The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out Weekend Mailbag - Henry/Eagles Rumors, Richardson Stock, Texans Pick,

Episode Date: April 23, 2023

John empties out the Middlekauff Weekend Mailbag and answers listener questions on rumors that Derrick Henry could be headed to the Eagles, Anthony Richardson’s draft stock, if the Texans would pass on a QB with their 1st pick, and if Joe Burrow could approach his next deal like prime Tom Brady. Subscribe NOW and follow Middlekauff and The Volume on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the latest content and FanDuel for the best wagering action! #Volume #HerdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The volume. What is going on, everybody, John Middlecopp, a little weekend, middle cop mailbag at John Middlecough. At John Middlecough is the Instagram. Fire in those DMs and get your question answered here on the show. Draft Week is upcoming, so we need to dial in. A lot going on.

I went to dinner What day is that? I'm recording this on Saturday. I went to dinner on Friday night and kind of went downtown old Old Town Scottsdale. And sometimes, you know, take a cab or an Uber.

But in Scottsdale, they have these golf carts that basically operate as as Uber's or taxis. And you know, for the right price, they'll take you a pretty long way. And you know,

I'd had a few and I was like, I'll take us home. So we've got a golf cart ride home. And the guy had a Philly a Phillies hat on. and so he drops us off, I started BSing with him. And I clearly, you know, he's from Philadelphia, South Philadelphia, born and raised, is what he told me, and he's a diehard Eagles fan.

And he's like, did you hear the news? I said, what's the news? He's like, Derek Henry is coming to the Eagles. I said, what? When did this happen? Now, I woke up this morning and checked the internet streets, and I don't think it's official yet, but there are some rumors out there that Derek Henry could be headed to the birds. which listen, you know, I would imagine, if you're listening to this,

has already gone down, it's definitely a big headlining trade. I can't imagine that the Eagles would pay much, given that he makes a decent amount of money. Plus, he's an older running back with a lot of tread on his tires, but that would be a pretty, this is what I'm saying, man. Howie Roseman's always in the mix. He is one of the big-time wheelers and dealers in the NFL. That would, it feels like there be their,

50th Alabama player. But if that trade goes down, I also think that would take them out of no Bejan Robinson, obviously, in the first round, if they're going to trade for Henry, which most people, and trust me, I've seen it, like they don't, they have fundamental beliefs

about draft hierarchies. And a lot of teams do. Like, they're not taking running backs and they're not taking linebackers in the first round. Now, I disagree sometimes with that sediment when it comes to linebackers. You know, if I can get Luke Keekly in the first round, though when I was with the Eagles, we would have drafted

the Luke Keeakley. But, you know, when I can get game-changing middle linebackers, and I believe this to my core now in 2023, those guys should be rated higher on their positional value in the league. Say the same thing about tight ends. If I can get Kelsey or I can get Kittal, like in the first round, I'm not hesitating doing that. And I think linebackers and tight ends are just underpaid. Their financial compensation does not equal their value when they're a really good player.

I mean, I see it with Fred Warner. He makes every tackle in the run game, and he can cover. So it's like, what can he not do? He literally impacts the game on every snap. You can throw wheel routes, he can make the tackle. You can run it inside or outside. He can make the tackle. He can carry the tight end down the field.

He literally plays every single element of the sport. Right? So, but the Eagles, they're just not going to mess with that. And I would say if that trade goes down, and we're, you know, a lot of rumors are flying around. so we will see, but ultimately, yeah. I mean, it's going to be a fascinating, be some stuff going down this week,

which is always fun leading into Thursday. We still don't have Aaron Rogers, who, I mean, is the guy ever going to get traded? I mean, what are we waiting on? Now, I've been saying it's going to happen on Thursday or Friday, but I just wish it would take place. But who knows? Maybe Trey Lance gets traded, so just buckle up.

It should be a fun week. Started listening to show a couple months ago, and would love to chime into the mailbag for the first time. I'm from Alameda and a huge baseball guy, so obviously it leads me to being an ace fan. Bummed about the news. Would love to hear your take on it all. I personally don't see why Major League Baseball

would want to put ownership group as that one to bring into baseball to Vegas. Also, don't understand the 20-year saga claims. If finding an endpoint to a stadium was a priority, they should have known the Giants weren't going to give San Jose area back on a silver platter. Why make the A's Oakland plan, essential building an entire new city of 12 billion.

Okay. Well, this is, here's a reality. Oakland's a dump. I mean, it really is. And not in a million years. And I mean a million years. If you could choose in the last 10 years to put a team somewhere, basketball, baseball, or football would you put it into Oakland?

Now, a lot of people, where I come from, a lot of people would be strong. I've always said this. And listen, Oakland guy gets very, very mad. The ratio, Niners to Raiders would be a little higher, but the ratio of Giants to A's, it's like 98 to 2 if you just pull 100 people in Northern California. The Raiders is a little different because of football, but it's still closer to 90 to 10 than it is 50-50. And I think the Oakland teams, the other thing is, one thing that turns off sports fans that's just exhausting that I think probably resonated more back in the day in the 60, 70s,

80s when the money was a lot different. Obviously, certain owners had more money. If you're constantly playing that we don't have enough money card, it's like, yeah, I don't have time. That is such a loser thing to just constantly talk about, right? In this big business world that is pro sports. And I just think that they have lost so many fans over the years. Think about the, in Oakland, like where I come from, we always made fun of those politicians. Just complete losers. I mean, in that little area. So basically they have lost three teams in seven or eight years span. Now, Joe Lacob just moved the team down the road.

Mark Davis left and obviously the A's are going to go to Vegas. And overall, Vegas should have all four teams. It's 100%. It's just an area that should have all four teams. And Oakland should have none. So it's sad the way it goes if you're a fan. But for those of people that are not, I would say emotionally invested, they got it right.

Like, the Las Vegas should have an NFL team, should have a basketball team, should have a baseball team, should have a hockey team. It's meant for that, right? Just like the Bay Area has all four. Got the Raiders, or excuse me, got the Niners, got the Giants, got the Warriors and got the sharks. It's fine. You could argue L.A. is a little overpopulated. Like, they don't need the Chargers. The Chargers would be fine just being still in San Diego.

right, they don't need the angels. If you said the angels were in Nashville, no one would notice. You know, and I think sometimes in certain markets, like Chicago is technically big enough to have all these teams, but you know, they got the bears, they got the Bulls, you know, they got the Blackhawks.

They have two baseball teams, but anyone that lives in Chicago knows, what's the ratio of Cubs to White Sox? Seems pretty big as someone, I've never been to Chicago, but, you know, I think it's fair to say if you're a knowledgeable sports fan, seems pretty one-sided.

Cubs heavy, right? And I just think that, you know, it's a weird way, but the ultimate result of them leaving is the right thing because they can't survive in Oakland. No one can't because you financially, all the money goes to the San Francisco teams. Question for the mailback. Let's say you're an outstanding college quarterback like Luck or Lawrence,

but you didn't want to get drafted by a bad team. Could you see a player, forego the draft and then just sign with the team after maybe even after maybe even for more money or is it a rule that you must be in the draft to play for the NFL team also what percentage of NFL players actually earned a degree before they were drafted is this something that scouts look for it seems to me that would be a big plus if a player actually went to class and didn't work to get a degree like Herbert or I'm sure you know 4.0 student biology major Love the show, keep up the great work.

Well, you know, this is where I'd push back on the academia elites. As a scout, when you go through, you know, you talk to academic advisors. So they tell you he's graduated and let's face it, a lot of seniors that go in the draft, especially if they redshirted, have graduated. I would say this is a complete guesstimate. I could text some people what they thought the percent. I would say if seniors in an NFL draft, guys that get drafted that are seniors. 75 to 80% graduate.

I mean, it's pretty high. Now, obviously, earlier in rounds, some of the underclassmen, right, like Jamar Chase, maybe he did or didn't, but it's much harder when you're a three-year junior, right? You're probably not going to graduate. But no one holds that against you, right? Would you leave?

If I was at Cal Poly in my junior year and someone's like, hey, you are great at doing X. Here is $40 million. I would say, see you. Right? And I think we could have a whole other, listen, I got multiple degrees. I got an undergraduate degree. I got a graduate degree.

And they were technically meaningful because I needed it to get to Fresno State. But the ultimate degrees in class are kind of meaningless. Like the actual information I learned in school, for the most part, I think is pretty irrelevant to my life. Now, we could have the argument. There's something about sticking it out and being disciplined on your own. I think there is value in everything. But ultimately, like I think as we go on in society,

separate from the NFL. What does a degree really mean? A lot of people have degrees all over the country right now can't get a fucking job. And rightfully so, because that degree, I'd argue, is pretty meaningless. Like, I don't know what I'm supposed to value that thing as. We're in previous generations, maybe it had more value. Now, obviously certain degrees, engineering, whatever, but back to your question about football, yeah, you find that information out. And in meetings, when you're talking about the player, right, he graduated or he's not graduating or he's bad student. but like I've said before, you could be a terrible student, right?

Terrible student, but what if you learn football really well? And I wasn't a great student because it bored me. It didn't interest me. So if school doesn't interest you, but you're really good at something, who really cares? Right? Mark Zuckerberg never graduated. And I understand the guys like jobs and those guys are outliers.

But my point is like whether I graduated college or not, for example, when you're listening to this, does it change your opinion? Like if I said, hey, I never graduated college. I dropped out. Would you think about me differently? Maybe you would. Maybe you wouldn't care.

But it never comes up in most of our jobs, right? You know, the one thing you realize the older you get is like, you need to get good grades in college. Why? Who checks your fucking transcripts? Maybe some jobs do. And obviously, and again, law school, there are certain jobs and occupations that are different than others.

But I would say football is, pretty different where no one's checking your transcripts. As long as you're academically eligible and you're playing football, we judge you all football. Now, if you're a bad student because, let's just say, you are legitimately not a smart guy and you also don't learn football very well, that's a problem, right? If you can't learn football, then that is a problem. But what if there have been guys that probably are smart academically who struggle with football intelligence?

So it goes both ways. It's a fascinating conversation. I tend to lean kind of anti-academia because I'm not a big like theory guy. Even though I do like theories. My point is the way college is all about like, well, if you do this, this happens. Like, no, that's not really the way it happens in the trenches of the real world. Like, sit down, you know, try to make a sale. Anyone listening to this is in sales?

Like, you think you can sell or you can't. No one's, they might teach you some techniques. And listen, you could argue like a sales degree. I just teach you how to sell. I don't think we had that at Cal Poly. some of you listening might have had degrees that are focusing. That actually has some validity, right? That actually has some real life use. If just the whole degree is about selling. Like, why would I ever, there were so many, and I don't know why I'm going off on this tangent,

but so many classes I had to take to before you could start taking your business major courses or whatever your major is, I know at my school, that were like under prerex, they were like biology that were, you know, socio, uh, I had to take, I had to take some random chemistry. It's like, why am I taking these classes? I'm not going to be a, a doctor or scientist here. I'm pro, you know, listen, pro education, uh, to a point. Sounds like a very negative on school.

It's, you know, school never did it for me. I like school. You know, I'm going to see my friends, be around girls. But, you know, I was the guy. This sounds so outdated. I never went to a, a college class of the school newspaper. I wonder if school newspapers even exist in this digital time.

The Mustang Daily went with me everywhere. Crossword puzzles, reading articles about whatever. Your boy actually had an article, a senior year called Johnny in the Box. So, brother, question for the pot. Are you really buying that Anthony Richardson will go in the top five in the draft this year? Last year, the media made this huge deal of Malik Willis and how he would go in the top 10 of the draft and would trade up for him and he ended up going in the third round of the Titans. Just sounds like the same type hype.

I think the hype's a little different. I think the hype on Anthony Richardson's a little different. One, you know, Anthony Richardson had a game against Utah, who was one of the better programs in the country. It was remarkable. So we saw his highest end against a top 10 program

in a bright light spot. Now, clearly that's the best game of his career. He also played at Florida, which, say what you want, just has more, you know, I would say support when making an argument. But there is, and this is the hard thing, right? I remember last year talking to people about Malik Willis. And I think Malik Willis was definitely a hyped up guy.

I think Anthony Richardson, while there is hype behind him, there is a level of intrigue and universal acceptance that if this works, he could be a star. And when I say star, like, he could just be like, game-changing starting quarterback, I guess. It would probably be the way to put it. I don't know if people ever viewed Malik Willis that way. I think Malik Willis was much more media-driven than Anthony Richardson is equal.

Like, people are very, very intrigued in the league. Right? And I think that's a bit, like, Anthony Richardson's value was not very high in the NFL. Excuse me. Sorry, Malik Willis has proven out. I do think that Anthony Richardson, could be wrong. Like, if we look up and he goes pick 28, then clearly, I'm

wrong here. And I don't pretend to by any means know every guy with every team. I probably know, you know, I could reach out to a quarter of the teams, right? So I'm getting a sample size from individuals. I do think it's fair to say, though, that Anthony

Richardson is held in much higher esteem than Dan Belique Willis. But I hear you. I hear you. I think that's, you know, That's the hard part about this time of year is quite knowing what's true, what's not. Like I said, the media

kind of can get their own opinions on stuff and for those, I mean, the overwhelming majority of people it's not like they can just call a GM. Like, you know, I saw this on NFL live. Is this true? And the guy's like, no, I've never heard that before in my life. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win.

A win is a win. Yep, that's me. Clever Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skisks. hits, 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. As a Steelers fan from Dallas, with questions about the Texans,

I heard on Colin show that he assumes that Houston might pass on C.J. Strout for Will Anderson and waiting on a quarterback potentially next year. Can you see them taking Will Levis, if available, with one of their second first round picks, 12th overall, or do they have bigger holes to fill? You know, I think it all gets back to Domego Ryans. And I think the way that he saw Kyle Shanahan kind of go slow burn, build up the team, you know, it's hard because the argument is like, like, well, who are you going to roll into the season with your quarterbacks? Like, look at your quarterback roster. It's, uh, it's what's his name from Stanford?

I want to say Tanner McKee, but it's Davis Mills. Did they sign Case Keenham? I mean, they're their quarterbacks. Can you roll into a season like that and not have everyone mad? Or can you just roll into a season with all these young players kind of continue to bottom out and then next year try to get a quarterback? I do think it's hard to go, well, next year we'll get Caleb Williams or Drake May. what if Domeco's just really good

even with Case Keenham or Davis Mills and you end up winning six games and you draft 7th and you just don't have access to either one of those quarterbacks. That's very, very possible. Like that can happen. Things change. So I think it's very,

it's borderline impossible to go, we're going to do this. I mean, we thought the Texans were going to get the number one pick the entire season. And what happened? They didn't get the second pick. And that was like in December. It's like, oh, the Texans are getting the first pick.

All of a sudden we look up when the season ends, like the Bears had the number one overall pick. So I think it's hard to do that. Now, Will Levis, I heard DJ on with Rosillo say that rumors are that Will Levis and the Indianapolis Colts, which, you know, does feel like a Chris Ballard type guy, Shane Steichen. You know, I think people go back and forth. Like look what he just did with, look what he just did with Jalen Hertz. He wants a more mobile, versatile quarterback.

but I'm pretty sure he also coached Philip Rivers. So, you know, I think sometimes we go, this coach likes this player. I don't know. I mean, I think coaches like different type players. Look at Andy Reid. Andy drafted Donovan McNabb, a guy that played Division I college basketball,

physical freak on the football field. Then he drafted Kevin Cobb, who was really much more of a pocket quarterback. Then he got Michael Vic. Then he traded for Alex Smith. Then he got Patrick Holmes. So I think these guys, only want, no, I don't. I think most coaches are like who they view can be the best

quarterback. So I think Will Levis could be long gone by 12. Could be wrong there too. I mean, there's a weird draft because there's not true, true star power, you know, I, and I think the quarterbacks are semi-famous, obviously C.J. and Bryce. But it's just, it feels a little bit like it's missing, missing a little juice. And part of that has to be no star wide receivers. not as many just star players to go along with the quarterbacks. And I think most people think the quarterbacks are just major question marks. Now, you could argue that's most seasons. Here's a question that came to the top of mind of the Jalen Hertz contract.

Take an NFL contract that you can get the details on and describe how the players receive their money in terms of dollars received in timing. I don't understand when they get the signing bonus what then happens with the guaranteed portion of the money. is it paid over time? And then what annual amount does the player receive? Well, the signing bonus, like if I, let's just pick even numbers.

If I give you $100 million contract over five years, so $20 million a year. And I could be wrong. Like Howie Roseman or Parag, be like, middle-cloth, you're explaining this wrong. But I'm going to try to explain it in the most basic of details. So if I give you $100 million, if you sign a $100 million deal, 50 of it is guaranteed. and $20 million signing bonus. So when you sign the contract, I'm pretty sure it's within 14 days,

that $20 million is coming into your account, like right away. So whatever the signing bonus is, you are getting up front or within some, maybe 14 days, it might be a month, but you are getting that money basically immediately. So of the $50 million guaranteed,

you've already received the 20. Now, the way I structure the contract, usually I push down cap hits for my salary cap, but I structure the money flow of what you get differently, right? So that first year, your base salary might be $5 million, even though your average salary is $20 million a year. So that season, even though you signed a $5 year $100 million contract, you might only receive $5 million throughout the season. but I've already paid you 20. So at the end of that year, you will have $25 million. And then usually on those contracts, the following year you're on the roster,

you immediately get another kicker of $15 million owed to you on the league year or at September 1st. So the money flow situation is all set up differently based on the contract. But that guaranteed money, that true guaranteed money, you get no matter what. so whether they cut you the following year or in three years you're getting. But the way the cash is paid out throughout the season completely changes player to player. It's why I always have such a hard time when they go, well, Jaylon's making $50 million a year.

Actually, he's not, right? If you just did the math, five years, $252 million, right, $51 million a year, whatever the exact math is. Because whatever he gets, I could be wrong on this, but I'm pretty sure he gets. It's like $68 million over the first 12 months. So over the first 12 months, whatever is signing bonuses, I don't have the contract in front of me, he's getting that pretty quickly. And then he'll get paid whatever a base salary is.

It could be 10, it could be 5, it could be 15, and that all factors into the guaranteed money. But the thing with quarterbacks is if Jalen just stays healthy and just play solid, he's going to see all the money. You know? Where it gets more complicated is like random players. If I sign a guard, do a three-year deal for $12 million, which most players are making way less than Jalen.

And I guarantee you $2 million, and your average salary is $4 million. But if you're on the roster, the second year, it basically guarantees your second year salary. So that's how it's all kind of fudged. The guaranteed money, though, no matter what, whether you get injured, whether they cut you, whether you get traded, you're getting.

So like Aaron Rogers last year, he signed whatever. Was it three years, $150 million? It was like $50 million a year? You know, he was paid like $80 million within the first year. And he's owed what, like $60 million in September 1st or whatever? Maybe he was paid less than $80 million. But he will have made, maybe it was $80 million over the first calendar year. So he didn't get like $50 million throughout the season, even though it's like, well, he makes $50 million a year.

no, it's like you get these payments and then depending on what you're, they call it the paragraph 5 is just your base salary, right? It's why it's hard for us normal humans to relate. If you're listening to this and you make 100 grand, right? You just get paid biweekly. Do you do the math, right? Taxes and everything.

That's not how NFL contracts work. At least once you sign, like look at these rookies, right? Like they're talking about Trey Lance could get traded. Well, if you look at Trey Lance's contract, you know, he makes like $7 million, $8 million, $9 million, $10 million, over his four-year guaranteed contract. But when the 49ers drafted him, he got a signing bonus, again, pulling this off the top of my head,

I think it was like $23 million. So he got $23 million immediately. So he actually does not get like $7, $8, $9 million throughout the season. He gets whatever portion of that separate from Amortat, you know, separated from the signing bonus. because he's already been paid up front. It's why, like, the only true cash deals when I franchise tag you, like last year, Lamar, or fifth year option, $10 million, $25 million, $30 million. That's just paid.

If you sign a $20 million, fifth year option or a franchise tag, I'm just picking an even number. That is paid throughout the 17 weeks of the season. It's all guaranteed, just divide it up over the, you know, I guess 18 weeks, technically, because I think you get paid over the buy. if that makes sense. But it's why it's complicated. In the NBA or baseball,

if I sign Aaron Judge to whatever, 10 years, $300 million, I just pay him, you can structure it a little bit different. He just gets $30 million a year, right? He doesn't get like $50 million up front, even though, you know, you baseball fans know that some deals are,

they put money into escrow, they pay over time, but I'm just using, you know, in baseball and basketball, for the most part, I just pay you over the people, period of your contract. That's why football, man.

It's very, very complicated. Yo, bro, is Trune a good golf course in Scottsdale? What are your favorites in the Scottsdale area? Trune is a good course. Very expensive in the winter. Summer, recommend it. A little cheaper. It's hard.

It's pretty tight. But I enjoy both Trune courses. I don't think you can ever go wrong. Trun, Greyhawk. Obviously, TPC Scottsdale, Wicapau Wicapaw, I think is how you say it. Quintero out in the cuts.

A couple diamonds. I got a couple of diamonds. If you want to come to the Phoenix, Scottsdale area, and not pay a boatload of money to play golf, here are two courses that are a little off the beaten path in like South Phoenix that are just good, solid courses. I played yesterday in a charity event. A neighbor invited me.

And this course is, it's got two courses as well. I played the other one previously, played the second course. I was like, this place is pure. And in the summer, I think it's like 70, 80 bucks. Now, if you can handle 110, which some of us tough guys can, is called Whirlwind. Worldwind. I like Whirlwind a lot and Raven.

Whirlwind and Raven are two courses in the Phoenix area that aren't as famous as like, obviously, Scottsdale and Greyhawk or TBC Scottsdale and Trune, but are cheaper and are just, and are pretty solid. I recommend both those for the for the price point. It's crazy how expensive golf is here, man. It really is. In the winter, it's just, I mean, people are paying it. People pay $600 to play TBC Scottsdale.

Greyhawk, same thing. Trune is a little cheaper in that, but it's like $500. To play golf. When I was a kid, when I was a kid, I mean, hell, Pebble Beach like five years ago. I don't know what it is now, but. I think was basically $550. That is what is to play our own golf. Hey, Mailbag, congrats on the Kings win on Monday.

Pulling the goalie with the power play at the end was awesome. You talked about Jalen's huge... Does he mean the L.A. Kings or Sacramento Kings? You talked about Jalen's huge contract extension last episode and mentioned how specifically Burrow should expect a big extension this offseason as well. What's your opinion on Burrow taking a pay cut in order to save cap space? Wasn't Brady known for doing this with the pay? Patriots so they could afford to put great talent around him?

Seems to me he could take $15 or $20 million less than whatever they're going to offer him, and then they could go out and get him some useful pieces from free agency. What's $15 million to a guy who are most likely making $20 plus million? To me, my argument, if I was Burrow, would be, well, we already kind of got the squad. I mean, we made the Super Bowl last year. We easily could have won it. and we easily could have won the AFC again this year. How about this?

I'll take whatever money that makes sense for us to be able to keep, I don't know, my two sweet wide receivers. So whatever it takes to keep T. Higgins and Jamar Chase, let's structure my deal so we can take care of those two dudes. Because the reality is, Burroughs getting his money no matter what. So whether it's $250 million and guaranteed $150, $150, $1.70, whatever, he's going nowhere and he's going to make an astronomical amount of cash. The wide receivers are a little more complicated because Jamar Chase is going to be like

Justin Jefferson get contracts. You know, Jamar can't get a contract for another year, but that are going to look like, you know, Tyreek Hill, Devont. It's going to be enormous. So you're going to get $75 to $80 million guaranteed. Now, T. Higgins, I would say, is not quite that, but he's probably 50. million guaranteed. So you're going to look at two guys over the next two years.

They're going to get, you know, you combine them. They're going to get a quarterback level contract. And both of them are going to make 25. Higgins probably make, you know, 22. Jamar make 30. So you're going to have a guy making 20, 22. You're going to have a guy making 30. And then Burrell making 40, 45, 50.

That's a lot on three players. It's why a buddy of mine from the chiefs, I remember, was like, listen, and they respect the shit of those guys. but the difference of the Chiefs over the last three or four years and the Bengals, all those guys are on rookie contracts. So it's going to just get a little more,

like, Chiefs just won a Super Bowl. Kelsey's a max guy. Obviously, Mahomes makes a ton. They were paying a left tackle a lot of money. They were paying Chris Jones a lot of money. You know, they had to let guys go. They had to let Ward walk to the Niners. They had to trade Tyreek.

You know, they were already kind of in the business place. of just already paying people. And I just think that it's going to be fascinating to watch the Bengals. They got three guys. Obviously, Burroughs the most expensive. Jamar's right behind him. And then Higgins is a little less. But Higgins is a very valuable piece.

If T. Higgins right now was on the open market, like if they were willing to trade him, they would easily get a first round pick for him. Easily. I was wrong on him. Now, his numbers aren't as crazy as they can. could be because obviously he plays with Jamar Chase. But last two years, 74, 74, 13 touchdowns, you know, well over 2,000 yards.

So he's basically, he's 150 catches, you know, 2,200 yards. Guy's a beast. Average is 14 yards of catch. He's just, he's big, he's sweet, he's young. I mean, it's, and he's your second best wide receiver. Maybe he'll get a little less than I think. Maybe he'll get $18, $19 million a year. I don't know.

It's a little complicated. But it's going to be fascinating to watch them. Part of building a team in football, you know, is who do you have to pay? Right? The Chiefs had to pay, obviously, the quarterback, a defensive lineman. They get lucky because Kelsey, who is, I mean, what's Travis Kelsey? Non-quarterback, top seven player in the league? Well, if Travis Kelsey was a left tackle or a defensive end or a corner, he would make way more.

but he plays tight end. So they just, which I think is kind of bullshit, but they don't make as much. I do not understand. If I was representing a tight end like Kittle or Kelsey or Mark Andrews or whoever, it's like, listen, just because he plays quote unquote tight end, look at his numbers.

Look at what he means to you. You're willing to pay wide receiver, you know, $20 million a year, but my guy only makes 13 or 14 because he just plays a position called something different, even though he brings more to the table. it's got to be maddening, maddening for the tight end. Again, these are first class problems.

You know, Kelsey well compensated relative to society, but relative to wide receivers, which if you just talked about Travis Kelsey as a wide receiver, I mean, is he one of the great wide receivers of all time? I mean, I was just about to pull up his stats here. I'm pretty sure if you just rattle off his numbers, and I said, you know what? He is, you didn't know,

know who I was talking about. He's just, this is the best wide receiver in the league since 16. 85, 1,1004, 83, 1008, 10, 10 is the touchdowns. 97, 1,200, 5, 105, 1, 1, 1, 1,100, 111, 9, 110, 1,30, 1,3012.

I mean, what, you just rattle off this numbers. Like, is that Antonio Brown? I mean, what, who are we talking about here? If Travis Kelsey had a WR next to his name, not a tight end, he'd make $34 million a year. He's just a monster. I mean, what? But he plays tight end.

So he doesn't. Now, he's well paid, but I just think those guys get screwed in the grand scheme of things. Other than that, I think that's it. So let's have a big draft week. Let's enjoy ourselves. And let's hope some star players get traded, so we've got something to talk about. Adios.

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