The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Aaron Rodgers and sponsorship backlash, Should the NFL get rid of the hard cap, Is Kyle Shanahan overrated

Episode Date: July 2, 2025

John is back with a massive mailbag show as he gets you ready for the holiday weekend. John answers all of your questions from Aaron Rodgers to the NFL salary cap, to which NFL coach might be the most overrated in the NFL.  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.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas.

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She's an outsider to win the French fame. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lina Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now. And I actually can win on any service. Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. 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 IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The volume. What is up, everybody? How are we doing? I made a mistake where I did not bring a piece of my traveling audio equipment.

It's basically the thing that holds up. everything together. It connects my mic, which is like a mic that, you know, a high level mic that you would use in the studio to my computer. It's this contraptment called a H4 Zoom recorder, and I left it on my desk. So I had to improvise. I had limitations on what I could get immediately. I had to go with a USB mic, which is horrendous. So I apologize for the audio. Mike Malone, the old Denver Nuggets, won a championship with Joker, once said when he was the King's head coach, he hated when any player ever said,

my bad, he said, my bad, get your ass kicked. He was still right, because it's like, when someone says, my bad, like I dropped a ball, my bad. You screw up at work, my bad, no shit. We know you did it. You know, this is my fault. But you don't need me to tell you that because you can hear it. The audio quality is not up to the,

the three and out middle cough standards, but I didn't have any other options. Somehow I'm staying across the street from a target, and it might be in, I haven't been to, I don't know, 50 targets in my life in various states and various places from Hawaii to Philly to California. It's the worst target I've ever seen in terms of electronic section. It was a joke. So it didn't help me out much. I didn't have time with Amazon. So this USB mic is going to have to work. So again, apologize. I'd say my bad, but we don't say that in my family because we know it's your bad. I screwed up. So let's dive in. We're going to do a mailbag at John Middlecoff. At John Middlecoff is the Instagram fire in those DMs. Get your questions answered here on this

little old podcast. Happy 4th of July week. Hope you're having a good time. Enjoy yourself a nice pool, a nice lake, a nice ocean, some cocktails, some beers, your family, some hot dogs. Is there anything better than a good hot dog? a brusky at like 9 a.m. on 4th of July, so hopefully everyone's having a good week, a better week than Malik Beasley. I saw he just, the dude's, the dude was in debt over his ass. He is obviously was in deep with gambling. If one Big J writes an article and blames anyone but Malik Beasley in this situation, I just Googled it before we hopped on, you know, People love blaming gambling.

I've been gambling for 20 years. He's made $60 million in these 28 years old. I do not want to hear anything from anyone blaming anyone but that guy. Because it'd be one thing. You know, Malik Beasley, young player only made a couple million dollars, made some bad decisions. I'm like, listen, could, let's 23 years old. I could 60 million dollars in career earnings. and he was on pace to make another 50 in this next contract.

I'm sorry, bro. I don't want to read one article on the athletic about like pointing the finger at someone else but that guy. But before we dive into some football, God, it's head scratching. I need to tell you about my friends, my partners, and the official ticketing app of this podcast game time, game time. Best in the business. They use them for everything. From games, you want to go to a baseball game, you want to go to a football game, concerts comedy shows you name it just take the guesswork out of buying tickets with

game time download the game time app create an account use the code john for $20 off your first purchase terms apply again create an account redeem the code joh8 john for $20 off download the game time app today last minute tickets lowest prices guaranteed okay at john middle cuff let's uh let's do some mail bag questions at john middlecuff easy at john middlecuff uh Sebastian just checking to see if you saw this not sure if you answered this already But I'll add to it. Which quarterback would you have called had you had just taken over the Raiders? I think what he might be referring to is we had on John Spitech, the GM of the Raiders.

And he made like, I don't want to say an offhanded joke because he was kind of serious. But he said people, their job might hit the floor. Or maybe he'd be embarrassed to say, maybe that's what it was. Maybe he was like, I'd be embarrassed to admit. who we called in our pursuit of quarterbacks. And then I kind of threw in the jab like you called Andy Reid about Mahomes and he said no. But then I started thinking what quarterbacks could he have called that would have been pretty insane? Right.

Like would he have called on Lamar Jackson? Probably pretty doubtful. Would he have called on Josh Allen? Probably pretty doubtful. So I think it's fair to say Mahomes, Josh, Lamar in their own little category. I don't think you'd waste that call if you were him because you just know even if you offered Max Crosby and seven first rounders,

which I actually think, I think I read one time or I heard on someone say that the max you can offer is four, even though I think the most we've ever seen is three, which is weird because you could offer your entire draft, but you can only offer four first rounders. Could be wrong on that because I don't think we're ever going to see that. But I would imagine you call on Joe Burrell. Cincinnati's a weird place.

Now, I think you have a good idea what they're going to, to say, no, but I think that is the one elite quarterback in which you would call. And you're okay, obviously, you know you're probably going to get a hell no hang up. But it's just, that place is fucking weird. And once upon a time, Carson Palm read it up on the Raiders from the Cincinnati bangle. So you just never say never. Justin Herbert, no chance because he's in the division.

You wouldn't make that call. Like C.J. Stroud. Jaden Daniels, probably not. Then I think you start getting in the world of like Brock Purdy, Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, you probably Kyler Murray,

kind of that kind of group. You know, Jalen Hurst just one. You're probably not calling him. But I would imagine anywhere from six to like 15 you're calling on every one of those guys. And you end up with Gino Smith. So I would call on all those guys. But I think Burroughs the one elite guy

that you're just like, hey, why don't we just place a call? What do we got to lose? Mike Brown getting mad at me? Who cares? Aaron Rogers, on Aaron Rogers. Do you think the sponsors like State Farm knew he was weird? If they knew he was weird, they would have given him the deals?

I knew once his immunization comment, he was done being a double check guy. I think he would have made less had he had the endorsement money he made. I think he would have made less than had he. I'm not quite sure what that means. You think he would have made less in the NFL? My husband told me, don't bother on the enigma, waste of time, and can't see him the same. Yeah, I mean, I think culturally the time, it was a very, like, if you said I would never get a COVID vaccine in 2025, absolutely no one would give a shit.

And 90% of people would be like, yeah. Anyone under like 60. Like, yeah, I'm not letting that touch my body either in 2025. But in 2020, you know, it's all about the timing, culturally, the way he was on the forefront of that. It was a very hot button issue at the time. And only one message was allowed. You know, things, think culturally how different things are now, right? I actually see a lot of people going the opposite way.

I'm not even just talking about the immunization. but just in society. What flies, what doesn't fly. So a lot matters at the point in time you're at, right? And everything in 2020, 2021, honestly, I didn't even notice. I mean, it's clear he hasn't been on these whatever commercials in a while. But in terms of at that time when they dropped him, he was just getting crushed. And it was for, like, I'm in agreement.

It was over the COVID. stuff, but I don't think, I just think it was a time and a place. And it was such a hot button issue and he was the most famous guy in the NFL. Do you know this, that like Sean Peyton, Kyle Shanahan, Gruden, Andy Reed, there was like six or seven of them that kept getting fined. Sean Peyton and Kyle Shanahan were getting fined constantly for not wearing the mass and pulling it down all the time. And they refused to pay. They never paid. And somehow, like they told Gruden, because Gruden ended up cutting the league like a $100,000 check. And Sean Payton told him on a phone call, like, you're fucking nuts. They'd have to come to Chase Bank and fight me over that money.

So it's like, it's not like anyone took away Sean Payton's juice or earning power. I mean, he had a movie made about him. So I don't know. I think some of that stuff's stupid. And listen, you, like your marketing power for Aaron Rogers, he probably cashed in pretty big time. You know? Now, if you're these corporations, like they like things, pretty cookie cutter, right? And when they're going to pay you a lot of money, they need you to buy into whatever they're doing. And State Farm doesn't want controversy regardless, like politically, who knows what the people running.

their campaign politically think or care. They might be completely aligned. But they don't want to have to deal with that. So it's just I don't want to deal with anything. I want everything as straight as possible. Like Patrick Mahomes, pretty easy corporate partner, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson. It's like they're just not that controversial. They just don't say anything.

Which you could say is kind of fake in the sense that they actually have beliefs. There are things that if they said would make major. headlines, but for them, it's just not worth it. And where I would defend them is like, why do you want to deal with the, and I actually hate this term media backlash. Like, what does that mean in 2025? Honestly, like the newspapers, I don't know one person that reads a newspaper beside my 75 year old mother. So it's like, who are social media? You know, are we at the point where if you're a corporation, you still care about what the comments say on fucking Twitter? I mean, our Instagram. But,

Maybe they do, and some clearly care more than others, and they don't want to deal with any of that shit. And when it goes wrong, whichever way, it can become a major pain in the ass. The shows this summer have been excellent. I'm especially fascinated by the business and finances of the organizations and how it impacts the play on the field. Question. Do you think the emergence of private equity investment is a potential game changer? I see it as a vital lifeline, potentially for family-owned organizations like the Bears and Cowboys. big brands without a lot of cash on hand. I think Jerry has a lot of cash on hand.

I can't speak for the Bears, but I wouldn't put Jerry, you're correct, where they are still considered a mom and pop shop, right? It's family-owned business. But in terms of cash revenue, you know, like Walmart was a family-owned operation for a while. They were printing cash like they were the number one company in the world, right? Bezos was leading the charge at Amazon early on. I wouldn't call it a mom. mom and pop operation, but it was like his operation. So I put the Cowboys in kind of a unique

place, but like you said, it's not like Jerry had started Microsoft or has all these other companies that generated them revenue like some of these other people. Steve Balmer, I saw on a podcast recently said that his dividends from Microsoft, obviously can change a little bit on a yearly basis, have recently paid him over a billion dollars a year. Just the dividends of his stock. Think about that. So, you know, sometimes, and I'm guilty of this, like, oh, bombers got more money than everyone else. When you hear that, you're like, Jesus, how good. So he's already purchased the team, cash, right? He's, he already built the building. And then he just has this side revenue stream of dividends. That's pretty fucking nuts. I mean, it truly,

that's pretty crazy. That's, when he said that and you just really kind of start to think about it, You're like, God, the Clippers, no wonder Jeannie had to sell because they're going to get to a point. I just saw Shea Gildes Alexander. He's making $70 million a year. I think a big reason all these NBA owners sold, granted, they 10, 20 X their money because the expenses were about to go and they are currently through the roof, right? You have three or four guys, multiple guys in your team making $50, $60, $70 million. So you have three human beings accounting for potentially $150 million. Where in the NFL, your salary cap, even once it gets a $300 million, it is a group of 55 guys, right?

53, 45, whatever. The number varies team to team because you've got some injured guys, you got whatever, but it is a larger group of players. So just statistically, you have a better chance of injuries and balancing it out. And the money you get from TV always pays for that. We're in the NBA. It's a little more, obviously they're making enough money

to pay the players, but it's clearly a little more fickle. So I think why a lot of these NBA teams paid or bought, you're sold out, because the money was so huge. Same thing, like you said, with the NFL,

because it just helps them breathe a little bit. I will defend, I'm always critical of rich people, like super rich people, right? I'm not talking like, guys worth a million dollars and still counts the tip on a calculator. Like, I get it.

But if you, you are worth $500 million and you're like stiffing a waiter over a $20 tip or something. Like, you're a fucking loser. You know, and we see some of these owners who are just, who are, who are, who are frugal to the max. It's like, guys, your television revenue is paying you $450 million a year. Your player salaries are $275 million. You do the math. You are guaranteed to win. You can't pay everyone in your building enough money to even come close to not make it a 30% guaranteed profit on just that television revenue alone. Where like, I just think it makes people uncomfortable. And listen, some of these guys also, they get leverage, they make other investments.

Like I follow the Niners pretty closely and they have invested heavily into international soccer. Well, that's not cheap. You know, Jerry, we just had a family friend who was hanging out in Italy. that just saw Jerry Jones's yacht, right? I mean, I just was actually watching this yacht show on Amazon Prime. I'm not really in to like, if you're like, hey, John, you're with a billion dollars. Would you want a $50 million yacht? My answer would be no.

I don't really mess with the ocean. I like looking at it, like having a cocktail on the beach looking at it, would not want to be on the ocean with a yacht. But these yachts, the show, like, I mean, these rich people are paying $50 to $100 million for a yacht. And you start having some of these expenses. And I think most human beings can't relate. As you start making a little bit more money, your lifestyle usually changes a little bit because you just up sell yourself in a bunch of different things. And all of a sudden, yeah, you might have gone from 50 grand to 100 grand.

But over a couple years, like, I don't even feel like I have any more money. Where you go from like 100 grand and then all of a sudden, five years later, you're making 200 grand. You're like, it's not like I feel a lot richer because your expenses go up. And I do wonder the private equity. My question is less about a cash influx. It's like, okay, I get $600 million or $800 million. Are you actually using that money to fund these contracts? Or did you use that money to just feel better about yourself,

have money, I don't know, in some sort of fund that pays you 6, 7% where you can make a lot of money? I don't know. That to me is a million dollar question that truly only these owners would know and would talk about. Pro golfers drive for show, but they put for dough. The easiest shot for you to make some dough, betting on this week's tournament at Drafking Sportsbook. From the opening round through Sunday,

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Bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance for additional terms and responsible gambling resources. see dkng.com.com slash audio. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas.

We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to a... We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts around there. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember.

I think it was on a call about what we should call it. And, well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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 I-Heart Revenue.

Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness. So when a swaggering Armenian businessman catapults Jacob into an extraordinary world, he doesn't look back. Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, meeting the president of Turkey. I'm Michelle McPhee, and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracy. I've ever come across.

When Jacob met Levan this went to a billion dollar fraud. But with two kings from entirely different worlds, just how long can their empire survive? The largest tax investigation in American history. You need to tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Jacob told Levan, you're ruining my life. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the I-Heart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you. you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies,

and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight, From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife-Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Stumbled upon Collins' feet a few years ago and have been a fan ever since. Thank you, Mike. While I love the hard cap in the NFL, I think some flexibility would make the league better. Imagine at the bottom five teams were allowed to go 20% over the cap. And 6 to 10 were allowed to go 10%. Do you think it would help shift franchises like the Panthers, Browns, Giants, Saints to get out of the gutter? Let's use the Browns as an example.

Jimmy Haslam spent more actual cash than any owner over the last, I think, four years. I think in terms of actual cash, not like the salary cap and like the cap hits, I'm saying actual cash two players. I remember reading an athletic article. I'm pretty sure it was over a billion dollars over the course of 21, 22, 23, and 24. No owner in the NFL, Jeffrey Lurie, Jerry Jones, who's not even that high. The Niners, like the high-paying teams spent as much as Jimmy Haslin. So just because there's a hard cap doesn't mean that you can't give more cash. So Jimmy Haslam has tried to do that and hasn't worked.

David Tepper could easily do that. And it just, it hasn't worked. Like, you've got to get the coach. The reason the Panthers have lost is not because they don't try or because of like money reasons. It's because they've hired shitty coaches, right? I mean, it's just that simple. Now, this guy might be good. We'll see.

But the reason the Browns have lost is they gave $230 million to DeCon Watson. I've said this before, and I'll say it again, because I think it's as simple of a way as I've ever heard summed up the NFL process from a front office team building standpoint is how he said this a couple years ago during the draft. He said, every team is allotted the same amount of cap space and the same amount of draft picks. You just choose how you use it. Every team gets a first through seventh round pick to start, right? you get, depending on who leaves in free agency, you get comp picks. And every team has $250 million or whatever the salary cap is that year to build a roster. You choose how you want to allocate those funds.

And then if your owner is aggressive, like a Jimmy Haslam, like Jeffrey Lurie, you can cheat the system. So I don't think it's necessary to do what you said, but I hear you. I have a question regarding Kyle. I don't get the narrative of him being a great head coach. losing record without Christian and playoff success only with loaded rosters. He has a lot of influence on the draft and resigning players. The IUC extension looks really bad. His players frequently hold out.

I can't see these things happen frequently to guys like Harbaugh, on Peyton P. Carroll. Pete got rid of Russ and robbed the Broncos when his value declined. Hat, he had Russ and he went to Gino and won basically everywhere. why is Shanahan talked as a great head coach? To me, he looks like a great O.C. Who's a bit over his skis as a head coach? Do you think the Niners should opt for a change sooner than later?

You have to understand Kyle Shanahan took over one of the worst teams I've ever seen since I've been watching football as an adult for 25 years. The 49ers were a fucking joke. Their roster was pitiful. Their culture was an embarrassment. Their team was unwatchable. Three years later, they were up 10 points with five minutes to go in the Super Bowl. in a roster that he was in control of.

So when you say a loaded roster, he built the thing. And from 2019, goes the Super Bowl. Two years later, he's in the NFC championship again. And the other thing where he gets credit is like he's winning these playoff games with Jimmy Garoppel and Brock Purdy. He's not winning him with some great quarterback. I think he's won eight playoff games. So whether your roster is loaded, which he's in charge of, or not,

you get credit in the NFL for winning the games when 40 million people are watching. And I've been critical on Kyle, but where I cannot be critical of them in the biggest fucking games. And these are regular season games too. Late games, late season games against Seattle, multiple times. A big late season game against the Rams in 2021. When the playoffs are on the line, when the number one seeds on the line, his team has shown up and kicked ass and came out victorious.

He went on the road and beat a Mike McCarthy 12-win team. He went on the road and beat an Aaron Rogers MVP led. team. You just get a lot of credit for that. Like Kevin O'Connell, everyone blows them for winning all these regular season games. And then the playoff games come. And like Kyle, he doesn't have Patrick Mahomes or Joe Burrell. He loses. I like Kevin O'Connell. I got nothing against him. But he is discussed like he's Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVey. Yet in the playoffs, two out of the last three years, he's had won all these regular season games and gets worked.

Sean McVeigh took him to the woodshed, bent his ass over, and took him to Poundown. Like, he got embarrassed in that game. Now, you can say it was on the road, I mean, on the road for Sean McVeigh, too, fires, they had to displace to Arizona. That just hasn't happened to Kyle. You want to get on him for losing twice to Andy Reed and Patrick Mahomes? Okay. Or Sean McVeigh in the NFC championship game with a 10-win team?

Okay. But Kyle's won a lot of playoff games. A lot of playoff games. And even in the Super Bowl, the two he's lost, his team showed up ready to play. And took leads. So it's like, I'm watching Kevin O'Connell. Everyone's like, oh, Kevin, Bill Walsh. Can the guy win one playoff game?

One. One. You know, everyone's shitting on Mike McDaniel. Everyone's like, oh, this Mike McDaniel. Look at that curly hair and those foo-foo glasses and his $50,000 watch. watch, what's different between Mike McDaniel and Kevin O'Connell? Neither guy wins in the playoffs, win some regular season games, sexy offense. Again, I would take Kevin O'Connell over Mike McDaniel, but I'm just being honest here.

Let's just, let's call a spade a spade. You got to win some big games. So I give Matt LaFour credit. Went on the road a couple years ago, beat the hell out of the Cowboys. That's a big win. You know, you get, you get every, what's every, playoff win worth. I'd argue every playoff win, especially on the road, should be like an extra year coaching the team. The 49ers going to get rid of Kyle Shanhan for who? I mean, what would

their options be? Look at some of these guys that get hired. And I feel like I'm the most critical guy of Kyle and then with questions like this, I got to defend them. Have you heard any one refer to the Colt situation as a curse? Hear me out on this one. We have had nothing but bad luck at quarterback positions as the fans booed Andrew Luck when his retirement was leaked during the preseason. We have been decent at positions but cannot get the quarterback right. I believe wholeheartedly the Colts have bad luck, no pun intended. There have been a lot of curses in sports. Would like to get your opinion. It's a good question. You could argue that God gave you Peyton Manning and for however many years, 98, I guess you guys suck.

those couple years in the 90s. But from 2000, for that decade, it was pretty sweet. I mean, you were the second best team in the league, basically the entire time behind the Patriots. You beat the Patriots to win your Super Bowl. You went to another Super Bowl where, I think if you play that Super Bowl 10 times, you probably win it more than you lose it.

Yeah, you were on basically Monday Night Football. You were just a team that really mattered. So, you know, yeah. Yeah, I mean, are you cursed? I don't know if you're like, curse the Bambino, but you did cut Peyton Manning. And then for the next three years, he went on to lead the best team. It was the right move.

It was the right move. Trading Dave Ruth was not the right move. But you did cut Peyton Manning. A couple more questions. When the Owen 13 Jets upset the 9 and 4 Rams in L.A., the game ultimately dictated that Trevor Lawrence went to the Jags and led the Jets to taking Zach Wilson. Could you play a hypothetical scenario where the Jets lose out

and end up taking Lawrence with the number one pick? Do you think the AFC landscape has changed at all? Or is the effect minimal? Yeah, I'm a bitter Jets fan. That's a good question. I think it'd be kind of similar. I guess the Jets have had a better team than the Jags with Trevor Lawrence in terms of like you guys hit on some good players.

But I have a hard time seeing my, I don't know. I guess the domino effect would, Aaron Rogers would not have been traded to the Jets. Maybe the Steelers just trade for Aaron Rogers right then. So maybe the domino effect changes right there. There's Aaron Terry's Achilles for the Steelers. Do the Jagdraft. Zach Wilson.

To me, the more interesting part is like the butterfly effect, the domino effect of quarterbacks and the butterfly effect of Aaron Rogers. But I don't think we look at Trevor Lawrence and the Jets like you guys are some consistent 9-10 win team. Good question, though. Okay, we'll end on this. Great work on Colin. A bit of a long question for the mailbag.

I work in contracts and acquisitions. Successful guy then. As someone who got into this work because I always love the topic, the process of contracts in professional sports, I was wondering if you could share some insight into that role in the NFL. You've mentioned contract negotiations before, but how does one become a contract negotiator with the team? Do you start as a scout and work your way up? Do you have to have a financial background? Or is it done in-house with GM John Schneider mentioned his involvement a few times and an agent representing the player? Keep up the great work and success.

Well, let's dive into that because I wanted to welcome you to chasing challenges brought to you by Microsoft in the NFL, just like in the business world, overcoming obstacles is key to success. Microsoft empowers business decision makers with AI solutions, simplified cloud and data management, and trustworthy, responsible technology to turn challenges into opportunities. In this segment, we will explore some of the biggest challenges being faced in the NFL and how they can be able to be. overcome. Whatever challenge you're faced, Microsoft empowers you with the expertise to say, bring it on. This week, we've discussed the challenge faced by all these contract negotiators. We see holdouts. We see the Niners have dealt with a lot of them. Obviously, the Bengals are dealing with them. I think most contract negotiators for a team, the guy in charge of the salary cap, tends to have a law background or a finance background.

usually the scout background when the guy gets into that is when he becomes either the assistant GM or the GM. You know, John Schneider, I would say, became a household name evaluating players, not negotiating contracts. When I worked for the Eagles, it was unique because Howie had got his start and came up on the contract side. So he had a law degree, and he worked his way up dealing with. with agents and then got in on the scouting side and then became the GM and merged the two.

But I would say most scouts, especially the ones I know, Jason Light, SpyTech, Veach, am I missing? Adam Peters, those type guys, got into the business college scouting, pro scouting, you know, helping with this guy's worth trading this many picks. And then I think, like you said, you learn that. you start getting, hey, will you call this agent? Will you deal with that? But in terms of the language of a contract, right?

Yeah, I talked to Jason Light about this a couple years ago at the, at the draft or at the combine that, you know, you kind of learn as a GM. It's kind of like trial by fire, but you are very dependent on the guy negotiating your money. Like, for example, the 49ers. Parag Marate is like the York's money guy, the Scors. guy's fucking genius. Known him for a while. I haven't talked to him a long time, but he's

an extremely smart guy, and he's really good with money. And he, for a long time, negotiated the contracts, like when Harbaugh was there, and then with Kyle and John, now they have people under him. But, like, obviously, you're not going to negotiate a contract

if the head coach and the GM don't want it. But, like, are they negotiating every single kicker of a contract? You have individuals who job it is to get on the phone maybe with Drew Rosenhouse or maybe one at Drew Rosenhaus guy and just get the basic parameters of what we're looking for and what they're looking for. And then people write it up and then they get involved to me most of the time with the bigger picture stuff.

Right. Like was John Lynch when the Purdy contract was being negotiated on the phone every single day, you know, talking the specific language of the kind? No. And he's talked about this before. He gets involved when it's like, how can we get a deal done? Right. You're not like, Maria is in real estate.

She's not doing every single detail of the contract. Some of it's already written. A lot of these NFL contracts, the parameters of a position is already set in stone. You just push the envelope on one thing. You relent on another thing. And then you kind of find some middle ground. Right. So I think most guys.

and this is what's going on with Troy Hendrickson. You know, that's a situation where everyone in the organization's involved. And then there are situations like Micah Parsons where it's like, you kind of got an idea what the money's going to be. That's one where Jerry can just either got to give a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Right? But a lot of these contracts, you know, the rookie scale now is pretty easy. But, you know, if you're signed free agency can be, you know,

Free agency is a sell, like the free agent's market. It is not, it's not a buyer's market because it's really, really expensive. So they kind of got you by the balls. So they're, you know, during that time, your negotiator is on the phone and they're like, well, we got three different offers. So you're offering $6 million. I got three other offers that are close to nine. So it's like, you can be like, oh, you're bluffing or like, see you later. And that's where I think from a scouting perspective, you kind of learn those skills. And when you've done it, you have a pretty good idea. But you have to have a pretty good idea of the market, of how good the player is.

So there are a lot of, I think, more than ever. It used to either just be the GM was in charge or the money guy was in charge. I think there are more people with their hand in the cookie jar on these deals than ever before. Because we're talking, I mean, guards are making $20 million a year. So that's an excellent question. And it's a big challenge for these teams. to figure out who's in charge of that and when do the big decision makers get involved. So that's it for this week's chasing challenges.

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