically would be closer than they look like they're headed this year.

But what's the point of all this? Just coached to just try to get the record. As I said earlier this week, you know, Belichick hung his hat on being a ruthless negotiator, a ruthless general manager, having like no emotion. And that's historically what makes great executives in sports, right? You've got to make tough decisions. You've got to trade guys who have been really, really good for you, right? Like Bill Walsh, got rid of Joe Montana, got rid of Ronnie Lott, like, got rid of a lot of players and kind of set the tone and Belichick kind of copied him. Now, eventually though it ends, Walsh kind of tapped out after eight or nine seasons. Belichick's not tapping out. He doesn't have crazy emotional anxiety. You know, Walsh got kind of overwhelmed, later regretted

it, but you know, the stress really got to him. Belichick, not a stress guy. Not saying he doesn't get stressed, but like, you're going to have to get rid of him. He's not just going to, he's not just going to say, hey, I've had enough. This ain't working. But it ain't working if you can't beat the Saints in a banged-up Derek Carr. The other game that when this happened, I think it was in training camp, everyone freaked out when Sean Payton called out Nathaniel Hackett. In my take has always been, I appreciate anyone who's honest.

Like, he's just saying what everyone else is saying. He's just doing it publicly, right? Why are some of the craziest quotes we ever read in anything? Politics, business articles, obviously pro sports, anonymous. But that's how everyone actually talks. Like everyone last year was making fun of Nathaniel Hackett. Like this week, I saw this controversy with Rodney Harrison calling Zach Wilson garbage. And everyone's like, that's crossing the line.

literally for three straight weeks everyone sitting on their couch texting their buddies is calling Zach Wilson garbage then when a guy who was a great player Super Bowl champion complete badass listen I'm not the biggest Rodney Harrison fan but he can say whatever he wants about some player

calls him garbage everyone's like that's out of line you mean the same guy that you surely was saying that sucked now another guy says it's like well it's too bad he's doing it publicly bullshit so Sean Payton said what he believed Now, he ran it back, but like, that's what he thought, and that's what a lot of people thought. Because we all witnessed it.

The dude didn't even make it through the season. But Nathaniel Hackett added Aaron Rogers. You're like, well, Sean, you better be careful, man. You're going to play them. They're going to roll with Aaron Rogers. That ain't the case. Sean Payton, if you are going to talk shit, which I have no problem in any business. Say what you believe.

Just back it up. And sports is the one area where it's like, especially if you're a player, you say something, you got to go against the guy. Football, unlike some of these other sports, violence. game. You talk shit about some pitcher. He might blast you the next time he sees you, right? In football, you say something about someone else. One, if you're a player, you get taken out. And two, if you're a coach, you can kind of get rolled. So I'm looking at Sean Payton this week. You can't lose Zach Wilson. That can't happen. You have to win this game. You talk shit about this guy, his coach,

and you didn't even think you were going to see this player. they're coming to you, you can't lose this game. Like, Bill Belichick, like technically whatever, you lose, your team might suck. Sean Payton cannot lose his game. You cannot lose Zach Wilson. And we'll see, like, is Zach Wilson just the version that we saw in Sunday Night Football? Is he just solid now? Did he figure something out?

Or is he the guy that we saw against the Chiefs, those first couple drives that didn't really have a chance? So when I look at this week, Denver better win. and let's do a little segment called Do these guys suck? And I'm going to start with the Giants. Obviously this season has been an utter disaster. It has not gone well and they're getting made fun of constantly

for the contract that they gave Daniel Jones and rightfully so. Because a year ago they didn't pick up the guy's fifth year option. Two years later he's making $40 plus million and their team feels like they're headed nowhere and nowhere fast. Here's the problem. They're one and three. They have not played well at all.

and now they're playing the Miami Dolphins in Miami they're coming off a loss so the one thing the dolphins how are the Giants going to score and all of a sudden you're one and four

the negativity builds you saw this week one of their players is calling fans burger flippers and hot dog flippers you actually don't flip a hot dog you roll it you obviously flip a burger

but you roll a hot dog as someone who's eating a lot of hot dogs and made a few in my day but the Giants are in major trouble and I would lean and I thought they were going to be good. I was dead wrong. I didn't necessarily believe in Daniel Jones, but I thought he'd kind of be like an Alex Smith

where he'd keep getting incrementally better. He's obviously getting worse. They're offensive lines in shambles. Seekwans banged up. The Giants could be headed toward a four or five win season if they keep getting rolled. Another team that I believed in. I've completely changed my tune.

A lot like the Giants. I don't think the Steelers are any good. Now, this is a rivalry week. You're playing Baltimore. Lamar's humming. You know, Tomlin's fantastic as an underdog, but you lose this game. All of a sudden, you know, you have a two-game swing, basically, with the Ravens, because they only have one loss.

You got two. You lose this game. You got three. They got one. And they've beat you at your place. Not only are you in shambles, but you might just be headed toward the first time of, is this when Tomlin actually doesn't go above 500? Because if they look lifeless, they obviously got some quarterback issues right now.

One, he's just pickets not playing that well. Then he got injured. I saw a quote, I think yesterday that he said, I'll be there. Do you really want compromise? Can he Pickett, but I definitely don't want Mitch Trubisky. If Kenny Pickett's bad slash injured, the Steelers are fucked. They just are, because you're not winning any games with Mitch Trubisky.

So this is kind of a survival game for the Steelers. And last but not least, the Bengals. Now, obviously their quarterback is not only compromised, you know, physically his calf's off, but he hasn't played well on top of that. and their whole team's off. I don't think Arizona is the best team to play when shit is just not going well. Because the one thing the Cardinals do

is they play their ass off. And when you're trying to figure things out, when you got guys injured and you got a wide receiver who's complaining and saying he's always open, this type game, all of a sudden you look up. This happened to the Cowboys, and they didn't even have internal issues.

You're down 17 to 10. And then that pressure starts the build. So, you know, obviously the Giants are in major trouble against Miami. The Steelers, it's a rivalry game, but you just better win it. I think the Sinci at Arizona game is a lot more intriguing than anyone would have thought week one. You know, like, if that's a throwaway game, who's watching that thing? I'm keeping an eye on this because I could see Cincinnati blowing this thing from a mile away. And last but not least, one guy that I've been very critical of, just over the years in college,

college football was Steve Sarkesian. And I was listening to our guys, Snaps, T. Bob and Aaron Murray, and T. Bob's a hater, too. And again, this isn't nothing personal. I've never even met Sark. It was always simply, he got these incredible jobs, and he recruited his ass off, and he couldn't win nine games. His record was like 7 and 5 and 8 in 5 all the time. It's like, this guy is coaching NFL players left and right, loaded with talent.

and just didn't win. So I was just like, I don't get it. And then he gets a Texas job. Yeah, some guys are really good coordinators. And you put them in a big spot, they just lose. Well, this season has gone pretty well for him. And I've said this before, but I talked to a buddy during training camp, a couple guys that had went through there from a scouting perspective.

They're like, this team's stacked, man. This team is loaded. I'm like, I still don't trust him. I don't give a shit if he has the best roster in college football. I think he's more likely to go 10 and 2 than win the national championship. Well, he's playing Oklahoma. They're both 5 and 0. Obviously, Texas is a better version than this Oklahoma team.

He wins this game. You know, Texas is probably going to the playoffs. I mean, they would be on easy street to, you look up, and Sark and Texas is going to be right there. So I got a pretty good chance to be pretty wrong on this. I never would have picked him to be a playoff game team at the beginning of the season. I don't care how much talent. clearly the quarterback's playing well

defensively they look really good but you know Sark's a guy that listen I've never bet on him as a coach but I've never everyone I know that knows them loves them like swear by the guy you know you talk some people about Lane

you know Lays depends who you talk to the information you get about Lane Kiffin when you talk to people about Sark they really really like them like high character guy obviously went through some substance issues which you know he kind of pushes back on, listen to her different things, whatever at USC. We all go through problems, but as a coach, I just never bought it.

You know, there was a little like Lincoln Riley. There was like a soft nature to him. Not that he knew what to look for, probably even more than Lincoln in players, but his teams, it was always something missing. Well, so far this year, his teams looked excellent. I was watching a couple weeks ago. They're playing Kansas. I'm like, this Kansas, they got a big time coach.

This guy's going to get a big time job after this year, and the game was close, then all of a sudden, I left to run some errands, and I looked back, it was like 40 to 10, the final score, 40 to 14. So maybe this is the year

Sark goes to the playoffs. Hell, why couldn't you win the national championship? And speaking of national championships, here's my bold take of the week brought to you by my friends at Guinness. I was going to bring a Guinness onto the show, but I moved an old fridge today into a garage,

and you know, you put it on the dolly, and I didn't realize there were some Guinnesses in there. Then I opened it. They all fell on the ground and exploded, which disappointed me. I didn't have time to go to the store because I wanted to slam my Guinness

while I made my bold take. And here's my bold take. College football is really out of whack this season in terms of dominance from teams. Teams are good. But you're watching, you're saying, there's not like a Pete Carroll USC team in its prime. There's not like a Nick Sabin team in its prime.

Hell, the Kirby teams of the last two years at Georgia clearly they're not as good this year. How would they be? They've lost like 700 players of the NFL. Literally every player from the defense two years ago is in the NFL right now. I think six or seven of them were first round picks. I would imagine they have more than 11 on rosters

from the last two years when you factor in fringe backups as well. So I don't care who you are. I don't care how great of a recruiter you are. And Kirby's elite. Kirby has gone to Georgia and he didn't just live up to being a good coach. He immediately became a legend. Back-to-back national championships.

Really the first Sabin guy to become like a star, close. You know, he's still got to win a bunch more to catch Nick. But, you know, an equal of Nick, a guy that can beat Nick, a guy that can win Naddies, a guy that every team in the country, now Kirby's more suited, like Kirby's not coming to USC or coaching Washington, but every big program in the South that can pay $10, 15 million, the Florida's, the Miami's, the Clemsonsons, the Georgia's, the Alabama's, the LSUs,

would line up and take Kirby Smart. It does feel like they're a little off this year. And they're starting these games slow. I don't blame them. Some of the guys on the team, and it's part of it, like, I don't know if it's the disease of me. You start feeling yourself, you start viewing, even though you didn't maybe start for the last couple of teams,

but you were on the team, you start viewing yourself like a champion, even though you played like three snaps on special teams, and you don't play as hard. Hell, you might just not be as good. Like usually when you lose a Jalen Carter or Nkoby Dean or some of these guys, there's a drop-off.

Even if it might just be a year long. Like Nick Sabin didn't win every six-straight national championships, right? There's usually one-on, one-off. I think they're bound to get upset. We haven't seen a crazy upset in college football this year. You could say Duke against Clemson, but then it turned out Duke was pretty freaking good. They almost beat Notre Dame.

This feels like you look up and you're going to see a big-time upset. Now, I could see USC losing at any moment, if Caleb were to roll an ankle, that defense, that they could get beat. But I do wonder, like, Georgia, just complacency. It's just, it's hard. You know, I don't think any team has won three straight national championships since, like, the 40s.

Definitely, I don't believe it's going to happen this year. So my bold take of the week will be that Georgia loses to Kentucky. Brought to you by Guinness, gather your friends, raise your glasses, and toast a win. Guinness Drought Stout, imported by Diageo Beer Company, USA, New York, New York, please drink responsibly. For a limited time, you can save 40% on NFL Plus premium annual subscription when you signed up through Plus Play from Verizon.

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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,

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Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode, with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 was big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so you all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now.

Thank you for finishing that sentence. 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. Back at it again week.

Shit, I don't even know it. Week 5. Feels about week 10 of college football. And we might be rolling with the hottest gambler I've ever seen. Stucky from the Action Network. You can find them all over the place, online. And obviously big bets on campus, all over the Action Network's content. Stucky, tweeted at me mid, I'd say late USC Colorado right on cue as those Trojans can't cover a

fucking soul. Unbelievable. Yeah. I think it was 47 to 20, I think. Then the game was in doubt a bit towards the end. You're not winning a national title with that defense. I mean, it's just the same old story like we talked about last week. It's crazy.

I was watching, and it kind of felt at one point, like a little Oregon-e, right? They were just, are they going to win this game 60 to 30? So I was like, shit, I'll go to the gym. And I turned it on, just like I will keep an eye on it. All of a sudden I looked up. They had, I think, they had broken a big play

and then Caleb threw a pick and it kind of snowballed. You're like, holy shit. Now, the game, I don't think, is it fair to say, was not quite as close as the four. 48, 41, but it definitely was a legit cover by the, by the buffs. Yeah, and it just shows you the difference between, yeah, I mean, look, USC had that game in hand and then some fluky stuff happened at the end, but it just shows you the difference between, you know, USC and who's like a really good top 10 team, and but like in a real national title contender in like Oregon, right? Just look at the difference in those two games. I know one was at home, one was on the road, but they scored about the same amount of points and Oregon could have. scored 70 if they wanted to.

And Colorado couldn't score against Oregon, and they could with ease against USC. And that's just, that's going to be their downfall until Riley invests time into the defense and probably gets a new coordinator. Okay, before we dive into the NFL, let's hit on a couple. There actually are some pretty good college games. Thank God, Oklahoma just kind of got their shit together in 2023. Now, are they actually good? Who knows?

but this rivalry when they're both 5-0 is pretty cool. I mean, this game always lives up to the hype. I mean, last year, I forget the score offhand, but wasn't it like 100-0-49-0. Yeah, 49-0-0. Yeah, so I think it was the biggest win in the history of the game, either side. So that was Venables. Pretty big moment. Clearly, Texas is legit.

I mean, most people think, and rightfully so, I mean, they could win the national championship. I'm still hesitant with Steve Sarkeesian. but line's not that big given what happened last year. Obviously, Texas is more talented. Does Oklahoma have a shot here, upset alert? I think they have a shot. I don't see it happening.

But, yeah, I mean, last year, Dylan Gabriel, who's playing really well. They have a kid behind him, Jackson Arnold, who's five stars going to be really good at quarterback, too. But last year, they didn't have either. They were running Wildcat. Like, Gabriel was hurt, and it was bad. It was embarrassing.

Their defense got embarrassed. The defense is better this year. It's significantly improved. I think that's the biggest thing with this Oklahoma team. And they have a quarterback who's not hurt now. The offense, it still lacks some playmakers on the outside. You're not, like, wowed by, you know, when Gabriel, who's playing really well, if you watch the difference between Texas and Oklahoma, I think that's the biggest thing right now

is that Texas has, like, just explosive play pros on the outside. and Oklahoma, you know, doesn't really have that right now. The defense, I think, is legit. Some of it's kind of, you know, competition-based. But I think they'll give them a game. They're obviously going to be up for it after last year. But I think Texas's defensive front is going to be the difference, just like it was against Alabama.

The Oklahoma offensive line, and in addition to the receivers, is kind of the weak area of this team, still hasn't come together yet. And, you know, I think the secondary, the run-dey's playing outstanding, but the secondary can be attacked. So as long as yours, there is an upset alert because yours could always, he still kind of scares me. He could have, like, just a game where he's just completely off and has accuracy issues and throws a couple picks.

That's where this game could get really scary. I think the line's about right. I made it like seven and a half, so I think it's a little short. But, you know, and if you look at Oklahoma, yes, they've looked impressive, but they played SMU at home. And it was 1411 with nine to go in the game. And then, you know, SMU had a special team blunder. And then they went for it on fourth down at their own 30.

And Oklahoma scored two touchdowns to make that look like, and SWU actually outgained them. And if you look at the SINC game, they won by 14. But since he was gone up and down the field and just couldn't do anything in the red zone. So, yeah, yeah, Oklahoma's looked impressive. But, you know, two of their better data points, there's actually been some questions there and hasn't been as easy as the final score might have indicated.

So, yeah, I think Oklahoma will be up. Semi-upset alert, but I think Texas gets it done. They're legit. Okay, two other quick SEC games. Obviously, the one in your backyard, I mean, it's in Georgia, but you know this Kentucky team well. They're 5-0. A little Ewing theory here.

Will Levis leaves in there. They look a lot better. Clearly, their offense, I mean, based on getting rid of Skangarillo last year, I don't know if Georgia's is good clearly they're not I mean you can't lose that many elite players and then the A&M Bama game I mean I think A&M's got to be the bet there even if you're not a huge Jimbo Fisher guy right I mean this Bama team feels more 9 and 3 than it does

11 and 1 so I don't really know what to make a Georgia Kentucky I'd be honest I haven't really watched Kentucky but fuck I mean I watched a little bit of A&M multiple games you can and this was the thing last year when they went what, five and seven. The talent, no one argues the talent. I talked to a guy in the league that went through some of the SEC schools, and they say if they can just get the train on the tracks there, they can beat anyone on any given week just because they have so many NFL-level bodies

from like junior down to freshman. Yeah, A&M's a bet. I bet A&M there plus three. It's come down. I still like it. I think they win that game. This Alabama team, it's just a mess around. Their offensive line is a mess.

they obviously can't really consistently throw it. Milro can hit a bomb, but he's not, you know, he can't run this pro-style offense and throw the intermediary routes and really read a defense. And the Texas A&M, one of the most, you said it, but they have five-star talent all over, one of the most talented rosters in all-coach football, which makes what they did last year so shocking.

So credit the Jimbo for at least going out, getting Bobby Petrino to run the offense. And it appears that. Yeah, it's a motley crew. And he's given him full rain. They now have a more modern, it's not the Jimbo conservative, boring offense. And they have pros at receiver. Their starting quarterback got hurt, but there's not much of a drop off to Max Johnson.

He was an LSU transfer. He's played well. But the biggest thing is that their defense, they couldn't stop the run. They were one of the worst run defenses in the country last year, even though they have five stars all on the defensive line at linebacker. They fixed those issues, and that's the biggest thing against Alabama. I mean, Milro, I mean, look at last week against Mississippi State, he go, a Mississippi State defense that is gutted, that is horrendous this year.

He went 10 of 12 for 160 yards, and then Alabama runs it 45 times for 190 yards. Like, they are, this is one of the worst rushing offenses, too, that Sabin's ever had, and that's all they can do with Milrow. So I think the Texas A&M run defense is up for the task here. As long as they don't give up too many bombs, because that's Miller's specialty. You can throw a great deep ball. should be fine here. They're the team. It's weird to say and see, but they're the team with the clearly, clearly, way more talented receiving core. Alabama doesn't have playmakers on the outside this

year. You can remember the Alabama teams from two, three years ago, all those receivers that were going to be pros, not really the case this year. No one's emerged on the outside. And Texas A&M has a couple senior really good receivers and then a couple freshmen that are going to play in the NFL. So I think that'll be the difference in front of a raucous home crowd. And then Kentucky, Georgia, yeah, I get back. Really quick, Stucky. Don't you think the, if you look, I would imagine you can get them 10 plus to one to win the SEC. If they win this game, their road to the SEC championship game gets a lot easier.

Obviously, they have one loss, but that was to Miami. All of a sudden, I mean, they're going to be favored against, you know, several of the other teams. I think that A&M, you know, if you, like, that would be the bet because if they do win this game, it opens up pretty easy. I don't want to say easy. The SEC West is always difficult, but they've already beat Auburn. They've already beat who they beat Arkansas is not any good. But then you beat Alabama.

I don't know, man. I mean, you look at Georgia too, even if their road is relatively easy at the SEC championship game, A&M does have the talent to beat them. It's not that crazy, I don't think. Yeah, I would agree. I think that that is the bet. Unfortunately, I have an Ole Miss 25 to 1 to win the division ticket. The problem there is that they, you know, they already lost to Bama. They do host Texas A&M, but they have to go to Georgia.

And they already have a loss against Alabama. So, yeah, and Texas A&M, it's like they go to Tennessee. But Tennessee's down this year. You know, then they host South Carolina. They, you know, they have that game at Ole Miss, but they're, you know, Miss State and then LSU can't stop a nosebleed. So yeah, I agree. I think that's as of right now.

That is the bet. And then Georgia, Kentucky, look, Ray Davis was awesome. He ran for a million yards against Florida last week. But the offense has still been so inconsistent. Like last week they were just handing it to Ray Davis and he was running through everybody. I think Leary is still hurt. He's still, he has like these, not hurt. He has this mechanical issue after his peck injury.

So he's been so inconsistent. and with his accuracy, especially early on in games, until he kind of gets his peck and shoulder warmed up. And then receivers have had a lot of drop issue. So the offense has been like very inconsistent because of this mechanical issue because the receiver drops. They've hit a ton of explosive plays, which is great, but you can't really do that against Georgia. And I'm not sure that they're going to be able to line up and just run Ray Davis, especially at their last week. You know, it's not like they have a mobile quarterback. Georgia's got ran through by Auburn, who cannot complete a forward pass.

I assume their defense is going to be on full alert here. But yeah, Georgia's a step down. Look, if I had to bet this game, I would bet Kentucky. But I'm getting bad vibes just my gut and intuition. Like it's a wake-up call game for Georgia. And they don't cover this game or maybe even lose. I mean, if they only win by 7 to 10, then they're really off. But yeah, there's no emotional lead on the offense or defense,

clear step down at quarterback, clear step down at offensive coordinator. and I think that they're just, they're complacent, right? They want back-to-back national titles. The schedule stinks. So you're just like, all right, get me to the college world playoff. I mean, they're down seven-nothing at the end of every first quarter, no matter who they play. That's eventually going to burn them. You would think that maybe they wake up here?

I don't know. They didn't do it at home against South Carolina. They didn't do it at home. They didn't do it on the road against Auburn last week. I'm getting bad vibes from it, but I'll be, I didn't bet it. No bet there. I'll be out and about in Lexington. watching and rooting so the town burns down.

It's pretty crazy how wide open of all the years, right? Georgia's clearly a couple years ago was the best of them in Alabama. Last year they were head and shoulders more talented than everyone else. It feels like Ohio State, Michigan, Oregon and Washington. You know, I think Florida State is just going to be there right now that they got through LSU and Clemson. It's pretty cool just because it's freaking Texas. obviously they win this game, their path to the playoff. What do you think?

Six, seven teams have a legitimate chance to win the national championship? Yeah, you could say eight to ten maybe. I mean, you have the PAC 12, and it's all over the country, too, which I think is so fun. And this year I have like 10 to 12 teams that are within a touchdown of each other at the top. Usually within the last decade, there's one to two teams that are touchdown above everybody else. Now everyone, you know, there's 10 to 12 teams that are bunched up that closely. Look, you could even throw in Miami. I mean, how good is Miami?

We don't really know yet because of the schedule, but they beat the shit out of Texas A&M. And this is a super talented team that the staff was way off last year. They hired new coordinators. Tyler Van Dyke has a lot of talent. He was hurt last year. Throw them in there. Throw the PAC 12 in there. You have your Penn State, Ohio, State, Michigan from the Big Ten.

And then obviously you have your SEC, which is down. but the teams at the top can still win it. So, yeah, I think I love this year. I think it's great for the sport. And then you're getting every region involved. It's kind of ironic that the PAC 12 arguably is the best, most deepest conference in college football this year in its last season. I bet a lot of people listening or watching have been in an accident.

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I can't wait. Saturdays are fun right now. I'm going to stick with my philosophy. I've done it two weeks in a row. Take a really good team against a shitty team with a big number. I did it with the Cowboys. I did it with Seattle. I'm going to do it again this week.

Sounds crazy, but Detroit against the Panthers, listen, they lost, you know, they're one game at home to Seattle, which, you know, Jared Gough threw a bad pick six that, you know, they ended up going overtime, but this place now, you look at that schedule, I'm telling you, it's not inconceivable for them to win 12-plus games. I mean, they've won two of their harder games,

obviously the Chiefs, and at Lambo. I think Detroit clearly is just pretty stacked with talent all over the place. Like, no one can even debate that at this point. And rookie quarterback on the road, enormous number. I mean, 10 points a lot. I'm not arguing that. But I, to me, this got like 30 to 10. If it goes the way I think it's going to go written all over it.

I think the Panthers fucking blow. You know, we talk about how bad the bears are. Well, at least at any moment, Justin Fields can run around and do some stuff. Denver's a good example. Like, at any moment, Russell can make some plays if they just make a couple tackles. They got Sean Payton. I don't think Frank Reich's that good. Their talent's not that good.

They don't have any weapons on offense. The offensive lines, a problem. The quarterback's pretty tiny. And what does Detroit have? Pretty good pass rush. And obviously, offensively, they're going to have no problem to score. I wouldn't say no problem scoring because Carolina's got definitely solid personnel in defense. Their defensive coordinator is good.

But 27 to 13 type number, that's kind of what I'm – a big number. But third week in a row, I'm going good versus shitty. I'm taking Detroit. Yeah, I don't mind it. I don't have a bet on that game. But, yeah, I mean, look, the Carolina defense could be decent. But they have a lot of injuries, including their top corner, one of the best in the league. He's out.

One of their best linebackers is out. I think that their defense by the end of the year with a really good coordinator could be feisty. But right now it's not going to be able to carry a team. And now I just, look, in that division from what you've seen already, I would, you could still win the division from 0 and 3 like going into last week. I would have said, look, Young's not ready. Go, I'm rolling with Dalton. I think that's the best version of this team. But I agree on Reich.

I agree on just how this offense is put together. I'm not a fan. But I would bet the Panthers here catching 10. if Dalton was starting. He actually gives the offense a chance. We saw that at Seattle. If they didn't have nine false starts because of that crowd,

they could have potentially won that game. And that was the only time their offense is had a pulse all year. Bryce Young, maybe, look, usually you could sell. He looks tiny, bro. Yeah, he looks. I liked him in college.

God, he looks small. Yeah, and he has no confidence right now. I haven't seen anything that would make me want to trust my money betting on him. So, yeah, it's fade the Panthers or nothing. Even though this is, yeah, this is a big number. I would 100% play the Panthers plus catching 10, 10 and a half with Andy Dalton

want no part of them with Bryce Young. I saw a good tweet. It was like, the Panthers basically traded DJ Moore and Caleb Williams for Bryce Young. I think they liked that one back. That's amazing. But that's just a fact

Okay, let's I knew you'd take this And I was, if I wasn't just rolling With my philosophy, this has to be the bet you've taught me. Tomlin, at home, dog Just when everyone is just shitting on the franchise Saying fire everybody, quarterback's banged up, fold the franchise,

fire the coaching staff. This is just classic him. Now, I don't know if they win the game, but you just, it's, you know, from the wisdom of Stucky, you got to hammer Steelers here, right? Plus four? Yeah, this is the classic Tomlin spot. Last week was another classic Tomlin spot.

After a win, they go on the road. They play a team that they, you know, with a losing record team, and they just come out flat on the road. Now, like you said, this is the raw at, Tomlin is the best in maybe the history of the NFL at rallying the troops within us against the world mentality,

an underdog and uh i mean i can say that the numbers speak for themselves he's 53 28 and 3 3 against the spread as an underdog most profitable coach in NFL history that's over 65 percent as an underdog against an opponent with a winning record he's 33 15 and 1 against the spread that's 68.8 percent uh he just consistently will get the best out of his team in this spot especially after a loss i also think the ravens are a bit overvalued right now uh They are my team, but they've played, but they played CJ Stroud in his first ever start on the road in a brand new offensive scheme with an offensive line that was put together the day before. Then they played a one-legged Joe Burrow that grades out as the worst quarterback in the NFL right now. Then they play a backup with the Colts.

They play a backup who was told he was going to start a day before the game and make his first career start last week in DTR and the Browns never had a shot. So they basically have played, had one of the most beneficial opposing quarterback situations. that I've seen. They might face another backup here in Mitch Trabiski, but just like how they lost the guarder Minchu, I don't think that's a downgrade. I'm not a Kenny Pickett guy. He's bailing.

He doesn't look great. I'm not saying Mitch Trabisky's any good, but it's not some big upgrade. It's probably dead even, so it doesn't really matter here that if they face a backup quarterback, but I do think they might be a bit overvalued. This is also, you're going to have some wind here. The total's 38, and this is a classic AFC North,

rivalry where these teams and coaches are so familiar with each other and you know you'll get the steelers best effort lamar jackson for what it's worth he really struggled against the steelers in his career he is more only team he has more interceptions and touchdowns against he has his lowest passer rating against pittsburgh and when these teams meet i mean this is pretty crazy since 2008 when harball got to baltimore when the spread is three or more is that ravens of fans or Steelers fans that are better as we have like this rule if the spreads over three

you just take the dog since 2008 when Harbaugh got there when the Steelers and Ravens play they played 30 times 17 of the 30 have been decided by three or less I mean if you go back

and look at the scores that they're all 1614 1613 16 14 yeah but if you took the dog if you took the dog when the spread is three or more in whenever the spread was three or more the underdog is 17 1 and 3 against the spread 17, 1 and 3 against the spread

if you just take the underdog in this matchup when they're catching 3 or more, which you are here. So, yeah, I'll take over a field goal and which should be a low scoring game in a classic Tomlin spot. I think one thing you notice and people forget

because you think of teams bad or you think a team's good. Divisional opponents, I mean, there is a lot of, even though the NFL has more turnover turnover than any other sport, there's still a lot of carryover with players like the commanders.

They got a lot of players who aren't intimidated by Fletcher, and Jason, you know, you saw it with the Cardinals last week, like James Connor and some of those guys, like they're fucking the 49ers. We've played you every year for a while. Some of these games, unless you're the Giants, you know, are much closer than you imagine.

And like you said, this is, you know, the closest thing we have to an Ohio State, Michigan, Auburn, now, you know, because the two coaches have been there so long. The rivalry is such a physical game. And a lot of the, obviously, the defenders now for the Steelers have been there for a while. So I'm with you. Steelers might stink, but you could tell me they win six games.

They might win this thing. I do think, and it's cool to see, and I mean, you know this, that Lamar's just, you know, the contract things well behind. And he's just playing at a really high level. He's just a fun. He's just a very, very, like, in the history of my life watching football, just one of the more enjoyable player, you know, the Barry Sanders, the Michael Vicks. You don't see very often.

He is a fucking badass to watch run around and make plays. Yeah, I love watching him. I think by the end of the year, was going to be in the MVP discussion. Yeah, he reminds me that same, like that, Barry Sanders, when, like, the pockets collapsed, or in Barry Sanders case, like he had nowhere to run, nothing's doing, bounce it out, you know, running all the way around,

and then he's gone 80 yards for a touchdown at their spin. Those are some of the plays that Lamar Jackson is making in the pocket. And it's only going to get better, I think, this year, under a new offense as he adjust. So, yeah, he's a joy to watch for sure. If they could ever stay healthy and load up the offense around him, you think McCaffrey's got a chance to win the MVP? Yeah, I think he has a, I mean,

it's just so hard for a quarterback to not win it. Yeah, I mean, I guess he would have a, he has a chance in the discussion as one of the only non-quarterbacks, but there's so many elite quarterbacks that are going to put up stupid numbers this year. but as of right now, like you don't, if you look around, it's like, all right, well, Burrow is kind of out of the discussion. Lamar, he's not putting up the passing touchdown numbers yet in the new offense. There's like Mahomes. The Mahomes doesn't have the same weapons.

There's like some fatigue there. So compared to the last couple years. Josh Allen feels like, Josh Allen feels like a guy. Yeah, I mean, he feels like a guy right now. Yeah, people have been kind of waiting to vote on. hasn't quite had the year. Now, they go 14 and 3. They're the one seed. McAfree could have a Marshall Falk LT type year and still not get it, right? Yeah. So there's the two. The reason I would say no is like even though, like, Mara could come back into the mix. Mahomes is, he's always going to be

there. But you have Josh Allen. Now the bills lost their star corner, their number one lockdown corner for the season. Their defense isn't going to be as good. What does that mean? You put up even bigger numbers. And then there's also Tua. I mean, and there's, and there's, defense is horrendous. So like two is going to put up ridiculous numbers in Miami this season. So it's just going to be too hard to overcome some of the quarterback numbers that'll eventually be there. You might be a pro when it comes to what you do, but we can't all be pros at everything. Take home repairs, remodeling, and renovations. That's not something you want to trust to anyone but a skilled professional. Angie's list is now Angie. Connect with

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That's A-N-G-I-com. Let's dive into a quarterback, actually two quarterbacks. We're not putting up great numbers. McCorkel Jones and Derek Carr. I'll give Derek a little bit of the benefit of the doubt. Last week his shoulder was messed up, but still that game is somewhat parallels some of his performances in the past. So, you know, it's easy to kind of dump on him.

I don't know. I mean, I personally couldn't bet on this game. The Saints, I can't believe I liked them as much as I did, and then you watch them, and clearly, you know, Derek just might be the lowest level of average quarterback. The Patriots are in shambles. I mean, they lost two great defensive players for them. And obviously, this is a must win for the Pats. And the Saints, all of a sudden, you lose at home to Tampa. They're on a buy. You're kind of, God, are you more likely to go 7 and 10 than be a lot?

10 and 17 because that's kind of what I'm looking at, especially if Derek's going to be messed up with his shoulder. Yeah, I have to, I took the Patriots here. I have to fade the Saints with this version of car until that I see he's healthy. Why would you play him?

I don't understand. They have a capable backup. Last year, he went 23 of 37 for 127 yards. 3.4 yards per attempt on over 40 dropbacks. I mean, that is, That is horrendous. And I think Camara had 13 catches for 31 yards.

I don't know how that's even possible mathematically. So, yeah, he's just not healthy right now. And yes, the Patriots have injuries. Judon Hurts. They have a lot of corner injuries. But there's, number one, if you can't throw down field, who cares if you don't have corners? But any corner you plug into this Belichick defense, they just grade out elite. I mean, you saw J.C. Jackson was like, this is the best corner elite.

If you go by degrading. And then he goes to the Chargers and he's a healthy scratch every week. And then the Patriots, no matter what rookie they draft, they have like 10 guys named Jones that they drafted. You just plug them in and then they play well. Well, maybe it's not the guys and maybe a lot of it's just the scheme. So I don't think that those losses against an offense like this with a limited quarterback are as big as they will be as if, you know, they were playing the Bills or the Dolphins say in the division game. So it is a fate of car.

I'm not a Matt Jones guy, never have. have been, funny story, and it's not personal because it's a funny story, when he was in college, he did like a visit to Kentucky, and he slid into my wife's,

my now-wife's DMs. We weren't married at the time. But, so I've always, always got a chuckle. She's six years younger than me. She's 32. But she's way older than Mac. Oh, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, he found her on Instagram and Twitter. He get a response? No. She was like, dude, you're a kid. You're like 17. Well, you're a three star. Yeah. So anyway, but look, the Patriots, I think this is the bottom of the market on them.

They've lost their losses, if you look, they've lost to the Cowboys in a smash cowboy spot, right? Like, as you know, they were coming off an embarrassing loss at home. But their losses are the Cowboys. the Eagles, and again, they could have won at home, and the Dolphins. And again, they could have won at home. So, you know, they lost the three of the better teams in the NFL. I think this is probably the low point on the market on them.

And it's just a huge coaching mismatch with a hurt quarterback. Like Belichick is, this is just like a Tomlin spot. Belichick, after a loss over the past 20 seasons, 53, 26, and 1 against the spread, 67%. By far the most profitable coach in NFL history in that scenario. as an underdog or favorite of less than seven points after loss, 42 and 11 against the spread, 80%. Now you might say, yeah, Tom Brady. Okay, without Tom Brady, 60% against the spread

with any other quarterback, you know, Cam Newton, Castle, Zappy, and Matt Jones. So I expect the Patriots to be fully focused here. And this is their season. Like, you go to one and four in the ISA. With that schedule, you're done. And I just have to fade car. he's not healthy right now

and can't just check it down to death and Foxborough win this game. To me, if Derek Carr, bad shoulder, Dennis Allen, the Saints come in and beat the Patriots, like, I'm sorry, it's over. And listen, I'm not one that hates on Belichick that thinks it was like 90, 10, Brady Belichick.

Anyone that watched that dynasty, Belichick was fucking dominating schematically. Like defensively, they were doing, he was elite. Like, he's one of the all-time greats, any sport, you could argue he's the greatest coach of all-time. They lose this game. Like, I'm sorry.

Like, it's probably just time at the end of the season to just go your separate way. Like, it's over in New England. Welcome to sports. It's a, I think. Nothing lasts forever. And if Mack Jones looks awful, you got to ask serious questions about. They could lose anybody. Yeah.

And the same, the one thing with the Saints, right, their defense can play well. So, yeah. I hear you. You just, it would make me nervous because I think there is probably a 50-50 shot. The pixie dust on everything is just done with Bill. Yes. No, it's definitely. concern of mine. I don't have the

my trust level bar is at the low end but it's not out yet. But if a bad performance here, it could be drained. Okay, game of the day, one of the games easily of the year. I mean, you could argue it's this in Buffalo, Miami, at least

going into the game, is game of the year. Cowboys, Niners, who you like, why? I don't have a strong opinion on who's going to win the game. But I'm taking the the Cowboys. In this matchup, these are two of the best teams in the NFC. No matter where these, you know, if you even throw the Eagles in there, Eagles, Cowboys,

49ers, no matter where they play, and no matter what, you know, what combination, 49ers versus Eagles, and you give me over a field goal, I'm taking it. And look, the Cowboys can get pressure, which you need to do against Purdy. Now, Purdy can handle it. Purdy's not a Jimmy G. He can handle the pressure, but you cannot let him sit back there. You have to blitz him. You have to get pressure and you have to get home because his numbers when he's not blitz and his numbers in a clean pocket because how well scheme that offenses are insane. Cowboys, one of the few teams that can do that. They did that last year. Pretty, you know, performed pretty admirably, but had his worst game as a pro and that just

speaks to the Dallas defense. They've really abused that right side of the 49ers offensive line. We're going to learn a lot about the 49ers' offensive line here. I mean, look, they've looked great. They're in the Super Bowl discussion. They're one of the best teams in the league. but they haven't really been tested yet by a defense. I mean, they played the Cardinals and the Rams and the Giants. So we're going to learn a lot about that offensive line. But I think the one question that I have with this 49ers team is their defense doesn't look as sharp. Now, maybe it's just, hey, we're not playing anybody.

But the run defense grades out bottom five and success rate EPA per run allowed. Pollard, I think, can have a big day here. And when he gets going, that opens up the play action. you can take some shots, which you need to do against this 49ers defense. And remember last year, look, and the Cowboys should come out with their hair on fire here. Playing against a team that's eliminated from the postseason, each of the past two years. And both games are close, right? Like Doc doesn't, they can't snap it one year.

Last year they lose by seven, but that game is 9-9 going into the fourth quarter. And the Cowboys lost Pollard and are handing it to, you know, the corpse of Zeke, who had. That was a legit, close playoff game. I mean, that could have gone either way. The Cowboys showed up the defense ready to win. Yeah, and I took them last year. I lost that bet, but it was three and a half. So I'm happy to do that again here.

My prediction on this game is this is going to be close, and I can't wait for it. And if you give me over a field goal, which you are now, I'm taking it. So, yeah, I'm going to take the Cowboys plus three and a half. I think maybe if you shop around, maybe you can get a four. But anything over a field goal is fine. I think this is close and great throughout, and I can't wait to watch it. Yeah, Charverius Ward, obviously the 49ers best corner, you know, one of the better corners, definitely in the NFC, banged up, healed. Now, he misses some practice and usually plays, but that's something to keep an eye on because they need him, you know, against C.D. Lamb.

And you're right. I mean, I would say Nick Bosa has not exactly looked like Micah Parsons or T.J. Watt through the beginning portion of the season, which makes sense. I mean, he showed up September 1st or whatever. Now, the guy that has is Hargrave. And Kinlau's been better. Their defense, to me, the Cowboys, when you really look at their four games, when they've got to front run, like when they're like Tiger Woods winning by 10, they're going to blow away the field. And it just snowballs and you watch it.

You're like, fuck, they're going to win this game by 40. And their point differentials outrageous because defense is scoring. They're doing two-point plays. I mean, they were clown in Belichick. They got into one-dod's fight. Once they know you're going to throw, you're done. Yeah, exactly. And that's the thing with Kyle, the score could be 14-0-0. He'll still hammer the, like, he's one of the rare coaches that's much more of a throwback like his dad in that era that will just stick to a game plan that won't freak out, especially now that he trusts the quarterback. But to me, like, it'll be interesting because more than likely it's just going to be a close game. Like you said, let's just say it's 12-12 or something at halftime. The Cowboys have it, like, figured out how to, to me, that's the difference. between them and the Eagles and the Niners.

Like, the Eagles and the Niners can fucking meet you in the mud and play an ugly-ass game and figure out a way to win. Like both those two teams, they could easily beat anyone on the road. Sometimes with Dallas, you go, God, do you have the grittiness? And that's always kind of been a McCarthy knock, right? Some of those Rogers teams, obviously Rogers is much better than DAC, and this defense is better than the overwhelming majority of any of those Packers' defenses. But it's like a mindset from the coach.

Like, one thing with Kyle Shanahan and all the guys that they've accused, They're just kind of like war d'addies. Debo play in the parking lot. And the Eagles, you know, they have a lot of guys like that. Kelsey, Lane Johnson, Fletcher Cox. You know, the Cowboys, in theory, you think would. But sometimes, for whatever reason, and this is a huge game for them, right? Like you said, the Niners have beat him twice in the row in the playoffs.

Everyone views the Niners as better. They're admitting it. Jerry's like, this is a Super Bowl team. They win this game. I think it would be like their biggest win the last couple years since they They've been good, right? Be McArthur's biggest win as a cowboy head coach. Yeah.

Yeah, and the 49ers, they lose this game. You just say, okay. Whatever. Yeah, they'll be fine, and we'll beat you in the playoffs. So, yeah, I think that you're going to get early on, you're going to get the Cowboys' best effort here. I think you've got to have some trick plays. You've got to go for it on some special teams stuff.

You've got to bring the kitchen sink out here. If I'm the Cowboys, I treat this like it was the NFC championship or whatever. Yeah, because you need it mental. Right? You need this game. They need this game for their psyche if they face the 49ers. Can they beat the 49ers in the playoffs? You lose again here. Yeah, I agree. I would throw everything out here to win this game. You know, and then also it could mean you get it, I don't think the 49ers would care if they have to go on the road. But this game could also decide Hope Field. So, yeah. That's why losing that, that's why losing that Arizona game kind of fucks Dallas.

It puts more pressure on this because all of a sudden you lose this game. You know, you're just, you feel like you're a lock to be the five seed, which in theory, like there are some years where it shouldn't be the end of the world, but when you've got to have to go to Philly and go to San Francisco more than likely, like that's a problem. So this is, I don't want to say must win. It's early October, but this because they lost Arizona, I think this game is dramatically bigger. I mean, that game looms large for them to me as the season goes on, assuming, you know, the Eagles

and Niners. don't do something similar. I mean, look at the Niners. They just play Arizona, and they beat them by, they actually shouldn't have covered the spread. Were you watching that game? They dropped two touchdowns under 12 seconds. Two touchdowns at the end.

Yeah, that was crazy. I just think my prediction is it's decided by a field goal. Yeah, and if it's a 49ers field goal kicker, he's a rookie, you never know. So I missed a couple in the preseason, but Ben Pretty Nails. So you're going Pat's Money Line, Steelers, and hammering the Cowboys. You got it. And I'm hammering lions, minus 10.

Go Detroit. Motor City, City, Kitty's baby. Okay, Stucky, talk to you soon. Absolutely, over your lines, and good luck. The volume. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends.

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