The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 3 & Out - Jayden and Bo make a statement, Penix doesn't play, Tua SOUNDS OFF

Episode Date: August 20, 2024

John dives into the different coaching styles between many different coaches during the preseason, Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix making the most of their first two preseason games and living up to the hype, is sitting Penix the right move for Atlanta, Tua goes off on his former coach, and a classic story of urinating on a plane. Later, John answers your questions in this episode's mailbag segment. 7:24 - Preseason coaching styles 18:48 - Penix sits the preseason 21:51 - Tua sounds off 32:43 - Peeing on a place 40:42 - Mailbag Follow John on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for the latest. Check out Gametime - the fastest growing ticketing app in the US, and the official ticketing app of 3 & Out and GoLow -  for tickets to all of your favorite NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA teams. Concert and comedy show tickets, too. Go to Gametime now to create an account, download the app and use code JOHN for $20 off your first purchase. #Volume #HerdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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What is going on, everybody, John Middlough, 3 and Out podcast. Hopefully everyone is doing well. Having a good day. Having a good start to your week. Jaden Daniels, having a good start to his week. He was named the starting quarterback. I think the question is, is Bo Nix next in the last. line. Michael Pennex, meanwhile, didn't play in the last preseason game, won't play in the next.

The Falcons have seen enough. Have a little theory on why they're trying to avoid that controversy coming down the train tracks. But the Falcons will not play Pennix in either one of the final two preseason games. He obviously didn't play last weekend, won't play in this upcoming one. And then Tua Tua had some interesting comments on Brian. Flores, who I think this one is going to be tough for him to shake because you don't treat the quarterback well, which is something me and Colin talked about

when it came to Belichick and his assistants who clearly struggle. And it's why they fail so hard because most guys are not Tom Brady and can take the berating every single day from a head coach. Most guys are treated a little different. And I think Flores attacked Tua like he was a practice squad guard

and we'll play some of the the audio because it was pretty eye-opening. And then a story I saw today about a former NFL player urinating all over a passenger on a flight that just...

Honestly, after I read the entire story, I do think there is a defense there for him. I can relate not to the situation but how if you are on what he claims he was potentially on it could be uh it could throw you for a loop let's just say that and then of

course the middlecough mailbag at john middlecoff is the instagram fire in those dms get your questions answered here on the show very very easy to do just fire in those dms we will answer some of your mailbag questions today me and colin did a podcast on sunday afternoon you can find that on his feed it's up youtube i also reacted after the Sunday night games. So we did a podcast yesterday. YouTube as well. So go check that out. You know, subscribe to the three and out podcast. If you listen on Collins, as well as the YouTube page, all of our content is up there. And recording some interviews this week for next.

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redeem the code, J-O-H-H-N for $20 off. Download the GameTime app today. Last-minute tickets, lowest prices. Guaranteed. One thing I think we've noticed in the preseason, is these coaches have different ways of doing things, right? Andy, no hesitation, rolling out Mahomes and Kelsey. We're playing our ones for several series. Some teams don't play a soul. Other teams, you know, Kyle, a little weird, puts Purdy out there with some randos, every coach does it a little different.

And like most industries, there is not one right way to do things. There are different approaches. I know personally, you know, if I owned a team, if I ran a team, I would be scared to play my high-price players, but I get the old-school mentality. Belichick did it. Andy still does it. Mike Tomlin does it.

Guys do it. And I completely understand it. I also fall under the category of like, I get why not playing anyone makes sense. But some coaches, and I think this is definitely an old-school mentality, want to make a young player earn it. which makes sense. You're bringing them into a locker room. Just because they were drafted high and immediately get a huge signing bonus because of their draft slot does not make them a great leader.

Does not make them be a guy someone resonates with. They have to earn that. And the Bears, Caleb Williams, before the first OTA practice, they're like, he's our starter. He's the guy. I got it. Why would you not? We've been talking about the guy for three years. Look who else who's on the roster.

What are they going to say? Like, we're going to have him and Tyson Badgett battle it out. Like, come on. But you look at Washington, they signed Marcus Marietta, who great guy, not very good player. I get, listen, this guy has a lot of experience. We're going to have not necessarily a quarterback competition, but Jaden Daniels is going to have to earn it.

Sean Payton, also old school guy, same approach. No one's acting like Jared Sidham's the next Tom Brady. But it's like, listen, Jared Stidham's our charter coming into camp, and will let the chips fall where they may. And I think all you can ask for, if you're a coach, if you're a GM, or if you're a fan in that situation, just have the guy go take it.

Have him go earn it. And obviously with quarterback play, when you watch in the preseason games, it's hard with context, who's actually playing, who's in the game. Preseason is just a wild experience. Last night after I recorded the podcast,

I go out to the living room and watch in the second half of the 49er, Saints game. And there'd be guys and Maria, my fiance, I'd be like, who's that guy? He looks decent. I'd be like, honestly, I have no clue. No clue. I had to Google him. Tanner Mordecai, the four stringer for the 49ers. Played at seven different schools. Had a little some success at SMU. Finished his career at Wisconsin. Did not go well. And

looked kind of good. Didn't know anything about him. And then you watch some guys, you're like, I know the whole guy's life story. He's playing like five in his left in a preseason game like Jake Hainer. He's from Danville, went to Washington, transferred to Fresno State, me and him texts about golf. And you just know a lot about him. And it also speaks to like random guys at bigger programs. And it's quite the exercise. Because you see guys, God, I remember watching him on Saturdays for the last three years. And you'll see other guys, like, where is this guy from? So it's hard to put it all in the context. And depending on who you're playing, even if you start the game, you never know they might be

playing their twos and threes right off the jump. But, Jaden Daniels, the moment, listen, the hype, and we've been talking about this for a while, it is only grown and grown and grown, and then you watch them in the game, and it's clearly going to translate. There was no discussion. They make him the starting quarterback. Sean Payton, which I think was even driving a harder bargain when it came to just announcing it, because as of recording this on Monday afternoon, he still hasn't. Like, the decision was made. I'd argue the decision was made the moment they drafted him, as long as he just did what he's been doing. but he's exceeded expectations.

Because like we said, obviously Caleb, hype huge, didn't have to earn the job, was handed it, and he deserved it. Like he was the best quarterback on the roster. Jaden, also super talented, running, passing, deep balls elite. Great guy, everyone loves them. Boom.

Just what are we waiting for? To me, the Bo Nicks, like the nail in the coffin, was Sunday night. It's like, what are we talking about here? The movement, the arm strength, the accuracy, the, playmaking, and clearly Sean Payton likes them. And I saw Diana Rusini, I think, wrote it in the athletic that it will be announced

in the next couple days. Get ready. And I would imagine she's good buddies with Sean Payton. Like, it's over. And I think if you're a fan of the Denver Broncos or Washington, you should be excited. Because these guys showed up. They did everything the coach wanted them. And then in the preseason games, they flash their serious talent.

Now, preseason to the regular season is dramatically different, right? They're game planning against you. A little more difficult with a rookie quarterback. You've got to go back to probably college to really nitpick their strengths and weaknesses because you don't have much film on what you think they're going to do against you. I mean, they're just running relatively basic plays in the preseason. But you want to attack, like any player in an NFL game or a college game, a player's weaknesses, right?

and you want to try to get him not be in positions where he can excel and play to his strengths. So I think this class has a chance to be awesome. And these two guys on top of Caleb just answered the bell and they answered it quick. And I think that's cool. It's fun. It makes the league more intriguing. I mean, these guys, think about Caleb, Oklahoma SC, he was a superstar really from this freshman year when they were going to lose to Kansas and he ripped the ball out of the dudes' hands, the running back to get that first. down. That's my first memory of the guy. And maybe my first memory. I don't know if that game was

after the Texas game when he came in a halftime. It was awesome. But Jayden's won the Hidesman at LSU played in a few big ones last year. And obviously, Bo Nix, from the hype that he had when he started that Auburn game as a true freshman against Justin Herbert in Oregon to where it ended up these last two years playing at Oregon, one of the best programs in the country and dominated. Now, I think the thing with Jaden is you're like, God, great deep. ball, big time athlete, just coach this guy up, this is everything you want. That's why he went too. Bo was pretty polarizing. And I remember going back before the draft, or maybe it was after the draft, watching some cutups. I'm like, I don't know, this guy's talent, like I've seen Jimmy Garoppel and

Derek Carr, guys like that come out of school. And I thought he was of that mold. He's a better athlete than both. And Derek, when he was younger, definitely had a much better arm than Jimmy. Jimmy's arm's not good anymore. I thought Jimmy's arm in the middle of the middle of the his career was solid. And Derek's arm to me is still, I would say, slightly above average relative to the top guns in the NFL. I would say Bo Nix, it feels like has just as good of an arm as Derek, if not better. So arm strength, obviously the quick release.

And then the stuff that we don't know is like, you got to get along with your teammates. You've got to understand the offense. You have to be on the same page with your coordinator, your quarterback coach, the offensive unit as a whole. Your offensive linemen got to believe in you. And I think that's a huge key. And I don't want to keep beating a dead horse here. But I saw it firsthand with the 49ers when they tried to hand the job to Tray Lance.

And the other guys on the team just were not feeling it. I mean, they were just not on board. Why? Because the thing in football, practice is kind of important. And in training camp, your practices are pretty serious. And you can tell, like, yeah, this guy's got something. Or I don't think it's going to be good. enough. Now, depending on the status of your team and who's around, how good you are, obviously

you listen to those guys more than others depending on the situation, but it's pretty clear all these guys have come in and hit the ground running. And that's to me the most head-scratching part about the Falcons. Because I look back and I went, well, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, right? Lamar was drafted, Flacco was on the team. Mahomes obviously drafted Alex on the team. neither guy was going to start. Andy's like, we're red shirt and this guy no matter what. That was the Ravens plan at the time, and then it was clear Flacco was kind of falling apart,

and Lamar came in the middle of the season. I went back and I looked at both those guys preseason logs, because it was clear if they're not going to start, they're going to be the backup quarterback. Both of them, Mahomes drafted a little higher, separate years, but still, one guy in the top 15, the other guy, the last pick in the first round, there's a lot of hype on that player once he comes to your team.

so no one wants a quarterback controversy, right? The worst thing I would say in any football situation is when you have a quarterback controversy, because that usually means you have a problem at that position. Now, sometimes when you draft a guy high, a quarterback controversy is just, is this guy better than the other guy? And I look at Patrick Mahomes. He threw 54 passes and played in all four preseason games, threw four touchdowns, no picks.

It was, I think, objectively pretty good. and pretty eye-opening in the preseason. Lamar Jackson, they actually had the Hall of Fame game that year, so he played in all five through 68 passes and several touchdowns. So it's like, listen, obviously there's going to be a lot of hype on this guy. We've got established players. They make a lot of money, but still, we are playing these guys to get reps in the preseason. Why?

Because ideally in the regular season, they're not going to play. So this is the only time. Like part of being a backup quarterback, I get questions about. a lot in the mailback, what is the logic behind a backup quarterback during this time of year? Well, usually you give them a lot of reps because this is the last time that they truly get to rep

because once practice situation comes, if you're starting quarterback is healthy, that guy is with the scout team. So his reps aren't with the starters. He's actually playing, and it might change a little bit as they've adapted these rules. The practice squad quarterback is allowed now

to be active on game day. type thing. But still, that guy could go over with the starters. What the hell is he going to do? I mean, most starters are notorious for like, I'm not giving up a rep. We don't have that much practice time on the field.

And I need these to get ready for playing the Steelers, playing the bucks, playing the Cowboys, whoever our opponent is that week. I mean, Brady, Manning, these guys were famous. They never give a snap to the other guy. So really, they get the work

on the other side of the field against the defense. And Rahim Moore, says, yeah, we saw enough. Penix is good. We're scrapping them for the season. And it's like, at first you see that, because I went to click on the game. I'm like, where's Pennix? It's like, oh, Taylor Heineke's slinging it around. I'm like, what's going on? Is he injured? And then Rahim Morris said, no, we're good. We've seen enough. And then I started thinking, because that's what I do. I spend a lot of time thinking about football and I went, I got a little theory on this one. Because I remember watching a week ago, this first preseason game.

And you know what Michael Pennix looked like? Michael Pennix. sitting in the pocket slinging it around slinging that pill and i went well they got a young impressionable team this is why we red flagged the whole situation it's like well the majority of their players skill guys on offense are young who are they going to relate more to panics or coles cash and listen a healthy kirk cousins is a really good player but he's coming off a major injury he has no equity with the franchise and let's face it the fans base and just people talking about the team would be if he struggles, hey, remember how good panics looked in the preseason?

You got a problem. And they have the ability to kind of mitigate the conversation by doing this. So not allowing him to play actually is hurting him because he's going to be your backup quarterback and this is a good time to just get NFL reps. But they don't want to do that. Why? Because the better he looks, the more touchdown throws that happen, the more. more loud the conversation would be in terms of,

why don't you just go to Michael Penix? And you can say, hey, ideally this guy doesn't play for two or three years. Easy to say now, what happens all of a sudden if you're three and three and it's not looking quite as smooth? And a lot of people like, middle-class, you have an ax to grind with the Falcons? I do not. Rahim Morris seems like a good guy. Kirk Cousins really come around on the guy.

Have a lot of admiration for what he's done with his career. but we've seen this song and dance before, these type situations. And this is not a franchise that you just feel confident. Chalk them up to win the division. Because that's all everyone's doing. Oh, they're going to win it. The odds reflect that the way everyone talks about it. What have they done to earn that status?

They got good players. They've just made a couple of moves last week. They were pretty impressive. Right? Add as a sweet safety. Add Matt Judon, who's like, listen, not even going to ask for more money. Come in here to work. Come in here to prove my worth.

Seems like he's in good spirits. Honestly, it just seems like I don't want to play in New England. I don't want to risk my last contract being on this trash team and people looking at me, I'm one of the best players, if not the best player on the team,

and it just ruined my value. Get me out of here. Smart move on his part. But, come on. Let's call a spade of spade here. They did this for a reason. They want to avoid controversy. And they want the early

part of the season. If Cousins, I don't know, is a little rusty, why torn Achilles last year, they don't want everyone chirping. And let's face it, people still will be, but there is less to do that if Pennix plays these last two preseason games, throws an extra couple touchdowns, throws that beautiful deep ball down the sidelines, it's like, uh, why don't we insert this guy? They don't want that. And let's face it, it's going to be hard to avoid, but I think it's pretty clear what they did. Oh, we've seen enough in practice. He's a rookie. I mean, Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, all these guys play a ton in the preseason. And they weren't even the starters.

So, come on, come on, guys. Me and Coward, we discussed Belichick on Sunday. And the situation, you know, when it comes to defensive coaches and kind of his fall from grace, and the situation once Brady left, how bad it got, and also the reflection of his assistance. because I guess the way the conversation started was comparing him to Andy. And if Andy wins another Super Bowl, how good's Andy's been?

I mean, he's gone to the playoffs with like McNabb, Garcia, he's Philly, Alex, Mahomes, Michael Vic. I mean, he's one with a lot of different quarterbacks. He won Super Bowls with them all, but went to the playoffs. We saw Belichick, Mom's Brady left.

It's like, geez, what the hell is going on here? And I still defend Belichick because I know what I saw for almost 20 years wasn't elite coach. Obviously, him and Brady, perfect marriage. But you get out of that marriage, like some people outkick their coverage, right? And then you make them single again.

It's like, okay, do that again. And some can do it, no problem. Other struggle. And clearly, Belichick, when it comes to the quarterback position, you could argue there are some question marks. But I think when you look at his assistance, one thing Bill really benefited from is the relationship he had with Tom.

He could coach him like he was a backup guard. Scream at him, MF him, call him out. That just doesn't typically happen. It doesn't mean Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar, Peyton Manning, Rothersberger, you name all the best quarterback, Rogers, aren't getting coached hard over the course of their career. They are treated differently because they are different. They're the most important guy on the team.

they're the highest paid guy on the team and you can't really function without that guy and there was a story it wasn't even a story, there was a video that kind of went viral today and it was Tua who people probably listen to this think I hate Tua. A lot of respect

for the guy. Honestly, I think he's a really high character guy and he is maximizing all of his potential in the NFL. My issue with the Tua situation is don't love paying him $50 million a year. But that's,

more of a salary cap team building standpoint. He's proven more than a functional NFL starter. I think we could debate where he lands in terms of the 32 starters, but he's a legitimate NFL starter. I've never said otherwise. I also think, Tua came from Alabama.

You would say Nick Sabin's pretty old school, and he's a hard ass on most people. He coaches people hard. And Tua was taken back by Brian. Flores. Let's just take a listen to Tua describe the difference of his new coach, McDaniel, and what his experience was like before. To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you, you suck at what you did, that you don't belong doing what you do,

that you shouldn't be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven't earned this right, and then you have somebody else come in and tell you, dude, you are the best fit for this. Like, you are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that. Like, how would it make you feel listening to one or the other? You see what I'm saying?

And then you hear it, you hear it, regardless of what it is, the good or the bad, and you hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that. I don't care who you are. You can be the president of the United States. You have a terrible person that's telling you things that you don't want to hear

or that you probably shouldn't be hearing, you're going to start to believe that about yourself. And so that's sort of like what ended up happening. And it was, I mean, it's basically been, what, two years of training that out of, not just me, but, you know, a couple of the guys as well that have been here since my rookie year all the way till now. Well, on the president thing,

I don't know if Biden's remembering much, negative or positive that he's hearing. But on a serious note, I think one overarching angle that all these Belichick assistants take is clearly they just try to copy Bill and are awful with quarterbacks. Patricia didn't get along with Stafford. Obviously Flores was a royal a hole toa. Josh McDaniels, that situation when it came to quarterback and Derrick Carr blew up after a year. we can debate Derek all we want he gets along with everybody

because I think they saw the way Bill treated Tom and they try to do the same that doesn't work and Flores became pretty polarizing the lawsuit he claimed Stephen Ross tried to pay him to tank

which I got news for you he should have because that would have led to Joe Burrow but would that have changed anything like would he have treated Joe Burrow that much different than Tua I don't know I remember talking to assistant years ago about Flores and all these assistant coaches know their assistants.

They talk to each other nonstop. And he was like, I can't even explain to you the things I'm hearing from the Miami offensive coaches. How terrible Flores is with those guys. And clearly that included Tua. And listen, I'm not acting. You know me like Tua is some star here. But what's the point of beating the guy down?

every day. Like, he's on your team. You kind of need the guy. Are you questioning his mental toughness? He just comes from Nick Sabin. This guy's not coming from Cal Poly or UC Davis. He's clearly been pushed and driven pretty hard. And if you can't deal with the offensive coaching staff slash quarterback, you will never be a head coach in this league. So even if you remove the lawsuits and everything that happened with the alleged being paid six figures to tank, once you get the label of being awful with quarterbacks and awful with offensive staff members and you're a defensive guy, you're untouchable. You really are.

I mean, we can debate all we want about some of these defensive coaches. Mike Tomlin might have an awful season this year. It's because its quarterbacks suck. not that he can't deal with him Russell's just not good enough neither's Justin Fields and if they end up going 7 and 10 and it's a disaster

it won't be because Mike can't handle that unit in that group and deal with those guys as human beings look at John Harbaugh the way he deals with Lamar he said like two weeks ago I wanted him to be the best quarterback of all time any young person

if you make it to the NFL as a quarterback and your highly drafted guy more than likely like you got some metal toughness to you. You really do. And if I'm going to draft you fifth overall, like I have to believe in some of your intangible characteristics. And this goes back to Patricia.

Matt Stafford was established. Couldn't stand the guy. Josh McDaniels and Derek Carr, that thing was a disaster and it was bad fast. This to me, though, is like, I don't view Tua as some like hot take just throwing things out there. You see it in his eyes.

Like, this guy beat me down every single day. And if you're a young person in any walk of life, no matter what your industry is, no matter if you're the fifth pick in the draft or you're like an intern, you know, at some firm, having some people to give you some positive reinforcement does help. It doesn't mean they can't be on your ass and push you to be better. Anyone worth their salt can take some of that. but if all you hear every single day 24-7 is negative stuff

Bill could pull it off because no matter what they were going to be in the AFC championship game or win when you're not winning and you just have to deal with negativity all the time no one can overcome that it's not possible

it really isn't because it's already negative that you're losing and then it's just negative in your building like I heard when Josh McDaniels was with the Raiders the atmosphere in the building couldn't have been any worse. That's not a way to operate in 2024. Times do change in terms of I believe that guys in the NFL now

still like to be pushed hard. Most of the good players have no problem being coached hard. Getting screamed, most of them depending on your position, get yelled at all the time. But like, is there anything substance behind it? Or is it just yelling to yell?

Is it just being a dick to be a dick? And all I ever heard from people in the league, like, that's what was happening. And clearly you just listen to Tua, like, what do you expect? And I'm telling you, like, Brian Flores, how could you hire him after watching that? How could you hire him?

You're telling me the most important guy on my position or on my team, the quarterback. The guy, if it goes well, I am going to pay by far the most money in the history of my team and we're going to treat that guy crappy? It doesn't mean that you have to circle jerk them every day.

It doesn't mean every day Andy and Vech come into the office they get on their knees and they bow to Patrick Mahomes. But you kind of, not everyone should be treated the same. In some of these high-end industries, some people are more valuable than others. That's just a reality. And when I saw this,

I was like, I had heard rumblings, obviously, but when you hear it coming from Tua's mouth, you go, yeah, I get it. I want to ran him out of town too. Don't expect to get hired when that's on your resume. I mean, I'm sorry. Because the other thing is we can debate how much Tua's worth and should they have paid him,

but another coach came in, who's an offensive guy, treated him well, and they've gone to the playoffs two straight years. Because no one can argue before is a really good defensive coordinator, knows what he's doing. Hell, when he was in Miami, they were good on defense. Like, Forrest is really good.

But if you can't deal with the quarterback, how can anyone trust you to run the team? Headshaggy, really is. Okay, this story, we had to talk about. It's just, I don't even know where to start. But Goster Cheralus, former high pick, offensive lineman, massive dude, was on a plane flight. He was going from Boston.

to Ireland. It was an overnight flight. And I guess the flight had been delayed a lot. And the headline I saw is that former offensive lineman is arrested for emptying his entire bladder for 20 seconds on the person sitting next door. I mean, I'm sorry. Like, it's not funny, but it kind of is funny. I mean, you're telling me, on a flight. this dude that used to, listen, I don't even if you're sitting in first class, a dude 6,6, 300,

280 pounds is by far the biggest human on the plane. And then he gets up at the middle of the flight and he takes a leak on you, all-timer. And I thought, is this guy just annihilated, wasted? And then I saw his statement because he rested, got in trouble, clearly. And it kind of made sense. He said that the flight was unexpectedly done. delayed for approximately four hours.

In preparation for the expected overnight flight, I took sleeping medication that I don't normally use, which resulted in behavior that is not representative of my character. I would like to apologize to the passengers and the flight crew. I guess he was, uh, that they tried to get him to leave the plane, but he became irate and uncooperative. I will say this.

I've used Ambien a few times in my life. Not a huge sleep aid guy because I hate that feeling in the morning of not being super fresh. But I remember probably seven, eight years ago, I wasn't sleeping well. I had a buddy, told me about it. Obviously, a lot of people use it.

And I used it for a little bit. I had a prescription. And I didn't really like it. One, because I could take melatonin or something, and I can still watch TV and kind of doze off. with Ambien, and I'm going to assume that's what he took, if you're not used to taking it, if you stay up for a little bit after taking it

when you're kind of feeling tired, you don't remember anything. I remember there were times I had a phone call and some other stuff on it, and you realize you don't remember a thing. So it is not inconceivable that if you had to take a leak and you were on a plane

and you're on Ambien and you're not used to taking it, like there could be video of you just taking a leak on on Julie sitting next to you and you're like, I have no recollection of any of that. That is not me. I didn't mean to do that. I didn't try to do that.

I wouldn't do that. That was not actually me as a human being. So while the headline, it's pretty hilarious because I can't imagine sitting like on the next row and looking over and just seeing this dude because I would imagine she's a sloth. sleep, just emptying the tank on her.

And obviously when you're that big, the tank ain't small. And then realizing, like, guys, this is going to sound crazy. And I don't know, maybe he's got checkered past. I don't know much about his history from a character standpoint. I'm assuming a good guy. Listen, guys, we're going on a long flight. Wanted to pop an ambient, take a little snooze, get up, Ireland, be ready to rock and roll. I don't remember doing that.

That ain't me. So, sucked for him, man, because there's no excuse. You're probably banned for life on that airline. 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. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered, competition. 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 Clivert 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tontans and wampas on the ice planet hot. or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole your mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam 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 was 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, so...

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

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. person. Join me, Keir Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free Our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Okay, Middlecoff mailbag time. At John Middilcoff,

Instagram, fire in those DMs. Get your question answered here on this little show. We call three and out. At John Middlecoff, Instagram. Eric. Big Bill's fan. I struggle to understand the Bill's love for Trubisky. The bill signed him to be a backup even after a terrible couple years in Pittsburgh. Struggles with throws down the field and his pocket awareness is poor. I understand the bills can't sign Burrow or Jordan Love to back up Allen, but Trubisky gives the Bill's zero chance to compete if Allen goes down. Bill's legend, Steve Tasker, states that the bills value the backup quarterback. What he can do in the locker room, and in the film room.

That is why Trubisky is valued by the bills. You know, sometimes I'll just be like hanging around, watching TV or whatever, and scroll through DMs. And a lot of them I end up reading on the show. Sometimes I'll just manually answer. And I saw one recently that the guy wanted the question answered on the show and who knows, I might not get to it or refine it,

but under the same vein as what goes to, into evaluating a backup quarterback. Now, the reality is, is you're not looking to find your future wife, right? Your starter's already established most of the time. So a backup is really just a contingency plan that you want to avoid at all costs. There aren't that many options,

like a bar at two in the morning. You know, Tom Moore was famously asked one time by John Gruden, who was at a practice. I think for Monday night football, right? Like the Monday night football was doing the Colts games. So they were at a Colts practice on like Saturday and went up to Tom Moore, legendary coach and asked them why the backup got zero reps during practice.

And Tom looked at him and he said, if 18 goes down were fucked and we don't practice fucked. So it's easy to have the logic. And clearly we saw Peyton went down. They have the number one overall pick. And I think that would happen for a lot of teams, right? Like, if Patrick Mahomes went down for two months, Andy's great, but he could only do so much with Carson Wentz.

We saw when Matt Stafford went down, you're at a disadvantage no matter what. I do think when you value this stuff, and obviously economics play a part in it, once you have a highly paid quarterback and a highly paid team, you're going to want to sign a backup for probably less than $3, $4 million. Ideally, you'd like to get a guy for like $1.5 million. But I'm with you on Trubisky.

If Mitch Trubisky has to play, we saw last year, you will lose. It's an automatic loss. I know people that have worked with Mitch in terms of been in a building, which he was a team of, really well-liked. And this goes, we talk about this a lot. being well liked is kind of important in most professions. It goes a long way, having people vouch for you. I do understand the problem in this situation of like, and I think I read today, Trubisky got hurt.

Gonna miss a couple weeks. But you have a guy like that on your roster, automatic L, auto L. So he's great in the film room, which I think that means helps Josh, just in terms of almost like another coach there. he's great in the locker room. Okay, he's a good guy.

Like, that can't be my barometer if the guy can't play dead in the Western. And I think that's a tough balance to kind of strike. Because like you said, what if Josh has, not a season ender, but just high ankle spring, out for a month? Can the guy go two and two? That's the way I would ask it if I was a coach in GM. Can we go two and two in a situation with this? Obviously, we'd have to play well. we have to help them out, but can we go two and two?

Or does it feel like an auto O and four? Best case, one and three. If that's the case, I just think you can't be the backup quarterback. Can't happen. But the value of being a good guy goes a long way.

Marcus Marriota, Mitch Trubisky, Mark Sanchez fell under this category. Chase Daniel, when they really like you in the other quarterback, who's the star, likes you, that's usually the Trump guard. And you just do Tom Moore. Prattie doesn't get hurt. Trying to figure out why Purdy was the only starter to play in the week's two in the preseason for the 49ers,

is the idea that Kyle Shanahan is still a little unsure about Brock Purdy? Well, Kyle gave the answer that Brock wanted to play. And Brock said need the reps, which I understand. I get, like I support any quarterback go, I value this time, I want to get some reps. I want to get hit. I heard, I was talking to an offensive coordinator, and his quarterback took a hit,

and they were getting on them the next day in the meeting room, and the quarterback was like, I wanted to feel it. I wanted to feel the pads. And they're like, I get it, but you can't take that hit. But the point is, like, you don't get hit in practice. You want to get the live route? All for it. My issue with the 49ers was simply like, if he's going to be out there,

Debo and Kiddle got to be out there with him. Andy ain't putting Mahomes out there with Kelsey and all the starting receivers sitting next to him in sweats. So if Purdy wants to do it, if Kyle's cool with it, I get it. But you've got to give him the guys that are sitting in sweats eating sunflower seats. That was my whole question. They literally played another team who rolled out their starting offense with the starters. So it gives the quarterback a chance to be successful.

Like, Trent's not there. I get it. But Andy plays the starters. He plays everybody. Tomlin plays everybody. I don't know. I'm still baffled by that one. Big fan, Packer guy, Senegal, West Africa.

International show, baby. If Green Bay makes it to the NFC championship game and Love puts up MVP numbers this year, is he definitely a top five quarterback in the league for you? I feel like he was unfairly criticized in the first half of the season. Granted, he wasn't great, but he was working with the rookies and inconsistent sophomores and was always going to struggle.

I think we struggle. I think Ryan Rosillo is really good at this about we overreact to half a season to one year, bodies of work. Like, it's pretty hard. If Burrell comes back and is healthy, like there are just some stalwarts right now that are playing at a really high level, right?

Mahom's been doing it for how many years now? 18 to 24. Josh Allen's been doing it now four or five straight years. Lamar Jackson's been doing it since 2019. Right? So, Dak Prescott, Kirk Cousins, like these guys' resume, to be a great player, it's about doing it for in a long period of time.

you could argue if CJ does it again I mean he's got two full years of playing at a high level so is he a top five quarterback he definitely has top five talent characteristics but to me to consider you a top five quarterback you have to do it over and over and over again that's where I think Herbert becomes such a polarizing individual

because his teams haven't won I blame Brendan Staley a big year for him to kind of either shut everyone up or continue to be polarizing it's my defense of Purdy Like if Purdy has another good season, the Niners win 11, 12 games and throws 30 plus touchdowns, like you can nitpick him because he's short.

I mean, but it was drafted late, but it's hard to dispute what he's doing and playing well in big games. Because I could see someone like, Tua! You got to play well in big games. You got to play well in the playoff games. And playoff games also factor in December when you're playing for seating

and playing for the division. I saw today that I don't even Was it a real headline? I say it on Instagram. Gino Smith wants a new contract. Mike Garofalo might have said that? I just laughed.

I like him. Good luck, buddy. I like Gino Smith, but new contract? Come on, man. What do you think the NFL's dream Super Bowl matchup would be for viewership for the brand? I think it would be Chiefs versus Cowboys.

Mahomes going for the 3P to make history in the Cowboys, the biggest brand in North America, sports making their long awaited return to the Super Bowl. Yeah, I would say this year would be the Chiefs going for the three Pete. I mean, the Cowboys are the biggest brand

in the NFL, so it would be them. I mean, the Niners are up there and they got 125 million people. So how many Cowboy fans didn't watch the Super Bowl? It would be my question. Like, the Super Bowl, you need stars, but, like, would there be that big of a difference

if it was Chiefs Packers, Chiefs Lions? You know, how many more people from a hundred people, 125 million, which is a very strong, educated guess. But clearly a lot of people are watching the Super Bowl. How many more people can watch Super Bowl? Now, my question is, if you're not watching the Super Bowl,

what are you doing on that given day? Reading, maybe trying to get more intelligent, maybe, I don't know, what do you do? I often think about, and people probably think, you watch so much sports. Imagine what you're missing out in life. There's probably some truth to that. I'm sure if I didn't watch as much football as I watched

and definitely as much golf as I watched, I'd probably read more books. I'd probably, I'd go on a decent amount of walks. I just don't know what else I would do. Besides, you could say you would read more. Okay, but other than that, like, what else would I do? Not a big hobby guy. I play golf, that's it.

Now that takes up some time. But never going to get the pickleball. Just refuse. What do people do? often wondered that like Jerry what do they do a mailbag question as the preseason winds down

and with your scouting experience what do teams look for in their str this was the question in their second string quarterback I think ideally most teams want a guy that they can win they look at it like a month

right because if Mahomes Josh Allen Lamar those guys go down for the season you're in major trouble we all acknowledge that. But if I lose my guy for three weeks, if I do a good enough job coaching, if my defense plays well, can we go two and three,

depending on the schedule? Can we win a game? Like, I've been Andy right now and Veach feel pretty good. They're like, we could win a game with Carson Wentz. I think the 49ers feel good. Like, we could win a game with Joshua Dobbs, a game.

And then, like, the Bill's guy, hit me. We can't win a game with Mitch Trubisky. I saw him with the Steelers last year. They couldn't win a game. I mean, it was what was, was it, the Colts on Christmas or maybe it was a Saturday game?

I mean, it was it was embarrassing. It was unwatchable. So I think you try to find the balance of can we win a game. It's why the Eagles got Kenny Pickett, because they go, can we just win a game with this guy? And you're watching the season ago, I don't know.

You have to check the other boxes. Low maintenance, zero issues, starting quarterback likes you, quarterback coach OC likes you. You're well-versed in football. You know the playbook. You can help guys out. You're a good teammate. I would say positive.

I need good vibes. So ideally, first I can win a game with you, and then there's a ton of intangibles. You're cheap for NFL standards. A couple million bucks. You're positive guy, optimistic, come in, you're not negative. You know the playbook. You practice and work hard.

And again, I never think of you. You're the last guy I would expect that in the morning, my PR guy, my head of security, my GM walks in the door and goes, we got a problem. You have to be last on the list of, we expect this to be the last human to get in trouble here. So it's why I said, a lot of the guys that play for all this time

saw Colt McCoy retired today. I would imagine Colt McCoy's approval rating with offensive coordinators, with his teammates, with his quarterback rooms is really high. I mean, close to a 10 out of 10. That's how you play 12 years as a backup.

And I would imagine a lot of offensive coordinators and head of coaches go, yeah, we probably could have won a couple games with them if we had to. For our team's good. First time messaging. Listening for over two years. Great job. I like this guy. Jake, appreciate you. Lifelong Raiders fan.

Live it in your old neck of the woods near Walnut Creek. Know that area well. My question to you is, after watching the Netflix dock and seeing what we've seen out of the Raiders quarterback play this preseason, would you blame Adams

requesting a trade if they start slow? He seems like a great. great human, being a real professional, and I feel like he deserves a chance elsewhere, beside Kansas City, to win before he's done. Obviously, it hurts to say as a Raider fan, but that's the truth. Plus, they would get a haul for him. Your thoughts. I think there's a slippery slope right now with him, that if this goes poorly, his value just naturally goes down a little bit. If you think about when the Raiders traded for him, they gave up a lot. Didn't they give up?

I don't know the trade in front of me. Was it a one and a two? And like a five? And he was worth it. I mean, he was in the peak of his powers. He's still really good. If you put Devante Adams on the Ravens, on the Bills, on the Chiefs,

on the Niners, on the Rams, he'd fucking dominate. But when you're on a bad team and you just don't get as many opportunities in the offense of disaster, like your value goes down. It doesn't mean you're still not an excellent player. I remember seeing this thing on Instagram where Jeff Bezos was talking about like 2000 during the dot-com crash.

He's like, I could tell our business was taken off. Our revenue was going up. It was like, we are going to be something big. He's like our stock price plummeted. It hit all-time lows. And I was never more confident in the business. But the value of the company when your public company was based on the stock price. It wasn't very good.

and it was brought down by, you know, the environment. And I think Devante Adams, you could argue if you put him in the right situation, he'd be a first team all pro this year, assuming he could stay healthy. First team all pro right now. But you put him on the Raiders and it's ugly. Can you get a first round pick back for him? I don't know. Which is crazy to say because I still think he's a first round pick value.

But when your play diminishes because of the circumstances, it just drives you down. So I don't know how it's going to go. I really don't. I mean, I have a pretty good idea that Raiders aren't going to be any good because I just think that quarterback room and Raider fans, not you, Jake,

but the fan base sometimes gets so mad. It's like, guys, take a step back. Your quarterback room is Gardner, Minchew, and Nathan O'Connell. You had a couple very serviceable years where you made the playoffs with Derek Carr, who played at a Pro Bowl level that year. That's not going to happen this year.

So how are you going to function in that situation? The answer is you're not. It's going to be tough. 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 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 what 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Boil Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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 kill? 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 y'all know.

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

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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, this 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? 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, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, our Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. This is a long one. For the back, this is a bit long. Even said it.

As a Bears fan, I like most of us still in awe of the fleecing of the Panthers getting Caleb, but I fear that there's a systematic incompetence within the organization developing quarterbacks. Caleb can manage the pocket well,

but we haven't seen many throws where he's gotten multiple reads in the pocket. I would agree. If you examine the last few guys, I think Justin regressed over time. I just, I think he's got some. some clear flaws. Under Nagy, he had his best all-around games.

See the Niners and the Steelers. But once Getsy and Iberflew showed up, they changed his footwork, and he got gun-shy, which is not what we saw at all year one. Trubisky, who clearly ain't close to an NFL starter. At least we all agree. You know, there are some polarizing players,

and there's just ones like, this ain't it, and he's one of those. I know Fangio led the defense in 18, historic run. We seem to be headed in the right direction with plenty of money, draft capital, and I don't know good players. Something Fields had almost none of,

but I fear with a defensive head coach, he may never fully develop and reach his potential. Also, I'm in full agreement with you on waking up and having no interest in talking to a soul, got a good laugh out of that tangent. What's funny is Maria had a bunch of stuff to do this morning,

morning hit the gym. I was kind of tired this morning. My alarm went off at 6 a.m., snooze that bad boy for about an hour. So she fired out to the gym pretty early. I was like, I, you know, I'll take the dog for a walk, probably, you know, 645, 7 a.m. and just, just a little groggy and didn't see a soul on the walk. I was like, oh, this is so great, have my headphones in. And then all of a sudden we're at this little grass area and another little dog comes up to me, Brody. I'm like, oh my God, I turn around the owners there. And sometimes I wonder, do people, because Maria so kind, knows all these people's names. I was like, I just, I'm just not in the mood.

And I'm not even trying to be a dick. Like, you don't want to talk to me either. I'm not, we don't have anything to talk about. We haven't had our coffee yet. I haven't got my sweat in. Let's just, let's just go our separate ways. And the hard part about that situation with the dog is obviously the dog start talking one of the other dogs.

And then you can't really get her to go. And you're kind of stuck in no man's land. And you're forced to take your AirPods out and have the most meaningless conversations humanly possible. Sometimes you have good ones. But if you're not in the mood and then you're like, God, is that person thinking I'm just the worst human alive? I think the way you should look at this season overall is to be very, very excited

and have a good time. I do think when you look at the bears, hard knocks, Iber flus, I like his look. If you got hair, I have no problem with you rocking a cool look, regardless how old you are. I'm in no position as a bald guy to judge anyone's hair flow. Everyone was talking shit about Mark Sanchez's flow the other night on television. If you got to rock it.

If you can do a cool beard, do what you do. I never understand people ripping other people. facial hair, hair, when they want to mix it up a little bit. I do think when you watch Iber Fluse coach in Hard Knocks, you go like, what's his thing? Right? When we've seen Hard Knocks with coaches, you knew exactly what Dan Campbell's thing is,

or Billy O'Brien, or even Robert Sala. You watch Iber Flutes like kind of players coach, kind of good guy, like he's a defensive guy, but he's always with Caleb. It's kind of lost in, he's kind of in no man's land. If you go, John, what does Iber Fluse hang his hat on?

I'd go, seems like a nice guy. That's what I would say, right? You'd just go around to like other good coaches. Just go in his own division. Dan Campbell, you'd be like, leader of men. Guy would lead the troops right into battle.

Win or lose, they're going down, swinging. LaFleur, offense. That dude can coach offense. Kevin O'Connell, same thing. Quarterback, offense, quarterback. Then you're watching Eber Fluce, you're like, the looking family, you know, nice guy, got a cool look going, I don't know.

And usually it just comes out, right? Even Sala, kind of tough guy, football guy, drop some F words, screams of people. I don't know. That's my question with the Bears. I'm not trying to be a negative Nancy on this one. I really don't know watching this. Whenever I've spent a lot of time around two coaches,

Pat Hill and Andy Reed, and their defined characteristics are very obvious, very fast. Pat Hill was a lot like a Dan Campbell. He was just, you just, you just, felt him, you know, just an old school tough SOB. And Andy comes off a lot like he does on television. Like, just easy going, intense, when football, and you got to know your shit, but like, he's in there scheming.

I don't know. Clearly it was Nick Saban likes him. Is that something? This from Bradley. What is the scouting process like for teams around this time of year regarding players for other teams that are fringe players to make the roster. For example, a guy who wasn't on your radar during the draft pops off the screen in some of these preseason games, but you also have a good sense that he won't make that roster

because of the positional depth. How do teams weigh not being a prisoner of the moment, but also jumping on the opportunity to find a diamond in the rough? since they are relatively low risk in that they'd be claimed off waivers, what due diligence is or isn't done just to get a guy in your building make a full assessment on?

Better be safe than sorry. Would love to hear your thoughts. Well, if you didn't like a guy in the draft because of character stuff, right? Like he is right up as a human. You didn't want in your building, but you like the player. I don't think much would change.

So, you know, let's say he plays, let's pick a number, 50 snaps in the preseason. You're like, holy moly. This dude's made 17 tackles. He can cover the tight end. He looks even better than I thought he was. But we thought he was a turd coming out. We didn't want him in the locker room, and we weren't going to draft him. I don't think you'd change there.

If the character was cool and you're like, yeah, we didn't love the player. And then you're watching him play and you go, I think this guy's a backup guard right now. But he plays on Team X, and he's not going to make the team. And our guards are not good. We like the guy coming out. Maybe we're a little off on him as a player. Again, you got to put it in context, right?

Are you just dominating in the fourth quarter? Like, there are a couple, there's some reps here in the first and second preseason game or the second and third preseason game where he's going up against some guys. that play on Sundays, and he's stuffing them, or vice versa. Like, we don't have very good defensive tackles. And this defensive tackle we were kind of low on, this fifth round pick,

I don't know if they got a spot for him on the roster that they might have to cut him. He's a pretty good pass rusher. Now, the problem is when guys have a lot of success in the preseason, and it doesn't have to mean snaps. It just means this guy's clearly good.

Like, you can see his tangible characteristics, whether it's a corner, maybe he doesn't get targeted, but you can see his speed, and you're like, guy, he's pretty natural out there. Or safety as a tackler, everyone sees that tape. So it's all based, like, if this guy gets cut, he's going to get claimed, and then the waiver order is based on the draft.

So the Panthers actually, it doesn't, it's not still based on the trade. The Panthers have the number one pick. So the teams at the top, when you think about it, the Panthers, the commanders, the Patriots, their rosters are really bad. So some of the top guys in the, they could claim four or five guys. And if you're the chiefs, if you're the bills, if you're the Ravens,

if you're the Niners, the Rams, the Eagles, you're not picking till the 20s or the 30s, right? So you can put a claim in on the right guard, the fifth round pick from, I'm just making up a team here. The Minnesota Vikings, they're going to cut him. But if other teams claim him as well above you in the waiver order, you don't get him. It's relatively easy to claim players in the regular season, depending on the situation. It's much easier to claim guys in the regular season than it is during this cutdown.

If the guys in no doubt about it, jump off the screen, there's certain positions, too. tackle, corner, wide receiver, if I need a wide receiver. Because think about some of the teams, like the Chargers wide receivers. There's a sweet wide receiver that get cut. They might claim one. The Patriots, they could claim one. The Panthers definitely could claim one. It's usually like, you know, I need a tackle.

Like the 49ers are like, we need some tackles. Well, you're definitely not claiming the best tackle that gets cut. Because that guy is 100% a lock to get. picked up on waivers in the top 10 usually. That's where it gets difficult. So you're playing a game of keeping your fingers crossed, but when you're a good team, it's just so far out of your control. And for the most part,

the Chiefs or any team that made the playoffs, the Lions, you really only have room for one guy in that situation. So you might only claim one or two guys. I remember when the Chiefs and John Dorsey and Andy took over, I'm pretty sure they claim like seven guys that first year because they had the number one pick in the draft the year they took Eric Fisher.

So I just don't think the diamonds exist with film. It's so easy now with technology to watch every guy. Your scouting department is locked in. I remember it's the only couple times I ever slept in the office was during the cutdowns leading up to it because you're just, you have so many players to watch. Now it's actually, it's harder and even.

easier at the same time because the rosters are bigger. When I was in the league, it was only 80 guys. Now it's 90 guys. And there used to be two cuts. There used to be, I think, 80 to... Maybe it was always been 90. Maybe it was 90 to 75 and 75 to 53. Now there's just a one big cut down.

So there's just a lot of names. This is a very, very busy time for the scouting department this week. Because you're trying to watch every player who, you know, had draftable grades or got paid. But then you also got to keep an eye on other random guys. Right. Like this was an undrafted free agent that they basically got for free or a guy that they let come to a rookie tryout camp.

He makes the team, or excuse me, he gets a spot to go to training camp, then all of a sudden he's kind of good. And they're like, shit, we might bring this guy in the practice squad. But maybe you want the guy in the practice squad. That's the other thing. You let a guy go through waivers. you can sign a guy

of a practice squad that's on another team. He usually has to choose, right? Does he want to stay with the coaches that he already knows or does he want to go to another team? You're as a team, you can offer that guy more money.

So there's a lot of moving parts right now. The overall number one key, I would say, is to get your roster right. All that stuff doesn't matter unless you get your roster right. You got to know the guys that are worth keeping,

the guys that are not worth keeping, because the moment you cut a guy, he could be gone. He can get claimed. So if you cut a guy, you're like, we really like this guy, but we're going to risk it.

That risk better be worth it because you might never see him again. And that's where I think all these conversations are happening right now. The amount of time that the head coach and the GM over the last 10 days and that we'll spend over the next,

I forget the cut down date, maybe it's Monday or Tuesday, are just looking at their whiteboard with the magnets, or maybe they have video versions now and just talking about the 53-man roster, the 53-man roster, I would say the overwhelming majority of teams,

good and bad, have a pretty good feel. I mean, the good teams probably know close to 50 of like the locks. Maybe there's a couple they're still debating. The bad teams are probably, I would say, low to mid-40s, and they're having a lot of discussions.

And partly because they're cool with claiming people, to. So it's like even if we only feel good about 46 of our guys, well, we might put in, if I'm the Panthers, 10 claims, right? Six claims. Well, if you do that, your original 53, you have to cut six guys of the guys you were awarded on the waiver wire. So that official 53, you're really not feeling good if you're the last guy on that roster for like two or three more days. Because if your team claims a guy, you're the first to get cut, and then you go to the waiver wire, and then you could get claimed for the following day, or make it through and

then go back to the practice squad. I'm telling you, I don't have PTSD, but it was one of the most intense times of years because of just the amount of players, the amount of moving parts, getting grades on every guy, making sure, you know, your GM, hey, I really like this guy, or tell your director, hey, we should look, we need some more eyes on this guy. And it's also based on your own team. Like, you're not, if you already know your quarterback room and feel pretty good, you're not wasting too much time on the quarterbacks.

You're specifically looking at like the chiefs, the Ravens, whoever the good teams, whatever position they have a question mark on in their team and, you know, the backups, they're evaluating that position very, very closely during this time of year. So it's also a fun time of year, right? because that guy might make the difference. You claim that guy, he's a backup. Who knows? Maybe your starter gets hurt week three, and that guy starts 14 games for the season, and it's good.

Hell, it might be an upgrade. I often get the question, hardcore Ravens fan, though I agree with the Lamar take, you have sadly, I often get the question, will the Ravens ever get over the hump in the playoffs? And I always give the answer, yes, because of the roster. I feel they get better every year. I would love the thoughts on the Ravens,

roster and how they will do this season. Also, if you have time, I get the question, is the 2,000 Ravens or the 85 Bears better? I don't have the Ravens roster in front of me, though I feel pretty good about it. You let Patrick Queen go. I mean, last year having Roquan and him was pretty dynamic. One thing the Ravens do a really good job of,

and they have for a long time, and I don't pretend to know your roster like the back of my hand. but you guys are really, really good at letting guys hit free agency. I mean, you've always kept your core guys, right? Like, you feel pretty good about a player. You give them a contract extension. You let him hit free agency, you usually let them walk, and you have a guy developing under him.

And then a guy that we don't know about, all of a sudden becomes a stud. Kind of like the big defensive tackle that you gave a bunch of money to last year. A couple years ago, like, I don't know if everyone was talking about them. I would say offensively, you got to feel pretty good about your coordinator, your quarterback, Zay Flowers can take a huge step. I think the curveball this year is Derek Henry.

Is it going to work? I don't know. Feels a little bit like a weird fit because he is, I don't know, I mean, him and Lamar, when I close my eyes, and I said this when I had the guy from the fantasy pros Patrick on about, it's hard to kind of envision. like they've kind of had, it feels like a little more smaller scatbacks than this big lumbering, you know, seven yards behind, handed on zone runs.

Not saying that they can't do that, but like, you watch Derek Henry some games, all of a sudden he can have 15 carries for 23 yards, and then boom, he hits it. Like, is that how the Ravens are going to play with him?

I don't know. Defensively, I think your defensive personnel is, always really good. I mean, Kyle Hamilton, one of the better young players in the league. Roquan is a superstar. But I do think

losing Mike McDonald's a pretty big deal. I would say, unquestioned he was the best defensive coordinator in the league. Obviously, you guys have good players, but he was elite. I mean, he's, I've watched some of his press conference. Like, he's

pretty sharp cap, man. That would be my question. would be losing him as a defensive coordinator schematically do you guys take a step back. I would say I was born in 1984. I would say in my lifetime the best defenses I've ever seen would be Seattle, would be the Bucks with Lynch, Barber, Sapp, Derek Brooks, and I would say you guys are the best defense I've ever seen. now you guys were tailor-made for that version of football right things changed you were way bigger than Seattle for example but Seattle was just so ready for the quarterback driven passing it around

you guys were built with Sam Adams Saragusa were just fucking huge it's like you ain't running on us and you couldn't so you know Seattle was much more like I dare you you to get in third and eight. You got no chance. All guys on our front can rush. Our linebackers are incredible cover guys, and we got D.Bs for days. So I would say

the best modern day defense was Seattle. The best defense, like 2000 Ravens could have played in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. The Bucks defense was kind of a hybrid. It could play in both. I think they would have been pretty good in the modern day

football, too. like the problem for you guys if you were playing teams now what would Saragusa and Adams when would they what if I just spread it out they wouldn't have a huge role okay last question

I never understood why spreads are more popular than prop bets when spreads have many more variables in the last Super Bowl many Niners fans could predict a bet on Jawan Jetting's hitting since Kyle loves him in big spots, and the chiefs have two stud corners to take out IUC and Debo.

But fluky plays like the muff punt or missed extra point affected the spread. You also have so many position groups to look at with spreads. I think you're looking at this incorrectly, because I play some prop bets in the playoffs. But if you have a prop bet on Lamar Jackson rushing yards, I did in the AFC championship game. I think I have $1,000 on it because I just went. well, Josh Allen just ran for 85 yards against the Chiefs in the second round. Lamar's over-under to get plus money was like 65 yards. I'm like, he could have 95 yards easily.

Well, if he doesn't run it or he gets injured, your bet's done. I had Debo a prop bet one game last season against the Browns. Like second play of the game, he hurts his shoulder and is out for the game. Where if you're betting on the spread, that team, unless the game gets canceled, you're always alive. Obviously some games you get worked. But like, the whole game is kind of interesting.

Prop bet, an individual guy, he gets injured, that thing is done. The majority, like, I think 85% of NFL games are one score going into the fourth quarter. So you're in the game. Because you have the team. I think it is way easier to bet safer to bet spreads.

Now, it's hard, right? I mean, it's, if you hit 55% of your bets as a sports gambler, you're a star. So it's not easy. But my experience with prop betting is,

it's just hard. I think in, I can't tell you how many times I've done over under Steph Curry points and missed every time. I think betting the team is way easier. Takes less thought also.

You act like it's more variables. Ultimately, it's less. Because like, hey, let's talk Eagles Packers. Okay, I haven't even looked at the spread of that game, but let's just assume it's, I could be wrong on this, complete guess. Packers plus two. So I just take the Packers plus two.

Well, I could take Jordan, love over under passing yards at 250 yards. What if they're just running the shit out of the ball? And they still win by seven points. And Josh Jacobs goes for a buck 50. And Jordan only throws, doesn't even get close, throws for 190 yards. But throws two touchdowns as is good. You don't even get close to hitting the prop.

But the team wins. I like betting the spread way more than props. Maybe I'm scarred. Maybe it's my individual experience that I feel like I've... I feel like I've lost 95% of the prod bets, I bet. And I felt very good about them going in. Good question, though. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite.

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