The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 and Out - Wentz Replacement Crisis, Wk 1 Rookie QB Starters, NFL HC Power, Hurry Up Camp Headlines, Mailbag

Episode Date: August 3, 2021

In this episode, John dives deep into if there's a viable replacement for Carson Wentz that will allow the Colts to avoid an early season collapse, the case for starting rookie QB's in week 1, why NFL coaches have significantly more power than coaches in the other major sports. He also runs through the top headlines out of training camp, and answers listener questions in the Middlekauff Mailbag. Follow John on Twitter and SUBSCRIBE now to get all the latest content!! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On The Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional

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And we only use human-grade meats and veggies with zero preservatives. After transitioning to Just Food for Dogs, pet parents report seeing more energy, firmer stools, improved health, and even longer lives. Give us two weeks, and we'll change your dog's life forever. Visit JustFoodforDogs.com slash mobile and save 10% on your first purchase. What is up my people? Three and out podcast. That's this little thing you're listening to.

I'm John Middlecough. This guy talking into this microphone that you are listening to. And we're off and running. it's August 2nd. Football pads are coming on. If you're listening to this, Tuesday, I'm at 9 or practice. The pads are popping. Talk to a buddy on the Chiefs.

They're like padding up tomorrow. I think all these teams in the league, despite it feels like they've practiced for a week, have not put on pads until Tuesday, Wednesday. So football is actually happening. And a lot going on. The Colts, we're going to dive deep in that situation up the top. Wentz,

Nick Foles kind of, you know, throwing it out there, come get me. I don't know if that's going to happen. Some thoughts on the rookie quarterbacks. We know Trevor Lawrence. We know Zach Wilson,

the Jets, is the starting quarterback. Trey Lance has been the star of the first week. Justin Fields, Lewis Riddick, had a tweet that I'll get into. I have some takes on rookie quarterbacks and why you should not hesitate

to just play him from the jump. Just a couple other little things that I've seen. Big picture stuff from camps, and then I'm just going to fly around the league, from Justin Herbert to C.D. Lamb, to the Bills saying they're going to Austin, Texas, home of the new SEC, Texas Longhorns. I don't know if you saw it, but Clemson and Florida State, at least based on Twitter, asked to come into the SEC. Who wouldn't want to go to the SEC? You know, could they take, the Atlanta Falcons

feel like they'd be a good SEC team? I don't even know if they'd win it. I don't know if they'd win it. but we will dive deep into camps. Appreciate everyone that subscribe to my podcast. I know if you listen through Collins Pod, subscribe through my pod. If you left a review on the three and out podcast from the separate feed, I appreciate you doing that if you have.

And if you haven't and you like the show, please do that. Also, Middlecoff Mailbag. It's what we do at the end of the show. Answer your questions. It's like the modern day phone calls. But we do Instagram. At John Middlecough is my Instagram. Direct messages wide open, fire in there, get your question answered on the show.

And you guys know how we roll. Chris Ballard, Frank Reich, run the Colts. They officially have a disaster on their hand. As I'm sure many of you saw, Carson Wentz will get surgery on his foot. Feels like his 10th injury of his NFL career. And is out, you've got to love the timeline. Five weeks or could be 12 weeks? There's a big difference between five weeks, which would be, you know,

basically potentially week one or week two or 12 weeks, which is week seven or week eight. That's a huge, the timetable, like, come on. Why are we even giving out timetables? Just say he's out indefinitely. And we will update you on his progress. Like the five weeks, that's a joke. That's not happening. And listen, I've hammered home for years on this show that unlike every other big business,

when you acquire anything, a restaurant, an accounting firm, Facebook when they acquired Instagram, you have a black and white idea of this is how much revenue they take in, this is what their expenses are, this is what the projected revenue is going to be, these are the last five years of the books, like you have empirical data.

You have hard evidence, right? Now, you have to project in business just like you do with football players. Once upon a time, Blockbuster turned out buying Netflix. I listened to a podcast one time with the guy that started Netflix. He's like, I went in, we said, we throw up the number $40 million, which was a lot of money at the time, and they laughed us out of the room. Bad decision.

But they can see Netflix books. Like they saw what was going on. Now you had to see the future a little bit. The hard part about pro sports, but specifically football is your 50, 100, $150 million investments are not in buildings or not in companies. They're in one individual. And I'll never forget being a part of these meetings. when I worked in the NFL going over injury history. And, you know, a guy could have three concussions.

A guy could have two torn ACLs. And you'd be like, you know, I wouldn't touch him. And then he'd go on for like three or four more years and have no issue. A guy that's never had an issue. A guy that's never had a concussion. All of a sudden, you sign him. He has two concussions in a season. Misses basically, let's say, 12 games.

You have no clue. You take constant, educated guesses. Because you are investigating human beings. Now Carson Wentz, when the Colts acquired him, had major red flags. Right? He had been injured in college. He had been injured in the pros. That alone was his own red flag.

Last year, his play was a red flag. He was God awful. And then there were questions about him within the locker room. Part of the reason a guy who has had MVP-type season in the league at quarterback and he went number two overall was basically had for a third and a second round pick. We saw Matt Stafford go for two ones and a three, right? We saw Trey Lance go for pick 12 and two other ones. Quarterbacks are typically really expensive, yet Carson Wentz was not. And you had to take back all of his money. I was driving around today. I heard Pat McAfee say the Colts had to pay him $55 million.

I looked at his contract today. You know, their dead cap on the Colts book, obviously you wouldn't cut them, but $47 million. Paying him $20 million actual. cash this year. Next year, $27 million cash, $20 million dead cap. So they're stuck with him for a couple years. A big reason, the Eagles wanted to get rid of them. They didn't want to pay them any more cash. You take this, right? And the Colts made an educated, you know, guess slash risk. They knew what they were taking in. There was a lot of evidence. But if I wanted to defend Chris Ballard, I'd go, the last two seasons, two years ago, Carson Wentz played all 16 games. and then he got that concussion in the playoff game against Seattle and Philly.

And last year, while he got benched late in the season, he was healthy. He was playing the old season. He got benched because of his poor play. You just never know. It is just, honestly, the thing that I miss the least from standing on the sideline in a team-issued gear being part of the group, because you do miss things, right? You miss part of being in the trenches with a lot of people. The players, the coaches, the scouts,

a city. It's a cool experience. I think by far, the worst part, and I don't know how these GMs and coaches become so numb to this, are the injuries. You could just be at practice if you're Chris Ballard and Frank. I don't even know if Frank was at that practice yet because he was on the corona list. And all of a sudden, you look in your quarterback, he didn't get hit, no one touched him, he just starts kind of limping off. Then you find out a couple hours later, his foot's all messed up. And then a couple days later, he's going to be out five to 12 weeks.

it sucks. Like you could say they knew this was coming. Yeah, but I'd say the last couple years he's been healthy. His problem had been poor play. You were just hoping to fix his poor play. And then the question is moving forward, what the hell do you do? I text with someone on the Chiefs. And clearly they're the favorite to win the division.

Or excuse me, the conference, right? Most people are going to pick them to win the AFC. And rightfully so. They've won it the last two years. More than likely they'll win it again. He's like, he felt bad. You know, he's like, that roster is loaded. Because they are. Chris Ballard is really, really good at his job.

But I talked to Colin on his podcast, and it was like, you know, when you don't have a quarterback, you're always chasing the quarterback no matter how good your roster is. So what do you do? Because you don't really realize until Carson goes down, it's not like they had a backup plan. Nick Foles. And I don't think you can do that. Because the ghost of Nick Foles, like the Colts can't cut Nick, or Carson Wentz for two years. He's going to be on the roster this year and next year. Nick Foles does make the most football sense on the field. Knows Frank, knows the offense.

They've worked together before they've had success. Nick Foles talked today with the Bears. Reiterated that. It was basically like, come get me, guys. I'm with the third stringers now, and I'm dicing up all these undrafted free agents. But you can't. Because Carson Wents' career has been defined by the ghost of Nick Foles.

And let's face it. I don't know, they maybe professionally respect each other. There is an elephant in the room of tension with those two guys. And mainly Carson toward Nick. Because Nick is the hero of Philadelphia. Nick is the Super Bowl MVP. Nick was the guy who became a legend in that game when Carson was in street close. You don't shake that.

And now Carson was given this opportunity, in theory, to resurrect his career with this stack team. And if you're Chris Ballard, Carson went. if he was out for the season, I wouldn't worry about it. I'd go get Nick Foles. But Carson's going to come back. And if you bring Nick Foles in as multiple people that I texted with today in the league, he'd be over. Mentally, he'd be shot.

You just can't do that to him. So that is not an option. Jimmy Garoplo makes way too much money. You can't have multiple guys making $20 plus million. They don't even have the cap space. Marcus Marriota doesn't make that much money. You would have to be intrigued there, right? The problem is, I don't know about the scheme turnover in terms of the terminology.

Could you get them up to speed? I had a person just say, I would just try to get through the first four or five games with Eason and hopefully your defense and your offense is productive enough that you're able to be like three and two, maybe be four and two until Carson comes back. 500, you know, three and three. But that's best case scenario. It really is. And I feel bad for Chris Ballard.

Now you could argue this is part of Carson Wentz the package, but there's just nothing you can do in the business of football to ever know when a guy just starts limping by himself, right? You're like, what just happened? All of a sudden, a ligament rips, a bone breaks, you know, an elbow goes, a shoulder muscle shot. You just, you're in the human business. It's the greatest unknown.

It's why pro sports have always been. and will continue to be the greatest reality show in the history of life. And there's a lot of money on the line. Clearly with a guy like Carson Wentz, the Colts have invested now a lot of money into him, but you just potentially derails their season. Let's talk rookie quarterbacks and the growing buzz about potentially two more rookie starters. We know Trevor Lawrence will be the starter for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Of course, he was going to start for whoever he was drafted by two years ago, right? He's the best prospect since Andrew Locke. The Jets, trade Sam Darnold, draft Zach Wilson. He's the starter. Then you have two wild cards. With Cam Newton's clearly going to be the starter, I think, for New England. All reports. I saw Albert Breer wrote, he's been way better.

Mac Jones is not starting week one. But I got two other guys to me that are clearly now in the mix. Justin Fields and Tray Lance. Now, I can speak for Tray Lance. I'm sure if you've been following the internet, he's been killing into practice. I'll be there the next couple days. Hopefully he keeps killing it.

Justin Fields, who Lewis Riddick tweeted, that from what he had heard, he is blowing people away. I haven't talked with anyone within the Bears since camp started, but talking to them in OTAs, they were really, really impressed. I'm not talking about his physical attributes,

which are eye-opened. I'm talking about the mental preparation, the understanding of the offense, all that that entails. And let's face it, I have a simple philosophy, and I've been banging the table on this for years. If you draft a guy high in the draft, aka the top 15, the first round, but definitely in the top 10, and I would include Justin Fields in that. I would start them immediately. What the hell are you waiting for? Now, I come from the philosophy, just a state school guy from Cal Poly, for you, for you

NFL fans, Chris Gokong, Ramsey's Barden, no big deal. Third round picks. Didn't quite live up to the expectations. Really good college players. We learned by doing. And I can speak for myself. Academia let me down just based on the fact, like, I'm not great at just reading a book, memorizing it and then repeating it to a test.

That's not how I operate. That's not how I learn. Throw me into the trenches of society, of life, whatever I'm doing. That's how I learned. When I played high school football, like in the media, I just get bored. I get distracted. School in football, let's rep it out. I learned through live reps, whether that's

in the business community, whether that was in sports. That's how I do my best work. And listen, I know everyone's a little bit differently, but I think we have a long list now of evidence that the game clearly, in like when I was a kid, the 80s, the 90s, it was different world. You had to prepare yourself physically for a war. you could get killed.

Reading, aka listening, to the Steve Young book, Joe Montana used to get his back literally broken on the field. Quarterbacks were in the line of fire, it was violent, and you could get injured. Now they can't be touched, literally in practice and also kind of in the games.

And the game, the translation of what they were doing in college, is now so prevalent in the pros. We have seen the list of guys, Lamar Jackson, got to play, Now, he didn't start from day one. They should have. But he played that rookie season.

By year two, he was winning the MVP. Josh Allen, who had a lot to learn through him in week one, season one. By year two, he's leading the team to the playoffs. By year three, he's an MVP candidate. You'd be like, what about Patrick Bohomes? That's an outlier situation. If you have Alex Smith in your team and you're going to win a division, then yeah, you have some time on your hands.

Most teams don't. Andy Dalton, not Alex Smith. Jimmy Garaplo, not Alex Smith. Throw the guy into the fire. Let him learn. He is protected literally by the league. The defenders can't really hit him. The defenders can't really hit your wide receivers.

So guys are more open. Do you still need to throw guys open in the NFL? Of course you do. But it's not quite 1992. Steve Atwater is not going to give you a concussion over the middle. He's not allowed to. Steve Atwater, obviously not. in the league, but you know what I'm saying?

The Cam Chancellor days are over. They do not exist. Here's the other thing. The greatest attribute a rookie quarterback has. The best one is his contract, obviously, if he's good. He's cheap, right? His contract make $5, $6, $7 million instead of $40. So it skews your cap to be advantageous to sign other players.

When you can't, think about Justin Hurd, Herbert, how much better off the chargers are that he got thrown into the deep end last year. I'm going to pick them to make the playoffs, I think. But having that contract on your side, obviously once the season starts his rookie year, your team is set. You've already spent the money. But what about year two? When you have the full confidence go, we got a guy, we got a big time talent, and we have the ability to make a run. Let's load up.

It's easy to say that. But if you don't truly believe it, you're like, you know, are we really going to be wasting this money. When you get a guy, when you get Josh Allen, when you get Lamar Jackson, when you get with the charges with Justin Herbert, you put all your chips in the middle of the table. And you are literally thinking walking around the building, we got a chance to beat anybody. We do. So every single game that Andy Dalton or Jimmy Garapolo plays to me is a waste. It really is. And I just think, look at recent evidence. All the guys that played early had success so much earlier because of their ability to play.

Because of their ability to learn on the field. You can only learn. These practices are a joke. No one is getting touched. I mean, it's kind of honestly, just knowing some people in the NFL. It's like it's a laughing stock in the league, like what these practices are,

what they used to be. And I'm not trying to be Old Man River and act like things don't naturally need to progress. But it's hard to get better at football when you don't allow tackling or hitting. Right? The huge reason, tackling is so poor early in the season because you don't tackle it all.

And then in the preseason games, no one plays. But my philosophy would 100% be if I have a rookie quarterback, one, clearly if he's swimming over his head doesn't know what's going on. I'm not saying just throw out a guy that the teammates are like, what is going on? But what are they saying in baseball?

Tie goes to the runner. If it is tied, Justin Fields, Andy Dalton, Trey Lance, Jimmy Garoppolo, I'm sorry, Andy. I'm sorry, Jimmy. Take the betch. Grab some pine meat. Put on a hat and grab a clipboard.

Coach them up because you are no longer the starter. And if the guy's better, which, do you know what my gut's going to say about Trey Lance and Justin Fields? Once the preseason game start, it's your mom, my mom, will be like, what are we doing here, guys? Do you see that throw? You see that ability to run?

What are we wasting her time? And every game that you go by is a waste. a time. Start the rookie quarterback. That's why you drafted them. The Niners traded, pick 12, two first rounders. The Bears traded from pick 20 to pick 12 and a first round pick. You've invested all this. Let the guy sink or swim. And yeah, you might hit some, you know, some road bumps, have a little adversity. Do you know what that does? It helps you out. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque, others say it's

unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to

Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clever 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 people. and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger.

So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross

double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little kid? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so you all right. Just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line.

We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host. and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing,

we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it, and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid?

Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now.

What do smart people say? You don't ever fail. You just learn. So if you throw a bad pick week one, guess what? Maybe you don't do that week three. Maybe you don't do that week five. You definitely, year two, you're so much better equipped to handle everything that's coming. Start your star rookie quarterback.

Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our shows at foxportsradio.com. And within the IHeartRadio app, search FSR. to listen live. Get right to the romance and find the way to wow this valentines with 1800flowers.com. From classic roses and bouquets to decadent chocolate-covered berries, gourmet treats, and more. Surprise your valentine with 1,800flowers.com. Right now, get the 18-stem enchanted rose medley for $3999 or upgrade to 24 red roses for $10 more.

Go to 1-800flowers.com slash tune in. That's 1-800flowers.com. If I could be you and you could be me for just one hour. If you could find a way to get inside. Each other's mind. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes.

We've all felt left out. And for some, that feeling lasts more than a moment. We can change that. Learn how it belonging begins with us.org. Brought to you by the ad council. Walk a mile in my shoes. And we're live here outside the Perez family home just waiting for the... And there they go.

Almost on time this morning. Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double-armed kid carry. Looks like Dad has the bag's daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh, but the diaper bag wasn't closed. Dipers and toys are everywhere. Ooh, but Mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler. And now the eldest daughter, who looks to be about nine or ten, has secured herself in the booster seat.

Dad zips the bag closed, and they're off. Ah, but looks like mom doesn't realize her coffee cup is still on the roof of the car, and there it goes! Oh, that's a shame. That mug was a fam favorite. Don't sweat the small stuff. Just nail the big stuff. Like making sure your kids are buckled correctly

in the right seat for their age and size. Learn more at nhtsa.gov slash the right seat. Visit nhtsa.gov slash the right seat. Brought to you by Netsa and the right seat. had counsel. You know, one thing that I don't know gets hammered home enough in August, it's really, you know, the best part of the NFL season are the NFL games. There's nothing like being a little hungover on a Sunday morning, getting out of bed, order yourself a breakfast burrito, at least for us on the West Coast, for you guys on the East Coast, you got a little more time. Hell, you can go get like

play 18 in the morning on Sunday. For those of us in the West Coast, you know, if you've had a long night out on Saturday, you roll out of bed. and football's on. You grab yourself some food and you don't do anything from basically 10 a.m. till Al and Chris sign off at night. It's a great day.

I love Sundays in the fall. But the best part about training camp, like the problem once the game start, if you're a fan of a team, if you're a coach on a team, if you're a player on a team, what happens if your team sucks? What if you start losing a lot of games? For as fun as football is

winning and I've never played in the NFL, my stint, I got to be a part of a playoff team that won a division and my third year, I was a part of a team that fired a coach. I'll tell you this, being a part of a playoff team is infinitely better than being part of a team that is not any good. Right? And that's players, coaches, fans,

we're kind of all in this together. I would say the only thing, sometimes people ask, is there anything you miss? I'm like, well, the one thing you truly miss that I don't really have now, is the true camaraderie, I can't camaraderie, of the group, right? When you're a scout or a coach,

you're so close-knit with that group and the players. And really, you represent the city. So, you know, when I was part of the Eagles, I mean, it's a big deal. You know, obviously with everyone in the building, but what you mean to the city? I'm born and raised a Niner guy. Like, the Niners mean a lot.

I mean, they are a freak. big deal to a lot of people. Obviously, Kyle, John, you know, to the players, it means a lot, but then just to the millions upon millions of people that live in Northern California, right? And it can say the same thing for Seattle, for the Giants, for the Cowboys, for the Packers, for the Steelers, for the Vikings, for the Bears. It's a big deal. And I don't really have that. You know, I get to be a business partner with Colin Coward. It's cool. I get to spit some takes into a mic. But it's not like, you know, you walk into the building every day and just feel like, God, there's a lot of people just invested into this. It's a powerful thing. And when you're winning,

it's awesome. There is nothing like Sunday after a win, Monday morning going in, you know, off a team. Like, if you just won a big game, it's awesome. But for as great as that is, there's nothing worse. College football, too. I mean, it was like this when I was at Fresno State going into the office after a loss. The only corporate office I've ever been beside football was in radio and it was never that up and down. It was tangible

in football on Monday, whether you won or lost. The best part about training camp is every team is oh and oh. No one has lost a game. And every franchise, whether you're the Jets or the Jags or the Chiefs or the Bucks,

you have optimistic and beliefs that your team is going to be good. Obviously, the playoff teams are pretty cocky and arrogant in a good way, thinking like, we're going to be really good. We're going to win 13, 14 games, and we're going to be a mother in the playoffs. And if you're the Jets or the Jags, you go, I promise you this, we ain't going to be drafting the top five. We might not be a playoff team, but our goal is to get around 500. And we're going to be good. And we're going to show some optimism with a young quarterback, so in a year, everyone's going to be like, this is a potential playoff team.

And that's how everyone around the league is thinking at some different level. And that part is cool. Now, obviously the worst part of training camp by far are the injuries. Anytime you have a serious injury. Like that, Carson Wentz injury for the Colts sucks. Anytime a guy gets carted off practice, once these preseason games happen, anytime a guy gets seriously injured in a preseason game, it's the worst. But other than that, preseason is pretty fun.

You're kind of feeling out your team, seeing the growth of all the guys. It's a cool time. The other thing, and I follow a lot of teams, I'm sure most people did. on social media. And when you follow a lot of teams on Twitter, like if I get up early in the morning, you know, between like six or seven, a lot of teams on the other side of the country

are either just practice or going to practice and a lot of their coaches talk before practice. So I just end up running, oh, Matt Ruhl's talking. You know, follow the Panthers. Oh, Matt LaFleur is talking. Oh, Mike McCarthy's talking. Mike Zimmer's talking. And I'm a sucker for a coach press conference.

And this much is clear in the NBA. know if you saw today. Kauai Leonard, who has a torn ACL and is probably going to miss the entire season, declined $37 million from the Clippers. He plans on signing a $200 million deal. A couple years ago, Kevin Durant, he tore his Achilles, declined the Warriors' $250 million offer. The NBA coaches never, ever say a terse word about a good player, let alone a star.

in baseball, the managers, beside maybe like a Tony Larusa or a Tito Francona, who actually I think just left the team because he's sick, get well, Tito, big Tito fan. Gabe Kapler makes like 800 grand. I don't think there's a guy on the Giants

who makes less than Gabe Kapler. The days of Bruce Bochi and Tommy LaSorda swinging a big stick like Bill Parcells are over in the sport of baseball. Baseball managers, well, in the NBA, the players are in charge. In baseball, the general managers run the sport. In football, when you watch

these coaches conference, coaches have all the juice. And they can say whatever they want about a good, middle of the road, bad player. What they say matters. And everyone in that building knows that guy has all the juice. Because once the season starts, and really it started right now, guys know, you better be locked in. Because if the head man is mad at me, I got issues. If the head coach is down on me, my job is on the line. And that is just not the case in the other two sports. And it hasn't been in the NBA for a long time. But baseball, I have seen a dramatic shift.

And anyone that follows the sport closely, like general managers are in complete control. There's a reason GMs are making $3, $4, $5 million and coaches making $750 grand. Aaron Boone is the manager of the New York Yankees makes a million dollars. A million dollars. Bruce Bochie, who just retired a couple years ago,

was making like $6. A million dollars? That's like what Belichick makes a month. Think about that. If Belichick makes $12 million, makes that a month. Joe Judge last year signed for like $7.5 million

a year. And listen, money does give you some juice. When you pay these coaches a lot of money and, listen, football's clearly a little different these other sports, but the coach is just in complete control. Let's face it, the NFL, by a mile, is the healthiest of all the sports.

I actually think the baseball season has been fantastic. Obviously, the Giants are playing well. But just over, I was watching some of the Ray's Red Sox. What an incredible series. It's, I think the Tampa Bay Race, quick tangent, I tweeted this out on Friday. I was having a couple pops.

They were on TV and they were just going toe to toe with the Red Sox. And it hit me. I was like, there can't be a better pound for pound organization in all of sports, including the NFL than the race. Because in the NFL, as we saw, every team got $300 million last year. In baseball, the race are spending. $75 million. The Red Sox and the Yankees have hundreds of millions of dollars to spend on players.

The other thing is the race turn over players, one, and turn over the GMs. Their GMs get jobs. Doesn't matter. They just keep on kicking ass. I have nothing but respect for the Tampa Bay race. Tampa Bay right now, kind of on top of the world. The raise kicking the Red Sox's the Yankees ass. The rays have owned the Yankees now for a while.

Tampa Bay, the football team, Super Bowl champs. the lightning NHL champs. I saw Florida State. They want in. I don't know if Calahassees by Tampa Bay. I don't know why I just connected those two.

But let's, why don't I? The Florida State Seminoles won in on the ACC. So good times for the Tampa Bay region. Again, have no clue of Florida State is remotely close. I've only been to Fort Lauderdale and Miami. Actually, went to Jacksonville, too,

on a scouting trip. The Jacksonville Stadium sucks. Okay, let's fire around the league. Just some things that are going on, things that I've seen on the social media streams, things that I've seen in my text messages. Just try to text, keep my ear to the streets. First and foremost, Justin Herbert.

He's had several passes go viral. Anyone that watched him play last year, I think we all agree. His talent is immense. Talk to coward about this. I think when you go back and you look at Oregon, two things works against them. one Marcus Marriota

Mariota's similar personality wasn't the loudest guy in the room was actually you know I think people in the league viewed him closer to introverted than like some extroverted leader I think Herbert had some of those characteristics and then Marriota never lived up to the hype the difference is Justin Herbert

and Mariotta didn't have much in common besides they're both tall Herbert has a way better arm he's just as fast he's physically much thicker way better prospect here's the other thing Marriota played with much better players when he played at Oregon. Justin Herbert did not play with good skill guys.

I don't think they had a drafted wide receiver. Oregon's always had good tight ends. I can't name one freaking tight end. Here's the other thing. Since I was a kid, Oregon has had big time running backs. Remember the Wizzinator, Ontario Smith, Sacramento, Grand High School? Up until Chip Kelly, they were always pumped Jonathan Stewart pumping out ballers in the backfield. Kenyon Barner, LaMontan.

Michael James. Now, were they great NFL players hit or miss, but they were legit players in college. Herbert didn't have a good running back. He did questionable tight ends and no dynamic wide receivers. So he really got nitpicked. And then Tua, who clearly Justin Herbert is more gifted than Tua, Tua got to play with Waddle, with Devante, with Judy, and with Riggs. And with good tight ends and with Naji Harris. So it's just, it's not really comparable looking back. If you could do the draft over, I think there is legitimate, or at least there will be, and as this season plays out, that Justin Herbert should have even gotten first overall. Now, it would have been crazy because Joe Burrow was so damn good in college. I think Joe Burroughs going to be good in the pros,

but I think Justin Herbert has a ceiling that's higher than Joe Burrow. C.D. Lamb, he was awesome last year. I think there's a chance when this season ends, we go back, or maybe two or three years, and go, how is C.D. Lamb not a top five pick? I think, when the dust settles, he is going to be the best wide receiver in his class. And that's saying something, because that class was legit. Justin Jefferson, rookie star, going to be a really good player. Brandon Ayuk, really good player. Jerry Judy, really good player. Higgins, really good player. I mean, a ton of wide receivers. It was known as one of the best wide receiver drafts of all time when the draft happened, let alone we saw the guys as rookie. They're all good. I think when the

dust settles, and in several years, we look back and C.D. Lamb. I get it. He's destroying Cowboys DBs that aren't very good, but I think he would destroy any DB. He has, he reminds me when I see clips of DeAndre Hopkins, as he should with everyone. He is an incredible jumpball player. His contested catchability is probably second to none right now in the league with Hopkins. DeVante Smith, Eagles first round pick, Heisman Trophy winner. Not ideal. Spray to Disney. Now,

I mean, there's nothing you can do. Some of this stuff's random. It's kind of crazy. He's been pretty consistently healthy at Alabama. Then he gets to the Eagles. He gets hurt. But nothing you can do. It doesn't seem to be too bad, but more than likely, he's going to miss a huge chunk of training camp, if not all of training camp. Because

if it's potentially two to three weeks, well, in three weeks, you're already in late August. I think you're kind of easing them in to get ready for week one. So that's that's a pretty big blow. I saw Vic Fangio, head coach of the Denver Broncos, said his quarterback race for who's going to be the starting quarterback, is even Stephen.

Drew Locke and Teddy Bridgewater. What I would do, like we've seen Teddy Bridgewater, you're not winning anything with Teddy Bridgewater. If it's even Stephen, just go with Drew Locke. Hopefully his higher ceiling, his ability to make more plays downfield, just gives you a better chance to win. because I just, like, I'm sorry, Teddy Bridgewater's a backup.

A good backup. A guy I'd want to pay $5, $6, $7 million to back by star quarterback up, but he's not a starting quarterback. Now, Drew Locke might not be either, but at least there's more unknown with Drew Locke, more physical talent in that body. And let's face it, the Broncos have some talent. I mean, Judy, Fant, they get Sutton back,

they have good running backs, their offensive lines pretty good, they get Von Miller back. I saw Bradley Chubb just backed up. practice. I mean, they might have a good pass rush. If you just get some, you know, explosive quarterback play, who knows? Uh, Hollywood Brown, I saw Harbaugh say that his hamstring injury is much worse than first anticipated, which is a problem for a speed guy. Now, on the bright side, Sammy Watkins, from what I've read and maybe heard, has been excellent for their team.

Problem with Sammy, as we know, you can't really depend on because he gets hurt. I think they had high hopes for Hollywood Brown. They bring in T. Martin. They bring in my guy Keith Williams, who is the best wide receiver coach I've ever been around. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

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A win is a win. I don't care where 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.

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I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jette. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah.

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Trip Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it.

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Search, learn the hard way, and listen now. Right, receiver's going to be coached up. But they have Bateman, the kid they drafted from Minnesota. I saw Marcus Peters was saying, he looks pretty good in practice. So that should be. exciting if they can get healthy. Their passing game, obviously Mark Andrews, you know, is probably

a top five tight end in the league. So it should be, in theory, a much more explosive passing game. This one made me laugh. Because I went through it when the Raiders were moving. And clearly, whenever you're having, you know, problems with your stadium situation and you're battling for money, you're bad in for real estate, you're dealing with politicians. and let's face it, dealing with politicians is a pain in the ass, regardless of what side you fall on. That's not even debatable. But the bills who are owned by a family that are worth a lot of money.

I don't blame an owner. If I owned a team and was worth $100 billion, I had unlimited money, wouldn't I still try to get the city to chip in a little bit? Wait, you're saying, I don't have to put an extra $500 million or an extra billion. I can get the city to do that? Like, of course.

You know, would you rather spend, a million dollars on a home or put down 200 grand and have the bank give you 800 grand. We do that all the time. Now, what if someone, instead of you having to service the debt, someone else would? Or split the debt with you? You think you'd be like, no, I'll just service the debt. Or actually, you know, the city will service the debt, but you get to own the house. Of course you would.

Just business one-on-one. The media gets so up in arms. How could you do this? Because that's how you do every business. You ask for the moon and you just see what you can get. Now, this is what I read flag. Because the Raiders used to do this with San Antonio. There is not going to be another team in Texas.

There is the Dallas Cowboys, which, listen, I know they don't win a lot, but they're the biggest brand in the league. And the Houston, Texas, Houston's like a top five city in America. They already have two teams in the state. They are not, Jerry is never allowing another team. Now, Jerry is a business whore. He helps out the league because he's a great partner. He will let them float that out and not fight it back. There is no team, no NFL team is ever moving to Austin.

I promise you that. The Cowboys and the Texans, they would never allow that. It is never, ever happening. So are the bills threatening? Yeah, because they're trying to get stuff. Now, could they move? Maybe there are other destinations? I promise you.

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They see a windy path that could lead to adventure. And they see you. Their fearless guide is this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the ad council. Okay, let's go Middlekopf mailback. Instagram at John Middlough. you fire in those DMs, like some of you guys did right here,

you get your question answered. Very easy, very straightforward. Love the pod. Which potential wildcard teams do you think have the highest ruin someone's season chance? I'm a charger fan, and I know it's early, but I feel like if the team can build chemistry, and Staley can even just be semi-live-up-to-the-expectations, we could ruin someone's season.

I know a Super Bowl run is unlikely, but I'd like to show that we're legit. Yeah, I think the Chargers are definitely a team that can make the playoffs. I think the Minnesota Vikings, if their defense, could just get back to somewhat of what they have been in the past, can compete to make the playoffs. I would say those are two teams that did not make the playoffs last year that could become wildcard teams.

And then if you look at the teams, you would need someone to fall out, right? So if you look at the AFC You know the Browns They have definitely one of the most talented teams on paper But let's just Can Baker Mayfield just become a legitimate star? Are the Steelers? Like is Big Ben just shot?

That's something to keep an eye on I'm pretty confident in the Ravens, the Chiefs, and the bills You know the dolphins are they just going to maintain And in the NFC You know I mean the Packers are not going to go away maybe the Saints do. Maybe the Saints don't make the playoffs.

You know, the Bears made the playoffs as well. I mean, honestly, maybe both those two teams aren't in the playoffs. Now, if Justin Herbert, excuse me, Justin Fields is good. Maybe the Bears are good. I also think there's going to be this curveball, this extra game. Like, does 10 and 7 make the playoffs? 11 games made the playoffs last year in the AFC.

You had to win 11 games to make the playoffs. The Miami Dolphins went 10 and 6 and missed. The Raiders who were right in the wild card mix heading into December, missed the playoffs by three games. And in the NFC, 8 and 8 got in with the Bears. So I would imagine my guess is the AFC is better than the NFC. I think in the NFC 10 and 7 might get you the 7th spot. In the AFC, you probably got to go 11 and 6.

I also wonder like 7 and 9 always felt pretty bad. Does 8 and 9 feel bad? does 9 and 8 feel good 10 and 7 is going to feel pretty good 7 and 10 is going to feel really shitty If you go 7 and 10 and you're a coach You might get fired Like 7 and 10 is one of those

Those numbers that are just I don't know man I'm a big fan of the show And view you as an awesome football mind Why didn't it work out for you as a scout And did you pursue the career Beyond a scout to begin with Also if you're interested in hiring anyone

to help with your show, even invest in other sports minds, I would love to talk. I'm a lifelong Cowboys fan. My grandpa has seen all five Super Bowls. My dad went to the three in the 90s. Is there anything I can look as a positive for being a Cowboys fan in the future of the franchise?

Okay, starting with the Cowboys, I actually think you guys are going to be decent this year because your defense can't be as bad as it was last year. Even though Dan Quinn, as a defensive coordinator, like his defense is in Atlanta or awful. So is he some great? defensive mind, I don't know. There's just no way he could be as bad as Mike Nolan. And I think

offensively, as long as Dax, I mean, again, I've been saying over and over, Dax injury makes me a little nervous. But if he's healthy, their offense should be dominant. Especially their pass offense should be unstoppable. And, you know, just I got fired young in the NFL. I didn't know anybody

on other teams, really. And I wasn't going to move around. And I'm also open-minded. I wasn't dead set. Like I had to be the rest of my life in the NFL. I got an opportunity in the radio business and I never look back. And, you know, it's just, I'm not a religious person, though I do believe in things happen for a reason. And I just think everything kind of happened for a reason. And I would never have been able to get a radio show or have

the success I've had independently with these podcasts. I mean, I probably would have had some on this one with Colin, but my other one, we didn't start it from scratch. And a big reason they gave me credibility to get a radio show on a top five market was I had worked in the NFL. So, you know, it was like almost meant for it to happen this way. I mean, I was a pretty good scout. I'm better at this. And this is way more lucrative for me. And it's more fun for me.

I like being in control. I enjoy the business aspect of things I get to do now that I never would have got to do in the NFL. Because you just watch players all day long, which, I mean, is fun. But for me, it just wasn't for me. I know some of my buddies that are best in the league at doing it. And they're great at it. and they can do that better than I can. I just, I would lose focus.

I was able to focus better back then. I would not be able to do it at my age right now. And it's not even like I'm that old. I just, I just had so many other interests. I like playing too much golf too. I didn't play any when I worked in the NFL. I just, I play a lot now. Is Matt LaFleur soft?

As I've watched Matt lead this team, there's no question he can unite a team. But you know teams adapt to the personality of their coach. The Packers seem more finessex than Harding gritty. The team gets punched in the mouth and can't seem to come back angry and pissed. Is that the coach's personality that should be considered? Punch in the mouth? I mean, they've won 26 games. As someone who questioned Matt LaFleur's higher early on, I might be wrong. They won 26 games. He's won a playoff game each of the last two years. Now, Tampa's more physical. They

were just better. He doesn't pick the players. Like, their defense is just flawed. Offensively, they were dominant. And that's his baby. Now, as a head coach, it's more than just Colin plays. He hires the coaches. So he didn't choose by Petten, though. That was forced on him for Murphy. Well, he fired him and he gets Joe Barry. So now we're going to see, like,

that was his handpicked defensive coordinator, Joe Barry. Because he had juice. You know why he had juice? Because he'd won a lot of games. Like, are they soft a little bit? Reggie White ain't walking through that door. Leroy Butler ain't nowhere to be found. Geyer Alexander's not soft

Kenny Clark's not soft I is he Bill Parcells no but is Sean McVeyer or Kyle Shanahan No Was Kyle Shanahan's defensive line tough because he's some tough coach Or because they had Buckner, Bosa

and Armstead Like does Was the Rams defense awesome Because McVease is a defensive guy No They have fucking Aaron Donald And Jalen Ramsey Now he does get credit

For hiring Brandon Staley But like I don't view any of the Shanahan offensive guys like they love running the ball which to me is a physical characteristic but are they like tough Bill Parcells Harbaugh types no so I

I've come around on Matlafflor my question is about scouting smaller school players is from Matthew I appreciate what you said but I just don't want to read all the compliments though I do enjoy them but you can't let them go to your head

the NFL has had many players make the big time by coming from smaller schools. Examples, Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens, Shannon Sharp. As a scout, when you see players from smaller schools stand out, how do you determine if their dominance is due to their talents or simply a product of playing weaker competition? This is a great question.

When I mentioned earlier, Ramsey's Barden, who the Giants, any Giants fan or, you know, if you fall football knows, he came from Cal Poly when I was there. He broke Jerry Rice's records when he was. when he was at Cal Poly. And Ramsey was like 6'6. He was enormous unsalvable. Well, obviously in Division I, AA, there wasn't a corner in the conference

who could hang with him. Like, he just destroyed people. If you would have put him in the SEC, he would not have been as good. Because once he got to the NFL, he couldn't get open. So it is very, very hard to determine when you're watching Trey Lance.

You can see the physical attributes, but he's ultimately doing it against guys that are not going to play in the NFL. Now, just because, you play in the SEC, if I'm a pass rusher or I'm a wide receiver, every game I go up against a guy that might not be an NFL player. But four or five times a year, I'm going up against a first, a second, a third round pick. So I can watch that game and see how he plays against an individual that's also going to play in the league. One thing Belichick has done, I think he's talked about it,

but it's just well known in the league, he watches the previous year's tape. So if you come out as a senior, he'll watch you as a junior because the guys you played when you were a junior have been in the league. So he goes, well, you were beating this. If you're a defensive tackle, you were kicking this guy's ass. He's a starting guard for the Packers. Right. You beat this team's, but this center starts for the bills. We drafted this left guard. So I can put two and two together. It's really hard to do that in smaller level programs. What you have to do is siphon out the physical attributes. Is he fast enough? Is he strong enough? Does he? Does he? Does he have the speed?

If he's a quarterback, does he have the arm strength? If he's a linebacker, does he have the play speed, the tackling ability, whatever it may be for the individual position? But it's difficult. It is a projection. It is an educated guessing game. And then you also just project him to other players in which he plays like. But yeah, it's much easier to feel confident about your evaluation on a guy from Oregon,

on a guy from Ohio State, on a guy from Texas, right? than it is from Weber State. Now, just because you're playing at Weber State or McNeese State or insert whatever small program does not mean you shouldn't be drafted in the top 100 picks. Does not mean that once you get to an NFL training camp,

you can start. It's just easier for a general manager to convince his coaches and his owner that the guy from a bigger school you should pick. Because like you listed some guys, is it fair to say all three of those guys are outliers? I mean, Jerry Rice is the greatest or wide receiver of all time.

Terrell Owens probably third behind Randy Moss or hell, maybe second. And Shannon Sharp is a Hall of Fame tied in one of the greatest pass-catching players in league history. So I would, you can't use the true outliers, right?

When talking about quarterbacks, we can't compare everyone in Mahomes. We just, you need to compare people like Kirk Cousins, right, to Jimmy Garaplo, just to like middle of the road guys. When, I think too often in,

meetings. I was never great at this and I'm not good at this. Some of my friends in the league are really good at this doing player comps. I think too often with player comps, unless you're like a guy going in the top five, if you're like a second or third round pick, I should not be comparing you to Hall of Famers. I should be comparing you to starters. Hall of Famers are the 1% of the 1%. And it's just a natural reaction, right? This guy is going to be like that guy. Well, it's way better to be like, you know, this is a Jerry Judy's like Marvin Harrison. you know what jerry judy might just be like uh i'm just trying to think of a random player the problem is you don't ever talk about random players right you would never be like you know amari cooper

he's gonna be like uh he's gonna be like brandon lloyd you'd be like uh i'm out right you'd be like amari cooper he's the next you'd say marvin arson right you just use that for route runners big contest catch guys You wouldn't be like, you know, C.D. Lamb, he's the next Michael Crab Tree. You'd be like, ah, do I want to take him in the first round? But if I go, hey, C.D. Lam's the next DeAndre Hopkins, you perk up. You go, damn, you know, Keenan Allen reminds me of. And you say a pro bowler, you're like, damn, I want that guy. If you say some random guy, like, ah, I don't know.

I don't know if I see it. Like, if I tell you some wide receiver next year's coming out and I compare him to Sammy Watkins, it would hit a little bit different than if I compare it. compared him to Devante Adams. Like, damn, I want the next Devante Adams. I mean, who do we... Trey Lance, he's the next... He's got a little bit of Mahomes

and a little bit of Josh Allen. What if he's just like Dak Prescott with a better arm? That's pretty good. But if you said that, you'd be like, ah, I don't know. The irony is Dak Prescott makes $40 million a year.

We always, you know, like, it's like math. You always round up with player cops. You always get like, you'd rather compare him to Reggie White than some random defensive end. But we all know the reality is more likely, there's only been one Reggie White.

After listening to the last episode, what do you think about college football introducing relegation where the bottom three teams of the conferences, SEC, ACC, ETC, play the top three teams of another conference for a chance to move up into those conferences? The problem is the schools would never agree. Because if I'm in the SEC, let's say I'm Vanderbilt, who has an excellent baseball program, but football pays the bills. And my football team sucks. I profit off being in the conference.

I make my 50, 70, 80, whatever the money is going to end up going to from just playing in the SEC. Even if I win three or four games and get my ass kick. That money floats my athletic program. Why would I ever vote to get relegated? If I was Tennessee, who has been very, very up and down and more often than not down, I would never, ever risk it. Bama wouldn't care. LSU wouldn't care. but the lower Kentucky's,

what if they have a couple of bad seasons? All of a sudden they're playing to like keep their spot. Too much money, too lucrative. The money's gotten so big. The key is you want to get into the country club that they can't kick you out. Once you're in the club, you're in. That's why Texas and Oklahoma want it in the club.

Obviously, Oklahoma brings a powerhouse football program. Texas brings a lot of eyeballs, but they just know they're in. You know, it's a big deal for no different when the Big 12 was going, like Kansas State, just being in the Big 12 is a big deal. The Pact 12, like Oregon State being a part of the conference, it's a big deal for them.

They don't want to have to fight for their spot every year. And that's just not the way it works. You know, and that's just the reality of the way pro sports and college sports now work. Once you're in the conference, unless the conference gets disbanded or top teams leave, you're kind of grandfathered in. You're set.

Now, I think we're going to see a lot of change, right? And who knows? It's only going to grow. So these conferences are not going to shrink. They're only going to try to add teams. Fascinating the way it plays out. Appreciate everyone listening. Have a great week.

Have a great, great week. And I will see you guys Friday. Adios. Becoming a magician takes thousands of hours. Right, Ashley? Oh, I'm not a magician. I'm a design specialist at the container store. But you transform closets and pantries.

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Just doing my job. Hurry, you only have until February 13th to save 20% when you purchase $500 in Alpha. Get started with your free design at the container store today. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite.

Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman, help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an acapella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me.

84 is big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a hear, unpack what went down and try to make sense of how we survived it with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. It was a wild year.

It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing.

human potential. Either way, the podcast 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. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed

professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor. It signals to the world that you not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to, listen to learn the hard way on the IHard radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart podcast. Guaranteed human.